Chapter 16: Sham!!
The secret of being a top-notch con man is being able to know what the other person wants and how to make them think that they are getting it.
After all, the easiest way to steal a man's wallet is to tell him that you are going to steal his watch.
Every decent con man knows that the simplest truth is more powerful than a perfectly elaborated lie.
And when con men meet a legitimately honest man, they are so bewildered that they consider him a greater con man than themselves.
But what will happen when an indecent con man meets an honest but stupid person, well, the only thing that will happen then is, a perfectly elaborated lie will become more powerful than a simple truth.
That indecent con man is none other than Dreamer and the honest but stupid person are the BKC trio.
In order to get some clothes for free Dreamer tricked the trolls by telling them that there was a game going on in a clothes store and if they won the game, they could get any clothes for free.
So, right now the BKC trio was walking in front of Dreamer and Liberi at a fast pace as they were very eager to get their hands on the free clothes.
"Brother Dupe, you should stay at the front as you have to distract the shopkeeper and then only, we can enter, won't we?" Brainy said to Liberi while looking back.
"Haha, how foolish of me! Sir Brainy, you are absolutely right. I am taking the front then." Liberi said with a fake laugh and moved to the front.
After Liberi moved towards the front, Dreamer explained the rest of the plan to Liberi from his mind. Helix was still silent and he will stay silent till the completion of the quest so Dreamer decided that he will talk with Liberi from his mind till then.
After 15 minutes of walking, they arrived in front of the shop. The shop was small and with no customer just like the shop where Dreamer purchased the potion from and this was also the reason why Dreamer chose this shop as a part of his plan.
"Brother Dupe, I think you should go inside and when you see that the shopkeeper is completely distracted by you, give us a signal something like a cough or a clap." Dreamer said to which Liberi nodded and went inside the shop while carrying the sack filled with stones.
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Inside the shop, Liberi walked in through the door and he looked around to find the shopkeeper and after a few seconds he found him.
"Mr. Carl! Remember me? I said it before, didn't I? I will come with a sack full of beast cores and here I am." Liberi said to the shopkeeper as he showed the sack.
Actually, when Liberi went inside this shop at the start of the Dreamer's plan, he just roamed around the shop for a few minutes with his robe in his hand and when the shopkeeper told him to leave, Liberi asked the shopkeeper's name and said to him that he will come back with a sack full of beast cores.
And now he was in the shop with a sack but sadly for the shopkeeper it was not filled with beast cores.
"It's you..You really came!!, Ahh, sorry. How rude of me? Please come and I will show you the best clothes I have here.!" The shopkeeper was surprised that Liberi really came so he put more effort in serving Liberi as the shopkeeper now believes that Liberi was someone rich.
"Cough!!, Cough!!" Liberi gave the signal by coughing two times to the Trolls and Dreamer.
After hearing Liberi's signal, the Trolls and Dreamer got ready to go inside but before going inside Dreamer said something to them.
"Great Brothers, do you remember the five conditions? If not, then you will lose the chance to get clothes for free. So do you remember?"
"Yes, I remember." the BKC trio said in unison.
"Don't say anything about the game from the shopkeeper, don't talk with each other while playing, don't disclose the information about the person who told you about the game, remain hidden from the shopkeeper until you choose your clothes and you can only play once."
Dreamer again stated the conditions as he didn't want the BKC trio to make mistakes and mess up his plan.
"Don't worry, Brother Hoax. I will be fine. I remember all these conditions. I won't lose the game." The BKC trio said in unison.
"Thanks. So, great brothers, we should go inside the shop one by one. If we go inside with all of us then there is bound to be some noises and the shopkeeper will notice us and if he notices us then it's all over." Dreamer said and then looked at the BKC trio who were just looking at Dreamer with their eyes wide open.
"Wow, brother Hoax, you're so smart" The BKC trio said in unison.
"Haha, thanks. But great brothers this isn't a time for doing this. We need to move!" Dreamer said with a fake laugh.
"Ahh, yes you're right, Brother Canny, you go first." Brainy agreed to Dreamer's plan and sent Canny inside first.
Canny successfully went inside the shop and then Brainy sent his second brother, Keen, inside the shop he also successfully went inside the shop and then Brainy himself went inside the shop, leaving only Dreamer outside the shop.
After seeing the BKC trio went inside the shop successfully, a smile crept on Dreamer's face and he too got ready to go inside the shop.
But unlike the BKC trio who went inside the shop secretly, Dreamer just casually opened the shop's door and went towards Liberi.
The shop was pretty small so he didn't face any problem in finding Liberi and right now he was walking freely like he owned the shop.
Seeing this, the shopkeeper got angry as he was dealing with a rich customer which according to him was Liberi and a boy wearing normal looking clothes came in like he was the boss. So, the shopkeeper decided to give Dreamer a scolding.
"You... What do you want? Why are you busting in here like you are some big shot? Answer me.."
The shopkeeper yelled at Dreamer but Dreamer just kept moving his head here and there as if he was looking for something.
"I can answer you but, for that I need to see you first! Where are you?" Dreamer said while moving his head around.
"Look down, you idiot!!" The shopkeeper shouted.
After hearing the shopkeeper, Dreamer looked down and what he saw surprised him.
Dreamer decided to use God's Eye on the shopkeeper just to make sure that the plan doesn't cause any problems because of the shopkeeper.
And this was the reason why Dreamer busted inside the shop like that as he wanted to check the shopkeeper's information as soon as possible.
If it turned out that the shopkeeper is not some regular shopkeeper but a strong individual then his plan might fail.
Although, it is very unlikely that the shopkeeper will turn out to be a strong person but still, it will not hurt to be extra careful.
[ Name : Carl Underfoot ]
[ Race : Hobbit ]
[ Level : 5 ( Early Beginner) ]
[Soul Level : 0.5 ]
[ Traits : They have a very high magic resistance, good luck, ability to move about unnoticed. ]
[ Ability : Throwing ]
[ Strength : Extremely tough and hairy feet ]
'Now this is what I call an appropriate name. Not like the name of those trolls which aren't appropriate at all.
The most interesting thing that caught my eye is that Hobbits' got good luck. Let's put this to the test then, I want to see whose luck is stronger, this Hobbit's good luck or my demon's luck.' Dreamer thought with a smile on his face.
"Hey, are you even listening to me? And why are you looking at me with a hideous smile on your face? It's creepy!"
The Hobbit shopkeeper shouted again at Dreamer.
Actually, the Hobbit shopkeeper was shouting for a good few minutes but Dreamer was so busy checking the Hobbit's information that he didn't hear the Hobbit shopkeeper's voice.
Eventually, Dreamer came back to his senses and finally looked at the Hobbit shopkeeper clearly.
The Hobbit shopkeeper was very short in height and he had curly brown hairs which were perfectly tied. He was wearing a white shirt with a yellow jacket on top of it and brown pants which perfectly matched his hair's colour and he was holding a pipe in his right hand which was just a little short to himself. He also had brown hairs on both of his feet.
[[Author : Reference art for Carl Underfoot or The Hobbit shopkeeper is given in chapter's comments, check it out.]]
Dreamer was just about to say that he is with Liberi. But,
"He's with me, Mr. Carl. Don't talk to him like that." Liberi chimed in and said from behind the Hobbit shopkeeper.
After Liberi said this the Hobbit shopkeeper's face paled. He was thinking that he disrespected someone he shouldn't have so he decided to correct his mistake.
"I am sorry sir, If I have known that you are with Mister Dupe, I would never dare to speak with you like this. Forgive me."
The Hobbit shopkeeper quickly apologized to Dreamer.
And the shopkeeper called Liberi by the fake name that was made up by Dreamer as Dreamer told Liberi to use this name in the shop too as the BKC trio were also present at the shop and if they heard the shopkeeper calling Liberi by a different name other than the name Dupe, then they will get suspicious and Dreamer's plan will crumble down.
"It's fine. So, your name is Carl! Nice name." Dreamer said this and walked towards Liberi.
Dreamer forgave the Hobbit shopkeeper in a careless tone as if Dreamer didn't mind the Hobbit's behavior at all.
And also, Dreamer didn't want to waste time in such things as he had more important things to do than act like an arrogant bastard.
"Thank You sir. If I may ask, can you tell me your name too?"
"Sure, the name is Hoax, Hoax Diddle" Dreamer said and stood beside Liberi.
But, seeing all this the BKC trio became very confused because according to them Dreamer broke a condition of the game which was to remain hidden from the shopkeeper and their shocked gazes didn't go unnoticed by Dreamer.
"Keep going! We don't have all day." Dreamer said out loud and he let the BKC trio to hear this too.
Hearing Dreamer, the BKC trio although was confused but kept on choosing clothes as they didn't want to lose this opportunity.
The Hobbit shopkeeper thought that Dreamer was saying this to him so the Hobbit shopkeeper also moved and talked to Dreamer and Liberi.
"Sir Hoax, Sir Dupe. What type of clothes do you want? I will try my best to show everything I got here in my shop!"
"Yeah, I want a black jacket and give brother Dupe the most expensive robe available here." Dreamer said.
Dreamer just asked for a jacket for him as his clothes were already fine, they were just normal and if he wore a jacket then he would be allowed to attend the auction.
But, on the other hand Liberi was wearing a muddy robe which didn't look good at all so he asked for the most expensive robe for Liberi.
Although if Dreamer wanted to, he could also take an expensive robe for himself but he decided against it, as he didn't want the Hobbit shopkeeper to face a huge loss because of him.
Dreamer was also sure that the BKC trio will not hold back and will try to choose every cloth they will see so the Hobbit shopkeeper was bound to face a huge loss and as Dreamer didn't want to make the Hobbit shopkeeper insolvent so he decided to just buy a black jacket that can cover his normal t-shirt.
"Oh, Sure, sure. Why not! Come this way."
The Hobbit shopkeeper took Dreamer and Liberi to the last section of the shop where some expensive looking clothes were placed.
The BKC trio was just behind the Hobbit shopkeeper and they were busy picking up the clothes.
The Hobbit shopkeeper didn't see the BKC trio stealing as he was busy attending Dreamer and Liberi.
After 15 minutes, Dreamer chose a black jacket which was not great but better than the t-shirt. And Liberi also chose a black robe for himself.
"Mr. Carl, thank you. We should be going now." Dreamer said as he was in a hurry to visit the auction and there was also one other reason why he must leave now and that was,
"Hey Hobbit, Look I picked up the clothes! Now catch us. Haha..." And this was the other reason why Dreamer must leave. The BKC trio came out of hiding and appeared in front of the Hobbit shopkeeper.
"Huh? Trolls? What is someone like you people doing in my shop? And what do you mean by run?" The Hobbit shopkeeper said confusedly.
Seeing all this, Dreamer just looked at Liberi and Liberi nodded in return.
After nodding, Liberi walked towards the Hobbit shopkeeper and bent down to reach the Hobbit shopkeeper's ears.
"Mr. Carl, I think they are thieves. They are stealing from your shop and want you to run after them." Liberi whispered in the Hobbit shopkeeper's ears.
"Oh, Thieves.., I see, if they want some fire then I will light it for them." The Hobbit shopkeeper said and looked towards the BKC trio. "Run, you bastards. I will catch you all."
After seeing the Hobbit shopkeeper was going to run after them, the Trolls started running around the shop too.
Seeing this, the Hobbit shopkeeper got angry and was about to run, but before he could run Liberi grabbed his shoulder.
"Mr. Carl. You can catch the thieves but we need to go somewhere so I am leaving this sack on the counter.
You can take any number of beast cores as a payment for the jacket and robe. We will come after an hour to collect the sack.
Now go and catch those trolls or thieves. We are leaving." Liberi said to the Hobbit shopkeeper and let go of his shoulder.
"Thank you, sir Dupe. I promise, I will not take the amount of beast cores more than my payment. I will catch those thieves. Thanks for your business. Make sure to come again!" The Hobbit shopkeeper said and ran to catch the BKC trio.
"We will." Dreamer said with a smile on his face to the currently running shopkeeper.
On the other hand the BKC trio were confused because Dreamer didn't follow the plan at all; they were just leaving with the clothes and the Hobbit shopkeeper was also not coming after them. But still they kept on running.
Leaving the BKC trio and the Hobbit shopkeeper running, Liberi put the sack on the counter and left the shop successfully.
Now Dreamer was wearing a black jacket, with blue t-shirt and black trousers and Liberi was wearing a black high-quality robe with his face still covered with a white cloth.
"My lord, forgive me for using such harsh words for you when I was acting in front of the trolls." Liberi said while walking behind Dreamer.
Liberi was talking about the part where Dreamer called him to meet the BKC trio for the first time and Liberi talked with Dreamer in a cold manner.
"It was my plan, wasn't it? So, you did nothing wrong. Don't fret over it." Dreamer said.
"Thank you, my lord. The plan you made went too well. It was totally a perfect plan. It's really an honor to serve you." Liberi said gratefully and proudly as he praised Dreamer.
After hearing this Dreamer smiled lightly and said,
"You don't need to use such big words, Liberi. All I can say in response to your praise is that you should always plan ahead, after all, it wasn't raining when Noah built the ark!.."
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