Chapter 29: The Deal
Julius had slept late last night, scrolling through his phone for any bit of fantasy lore he had, but it didn’t do him much good. He examined one silver and one copper coin but the patterns were unknown to him. And so he slept.
By the time he woke up, the outer ring was already alive and Yumiko wasn’t in the room. He took a shower and changed his clothes. He noted the coins he had examined earlier were missing and went downstairs.
Yumiko was there chatting with Mudgob. The goblin was doing most of the talking while she gave short replies. Her eyes lit up slightly when she saw Julius. It seemed the events of last night had faded from her or she was doing a good job at pretending it did.
Julius did not press it. He sat at a stool and the goblin poured him a cup of Mudmilk before rushing to check on something. He went through a door which led to a room behind the desk but not before he told Julius to try this batch and told him what he thought when he came back.
Julius took a sip. It was sweet as usual but there was an aftertaste he wasn’t sure of. He took another sip to confirm. Alcohol. And held on to the rest.
He and Yumiko talked a bit more about how they would move with the deal. He would offer her compensation in exchange for her skills.
Additionally, he would help find her sister while she would keep his secret of being human and when he finished, he asked what skills she possessed and she mentioned lockpicking and being quiet which Julius attributed meant stealth. He took all this and asked her if she had any questions.
She asked him about his powers. She had seen him harvest the fire bear pelt and wondered where he kept it.
Julius was hesitant to show the draft but if he was to continue working with her, he thought it best to show a gesture of good faith but he made her promise to keep it a secret or their deal was off. She agreed.
He looked around for Mudgob but the back door the goblin had disappeared through was still closed. He reached into the draft and fetched Daren’s dagger and put it back quickly. To Yumiko, part of his hand disappeared and appeared. Her yellow slit pupils grew even wider.
"How?" She angled close as if the answer was written on his face.
I don’t know, yet. Julius had asked the system how the draft worked; it was in essence a pocket dimension that served as storage. It was limited to items. Living things could not be stored within it and that included himself.
Yumiko mentioned she had seen magic that transported items and enchanted bags and purses but she had never seen something like the draft. Julius noted that for later. An enchanted bag to keep his cover. His thoughts were interrupted by a question she asked.
"The she-demon. Is she joining our party?"
"She-dem...You mean Zara?" to which she nodded.
Julius replied he wasn’t sure. Zara was another factor he had to consider. He didn’t know how powerful she was or her motives but it was safe to assume she was dangerous.
He had forgotten to ask how to keep in touch but if she was watching him she would be somewhere close by. Yumiko had mentioned she used shadows to travel which gave him a thought.
He looked around and noted a corner of the room where the light did not illuminate very well and leaned back, looking in that particular direction.
"Zara?"
There was no motion for a moment which made Julius wonder what he was thinking. Until the shadows at a corner of the hall warped and twisted, revealing an armoured clad demon with a surprised expression on her face.
Julius spoke first. "Hello."
She moved. In a blink of an eye, the demon was in front of him. Her brows were furrowed as she studied him.
This terrified Julius but there was no point panicking. If she wanted him dead, he would be. The demon had a question. "How did you do that?"
Now it was Julius’s turn to be surprised. Do what? He thought.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
Her face shifted into a confused expression before settling back to her usual smug look. She folded her arms. "Nothing. What do you want?"
"To know you. I have questions of my own."
"What makes you think I’ll answer them?"
"Because your house’s surveillance of me goes more smoothly if I cooperate?" Julius answered.
The Demon uncrossed her arms. "What do you want to know?"
"What does your house want with me?" Julius asked.
"To see if you are a threat." Her tone was flat. There was no flair to the words.
"And if I am?"
"Then I am to execute you."
Julius’s expression didn’t change. "Very well. Anything else?"
"None, for now." Zara replied.
Julius didn’t need any confirmation. The demon was serious. He filed it away. Money aside, he needed power in whatever form it took to survive. Yumiko looked between both of them.
"Understood." Julius said.
The demon studied him. Apparently she had expected a different reaction. "You’re not afraid?"
"Does that change anything?"
Zara’s expression shifted again. Her smug look faded and she closed her mouth.
Mudgob had come out of the backroom to find the demon standing in the hall. There was an expression of surprise as he moved to pick something under his table but the demon wasn’t bothered.
She turned to look at Julius for a moment before she disappeared into shadows again.
The goblin muttered something under his breath before recalling he asked Julius for a review. Julius gave his review and mentioned the alcohol taste. The goblin replied it was still in testing stages but was satisfied with Julius’s review that it tasted sweet.
—
The rest of the day went by in a blur.
Julius learned first hand how the money system worked using silver and copper coins. He processed the logs to firewood and sold most of them. The logs would draw more attention and firewood was more valued for everyday use.
He also sold the pelts too. The Orc tailors bought three and the one he had processed. The rest were sold to other people who wanted them for their own uses. Yumiko was with him through all these. She helped him get better deals from the goblins and a dwarf who wanted to cheat him.
Yumiko also helped him get a good deal for the items and equipment he bought. Materials to set up tents, a dagger and food items. Yumiko didn’t have combat abilities. Her skillset seemed to be suited for stealth. He bought spare clothes and gave some coins to Yumiko to buy some things for herself. She hesitated for a moment before accepting them.
At the gym, he met Brena who was surprised he came back. This time she offered tips and helped him have a better posture as he worked out. He didn’t see the hot-blooded lycan from his last visit. After a few rounds of workouts and guides from Brena, he was exhausted and left.
Eventually the day slowly darkened as he returned back to the Inn. Mudgob told him his contact would be arriving tomorrow. Julius nodded and fell on the bed.
The system popped up, displaying the foundation compiling message. He willed it to close and slept through the pain.
The sound of knocking woke him up the next day. Mudgob’s contact was here and was waiting downstairs. They were early as the sun hadn’t risen. Julius nodded and prepared to get ready.
