The Saint Comes Marching In

“I’m home!” Yelled an enthusiastic young voice as a large anchor sank into the bay. His arms waved in the air in excitement much to the chagrin of everyone else gathered on the deck. They all seemed sickly and lifeless in comparison.

The exit ramp clicked into place and the gate opened.

“It’s been fun everyone! I loved meeting every one of you! But now I’m off on a for real adventure!” He went around shaking hands and hugging every passenger on deck. No one fought back nor did they reciprocate his energetic affection.

He looked at the assembled group one last time and gave a satisfied sigh then with a vigorous pep in his step, marched exited the galleon and skipped triumphantly down the ramp.

Once the young man was far enough away color began to return to the passengers faces.

“He’s gone?”

“I think he’s gone.”

“Really?”

“He’s not coming back is he?”

Slowly people began to chatter.

“He’s really gone!”

The chatter quickly turned to cheer and tears of joy.

“I thought he’d never leave!”

“I thought I might die here.”

“I’m never taking my life for granted again.”

“I can smile again! I can smile!”

“Will you marry me?”

“Eww”

“I can walk!”

The passengers expressed their relief at the young man’s departure various ways. Curiously a few of them who had been disabled and sickly at the start of the voyage were now healed. A few of the passengers and the crew in particular began to realize just how odd this voyage had been.

“Captain, the energetic young man aside, not a single casualty or sickness for the entire length of the voyage.”

“How odd.”

The first mate looked up at his captain whose face was scrunched up as though he were trying to solve a complicated puzzle.

“Did you spot a single monster during this trip?”

The first mate took on a similar expressions to his Captain.

“No, now that you mention it.”

“Not even while crossing Umibozu Territory or the Ionic Sea.”

“Not a one.” The first mate’s face went pale.

“Not a one…” The captain stared off in the direction of the young man who had loudly departed.

““How odd”” They uttered in unison.

This would be the only voyage of their entire lives where not a single casualty or injury would be reported among the crew or passenger. In fact they all arrived healthier than when they first departed. It would remain a mystery for years to come. The captain would be well into retirement before he learned the excited passenger’s identity and the reason for this one miraculous voyage.

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 Merlin skipped down the city streets grinning from ear to ear. There was crime and scantily clad women, and guys in head-to-toe armor, and so much life here. He surmised that he was in some sort of marketplace as there were a number of stalls set up with goods displayed.

He didn’t have all that much money on hand and none of the currency he had would be familiar to the vendors here, but gold was gold so perhaps with some haggling they might be persuaded to take it. Haggling! He squirmed excitedly.

“Creepy.” A young girl commented as she watched the display only for her mother escort her away. Merlin payed them no mind.

“I would like some of these fruits please!” he went up to the nearest fruit stall.

“How many would you like, young man.” She was an old lady.

“Two for now, I just arrived in this land from Eden and I’m so excited to try all the food here and experience all that life has to offer.”

“Hoo-hoo, Eden, sure sure.” Clearly not believing him, “That is quite a far journey, you must be hungry how about you buy 3 and I’ll throw in a 4th for free.”

“Really. Sweet! It’s a deal! How much?”

“80 malba.”

“I’m not sure how much a malba is. Sorry. How about two holy golds?”

“Holy gold, sure, look kid I-” she prepared to turn him away but at that moment he stuck out his hand revealing two glowing gold coins.

“H-Holy Gold!” The lady shrieked involuntarily. She looked around her eyes wide scared someone heard but luckily no one had been paying attention.

“Kid – Young man – I don’t know where you got those, but those are worth 5,000,000 malba a piece! You’ll want to hold on to those with your life. Never ever show those to anyone. Most people ain’t half as nice as me. The average person could retire on just one of those coins. Do you understand?”

“But this is all I have.” He stared at the coins in his hand.

“Just take them.” She held out two apples, “And put those away this instant. If anyone even thinks I might have taken those I’ll be stripped and hung by my toes.”

“Thank you, I’m sorry for the trouble.” He bowed apologetically”

“You better be, now scram, before my common sense gets the best of me.”

“Yes, ma’am. Thank you, ma’am. I won’t forget this kindness.”

He bowed once again and scampered off.

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 Merlin bit into one of the apple like fruits.

“So sweet!” His cheeks flushed red, “so good.” He wandered aimlessly through the marketplace, observing all the wares well nibbling on his apple.

Merlin needed to find a place to sleep and he couldn’t use his coins to make purchases. He actually went back to the old lady, nearly giving her a heart attack, and asked if there was a way he could exchange the Holy Golds for Malba. She told him he’d have to go directly to the royal treasury, but only nobles were allowed to make exchanges and withdrawals from there. There was a bank in Cyril, the city Merlin was currently in, but it was mainly patronized by merchants since most people either didn’t trust them with their money or were living paycheck to paycheck and didn’t have any savings to begin with.

He briefly gave her an actual heart attack when he also asked how much a Holy High-Platinum Coin was worth. Her estimate was 30,000,000 malba but no one had ever seen such a coin before. He didn’t tell her he had 5, it probably would have actually killed her.

He had around 185 Holy Golds which again he didn’t mention. He did tell her he actually did have some Blessed Silver which would have been around 50,000 to 70,000 malba. He’d forgotten about it since to him Blessed silver was basically pocket change.

“With that you should be able to get the best room in the highest class hotel in the capital for a full week. However, around here it’ll just get you killed. Try to stay around Leopold Harbor, where you came in, if you’re going to use those. It’s mainly sailors and transients, no ones stays there for long and everyone looks the other way. A friend of my younger sister runs an inn over there, look for Carrolly’s Place. Present them with one silver and my name and you’ll be set there for at least a month. Got all that.”

He gave her two silvers for her trouble and hopped away.

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Merlin poured over all the new information in his head as he nibbled on his second apple and wandered through back streets. He looked around realizing he no longer had any idea where he was.

He continued walking through the twisting alleyways. It was quieter than the bustling marketplace or dock. He almost felt at peace.

This peace was suddenly interrupted by the dull clapping of sandals on pavement.

“Come back, thief!” A course voice echoed.

Two young girls with short dirty blond hair raced around the corner directly in front of Merlin. They stopped for a moment when they saw Merlin. He just stared curiously at them. They calmly walked past him hoping that he would just let them pass. A large man with a scraggly beard and a scar running down his face turned the corner along with two other rough looking men.

The girls once again broke into a run.

“Barrier.” A golden partition stopped both the men and the girls, they were now trapped inside a box with Merlin.

“Thank you for apprehending these thieves.”

“Let us go, we didn’t steal anything!”

“I know you urchins have it. I saw you take it!”

“Calm.” Merlin clapped his hands together. All parties seemed to falter a bit, losing just a little of their edge.

“What did you just do, mage?”

“I’m just hoping we can have a nice, constructive conversation. I want to understand what’s happening here.”

“Those two urchins stole a valuable necklace from my shop, I want it back and I want their heads.”

“The punishment doesn’t seems to fit the crime and it’s not your job to mete out justice. And what about you two?” He turned to face the two girls brandishing his kindest smile, “And know that I will be able to tell if you’re lying.”

“My name is Lila and this is Cate. This necklace belongs to her mother. That man ransacked our home and stole it we were just taking back what was ours.”

“Nonsense. It was gifted to us. We obtained it fair and square.”

“What did I say? I can tell when people are lying to me.” Merlin continued smiling, “plus it’s their turn to talk. What is the significance of this necklace?”

“It’s a good luck charm. A really powerful one.”

“And may I see it.” Cate clutched something in her pocket, “It’s okay, I just want to see it. I have an appraisal spell.”

“Cate, don’t.” Lila warned, but Cate took it out of her pocket anyway.

The necklace was made of Orichalcum which had greater durability and was more common than High Platinum but was still considered a rare metal. It had two chains and had pink and yellow jewel at it’s center. A Demon’s Eye. That was name of this jewel.

“Do you mind if I hold it?”

Merlin could hear a stifled laugh behind him. Lila glared at the large man.

“Don’t do it, he’s going to give it to Mr. Leer”

“I promise I’ll give it back. You can trust me.”

Cate hesitated but ultimately relented and handed it over. The Demon’s Eye, unbelievably was not a cursed item as was the case with most items set with one. It held no malice. That didn’t necessarily mean it was harmless, but it did mean it wouldn’t harm the user by wearing it. It had already been purified as well and relatively recently. From the color of the stone Merlin surmised this came from a Djinn whose mana stones often presented brightly colored with unique patterns. He placed his hand on the stone and it began to glow casting pink lights across the alley walls.

“Whoa” both girls were astonished by the pretty lights.

A volley of images flashed across Merlin’s mind upon activating his spell.

The glow quickly faded. He smiled at the girls.

“This belongs to you.” He handed it back to Cate who gingerly wrapped her tiny hands around it.

“No! It belongs to me. It’s mine! Do you know how much that things worth. Forget about the monetary value. It’s blessing would have me rolling in dough.”

“You’re right. Would three blessed silvers cover it?” He reached into his coin pouch and held out three silver coins.”

“Th-three silver…” He tripped over his words and stared at the coins then shook his head, “It might cover the necklace but in the long term, that thing will net me far more. You’ll have to do better than that.” He smirked.

Mr. Leer seemed to be certain that Merlin had offered all he had. On looks alone he was dressed as a common traveler, he had a bent staff and a raggedy beige cloak. Most passersby on the street would just ignore him. The only thing that stood out was his well maintained long golden hair which was certainly uncommon around here.

“Very well” He tossed him his entire pounce of Blessed Silver, “I hope this will suffice.”

“Well, well, whoa!” All three men’s jaws went limp when they saw what was inside. There were 58 Blessed Silver coins excluding the ones he’d offered before.

“Who are you?” Mr. Leer couldn’t believe his eyes this amount translated to over 4,000,000 Malba, almost as much as a Holy Gold.

“I’m just a traveler. I hope in exchange you can forget about the necklace and the girls.”

“Right, you’ve got yourself a deal! They’re free to go.” Relieved Merlin dropped the barriers.

He turned to face the girls one more time, “You two cherish each other and that necklace. I know you’ll grow up strong and smart. I have a favor to ask of you. I want you to take these two silver coins and head down to Leopold’s Harbor. There’s an inn called Carrolly’s Place. Reserve two rooms under the name Ruth, Okay?”

“Yes, sir. But why-”

“Let’s just go.” Lila tugged on Cate’s sleeve and they ran off.

Just then a stinging sensation pierced through Merlin’s lower abdomen.

“How sweet, thinking you can bargain for their lives. Listen, this sort of money doesn’t just fall into ones lap. I’d venture to guess you’re someone important. A noble or foreign prince. Look at you, all hoity-toity with your clean hair and your niceties. I think you’ll make a nice bonus on top of whatever else you’re carrying.”

The knife withdrew and went through his calf next and another in his shoulder. His arms and legs went limp.

“Here’s some news. Those two ain’t gonna make it to the harbor, ‘cept in a body bag.”

“You’re right it was naïve of me to think I could solve this without through words alone. And you’re right on two other counts. I am carrying more money on me and I am a pretty big deal. Too big, honestly.”

“Haha. I knew it, you can’t fool theses merchants eyes.”

Merlin gave a sad smirk. He had been coddled and sucked up to for most of his life. He was never allowed to be injured or show emotion. He had virtually no autonomy. Everyone always spoke in measured tones and prepared remarks. There was no spontaneity. He was shielded from the world and the world was shielded from him. There was no ugliness, no love, no hate, only cold stone.

“I most certainly can’t fool you.” He responded back at Mr. Leer.

“This is the real world kid, it’s kill or be killed!”

This is the real world. “This is the real world.” Merlin trembled. The two men reached for him, “This was the world that was denied to me for so long and I feel it. I feel your bloodlust. I’ve felt it this whole time. I knew talking wouldn’t be the end of it. I looked forward to it.”

“Looked forward to what exactly” Mr. Leer still hadn’t picked up on Merlin change of tone.

Merlin slowly stood up, golden light flowing out of his wounds. He cracked his knuckled and his neck.

“The violence!” Merlin shouted with glee. Two light blades manifested in his hands. The two henchmen swung their swords but found them melting on impact. Merlin swung his blades bisecting the men with a single swing.

Mr. Leer’s eyes bulged in fear and he began backing away from the wild-eyed Merlin but it was in vein. In a single step Mr. Leer was impaled by a golden blade.

“How? Who? Why?” A myriad of questions flooded the man’s dying brain.

“Do you think you’re dying? You all look sickly. Allow me to help. I am a saint after all. Though I will say the price of my services are quite high.” He laughed manically. The sound of screaming never reached beyond the alleyways.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Three men would later turn themselves into a guard station, confessing to a wide variety of crimes. When asked why they were so frantic and cooperative they simply fell into horrified silence.