The bright morning sun was high in the sky, shining a pleasant white light upon the quiet city. The sky was full of clouds that gently drifted past the sun every once in a while, granting the eyes of the city workers a brief respite. The shade also served to cool down the city, breezes flowing through the streets and refreshing those that it passed by.

Only a few workers were out at such an early time cleaning, especially after such a festival the night before. Much of the city, especially in this particular district, was still asleep. It was why it was so quiet and pleasant on this particular day.

The district that Melinda was leading Mican through was much humbler than the square they had set up in. There were much less plants, fountains, and statues out for display, and there were no elaborate buildings or the like. It was most definitely for the less wealthy part of Gaspereau.

Sometimes, odd smells would flow past Mican’s nose, and he would see questionable sights such as a beaten dog, or rotting wood on a doorframe, but he didn’t let them affect his good mood.

As they passed through several wide streets in the city, a large conspicuous building came into view a little ways away from the two, centered directly in one of the wide streets.

The building was quite large and much more decorated than those around it, with a wide set of stairs leading up to two intricate wooden double doors, and a large sign nailed up above the entrance. On the sign was a carving of a rectangular gem-like tag with a string going through it to make a circle. The carving was one of a pendant. Above the sign, words had been written out.

“The Adventurer’s Association.” Mican read the words out loud as the two approached the building.

“My clients often ask me to attend such inconspicuous places, for the purposes of anonymity.” Melinda spoke out in reply as the two stepped up the stairs.

Inside of the building, Mican noticed that the layout was very similar to the adventurer’s association hall he had been to in Spurrose. Two long desks sat at the far end of the massive hall, separated by a wooden partition, and two receptionists stood behind them to welcome people.

There was a quest board off to the side, and two large staircases at the sides of the rooms, leading up to another level that overlooked the main floor. If he had to note anything different, the building was even larger than the one in Spurrose, and many wooden doors leading to rooms lay at both sides of the hall.

Melinda led Mican up the staircase to the left, passing by multiple tables and people until they reached the far left of the hall, entering a particular adjoining doorway.

The doorway led into a room that reminded Mican a lot of the private dining rooms in his previous life. Two sofas sat facing each other in the room backed up to the wall, with a large circular desk sitting in between them.

A fully cloaked figure was sitting on the sofa to the right, his head facing the doorway.

“Finally, you’re here.” Pulling off the hood of his cloak, the figure was revealed to be a youthful young man in his early twenties.

“Thank you for waiting.” Melinda walked over to sit the seat on the left, taking Mican with her.

“…” Noticing Mican behind her, the cloaked man stared at him in obvious suspicion.

“He is one of my valuable business partners, there’s no need to worry.”

With those words from Melinda, the young man nodded and relaxed his facial expressions.

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Greatly interested in this “true business” that the caravan leader had mentioned to him the night before, Mican’s attention in turn was attracted to the young man seated opposite to him. He was obviously quite handsome, with a lean body showing through his clothes, and sharp blonde-hair. His thin eyebrows were naturally tilted downwards, giving him a mean yet charming look that matched well with his heroic facial features.

He was dressed in mostly blue garb, a cloak covering much of his body. He seemed to be quite wealthy or important, yet the cautious behaviour he had displayed showed that he was far from naïve or inexperienced. It was especially so since he was able to take part in business with Melinda, who’s importance seemed quite significant.

“Miss Melinda, I take it? I’ve heard much about you, and I humbly thank you for coming all the way to Gaspereau for this. I assure you that my goods will not disappoint you.” As the blonde-haired man spoke, he stretched out his hand to offer a shake.

“I hope so, for both of our sakes.” Melinda exchanged pleasantries with the young man, her tone sharp and her face strict.

As he was subtly inspecting the young man before him, Mican’s attention was attracted by a sharp glint of light that appeared just below the man’s head, at his neck.

As he reached out to shake Melinda’s hand, shifting in his seat, a blue pendant dropped from the cloak he had been wearing, dangling from his neck. The pendant was a deep blue in colour, like the deep ocean. It was in the shape of a circular gem, and was obviously meticulously crafted, the shape incredibly smooth.

An “A” had been engraved into the pendant, and the letter awoke recent memories in Mican. He had seen a similar pendant before, on the signs right above both of the adventurer’s associations he had been to. Searching through his memory, he recognized it as an adventurer’s tag, meant to signify their ranks.

Further scouring his brain, Mican thought back to the board he had seen in Spurrose. He had seen a similar blue colour there on the request board, on the requests meant for A rank adventurers.

“This is my associate; you may refer to him as Star.” Nodding at the blonde-haired young man, Melinda gestured towards Mican. “Star, this is Aubin Arundel.”

The young man named Aubin was clearly uncomfortable with Melinda taking the initiative to spread his name, a frown appearing on his face as he shifted in his seat. He refrained from saying any words though, holding back his displeasure and reaching his hand out towards Mican in greeting.

“Greetings, Mister Star. My name is Aubin Arundel, an A grade godcraftsman of the Whirlwind Guild.” Aubin showed great professionalism, masking his discomfort with a pleasant smile.

“Hello there, my name is Star. I am a member of the Willow Caravan.” Shaking his hand, Mican nodded at him.

As the young man mentioned the word ‘godcraftsman’, both Mican’s wariness and interest skyrocketed, and he straightened his back subconsciously. Mican was immediately reminded of the scholar of the Brave Heart, Leigh. He had displayed reality-bending power in slowing down time, and yet he was a mere C+ grade adventurer. He could not even imagine the sights an A grade could show him.

“The pleasantries aside, is the item truly in proper condition? It’s not that I don’t trust the caravan, but please understand Miss Melinda.” The young man was clearly slightly anxious.

“Of course.” Nodding her head, the caravan leader reached into her dull-red cloak.

From one of her pockets, Melinda pulled out a small, elegant box. The box was about the size of a child’s fist, being very simple yet looking quite refined.

Opening the box, a soft velvet cloth had been inlaid beneath, and on top of the cloth lay a dull-white piece of porcelain. Or… porcelain? The item in the box was dull-white in shade, thin and small. Upon a closer inspection, Mican realized that it was a bone. It was a small piece of bone, around the size of a bottle cap.

Looking at the bone, Mican was given a very faint sense of peace. It was the same sort of feeling he had when he looked up at the giant head in the sky.

“Oh, oh… yes, this is it.” A small gasp escaped from Aubin’s mouth upon catching sight of the bone.

The blonde-haired man’s eyes widened, and his face became aflush with clear excitement. Deep inside of Aubin’s eyes, Mican noticed a hint of greed and intense desire. It was well hidden, but still couldn’t escaped his eyes which had been practiced since a young age.

“A bone of the god of Gales. The middle phalange of the index finger on the left hand.” Upon saying these words, Melinda closed the box with a slight snap.

She was clearly well aware of its value, closing the box and forcing Aubin’s attention onto her. Although he was clearly excited, he forced himself to calm down and look at her straight in the eyes. As he did so, he straightened his back further, and addressed the caravan leader solemnly.

“I understand, Miss Melinda. It’s in good condition, so as we have agreed, let us begin the trade.”