“Do I see thirty-five gold there? Of course I do: I have incredible eyes. I’m looking for forty. Forty gold pieces people. It’s not big and it’s not flashy but this knife’s cutting enchantment would have a [Thief] asking what the point of enspelled purse strings was. It’s worth the price just to keep it out of their hands! Forty gold to our tabaxi friend in Halverwick. Come on people let’s not dance around like Bronze-rankers. Can somebody step up for forty five? It’s not revolutionary but why would it need to be; it’s a knife. Perfectly balanced for throwing if that’s your kind of thing. Yes, that's forty-five gold pieces front and centre. Can never have too many knives eh Jory? Now, who’s going to save us all and take it away from him for fifty gold pieces?”
A constant low murmur ran round the room as adventurers discussed the auction but Xian’toth’s voice rang out clear above them all.
Off to one side, Wei kept quiet and still lest he distract the irathian from his role, though even as many eyes on stalks as the [Arcane Broker] had, Wei had no idea how the man was keeping track of the proceedings. In contrast to his outward appearance though, internally Wei was rejoicing from the sale of his necklace moments before.
A hundred and three gold. That’s weeks of therapy sessions for Xiaoling. Even after being taxed.
The crowd tonight were in a good mood and their spending reflected it as the gold-only items were put up for bidding. Whether it was from the end of a month of barren trading options, or a genuine interest in Wei and the Halverwick guild’s new items, was unclear, and Wei didn’t care as long as it kept pushing the prices up.
“...Sold for ninety-eight gold to the man with an unhealthy obsession.”
The crowd cheered politely for Jory, and then jeered with equal good nature as he went up to collect it only to be turned away by the goliath guard, who informed him in no uncertain terms that weapons would not be handed out until the proceedings were concluded.
Xian’toth took a deep swig of water before he continued, the iridescence to his purplish skin highlighted by a thin sheen of sweat coating his forearms.
“Right folks, last of the Bronze-ranked pieces and then we’ll take a short break before moving on to Silver, and this one’s a classic.” He held up a small, colourful cloth pouch, tied with a drawstring. “We all know it, we all love it. The adventurer’s friend: the Dimensional Pouch. Now, fair warning, this isn’t one of Emriss’ creations, but it is one of the first artificing attempts from local adventurer Naila. Those of you that know her will understand how tricky making anything has been for her since the accident. One point to note is that all the proceeds from this sale will go towards her treatment - and the guild has agreed to waive its fee on this one. In addition, I’ll be sure to pass on the winner’s name along with her payment.”
Wei took a closer look at the bag. He hadn’t spent much time with the firbolg woman before she’d gone off with the Vanguard on her first mission in months; he didn’t really know a lot about her class or Skills. It seemed to have caught the interest of the crowd too, as half the people turned to their neighbours to enquire what it was all about.
Xian’toth read the room and gave the discussion a few moments to percolate, with even the Halverwick guild putting their heads together to whisper.
“Having said all that,” the irathian said with a flourish, “I won’t misrepresent its quality. It’s sturdy and, despite appearances, flame resistant - so don’t discount it because of any risk Sevryx - but the capacity is on the low side: about sixteen cubic feet or four hundred pounds before we saw any signs of stretching. Interference-wise you’re looking closer to medium than low, but she’s done a good job of localising it. I wouldn’t leave it open near my hands if I was casting an {Acid Storm} but as long as you’re careful it shouldn’t be an issue. Given all that, let’s start the bidding at a hundred gold.”
The price rose rapidly as a good third of the room made their interest known.
Because they want it, because they want to support Naila, or because they want to get in the Vanguard’s good books?
“What’s that at the back? A two hundred and twenty-five? Excellent! Many of you might have bags yourself, but consider the possibility of a gift for a group-mate or loved-one. Two hundred and fifty. Two hundred and eighty Sir, very good. Let’s see three hundred for a truly beautiful piece; who says adventurers can’t defend the weak and be stylish at the same time? Slay monsters all around and then slay admirers in the town…with your impeccable fashion sense! Three hundred and twenty I knew you were a woman of taste Chyrannia; I almost didn’t recognise you not drenched with blood!”
The bidding finally closed at five hundred and forty-four gold to much applause, and a cauliflower-eared, grinning hulk of a woman in tight leather armour that’d he’d taken for a bodybuilder stomped up to the stage to collect it, the rainbow-coloured woven bag fitting entirely into the palm of one hand.
“A well-deserved prize, Chyrannia, if I may say so. I’ll see if I can find a small cleaning charm to attach to the drawstring when I’m next out in town - no charge.” Xian’toth’s eyestalks vibrated as the woman clomped back down to her place in the crowd and, clapping his own appreciation, he called for a break. “We’ll resume in a quarter of an hour. Refreshments are at the back of the room. Take the time to acquaint yourself with the rarer items on display.”
Striding down off the stage he angled towards Wei.
“Phew, not a bad start eh?” One eye fixed on Wei as the rest scanned the room. “Very happy with how Naila’s bag did. She deserves it.”
Wei stood and bowed his head.
“I thank you for letting me come, Xian’toth. I’m learning so much watching you.”
“Oh please, you flatter me. Which I’m a big fan of by the way so keep it going.” The irathian was in his element and he waved to a couple of adventurers and his opposite number through the {Scrying} spell and dropped his voice to a whisper. “It’s just a shame I can’t get my Skills working through that mirror, but it’s too far. Oh well.” He seemed to remember he was talking to Wei. “You looking forward to the ring? It’ll be the last of the purely coin-sold items, although I expect some money will be coming in until the end of the night. Sure I can’t tempt you to go in for a trade?”
It had crossed Wei’s mind. How could it not? There was magic here. Real, actual magic. Not the kind that needed studying like Lio had learned as a [Mage], but things that he could use. The calming tonics had been one thing, but they’d been like taking medicine. This…
“I… I would like to be able to make more gold, to make sure my sister and I are financially secure.”
“Seriously kid,” Xian’toth chuckled, another eyestalk swivelling his way, “financially secure? Not even I thought like that at your age. I respect the hustle, but you’ve got steady work with Ertrun and you’ve made, what, six hundred gold or so from that axe and the necklace? Live a little! Indulge yourself.”
Wei could feel his eyes being drawn to the objects still displayed around the room.
“I know, it’s just… the cost for the [Healer] is a lot, and it could take some time…”
Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.
“Come on kid, give me a number that would make you happy.”
He’d be lying if he said he hadn’t thought about it.
“Sixteen hundred gold.”
“Before or after the guild’s cut?”
“Before.”
“Done. I’ll put the ring in a bit earlier so we know what you’re working with, and I’ll make sure I leave sixteen hundred on the books for you; the rest can be covered in trade. Go have a look at what’s around and give me a nod when what you like comes up for auction. Don’t worry about bidding, I’ll add you in until the price gets too high, and if we can’t make up the value for the rest of the ring in goods you want, don’t worry - you’ll get the balance in more coin, or I can give you credit for future trade.”
“You think it will sell for enough then?”
“Oh, don’t worry about that kid. You’re good.”
The [Arcane Broker] went off to mingle and Wei wandered off to browse the items still on display, as well as a pamphlet that listed the upcoming lots.
There was no shortage of goods on offer; even if business had been slow in Troston for a while. Xian’toth had items languishing in his care. Items that the local adventurers had professed no interest in, or perhaps couldn't afford. The irathian hoped that opening up the auction to another guild would see them taken off his hands for a fair price, whilst also offering some of Halverwick’s guild’s unwanted pieces to his own customers. Despite the attempt to shake up the situation, there were still a few items that neither guild's adventurers seemed to have any interest in.
But Wei wasn't an adventurer.
He was still reading through the options when the bidding started again, and he kept half an ear open as he weighed up his options.
A significant proportion of the items on sale were weapons and armour, and as the first Silver-ranked pieces went under the hammer he dismissed them out of hand. Soon though, the auction moved on to the trading stage, and then, after a book that taught a few lower-level magic spells, came something more to his liking.
“The second storage device of the evening, my morally-neutral friends, is this Dimensional Lockbox. This one boasts an impressive capacity: around two and a half thousand cubic feet, or more than thirty tons worth of material. It might not be as portable or accessible as a pouch, but you could store a small house’s worth of stuff in this beauty, or even leave it at home for the family to use.”
Voices drifted up from the crowd.
“I’ve not got a family at home.”
“Of course you don’t Greg, you’d need to find someone to put up with you first!”
Xian’toth chuckled along but pushed on.
“What can I get for this exemplary piece? Interference might be high but it drops off quickly with distance, and think of how much space you’ll save when you’re transporting all that loot you find.”
“Nothing, as long as we’re stuck chasing non-existent illusionists and doing the watch’s job for them.”
Grumbles began to emanate from the group and Wei spotted Xian’toth mutter something under his breath. The discontentment in the air suddenly vanished and the irathian plowed onwards.
What Skill was that?
“Of course, the best adventurers know how important it is to be prepared, and with this much space,” one of his feet snaked out to give the chest a tap, almost like a salesman kicking the tyre of a used car, “you’ll have room to prepare for anything. Now I know you’ll say I’m crazy but I’ll start the bidding at only four hundred gold.”
“You’re crazy.”
The crowd chuckled as the hulking woman who’d bought Naila’s Dimensional Pouch obliged, but no one seemed interested in bidding. Xian’toth hesitated, and then at the back of the room, Wei slowly raised a hand.
“Excellent, that’s four hundred gold. Any advances? No? In that case: Sold!” The eyestalk that was pointing in Wei’s direction looked almost relieved. Wei didn’t go up to collect the it - the traded lots weren’t distributed until the proceedings were done as Xian’toth still had to facilitate the exchange of value between what adventurers had put up for auction, other goods they’d offer to make up the difference, or even just more gold they had to pay to meet the balance of their purchases. It would almost be like another mini-action after the fact.
“Now let’s [Keep the Momentum Going] with a quick jump up to a Gold-ranked item that I know a lot of you have been eyeing. It’s a lovely piece, and woe betide anyone that stands in the way of this Hammer of the Giant Slayer. We’ll start the bidding at two thousand gold’s worth of trade. There at the back, two thousand. Halverwick branch is good for two thousand two hundred. Yes, down the front we’ve got-”
Wei ignored the auction for the magical weapon. No doubt the adventurers would get good use of it, but there were still items in the pamphlet he wanted to read about before they came up for trade.
The hammer went for over four thousand gold before Xian’toth returned to the lower-ranked items for a while, but amongst those were a few pieces Wei had picked out.
A ‘Traveler’s Ward Pendant’ - a charm that would protect its wearer from a single Bronze-level attack before recharging over the course of a day was beneath the notice of the Silver and Gold-ranked adventurers but for him it could mean the difference between life and death if he was attacked by a thug on the streets or a stray arrow, or maybe even falling rubble in some of the more dangerous parts of the salvage yard if he was reading the description right.
An ‘Anchorstone’ sounded like it would be better suited to a group of sailors, but Wei could see the use in having a rock that would stay in exactly the place it was activated and hold several thousand pounds of pressure before it moved - not least to stop a cart rolling down a steep slope when proper handbrakes hadn’t yet been invented. A few others bid on that one but dropped out quickly, and Xian’toth kept Wei in until the end, apparently convinced it was worth five hundred and twenty gold.
Unfortunately, the ‘Smuggler’s Cloak’ went beyond his budget as a shadowy figure at the back of the crowd and a half-drunk woman in Halverwick’s guild got into a bidding war.
With Wei beginning to bid, Xian’toth quickly made the decision for the next Gold item to be brought out to break up the Silver-ranked lots, and once again the crowd stirred as the Band of Rebounding Force was brought up.
Wei’s eyes opened wide as the [Arcane Broker] started the bidding at two and a half thousand gold, and stood paralysed as the bidding rapidly passed three thousand, not wanting to do anything that might break the rush of hands being raised and heads nodding to indicate the adventurers’ interest in the item.
“Three thousand four hundred gold. I think we’re all a little afraid of what Chyrannia could do with this. Is that three thousand five hundred from Halverwick? Excellent, do I hear three thousand six hundred?”
Still standing at the rear of the room with the pamphlet and the dwindling showcase of items on the walls, Wei saw a lanky beastkin with a fox-like head duck down in the back row of the crowd and cough into his hand, then he stood up and called out.
“Three thousand, five hundred and ten.”
“New bidder coming in hot at three five one zero. Who’s prepared to raise that amount?”
Chyrannia’s meaty hand rose again.
“Okay we’ve got Three thousand five hundred and twenty. Any advance? Three five three zero at the rear.”
Once more the fox-man ducked out of sight and coughed into his hand, and Chyrannia seemed confused and struggled to raise her arm - only managing to get it above her head with supreme effort that no one else seemed to notice - but Wei had been moving forwards and he caught the tail end of a Skill the beastkin was muttering.
“-noculous influence].”
The beastkin straightened up and called out another bid, but it was lower than the previous one, and Xian’toth glazed over the incongruity of the offer and the change of pace that was taking place in the bidding and raised the amount he sought by only a few gold. Even the adventurers in Halverwick’s guild seemed hypnotized.
This time, when the beastkin murmured a series of Skills, Wei was right behind him to hear.
“[culmination of misdirection]. [reasonable suggestion]. {mass silence}. Two thousand gold, final offer, and only if I can take the item now.”
Xian’toth let out a low whistle as everyone else seemed to fall mute, and raised his tiny hammer as he had to signal the end of every other item’s bidding run.
“Two thousand gold, to the gentleman in the back. Going once…”
Further forward, Wei could see Chyrannia with a frown on her face, looking at her hand as if struggling to discern why it wasn’t moving. He tried to shout out, but no sound came from his throat.
He began waving his arms wildly, but it was as if he were far off, underwater.
“...going twice…”
Wei looked round and darted for a table at the side of the room covered in glasses full of wine and ale and spirits and beer. He upended it with an oddly muted crash.
A few of the adventurers blinked, and one of Xian’toth’s eyestalks flickered in his direction, but they couldn’t seem to focus.
There were maybe fifty people in the room, and all of them seemed to have fallen under the beastkin’s spell.
Wei sent a desperate glance in the direction of the towering Tarunde, who was similarly standing with a blank expression. Wei picked up two unbroken bottles and prayed that the goliath had a Skill that could break him out of the trance as he hurled the improvised missile straight at the [Warden], and the other at the podium as Xian’toth finished speaking.
“...gone! Sold, to-”
The bottles shattered over Tarunde’s head and the lectern Xian’toth was leaning on in quick succession, and in an instant, the veil of confusion and inactivity that had fallen over the room suddenly snapped.
Hi all, hope you're enjoying the story so far.
If you'd like to leave a comment or rating I'm grateful for all feedback.
The full first book is available on Patreon - with more coming, and I greatly appreciate anyone who chooses to support me there.
Thanks for reading!
