The gears in Daniel’s brain seized, his face scrunching up a tad as numbers ran through his mind.
The talisman I took from the slavers was worth 80 silver. My timber order is worth more than a life? Are elves thought so little of in this kingdom? It would probably be the same for other nations, for humans and beastfolk.
Cooler wasn’t so cool as he began to sweat under his silence.
“It is the lowest I can go for what I put into her,” he blurted out. “It may be a bit high, I know, for an elf artisan with her disabilities and history. She is a solid artisan now. But yes, degrading by the year at this…”
He trailed off as Daniel summoned [Vault] to his hand from the pouch at his side, and extracted one of the several bags he’d divided coins into. He didn’t carry more than a few copper on his person, as Julia warned him.
“Here is six silver. I think she’s worth it.”
Cooler’s hesitation melted as he scooped them up, bowed in awe, and moved to put them in his vault.
“Such an amazing Contract, My Lord. It is like the Wizard’s legendary bag! Truly, I am blessed to have you as a customer. A Summoner… Amazing! Let me get her paperwork.”
Anillita stared into empty space as her former master bustled out of the room to reach their safe in the basement. Her long ears drooped, and her lips parted, but no words exited.
Daniel smiled compassionately at her.
“Anillita… What would you say if one of the options before you now is freedom? Just bear with me for a little longer today. Tonight, I will explain everything.”
The elf swallowed the lump that formed in her throat, a jitter running down her frame. Then, she put her mask back on and bowed.
“I am at your disposal, Master.”
“That is the last time you will use that word. Call me Daniel. Stay your hope, if you wish. I suppose that is how you survived this long. We’ll finish here, then head to the mortician and the Temple of Light. What do you need from me?”
“Nothing at this time… Daniel.” Her trembling hands smoothed out the suit items on the nearby table with her instruments. “But might I request to call you Lord Daniel? I will be reprimanded otherwise.”
Daniel hissed, which made her flinch.
“Sorry. Sorry. I’m really new to all this… I suppose even if I’m uncomfortable with ‘master,’ that is a ‘me’ problem. I give you liberty to do what you are comfortable with.”
The tension in her shoulders eased.
“Yes… Master.”
Oh, you cheeky woman! Doing what I said I don’t like.
There’s still a fire in there… Good.
The fitting and transfer of ownership went through without a hiccup. Alys and Julia were as stunned as the elf had been when he left with the woman in his new, quite dapper, striped, three-piece suit.
Going to the slave house behind the business, they entered Anillita’s small room. The elf lost her tongue when he sucked up all of her belongings over her century of slavery into the card.
Even though Cooler had her return her work garments, he was one of the best slave owners, as far as humans went. He even gifted her a lovely blue dress as a parting gift for her efforts through the years.
Mr. Cooler wasn’t only a tailor; he signed an exclusivity contract with Daniel for his leather shop as well as his forge.
She followed by his side, looking a bit lost as they stopped at the bank. The elf was as flabbergasted as the banker who brought them into a private room at their request. They processed Alys and her orders.
Daniel had [Vault] for his own personal bank, but he split a few gold into lower currency bags for what he had planned. He was beginning to wonder how this Half-Moon group had the kind of funds that made nobility stumble.
Julia broke a gold piece into silver before putting her 49 gold in her account. He was worried the women would become targets if it got out just how much they had. There wasn’t much they could do about it.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
After that, they visited the local mortician.
They didn’t invest in ways to preserve the dead here. It was always a closed casket. But this culture cared about the type of casket. Morticians, shockingly, were also amazing artists.
Julia gave detailed instructions on what to paint and carve on the custom casket. Daniel couldn’t wait to see the finished product. They purchased a plot while there in a knight’s graveyard. Julia said her brother wanted to be one growing up, hoping to become a Paladin.
It didn’t work out that way. But in death, she could give him the honor his sacrifice deserved. Daniel wanted to pay for it. He couldn’t take that from Julia.
Daniel sat back and listened as Julia paid a copper to talk to Divout Primus Lescar, the leader of the Paladin Order in the city. They were guided to a rather extravagant room in the opulent building adjacent to the marquess’s fort in the middle of the city.
“What do you mean you won’t honor a ‘dungeon crawler’ as a Paladin? My brother lived by every vow, even if he wasn’t a part of your order. You do honorary ceremonies for the nobles.”
Lescar’s face pinched, glancing at Alys and him in the corner before returning to the Ranger.
“The nobility pay for that right, keeping the order well-funded. The Adventurer Guild and our order have no such connection. He would need the full set of blessed armor, among many other conditions fulfilled to—”
Julia opened her coin pouch and slammed down a silver coin, then another, snapping Lescar’s lips shut.
“If money is all it takes for nobility, tell me when to stop. On your honor. One silver coin? That’s 5,000 loaves of bread for the poor. Two? Three? Is 15,000 loaves enough? Four?”
“…Three will do for the initial right. But it would cost ten for the full service.”
His tight smile fell when she produced it without blinking.
“150,000 loaves, hmm? I hope that goes to the right places.”
Daniel was learning more and more about how humans dealt with each other.
They left the building.
On the way to the Temple of Light, which only Alys knew the directions to since it wasn’t on the map, Anillita fidgeted with her dress front. Daniel figured she wouldn’t break, no matter how curious she became, so he decided to help.
“Any questions?”
The elf looked forward at the two women, chatting a few strides ahead of them on the busy street. They were moving into the city’s slums with each passing street.
“I don’t understand your goal, Master. Your behavior. Your motives… Your scar. It brings back a myth from my homeland about… Angels. You don’t act like a human.”
She spoke it so softly he could hardly hear her.
He kept his gaze forward.
“I’m sure you will find your answers tonight. Be patient.”
“Yes, Master…”
They stopped in front of an empty lot of what looked to be a burned-down house, Alys looking left and right. Grime-covered kids played nearby, skinny and watching them, like every other eye on the impoverished street. He was in a top-tier suit after all.
“No. This is where it should be…”
Daniel walked to the kids, pulled out a copper, and handed each one a coin. He made sure to hide the shine. He didn’t want anyone seeing how much he gave them.
The kids’ eyes widened in shock, now giving him their full attention.
“What happened to the Temple of Light?”
“Burned down by the Blackheart Gang last month, sir,” one whispered quietly.
The other looked left and right conspiratorially.
“An old man ran it. He owed a lot of money. They dragged him off.”
Daniel’s eyes narrowed.
“What about the guards?”
“Pfft. Funny one, Mister!”
“Everyone knows Blackhearts are the guards here.”
“They pay off the guards.”
Daniel hummed, looking back at Alys.
The Cleric’s eyes were hollow, looking more lost than Anillita.
“A High Cleric… Is indebted to a loan shark gang? How… Why… If we don’t have the High Cleric,” she mumbled, “how can I learn the vows and statutes? Is there really only one authority in the whole city? This is the only temple I know of…”
He rubbed his chin and thought about the options.
If it’s money, we can buy his freedom.
Something tells me these types aren’t legal and honor-bound.
His smile grew.
Well, that’s okay, too.
I might cause a bit of trouble for you, Bellamy.
“We’ll stop by the slaver’s auction. Handle that business before it closes. Then I’ll come back for the High Cleric, Alys. You two can head back to the inn. I’ll figure something out.”
Julia made a noise in her throat that said that might not be a good idea.
Alys swiftly shook her head.
“I’m going with you. If things…” she trailed off, head and shoulders hanging. “But I’ll only get in your way if things do go wrong. Daniel, I can’t ask you to…”
“I never asked. Did I, kids?”
The three shook their heads.
“Are you going to pay Old Man Davis’s debts?”
“He tells us he used to come from another world.”
“Yeah, he’s crazy. He has funny stories.”
That piqued Daniel’s interest.
“I want to hear fun stories! Will you kids be around later to show me the way for a little, ahem, reward?”
Their eyes sparkled, and all three saluted him.
“Sir, yes, sir!” they shouted in unison.
“Great. See you in a few hours…”
He turned to the three nervous women and gave them his best smile.
“Shall we go to the slave house?”