Chapitre 12: Chapter 12
~Talfen, capital of Coldshore~
~The Adler Helton~
A couple of ladies that had guards and maid attendants following them were strolling together on the well-paved street in front of the Adler Helton while holding patterned umbrellas over their heads as they gossiped. They all immediately fell silent and stopped in their tracks when they saw Andras, his good-looking face and odd clothes had captured their attention.
The women began to whisper among themselves; here was such a handsome traveler, and his clothing style was quite different from the norm in Talfen which meant that he must have come from afar.
They all tittered amongst themselves and waved shyly at Andras when he glanced in their direction, they also seemed to be heading for the Adler Helton as well. He just nodded to them politely and picked up the pace, ignoring their laughter as he focused on his goal.
He walked into the building and saw people heading into different shops. The entrance hall was vast and a couple of people milled around in it, still deliberating on which shop they would go to. Some people had already made their purchase and were headed out of the building with attendants carrying their boxes while new people entered.
There was a water fountain in the middle of the entrance hall that had benches around it. The air was perfumed with flowery scents and the floor shone like the surface of a lake at sunrise.
The building's first and second floors had balconies that overlooked the ground floor, and there was a medium-sized round glass in the ceiling through which sunlight streamed into the building. The stairs were twisted in a perfect spiral and each stair was a deep walnut color, and heavily armed guards were stationed at several spots to dissuade thieves.
Ladies followed by maidservants and guards flocked to the jewelry and accessory shops like fireflies to a lamp, excitement animating their delicate features. Men in duos talked about antiques and the expensive clothes they were going to buy for their wives. There was chatter between sellers and buyers in shops, old friends catching up, and new friends being made. It was a friendly enough place if you had a lot of gold coins to spend.
Andras quickly located the first shop on his left, the spotless shop was a minefield for the clumsy. Beautiful and expensive hand-crafted figurines filled a shelf by the door and a sign hung next to the window read, 'You can look at it, you can touch it, but if you break it, congratulations on your purchase'. Andras bumped lightly into a show table with his bulky box after he read it, drawing the attention of the shop owner that was sitting behind the counter.
"Can I help you?" The shop owner called out, as he got up from his seat. His face was stern, a brow cocked as he gave a meaningful look to the show table the newcomer had bumped into.
There were a couple of men in the shop comparing a couple of antique vases and figurines, deliberating on the ones to buy. Most of them glanced at Andras after the shop owner spoke before some went back to comparing antiques while some still stared at him with amazement written on their faces.
Andras kept a stoic expression on but dropped his box to the ground to prevent another incident. "Pardon me, are you Malcer Wilton.?"
"Well, that depends," A voice came from behind him and he glanced behind him to see a man standing in the doorway. "Who's asking?"
Some people wore a smile but this man was the incarnation of the expression. There was a soft and understated joy as he spoke and the tension between Andras' shoulders eased because based on what Rolfe had told him, this was Malcer.
Malcer's face was all sharp lines, with high cheekbones and long black hair flowing freely down his back. He was slender and toned and had tanned skin while around his deep brown eyes were laughter lines just in the right amount.
Andras cleared his throat. "I am." He said bluntly, causing Malcer to bark out a laugh.
"I see that alright," The jovial merchant replied, glancing down at the box in his hand. "What's your name?"
"Andras. I have been looking for you."
A grin broke out on Malcer's face as the shop owner glared daggers at him, he gestured for him to sit back down. "I'm getting nervous... Pick up your box and follow me."
Andras glanced at the box on the ground beside his feet and when he looked back up, Malcer was already heading away from the shop. He quickly grabbed the box and nodded at the shop owner who nodded back before he quickly went after him.
"What do you want to sell to me?" The merchant asked Andras after he finally caught up with him in the entrance hall.
"What?"
"What's in the box that you're carrying? Antiques, jewelry, figurines, clothes. Do you want to sell any of those things I just mentioned?"
Andras could see how such a misconception could have occurred, he kept up with Malcer as they quickly walked past the water fountain to the spiral staircase.
Malcer was about to climb the first step when Andras spoke, "I am not here to sell anything. Your friend asked me to find you when I get to the capital his name is Rolfe."
Malcer's leg hung mid-air as he stared at Andras for a while before he let it drop to the ground and turned to the stranger beside him with his dark brown eyes narrowed in suspicion. "You're lying. You're a liar. You tell lies."
"I am not," Andras said, his brows furrowed in confusion, he couldn't understand why what he said had gotten such a violent rebuttal from Malcer. "Rolfe –"
"You don't look like Rolfe's son." Malcer leaned forward and squinted, his smile lines deepening.
"That's because I am not." Andras was even more confused now, "I never said I was his son."
"Then how do you know Rolfe? Where do you know him from? Why do you know him?" The man leaned even closer and Andras had to step back. "You don't know him." He jabbed a finger at the tall good-looking stranger.
Rolfe had told Andras that Malcer was a little bit crazy but he had downplayed it, thinking that Rolfe surely couldn't be such good friends with someone that bad. He pressed his lips together as he thought of what to say to convince the man that he really knew Rolfe then he decided to show him instead. He opened his box and pulled out one of its contents, the sword his mentor had given him and the Malcer's eyes immediately widened in recognition.
Cadeaux
-- Cadeau
reçu État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone