Chương 8: Ava'Koz and Quest Start

When Ava'Koz came into this new world, it was like a thin film had been lifted from her vision. There was always this feeling of being stuck before like she was inside the sap of an old tree. So many times she wanted to reach out with her hands or tendrils to latch onto her queen, but she couldn't. She wished to be closer to Lady Shadow, and in order to do that, she would finish her delegated tasks with the utmost efficiency. She was in charge of gathering currency from this world for the future of their kingdom.

Sitting in the seat of Greed made her perfect for the job. I will be even more useful than my brother and Rela. Ava'Koz had been given many low-leveled items such as potions, herbs, or ingredients to sell, and she enlisted in the Merchant's Guild. They were fundamentally different from the adventurers. As people who controlled trade and business, there were lots of regulations tied to kingdoms. There were also fewer ranks, since at a certain point more capital became hard to judge.

In the guild, there were three different cards. Anyone who enlisted started as a white card, then black, and finally gold. She sat in an office, twirling the white card with a fake name on it.

"Ava Green" was the name printed on the official guild card with black letters. Next to that, there was a black shield with golden trimmings and lines running across it. Each of those lines were made for the magic detectors. If even one of them was off, they would consider it a fake. Though, Ava'Koz was certain that she'd be able to replicate one without even trying.

"So, I was told that you have more interesting goods to sell?" Horace asked. The portly man sat across from her. Fat on his chin jiggled with his movements. The over sized blue, red, and green suit he wore jingled with small bells on its collar. The outfit made him look more like a clown than a barterer, but he was the first person to take notice of Ava. His pockets rattled heavier than the girth on his waist, and that was all Ava cared about. He clutched an iron cane with both hands.

It was as if he was scared of falling forwards from his own weight. Ava reached into a purple vortex next to her. She filtered through her own inventory fast, while the man in front of her grinned. She pulled out several bottles of soap and placed them on the ornate wooden desk.

"I think these will be to your liking, Horace." He grabbed one of the bottles, unable to hide the surprise on his face. He held the white bottle up towards the light, the image of a pink fairy glittering beneath the magic bulb.

"How do I use it? What language is this?" Ava shrugged, a single hair turning into a tendril behind her. The tendril elongated and worked its way behind the couch and towards a book shelf.

"To use it is simple. You just turn the top and press down. It is a very high class soap, and it should be popular among nobles." His eyes widened, and he followed her instructions. When he pressed down on the pump, a string of white shot from the bottle onto the table. Horace stared down at the substance with a hint of perplexity. He rubbed some on his fingers and sniffed it.

"This really is soap!"

"Of course it is," Ava said, placing a stolen book in her inventory.

"What did you think it was?" Horace's face reddened. He pressed two fingers together, and pulled them apart. A strand of white soap went between them like a bridge.

"Well, you know? This could be interpreted as something else, Miss Green." Ava tilted her head. Is this some mortal thing? Perhaps, brother Lust would know? Her purple eyes blinked several times, but she ultimately shrugged.

"I don't care about any of that. I want to know what you're willing to buy these items for." Horace rubbed his chin and narrowed his eyes towards the bottles.

"Soap is common on the noble markets, but anything resembling this is rare. I think that customers of sound mind would pay up to a platinum coin for this." Ava pulled one of the bottles closer to her.

"I am not letting them go for less than 2 platinum coins each. You see, these are valuable items and have close ties to the spirits of the spirit realm. It would bring shame upon my mistress to sell them for less."

"What about a platinum coin and 5 gold coins?" Ava clicked her tongue.

"Even if you're a merchant, there is a limit to how slimy you can be with the personal goods of another. I would only go down to a platinum coin and 8 gold coins at the very least." Horace gave her a bright smile and reached out his hand.

"Do we have a deal then?" She started to reach out her hand, but she could feel the presence of her queen getting closer. She nearly jumped out of her chair to rush down the stairs, but the protocol stopped her. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. Ava nodded her head and passed on gripping his hand.

"No offense, Sir Horace, but my hands aren't meant to be touched."

"Oh," he said, scratching the back of his head awkwardly.

"I'd forgotten about your family code."

"Don't trouble yourself by forgetting. I will let it pass this time, provided you pay me an extra gold coin for my troubles." He grumbled and placed a platinum and 9 gold coins on the table.

"If the payment is sufficient, I will let the guild know we came to an agreement."

"Perfect," Ava said, pocketing the coins in her inventory.

"I apologize, but I must be on my way." Before he could call out to her, she was already out the door with a stolen book and the payment. She nearly tumbled down the stairs in her excitement, but her tendrils latched onto the walls, catching her before she could fall. At the entrance of the guild hall, she saw "Lady Emerald" and Rela standing near the light of the window. Ava struggled to compose herself and failed.

She lurched forwards, pulling herself through the air as her tendrils latched on to the space between them. It was one of her space magic spells which let her connect two points using her tentacles as an anchor. She pressed her face into her lady's warm chest and wrapped her arms around the queen, receiving a glare from Rela.

"Didn't Lady Sh-... Lady Emerald tell you not to do that where people could see you?" Ava held Elise even tighter.

"It's not like any of these mortals would even know what happened. They couldn't see my magic even if I used it right in front of them."

"Now, now," Queen Shadowspill said, running her fingers through Ava's hair.

"The two of you shouldn't bicker so publicly. You will make a scene and ruin our reputation." Rela bowed and clenched her teeth.

"Of course, My Lady. However..."

"Yes, I know. Ava, you need to be more careful with your magic in public. It is not yet time for us to reveal ourselves." The queen narrowed her eyes as Ava nodded.

"And, if I can trouble you for a moment..." /// Elise held a bag of coins that would pass for more than the allowance of a duchess in this world. She smiled wryly at it. How did she already earn so much gold? She looked ahead towards Baron Edmon's convoy. They were staging at the north entrance with his stagecoach at the center. There was another nice carriage behind his, but around those two, there were heavily armed guards. The adventurers started piling into a wagon in the back. Rela scoffed.

"I hope they don't intend to make you sit in that one." A brown-haired adventurer with a sword attached to his waist strolled up to the two of them. He scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

"You wouldn't happen to be Lady Emerald, would you?"

"I am."

"I was told to bring the two of you towards the second carriage. The baron has decided to situate you two and myself closer to him. We'll ride with Lady Esmeralda. I am Heinkel, by the way. It's nice to finally meet you properly.

"A pleasure," Elise said, her voice lowering to an amused whisper.

"I guess they heard your complaint, Rela." The maid turned her head away.

"This is the least they can do for someone of your status. They should give you the entire kingdom and know their place." She makes it sound like it would be so easy. Even if I could take over the whole kingdom on my own, there would still be resentment from the people, unless we killed them all. The vampire queen thought back to Tiberius and shook her head. It is far less satisfying if they just become obedient pets, and if there are other players... The two of them reached the carriage, and the door popped open.

Inside, two people were already sitting. There was a blonde-haired nun and a beastkin woman with cat ears sitting next to her. Rela climbed up first and then offered her hand to Elise. The maid pulled her into the carriage, and the two of them sat across from the other women. Heinkel took his place among them. Elise studied the nun's face, observing a hint of sadness in her eyes. Did she already learn about the fate of Tiberius? If that's the case, it is probably the sun talisman at work.

Esmeralda managed a smile anyways.

"Lady Emerald, it is a pleasure to finally meet you."

"Likewise."

"I'm Kaila!" The feline woman managed to stammer out. Her face reddened when the attention turned towards her.

"I saw you at the guild, and I was surprised." The nun nodded.

"It's not often that we get an elven adventurer in the human kingdoms. I've seen an elven emissary once before when I was at the capital." She stopped and gestured with her head towards the carriage in front of them.

"We're to provide aid should the carriages come under direct attack. You do not need to worry about my protection. Simply protect the baron at all costs."

"Why did he request me to sit in this carriage anyway?" Esmeralda shrugged.

"Maybe he imagined that it would be unpleasant for you to ride with the other adventurers. I saw how they looked at you even from in here. We're not all bad. It's really only those brutes."

"That sounds plausible. Though, I would ask then why these two adventurers? Is there something special about them?" Heinkel gestured towards the feline woman.

"Kaila recently survived a trip towards Ambergrad, so the baron has placed his trust in her. As for me, well..." Kaila grinned widely and tucked his head under her arm. She ruffled his hair and squeezed him tightly towards her side.

"I told them that he can ride with me! After all, that way I would be able to protect him." The young man grumbled and forced his head out of her vice grip.

"Like I told you, I don't really need protecting. Besides, it would have been better if you rode with the rest of your party. Don't you feel bad for leaving them all in that wagon by themselves?"

"No way," she said with a wave of her hand.

"They're all men who are old enough to drink themselves to death. Besides, the captain already has a foot in the grave. Don't need to protect someone who is already at death's door." Death's door, you say? Yes, I have to use that line again next time something happens. As she had that thought, Elise heard the cracking of whips, and the horses began their march. Elise gazed out of the window as the carriage started rolling. Hopefully something fun happens along the way.

I need more targets to test my combat prowess on. Besides, I could always use some more loot.