Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 371 Groceries and Spices

Shard, who was very intrigued by Hymn Square, walked around the square to take a closer look. He even found a person sitting on the ground in the square, gambling with Roder Cards, claiming that if anyone could beat him in three out of five games, they could obtain a Roder Card with special rules from him—provided that each challenger paid a fee of 5 pence.

Quite a few people were gathered there to watch the card games, and that special card also had a certificate of authenticity, meaning the card itself was genuine.

However, Shard heard from onlookers nearby that this man had been setting up stall for 8 years and had only lost once, leaving many to wonder what kind of tricks he must be using to maintain his winning streak.

Shard was sure the man was cheating, but he had no interest in exposing him. After all, most of those paying 5 pence to play cards probably knew there was something amiss. Whether they were there for the thrill of gambling with a stranger, or they truly believed they could win that special card, was a different question altogether.

Shard also hadn't forgotten the purpose of his visit to the square. According to the information provided by Iluna, the middle-aged man selling spices and always wearing a turban would often appear in the southern area of Hymn Square, wearing a pair of rain boots in all weather and setting up a triangular wooden sign in front of his stall.

These features were distinctive enough, so Shard spotted him while ambling through the square.

The man had a cart filled with bottles and jars. To his left was a vendor selling herbal medicine, claiming to cure any ailment, dressed in a floor-length robe covered with strange patterns reminiscent of the Primal Tribe of the southern forests of Carsonrick, appearing very professional. To the right was a general goods merchant who had all sorts of items spread out on a waterproof tarp laid out on the ground beside his wagon.

Since the herbal medicine vendor on the left seemed to insult one's intelligence, Shard pretended to be interested in the general merchant's goods and stood in front of his cart to browse. This distance was close enough for the voice in his head to provide an answer:

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[The turban-wrapped man to your left is a Circle Sorcerer, Inner Ring. A more precise level can be confirmed with further contact.]

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"Sir, what would you like to buy?"

After standing in front of the general merchant's stand for too long, the merchant, temporarily without other customers, took the initiative to strike up a conversation with Shard.

Shard wasn't alarmed and replied naturally,

"I have a cat at home, and I'm looking to get some safe little toys for it. You know how cats are, always swallowing all sorts of unclean things."

The slight merchant surveyed Shard, as if trying to assess his identity and the thickness of his wallet,

"Then perhaps buy this..."

The merchant picked up a colorful feather:

"This is only 1 shilling."

"Sorry, there is nothing here that interests me."

Shard immediately shook his head, refusing to pay that much for a dyed chicken feather.

After thinking it over, Shard reached for a deck of Roder Cards:

"I'll take this. I have a set of Roder Cards of my own, but I want to get another set as backup."

In reality, with the [Treasured Item], individual cards might get damaged when used as weapons, hence the need for regular replenishment.

"These are old cards, 5 pence for you. Anything else you need? Oh, since you are a Roder Card player, would you be interested in joining a private, non-public, profit-making Roder Card gambling game?"

The merchant inquired familiarly, his eyes lively and his face bearing a smile.

"Private, non-public, profit-making" essentially equates to an illegal underground gambling den, similar to the kind of casino you'd find in the Lucky Southern Cross Club at night. A general merchant mingling in the Lower District even had the job of soliciting business for the gambling den.

"No, no, my wallet won't allow for that at the moment,"

Shard responded.

Then the merchant said in a quieter tone,

"Then might you be interested in trading for a special Roder Card?"

"You have those too?"

Shard asked in surprise, noting that special-edition Roder Cards usually start at 1 pound depending on the issue number and age, while those with special rules go for at least 40 pounds each. The small merchant was likely referring to the former.

"Yes, they're definitely genuine. Merchants like me usually stockpile valuable little items that are easy to store, waiting to fleece... make a tidy profit from generous customers. Roder Cards are a very good product for this. Some Roder Card enthusiasts, whenever they visit a city, will look to acquire those cards from local merchants until they have replaced their entire deck with special-edition cards,"

The merchant explained smoothly, and Shard imagined the quest-like feeling of such a collection, thinking those people must be quite wealthy.

"Of course, some upscale shops even sell Roder Cards with special rules, but the price might not be something ordinary people can afford."

With no other customers around, the merchant chatted with Shard for a bit longer. Shard took the opportunity to gather information about the square, focusing on the spice-selling Circle Sorcerer next to his stall.

The sorcerer was engaged with a customer, unaware that someone with ulterior motives was observing him nearby.

"Oh, by the way, since you sell general goods, do you also buy them?"

Shard asked after some thought.

"Certainly, but I only take items of value,"

replied the merchant, and then watched as Shard handed over the three books he was carrying. The merchant raised an eyebrow, wanting to refuse, but Shard winked at him, signaling him to check the contents.

The general merchant, surprised, nodded slightly and carefully opened one of the books. His eyes, previously squinting, instantly widened:

"This... this is really some good stuff."

Licking his lips, he hurriedly flipped through the other two volumes with a very sincere smile on his face:

"These are really nice, how about half a pound for these three?"

The price was reasonable, after all, the quality of these three atlases was quite high, and even if one had money, they weren't easy to come by. Shard knew that the type of grocer who brought business to the gambling house would certainly sell such illegal publications, so he nodded:

"Of course, that's fine, but then you can't charge me for that Roder Card."

Shard wasn't peddling these magazines just to make a quick buck, but rather to create an excuse to chat there for a while. And as he had anticipated, once they settled the account, the grocer's attitude towards him improved markedly.

From this encounter, Shard learned that the spice merchant beside the grocer had started peddling his goods there only half a month ago. Moreover, the merchant definitely wouldn't show up on Sundays, would appear punctually at nine in the morning, and would leave at five in the afternoon, lazier than most business dwellers of Hymn Square.

Having obtained the basic information, Shard planned to formally approach the spice merchant to confirm exactly what he was doing there. The merchant was certainly a person, not a Relic, so he wasn't planning on prying deeply, just didn't want to delay Iluna's mission.

No sooner had Shard approached the spice merchant, when a familiar figure unexpectedly appeared in the square.

Dr. Bill Schneider walked through the crowd, carrying a briefcase, and paused to let a stray dog running after a goose pass in front of him. The blue-eyed doctor waved and greeted the spice merchant, who was wrapped in a headscarf:

"Good afternoon, Madison."

"Good afternoon, Schneider."

The two shook hands and then the doctor noticed Shard standing nearby. Since Shard was dressed differently than usual, the doctor hadn't recognized him at first glance:

"Oh, Shard, what are you doing here?"

The doctor asked smilingly, warmly urging Shard to come over, and then said to Mr. Madison, the spice seller:

"This is the newcomer from our place, Hamilton, I was telling you about. Shard, this gentleman is Mr. Alan Madison, a student of the Xerxes Higher Medical Academy."

Xerxes Higher Medical Academy, renowned for its expertise in alchemy and Magic Potions, was on par with Saint Byrons and Zaras.

Mr. Madison, with his head wrapped in a scarf, looked at Shard in surprise, saying to the doctor in a low voice:

"Schneider, are you saying, this individual caught up in Roder Card gambling and peddling pornographic magazines here, is your group's new member? I noticed him just earlier."

It seemed he had already been observing Shard's commotion.

"Hmm?"

The doctor looked at Shard in surprise and, trusting his character, explained:

"He... is probably on some commission, he's a Detective... Let's talk somewhere else, this place isn't safe."

Shard felt somewhat embarrassed and immensely relieved that the doctor didn't continue on that topic.

Next to Hymn Square was an inn called "Three Cats Inn", its wooden sign exquisitely carved with three lying cats. The inn had four floors and occupied a considerable area. The first and second floors were open-style restaurants and taverns, except the central part of the second floor was an atrium, which made the first floor's view much more expansive and the second floor's usable area somewhat smaller.

The third and fourth floors were separately partitioned rooms; it was one of the better inns in Tobesk Lower Town.

Dr. Schneider, Mr. Madison, and Shard found seats in a corner of the inn's second floor.

Everyone refrained from bringing up Shard's recent activities, and Shard learned from the conversation that this turbaned Mr. Madison was a Six Rings Warlock as well as the leader of a correspondence student group and an old friend of the doctor.

Mr. Alan Madison, who lived nearby, was quite familiar with the place. When a maid with her top buttons undone and a low neckline came by, Mr. Madison could even call out her name and greet her.

"Do you know? In the evening, well, around seven o'clock, there are some nice girls that sit in the corner and, if you have money, you can..."

Shard and Dr. Schneider looked at him in surprise simultaneously.

"Don't look at me like that; I heard it from someone else, I'm a man of clean habits."

Mr. Madison waved his hand in defense, and then the three began to discuss serious matters.

The doctor had come to see Mr. Madison because the latter, through Dr. Schneider's connection, had placed a sensitive order for metallic powder on the local black market, from which Dr. Schneider could gain a commission.

When the topic turned to Shard's presence there, he brought up the church:

"The True God Church has taken notice of the special spices you've been vending here, and while it hasn't attracted serious attention yet, the task was assigned to a team of Circle Sorcerers from the lower ranks. I have friends in the church who asked me to check things out."

"I actually wanted to ask, Madison, are you in such need of money that you have to set up stall outside?"

Dr. Schneider also asked curiously, and Mr. Madison shook his head with resignation:

"Of course, it's not for the money, how much do you think such work could earn? I got a particular Arcane Technique a while back, and part of the learning requirements for it is a ritual. Selling spices at Hymn Square is part of that ritual."

"There's such an odd requirement for learning an Arcane Technique?"

Shard asked curiously, while the doctor nodded:

"Those Inner Ring and High Ring Arcane Techniques surely have complex learning conditions. Take for example the recent Maze Lock used by a Thirteen-Ring Sorcerer, God Summoner; the conditions to learn such Arcane Techniques could even fill a book. Looking at the Inner Ring-level Arcane Techniques, indeed, yours, Madison, is unusually complex. Are you sure you're not being duped?"