“I can’t believe this is the only place that’s open,” Cal said to himself as he stared up at the sign displaying the words ‘Eatery.’
It was straight to the point and couldn’t be misconstrued as anything else, but he didn’t think there was anything more bland to name a restaurant.
“Why do you think I wasn’t interested,” Benan said with an amused tone. “You eat once in this town and you experienced it all.” He took the lead. “There is one good part about this place. The seating area. Let me get that for us. We will be here for some time.”
It took Cal to hear that to realize he had forgotten the main reason for coming here.
… I’m sure Tavia won’t mind. This quickly turned into a regular shopping trip.
He followed Benan into the nearly empty restaurant. A few patrons scattered around, but most kept to their own bubbles and didn’t bother with them. The few that did only glanced at them before returning to their food and conversation.
“Owner, we’ll be talking the patio.” Benan didn’t ask, but the ‘owner’ grunted in agreement anyway.
Cal stepped out into the open air onto a patio that overlooked the water. The restaurant was at the edge of town, bordering the thin sliver of beach with the ocean beyond it.
“The view isn’t the best, but it is adequate for the time we have to spend here,” Benan commented as he wiped a chair’s seat before sitting down. He motioned to the chair across the table. “Please, join me.”
Cal took it as he considered how to extract the most information without revealing that he had never used the things he had bought from Benan.
A deep purple coin was placed at the center of the table. “There. We now have enough time to finish this conversation.”
“Why did you put that coin there?” Cal could feel mana emanating from the coin but didn’t know what it did.
“It’ll give us privacy. An overly careful thing to use considering where we are, but I’m sure you don’t want anyone to know about the gem boosting you to this level,” Benan leaned forward. “That brings me to my first question. How did you manage to stay in these outskirts with your rapid progression?”
Cal tapped his fingers on the table as he considered his words. He wanted to keep Benan under the impression that he had used the gem. He felt that was the only way to get answers out of the man, but that was hard to achieve when he knew absolutely nothing about the gem.
“Was that ‘dragon bone’ you sold me real?” Cal ignored Benan’s question completely. “I feel like I should demand my money back for being tricked into buying a stick.”
“Ah, I think you misremembered something, Apprentice Cal,” Benan had a sly smile. “I wasn’t the one who insisted on you buying that stick. You were the one that wanted it. I assume to hide the fact that you bought the gem, but that doesn’t change the responsibility.”
“You wanted one guildmark for that stick,” Cal muttered as he recalled the interaction. His eyes sharpened. “But only two gold for the gem. You would have sold it for a few silver if necessary.”
Benan simply smiled before raising his hand. He looked at the man approaching their table with two drinks and picked up the coin.
“Put it on my tab.”
“No need to say what I already know, merchant.”
Cal stared after the retreating back of the ‘owner.’ “Are you a regular here?”
“Somewhat,” Benan placed the coin on the table again. “But do you really want to discuss my relationship with the proprietor? By my count, that’s your second question.”
Cal blinked. He didn’t know they were keeping count.
So be it.
“No, I don’t. And that was your second question.”
“With my first still unanswered.”
“I’ve had some help from the higher-ups in the guild. They are… eager to keep me content,” Cal tried to be as vague as possible, and his reply was accepted.
Your skill [Master Negotiator] has increased by 1 level.
Cal glanced at the interface before quickly dismissing it to avoid getting distracted.
I thought that was only for the actual trade of goods. Looks like trading information also qualifies.
“Interesting,” Benan took a sip of his drink before grimacing. “How revolting. You would think a trading port would have better options.”
If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.
“And you say you’re a regular,” Cal chuckled as he decided to avoid the drink altogether. From the start, its dark, nearly opaque liquid with a harsh smell was already unappealing to him.
“Sometimes it’s good to remind yourself that some places are just unfortunate.”
Cal wasn’t sure what to make of the man. “You look down on Mariner’s Rest.” He observed him for a moment and added, “You feel the same with the Celestial Order.”
He didn’t make it a question on purpose. He wanted to see if he could tell anything by Benan’s reaction. He learned nothing from his blank expression.
“What did you feel after you absorbed the gem?” Benan was clearly done skirting around the subject.
“Nothing.”
“Impossible,” Benan stated with narrowed eyes.
Cal denied feeling anything to avoid having to make up the answer. But that didn’t leave him out of options. Whatever happened to the guildmaster was now nearly confirmed to be the result of using the gem.
He took a moment to gather his thoughts. It was beyond obvious that Benan was no ordinary merchant. It was likely he visited Mariner’s Rest for reasons other than making money, at least in terms of what could be made with a stall. The man was simply too strong to be lowered to such a level.
“I feel a little more impulsive… angry than I think I used to be, but I consider it nothing since I can easily control it. Compared to what the gem gave me, I would gladly take it.”
“Impressive,” Benan chuckled as he leaned back in the chair. “Very impressive, Apprentice Cal. It takes a special person to be able to handle the effects of the gem.”
“You say this but haven’t told me what the gem is.”
“Oh, but I have. It comes from the mines in the Federation—”
“Not the sales pitch you gave me before,” Cal interrupted, to Benan’s amusement. “Why does it boost my growth to this level?”
“What does your interface tell you?” Benan asked with genuine curiosity.
He simply looked at the fake merchant with a raised brow.
“I’m afraid this is something I can’t answer with any real confidence,” Benan gave in with a shrug. “I can give you my guess if you like.” Cal motioned for him to continue. “The area where the gem mine is located is oversaturated with mana. Other than that, I can’t think of anything else.”
“… That sounds highly unlikely,” Cal said dryly. “If it was that simple, these would be freely available with how common that is.”
“As I said, I don’t have any real confidence with it.”
Cal sighed. “Then you can guess that the interface doesn’t tell me anything. I simply progress faster with no explanation given.”
“Well, this whole thing had been unproductive,” Benan laughed. “I don’t think we have much more to discuss, Apprentice Cal.”
“Wait!” Cal stopped him from getting up. He still had little idea of what to do with the gem sitting on his dresser. “… Do you have more? I might have someone I want to give a gem to.”
“Oh?” Benan’s eyes showed intense curiosity. “This must be someone special. Is it the girl you were with?”
For some reason, Cal felt this wouldn’t be what Benan wanted to hear. The man practically gave away the gem, and he guessed it was to see its effects on a person. Tavia was close to him in strength in the grand scheme of things.
What if Benan targeted the guildmaster on purpose in my past life? I can’t see how the gem got in his hands otherwise.
“Maybe in the future, but I... this is for someone else,” Cal acted shifty. It was better to be vague than specify anyone in the guild.
Benan smiled. “It won’t be cheap, but it could be done.”
“You sold it for two gold. What do you mean it won’t be cheap?”
“That was before I knew how effective it was. Do you not think it’s worth more than a measly two gold?”
It started clicking in Cal’s mind. What Benan was doing wasn’t new, but the thing that was being sold certainly was. But his mind still couldn’t accept it was such a simple matter that might have brought the downfall of the guildmaster.
“How much?” Cal asked with narrowed eyes.
“I like you, Apprentice Cal. In fact, I feel that you deserve some kind of reward for revealing the gem’s effect to me. How about I give you two more for free?” Benan pulled two rock-like gems from his pocket and placed them on the table. “As for anything more, we can discuss it if you think you need it.”
Cal stared at the gems blankly. It felt like Benan gave these for him to use personally. It felt like the gem’s effect would eventually run out.
It’s addictive. Maybe not in the physical sense, but the effects themselves. The guildmaster was completely different when I saw him in my first life, but the effects would make any guild member accept the cost if it is gradual. They would never realize what it was doing.
He was almost disappointed this was what the gem was. Still, he continued the charade. “I need somewhere to hide them before they are used. I heard of something larger on the inside than its physical size. How much would those cost me? It would be ideal if I could discreetly carry the gems around with me.”
Cal was really selling the need to keep the gems near him at all times. Addictive substances weren’t uncommon, even among guild members, but this gem was particularly nefarious. Still, he knew how to act based on what he observed with the people who dealt with such things.
“I’m surprised you know of them in this backwater,” Benan was no longer being subtle about his disdain. He thought it over before nodding. “As I said, I do like you, Apprentice Cal. However, not to this extent. I can sell one to you for ten guildmarks. And this truly is a deal.”
Cal had to stop his excitement from showing as his heartbeat increased. He couldn’t buy one yet, but based on Overseer Marek’s estimate of them costing twenty guildmarks, Benan wasn’t lying about this being a deal.
“I don’t have that kind of money,” Cal sighed regretfully. “Maybe I should hold off on taking the gems. I don’t want to take the chance and leave it unguarded.”
Benan stared at him for a few long seconds before coming to a decision. “I wouldn’t do that to you. I’ll give you the storage pouch right now, but you will still owe me the ten guildmarks. As for how you’ll pay it back, we can speak on it in the future.”
It’s decided. I severely dislike Benan. I will not be giving him a copper.
“You are a true friend, Benan,” Cal said gratefully as he reached over the table with his hand. Benan sealed the deal with a firm shake.
Your skill [Master Negotiator] has increased by 5 levels.
He ignored the interface and kept eye contact with Benan as he pulled his hand back. “It shouldn’t have to be said, but I owe you a large favor.”
“Please, let’s not speak of such crude matters,” Benan said gently as if he were a saint. “Let’s go to the port. I have a spare storage pouch on my ship.”
Cal nodded and stood up without touching the gems, though he made sure to look at them longingly.
Other than the sip Benan took, the drinks were untouched. It was a familiar routine with the way the owner took the drinks as they left.
He made small talk with Benan as they walked to the port, mainly of the surrounding territories around the Celestial Order.
Benan might be someone he would disassociate with in the future, but the man was highly useful at the moment. He would wring him dry until it was time to cut ties.