The Teller of Small Fortunes

The group then arrives in Turtling, a far more welcoming fishing village. The jovial headman invites them to set up their businesses in the central green. Business thrives for Tao while Kina’s baked goods receive a mixed reception. Experimenting with leftover ingredients, Kina creates flat golden discs that fold into interesting shapes when cool, inspiring a discussion about potentially hiding messages inside them. Later, Tao accompanies Mash to the local church, curious to see Eshteran shrines that she’s never dared visit alone as a Shinn woman.

Inside the church, they visit shrines to the Mother and her three Sons: the Soldier Son, the Scholar Son, and the Maker Son. The final shrine belongs to the Silent Daughter, the least popular deity who claims souls unwanted by the others. Seeing Mash’s grief as he contemplates this shrine, Tao considers using her greater vision to help find Leah, but she ultimately decides against it, fearing she would see unhelpful or terrible visions instead.

The group enjoys several profitable days in Turtling, with Tao growing increasingly comfortable with her new friends. Their evening conversations turn to rumors of political tensions between Eshtera and Shinara, with Mash suggesting potential war preparations. Their spirits lift when Turtling’s headman brings news of bandits in Whitelake matching the description of Leah’s kidnappers. They immediately set off for Whitelake, and during their journey, they acquire another unexpected companion when Kina adopts a mangy one-eyed cat that she names Fidelitus.

In Whitelake, they find a scarred prisoner matching the description of the bandit leader. When Tao reads his palms, she confirms his claims that he raided Windmere but took no children, devastating Mash, who has lost his only lead. Despite this setback, the group decides to continue traveling east together. Tao encounters Esther, the woman from Havelin, who thanks Tao for her fortune and says she is happy in the nunnery. Mash takes this as confirmation of Tao’s abilities, and he asks for more details about finding his daughter. However, Tao can only affirm that Leah is alive in Eshtera, and he will find her. Wanting to help Mash in some way, Tao gives him the luck potion that the witch in Shellport gave her. Mash is surprised and touched, but he decides to save it for when he is closer to finding Leah.

After two days in Whitelake, the group heads out, traveling northeast toward the mountain towns of the Saltpeaks. Eventually, they discover that a man on a horse—a magefinder dressed in orange robes—is chasing after them. He explains that he has been following the trail of Tao’s magic since Shellport and is relieved to have finally caught up to them. He summons Tao to appear before the Guild of Mages so she can be trained to use her magic for Eshtera’s protection. When Tao refuses, the magefinder is stunned—he assumed she would be honored by the summons. Tao tells the magefinder that her magic is not powerful enough to be useful and quickly rides away. The magefinder threatens to report her to the Guild, but Tao doesn’t back down. Her companions are nervous because the Guild is powerful, and they don’t want to be designated as its enemies. 

That evening, Tao reveals to her friends that she does possess the greater vision and explains why she does not want to use it: She used it only once as a child when she foresaw her father’s death. Despite her warning, her father died exactly as she had seen, leading Tao to fear that her vision itself may have caused his fate. After sharing this painful memory, Tao weeps as her companions offer silent comfort.

The morning after Tao’s confession, a subtle but positive change permeates the group’s atmosphere. While alone by the campfire, Tao and Silt share a deeper conversation, and he reveals his difficult childhood without a father and with a mother who resented his existence. Silt explains that Mash was the first person he could truly rely on. He also awkwardly asks Tao to help him with his romantic interest in Kina, but she admits her inexperience with such matters.

As they journey toward the mountains, they encounter a massive troll that blocks their path. It claims that progress is meaningless and existence futile, claiming it was “cursed” by a mage who opened its eyes to life’s pointlessness. Despite Mash’s attempts to negotiate, the troll refuses to grant them passage until Kina confronts it with a passionate argument about finding purpose in life’s small joys. Her speech about choosing happiness despite life’s brevity impresses everyone, including the troll, who agrees to let them pass. When the creature asks where it should go since it cannot return to its caves, Tao suggests Esther’s nunnery as a potential destination.