Chương 24: 1.2.02 - A Bone To Pick

The frosty bite that came with winter was fully replaced by the cool refreshing breeze of spring. I had to skip breakfast today and only managed to ransack the kitchen for some old bread and jerky which I took with me. I reached the wagon yard to the east of Hollow's Reach when the sun was up. Garrick was already strapping Old Betty to his wagon and getting ready for our trip to the black market. He was ready for me this time and I did not manage to sneak up on him.

"Hello there" I greeted Garrick as I approached.

"Where did you learn that weird greeting by the way? Never mind that, put these on. You can keep the mask off until we get closer" he said as he passed me an oversized cloak and a wooden mask. The cloak seemed to be made out of thicker fabric with some oil or coating applied to it, probably to keep light rain from soaking through. It was not completely new but still in good condition. I put it on and noticed the slight warmth.

I did not need it with my Yellow core and soul mutation but it was a welcomed comfort nonetheless. The length was a little long for my height, even though I was almost 150 centimeters now, it was almost touching the ground when I put it on. Garrick probably took into account my future growth when purchasing this, how thoughtful. The mask was just a simple wooden mask painted black with slots for the eyes, with an indentation between the eye sockets so it could rest comfortably on the nose.

The wood had a darker grain texture, which the paint failed to hide, resembling a lightning bolt running from the top to the bottom of the left side, through the eye socket. How apt, I thought. If only it came in blue, I mused. The mask also had leather straps tied like those paintball masks so that it can sit comfortably on my head. I tried it on — while it was a little loose, it still covered my face perfectly. I was sure I would grow into it with time.

"Good eye, how did you know my measurements?" I couldn't help but ask.

"I didn't, these were the only sizes I could get. They cost 20 small silvers, I'm docking them from your next payment" Garrick tried to say nonchalantly, though I could tell it was a lie. I did not press him further on it.

"Get on, we'll head out soon" I left the cloak on and climbed on to the wagon, it'll be a bumpy ride and I could probably run faster. But I needed Garrick to show me the way and it was unlikely he could keep pace with me on foot. We were heading East on a dirt road that was wider than the road leading to the orphanage. It seemed like more people passed through this road as we had passed a few other travelling parties on our way out.

I saw Garrick casting a simple spell every now and then to even out parts of the road that had been made uneven from the melting snow. It looked like a simple manipulation spell, which allowed me to guess that Garrick had an Earth affinity.

"So what do you know about the camp?" I asked as Garrick steered the wagon.

"Hmmm... not sure when it came about, but the story is that it started out as a place where some deserters from Ironhold made camp. Over the years, all sorts of questionable characters started to gather there. Over time, it became a place where people traded in the grey, usually stolen goods that thieves want to offload, military equipment scavenged off soldiers or mercenaries." Garrick explained.

"Do you frequent this camp?" I asked.

"I only ever visit if there was something urgent I could not procure through legal means, though most of the time I would turn down a request if it was outright illegal. Last time I visited was a few years back" Garrick said neutrally, like the camp was a necessary evil.

"Why did the local nobles or adventurer guild tolerate it though?" I wondered"Thing with these camps is, the wrong crowd will always find a place to gather. It is better to know about it and control it." Garrick paused for a beat "If the local lord had sent his men to shut it down, it'll probably take a while before he knows where the next one springs up" I thought about it logically, while the nobles did not officially endorse it, they had probably tolerated it as long as the camp did not cross certain lines.

Better to know where to go for your own source of illicit goods when you needed it.

"The only thing they don't trade in is slaves and any hit contracts, at least those I know of. Slavery is something that the royalty would absolutely crack down on, so no one smart enough would buy one anyway here in Vesperia." Garrick added. I just kept quiet, and found solace in the fact that at least slavery was not tolerated, unlike some of the other books I read. I stopped my questions and let Garrick concentrate on mending the road while steering the wagon for the rest of the trip.

"Put on your mask, we're close" Garrick reminded as he steered the wagon off the main road towards a small goat-track towards the forest. The small path was still passable with a wagon but the bushes were thick and branches low. I put on the mask and pulled my hood up, completely hiding any facial features that could give my age away.

"One last thing, leave the talking to me. Last thing we need is people finding out I brought a kid into the camp" We had to slow to the pace of regular walking for the last mile as the floor was very uneven, and the path had many small bends. It opened up to a shallow basin which seemed to have been cleared of most trees, with a stream running through it. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

There were maybe twenty to thirty shacks that were built with scavenged timber and stitched leather pieces, scattered about, almost forming a circle around the central area. The middle of the camp was occupied by a long tent, where most of the activity and trading happened. Two lookouts were posted near the edge of where the camp ended, probably more as a deterrent rather than actually verifying the identity of anyone who entered.

I confirmed that when Garrick's wagon approached and they did not stop us to ask us for identification. In fact, upon closer look, most of the people walking about the camp had their hood up, or faces obscured one way or another. Garrick parked the wagon near an empty spot and tied Betty to a fence. There weren't any designated places to place the wagons so you sort of just make do.

"So what are you looking for lad? The camp isn't very big, but the stalls near the middle are still informally grouped by categories." Garrick said in a hushed voice. I looked to the middle and I could see people standing near stalls, negotiating on prices or bartering in some cases. There seemed to be some that were an odd mix of weapons and armors, some had pieces of metal, probably broken or discarded weapons.

I nodded in that direction and said "Weapons, or stalls that sell metal and ores, I see some over there. Let's go" Garrick just shook his head, already giving up on asking why I needed weapons. It was not weapons that I was specifically looking for, but my theory was that if it was a type of metal I was looking for in a place like this, recycling existing weapons would be my best bet.

I approached the stalls and started scrutinizing the weapons that were displayed on mats on the floor or stands that the owners had set up. They came in all kinds of quality, condition, and rarity. Looking less like a proper weapon shop, and more like a peddler that happened upon these items. While the vendors did try to group by category, it was not just weapons that were being sold by a stall in the weapon section.

There were often weird collections of trinkets, materials, or random scrolls, which were more like single use enchantments. I kept my Electro Perception on to be able to assess the conductivity of the items displayed. There was one vendor who had a giant great sword displayed on a stand, which had deep red glowing lines throughout the blade. The sword seemed to have been made from what I guessed was fire-attuned metal, perhaps to better allow the wielder to channel fire mana or spells through their attacks.

The price was listed in large gold coins, something definitely beyond my price range currently. I also saw some armor displayed, one which seemed to be made from Stonehide Plodder leather, recalling the conversation about the beast that Garrick had shared. I did see someone selling an ore of unprocessed mithril. Price point aside, even if I had purchased it, a place like Hollow's Reach would not have the required equipment and artisan to purify it into a useable ingot.

I had an inkling that it was probably a fake ore, as most people here did not have the know how to differentiate a genuine from a fake. An unprocessed ore could also be sold through the proper channels, and there was no need to mix with this crowd. I had walked the entire section and unfortunately did not see anything that might meet my criteria. I also went to the metal and ore section though it was only really two stalls with a weird collection of metal shards and ores I could not identify.

The lack of a blacksmith in the camp meant most people probably preferred to just buy a usable weapon.

"What's wrong lad, didn't find what you need?" Garrick asked when he saw me standing still, he could not really see my disappointed face as I still had the mask on.

"I knew it was a long shot anyway, let's just look around since we're here, then we can head off" I said quietly so only Garrick could hear. I began wandering around the stalls, still keeping my Electro Perception on, in case I did come across something. I was approaching the section where they sold animal parts when I stopped dead in my tracks.

This was the last place I had expected to find something I needed, but lying there on the mat was a single claw, tied to some form of bracelet or necklace to form a trinket. It was glowing in my vision, with electrical energy constantly channeling through it like a vortex. I pulled Garrick's sleeve and told him to ask the lady about the trinket and its price.

"Oh this? You've got a good eye my friend!" The old lady seemed to smell blood, using the old peddler trick to make something seem more valuable than it is.

"This is a Storm Runner claw! It was made into a trinket by an esteemed enchanter! It is believed to aid you in your hunts and your aim shall forever find your quarry" the old lady bragged.

"It will normally cost you at least 10 small gold pieces for such a fine piece of magical tool, but for you I'm willing to lower it down to 5 small gold pieces. I've had several prospective buyers so better act quick!" It was honestly hard to believe anything coming out of the lady's mouth. But the beast that the claw came from was probably true. However, I needed to confirm if the claws, or the rest of the beast would be suitable for my purpose.

"Negotiate down to 20 small silvers and ask her if she has anymore of Storm Runner parts lying around" I whispered to Garrick.

"This old thing?!? This is just a poor fashion statement, you are lucky I'm even looking at it. I was just thinking it might be a nice gift for my niece who wants to be a hunter. Five small silvers, take it or leave it""Oh no no no, I can't do that, I will not be able to make a living that way! Take some pity on this old woman. It must be one small gold coin at least!" the woman countered. That's a dramatic drop in price, I thought internally. There was no way it was even remotely close to her initial asking price.

"10 silvers, final offer." Garrick said as he began to walk away. I knew he was doing a textbook negotiation tactic but I really wanted that piece of claw.

"50 silvers, that's the lowest I'm willing to go. Otherwise you can tell your niece you are empty handed because her uncle is too stingy" the woman huffed in mock anger.

"We'll take it!" I said, interrupting Garrick before he could reply. I grabbed the trinket and placed 5 large silver coins on the mat before the peddler could change her mind. She looked shocked at first, but broke out with a wide grin as she swept the coins from the mat and pocketed them. I knew I overpaid but I was too desperate at this point.

"Do you have more of, um... Storm Runner claws or bones that are not enchanted?" I tried my luck asking.

"Haah! Who would be carrying that stuff around. Most people stay away as they are notoriously hard to catch, and their lightning attacks make it extremely dangerous. None of its parts are really valua... I mean except the claws, which can be enchanted into these precious trinkets" she said with a fake smile. It was impressive to see her dedication to the act, even after the trinket was sold.

"Let's go" I said to Garrick as I turned to leave. Once we were out of earshot, Garrick said in an annoyed tone "You should have let me handle that, you overpaid for that thing. Baah~! Who cares, it's your coin you're wasting""Also, what happened to letting me speak, it was a good thing that granny was probably too deaf to pick up on your voice" Garrick warned.

"Sorry, won't happen again. But I really needed that part. Let's go before it gets dark" I quickened my pace to the wagon, eager to leave and get back to experimenting. As I held the claw in my hand, I felt it in my bones — I would have to hunt a Storm Runner down myself, peddler's warning be damned. Author Note: This is the work of Josh Shoniix. This work of fiction will only be published on Royal Road and Space Battle for free.

If you're reading this on another site or paid through Google Books, this work has been stolen.