Is it wrong to fleece adventurers at the item shop?

After yesterday's rich meal, today's can't quite compare. Of course it still is more than adequate, but it isn't half a roasted chicken with side dishes. It makes for a healthy change of pace though, of that I'm certain. Or rather, the bowl of steamed vegetables, could be a healthy addition to my diet, if not for the generous amount of melted butter with herbs poured over it. Well, I don't mind. It certainly is tasty after all.

Dario, the halfling druid, seems to agree with me in that regard. In fact he likes it enough to wolf it down, as if there was no tomorrow, only to get himself a second helping right away once his bowl is empty. He gets himself a refill for his mug of wine as well.

He notices me looking, but he doesn't even slow down his pace as he decimates his second bowl. He doesn't seem to mind either and just shrugs in between two bites.

“We halflings are people of simple tastes. If we have clean clothes without holes, good food and a roof above our head nothing else matters much. I have a room here at the inn. I'm quite happy with my robe. And now I have enough coin to stuff myself full of good food like I haven't in a while. As far as I'm concerned just about everything is right with the world.”

I just nod. He certainly has his priorities and arguing with him about those would do neither of us any good. And I don't feel like arguing anyway. His worldview isn't exactly unique and limited to halflings either. Many adventurers seem to think about life in similar terms.

And anyway, he does enough talking for the both of us. Somehow he manages to carry the conversation despite shoveling vegetables into his mouth as if this were his last meal ever.

“So, how did you injure your foot?”

Well, it is an obvious topic. I swallow and start to explain.

“I was out collecting herbs at night when I ran into some Pixies that had gone feral. Bug shell and bone armor, stone weapons and war paint. And as if that weren't enough their chief was riding a giant tick that could shoot lightning.”

That shuts the short man up, at least for a moment. Even his fork stops moving. The moment passes quickly though.

“My! That sounds like a story! Those buggers can get pretty nasty once they develop a taste for meat! Obviously they didn't get you though?”

I nod.

“I ran. Or at least I tried to. That is when I sprained my ankle. In the end it was Sour Cream, the cat who adopted me, that came to my rescue. She and possibly some of the others, although I only ever got a good look at her.”

He shovels some more of the sliced vegetables into his mouth, nodding at the same time.

How he doesn't make a mess of himself eating like that is beyond me. Before I can speak up again he is done eating and speaks up himself.

“That would explain why our dear guild official wants some of us adventurers to stick around instead of heading of into the depths of the Twilight Forest.”

He wipes his mouth and takes a big gulp from his wine, before he continues.

“Getting rid of those nasty buggers can be quite the chore. We'll have to find their nest and smoke them out. We might even have to burn that particular spot down to the roots. It'll take some serious effort and probably plenty of oil. And while we are at it we'll have to make sure the fire doesn't spread too far.”

My left eyebrow rises as he keeps talking.

“It sounds like you have experience. Did you have to deal with feral Pixies in the past?”

He nods as he gets up, pausing to help me to my feet as well, so we can leave together, since he still has business with me.

“That was back home, before I became an adventurer. We were at a serious disadvantage though, as the small hamlet where I'm from had no local guild office or any number of adventurers worth mentioning. It took some days before some got there. We lost quite a few sheep, but thankfully no people, before we finally dealt with them.”

As we reach the house we head to the back entrance and Dario pats the bench next to the backdoor.

“Can I work that mill here?”

I have no objections. I have a problem though. Since I have to use a crutch I can't exactly carry the small but surprisingly heavy mana mill outside.

Thankfully he realizes what the problem is before I can somehow make a fool of myself.

“Ah, let me get that for you!”

He doesn't exactly have an easy time getting the mill either, since the furniture in my house is not built with halflings in mind. Using a stool as an aid he is able to get the mill though without any further trouble.

And while he starts cranking the handle of the mill at a steady pace I resume work on the enchantment. My progress is slow though, as I keep getting distracted by the songs the halfling sings to pass the time and to to keep the pace at which he turns the mill's handle steady.

He is similar to Odolan in that regard. Instead of tapping the rhythm with his feet, he just swings them back and forth though, as they don't quite reach the ground while he sits on the bench out back. The songs he sings are different ones as well.

I take a little break to listen more closely. It seems the songs all revolve around the misadventures of a catfolk adventurer named Ksavery who was famous for his exceptionally bushy tail or something like that. I smile and shake my head. The songs don't even try to construct moral lessons out of the poor adventurer's many mishaps. No, they are just lighthearted anecdotes meant to bring a smile to people's faces.

It takes some effort to return my attention to the enchantment I'm still working on, although by now I'm mostly done with the design. By now I'm looking for unintended interactions of the two circles I use. That can happen and it is the reason why multiple circles, especially more than two, are only very rarely used.

I make a few more minor adjustments, then I'm satisfied. Well, I'm satisfied for now. I'll look this over once more later, or maybe tomorrow. And then I can try it on my makeshift crutch.

I'm actually looking forward to that experiment. I might even be a little giddy. It will have to wait a little longer though and I need to do other things first anyway. I need more enchanter's chalk, which in turn means I need to make it.

Making those is fairly easy, except, I need to get water for the big cauldron. And first I need to lift the cauldron back into the fireplace. Oh, and of course I need to get firewood as well. All those are trivial tasks … for people who don't have to use a crutch to move around. I, on the other hand, am having a little trouble. Not so much that I can't overcome it though. I just need a little more time for everything.

Thus time flies by. Eventually Dario finishes with the mill and I add the faintly glowing, sparkling enchanting dust to the rest I already have in store. He even helps me put the mill back where it belongs. Then I stamp his second quest note for the day and see him off towards the inn again where he will get his reward from Krystina.

In the meantime Sour Cream has finished her daily nap as well. She is sitting out back where Dario was working now, eyeing the changed garden. She seems a little agitated. Of course, part of her hunting ground has changed all of a sudden.

I run my hand down her back, all the way to the tip of her swishing tail.

“Don't worry, dear. I'm sure you'll still be able to catch plenty of mice here. Why don't you go and get a closer look?”

The latter I add as an afterthought, as I remember that cats supposedly like to explore with their whiskers.

Sour cream looks up at me for a moment, then she apparently takes me up on that suggestion.

I watch her for a moment, before I head back inside to pour some more sour cream into her bowl. Then I get busy making more enchanter's chalks. Before long the molds are all filled again. I don't break the chalks out of them yet though. That can wait until tomorrow morning. Right now I need some more sleep.