The next day I walk again to the Information Center for News about the Halk. With one more Month, there should be happenings.
“I need Information.”
“Which you want and how much?”
“A copper, I am on the road to Halk, heard some rumors, so I want to make sure.”
“One Minute.”
Standing up the rough man trundles to the written documents and looks through them. The area, where Information for Halk is put is rather big as of now, seems there are many happenings. Should have paid a Silver for all Information, as this would had better worth.
Not long after the man came back
“I suggest to not go to Halk, high banditry, unstable City climate, missing People.”
That is all I got for one copper. Not much but Information is really expensive. Books are worth so much already, so I should be happy to even have the possibility of Information brokers.
“Still such uprising?”
“Yeah, something happened a while ago.”
Tight lipped as suspected. If no Money is on the table the mouth stays shut.
“Thanks for the Information, I will rethink my travel. Bye.”
“Better do that, bye.”
…
So few things to do. Walking around this place, I find not much entertainment, if we exclude… that kind of entertainment. Even gambling is limited to bones, which is funny, as dice seem to exist everywhere. Rules are different, but dice are similar. Carved out of bones and made cubic. No other dice forms, from what I know.
“Wanna try your luck with little brother?”
Little Brother is the common Game around here. Two dice are thrown. The high number is the old brother, the low number the little brother. High number is the score and the little brother adds or subtracts in a specific rule. Normally the lower number means minus one point, but if the little Brother is 1 he gets sold as slave and adds a point. Same Numbers mean twins, so no little brother and they neither add or subtract a point as they share.
The whole Game revolves about the old telltale of inheritance. The Father died and two Sons have right for it. The stronger gets the land but has to pay out his little brother, but if he is too weak or young, he might get sold as slave. It is a cautionary tale to know not to be too weak in the family and keep your worth, as otherwise your siblings will sell you after the parents are gone.
“No, only have Money for booze and bed. When I get a payday I will come back.”
It is a lie, but always better to look poor, than telling someone you have money, those guys often search for suckers to get beat up and taken advantage of.
…
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While wandering I got into the slum district. Not quite slums, as most have at least some kind of work, but Families share a House. Maybe I should explain ‘House’ as it sounds cozy and big. They are shacks, barely big enough to sleep on the floor while the residual warmth of the small oven keeps them warm. Windows are closed with boards and doors look old and grimy, as repairs cost too much. Enough space to barely live.
While walking I obviously got the wrong attention sadly and encounter a small group closing in from both sites of the alley. Right now they play drunk and walk swerving but even drunkards would not be out on this time. As they close in they start looking up with a sharp look but my arm with the gauntlet is already raised. Seeing suddenly the sparks between my fingers made their eyes grow wide.
“Mage!”
And like scared rats… no offense Snow… they scurry away. How anticlimactic that was.
…
The food here is rather bland and has not much greens inside. Corn, Onions (reminding me to buy some), fat and what the Farmers Market had early this morning got cooked together in a kind of slop, of a soup. It just costs a scrap and fills, so whatever. If I want meat I would pay five scrap, five times the Money, and you do not know what kind of meat will be served.
They will tell you though, when too many orphans got missing in a short time. Suddenly everyone wants to know what is in the food.
While eating my mush, I watch the others. Right now only workers are in the town, so it is rather relaxed. The only mercenaries walking around behave more relaxed and rest for another deadly job to come.
While I am at it I can look at the Bulletin board for Mercs to see what people around here need. A mercenary group always needs one who can read, but there are also often just Marks stuck to it, meaning a meeting for a job. Yellow Circle is Morning discussion, Red Circle is evening discussion. Black dots inside the circle say how deadly and high the salary is. No dot is mundane work like weeding or hauling work, barely Mercenary work at all, while one dot is the standard safe work like finding some herbs or getting monster parts. It goes up to five dots, but anything more than three is nearly never seen, as those already are a gamble with their lives. Exploration in the unknown or Guarding precious transports long distance can be three dots.
Right now there is a rather high demand on healing moss, but seems to be for export… Obviously for Halk. Wolf pelts are in demand for preparation of winter clothing, is it already Winter? Should remember the seasons, as crops might get rarer in the Winter times. Although Mana in the air slightly circumvents seasonal growth, it does not mean Winter is able to grow anything.
Well maybe my supersaturated fields are different. We will see in a few months.
…
In the evening I buy everything all I need for the travel back. New radish and rice, while not forgetting the onions this time. I would love one of those hairy cows, but they are way too slow for the woods. Maybe they are more like yaks, as they give wool, milk AND meat. Whatever…
Such cows cost a gold each. A hundred copper, and give enough meat for a hundred meals easily, if the butcher would not take his tithe it would be way more affordable, but alas.
Chicken eggs would be nice, but I should not overweigh myself again. It would be nice to be back before total Darkness this time.
While I am at it I purchase some spare leather armors for protection. How to harden leather I still do not understand, so for now I have to buy everything. New Boots for traveling are second hand, as I have no time for tailor made. Capes would be nice, but no magic capes are available. Mink must have let those be made and not bought them directly.
…
While resting I watch Snow walking around. Right now she walks only if she wants to wander slow or short distances. All the other time she hops around, so my first thought of her being a kangaroo was not fully wrong. The transformation seems not fully completed, as she still seems to meditate in the Dark field.
Right now she is the queen of the sewers. Pulling herself into the tunnels below trough the openings on the streets look awkward but somehow she is really bendable and squeezes right trough. Still I show her next time how to use the secret doors, as it can not be comfortable.
On the way through the sewers Snow spots the rather sizable snake den, near the smithy. As this is one of the only high temperature areas around, they seem to have made their nest below to keep a bit warmer, or maybe it is just happenstance.
Hopping into the dead end filled with snakes, she looks at the writhing mass, while the snakes threaten her and ready their acid. Although, you seem sure of yourself Snow, please do not overdo it. That is rather dangerous, as the mass is more than you combined.
Standing right there Snow just breathes in and… something gurgles in her stomach and throat…
...Did I just see Snow throwing up dozens of black rats running into the horde of snakes? Those rats are to my understanding not real. Phantoms maybe, but with way more physicality than just that. If normal rat Monsters hide in the shadows, these Rats are manifested shadows by Snow.
I… I better stop trying to make sense of what Snow just did, it might be a new skill or maybe some spell. It is effective though, as when some of the rats die she just threws up more for reinforcement. Victory was just a matter of time.
…
Today I am up early for my travel back. My dreams were strange, I saw a rat vomiting rats… Wait, that was no dream… whatever.
Packing up everything in the light of the oil lamp I store carefully every Item I have purchased. Right now I am ready to go back, as I have rested a day. The muscles are flexible again and fully functional.
Leaving the Inn my goal is the rampart to leave early. Although the Gatekeeper looks annoyed, as I go out way earlier than other groups, I just ignore him. The travel is treacherous and long, so I need all the time I can get.