019 - SEEKER
The box rose into the air and opened. Beneath it, the body of the Lizard King dissolved into magical motes of energy and began flowing into the already glowing inside of the golden box. The vessel was no longer a box though, as it took in the energy of the slain King it expanded and became a massive ornate chest.
With a gentle thud it alighted on the field where the body of the King had been, light dimming and leaving only the physical chest, open and inviting. The whole group of them, nine adventurers in total, gathered around and gently pushed around each other to see inside. What Conrad saw surprised him.
He had pictured a heap of gold, jewels, and baubles, perhaps a dagger here and there, and while he saw some of that he also saw what appeared to be miniature versions of much larger items.
“Gold split evenly, as agreed,” Troy said to the Knight, clearly the leader of the other group, and the man nodded in acknowledgement, “And if we can’t come to an agreement on the other items, we sell them and split the profits evenly.”
“Conrad, if we do that, would you be willing to be our broker? Get us the best price possible?” he asked.
“Of course but can we get a look first? This anticipation is killing me!” He said with a chuckle. The Merchant in him was SCREAMING to see what was inside so he felt it was a measured comment.
“Noob,” Mara said, giving him a playful punch. But they reached in and began handing out the miniature items. Though they were looking more like toys as the adventurers grabbed at them, as they emerged into the full space of the air around the chest they expanded to their full and proper size.
“Couple of stat boosting rings, type specific weapons to the best users… a crossbow! Lucky man, Karl,” Troy said, handing gear and treasures around.
Then he pulled a spear which almost stabbed Mara as it expanded to its full length. Troy murmured an apology but then held it out to the spear user.
“You lucky son of a bitch,” Troy said and the man took it, mouth gaping. Conrad went ahead and identified it, though he recognized the weapon even without Order’s insight.
Long Spear of the Lizard King
Rarity: Unique
Description: The symbol of the Lizard King’s power, this spear is not only exceptionally well crafted, it is enchanted with durability and sharpness which will keep it in good order in perpetuity. It has exceptional range, making it ideal for dispatching foes while keeping out of harm’s way.
Damage Potential: ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
Defense Potential: ☆ ☆
Additional Effects:
Kinetic Blast - Sends out a magical force which can cause minor damage in a large area in front of the user.
Lizard Monarch (trait)- Does 25% bonus damage to lizardkin.
Merchant Class Bonus:
Would you like additional information?
Conrad whistled. He had seen similar treasures in his parents' shop before and, with a quick glance at the additional information, verified that he could easily get over a hundred gold selling it. But such a treasure, in the right hands, bordered on priceless.
They all congratulated the man who had clearly gotten the top item out of the haul. By virtue of the fact that he primarily used a spear, the treasure was his according to the rules. No bartering, haggling, or extra favors required.
This was how it should be, Conrad thought to himself. There was a ruthlessness to adventurers that he still needed to work on cultivating, nothing to the point of becoming like the Seekers, but it was necessary out here. But there was also the simple balanced nature of a good deal, entered into by two parties for mutual benefit.
There was still hope that the values he held onto for so long as a Merchant had use down here in the dungeon.
“Who’s this for?” Troy said with a grin, holding up what looked like a book and tone implying he knew exactly who he wanted to give it to.
“Ha! You’re such an ass, Troy,” Mara said.
“That may be, but I’m right,” he said, handing the thick tome to Conrad.
“What is it?” he asked, before immediately casting Identify.
Skill Book
Type: Consumable / Uncommon
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Charges: 3/3
Description: The first book in the Strike - Move - Defend series. These magical tomes impart understanding to the user that would otherwise take weeks or months of training to achieve. This skill book is prized among learners as it gives general ability applicable to a wide range of weapons.
“You don’t want to sell it?” Conrad said, unable to believe his eyes. The skill book in front of him was so sought after they couldn’t even keep it in stock in the shop. He and his mother sometimes even made a game of it. Whenever they bought one off an adventurer who didn’t need it, they simply raised the price five gold from whatever they had sold it for previously. They were up to 85 gold, and it was almost a certainty they could sell the valuable book at that price.
“Conrad,” Troy said with a grin, “If you could see the way you flail that weapon around in a fight you wouldn’t even ask us.”
That was an ego blow - Conrad had really believed he had been making progress in his fighting ability.
“Is it that bad?” He asked, wincing.
“Mate, let’s just call you dangerous out there and leave it at that,” Troy said with a reassuring clap of Conrad’s shoulders.
“But good job!” Mara said, putting on a good impression of an encouraging grin.
“I’d say you guys are terrible but this is an incredible gift. Thank you. All of you,” he said.
“Don’t think you aren’t still buying the first round!” The Knight said.
Feigning indignance but glancing into his inventory at the reassuring pile of gold he had taken off of Karina Conrad teased back, “I was only supposed to buy you a drink!”
“Consider it a premium on that excellent loot none of us is trying to take off your hands,” Troy said.
“Ah Chaos take us all anyway,” Conrad said, “Fuck it! We live!”
They all cheered and, a short time later with the rest of the loot from the battlefield collected, made their way to the surface.
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Hours later and deep into a serious set of drinking games, Mara nudged Conrad and asked, “Aren’t you worried about your band? They should have come back by now.”
“No,” Conrad said, too tipsy to bother feigning concern, “I am not.”
“Why?” she asked, face suddenly serious.
Conrad looked at her. He looked around at the group of people he felt closer to at this celebration than he did to his own mother and grandfather, even after so short a time.
She stood there waiting, head tilted back, blonde curls clean and perfumed after coming back from their fight with the King. She was beautiful, he thought, beautiful, deadly… and trustworthy.
Conrad pulled her away from the group, signaling to Troy to join them as well. Despite warm feelings for all of the other men at the table, it was these two whose opinions and esteem mattered to him most. He worried he might be making a decision he would regret once sober, but trust had to go both ways.
“I have something I need to tell you,” he said, and continued with his full story. About the deal in the shop, the opportunity to join the adventurers turned into accidental slavery, their relentless driving of him with the implied attempts to kill him and all of his scheming and work to try and circumvent the confines of the magical contract.
And finally, “They’re not coming back. I killed them. All of them,” he said, bracing for the worst. If these people offered him up to local law enforcement… maybe he could get off with a lighter sentence due to the nature of his compul–
Mara interrupted his thoughts, “How did you manage it?” she said, eagerly. And was she… impressed?
“Stole the words from me - adventuring contracts don’t allow you to hurt the contract holders,” Troy said, also looking interested, rapt at the telling of the story.
Deciding not to complain about a treasure chest of simple wood, Conrad told them exactly how he had done it. All of his plans, machinations, and the grueling experience of earning his fairly high level in Poison Resistance.
When the whole story was done, Troy put a hand on Conrad’s shoulder and looked him in the eye, “They gave me a bad vibe from the beginning, but even if they hadn’t, it’s a rare man that would do for us what you did. Besides, we kill for a living. And glamorous though our lifestyle may be,” he grinned sardonically, “sometimes the job attracts the worst among us.”
He gave Conrad an encouraging shake and concluded, “You proved who you are the day we met you, so as far as I’m concerned, they had it coming.”
At a loss for words, Conrad just nodded to the man. Grateful.
Troy returned to the group and Mara stepped up. Half her face was lit in the flickering light of the tavern’s candle chandelier, and half by the moon. Two women, the jovial light hearted innocence and the dark, merciless adventurer looked into his eyes as she said, “All that killing and all you got was a stupid book…” she trailed off and put a hand out gently, touching his arm.
He looked down at her hand and back up to her eyes, “Bit of a disappointment, really,” Conrad said, voice low, “In the stories the hero always comes away with more than a little treasure…”
She smiled coyly, “Thinkin’ you’re the hero of this story, shopkeep?”
“Story’s gotta have a hero… and a villain.”
Mara had reached out with her other hand but stopped, “Do they? Well, that’s too bad,” then, mischievously, “You already killed yours.”
“Side characters die, but the heroes and villains? They stick around,” he reached out and took her hand, placing it on his chest, “And in this light, Mara? I might just be seeing your evil side.”
She smiled and tilted her head up, leaning in, “Honey, you have no idea.”
He kissed her then, and in the half light of the tavern, holding her in his arms and feeling hers wrap around him, he thought that maybe, just maybe he could make a life out of this adventuring thing.
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Late that night, back in Conrad’s room Mara stood and checked herself over in the mirror before leaving. She wanted to get back to the room she had in another inn to avoid any awkward questions.
“With the others dead, you can dissolve the band,” Mara said, “Maybe join up with us?”
Conrad propped himself on an elbow, enjoying watching her get ready, “What do you mean?”
“Well, they signed you right?” she said, “And every real band signs up with the adventuring guild - gets ‘em on the leaderboard, opens up the opportunity to do quests, that kind of thing. But since they were… you know, terrible, maybe you don’t want to have that name anymore.”
“But, as the last surviving Seeker, I’m the leader of the Seekers right?” He asked.
She nodded.
“What’s it cost to register a new band with the guild?” he asked.
She shrugged, “Couple gold, it’s not much.”
“But keeping it is free,” he said. And it didn’t sound so terrible. The Seekers might have a reputation he needed to overcome - he for one had never heard of them but he couldn’t be sure - but that was a project he could work on. He could redeem them. Besides, it didn’t sound so terrible being the leader of the Seekers. The name had a good feel to it even despite the way everything started.
“If you want it,” Mara said, “But you’ll still want to drop by the guild and let them know that you ki… that leadership is changing hands.”
“Makes sense,” Conrad replied. Mentally he added it to his list of things to do.
But before anything else, he needed to return home. Without any compulsion left to keep him in the city, after a good night’s rest, he had debts to repay.