‘There are things that not even coin can buy’ is the mantra of the destitute.
- Unknown.
With renewed enthusiasm and a new skip to my step, I wandered through the Grand Bazaar, Zariyah at my side. Meandering past merchants peddling expensive, aromatic spices, she shared the names of those she recognized, detailing their origins and uses. However, I found my attention drifting. I was more captivated by the subtle smile curving her lips and the spark in her eyes than her shared knowledge. Despite this, her silent explanations brought the world around me to life as no lesson or lecture ever could.
Focused completely on her, I did not see the changing numbers at the corner of my vision. In those moments I could almost believe that I was not trapped in the hellish dimension of a game.
Could one truly have feelings for a character from a game? If countless girls could tumble head over heels for someone who existed solely within the pages of a book, then surely the same could be said for a digital creation. Troubling, but in a sort of good way. It might be just an illusion, but the feelings I held were real.
As she concluded another explanation, her gaze fell gently. Thank you, she seemed to murmur with her fingers sketching a rare gesture of gratitude.
"For what, exactly?" I queried, a touch of confusion in my voice.
For everything, she replied, her eyes diverting, avoiding mine. When Gelgor transferred my contract to you, I feared the worst. I anticipated harsh treatment, to be ravaged like a… She paused, the bloom of a blush coloring her face.
"I would never," I started to protest, but she continued over me.
Please, let me finish. This hasn't been an easy transition. Living in fear, only to find the reality so starkly different... It's like being adrift in a tiny boat amidst a tempest, at the mercy of the surging waves. You've looked upon me with almost open lust in your eyes, yet you've scarcely laid a hand on me. Despite having every right, given I was all but your property. Why? Surely, you find me attractive...
"Indeed, I could have claimed you. But that would have meant not truly having you, the real you," I responded. The words felt clichéd as they left my mouth, yet she seemed to take them to heart.
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Her smile then, playful and teasing, lit up her eyes. You nearly convince me that I'm a noble lady from the tales of old, not a despised Hazagadam. Despite knowing what I am, you treat me with such kindness. We hardly know each other, yet you accord me respect as if I hold some great worth.
She paused, her lips pursed in thought before she carefully added, And... you're the first to ever defend me in such a manner… against a captain of the City Guard, no less. I can't fathom why.
"Maybe it's simply in my nature," I replied with a hint of playfulness, gently lifting her chin to meet her gaze.
You claim to be a man of your word, and thus I am a free woman. If I am to believe you, then please, do not touch me like that in public again, she stated firmly after she pushed me away. The moment of tenderness evaporated, and her thorny defensive side swiftly returned.
Where on earth did I go wrong there?
The Hazagadami woman led me next to a different part of the Bazaar. Here all manner of oddities and trinkets were being sold. Things like a magical bracelet that could help improve your insight could be found next to a tube of farseeing, a device I recognized to be some sort of telescope. Of the magical items, the greater majority of them were fraudulent, and the ones that I identified to have some modicum of magic were exorbitantly expensive. Most interesting of all was a wooden mask. Its seller advertised it as a good luck charm at the reasonable price of four gold, but my magic determined that it was really a cursed item.
Mask ‘Voice of the Flood’ [Magic][Cursed][Witchwood]
Durability 259/260
A rather ominous name, I thought to myself. Now that I knew it to be cursed, I could almost feel the malevolence being emanated by the mask. Either that, or I had a rather active imagination.
Curiosity tugged at me, tempting me to uncover the nature of the curse. However, prudence advised against such an inquiry, suggesting that some mysteries are better left unexplored.
I told the red-eyed girl of my findings, but she merely just shrugged her shoulders. All manners of things are sold here, was her simple and curt reply.
How could I fix the current tension? I much preferred the woman when she smiled.
“Zariyah, you know of a place where I can sell some rare alchemical materials?” I asked, breaking the silence.
Here of course, if we find a potion peddler. And perhaps also on Scholar’s Row. I have not been here for a long time so… Perhaps you can ask one of the merchants here? she answered, shrugging noncommittally.
It was a start at least.