Chapter Fifteen: We can play with that later.
We left the bar using the same alley door. I placed the necklace and rings back in storage without looking at the contents. I wanted to get settled and start sifting through the items. I wasn’t sure why the party had designated me as the loot person, but the rogue in me liked having all the stuff.
“We need rooms,” I said to Jinx as we started working their way down the mountainside.
“Room.” Leoleth corrected.
“You’re not living with me.”
“Of course I am. When I have my own money, I’ll get my own place, but you will be sad because you will want to keep living with me because we’ll be having all the fun together.”
“That’s not even a real sentence.”
“There’s rooms at The Jester,” Jinx said. “It’s a good location to work out of and a nice place for the money. You two can get settled, and we’ll still have time before the rest of the party shows up.”
I let him lead us through the city, taking in the sights as we moved along. The diversity of people fascinated me; some seemed so different from humans that they resembled aliens. It struck me that I was one of these wonders now, not quite human but a half-elf who belonged here in Ironstone as much as anyone else.
Almost immediately, guilt washed over me. I glanced at my hands, feeling a wave of existential dread. The sensation of being in the wrong body surged within me, accompanied by an urge to fight against this place, to find my way back home. But then, for the first time, I could imagine a life here, in this world. It twisted a knot in my stomach. It was a new longing, not to return to Earth but to stay and become a part of this one.
The feeling passed as quickly as it came, leaving a lingering guilt new to me. It had been panic in the past, but now it felt like I was somehow betraying my family by considering this place my home.
“When you're out an' about in the city, you need to stick to the main streets as much as possible,” Jinx said as we passed from Prime to Ironstone Proper. “’ Specially at night.”
“Not safe?”
“Absolutely not,” Jinx said. There were several horse-drawn cabs parked around a glowing streetlamp just outside the upscale city. Jinx led us up to one and ushered us inside. He had a quick word with the driver and paid him before getting in himself.
“You’ve only seen the 'Ub District and Prime. The city’s got dozens of different neighborhoods, not all of 'em nice, but like any city, you gotta know your way 'round. To start, learn the main thoroughfares and cross streets. They all launch from the 'Ub District and lead to the main points of town.”
I made a mental note to acquire a city map; it would undoubtedly help me navigate. Once I saw it, my innate mapping ability would ensure I remembered every detail.
We arrived at The Crying Jester, about a dozen blocks from Jinx's home. It resembled an urban version of the country inns I knew well. The public room was spacious and bustling, with its own entrance. Rooms were available for rent at a standard hotel desk, complete with a bellhop. I booked a small two-bedroom suite with a balcony overlooking the lively street below. It reminded me of a beach-side resort with white paneled walls and bleached oak accents. Unlike the provincial inns I was accustomed to, there was an en suite bathroom, similar to places back home. I thanked the gods for the inclusion of plumbing in the magical world.
I felt for Leoleth and decided to offer her my second bedroom. Despite her quirks, I sensed her genuine desire for friendship, especially since she seemed to lack anyone else. I’m sure she would be making her own money in no time and getting her own place once she was on her feet.
Jinx joined us in the suite as I retrieved the null space chest I had obtained from the slave camp. I unceremoniously emptied the contents of the six rings and necklace into it and let the chest sort everything out. “That was unexpected,” he said as we looked at the contents.
It was a haul, to say the least. The chest had over twenty-five magical items and jewelry, several magic scrolls, and ten spell tomes. There were also stacks of non-magical gear, clothing and arrows to be picked up and divided among the party.
He explained that spell tomes were magic books that taught the user an individual magical spell. “Just open ‘em up and activate ‘em in yer mind.” He tapped his temple with a grin. “You can learn it the long way or the short way. These things are valuable, but you don’ go sellin’ ‘em. Too bloody useful.”
“Aymon recommended I pick up some more magical spells, but I’m not a Mage.”
“You can still use magic,” Jinx said. “Ya can learn any skill you want, but it won’t ‘elp your class advance. You can grow ‘em just like any skill, though. The disadvantage is that if you’re not a Mage, EP doesn’t replenish as much.”
Using my spell, I appraised all the objects to understand their descriptions and benefits. It appeared that these items lost their Arcana data if removed from a cracked storage item. That eased some of the guilt of basically stealing shit from someone that was already a victim.
With so many potentially useful items and spells in the chest, Jinx suggested dividing them up rather than selling everything for gold. I agreed, and we spent the next hour or so arranging the items around the suite for the four of us to share.
Leoleth looked on with blatant envy. I contributed three hundred and thirty-seven gold pieces to the group and gifted her the null space storage necklace—a white gold and sapphire chain that complemented her blue skin perfectly. Delighted, Leoleth danced around and kissed me, causing my cheeks to flush with embarrassment once again.
About an hour later, Gem and Kev arrived with Eric. Sensing the potential awkwardness with Leoleth, he kindly offered to take her downstairs for a drink while the rest of us divided the loot. As they left the room, he smiled and winked at me. I found myself admiring his physique as he walked away in his tights.
We all gathered around the array of objects that Jinx and I had set out, each item accompanied by a brief description for the benefit of those without the Appraisal spell:
Circlet of Essence: Siphons and stores magical essence from the wearer to the capacity of 100% of the wearer’s ability over the course of 24 hours. Effectively doubling the wearer's EP when needed.
Axe of frost: (Requires Power Chrystal recharge) Battle Axe that inflicts cold damage and the Frost Bite Debuf for ten seconds.
Beads of the Oasis: (Uses Ambient EP) Necklace of blue crystal beads that alleviates the discomfort of heat and humidity.
Bedlah of the Siren Dancer: (Uses Ambient EP) Dancer Outfit, which, when fully equipped, enhances dance performance and Boosts Charisma by 50%.
Bracers of True Shot: (Uses Ambient EP) Enhances all projectile accuracy by 150%.
Chain of Desire: (Uses ambient and Channeled EP.) Belly Chain, while worn on bare skin and 66% uncovered, boosts Charisma by 25%. Adds the spell Aura of Seduction. Aura of Seduction Spell: Creates sexual desire in an individual. The level of desire increases with the amount of EP channeled.
Gloves of Sure Grip: (Uses Ambient EP) Doubles grip strength of wearer on non-living objects.
Leather Armor of Evasion: (Uses Ambient EP) Adds 5 points to dexterity for the wearer and adds the skill dodge when worn. Dodge skill: boosts the ability to evade attack when an attacker is visible. 10% chance to physically move the wearer out of the direction of danger.
Light Boots of Endurance: (Uses Ambient EP) Boots that add five points to endurance.
Long Bow of Lethargy: (Requires Power Chrystal recharge) Drains target of AP and ads the Lethargy debuff on the target for 5 seconds on a successful hit.
Obsidian Dagger: (Non-Magical) A dagger of steel coated in a sharpened layer of Obsidian. Ignores magical protection.
Rod of disruption: (Uses Channeled EP) Control rod that disrupts ritualist sigils.
Rope of Obedience: (Uses Ambient EP) 50-foot Rope with the ability to crawl up any vertical surface and bend into any desired knot upon command. Can utilize complex commands in noncombat situations.
Sword of Flames: (Requires Power Chrystal recharge) Releases a gust of magical fire on a target when successfully attacked.
“What about the power crystals?” I ask Jinx. “Some of this stuff runs on them, kind of morbid.”
“Not the same.” Jinx picked up the ax and pulled a small, egg-sized gem out of his storage. “These are made from raw magical essence.”
“There’s a mine down on the Equatorial Continent that exports millions of these things, and you can make them on your own if you don’t mind giving yourself a headache,” Kev said.
“They ain’t enough to power more than a few whacks.” Jinx twisted his face, a look of concentration. The gem crackled and vanished in a puff of red smoke, and the ax glowed with new power. “The ones needed for a large ritual are made from people."
“We have about a dozen of those. I'm glad no one died.”
The party agreed to pick items in rounds, starting with Jinx, then Gem and Kev, and finally me, since I had used the Appraisal spell and knew the value of each item. Any leftovers would be sold for gold unless someone in the party wanted to buy them with their share.
Jinx chose the Circlet of Essence, Rod of Disruption, and Light Boots of Endurance. Kev opted for the Axe of Frost, Sword of Flames, and Gloves of Sure Grip. Gem selected the Bracers of True Shot, Long Bow of Lethargy, and the Leather Armor of Evasion.
I picked the Obsidian Dagger, which wasn’t magical but suited my needs perfectly. I also chose the Rope of Obedience and the Chain of Desire, the latter being something I just had to have; I mean, it was a gold chain adorned with crystal stars and small pink pearls. I purchased the two leftover items: the Bedlah of the Siren Dancer and the Beads of Oasis. I spent a total of four hundred and seventy-six gold pieces.
Excitedly, I slipped on the Bedlah top. Without the skirt (or rather, loincloth), it had no magical power but was a pretty silken lavender with gemstones and golden trim. I clasped the chain around my waist, which magically cinched up below my navel. Suddenly, the option to cast the spell Aura of Seduction appeared in the corner of my vision.
“Don’t you fucking dare.” Jinx glared at me.
“We can play with that later.” Gem smiled.
We moved to the selection of Spell Tomes next. The party followed a similar pattern of picking spells out: Jinx went first. Kev went next, and Gem and I followed. Again, I had them arranged on the table with a small description of each:
Bag of Bones: Zaps muscle and fat from the target, reducing strength, dexterity, and endurance for five seconds.
Broken Tongues: Area of effect spell that blocks the targets from being able to communicate for two minutes.
Face in the Crowd: While in use, the user’s face becomes unrecognizable.
Grappling Hook: Fires a summoned rope and grappling hook forty feet in any direction with a guaranteed catch on any rough surface. It can hold the weight of one person. Lasts five minutes.
Heal: The same effect as a potion of moderate healing. 2-minute cool down self only.
Little Things: Allows castor to create any nonmechanical object that fits in hand. The object will remain solid for 5 minutes.
Mark: Mark a target secretly, increasing the chance of a hit. The target can be tracked for 2 hours.
Rag Doll: Drains target of all Strength for 5 seconds.
Shroud of mist: Renders a person incorporeal while hidden until the first attack. Spell time: five minutes, cool down, thirty seconds. Spell deactivates when combat starts.
Wind Burst: Blasts Air from palms of hands with enough force to propel a person fifteen feet vertically, or if directed at a target, blasts them 15-20 feet horizontally. Cool down 30 seconds.
Jinx selected Heal and Broken Tongues before purchasing Bag of Bones after no one selected it. Kev went with Rag Doll and Wind Burst. Gem picked Shroud of Mist and Mark. Given my rogue tendencies, I decided on Face in the Crowd, which seemed tailor-made for my needs. I also chose the Grappling Hook, which would pair perfectly with the Rope of Obedience. Additionally, I purchased the spell Little Things for one hundred twelve gold pieces; the ability to conjure small tools or a lock pick seemed too useful to pass up.
With the major loot divided, we moved on to smaller items. I selected a Ring of +2 Dexterity and a Ring of +3 Endurance from the attribute rings available. Among the scrolls, we each took three Arctic Blast scrolls, and I also picked a Scroll of Iron Bands for restraining purposes. Gem and I agreed to divide up the arrows we found. I ended up with three hundred and seventy-five Iron, two hundred and fifty-one Steel, fifty-three Obsidian, thirty Elven Bark, twenty-seven Ash Wood, and sixteen Shark Teeth arrows.
Jinx agreed to take and sell all unclaimed items. He gathered up all the unenchanted weapons, storage rings, plain armor pieces, odds and ends, and distributed the monetary value among the rest of us out of his gold. We each received two thousand, one hundred and one gold pieces. After my purchases, my share amounted to eight hundred and fifty-one.
By the time we finished dividing everything, it was dinnertime. The party headed down to the pub for dinner and drinks. As we made our way, Gem pulled me aside.
“I’m leaving in the morning,” she said. I felt a little betrayed by the sudden departure.
“Why?”
“I have my family. This is a windfall for us. I need to take this back.”
“Can’t you wait a couple of days?” I felt a rise of anxiety in my stomach. “I’m sure I could make it worth your while.”
“You know how you feel about the city?”
“Yeah.” I thought about the rush I had when I first saw the buildings and people of the city and what Gem had told me about home.
The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
“I feel the same way about my village,” Gem said. She pulled me close. “I want to stay with you but must go home. It’s where I belong.”
“When do you plan on returning?”
“I’ll be back in a month or two.”
“I can live with that.” I kissed Gem deeply and then planted a second lighter kiss on her lips. “Thanks.”
“For what?”
“For being here when you’re here.”
“I’ll always come back for you,” she whispered back.
“Me too,” I said. “In case you need stealing or an orgasm.” We laughed and embraced.
“I’ll hold you to it. Tonight especially.”
We joined the rest of the party, along with Eric and Leoleth, in a corner table at the pub. Drinks and dinner had already been ordered, a relief as the evening crowd began filling up the place quickly.
The night unfolded pleasantly. Jinx shared more of his tales, and Kev and Gem recounted stories from their homes. Gem mentioned she lived in a forest about three days' ride to the north, and was the eldest daughter in a large family of five, three of whom were half-satyrs like her. The kingdom was a small one wedged between this one and another. I couldn't help but wonder why such basic details hadn't come up before. Despite her closeness to the party, Gem kept her personal life separate.
As the last of the drinks were finished, we bid our goodbyes. Kev and Jinx departed together while Leoleth and Eric headed upstairs. Eric mentioned he was staying at the same inn since he had nowhere to go in the city. He made a point to inform me that they were retiring to their separate rooms, but Gem and I would spend the night together saying our goodbyes.
That last night in my room was a mix of thrill and sadness intertwined. In the morning, I woke as I usually did, just before dawn. Gem was already gone.
Character Sheet: Regan Summer
Half Human, Half Urban Elf Level 3
Height: 4 feet, 10 inches Weight: 89 pounds
Hair: Pink Complexion: Imperial Urban Fair
Origin: Earth
Classes:
Rogue: Level 3
Rogue Jobs:
Assassin: Level 3
Base Attributes:
Strength: 10
Dexterity: 18
Spirit: 7
Charisma: 17
Intelligence: 18
Endurance: 7
Luck: 11
Adrenaline Points: 233/233
Recovery: 5 pts/sec
Essence Points: 188/188
Recovery: 5 pts/sec
Vitality Points: 1106/1106
Recovery: 5 pts/sec outside of combat.
Skills/Spells:
Acrobatics Level 1
Appraisal Level 1
Arcana Level 1
Dagger Level 4
Disarm Traps Level 1
Face in the Crowd Level 1
Grappling Hook Level 1
Lock Picking Level 1
Little Things Level 1
Misfire Level 1
Negotiation Level 2
Nudge Level 1
One and Done Level 1
Pick Pocketing Level 1
Powerful Strike Level 1
Short Bow Level 1
Short Sword Level 1
Sleight of Hand Level 1
Sneak Attack Level 3
Stealth Level 2
Racial Skills:
Night Vision
Hide in Shadows
Internal Navigation
Gift of Tongues
The draconian released my hands. The words of my character sheet hung in the air in front of me for a few moments. He quickly started scratching out the words with a quill on the parchment in front of him. I was sitting across the table from Aymon, and the lizard man with Leoleth sat in the chair next to me.
His appearance surprised me when I met him thirty minutes earlier in the clothes shop. He looked like a velociraptor but had more human arms, legs, and a shorter tail. Strangely, he had huge, bushy eyebrows, which were grey with age. He wore a silk shirt, brown wool pants, and a tweed vest with pockets filled with a tailor's tools. I had seen all types of people since getting to the city, but mostly in passing. Sitting across from one at a table was a new experience for sure.
They shared a look at each other when he passed the sheet over. Aymon took a moment to read over my and Leoleth’s information. Leoleth had taken the appraisal first after we arrived and were ushered into the back work area of the clothier slash tailor.
We were both a little hungover from the night before. We started early since neither of us knew the city, but we needed to find the address. Once I had managed to find and purchase a map from a shopkeeper three blocks from The Jester, I pinpointed the address by having Leoleth give me a quest to find the alley—nice little workaround using the quest system.
The shop was nestled in a quiet alley in the Hub District of Ironstone Proper, just a few blocks south of the gate to Prime. The rest of the area consisted of shops selling household design goods, clothing, and other textile products to upper-middle-class patrons. It was a far cry from the luxury goods of Prime, but the area sported more carriages than wagons and nicely dressed pedestrians walking about.
So, I took the extra time we had shopping for outfits. I picked a pretty black choli-style top with short sleeves and a matching skirt that hung loosely at my hips. I wanted the Chain of Desire to be available, which meant a bare midriff. Leoleth decided on a short blue silk dress that seemed not particularly practical, but she said something about branding when she slipped into it in the dressing room. I didn’t care since it was not too expensive. Was I turning into a sugar mama?
“Thanks, Panqinor,” Aymon said to the draconian after he finished reading over the sheets. Panqinor sniffed and stood with a scary ass smile. I gave him one of my cute ones, and he winked at me.
“Good day.” He had a raspy voice, as one would expect from a lizard man.
“All right then,” Aymon turned to us, still sitting at the table. “Here’s the thing.” He placed the two sheets in front of us and tapped on them. “I’d say you are both on your way, but neither of you meets the minimum to get full membership.”
“Minimum? Dude, I’m a level three Rogue.”
“You are indeed,” Aymon sighed. “But a Rogue Assassin.” He leaned back in the chair. “As an assassin, I would be happy to let you in as a member in full standing, but you indicated that was not the direction you wanted to go.”
“Yes.”
“But almost all of your pertinent skills are at level one. They are too low at this point.”
“So where do they need to be.”
“We need those base skills at level three each. Plus, you must have climbing, parkour, and disguise skills or spells, all at level three.”
“Face in the Crowd doesn’t work?”
“It works okay for some things, but you need to add something that will give you the ability to take on a persona.”
“What can the Union do to help me along then?”
“We can help by selling you spell tomes.” Aymon shrugged. “But really, you need to build up your skills. The easiest way is by employing a Union mentor to train you.”
“What about me?” Leoleth asked.
“Not much to say other than you have a good basic understanding of ritualistic magic; you have zero other skills to work with.”
“What can you do to help me?”
“I can give you the Rogue Class and Thief Job and the baseline skills to start developing, but you will also need to build those up to level three.”
“I assume you don’t just give her the job?” I asked.
“No, the Union charges two hundred GP for that.” He smiled at me at me. All the Charisma in the world couldn’t spin gold out of the turd he was lying in front of me.
“So, to join, all basic Rogue skills should be at level three, and all spells at level three.” I looked down at my sheet, tracing my fingers over the list of skills. “Which you will help us train up for a fee.”
“Correct.”
“That will take a while.”
“It all depends on how hard you work.” And how much we pay. I thought.
I looked over at Leoleth, who looked at me in return, shrugging her shoulders.
Nancy Fucking Sanders. One thing I brought with me from my old life was my ability to smell bullshit, no matter how much Paradoxe you sprayed on it. Nancy was my mom’s MLM buddy. She came around at least a half dozen times to me in two years, trying to get me to join her stupid health coaching/supplement club. Yeah, no. First, how the hells could I be coaching on healthy anything, and secondly, I didn’t even have the starter money to get my first demo pack.
“So,” I floated a question out to him. “Do we get some kind of bonus if we bring in someone else to join?”
“Of course.” He said with a smile. “You get a straight-up bonus, plus a share of what they bring in or any training they pay for.”
“Thanks,” I said, standing. “It’s been educational.” I grabbed up the sheets and stood nudging Leoleth. Who looked up at me, eyebrows raised in surprise.
“Do you want to add the Rogue class?” Aymon asked Leoleth.
“I don’t think so,” I said bitterly.
“Isn’t that her decision?”
“Not when I’m paying for it.” I gave him one of my cutesy smiles and a little sideways nod. “We’ll be in touch.”
“We’ll be around if you need us. If you want to try doing this on your own, go ahead, but you will want our resources.” He dropped his smile right before I turned away. “And protection.”
“If we need you,” I said. “You’ll be the first to know.” I was already marching the frost elf out the door.
“I don’t get it,” Leoleth said as we exited the shop. I practically dragged her out and into the alley.
“It’s called a pyramid scheme.”
“What’s that.”
“Basically, they make GP by bringing in new members and pressing them for money. They squeeze lower members by forcing them to pay for training and spells. Usually, those lower members don’t even get to work. They pay dues and train others. It’s not a thieves’ guild. It’s just a scam to make money for the senior members.”
“Jinx said they were okay.”
“He probably didn’t know.” We walked into the main street and started walking back toward the Jester. “I’m guessing he thought it was a straight guild like the mercenaries. There probably isn’t any Rogue Guild. At least the Union isn’t one. It’s just a scam.”
“But they hire out Rogues.”
“I’m sure a few can take outside jobs, but we’ll never get to that level. There will always be a barrier in place that we will have to overcome.”
“So,” Leoleth said, stepping in front of me and stopping our movement. “Little elf, what do we do?”
“It’s a big city.” I shrugged. “I’m sure two hot girls can find a way to make money.”
“Ah,” Leoleth nodded approvingly. “Prostitution.”
“No, you idiot, stealing shit.”
“Oh. That sounds fun too.”
I steered us to a small cafe on the corner of the next block. I pulled up a chair at one of the café tables outside and plopped myself down.
“Here,” I handed Leoleth a silver. “Get us a couple of coffees if they have it.”
“Sure thing, boss.” She said with a wink.
“And the change!” I barked after her.
I needed to think. I wasn’t angry. I couldn't blame Aymon, not really. A rogue getting upset at another rogue for pulling a hustle felt like poor form. What truly pissed me off was sitting here at a random café, utterly aimless in this city, with no prospects to speak of. Sure, I had time to plan and build something, but the last thing I wanted was to fall into my bad habits. Wallowing in self-pity just because something I wanted wasn’t easy was my M.O. in the old life.
Some of the nonsense Aymon had spewed stuck with me, though. I didn’t want to be a bad person, but I wasn’t exactly on the path to being a good one either. No, I wanted to be a good person who did bad things. Sort of? No, that wasn’t it. Stealing welfare checks from little old ladies—or whatever the Nya equivalent might be—wasn’t my style. I liked the idea of doing bad things for good purposes. And yeah, there was something undeniably romantic about being the “good Rogue,” spreading wealth to the masses. Baby steps, I told myself. I’d start small with a code. Naive? Absolutely. But everyone had to start somewhere.
Then there was Leoleth. I wasn’t sure what to make of her yet. She seemed utterly unbothered, game for anything as long as it sounded entertaining. A former cultist who’d apparently been okay with sacrificing people. But in a world like Nya, where was the line? This place thrived on violence, and as far as I could tell, morality here was more of a suggestion than a rule. Nothing was too forbidden, it seemed, as long as you didn’t get caught. Heather’s endorsement of Leoleth went a long way toward easing my doubts. Justice wasn’t even on the table for her, so I let it go. Besides, she was fun to have around.
I had to believe nothing was impossible here. That belief was where I’d messed up in the old days. I wanted to use these skills, but I’d need to build them first. What would I have done back in World of Warcraft? I would grind.
It was time to start doing just that.
“No coffee,” Leoleth reappeared from the inside, lugging two massive, over-the-top girlie drinks garnished with about half a dozen different fruit slices each. “All they had were these.”
She was starting to grow on me.
We sipped our drinks in a contemplative silence. It was strong alcohol mixed with fruit juice and something that made it foamy. I pieced together a plan, nothing too complicated; I mean, I was working with Leoleth.
“What are we going to do?” she asked.
“Grind.”
“Now you’re talking.”
“Not that kind of grinding.”
We finished our drinks. She “forgot” to give me the change of course. I was pretty much expecting it, but she was about to score me a lot of gold if things worked the way I planned. I nodded to her, and we got up. She followed me to the end of the block. We were just outside the gates to Prime, where people were getting lined up to enter.
“Walk that way.” I pointed down the block. Dozens of pedestrians were headed in our direction.
“Swing your hips,” I said quietly as we turned onto a busy street filled with the neighborhood’s upper-class pedestrians. “Make eye contact and smile at the men.”
“Time to steal shit?” Leoleth whispered.
“Yes. Be the hot girl.”
I wasn’t sure what Leoleth’s charisma level was, but she didn’t need much to be a distraction on the street. She arched her back and walked like a supermodel on the runway, and there wasn’t a person who passed that didn’t notice. She gave everyone a sultry glance and a smile. Men and women both seemed affected. I, on the other hand, slunk back, activating Face in the Crowd. It drained my EP down slowly, but I became the forgettable best friend of the prom queen and was virtually unseen on the crowded street.
As we walked, I snatched. Not every person I bumped into, but every third or so, and only if they were dressed well. As we passed, I grabbed pouches, daggers, or purses, all going into my personal storage. The wealthier people tended to carry a small bag of coins on them, probably for the pickpockets, since they, too, had personal storage of some kind. Then, just as the EP was running low, it came:
Congratulations:
Pick Pocket is now Level 2
Dexterity +1
Charisma +1
We made our way into the suite of The Crying Jester without incident, without anything, actually. I pulled out the purses, pouches, and accessories I had nabbed and lined them up on the bed. Leoleth squealed in delight, grabbed a jewel-encrusted dagger, and held it up.
“This one’s pretty,” She said dreamily. “I’ll take it.” I cast Appraisal with my last few remaining EP and got a value of sixty-five GP and no magical properties.
“You might want to sell it,” I said with a smile as I started overturning the pouches and purses, dumping the contents on the bedspread.
“It’s pretty,” Leoleth said. “I’ll be the one with the flashy stuff. You can do all the stealing.”
“No,” I said sternly. “We both do the stealing. There’s not enough of us to specialize. You need to learn all the stuff that I do, and I need to learn as much about ritualistic magic as I can, so we can work together.”
“I like that.” Leoleth put the dagger down on the bed with the others. “Where do we start?”
“I’m not sure.” I thought about things. The Union may be a bit of a problem if they were interested in doing crimes and whatnot. But if they were bullshit, as I suspected, then they wouldn’t be interfering in our lives. Still, keeping a low profile seemed like the best place to start.
“I think we should focus on the basic stuff, pick pocketing, sleight of hand, and the physical skills to start doing higher level work. Also, you should work on fine-tuning your magic so we can bypass protections. How do you add a new class?”
“You can add a new class at level five, but I just turned level four, so it will take a long time to add it.”
“So, we just focus on the skills then for now. Hopefully, you’ll advance as we add and build them on. It means you’ll have gain the rogue stuff organically and add the class and job at level five.”
“You mean stealing without any skills?”
“No, you can pickpocket without stealing.” I pulled a silver coin off the bed and held it up to Leoleth, the inspiration hitting me.
We divided the loot between us, which added up to a surprising three hundred and sixteen in gold and other coins. The dagger she grabbed and the high-end items were worth about four hundred altogether. I chucked some other odds and ends into storage to sort out later when we had a fence. I decided to reach out to Jinx to see if he knew a guy. Out of that, we pulled fifty SP to start practicing.
We left The Jester and headed up the main boulevard toward Prime. With my Chain of Desire on full display, I practiced the Seduction spell. I poured a small amount of EP into the chain and focused on everyone as we passed. It had the same effect as Leoleth and her swaying hips and smile. Leoleth, in turn, started bumping into people, just as I had.
Leoleth had virtually no skill as a pickpocket, and it showed. She was awkward, I mean first time in heels awkward. But she wasn’t stealing; instead, she deposited a silver coin into every pocket she could reach. She wasn't always successful, but she always tried to do it without being noticed.
“Holy Shit,” Leoleth said as we approached the gate to Prime. She looked over at me, beaming. “Pickpocket, Level One.”
“You thieving little sneak,” I said with a grin. “Only cost you fifty silvers.”
“Forty-Three,” Leoleth said.
The training regimen started the next day. I didn’t imagine that Aymon was completely full of shit when it came to the stuff we needed to do. I knew picking pockets was not the best way to make money; we needed to level up in as many ways as possible to start pulling off the jobs we wanted. We decided to focus on the ground-level skills during the day and then train the physical skills using the rooftops in the evenings.
While slipping coins into unsuspecting pockets worked, we also found that sleight of hand delighted crowds in different ways. I introduced three-card monte to the world of Nya, playing it on the counters of taverns and inns for drinks and fun, never taking money from the patrons, as I practiced my skills, even losing from time to time to keep it balanced. We worked on our skills in separate taverns around the Hub District, careful not to overstay our welcome in any of them. We also kept all games out of The Crying Jester.