HBWnovel Chapter 140: The Prince’s Favor
Chapter 140: The Prince’s Favor
Chapter 140: The Prince’s Favor
I didn’t know how long I would have to wait for the Prince to move or decide. We had almost an entire day before the aether crystals would be charged to make the run to Skyholme. The Guildmaster seemed certain that the Prince was interested in the Skyholme Islands by his reactions.
I asked Leda and Talia, “Can you go into the city and see if our pirate cargo would sell better here or in Skyholme.”
Leda laughed, “You should get a commodity index for the city. Or one from the Adventurer’s Guild if you are going to be a trader, Storme.”
I didn’t know something like that existed. “Is there one for each city?”
Leda stopped laughing, “I don’t know. The Adventurer’s Guild commodity index only lists goods that are in high demand in each city. It is like a merchant’s quest for profit but is costly and updated weekly. Loriel was excited about it anyway when she was looking at the needs of Sadian cities.”
I was not surprised that Loriel was already a few steps ahead. She had probably been holding certain goods for months in preparation for open trade. “Get the commodity index from the Adventurer’s Guild.” I paused, “You can also get three sets of maps and get them made into sheets. One set for the Maelstrom and two sets for the Sky Wraith.” Leda’s eyes went wide in excitement.
The Adventurer’s maps had two sides to them. Each side showed the same regions, but one was a travel map with cities, roads, and notes. The other side was focused on terrain and dangers. Cilia wanted to have one set on one wall and the other on the other in the bridge to save time. The cost was prohibitive—until now. “Take Sammie and Bleiz with you for protection. I will give him the gold.”
Half an hour later, they were headed to the Adventurer’s Guild. I went to the trade district to see how my enchanted blades would sell here in Malaise. The city was clean and had a variety of smells, both pleasant and foul, as I walked. Although mostly humans graced the streets, over a dozen different races also walked freely. Maybe one day, Skyholme will have the same diversity. The trade district ran in a long arcing thoroughfare around the central part of the city near the expansive docks. It started with an open market with hundreds of individual stalls and turned into open shops fronts and then further into building housing the higher-end and luxury shops.
I did stop and quickly purchased some sweets from a candy shop for Freya. I guess it would be okay if she rotted her teeth since I could grow her new ones. The first weapons dealer did not buy or sell enchanted weapons, but he directed me to a shop that did. All his non-artificed weapons were of excellent quality and made by master weaponsmiths. I purchased a dozen swords and six various daggers for a little over a thousand gold. I planned to study the master smiths works to maybe improve my own metal shaping skills.
The artificed weapon shop seemed to be trying too hard to sell its weapons. Each weapon had its own locked display case and a lengthy description of who forged the item and the runic enchantments. The shop was large, with over a hundred display cases on multiple floors. It seemed popular as well since men and women were browsing. A few salesmen were shadowing the more finely dressed patrons, hoping for a sale.
The first case I came to had a dozen arrows of impact. An elf enchanter made them from the city of Cullinbar. The description was mostly detailing how difficult the enchanting work was on such a small area. Only the metal heads could inscribed. The spell effect was not even that impressive. It just increased the mass of the arrow threefold on impact, allowing deeper penetration. They were also single-use, as the small aether gem would be destroyed on impact. They also wanted twelve hundred gold for the set, which was ridiculous. I was certain I could make one of these arrows in about an hour, and double the effectiveness of the runes. The material cost would also be less than gold, and that cost was mostly the sacrificial aether crystal. The wooden arrow shafts were the most impressive part of the item. A black wood with crisscrossing growth rings. A mage must have shaped the wood.
I wandered, and the next object that caught my eye and gave me pause to read was a massive sword over seven feet in length. Its description said it was a dungeon reward from the Ethereal Depths Dungeon in Coulton. Coulton was a city in another Principality. The sword was beautiful and impressive, but the runic workings made me chuckle. The sword was enchanted to help you understand the motivations of the one struck by it. It sounded almost. If you were already fighting your opponent, then you knew enough of their motivations.
One of the salesmen was standing next to me, “I see you have discovered one of the more interesting pieces in our collection.”
“Not much use in battle due to its size and the nature of the enchantment. It is quite pretty, though. I am here to sell, not purchase, though.” I said with a smile.
The salesmen looked me up and down and grimaced noticeably. I lacked the fancy clothes and age to be a serious seller in his opinion. I suppose I did not look the part since I stored everything in my dimensional space. “Follow me,” he said reluctantly.
I followed the middle-aged man to the back room, which had shelves and shelves of weapons not good enough to make it into a case. “Master Baine!” He yelled. An older man came scurrying from behind the shelves covered in dust.
He coughed a little, “Yes?”
“This young man is here for an appraisal to sell. I will leave him with you,” he indicated me and left.
Master Blaine studied me momentarily and then said with a smile, “What do you have? I hope it is interesting.” The old man at least seemed friendly. I moved to an open table and produced one of my generic longswords from my dimensional space. Master Blaine put on a monocle I was sure was magical to inspect the sword. It just had the durability and sharpness runes, nothing fancy.
He studied the sword for a very long time before putting it down. He seemed disappointed. “It is just a simple long sword. One would think an infant dungeon forged it with simplistic runes and a lack of artistry. But it clearly a mage with a powerful metal-shaping spell. Fair work but boring.”
His words stung me a little. “Why do you say it is simplistic?”
The old man shook his head, “There is no personality to the artificed weapon. That is what makes a weapon truly unique. Dungeons pour their soul into creating a weapon. The runes might be the same but have their own flair!” He said excitedly. He went to the back, pulled two books, and returned.
“Here, look at this boy.” He opened each book to a page. “The runic pattern on the left is from one of our city’s most renowned artificers. On the right is the same runes from an artifact found in our local dungeon.”
I smirked, “That is fine. I am flying this one,” I pointed at the Maelstrom behind. “Cilia will be piloting the Sky Wraith.”
She narrowed her eyes briefly, then smiled, “We will have the request altered for this skyship then. I wish to be quartered on your ship.”
Was I being set up by her father? At first, I thought maybe this was a ploy to take the Sky Wraith by force, but this seemed like the Prince was trying to set me up with his daughter. “Will your two captains help fight the pirates when they attack?”
“That is the plan. My father is calling in four war mages to add to their crews. He hopes our cooperation with your island’s defense could open more lucrative opportunities,” she said with a big smile. I guessed this was definitely a setup—a seven-day date. “I have three attendants and two guards,” she looked up at the small Maelstrom.
“You can take one attendant and your two guards,” I responded firmly.
“Agreed,” I was surprised when she did not argue. Maybe I could have moved her retinue to the Sky Wraith if she had. “We should be able to depart tomorrow.”
She left me kind of stunned, and I was surprised when Beliz spoke from my right, “Seems like you are moving up in the Sphere High Mage, escorting Princesses.”
“Not funny, Bleiz. How come I have the feeling I was tricked into this? This is going to add six days, maybe more, to our return trip. It is not a good thing,” I said seriously.
“If their warships are truly going to help fight, then it is a good thing, Strome. Their crews are experienced even if their ships are a bit slow,” Bleiz advised me.
“Clear out your cabin,” I said with a smirk. Bleiz shrugged, not concerned. “Tell Leda, Sammie, Lana, and Pakkam they are going to be on the Maelstrom. Yourself as well, Bleiz. Make up some beds in the cargo hold for her two guards.”
“What do you want to do with the boy?” Bleiz asked.
“What, boy?” I said, confused.
“The one you captured on the Sky Wraith. We killed everyone but him. Pakkam has been watching him, but after we landed in Malaise, all the freed prisoners of the pirates left, and now just the boy remains,” Bleiz said with a toothy grin, seeing I forgot something.
“I will talk to him. If we turned him over as a pirate, they would probably kill him. Maybe we just let him go,” Bleiz frowned at my words. The boy was not even seven. It did not feel right to let him be killed.
Bleiz was less reluctant, “If you let him free, he may run back to the pirates and give them information on you and your fighting style.”
“What do you suggest I do with him then?” I asked my Wolfsguard friend.
Bleiz did not take long, “Put him to work in the orchards at the Black Spire under the watch of the Wolfsguard. They will reform him.”
I considered the compromise, “Fine. I am off to see the Guldmaster for the job posting I am not allowed to refuse from the Prince.”
Gulidmaster Merit had a shit-eating grin on his face when he presented me with the job offer. They had already changed the ship the Princess was to be ‘escorted’ on to the Maelstrom. The terms were quite generous, considering that was the direction we were going to be headed in anyway.
I was to be paid 3,500 gold prior to departure once the accommodations were deemed suitable. I would receive another 3,500 gold after the Princess was introduced to the rulers of Skyholme for opening trade negotiations. I learned Princess Amelia was his 3rd daughter and the only one not married. She was twenty Sphere years old (twenty-three in Earth years). She was also an accomplished diplomat, according to Guildmaster Merit. Of this, I had no doubt.
© Copyrighted 2024 by AlwaysRollsAOne
No Permission is given to translate, copy, repost or alter to an audio format of this original work of fiction. If you are reading this on a site that is not my Patreon, , or , it has been stolen without my permission and violates DMCA. Remember, this work is the result of my creative effort and is protected by copyright law. Removal or altering of this notification is an acknowledgment you are aware you are in violation of DMCA.