章節 38: Shitty Situation
Once was done with his shopping, he was left with around twenty gold, not enough for any armour or weapons, but more than enough to live off of for a year or so if he spent it slowly. He walks off and finds an inn room nearby the stable he'd left Milky in and brings all of his new stuff to his room, afterwards slowly and awkwardly putting it on.
He'd made sure all of it was fitted to him, but even so, the padded trousers and boots were a pain to actually put on... The gambeson was alright, as it only required the front latches to be clipped, but if every piece of armour was going to be this annoying to equip, Michael was tempted to just go buck naked...
Regardless, he was now equipped with the brown sleeveless gambeson over a thin white shirt that had frills at the end of its sleeves. His grey padded trousers had to be put over the thin rag-like trousers he'd already been wearing, as the armour left his crotch bare... He really would be going naked if he only wore the padded ones...
Plus his brown leather boots were surprisingly comfortable... The shop had, fortunately, had his size in stock, so he hadn't needed to get some tailored... Unbeknownst to Michael, his current boots were actually sized for females, but the seller would never announce that...
With the brown hooded cloak over his shoulders, dagger at his waist, and two-handed sabre on his hip, he felt like he was properly dressed for this new world... Though, the outfit reminded him more of a thief than a warrior, but beggars can't be choosers.
After checking himself in the bucket of water's reflection for more time than he'd admit, he sits atop his bed and begins waiting for night to come. His body was still sore from the ride to the city, so he wanted to be in optimal condition before he starts searching for 'The Orphaner'.
He knew where the slums in the city were, as they were fairly close to where the market is situated. From what he'd seen, the guards only patrolled the market, and never dared set foot into the dark alleyway's where the criminals dwelled.
While Michael was resting, he begin thinking about his methods of getting stronger, and actually found a couple of things that might become obstacles... First of all, was the fact that he couldn't practise his swordsmanship without accidentally using the Gandalfr runes... Just touching a weapon made them active, so he'd be at a disadvantage when trying to learn... After all, it'd be impossible to tell what skills were his own, and what was granted by the runes.
Fortunately, he'd found a way around this by modifying a brush that'd been left in the corner of the room. Cutting the brush from the handle and making it around the same length as his sabre.
After that, he was able to flail around like a complete novice... He knew nothing, but at least the runes wouldn't interfere with his training...
His weapon proficiency wasn't the only thing on his mind however, his stats were also a cause for concern... They hadn't increased at all since journeying to Antomiers. He thought that riding Milky would increase his Agility like it had the first time, but that didn't seem to be the case.
He'd have to try some basic exercises to see if they'd increase his stats at all... If not, he'd be at a loss on how to increase his stats further.
Many hours later, after eating the meal provided by the inn owner, a friendly guy called Damien of Kladenan, Michael left the safety of his room and wandered into the now twilight city. The sky ranged from oranges and purple, and with the pink and blue moons sitting prominently overhead, it was quite the sight to behold.
Michael didn't let himself become too enamoured with it however, instead focuses his attention on the dark alleyway he was about to enter. He rests his hand on the pommel of his sword, allowing the runes to activate as he steps inside...
His runes would've lit up the place like a torch, had he not covered them via wrapping leather strips around his hand. His runes would eventually become his most easily identifiable feature, so it was better to keep them concealed at this point in time.
The one thing Michael noticed as soon as he starts walking through the alleyways, was the disgusting smell of sewage and refuse. The squelching under his feet made him all too aware of what he was stepping on, but the darkness made it difficult to notice the minefield of shit, so he'd just have to grit his teeth and bear it for now.
The alleyways were far larger than he'd actually expected, when he exits out into a clearing, he didn't see the expected city road, but instead, an area walled in by buildings that had a small fire in its centre... There was a makeshift tripod standing atop it with some meats slowly cooking away, the fat dripping into the flame and causing sizzling sounds to occasionally occur.
Strangely, despite how recently this all had been placed, no one was actually around... Michael suspected that they'd hidden away as they heard him approach, but he wasn't certain. If there were people, they hadn't made any noise upon their retreat.
"Well, if no one's going to eat this." he loudly mutters, walking over to the fire and taking some slightly burned meat and eating it. "Mmm, damn this shit's good!" he says, obviously baiting whoever had been here. If they were living in these slums, they obviously couldn't allow someone to eat all their food.
*Squelch*
Michael's ears twitch as he hears something get thrown... In a flash, he draws his sword and turns around while smacking the rock aside with the flat of his blade, afterwards glaring at the ragged-looking teenager who'd thrown it.
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Niggross
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章節 39: Assassin's Greed
The two glared at one another for a couple of seconds before the teenager finally breaks the silence. "You... Who are you? Why are you stealing our food!?" he demands, picking up another rock and doing his best to look menacing with it.
This doesn't work very well however, even discounting Michael's rune-enhanced mental state, the teenager was only a head taller than Michael, plus his thin, almost gaunt figure, and Michael would struggle to be intimidated, even if he wanted to. His skin was dirty, as if he hadn't bathed in a year, with long black greasy hair that direly needed to be cut.
Michael sheathes his weapon but keeps his hand on its pommel to keep the runes going, "I'm looking for the one known as 'The Orphaner'." he says, causing the teenager to grimace at the name. Michael nods, "I see you know who I'm talking about..."
The teen shakes his head, "No. You are mistaken... Now leave! Stop taking our food, or... Or I'll fight you!"
...
Michael feels slightly put out by this, here he was all suited up and ready for battle, yet he's still getting underestimated by this guy... Was it his height?... It's always his height... "Look, I want to help you guys. Clearly whoever it is, is no saint. Just let me deal with him for you." he says.
"D-deal with him!? You don't understand! N-no! I won't let you!" he shouts in response, throwing another stone while scrounging around for a few more to toss.
Michael dodges the first couple but quickly loses his temper, breaking into a sprint for the teen. they flee in response, leading to them both running through the maze-like alleyways. Michael was faster, but the orphan's familiarity with the area made the chase significantly harder.
The teen leaps atop an abandoned wheel barrel and throws himself towards an indentation in the wall two stories up. Their thin fingers dig into the crevice, allowing them to quickly shimmy along it, eventually jumping off from the wall onto the roof on the opposite side of the alleyway.
Michael tries to follow but fails the first time, his stats decreasing as he removes his hand from his sword. For his second attempt, he holds a dagger in his mouth and attempts it again, actually managing to reach the roof this time.
He arrives just in time to see the teen jump across to another building, but, bringing Michael here was his first mistake. The rooftops provided an ample place for him to reach his top speeds, allowing him to quickly close in on the teen.
A few people who were wandering around the city at night noticed them, but other than a few shouts of surprise, nothing else occurred.
When the teen notices that Michael had almost caught them, they stop and look around for a moment before jumping off of the roof.
"Wait! STOP!" Michael shouts upon witnessing this, watching in vain as the teen plummets from the third story rooftop... Down into a stable where a large haystack had been stored... Michael's eyes widen at this, before he throws himself off towards it as well, doing his best to mimic the main character from assassins creed.
The teen jumps off of the haystack just as Michael lands ass-first onto it. They try to run again but Michael had already recovered, jumping on the youth and pinning them to the ground as the nearby horses neigh at the disturbance.
Michael sits on the teen's chest as he holsters his dagger as they try futilely to free themselves. "Why'd you do that? Making me parkour across the city?... Haaaaah..." he takes a moment to catch his breath. "Look, I just want to know who the Orphaner is. Tell me and I'll leave you alone... I'll even pay you... Look." he says, flashing two gold coins in front of the teen's face.
This quickly catches the teen's eyes, as they cease their attempts to escape. "B-both of those coins if I tell you?"
Michael nods, realising he should've tried this method first... "Yeah, tell me who the Orphaner is and I'll pay you."
The teen nods, "C-can you get off of me first? I promise I won't run."
"Alright, but if you try to run again, I'ma take you down like the Undertaker..." Michael warns.
With that, the teen gets up and throws themself at the haystack, laying there languidly with a tired look on their face. "The Orphaner's name is Lateef... He's a jewellery seller that-"
Michael almost does a spit-take, "That guy!? That fat merchant I sold my stuff to!?" he exclaims, feeling stupid for not putting two and two together.
The teen nods, "But you can't hurt him! Without him, all of us will starve! He's the only one who looks out for us!"
...
"He looks out for you by making you steal from people?" Michael asks with a dull expression.
The teen nods, "Without him, the guards would find us... And the gangs..." he mutters with a fearful look.
"Gangs"? Michael parrots.
They nod, "Lateef pays them to stay away from us... Without him, I-... I don't want to think about it." he states.
...
"Mmhm..." Michael hums, resting his hands on his hip and leaning backwards in thought. Clearly, he'd misunderstood the situation. Probably... Looks like the Orphaner is the orphan's benefactor, still, that doesn't explain why their situation seems so dire. If they'd succeeded in stealing from him earlier, they'd have enough gold to live comfortably for many years, depending on how many orphans there are.
"How're the profits split between you and the Orphaner? How much do you keep of the money you steal?"
...
"If we're lucky, we get silvers... The rest goes to paying the guards and gangs." the teen states.
"Is that so?" Michael murmurs, feeling as if he'd found the way to better the orphan's situation. As well as his own. "If I took care of the gangs, that'd mean more gold for you guys, right?" he asks.
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Niggross
Niggross
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