The unexpected greeting caused me to miss a step, so I almost tripped on the last few stairs of the temple staircase. Pretending I hadn't practically stumbled and was simply dusting off my pants, I lifted my head and offered the boy a polite, though slightly strained, smile.
"Hello. You were looking for me?"
"On Gnur, you saved my life. The least I can do to repay you is help you get settled in my hometown."
His smile seemed genuine, he was truly glad to see me, but there was something a little off, or rather uncharacteristic, about his behavior. He was a bit jittery, clearly nervous, though he tried his best to hide it behind a warm smile.
"I thought you'd be busy for a few more days with various formalities." Since I didn't need anyone's company right now, I wasn't planning on sparing the boy's feelings. "Don't you need to claim your inheritance after your father's death?"
At first, it seemed that my jab hit the mark, the mention of his father's fate made the smile vanish from the boy's face, and his gaze was veiled. But instead of backing off, Aun shook his head and explained:
"The inheritance isn't that substantial." His lips tightened at these words. "Almost all our money was invested in the ship, and the start of sea trade, and what's left is a small house near the North wall and a few coins."
"Many people in this city don't even have that," I nodded toward the one-legged beggar sitting at the temple stairs.
"I'm not blaming my fate." He lowered his voice and confided. "Truth be told, many tried to dissuade my father from sea trade, but he wouldn't listen. He even had a falling-out over this with his uncle, the head of the senior branch of our family. My Aunt Hanya, for instance, believes that my father's death is a punishment for disrespecting the elders." At these words, Aun shrugged, indicating that he didn't take such words seriously. "As for claiming the inheritance, it will take a couple of days. In the meantime, I essentially have nothing to do," he spread his hands, "I can't just sit on the municipality steps and simply wait for the paperwork to be processed."
So he found me just because he was bored and didn't want to be alone with his dreary thoughts? I don't recall joining any charity to help people in tough psychological situations, so why am I blessed with such "luck"? I was just about to tell the young man to leave me alone when he, sensing my mood, quickly began to chatter:
"You wanted to participate in the tournament, and my older cousin Laotsyn works at the Arena, and maybe I can find out something interesting for you."
A friendly smile bloomed on my face. Perhaps his cousin would end up being useless, but I couldn't pass up the chance to learn something truly helpful about the upcoming tournament or its participants.
"That's intriguing," I nod at the young man. "Will you introduce us?" And I immediately turn toward the Arena.
"Master Raven, before we go anywhere, I would advise you to change your clothes," Aun stops me.
"What's wrong with my attire?" I ask, patting the leather patches of my doublet.
"Let's just say," the young man tries to hide a smile, "they're too noticeable. You already stand out with your height and face, and your rich clothes draw attention even more. I'm sure any merchant in the city will triple prices for you just because of your attire."
There was some sense in his words. And the civilian set given by Larindel wasn't really for everyday wear; it was more suitable for feasts and receptions among the nobility.
"I know a shop on the market square where you can get a change of clothes for just a couple of dozen silver. Yes, it won't be as rich and imposing, but people will stop staring at you so much," Aun suggested to me. "Besides, registration for the Tournament will last until sunset, so we'll definitely have time to return to the Arena."
After a brief thought, I agreed with the boy:
"Lead on."
Moreover, having a local guide wouldn't hurt me right now.
While we were crossing the central square, Aun was chattering incessantly. The boy was gabbing non-stop, either talking about the city or veering off into his family stories. If I were a tourist, I would probably even find his tales interesting, but now I was mostly letting his chatter pass by my ears.
"... and she jumped from the Tower of Strategist Taurn because of this unrequited love." I missed the beginning of the story, but these words made me emerge from my thoughts and ask a question.
"Interesting! So, in Tries, all the city towers have their own names?"
"Huh?" Aun didn't understand my question at first but quickly caught on and answered. "Names for the towers? There are, but not for all, only for the gateway ones. The Gate of Strategists, which is adorned with statues of two of Tries' greatest generals, is buttressed on either side by named towers. The same goes for the Western or Consular Gate, but all the other towers are simply numbered. First, Second, Third, and so on."
"Seventh, Eighth." I casually continued for him.
"Yes, there are those; they are on the Western wall." Aun nodded.
"So, what happened next? The girl jumped from the tower and?" Having learned what I needed, I quickly changed the subject.
Just as the boy finished his story, we arrived at the Market Square. Unlike the Central one, it was long, stretching almost a third of the city. However, it's not surprising, Tries is a major port, and commerce is the basis of local prosperity and wealth.
Shouts, cries, swearing, exclamations about prices - it seemed that all this here does not cease from dawn to sunset. I've never liked places like this, where there's a stall or a shop at every step. And everyone you pass is eager to grab your sleeve and sell you something unnecessary. Numerous passers-by and buyers literally have to make their way through this trading thicket. For a second, I even felt like I was back in Deytran, but I quickly realized that the local noise and bustle only remotely reminded me of the madness happening in the trading capital of the world.
Unlike me, Aun felt right at home here. He confidently maneuvered between market stalls, adeptly slipping out of strangers' grasps and, with a polite smile, sent particularly clingy vendors to Da'Nnan. It quickly became apparent that the boy was born in this environment - it was natural for him. As for me, I was pretty tense and constantly looked around, using my Aura of Perception to the fullest so that no one would rob me in this hustle and bustle. On the other hand, it was in this place that I realized that my clothes really caused unhealthy excitement among most of the merchants. Literally, everyone I passed tried to drag me into their store without any embarrassment and showed incredible persistence. If not for Aun, I would have definitely broken the jaw of one of the particularly clingy and greedy individuals. But the boy adeptly extricated me from others' grasp, and we kept moving forward in this noisy crowd that was always in some kind of Brownian motion.
We had to cross almost the entire gigantic market before we reached the right place. This part of the square, located near the Guard barracks, was not so densely packed with stalls and street vendors. Here, small, most likely family-owned stores and workshops prevailed, while there were almost no peddlers. When we stopped, I was finally able to take a full breath. Once again, I was reminded that I dislike being in large crowds.
"We're here!" Aun nodded and, grabbing my elbow, literally shoved me through the door of one of the shops.
From what I could make out on the sign, this place sold fabrics from all over Ain and provided tailoring services. Once the tightly fitted doors closed behind us, I initially thought I had gone deaf, so quiet it became. Apparently, some domestic Wind magic was at work here, cutting off the street noise. To be honest, this shop didn't look like the kind where they'd make you clothes for a couple of dozen silver; the clients who came here obviously had more substantial sums. Besides us, there were four other people in the shop, two obviously customers and two middle-aged salesmen. Approaching one of the latter, Aun flashed a broad smile and asked:
"Where is sister Alaya or mother Zian?"
The local salesmen clearly knew Aun, and one of them, after bowing to the customers, immediately disappeared into the back room. Meanwhile, I was observing the young man and noticed that he was nervous; the boy had even blushed and was clearly struggling to control his excitement, hiding his trembling fingers behind his back. But before I could come to any understanding of what was causing such behavior, a new character appeared in the trading hall. A massive woman, only half a head shorter than me, her shape reminiscent of a corpulent nesting doll, powdered to the extreme, dressed in a vast, movement-friendly, bright outfit, with hair as black as coal gathered into a massive bun at the back of her head. She literally pounced on Aun, wrapped him in her plump arms, and pressed him to her, wailing:
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"Oh, my little one! Oh, how is this possible? Oh, how you are alone now! Oh, how sorry I am..."
She gasped and sighed for about three minutes, and the boy stoically endured as she hugged him, smearing her powder on his shirt. But everything eventually ends, and so did this. Pushing the boy away from her, the lady sternly wagged her finger under his nose.
"And how many times do I have to tell you I'm not your mother but your aunt." After that, she smiled good-naturedly and added, winking, "I'm not your mother yet. And as for Alaya, it's time for you to stop calling her your sister, especially since you're not relatives at all."
"Can I see her?" The boy squeaked softly, like a mouse.
"No!" The portly woman sharply retorted, and the good-natured smile disappeared from her face as if it had never been there. "And you know that you can't see each other."
"Unless it's by coincidence," the boy hinted to her.
"No coincidences!" Aunt Zian waved her hand in front of his nose. "Not when it comes to my daughter!"
"I understand." Aun, dropping his shoulders, immediately deflated.
"But I see you didn't come alone!" The lady finally noticed me, and somehow I suddenly felt uncomfortable. "Will you introduce me to your companion?"
"Master Raven, this is Aunt Zian. She owns this shop famous throughout Tries." The woman didn't even bat an eyelid in response to the flattery, continuing to study me attentively. "Aunt Zian, this is Master Raven. He saved me from pirates, and it's only thanks to him that I'm standing here alive." The smile on this lady's face was somewhat alarming to me. "Master Raven could use a set of city clothes," the young man gestured in front of me, "not as flashy and attention-grabbing as his current attire."
"Oh!" Touched, the woman turned to the young man and embraced him again. "Even in the face of such a tragedy, you didn't forget about your auntie and brought me a customer!"
She hugged the boy for about another minute, then turned to me and smiled with the good-natured grin of a seasoned trader:
"Master Raven, you made the right choice by coming to my shop," she said. As she spoke, she circled around me as if taking preliminary measurements with an experienced eye...
In the end, we spent almost half an hour in the shop, during which they measured me with Illusion magic and also selected a suitable style and fabrics. Madam Zian promised that everything would be ready an hour before sunset. Aun took care of the financial matter, charging me only twenty-seven silver.
When we left the shop and had walked about a hundred steps away from it, I nonchalantly put my hand on Aun's nape and then, sliding my hand down, grabbed him by the neck and squeezed hard. Meanwhile, I continued to walk calmly forward, smiling at random passers-by. After holding the young man in an iron grip for almost a minute, I leaned over to him without loosening my hand and growled:
"And what was that?! I really! I really don't like being used without my knowledge!"
"What do you mean, Master Raven?" Aun pretended not to understand me.
"Those clothes they're making for me in that shop, how much do they cost?"
"For you, as my friend, only twenty-seven silver." The boy continued to hold his line.
Loosening my grip, I released his neck and pushed the boy away from me.
"Unfortunately for you, I know the prices of fabrics." A crooked smile appeared on my face. "And, as I've said before, I really don't like being played with. But I liked you, so I won't harm you." I snapped my fingers before his nose, adding a bit of "Discharge" to the gesture. "Just disappear from my life if you don't want trouble. We're no longer on the same path."
My words made the boy pale even more than if I had beaten him up right then and there. Something about them frightened him more than the threat of physical violence. But I didn't care anymore. Spinning on my heel, I started to walk in the other direction, this time not bothering to be polite but pushing through the crowd with my chest and elbows. My face must have frozen into such an expression that even the street vendors stopped pestering me, offering their goods.
I was literally overflowing with anger. What had I done to him? Except for pushing him onto a stranger's sword and almost killing him by doing so? But he doesn't know about that detail; on the contrary, he believes that I was the one who saved his life. And still, this boy, without the slightest pang of conscience, decided to drag me into some of his games. Do I really look so simple that even the local boys feel it their duty to use me for their purposes? I had to do some breathing exercises on the go to calm down - so much was boiling inside me. Aun's attitude really got on my nerves. It infuriated me to the extreme.
I probably would have stayed angry for another couple of hours if it weren't for the scene unfolding nearby. At one of the small candy stalls, the seller was chasing a trio of small children, one of whom had licked a lollipop right on the tray. The onlookers, watching the proceedings, couldn't hide their laughter.
"I'll catch you!" The ancient man, as old as the stones underfoot, with a sparse gray beard that reached down to his waist, shouted at the top of his lungs. "I'll rip your legs off!"
But the children were not at all afraid of his threats. They deliberately ran around the old man's cart, sticking their tongues out at the seller.
"I am a warrior of the Wootz rank!" The old man shouted, wheezing and limping on one leg as he tried to catch up with them. "Just wait till I catch you! You'll see what it's like to laugh at an old man! I'll show you! I'll shove your sweet-loving tongues up your backsides!"
These threats caused even more laughter among the children, and they began to tease the old man, driving him to even greater anger and sophisticated cursing. Indeed, in the art of cursing, this seller proved to be a true master, and I even wanted to remember some of his lines.
"That's old Vu Yuan," a familiar voice sounded nearby. "Even my father always saw him like this, already old. No one remembers how long he's been selling his candies in this square. They say that long ago, he was a respected tunneller of the Wootz rank. But time spares no one. Honestly, when I was as small as these ragamuffins, I also laughed at him." There was a heavy sigh next to me. "Back then, it seemed very funny to me, and he does curse virtuously - there is something to learn!"
Turning around, I met Aun's gaze and muttered:
"Looking for trouble?"
"I was wrong." He raised his palms. "I admit. But I didn't plan anything bad and didn't want to hurt you! It's also beneficial for you! Instead of three gold, you will get a set of excellent clothes for less than thirty silver!"
"Disappear."
"Please! Don't drive me away!" The boy clasped his hands in a prayer gesture. "I will tell everything and won't keep secrets anymore!"
"Once betrayed..." I muttered in response.
"I didn't betray!" The youth recoiled from my words. "Yes, I admit, I didn't tell everything, but no more!"
"It doesn't matter." I brushed him off and continued moving towards the exit from the market square.
But the boy didn't give up that easily. He stuck close and began to tell his story quietly.
"For a long time now, I've been betrothed to a maiden named Alaya. Our engagement was arranged by our parents many years ago and without our knowledge. But I was lucky. Very lucky. Because I love my betrothed. But now, when we've grown up, we can't meet before the wedding. Before the wedding, which will happen in almost half a year and not earlier," the words conveyed all the pain and impatience of the infatuated youth. "Alaya sometimes helps her mother in the shop, and I hoped to see her." He sighed dreamily. "And, maybe, even talk a little. Yes, I admit, I brought you intentionally to Aunt Zian's shop! Yes, it was like that; I used you as an excuse because just visiting the bride's house is considered presumptuous and intrusive behavior."
Truth be told, I can understand him, but he still isn't telling the whole story, so I continue to walk forward, pretending not to pay any attention to Aun. He continues to talk about how he loves his precious Alaya, but I let it go in one ear and out the other.
We had just reached the eastern end of the market square, and before leaving it, I looked back. The vendor who sold sweets was still trying to catch the nimble children, entertaining a large crowd of onlookers. A crowd, none of whom suspected that this old man could, in an instant, capture both the boys who were mocking him as well as slaughter all of these spectators. Because his shouts and threats about being a Wootz rank warrior were a significant understatement. In reality, this seemingly ancient grandpa was a possessor of the Mithril Core! Of course, old age has indeed greatly diminished his abilities, but if he wanted to, I'm sure with one sweep of his hand, he could level half of this square and not even break a sweat. Why he has been playing the role of an ordinary trader for so many years, I do not know, but apparently, it's his personal choice, and it's not my place to interfere.
Perhaps I am the only one in all of Tries who sees the true rank of this amusing and comically looking old man. And who knows if he will swat me like an annoying fly if he guesses that someone has penetrated the veil of his secret? I need to remember to give this old man a wide berth and, above all, never to quarrel with him.
"But that's not all," Aun interrupts my observations with another heavy sigh. "After losing the ship and my father's death, my wealth has significantly diminished." He hesitates before continuing. "Of course, Aunt Zian won't break the engagement; it would disgrace her honor and status, but I don't want her to even think about it!" His voice bubbles with youthful passion. "So I brought you to her shop and introduced you as my friend." That part does sound like the truth, though I keep this observation to myself. "You're clearly from faraway lands. You're richly dressed and look like a true aristocrat! Your gaze has the same assurance as that of a true nobleman, radiating the belief that whatever you do, it will be right and the only correct thing to do!" His observation is interesting, but he's far off the mark when it comes to the source of my 'confidence'. "By introducing you to Aunt Zian, I hinted that my family lost many goods and gold but gained connections in distant lands." He starts to babble. "I understand, I understand, it's not very convincing, but I'm ready to grab at any opportunity! Moreover, I didn't lie, my cousin really does work at the Arena, and I can be useful to you!"
"Why?" Stopping in my tracks, I turn and look him in the eyes.
"What do you mean why?" He doesn't understand.
"I've already played the role you assigned me. That's it. Why do you need me now?"
Aun's eyes dart around, sweat beads on his forehead. Biting his lip, he brings his palms together and, parting them slightly, says:
"Show Sign!"
I look closer at the achievement he shows me covertly: "When Death Turned Away." "You've walked past imminent death three times in one day without even realizing it."
It's the second time I've seen such an achievement, and, to be honest, I don't even understand how he got it. An achievement that's a whole spiral above the usual ones.
"I...I..." He stammers. "I saw it this morning, and I have no idea where it came from!"
Of course, he wouldn't have any idea - the description clearly says "didn't notice." Only Dice has shown me something similar before. But then again, the future god of Drunkenness and Leisure doesn't count; he had an enormous number of such Signs.
"Master Raven!" Regaining his composure and meeting my gaze as firmly as possible, Aun says. "I don't know where the threat is coming from. I can't even imagine! Family, unknown enemies of my father, competitors? I can't trust anyone! Only you are definitely not involved. I propose a deal. You help me figure out this Sign, and I will provide you with confidential information about the Tournament."
There's a brief struggle within me in which potential gains win:
"The deal is time-limited. At the end of the Tournament, I will leave the city regardless of the results."
"I agree," Aun nods with noticeable relief, and we shake hands.