On the following end-week Nedric went with Rialto down to the village to get the supplies they needed for their forthcoming journey. They had submitted a list of the things they needed to the bursar who had then gone through their lists and crossed off everything that would be supplied to them. He had then given them some money and told them to buy anything else they needed from the stores in the village. Basically they were provided with food, bedrolls, backpacks and water bottles, the rest was up to them.
The two boys had different priorities. Nedric was in need of some good footwear and some waterproofs, whilst Rialto wanted some luxuries to supplement the food they would be given. Both boys were also looking for some more clothing and had been given the names of various people in the village that made them.
It wasn’t a particularly large village, maybe three hundred houses all told. It largely existed to supply the keep and to support the local vineyards. The surrounding area was fairly mountainous and made some particularly fine wines. All the casks were made locally and so were bottles and corks. The keep had originally been built because one of the Duke’s ancestors had been very keen on wine growing and had wanted somewhere to live and experiment with different varieties of grape.
The village was named Asgril after that first Duke and the villagers were fairly proprietorial when talking about the Duke. They were unhappy with the students because they were seen as newcomers who didn’t care about the land and this had led to some tension. This tension was particularly pronounced between the richer students and the village apprentices.
Their first stop was the general store. A large building with seemingly endless rooms, owned and run by an old-ish lady named Janit. Each room of the store was filled to overflowing with an abundance of goods, both new and second-hand. The two boys could have spent all day just looking around her shop if they hadn’t had other places to visit.
“Look at those!” Rialto pointed a display that held a variety of different musical instruments. “I can just see myself playing that mandolin at the royal court.” Rialto picked up the instrument in question and pretended to play a few chords.
“Do you know anything about playing one of those?” asked Nedric
“Haven’t a clue my son,” Rialto replied, “but I could get the minstrel up at the keep to give me lessons. It isn’t as if he has anything else to do whilst the Duke is elsewhere.”
“Well if you’re going to learn that, I’m going to find something else to do. I’m not going to just listen whilst you play bad notes.”
“You could always try learning to use them!” Rialto pointed to a set of three wooden clubs as used by jesters.
“I can see it now! Both of us at the king’s court, me juggling away and you playing, we’ll be the talk of the palace!” said Nedric slightly mockingly.
“Well it would be better than working for a living,” suggested Rialto.
“Do not mention that word, it is our day off after all.”
“I promise not to mention it again, “ agreed Rialto.
Apart from the mandolin and the clubs the boys shopped around and found some of the things they actually needed. Nedric was able to find a waterproof that fitted and was looking at a pair of boots that almost fit. They were a little on the large size, which he reasoned was good as his feet were still growing. The boots were second hand but well made and if he could get the right price from Janit then they could save him a small fortune. Rialto had found a couple of sweaters that would fit his smaller frame and was interested in some of the sweets that Janit had on sale. The hard part was still in front of them as Janit was renowned for her ability to haggle.
Eventually the two boys made their way to the front of the shop and the fun began. Rialto had a flair for bargaining; it came from his merchant upbringing. Nedric always let the smaller boy take the lead when it came to trying to get a decent price. The general clothing and the food were quickly agreed upon as their prices were fairly fixed. The boots, clubs and mandolin were a different matter. Rialto went for an overall price in the hopes of getting things cheaper.
“Nobody else is going to buy the clubs or the mandolin so they’re worth very little to you!” he began.
“Ah, but if some travelling entertainer happens to be passing through and needs to replace his props then where will I be? They can afford to pay me the proper price as well.” Janit wasn’t going to give Rialto an edge easily.
“How long have you had these things? Ages I’m sure, I know they were here the last few times I was here. So you’re not going to be selling them any time soon. It’s best to sell them now and cheaply and increase your turnover rather than storing them for ages in order to maybe make a profit!” Rialto was starting to lecture, always a sign that he was getting too involved.
“Who are you to tell me how to run my business? Young whippersnapper!” Janit’s protestations rang strangely false to Nedric.
As he watched the two argue, Nedric was struck by the feeling that Janit wasn’t trying that hard against Rialto and that she was enjoying the haggling process. Nedric was once again struck by the way that his friend seemed capable of charming all the older women. As the negotiations drew to a close Nedric realised that they were getting a good bargain and that he would have ended up paying twice as much if his friend hadn’t been around. He resolved to try and learn something of Rialto’s technique with people, even if it was only to get better prices in shops.
“Seeing as you’re robbing me blind boys,” Janit said as she packed their goods, “I expect to see how you do with these things. You might even want to put on a bit of a show for some of my friends!”
“For you dear lady, anything!” Rialto’s words were charming flattery, although it was quite possible he meant them.
“Thanks for doing the talking.” Nedric said after they left the shop. “You saved me a fortune!”
“Think nothing of it, it was fun!”
“Still it’s one I owe you.”
“Well in that case you can help me with that mathematics assignment when we get back.”
“I thought we agreed not to discuss work!” Nedric grinned.
“Are you trying to get out of helping?” asked Rialto.
“Not in the slightest, I’ll be happy to help you, as long as that doesn’t mean doing it all for you. If I do that then you’ll never be able to do the work.”
“No, all I want is to get a clearer idea of how it all works. I wish I had your abilities.”
“Strangely enough I was wishing the same thing,“ said Nedric.
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
“We’d best stick together then and make the best team in the world!”
“I’m not arguing with that,” agreed Nedric and they wandered further into the village to find someone to make them some clothes.
As they walked, the two boys gradually became aware that they were being followed by a group of villagers of about their age. They kept their distance at first but as the group got bigger they gradually closed in on the boys. As they closed, the boys were able to overhear remarks that which were obviously meant for them.
“Rich kids, think they can just come around here and take over!”
“Bet they never did a hard days work in their lives!”
“Wouldn’t surprise me if they have someone to wipe their bums for them!”
“Not one of them could win a fight against my baby sister!”
Nedric glanced over at his friend and could see that he was getting angrier. He started to speed up, saying “Come on, we still have lots of shopping to do.”
“Bet they’re buying dresses, because they’re obviously not men!”
Rialto stopped.
He turned around and started towards the group which had grown to about eight or nine youths. Nedric, more able to keep his temper than his smaller friend, tried to grab his shoulder and missed.
“Right, which one of you flowers said that?” Rialto was looking for a fight. A large youth, heavily built, stepped forward.
“I did little boy. Want to make anything of it?”
Nedric managed to step in front of Rialto before he could reply and said, “That wouldn’t be fair, would it? A big person like you against a small guy like him. Maybe it would be fairer if we went and got a few friends to even things out.”
“You chicken? Need someone else to hold your hand?”
Nedric could see that the youth was nerving himself up to fight and tried to calm things down. “I’m good enough to beat you and I’ll prove it in the murderball game!”
“Why not now?”
“Because we need to get our shopping done, come on Rialto!” he held the smaller boy by the shoulder and half-dragged him away from the group. The youths made no move to stop them as they quickly moved out of sight.
As soon as they were around a corner Rialto asked “why did you stop me? I could have taken him down!”
Nedric was fairly sure that his friend was correct. Each of the students had been taught some unarmed self-defence by the guards. Of course they had also been told that the best means of defence was to run away. Nedric didn’t think that his friend would want to hear that so he said “There were nine of them and two of us. That isn’t very good odds. What if one of us broke something? We wouldn’t be able to go on this trip would we? I’d rather be travelling than staying back at the keep, even if I had the satisfaction of beating up that lout.”
“What if we hurt ourselves in the murderball match? We wouldn’t be able to go then either”
That Rialto was thinking more clearly again was a good sign and Nedric relaxed a little.
“Well we had better make sure that doesn’t happen. Maybe we could get Strawn and that guy in a fight and they can beat each other up. That would serve them both right!”
“It won’t happen,” said Rialto. “Strawn is just too good a fighter to get hurt by that guy. He wouldn’t even break into a sweat dealing with him!”
Much though he hated to admit it, Nedric was forced to agree.
The boys continued their shopping trip and managed to order the clothes they needed without any additional hassles. They didn’t see any more of the youths who had tried to aggravate them and for that they were grateful. They made their way back to the keep to learn that one of their comrades hadn’t been so lucky.
“Did you hear about Marryn?” asked Elsebeth as they sat down for dinner.
As the girl had hardly said a word to the boys in two years they were both surprised at her coming up to them to speak.
“No. What about him?” asked Rialto.
“He was beaten up when he went down to the village! Apparently they’ve made a mess of his face, broken his arms and sliced his stomach open. Rhianna saw him when he was brought back up and she said he looked a real mess!”
“Nasty!” said Nedric. “I hope he can recover quickly, was he on his own?”
“I guess so,” said Elsebeth. “No-one else normally goes round with him.”
“Perhaps we should go out as one big group next time. Might have to show those villagers they can’t hurt one of ours!” said Rialto angrily.
“Might not be allowed out for a while,” added Nedric. “Look up, here comes Lucern!”
The Overmaster made his stately way to his place at the top table and cleared his throat. All the students immediately paid attention, the noise of the room dying instantly. Lucern paused at this unaccustomed quiet and then began speaking.
“I’m sure by now that you will all have heard something about what happened today. To stop any silly rumours, I will tell you the facts and how this will affect you. To start, one of our students was attacked when visiting the village today. The person received a broken nose and when falling backwards, landed awkwardly and has also sprained his right arm. I’ve spoken to Captain Tolbeck and he has sent the guard to collect the persons responsible and will administer suitable punishment. I do not expect any of you to attempt any form of revenge or you shall also be punished.” Lucern looked around to make sure that his statement was clearly understood.
“I have also asked the mayor of Asgril to come and talk with me to discuss whether the game of murderball should be cancelled. My feeling at the moment is that it should be postponed but I have not fully made up my mind about this yet. Finally I am placing restrictions on all students’ movements to the village. You may only go out in groups of four and only during daytime. If anyone has any reason why they need to go against these restrictions they will have to talk to me about them and I will consider if their reasons are adequate. Any questions?”
Nobody said anything and Lucern motioned for the meal to be served. As he sat down the room erupted in conversation. Nedric turned back to Elsebeth and said “Looks like he wasn’t as injured as you said!”
“Well I was only telling you what Rhianna told me.”
On hearing her name, Rhianna who was sat further down the table looked up.
“What are you saying about me?” she asked.
Nedric who always found it difficult to be coherent around the redhead said nothing. Elsebeth deflected her friend by saying, “Tell us again what Marryn looked like.”
Rhianna, who liked nothing better than being centre of attention agreed.
“I saw him as he was brought through the courtyard, they were taking him to the healers. There was a thick layer of blood over his face and more all down his front and on his arms. He was holding one arm with the other and it looked like the blood was coming from his arm. What little I could see of his face was really pale. He looked a lot worse than Lucern just said!” The last comment was said defiantly as though daring anyone to say that she had exaggerated beforehand.
“We’ve got to get the Overmaster to change his mind about the game. We need to put those villagers in their place after this!” Rialto exclaimed emphatically.
“He isn’t going to let us play that game any time soon,” said Nedric.
“Oh, I think I can make him change his mind,” said Rhianna with a quick smile.
The others looked at her and Elsebeth asked “How?”
“Let me just say that I have my ways!” Rhianna tried to look all mysterious and would say no more.
During the meal Nedric hid three apples in his tunic. Rialto noticed at the time but said nothing. It wasn’t unusual for the boys to take some food back to their room after the meal but three apples seemed a little excessive.
When they got back to their room, Nedric removed the apples, placing them on his desk. “What are they for?” asked Rialto.
“You don’t think I’m going to just brain myself with those clubs I got today!” said Nedric. “I’m going to start off by learning how to juggle the apples and then when I can do that the clubs should be easier.”
“Do you know how to juggle the apples?” asked Rialto.
“No but how hard can it be?”
“I don’t know but if it was that easy everyone would be doing it and there would be no work for jesters.”
“Well they make their money from people feeling sorry for them, hardly requires much skill does it?”
“I think you’ll be surprised. Anyway you’re meant to be helping me with my maths.”
“All right, let’s see where you’re stuck,” said Nedric with a sigh.
After helping Rialto, Nedric took up the apples and tried to juggle three. When messing around in the past he had always juggled two by throwing one up and then passing the other over to the hand that had just thrown the apple, stone or whatever. He found that to do that with three was extremely difficult indeed and gave up. He threw the apples at his bed, sat down on his chair and thought about it a bit more.
He reasoned that their had to be an easier way of doing things as he was trying to keep two apples in the air at the same time, with three apples and two hands only one apple needed to be in the air at any one time. He picked up two of the apples and tried to juggle them in one hand. This was a lot easier, even if he did tend to throw them towards himself so that they bounced off his chest. He tried to do the same with his left hand and after a struggle, managed that as well. Then he tried to juggle two apples in one hand and threw one of the apples across so that he was juggling two in the other hand, switching back and forth between the hands every so often. Finally he got to the point where every throw from one hand was ending up in the other.
The problem he had now, was that the apples were going away from him. He could only manage a few throws before he was the other side of the room. After almost hitting Rialto a few times and bruising the apples so they were unfit to eat and starting to get sticky, he decided to stop for the night. The next day, he decided, he would sort out some stones instead.
Rialto by this time had finished his work and had brought out his mandolin. To say that his attempts to play it were disastrous would probably be an understatement. He had not bothered to tune the instrument in any way and was randomly trying to find the notes of one of his favourite tunes. Nedric winced at the sound that was coming from the other side of the room and eventually threw an apple at Rialto to get him to stop. Rialto ducked, the apple impacted on the wall making a nasty mess. The mandolin was forgotten in the discussion that followed as to who was going to clear it up. By the time this was sorted out it was too late for either of the boys to practice anything more.