章節 36: Cutpurse

From what Michael could infer, the currency was made up of three coins... Coppers, Silvers, and Gold. Each was obviously made from their respective metals, though, Michael was unsure if they were pure or not... He doubted it seeing as the gold coins were far harder than one would expect.

One gold was worth one hundred silvers, and one silver was worth one hundred coppers. Comparatively, a loaf of bread was worth around five coppers depending on its quality and size. So the gold coins he'd stolen from the thieves was more than enough to keep him comfortable for now. Additionally, Michael assumed that the clothes and jewellery he had were worth quite a lot.

After dropping Milky off at the stables, Michael hefted his two sacks of goods and ventured into the marketplace, looking around with curiosity. The most prominent and eye-catching things being sold here were actually items exclusive to Germania and Gallia. Germanian silks, dresses, and weapons. And Gallian art, furniture, and a litany of other items from both countries.

However, as soon as Michael lays his eyes on an ornate Germanian sword, he facepalms hard, realising that he'd completely forgotten about Derflinger, the legendary sword belonging to the original Gandalfr... It was still in a rundown smithy back in Tristain's capital, waiting for someone to notice how valuable it is.

Compared to the other blades on display, Derflinger beat them all. He was a sentient sword that was able to absorb magic from enemy spells, while also casting magic with the mana it collects. Simply put, he was probably the most powerful weapon in this world. Without it, Saito would have died numerous times, and without its magic absorbing ability, any novice mage would've been able to defeat him, simply by levitating him.

"Urgh... I can't believe I fucking forgot about it!..." he groans, wondering if it'd even still be there if he went to collect it... Not that he'd attempt such a thing any time soon, he was a wanted criminal, and wandering into the enemy's base would end up with him losing his head, Derflinger or not.

He shakes his head, "Whatever, it's fine... I'll just go get it once I'm strong enough... I'll take Riki as my next spirit and sneak inside... Yeah... But, should I even go to Germania then?... How long would it even take me to max out my Shadow Shaman Spirit?"

Michael releases a sigh, unsure of his plan of action now... His original plan of just going to Germania and getting strong enough to eventually leave this world, or at least defeat the ancient dragon was looking more and more foolish. After all, if that Cromwell guy manages to mind control Louise, they'll have an unstoppable Void Mage tearing the countries apart...

Maybe he should refocus his attention? Instead of going to Germania, he could go to Albion and start taking out the rebels... He'd need to avoid that mind-control magic, but staying away from Cromwell should be easy enough.

Michael nods to himself, "I'll need to get stronger before attempting that... Maybe this city has some gangs or thieves that need to be cleaned up?" he murmurs to himself.

Eventually, he decides to do just that, take out whatever criminal elements reside in the city before heading to Albion. But first, he should probably sell his goods and buy some proper equipment.

He wanted a weapon, some armour, and maybe some enchanted items that'd help him out in a pickle.

Michael currently only had forty gold. The cheapest blade on display was a dinky little short sword that cost one hundred and fifty gold, so yeah, his first stop was a market stall selling Jewellery.

The merchant manning it was a fat man with a thin moustache that was curled up at the sides... It looked like something that'd belong on the face of a villain, so Michael knew he had the right spot... After all, only villains could be effective merchants...

The merchant was surprised by the jewellery Michael brings out, at one point actually subtly accusing Michael of stealing them. But, Michael keeps a neutral expression and one hand on his dagger to activate his Gandalfr runes to assist him, firmly denying the merchants suspicion.

"I inherited these from my family... As painful as it is to part from them, I need the gold for other investments." Michael diplomatically states.

With the aid of the runes, maintaining his composure was easy enough, allowing him to negotiate with the merchant... In the end, Michael knew he'd probably been played, but the sizeable bag of gold now hanging at his waist eased his mind.

He'd been given around two hundred gold for all of the jewellery, taking him up to two hundred and forty... Considering this was enough to feed a peasant family for many, many years. Michael was pretty happy with it.

And, after selling off the luxury clothing, that number increased to three hundred and twenty. More than enough to get a 'good' blade and some armour.

However, as Michael was walking towards the nearest weapon shop, he could hear the pitter-patter of small feet behind him... He still had his hand on the handle of his dagger, as the clarity the runes provided him made him far less anxious when walking through the busy city.

This allowed him to pick out the sound of a child quickly headed his way, and since he'd already observed some street urchins cutting the purses of people in the street, he was all too aware of his large pouch of gold...

In a quick motion, he turns and catches the wrist of the would-be pickpocket, just as they were going to use a hidden dagger to cut his purse and empty his pouch. The young boy squirms in response, shouting, "Mister! Let me go!" as Michael holds him.

"You just tried to steal my stuff! You aren't going anywhere til' the guards get here." Michael states, but is somewhat unsure on whether or not to get the guards involved... He was, after all, still a criminal.