B.F.HUUPS
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33. Planning to leave
🕑 Added 2023-10-23 01:05:27 +0000 UTCArriving back at the squatter house, Earon found Lexi sound asleep and quietly crept back into his own bedroll and turned in for the night.
Light pierced through cracks in the wall, waking Earon earlier than he had hoped, but he had things to do anyway.
Lexi stood not far away, talking to someone he didn’t recognize. Not that Earon could see much from his obscured view, anyway - that and a cowl hung low over the figure's head.
“Morning,” he said, rising from the bedroll.
Lexi nodded at the man. The man brushed his shoulder and then he disappeared into one of Saner’s many alleys.
Lexi turned to Earon with a wide smile. “Morning,” she said, perking her cheeks.
“Who was that?”
“Nobody,” Lexi said with a dismissive wave.
“Seems this city is full of nobodies,” Earon said under his breath.
“What?”
“Nothing,” Earon flashed a smile.
“Today I was thinking we check out the bounty hunters' guild, they might be able to help with your situation.”
"Sounds as good a plan as any," Earon agreed as he got to his feet.
Taking little time to get ready, the two exited the hovel, walking through the lower city and toward the harbor.
Earon glanced over. A smile perked up Lexi's bubbly features and her step had an unmissable buoyancy to it.
As they walked through the crowded streets, the Knights of Saner with their iron cuirasses, embroidered with golden emblems marched by in a column of eight, their heads held high. They seemed taller than the guardsmen and knights Earon had seen back in Ome; perhaps due to their oversized pauldrons, and feathered helmets.
“I always wanted to see the Knights of Saner when I was a child,” Earon said.
“I hope they live up to expectations,” Lexi shrugged.
"You're not a fan, I take it?"
"Me? Why should I be? They claim to be pious and chivalrous, but what help do they provide those who really need it?"
"People like those where you live?" Earon probed.
"Them, and others."
"Do you think that should be the job of knights, and not bureaucrats?"
Lexi shrugged. "I dunno, Earon. But I do know that if you claim to do good, there should be something to show for it."
"I suppose you're right there."
Lexi turned to Earon, her soft features as perky as ever. "Enough of this dreary talk."
"Agreed," Earon nodded.
Secluded to a shady corner of a small courtyard, in the noticeably gritter, lower quarters, was the bounty hunters' guild. Inside was a small office with a reception desk, behind it and filling the entire wall was the bounty board, Hundreds of bounty notices hung from it, most having several copies nailed to the board by single nails. In front of it, manning the reception was a weedy-looking man with low-hanging glasses.
"Ahem," the man coughed, glancing up at the duo with indifference.
Price tags scribbled across recycled paper hung from each of the bounties. Nothing came free, and paper wasn’t particularly cheap. Each bounty cost at least ten coppers, but none were worth less than a hundred, and even that was basically unheard of, with most being several hundred coppers or more, with at least half the board taken up by those offering silvers or gold coins as a reward.
Earon was broke but he hadn’t come here in the hopes of picking up bounties. He was looking for other hunters. This had always been a backup plan. He would lean on his new status as a caster, and try to find a bounty hunting group to join, one that was setting off Ome, or at least somewhere across the Clain.
Earon had gotten much stronger, and in record time, but not even that was enough to give him confidence in crossing the Clain alone, especially not with all the rumors that traveled these days.
Lexi waved him over.
“Najan, meet Earon, the caster I told you about,” Lexi said with a smile as she pointed Earon out to the meek, elderly man.
Najan was a simple bookkeeper, but he wasn't defenseless. Three guards stood about the room, dressed in studded and hardened leathers over light linens, with scimitars hanging at their sides.
“Take a seat, friend,” Najan said, speaking with a lisp. Scuttling out from behind his desk, he made his way over to a table and chairs, set in the corner and beckoned for Earon to follow. “Lexi mentioned you're a caster. If you can handle yourself, that would make you quite valuable amongst our clientele.”
“I am, and yes, that's why I'm here.”
“And you are exactly? It helps to know classes, for our books.”
“A warlock,” Earon said with a meaningful nod.
“Interesting, can't say I've heard of it. What exactly can a warlock do?”
Earon stood. His powers were still a little novel to him, and he prayed to every god whose name he knew that they would be impressed. Dipping into his pouch, he gripped one of his pebbles between his fingers. “Can we go outside?”
Najan shrugged and rose from his chair.
Outside, Earon scanned the surroundings. A bundle of hay sat beside a building across the cobbled road from them.
Earon engaged his rune, channeling mana into it, and focused on increasing the weight of the stone as much as he could but restrained from activating it. He pulled back, steadied his aim, and flung his wrist with a whip of his arm, activating the rune a fraction of a second before the rock left his fingers.
It flew across the road at an unbelievable speed, completely out of character for its size, and burst the bundle of hay into a cloud of broken grass.
“Not bad, my friend,” Najan said, strolling up to Earon and placing a hand on his shoulder. “And defensively? You can handle yourself against other casters?”
Earon nodded. “You don’t have to worry about that.”
“I think we can find some work for you. Come with me,” Najan said with a wave and walked back into the bounty office.
“It’s not much,” Najan said as he pulled a bounty down from the board. “Only five silvers for this one. But it’s been up there a while. It's for a magician, a real nutjob. Killed a bunch of hired guards, but since they were outsiders, the guard didn’t put too much effort into catching the guy. As you might imagine, the merchant who lost his men isn’t too happy. The problem is, he’s a cheap bastard. Five silvers just isn’t enough for most to go after a caster, but if like you say, you’re able to handle yourself against their kind. Well, I’d give you the bounty for free, just to get him off my back. And, if you pull it off, you’re free to pick whatever bounties you like. Deal?” Najan extended a hand, whilst his other gripped the bounty.
“I wasn’t really looking for work, rather other bounty hunters I might be able to work with.”
Najan eyed Earon suspiciously. “You’ve no name, no coin, no nothing. Why would I recommend you to anybody?”
“You saw what I just did, didn’t you?”
“You threw a stone, so what? I’ve seen casters blow holes through walls just to freeze in the heart of battle and be cut down by nobodies. Take my job, and finish it. Do that, and I’ll not just provide you with the reward I already mentioned, but I will also put in a good word for you.”
“Deal,” Earon nodded as he reached out and took Najan’s hand. “Any idea where this magician might be?”
He had wanted to get back as quickly as possible, but Earon wasn’t in a position to be picky. He needed to take what he could.
“Not a clue,” Najan replied, handing over the bounty. “The deaths were in the lower quarter, you may as well start there.”
Sighing, Earon nodded and took his leave.
“It’s something, at least,” Lexi said, planting a reassuring hand on Earon's back.
“I guess, but we have no idea where to even start. Who knows how long this could take me.”
“Well, I could help…” Lexi said, pressing her index fingers together as she looked down.
“You would do that?”
Lexi bounced on the spot and smiled. “Of course.” Then she narrowed her eyes. “I’ll get a share of the silvers, won’t I?”
“Sure,” Earon chuckled as he scratched the back of his neck.
“That’s a lot of coin for me. No way I could have taken a job like that on my own. Perhaps you’re my lucky break, Earon.”
“Well, we still have to complete the bounty. And, we have no idea how strong this guy is.”
“Do you think you can do it? Beat another caster that is?”
“Well, no idea if I’m being completely honest. But if there’s one thing I’m confident about, it’s taking on other casters. Assuming they’re not too powerful, that is.”
The lower quarters were more cramped than the already busy streets, elsewhere in Saner. Wary or perhaps, advantageous eyes followed them on almost every street, as the marginalized stood at the edges of alleys and within doorways of the grimey neighborhood.
“They’ll take any chance they get,” Lexi whispered to Earon as she noticed his eyes drifting across the loitering bystanders. “But they are only low-level rogues. If they had any skill, they wouldn’t be hanging around here.”
Earon nodded. He had never seen so many people just standing around. Back in the Rye, everyone had a job to do. And Caedstad was barely a town in comparison to the sprawling metropolis that was Saner.
Here, grain was handed out basically for free. Coin flowed upward, but as long as the hard-working folk and less fortunate got their grain, the giant city kept its peace.
“So, do you have a plan, Lexi?”
“It’s a… well,” Lexi stammered. “They call it a gentleman's house, though there isn’t anything gentlemanly about it."
Earon nodded along, though he had no idea what she was talking about.
“Women, you know…”
“Know what?”
“They make money with their,” Lexi gestured toward her figure.
“Oh.”
“Yeah,” Lexi scrunched her face. “They’re nice girls though. Plus, it’s the best place in town to get information.”
“You know them?”
“A few of them used to live in the shelter. Not anymore of course. They either stay in the gentleman's house or rent their own homes, now.”
“I see. Not sure what I would’ve done without you, Lexi.”
“Don’t sweat it. I’m counting on those silvers, you know.” Lexi narrowed her eyes sarcastically on Earon.
“I haven’t forgotten, I swear.”
“Better not!”
Nestled between grimy sandstone buildings, the entrance to Dalley’s House of Delights was easy to miss. It was just off the street, at a sharp angle with its entrance hidden behind a lip that edged out from the front facade.
Inside, however, spared no expense. Red timber and yellow cloth lined the walls and led towards a calming reception, where bonsai trees and a relaxing water feature trickled away.
A beautiful woman whose face was painted white with red lipstick smiled and gestured for the duo to come forward. “Tea?” She softly asked.
"Hey, Moon-fairy," Lexi said and the woman's face relaxed.
"Oh, Lexi, how are you?"
"Good, good. I actually wanted to pick the girl's brains, if possible."
"You know they are always happy to chat. Head on in, just be careful to avoid paying customers." She then turned to Earon. "And your friend, can we be of service to him?"
Lexi's arm looped through Earon's before she even realized what she was doing. "It's fine, he's with me."
"Looks like it," Moon-fairy said, raising her hand to cover her mouth as she playfully smiled.
