Is it wrong to fleece adventurers at the item shop?

Even after I'm done at the bathhouse I'm not exactly in a hurry. I take my time on the way back home and then to the inn. I post the mana mill quest first. Then I get myself a nice treat for my morning meal to get the day properly started.

Today's meal comes as a little surprise though. Red beet soup. Cold red beet soup. I have to admit that I'm a little skeptical at first. A glance in the direction of Elzbieta who is eating it suggests that it can't possibly be bad though. Well, nothing served here at the inn has been bad so far. Yet, a cold vegetable soup?

I'm a little hesitant at first, but that hesitation quickly goes out the window when I get my first taste. It isn't just red beet! It is incredibly creamy too. My feline companion certainly would approve! It is rather spicy as well though. That probably wouldn't be to the cat's taste. But never mind. It sits well with me! This is awesome!

The temptation to get a second helping is big and hard to resist. I manage to stay strong in the end though. I probably still can get more later. Maybe for lunch or for dinner at worst. It certainly is something to look forward to. Now I have to open the shop. Thus I leave the inn with a cheerful wave and a smile on my lips after returning my bowl.

After opening the shop, I take a moment to update my ledger before I get my notebook and start work on the next enchantment. The one Urszula asked of me. This one is a little tricky. Not because I expect it to be terribly complex, but because it veers into territory unfamiliar to me. I give it a try anyway.

The first adventurer to drop by is not one I expect. It isn't Tamara, no, it is Danuta the witch. I wasn't aware that she is back already. She looks a little tired too.

“Morning. Mind if I have a look at the potions? I need to stock back up.”

I nod and gesture in the direction of the shelves.

“Go ahead. I take your search for fairy gossamer was successful?”

She nods as she plucks some potion bottles from the shelves to give them all a good long look, probably using an appraisal skill much like mine.

“Already dropped it off with Agnieszka.”

She pauses briefly to wink at me, before nodding in the direction of the colorful blackboard advertising my enchanting services.

“Might visit you with the fruit of her hard work in a bit to get an enchantment or two. Or would you possibly dare and go for three?”

How does she know? Is word already making the rounds? Or did she just guess? Ah, never mind. If she can pay for a triple enchantment, why should I turn her down? Except for the obvious reason of course. I scratch the back of my head and chuckle.

“I could give a triple enchantment a try. I won't make any promises about it though. If you want to play it safe for the festival I'd suggest a double enchantment instead. I have managed to pull those off pretty consistently so far.”

She grins like the cat that just got her bowl of cream.

“So you really managed to pull off a triple enchantment!”

She was guessing! Ah well, never mind. I nod as I blush a little.

“An enchantment for the shoes I ordered for the festival from Urszula's father. I gave it a try with my good old sandals. Worked out just fine.”

She taps her lips as she brings over a number of potion bottles.

“Let me guess. Agility?”

I nod and she continues.

“Endurance?”

I nod again. This time she takes a little longer, before she hazards her last guess.

“And willpower?”

I nod one last time, already adding up the potions she picked in my mind in the meantime. One greater mana potion, one mana spiked coffee and one healing potion.

“Once again right. How did you know? Six silver and four bronze Crowns.”

She chuckles as she grabs the coins from her purse without any haggling.

“Its what I would have gone for. Except maybe for the last one. That one was a close call. I might have gone for strength instead. Anyway, thanks for the potions.”

I count the coins briefly as I swipe them from the counter into the strong box.

“Thank you for the business. Let me know about the enchantment for your dress when you have made up your mind.”

She flashes me another smile as she puts away the potion bottles.

“Will do. See you!”

And with one last wave she is gone again.

After that interaction and after noting the sale into the ledger, I take a moment to tend the garden out back. I harvest some ingredients for a new batch of healing potions too, while I'm at it. The actual brewing will have to wait a little longer though, as my next customers arrive just as I get back inside.

One of them is, of course, Elzbieta with the papers for the usual quest. I welcome her in with a quick hug and she gets busy right away.

The other one is Tamara. The young dwarven woman is carrying a small pack containing the gear she intends to sell.

I'm not quite sure if it is alright to call is second hand gear. My hands are after all at the very least the third ones to get a hold of these things, as they are from skeletons Tamara and her comrades smashed. Never mind though. As long as the gear is in decent shape it doesn't really matter.

Without any need for further prompting she starts to unpack the gear she brought, placing everything neatly on the counter.

Even knowing that she and Odolan treated the gear with their repair and cleaning skills I'm a little surprised. The old fashioned iron shields and the various axes she brought are really in surprisingly good shape.

She must have noticed my raised eyebrow.

“Don't ask me how it works exactly, but everything seems to keep surprisingly well in the place we hit. Well, most things keep well there anyway. Anything that contained leather though was a total loss from the very start so we didn't bother with those things.”

I nod and pick up one of the shields. It isn't very big, but made entirely of iron by the looks of it. I focus my attention on it and activate my appraisal skill.

[Ancient iron shield, Quality: Uncommon, In times long past these shields were mass produced by some long gone civilization. As they are made entirely of iron they kept surprisingly well. Keep it well oiled and it might still be serviceable in another thousand years.]

I blink at the information provided by the skill. That was surprisingly lengthy for a rather mundane piece of equipment. Could this thing be considered antique or maybe even a collectors' piece? The axes seem to match the design of the shields too. Most curious. Right now another question is more prominent on my mind though.

“How much?”

“Olgierd and Nawoja suggested twelve bronze crowns for each of the shields and six for each axe, so with four shields and three axes that would be five silver and six bronze Crowns?”

She sounds hopeful and considering the suggested price came from the two professionals at the smithy I don't really have much room to haggle. I probably can turn a decent profit even at that price anyway. Even more if I were to enchant one or two of these. I nod and we shake hands.

Without delay I get the coins from the strong box. Not without a little sigh though. This isn't exactly a small purchase. I count the coins into Tamara's hand and enter the purchase into the ledger.

“Just leave everything on the counter I still need to put price tags on everything anyway.”

By now a cheerful smile graces Tamara's lips. Does she even notice herself? I can't begrudge her the tidy little profit she just turned anyway. Together with whatever they probably made at the smithy and with what they still expect to make when they turn in their quests this will be the first big hit of their small party. And besides, they will probably end up spending at least some of that coin at my place anyway.

With one last wave she is off with a little extra spring to her steps.

I in turn get busy with the price tags I mentioned. The shields I price at two silver Crowns and the axes at one.

I don't put all the gear into the bins out front though. Only one axe and one shield go there right away. The rest will have to wait in the back for now, to, in a way, give the impression of scarcity.