A Good Haggle

“Oh, Sophi! You’re back!” Aduin exclaimed happily when the young woman entered the shop, “Perfect timing. I just finished with your friend.”

Sophia put the big cloth sack that she was carrying down and came closer. With a scrutinizing look she eyed Kieran up. He was wearing a gambeson with lamellar hide cuirass over it. A padded chausses and leather boots on the bottom. All in black and dark brown.

“What do you think? Personally, I think a bit of color is missing. I think purple with a bit of dark green, or some turquoise highlights would look great on him! Maybe also so--” Aduin suggested.

“This is fine.” Sophia interrupted him.

She looked up at his face. It was clean shaven and his black hair was tied back.

“Hmm, you don’t look half bad when you’re all cleaned up…” Sophia mumbled and her eyes wandered down to his throat, “What happened there?”

A thin red line was barely visible on the side of it.

“Ah, that was me. My eyes were… distracted… and my hand slipped a bit…” Aduin told her, “Luckily he heals quickly… unnaturally quick even…”

“Huh…” Sophia uttered, “Well… Thanks for everything Uncle, what do I owe you?”

“A hug.”

“But…”

“I’m not taking any money from my sweet little Sophi, so give me a big hug and we’re even!”

Sophia sighed then went to her uncle and wrapped her arm around him.

“Take good care of yourself and be careful out there… The world is a dangerous place, “ Aduin said, hugging her tightly, “I would hate it, if something were to happen to you, sweetie.”

As he said the last part, he looked straight at Kieran with a sinister glare and a promise in his eyes. The newly clothed man slightly bowed his head. Sophia slowly released her grip and stepped back.

“Well then, we’re off… I’ll be back as soon as possible, but as I said it will probably be a while…” she said.

“I understand,” Aduin answered with a smile, “Good hunting, little Miss Inquisitor.”

Sophia turned around, grabbed the cloth sack and looked at Kieran.

“Come, there is one more thing we need to get, before it gets dark,” she said and went to the door.

“Oh, and Sophi… Give Kieran something to eat, will you? The poor guy is only bones and muscle,” Aduin said before she reached the door.

Sophia stopped and looked first at Kieran before turning around to her uncle.

“I… will do that,” she said with a smile.

Sophia then left the store and Kieran followed. Outside she went down the street a bit, then turned into a small alley.

“You told him your name?”, she hissed after making sure nobody was around them.

“Isn’t that the normal thing to do when introducing yourself?” Kieran responded a bit confused.

Sophia sighed and rubbed her left temple.

“Listen…” she began slightly annoyed, “This mission is supposed to be secret and especially your involvement… officially you’re rotting in prison for all eternity, and most people think you’re already dead. Only by the grace of Grand Dame Inquisitor Leonore Lieblich, you are allowed to breathe this fresh air as you serve me in penance for your crimes.”

“What a grace this is…”, Kieran mumbled with a wry smile.

“Want to go back in your stinking cell, never to see the light of the sun again?!”

“Yes…”

“Y—”

Sophia paused and stepped closer to him when two silhouettes appeared at the end of the alley and slowly staggered towards them.

“Oh, look that one’s got a fine ass…” one of them slurred his words, “Oi Lass! What you charge for a night? I’ll pay double what he’s payin’!”

Sophia ignored them.

“How ‘bout triple, but then you’ll have to let us both hit it,” the second one said, slurring his words equally and laughing.

“Fuck off!”, Sophia hissed, turning her head and glaring at them.

“Feisty one, eh? OK, how about fou—”

The obvious very drunk man went silent and looked past her.

“Okay, okay… we don’t want trouble!” he said quickly, suddenly capable of clear speech and turning to his buddy, “Let’s get out of here!”

They both hurried down the alley and vanished behind the next corner.

“Fucking stupid men…”, Sophia mumbled, shook her head and then turned back towards Kieran, “And you! From now on don’t tell anyone your real name, understood?”

“What shall I call myself then?” he asked.

“I don’t know… Karl or something!”

Sophia turned around and began to walk. She stopped after a few steps.

“Here!” she said and flung the cloth sack to him, “You can carry that. Now let’s go.”

They walked down alleys, turned corners and then merged into a bigger street. Kieran followed her without saying anything. Sophia stopped in front of a big house. Above the entrance was a sign with two crossed swords.

“Welcome in my humble shop! What can I do for the Lady and Gentleman?” they got greeted immediately as they entered, by a short fat guy.

“We need a sword for him,” Sophia said and pointed at Kieran, “A longsword.”

“Certainly.”

The short fat guy smiled and led them to a wall where a bunch of swords where displayed on the wall.

“Those are my finest, “he said and rubbed his palms, “all made from magisteel.”

Sophia grabbed one randomly.

“Oh? The lady has a good eye. That’s my best work. It’s magically imbued to never lose its edge or grow rusty. The hilt is made with the finest Duskhorn leather and rubies are inlaid into the cross. The pommel is fashioned out of one big smaragd.” the short fat man explained.

Sophia felt the faint magic in the sword.

“How much?”

The short fat man’s smile grew wider.

“Hm, let’s see… I do respect customers with an eye for quality, so for you” he began and scratched his chin, “Two thousand gold pieces.”

Kieran noticed Sophia’s face muscles twitch.

“Do you have something a price category below that?” she asked and put the sword back, “Or two.”

The smile on the short fat man vanished instantly.

“Yeah… I have some over there…”, he said and pointed to a barrel, with swords sticking out, in a corner of the room.

“Pick one you like…” Sophia said to Kieran.

He went to the barrel and looked over the swords. His eyebrows went up in surprise as he spotted something. Kieran pulled one of the swords out. It looked like it was ancient. The leather on the hilt was cracked and half gone. The blade was full of nicks, and it was completely covered in rust, making one wonder if there was even a bit of steel under it.

“Where did you get this one?”, Kieran asked.

“Huh? That thing?”, the short fat man said and looked at it, “I think a friend of mine found it in some bog up north.”

Kieran did a few practice swings with it. Sophia watched him and noticed something curious. He was smiling.

“How much for that one?” she asked.

“Ten gold pieces,” the short fat man said immediately.

“For that hunk of rust? One.”

“Milady, I have to live from something! Eight!”

“You don’t look that bad off. Two.”

“With the recent increase in weapon taxes and the current inflation there would be nothing left for me and I have employees to pay as well. Six!”

“The new tax will only be effective from next year onwards. That’s still two months off. Three!”

“The lady is well informed, huh? Okay, I can go down to five. Not lower!”

“Four.”

“Five… and I throw in a sheath for it.”

“Deal!”

The short fat man burst out in laughter that made his big stomach wobble.

“That was a good haggle, milady! I like that,” he said and grabbed a leather sheath from under the counter.

He paused for a second.

“Ah fuck it…”, the short fat man said and grabbed a small cloth bag too, “I like you, so I’ll give you a maintenance kit for free as well. You’re gonna need it…”

“That’s very generous of you,” Sophia said and counted five gold pieces out of a small pouch on her hip.

“That’s me, generous to the core. A pleasure doing business with you. Please come again, if you’re ever in need of another weapon.”

“Will do.”

Sophia and Kieran left the shop afterwards. The sun has already begun to settle.

“Well, that’s all we need for now… let’s go.”, Sophia said and went down the street.

Kieran followed, the sword in its sheath flung across his shoulder. The houses they passed got smaller and shabbier looking as they went though the streets.

“Sophia!” a chorus of joyful voices shouted suddenly.

A bunch of kids came running down the street laughing and surrounded her.

“Can you come and play with us?” a small girl asked.

Sophia crouched down to her level.

“Sorry kids, I can’t. I got work to do,” she said and ruffled her hair, “You guys have to play without me for a while. I have to go on a journey.”

The joyous chorus from before turned sad.

“Give them the apples,” Sophia said to Kieran.

“What apples?” he asked confused.

“In the sack!”

Kieran opened the sack he was still carrying and there were a bunch of apples in it. He handed them out to the kids who took them happily, forgetting that they were sad a moment ago. Underneath the apples Kieran saw a bunch of hard sausages, bread and other long lasting food items.

“Are you gonna go and hunt bad guys?” the small girl asked.

“Where did you get that from?” Sophia asked a bit surprised.

“Sister Carol told us!”

“Did she now? Well, then it must be true, but that’s supposed to be a secret. Don’t tell anyone, you understand?”

The small girl made big eyes and nodded.

“Will you bring us souvenirs when you come back?” a small boy asked, tugging on Sophia’s sleeve.

“Of course I will!” Sophia said with a smile, “But only if you behave and don’t make too much trouble for Sister Carol, okay?”

The kids began to cheer. Kieran wasn’t sure if they even heard the second part.

“But now you guys better run home. It’s getting dark,” Sophia said and stood up.

After saying goodbye, the group of kids ran down the street yelling cheerfully and vanishing behind a corner. Sophia continued to walk without saying anything. Kieran followed her silently but with a very confused expression. After a few more minutes they arrived in front of a small very run-down house with an even smaller, but well-kept garden in front of it. The gate was half out its hinges and the walls looked like they would collapse with the smallest breeze. There were numerous signs of amateurish repairs.

“What a dump…” escaped Kieran’s mouth in surprise.

Sophia slowly turned towards him and gave him a glare.

“That’s my house you asshole!” She hissed and one of the wooden shutters came off.

CLANK