Chapter 215: In Need of an Acting Skill (2/2)

Seth grinned at him. ”In a business like this, we don't discuss price until the required information is in hand. Come back at ten bells, and we'll have both options available by then. The cost will be determined by how valuable or worthless that information became in the intervening time.”

Mike frowned. Since it was unlikely for the Tenundians to simply pull up their stakes and leave, chances are the price of that kind of data would only increase. He briefly debated about simply walking away at this point. There were probably other places that could provide him with information, and he could always beg his teacher to let him in on it, but he had a sneaking suspicion that Seth's report would come in handy.

Finally, he nodded. ”Alright, I'll be back.”

”Ah, before you go, buy that bowl. Its only two silver.”

”...Why?”

Seth gave him an ingratiating smile, ”Hey, a man's got to make a living. Just think of it as a commission fee.”

Sighing, Mike handed the money over, and left. Hoping to put some distance between himself and the rapacious information broker.

[What am I going to do with this?] Mike asked himself while looking down at the bowl. Out of curiosity, he used Appraise.

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Clay Bowl

Item: Tier 1

A simple clay bowl made by a potter.

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[...Helpful.]

Mike tossed in his bag and promptly forgot about it. It was still early in the day, and he had a few hours until his strategy meeting at the makeshift Almiran headquarters. If he went back to the dorms now, he could maybe get in a solid hour's worth of work before he had to leave. It was tempting.

Alternatively, he could hang out in the market district until the meeting. This option eventually won out by appealing to his lazy side, the heavy breakfast from this morning making him feel sleepy and content.

[I guess I'll stop in and see Gail. Now that I think about it, its been a while since I've worked on my Alchemy. Maybe this would be a good chance to do so. I'm sure she would be willing to let me use her facilities.]

Destination decided, he began making his way back to the market district by the most direct path he could manage. This took him near the slums, where he could sense Selene, presumably still watching over Brenden. He was briefly tempted to make a detour, but figured that the beastman probably still needed some space, since he hadn't come back on his own yet.

Hopefully, Brenden wasn't one of those tsundere types that refuses to return until someone asks them. He didn't seem like the type, but for some reason Mike couldn't shake the idea.

[I'm sure he's just too busy unifying the local gangs.] He thought about it some more. [Well, I'll give him a few more days before I bother him.]

Mike was walking through a narrow and narrow and sparsely populated street when he detected several sources of mild hostility. Blinking in surprise, he looked around and realized that he'd unconsciously strayed into one of the rougher neighborhoods. He'd apparently become the target of a group with less than honorable intentions. Judging from the sensations he was getting, they were working to carefully surround him.

[Huh. How long has it been since the last time I was attacked by thieves?] Mike thought idly while he strolled nonchalantly down the street. He was already mentally preparing for when they struck.

A small hooded figure stepped out in front of him. For a moment, his focus slipped. The thief he was facing couldn't have been any older than her early teens. While he wasn't one to underestimate an opponent based on their age, he found himself losing all interest in the coming fight.

As she advanced forward, with a determined look on her face, he relaxed into a stance that would allow for greater range of motion. Hopefully, she wouldn't resist too strongly.

She stopped a little outside of his reach, pointed one finger at him, and dramatically announced. ”There you are, you lying, conniving, cheating bastard! How could you?! What about our child? Little Marty? What are we supposed to tell him.”

Mike's mind blanked for a second as the unexpected words hit him right as he was about to launch himself into a disabling maneuver. All he could muster in his defense was a simple, ”Huh?”

”Play along.” She hissed through clenched teeth, before marching up to him and grabbing him by the collar. With a surprising amount of strength she began dragging him towards a major road. As she did so, he noticed that the hostile presences stated to fall back. ”Just wait until we get home! I'm going to make sure you never stray again!”

[I see. I can't believe that actually worked. Do they really think I would be with a girl that young?]

Dismissing the troubling line of thought, he spoke quietly to her. ”You can stop. They've backed off.”

The girl turned. ”Eh? Already? They don't usually give up that quickly.” She let go of his collar and favored him with a smile. ”You should watch yourself, mister. The Crows are a nasty bunch. They have a habit of beating their victims rather badly. You're lucky I came along.”

He smiled ruefully, ”I guess I am. Thanks.”

She nodded as if that were to be expected. ”Still, I can't believe they are still doing this stuff. Don't they know there's a war going on, and good people are dying?”

The girl suddenly became gloomy. Mike had the overwhelming instinct to pat her on the back and tell her everything was going to be okay. But before he had the chance to, she bounced back into cheerfulness with a speed that was liable to give someone whiplash.

She threw back her hood revealing two white rabbit ears. ”Anyway, the name's Lara. What's yours?”