Liz and Alfred looked at each other for a bit in confusion. ˝I'm actually here to buy some weapons. So I don't think I'll fuck off.˝ Liz then said with a wry smile.

The bearded man smilled and said ˝Hahaha, sorry about that. I thought ya were one of those noble assholes. They never buy anything so I just started telling them to fuck off, so I don't have to deal with them.˝ He held his slighly plump belly and started laughing.

˝Squeek!˝ A loud squeeking sound was heard. Liz thought it was Alfred at first, but then she noticed someone entering from the backdoor of the shop. The bearded man suddenly shivered and stood completely still.

˝So it was your fault!˝ Said the now visible over two meters tall lady in a deep yet feminine voice. She extremely muscular, green and was wearing blacksmiths apparel. ˝So you scared all the customers away, again!?˝ She walked towards the man while grinding her teeth, this made her two tusks stick out even more from her bottom jaw. 

The man quietly spoke with no hint his accent. ˝I'm very sorry, honey.˝ Drops of sweat started falling of his beard, he seems to be extremely afraid of this lady.

˝BAM!˝ He got hit on the head by the lady, this made him drop to his knees clutching his head. ˝How many times have I told you to stop this fucking act! Just because you're a dwarf doesn't mean you have to be an asshole. Gilmar you're going to have to make it up to me with more than just words.˝ She said with a ferocious grin, making Gilmar shiver even more.

Looking at this strange conversation Alfred decided to quietly ask Liz. ˝Domestic violence? Should we report this to the guards?˝ Liz just shrugged and wispered ˝Nah, this is just how relationships work sometimes. Well she is probably gonna eat him tonight though, not literally.˝ 

´This behaviour is normal in this world, how peculiar. What does eating him mean then?´ Alfred thought to himself as he looked at the couple with interest.

The blacksmith turned to Liz after she was done scaring Gilmar. ˝Sorry about that, as an apology how about I give you guys a 10% discount?˝ She crouched down so she could talk with Liz face to face. ˝I'm Shel, welcome to Shel's Arms. How may I help you?˝ Shel said with an honest smile.

Liz was a bit shocked how this lady suddenly became nice and professional. ˝I'm here to buy some weapons and maybe a shield for me and my golem here.˝ She said as she took the broken sword from Alfred's backpack. ˝Is there also a chance you would buy this broken sword?˝ 

Shel took the sword examined it a bit and said. ˝Well, it's quite damaged so I'll only be able to melt it down. Hm, I'll go and clean it up a bit to see what it's made of.˝  Walking over to the counter and took some cleaning supplies out of a chest and yelled.

˝That over there is my husband Gilmar, he'll help you out with finding a good shield. He's an expert at making them, so he'll help you find the right one for you.˝ Shel said as she started cleaning the sword. ˝And I'll help you with the weapons, he barely knows anything about them, except for sharpening them.˝

Gilmar stood up and said with a frown. ˝I'm sorry about before. Had a few bad encounters with the nobility so I try to scare them off. Sadly it seems like I scared potential customers away as well.˝ He scratched his head a bit and made a pained expression. ˝Let's find you a good shield then, I promise my work is even better than the one on the main street.˝ 

˝No problem, how come you're not running a store on main street if your wares are so good.˝ Liz said with a curious look.

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A sad smile appeared on Gilmar face. ˝We used to have one. Then one of the nobles decided that one of their friends should have a brothel there instead. That's why I hate nobles, selfish pricks.˝  He beckoned them towards the shield section of the store

˝Nobles can be real assholes yeah. Do you still get enough customers here on the side street?˝ Liz asked as she looked at the many different shields.

˝We barely get by now, most people don't want to come to an unknown weapons store.˝ Gilmar said, he sighed and continued. ˝So what kind of weapons do you use?˝ 

Liz took out her dagger and said ˝I use a dagger while Alfred here uses a spear.˝ she pointed at the spear Alfred was holding.

Gilmar looked at Alfred for a moment then at the shield. ˝So the golem is called Alfred huh, he's not a combat model right?˝ Liz nodded and Gilmar continued. ˝I don't know your circumstances, but I can see that it's armour plating is not really that thick. So I would suggest a kite shield for it, it would allow it to protect more of it's body.˝ 

He picked up a kite shield that seemed to be lined with leather at the sides and gave it to Alfred. ˝Hm, seems to be the right size.˝ Gilmar said as he stroked his beard. ˝Now for you little lady, I would recommend a buckler. Shel what do you think about her using a dagger?˝ He said to Shel as he saw her walk over with the broken sword.

Shel thought for a moment before replying ˝I suggest using an arming sword, sidesword or maybe a rapier. Daggers shouldn't really be used in one on one combat. Unless you're some sort of roque and does stealthy kills.˝ Her eyes were starring intently at Liz.

Liz laughed. ˝I'm no assassin, this weapon was all I had at the time. So if you suggest I switch I should probably do that. I'm not even that skilled with daggers.˝  This made Shel smile.

˝Nice to see you have some common sense. So what are you going to choose?˝ Shel said gazing towards the weapon racks.

Liz thought to herself and said ˝Arming sword then, so what did you discover about that broken sword? Is it worth anything.˝ She hoped it was at least worth something.

This made Shel show them the small insignia on the blade ˝This here is an old even sword. It's made of elven steel, so even if a big part of it is missing it is still worth some money. How does this sound, you give me this sword and I'll give you a weapon for free.˝ 

Shock appeared on Gilmar's face ˝You sure? Elven steel? Where did you get this sword?˝

˝Ugh, a goblin warrior.˝ Liz said.

Shel nodded her head ˝Must have found it on an ancient battlefield or something. So do we have a deal? Also what about your golem what do you want for it?˝

Liz looked over at Alfred, he nodded to while lifting up his spear just a small amount. ˝We have a deal. For my golem I would like a new spear.˝  

˝I see, I would also suggest a sword for it as a side weapon. Let me go get some swords and a spear.˝ Shel said as she saw Liz nod. She went over to the weapon racks and chose a bastard sword, an arming sword and what seamed to be black spear.

˝Sadly we cannot afford better metal for all our wares. So these two swords are made from normal steel, while this spear is made from darkwood which makes it very tough and fireproof and the tip is made of dwarven steel. Are you going to sell your current spear?˝ Shel said hoping to strike a deal.

Liz once again looked over at Alfred and he nodded. ˝We'll sell it. So, uh, how much will all this cost?˝ She said while looking into the coin pouch she got from Paulus. Inside seemed to be a 3 gold coins and 60 silver coins.

Alfred saw the coins and thought ´I see so 100 copper coins are 1 silver coin and 100 silver is a gold coin. Interesting my previous owner always used electronic currency so this is indeed different.´

˝With the 10% discount, I'll say around 1 gold coin should do. Weapons aren't cheap especially the dwarven spear, oh and sheaths are included in the price. But I can say that you won't regret buying these weapons. I've got 20 years experience in weapon smithing after all.˝ Shel said with a proud look on her face.

Liz smiled and gave her 1 gold coin ˝Here you go. I'll take good care of your weapons. And who knows I might even promote your weapons to other people.˝ She said as she winked at the. 

Shel smacked Gilmar's back making him wince a bit ˝See, even after you were an asshole to her, she wants to promote our shop. Such a nice person. Haha. So where are you headed after this, if I may ask?˝ She smiled.

Liz laughed at the funny relationship and said ˝Probably buy some guide books on magic and sword fighting and then head to the capital. I'm going to become an adventurer.˝ Liz proudly said.

This made Shel laugh even harder ˝That's a great goal. I suggest going to Emari's bookstore 6 buildings to the right of us, she's got good wares. And in the capital I suggest going to the armour shop named Green Gauntlet, my cousin runs it and if you say that I sent you I'm sure he'll give you a discount.˝ She looked as they left the store with a wide smile. ˝Thank you for the purchase.˝

˝I hope we meet again.˝ Said Liz going through the door with Alfred. 

Inside the shop Shel looked at Gilmar who was also smiling ˝I think those two will become famous, just a gut feeling.˝ Gilmar nodded and suddenly got kissed on the lips by a slightly red cheeked Shel.

˝Since we're closing soon, how about you show me how sorry you are about being an asshole to them before. Let's go upstairs.˝ This made Gilmar sigh as he knew that today he would not be getting any sleep. ˝I sure do love your wild side, Shelly.˝

Meanwhile Alfred and Liz were heading towards the bookstore and heard a bell sound. ˝That's just the church of the God of time. Most major towns have these churches that ring at certain times of the day. It seems we still have an hour until we meet at the inn. I hope we find some good books.˝ Alfred nodded as he looked at the sign that featured a cat with glassed with the words Emari's bookstore.