Begrudgingly he accepted the note from his teacher, written on it with a swirly handwriting stood various items that he had to acquire on his trip through town. He felt used as he read the shopping list.
"Also, Warren, when you return go to your father's study. Your birthday is coming up next month so your father will inquire about your wishes. Everyone's eight-year anniversary is important, don't skip out on your responsibilities for it!"
When one would turn eight, massive celebrations would be held. Family, friends, acquaintances, everyone would join in on the festivities. The reason why the eight birthday was such a great happening was, of course, the fact that around your birthday acquire your gift!
"It's my birthday, how is celebrating it my responsibility?" Warren answered annoyed, but jokingly. He knew that his requests for his birthday were very important to the festivities. However, with his assignment, he truly didn't wish for his fathers thorough questioning regarding his wishes. He knew his father's eye for details, it would take hours to get through all the topics.
A smile formed on Robert's face "Well, I have known your father for a while so I can see why you're so reluctant. However, it is important not to slack on your responsibilities - else you will never succeed in your life." Robert lectured him with a friendly but stern voice.
Warren had noticed this man's mood would rapidly change when he went in what Warren had come to call "Teacher-mode". His usual cheering, joking and teasing image would be replaced with the impeccable image of a wise scholar.
They casually said their goodbyes as Warren took his leave to prepare for the shopping trip. He had already known that he would be transporting swords for the family's guards so he had been thinking about how to move this load.
He had immediately gotten the idea of creating a pulling cart. However, he quickly reasoned he did not have the time to create one from scratch. Using horse and wagon would work, but would be bothersome to traverse the busy market streets.
In the end, however, he did not have any great alternatives than relying on manpower. He quickly counted a number of things he needed to purchase and decided on the amount of required manpower. He would take two servants and two guards. The servants would be helpful when picking the miscellaneous items on the list and the guards would be able to do the heavy lifting as well as advise on the topic of swords.
Ask he decided on his plan he asked around for the whereabouts of Theo and Herbert. They would know whom he should take with him.
He meticulously tackled his assignment as he felt the need to show his intelligence.
His two lives combined he was roughly forty-two and thus he wished to level himself with the adults around him. Proving his wits would help this process. His father had already begun treating him as an equal after some time as he noticed the intelligence in his son.
He was thankful for his dad's way of interacting with him and had now made it his goal to get acknowledged by his teacher as well. Analysing his own reasoning he felt a bit childish but he jokingly thought to himself "It's okay to be a bit childish, after all, I'm only just turning eight in a month." He smiled at the thought and headed towards the conference hall as a maidservant told him his father and both Theo and Herbert were there.
As he approached the room he could hear the muffled voiced of his father and Herbert coming through the thick oaken door.
He simply barged in the room without even as much as a knock, causing three very surprised faces to stare at him upon his entrance.
"Is there something on my face?" Warren chuckled as he felt a bit awkward upon seeing the questioning faces of the other three in the room.
His father then gently smiled and asked "Did we not bring you up with proper manners? Have you forgotten to knock or am I growing old?" His tone was strict but his face gave away that he didn't take any offense to the unannounced visit of his youngest son.
"I did forget to knock, but you are definitely growing old dad, I think I heard mom say that your hair is growing grey." He jokingly said as he knew he was in no real trouble.
"My hair is still blond young man, don't forget to respect your elders." His father chuckled as his hand went through his hairs.
"Then tell me, why did you come looking for me?"
"I didn't come for you particularly dad, I was actually looking for Herbert and Theo as I was wanting to ask their advice." As Warren said so he saw his father's smile dampen and his eyes lose their usual twinkle.
"You look for Herbert and Theo for advice now son?" He said his voice slightly pained and sorrowful as if grieving for a loss.
As the situation dawned upon Warren he immediately explained "Just casual advice on my assignment, I need some manpower to help me transport some stuff from the market back home. I was wondering whom I should take with me. I want to take two servants and two guards with me." His explanation made his fathers crestfallen face light up once more as he heard him release a sigh.
"That makes sense, good thinking son." He replied in a somewhat embarrassed tone as he was feeling he had overreacted a lot earlier.
"What do you need my guards for though, Warren? You're not going to do something risky for your assignments, are you? Else I'll talk to Robert about that..." His face contorted, making him look somewhat savage.
Suddenly he felt a chill go through his body, as he swore that he would never make Theo an enemy. His face was simply radiating a form of almost tangible bloodthirst. He didn't know whether Robert and Theo had any history to warrant this oozing aura, but he was determined to not make either their blacklist.
"Nothing risky!" He quickly replied. "I just need to buy some things in town. The guards will carry the heavier things." He didn't want to add that hey would help out with picking swords as he felt that would be snitching on Robert. He was tempted to take revenge for giving him the extra workload but decided that a good relationship would be far more beneficial than his petty revenge.
"Hmm... Well, you can take Jamy and Oliver with you. They are currently guarding the entrance of the armory. I bet you'll make them happy with a temporary leave. The gates are manned anyway, so there's no real risk in taking them."
Warren nodded happily as he agreed to the arrangements and then glanced at Herbert who had thus far been silently standing aside.
"You can take Mary and James. Mary should be around the kitchen and James is polishing the armors in the Armory." He answered in a casual matter of facts way that was so typical for his trustworthy yet relaxed mannerism.
Warren once more nodded and was wanting to take his leave as he thought of his unexpected entrance - why were the three most influential people in the household in the conference room anyways?
"What were you discussing just now anyway?"
"Buying horses."
"Bandit raid."
The two contradicting answered came from his father and Theo who were now awkwardly looking at each other. It seemed they were not telling the truth and all and the two had intuitively immediately tried to cover up whatever it was what they were talking about before.
His father coughed, embarrassed by their lie being discovered, then shooting a glance at his impulsive captain.
"Nothing you have to worry about anyway. You should go and fulfill your assignments, I heard Robert mention he always gives a time limit for these things." His father then stood up from behind his desk and then continued to guide him out of the room.
As he went to find his assigned personnel he couldn't help but worry as the feeling crept up on him that there was something important being discussed behind that oaken door.
He wished he had waited before barging in, listening in on the conversation would have given him something to go on. Without any clues, he felt powerless to the subject. It was apparent that he would not be included in the talks.
He suddenly once more felt treated as a kid, thoroughly annoying him. Then he decided to tell himself that these talks were in preparatory of his upcoming birthday, trying to rid himself of the uncomfortable feeling that was settling in his stomach.
He easily found both guards and servants and then set off with them towards the market district. He once more went through his list, his earlier worries replaced by a helpless feeling that he would have to work hard in order to be in time with his first assignments. He had roughly 3 hours to prepare the items on the list.
The list noted the ten swords he needed for his father as well as various tools, herbs, medicine, writing materials, and the like.
However his interested had been roused when reading "Mana crystal - lower quality. Liquid mana stimulant. Mana Calming Elixir."
These things had been like a bus coming from left, completely stunning him and running him over. He could know, he was hit by a truck once. (and died)
His motivation for this trip had increased once more and he eagerly looked forward to having these things explained. His curiosity towards the 'magical' aspect of his new life had made him increase his pace, leaving both guards and servants behind. Noticing this they increased their pace to match that of their young master, trying to catch up once more.
He wanted to keep the discovery of the mana crystals and magical items last. Thus, he decided to visit the blacksmith first, followed by the carpentry, the general store and lastly the apothecary.
After a good fifteen minutes walk, he entered the smithy that he had known done business with his father before. He believed he would get fair treatment on behalf of his father’s business relationship with the owner.
In order to not crowd the blacksmith's shop, he entered with both guards and left the servants at the door. As he entered he noticed the weapons hanging from the walls, even though he did not like bloodshed he did admire the craftsmanship of these weapons.
He walked up to the counter of the shop and found a young clerk attentively looking at him, eager to sell. Warren also knew why, he was wearing a formal noble attire, clearly telling the clerk that he should have money on him.
"Good afternoon, can I help you with something?" The clerk had greeted him cheeringly, possibly already counting money in his head.
"Yes, I am looking to purchase several swords and I hoped that you could help me with this order," Warren answered, making his request clear.
"Certainly, what kind are you looking for and in which quality?" The clerk asked politely, inquiring about the details.
Warren took a glance at the guard next to him and observed the sword at his waist for a bit.
"I'm looking for single-handed swords. Ten of them would suffice for now. As for the quality, I'd like you to tell me more about the various swords you have on sale." Warren then replied, trying to gain a good position for bargaining later on.
"Yes, on the left wall you'll see a variety of swords displayed. All these swords are crafted by my father, the shop owner. He's a third-grade smith so these swords are of high quality, varying in price from ten silvers to fifty silvers based on their design and whether they are imbued with a mana crystal, the quality of the mana crystal and element of the crystal..."
Warren nodded and his eyes browsed the assortment of weapons on the wall. His eyes specifically fell on a sword with a large blue crystal embedded in the pommel.
“On the right wall, you’ll find medium quality swords, commonly used by mercenaries, guards or even the army. They are sometimes made by my father, others are made by his apprentices. Prices range from a single silver up to ten silvers. Some of those on the wall are works by my hands.”
“Lastly you’ll find the racks and bins in the center of the shop. The racks hold various tools and the bins hold the works of apprentices that haven’t become graded smiths yet. The swords in these bins range from thirty to eighty copper a piece.”
After pondering for a while, he decided he would take medium swords for the household guards and a high-quality sword as a gift for his brother. He had been given 5 gold coins and 50 silver coins, a rather extravagant amount of money.
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“Thank you for your introduction, I’ll take a look at your medium swords for now.” Warren turned from the counter and moved towards the wall, flanked by the guards he had taken with him, whom were now eagerly looking at the wall as if longing for better equipment.
Ten swords of ten silvers would cost him a single gold coin. At first he was tempted to buy ten high-quality weapons, however, a quick calculation told him that if he bought swords averaging on 30 silvers he’d spent 3 gold coins. A huge amount of money!
As he was browsing the wall looking for swords that caught his eye, he also started asking questions to his guards.
“What kind of sword do you guys prefer?” He glanced at the guards, quickly returning his gaze to the wall filled with various sorts of swords.
Jamy and Oliver exchanged glances, not knowing who would answer first. In the end, it was Oliver who replied. “Young master, I prefer one-handed swords, like the one I currently have with me. Sadly, the one I have does not compare to the ones on this wall. It has aged and hasn’t had any proper maintenance.”
Jamy also chimed in “Most of the family guards are equipped with one-handed swords, it’s the most common sword and the one that most people are familiar with. It’s also part of the standard equipment in the army, young master.”
“Anything, in particular, I have to take notice of?” Warren asked, he needed details of the product to discern what the quality was – and more importantly; if it fit his family’s guards.
Oliver and Jamy both started to talk, Oliver shot Jamy a glance and then once more took the word.
“Yes, you should look at the spine of the sword, if there are any cracks along it, the sword will be much less reliable. Along the edges, you must look for the sharpness of the blade as well if there are any chips in the blade. Lastly, it is important to check the handle for its grip and material. Some swords look very fancy but are very Impractical in combat. Also, young master, you should ask the clerk what metal they used while forging the blade.” Oliver said with great confidence.
“Why is the metal important? Shouldn’t it always be of proper quality?” Warren asked, a frown on his face. He thought all these weapons looked incredibly sturdy, so he couldn’t imagine what the difference in metals would do to the quality.
“Young master, there are differences in the durability in the sword as well as the difference in the strength. You must understand that in combat metal meets metal. If the quality of steel is bad it will chip and rust quicker. My father was a blacksmith, he told me of the different steels. Damascus steel, also known as Wootz steel is used for high-quality swords. Whereas Spring steel or W-One steel is fine for medium swords, but each giving different properties to the swords. Of course, swords of adamantium or higher mana guiding materials would be even better.” Oliver answered honesty to his memories. Warren could literally see him thinking.
Warren then beckoned the clerk and asked about the differences of the swords that had caught his eyes. In the end, he decided based on the clerks advise, to buy 10 Damascus steel swords. He also found the swords very pleasing on the eyes due to the patterns on the steel.
He then proceeded the high-quality swords on the other wall to pick a birthday gift for his brother. His brother’s birthday was only 2 weeks earlier than his, making him a full 4 years older than himself.
He also asked the clerk about the mana crystals embedded in the pommel.
“The mana crystal adds different properties to the blade. The higher the grade of mana the stronger the effect. For example, a grade one fire crystal will make the blade very hot when activated. Whereas a grade two would make flames erupt from the sword. Ultimately a grade three crystal would make it possible for the wielder to shoot searing flames from his swords.” The clerk said passionately as if his very wish was to forge such a sword.
“What grade crystals do these high-quality swords on the wall have?” Warren asked curiously.
“Well, just the grade one, sir. For higher grade crystals you’ll have to go to the city. It’s actually already quite something to have grade one crystals in this village. My father is only able to acquire these crystals on behalf of old connections he has. We’re the only smithy in fifteen days travel to have mana embedded swords.” He said proudly.
Warren was somewhat disappointed, he would’ve loved seeing a flame shooting sword.
As he was intently looking at the various swords hanging from the wall, he was starting to feel hot. As if a flame was lighted in himself. He felt weak and his mind was overcome was starting numb.
His gaze however never moved from the wall. His guards had taken their leave to take a look at the other swords further down the wall and the clerk had walked to the new customers that just entered the shop, knowing that Warren’s purchase had been set in stone.
As no one noticed the peculiar gaze of Warren or his lack of awareness of his surroundings, the clearest bright emerald blue lights shone from Warren’s eyes. As these lights took root in his eyes and softly dimmed a cold rush went through his body thoroughly extinguishing the heat he felt a moment earlier.
As his minds slowly cleared up and his awareness once more resurfaced he felt remarkably good. As if all his impurities had been cleaned as if his body had always missed something and had just now become whole.
As he marveled in this wonderful feeling he started noticing his vision was different than before, the swords in front of having slightest hue of blue added in their steel. As he wondered about this difference he picked up a sword to examine it further.
As he looked at the sword a blue, see-through popup filled his vision, apparently telling the details of the sword in front of him.
“A fine sword forged by a grade three smith.
Its sword is made of Damascus steel. This steel is famed for its durability and its sharp, resilient edge. It's visually striking due to the patterns reminiscent of flowing water.
Damascus is made from special Wootz ingots; hence Damascus swords are also called Wootz Swords.
The sword has a wooden hilt with a steel core. The wooden hilt is wrapped in good quality leather.
On the pommel, a low-quality earth crystal had been embedded, making it possible to slightly alter the weight of the sword as it interferes with the laws of gravity.
This sword is of decent quality.”
Bewildered he read the explanation in the blue popup once more. He didn’t know how or why this information popped up but he vaguely perceived this would very possibly his first gift!
As he was thinking of his first gift, the popup disappeared and was replaced with new information.
“Appraisal.
The gift of appraisal lets its user obtain information about a person or object. The more complex an object for appraisal is the less information will be available. Upgrading the appraisal gift is possible.”
As he read the statement he was filled with disbelief and shock, as well as excitement and happiness as this would truly be a cheat skill for sure! He had learned in his former life how extremely important information is. Crucial for making decisions.
Having information at the ready like this was truly a godsend gift. As his happiness and shock settled in he once more read the statement. His thoughts spinning wild, he decided to spend some time exploring his gift.
As he walked through the store he kept picking up various objects and learned from their descriptions. He also quickly learned a given set of rules that applied with his gift.
He had first been touching all the items he appraised, but then tried to do it without touching it and found the gift working just the same. He felt stupid for picking up all the swords just now.
As he appraised more swords he felt more comfortable with the skill. He also started to feel like every time he lost a bit of energy. After his awakening to the gift, he felt like he was superman on steroids drinking red bull and coffee. After every use felt a little less Superman and a little more mortal.
He attributed this due to the loss of mana for every use of the gift. This had already been explained to him as was a very basic rule in how gifts work. He then experimented to see how much mana he would lose depending on the objects he appraised.
He found that as he read more and more about the swords, more information was available at swords he had appraised earlier. He, therefore, inferred that a certain amount of proficiency would improve the amount of knowledge to be gained from his gift. Also, he could find the information on an appraised item by imagining the item in his head. He found this a very useful option.
After playing with the swords he had started to build up the courage to appraise a person. In the end, his victim had become Jamy. He didn’t know if a person would notice the use of his gift and felt somewhat uncomfortable appraising a person for the first time but in the end convinced himself this was necessary.
He then looked towards Jamy and in his mind, he screamed: “FOR SCIENCE”. However, no popup showed up in his vision. Puzzled he started wondering what the problem could be. He glanced at his sides and appraised a sword, a popup immediately floated in his vision.
“Would a person be too complex for me to appraise? Or is there some rule I’m not aware of that prohibits me from using the gift?” He mused softly, as someone who enjoyed puzzles and intricate questions he was fired up and determined to find his answer.
After some trial and error, he found that he could not appraise an object or person that is not within 5 meters distance of himself. He then closed in on Jamy, starting a casual conversation. He then used the appraisal on Jamy.
Name: Jamy Iverson
Age: 29
Occupation: Household Guard
Gift: Unknown
After using his gift on Oliver and the clerk he once more confirmed the rules to his gift in his mind.
1. One must be able to see the object or person the user wants to appraise.
2. One must be within 5 meters of the object or person the user wants to appraise.
3. Proficiency with items can increase the amount of available knowledge.
4. Knowledge on appraised items is saved and can be reviewed at a later date.
5. Persons are apparently very complex as the appraisal only states the name, gender, and age of the person who’s appraised.
6. The knowledge you have on people you appraise is added to the description.
7. For every appraisal, an amount of mana is used appropriately to the size and complexness of the object that is appraised.
He then proceeded to the counter, wanting to pay for the swords he picked out.
As he had wandered through the shop picking up pretty much every sword he was very confident in his selection. He also had included two swords for himself. The blue emerald embedded sword that had caught his glance at the first moment he looked at the wall and a sword he picked from the apprentice bin.
The blue embedded sword had surprisingly a grade two water crystal embedded in it, even though the clerk had told him they only had grade one swords. This discovery made warren greatly excited as the thought of cheaply acquiring such a sword had made his blood boil.
The sword he had taken from the apprentice bin was a very sharp, well-polished steel katana. It was beyond him why such a sword had been in the apprentice bin as even his appraisal had told him it was a fine sword not inferior in quality to the better medium grade swords on the wall.
“Since you’re buying in bulk and this is your first purchase at this shop, I’ll give you a good deal.” The clerk happily said when he saw Warren make his way to the counter, himself and both guards carrying several swords for purchase.
The business-like smile and the easy discount he got made Warren aware that he could bargain at this place. Something he had also liked in his previous life. Knowing this, his gaze became serious as he prepared for some serious negotiations! His friends in his former life would easily recognize his current face as his “money” face. Whenever he felt like he was going to make a lot of money this face surfaced.
“Yes, thank you for your consideration. Would you please tell me the price of these swords then?” Warren too put up a business-like smile as he inquired about the details.
The swords were neatly laid out on the counter, and the clerk's eyes had grown a lot more serious after examining the swords in front of him. He became aware the client in front of him had only picked up the best swords in their category! This was outrageous for a 7-some-what-years looking old kid!
He then rattled the prices of the medium quality swords one after another. Each priced between eight and ten silvers. In the end, the ten medium quality swords were priced at 86 silvers.
He then told Warren that he had a great eye for quality swords.
This flattery led to Jamy tapping Warren’s shoulder and telling him to not be led by the nose by the sugar-sweet-talking clerk. However, Warren chuckled as he knew best that it was an honest compliment, his appraisal couldn’t be wrong.
His brother’s sword price was 35 silvers, whereas his own blue crystal embedded sword only cost 20 silvers as the clerk told that water crystals were less popular as their effects would not strengthen the fighting ability of the user that much.
“A grade one crystal would not an add that much perhaps, but if I’m right this grade two crystal will add a lot to the potential of the sword!” Warren sneered in his mind, he was extremely happy to purchase the sword for such a low price, he felt like loudly laughing but somehow kept his composure.
The katana he had picked up would cost 40 coppers, as the clerk told him the shape was unusual and the blade only an experiment of one of the apprentices.
“Well, so in total, that’s 55 silvers for two high-quality swords, 86 silvers for the ten medium quality swords and 40 coppers for the katana. Totalling 141 silvers and 40 coppers.”
Warren nodded, in his heart, he knew he already had a sweet deal thanks to his purchase of the high-quality sword and katana he had chosen, but he still wanted to negotiate the price.
“As I said, I will give you a discount as it’s your first purchase at the shop. Ten percent and I’ll throw in the katana for free.” The clerk said. The clerk to had put up a friendly poker face and was now waiting to close the deal.
“It is my first time dealing with this shop, but I’m very pleased with the service and quality of the swords.” Warren said as if was a regular at buying things, straight-faced without even blinking.
“I’ve come on behalf of my father, Gerald Emberheart, he has had some dealings with you too on behalf of the local defense garrison. Also, I’d like the tools on this list to be purchased as well.” He then handed the list to the clerk.
The happy clerk then immediately in the story bringing back various tools and items that had been on the list. “That would be an additional 25 silvers and 60 coppers.” He then said after he had done the math on his notebook on the counter. “That would make for a total of 167 silvers.”
Warren smiled “I presume we could come to a favorable arrangement since it’s likely we will be doing more business in the future.” His eyes practically reflected the gold coin he had taken from his pouch.
The clerk quickly picked up on the gold coin, his eyes grew wide and he then quickly assured him that they would come to a beneficial agreement. The clerk then offered him a 20% discount on the total sum as well. He then added, “You’ll also get a 30% discount if you buy new scabbards with the swords.”
At this point, both guards had tapped Warren’s shoulder to encourage him to take the deal. Warren to had been very pleased with the deal and in the end left after paying 2 gold coins in total as he also requested to have sets of good quality leather sword belts included in the deal. When the deal was done the clerk thanked him for his business and handed him a coin with the letters U.B.A. pressed in it.
The clerk told him it was a coin of recognition commissioned by the United Blacksmith Association. It would get him a ten percent discount at all connected smithies.
This simple gesture had been well received by Warren as he assured the clerk he would return to his shop if he had any additional business.
As he walked out of the shop he walked out the street and then started to loudly laugh, tears even falling from his eyes. Such a good bargain he thought. He had made a huge profit and even made a valuable relationship with the blacksmith shop. It then hit him he forgot to ask about gifts at the shop.
He was reluctant to return to ask such questions so he decided he would have to do his best in the next few shops. He then started walking towards the carpentry with a big smile plastered on his face, flanked by a bewildered duo of guards, who were now carrying the purchased items on their back in huge linen bags on their back. The two servants, Mary and James followed from behind with an even more bewildered face.
As he walked towards the carpentry he once more started to experiment with his gift.
He then wondered whether he could appraise himself, the results startled him.
With a shocked face, he stared at the info in the appraisal box.
Warren Amberheart
Age: 7 years
Occupation: Honourable Student
Gift: 2 gifts; Appraisal; Elemental affinity