NOVEL WEB 34: Verranuva's Artifacts
‘Whoa.’
After experiencing the opulence of Cygnar’s Herblore Emporium, Verranuva’s Artifacts wasn’t at all what he was expecting. Pushing through a heavy metal door that had the shop’s crest welded onto it— a card gauntlet crossed with a wooden staff— his first impression had been an odd one. The store itself was well-lit and neatly kempt, but the first incongruence with his expectations was… well, the surface area of the shop was incredibly small, about the size of a one bedroom apartment back on Earth.
The second surprise was when the six-foot-five titan of a man hovering over him met his gaze, in his right hand a long, curved blade that he was delicately polishing with an oil brush. Tom wasn’t sure how sword maintenance was done in Artezia, but that was the last thing on his mind at that moment. Clad in leather armour, a wide serrated scar ran down his right shoulder that did not look like the work of a human. If that wasn’t intimidating enough, his right eye was obfuscated with a black eyepatch that further added to the stifling aura blanketing the room. Shopkeeper?
This man was a killer.
“What do you want, noble brat?” A lazy sounding voice shattered the reverie Tom had trapped himself within, startling him. It was not quite the gravelly, drill instructor bark he’d expected, but at the same time it carried a surprising amount of irreverence.
Tom had wondered why there were no customers crowding out before Verranuva’s Artifacts, only to be confronted by the reason the moment he stepped into the store— the owner, Verranuva, was absolutely terrifying. If he hadn’t experienced the suppression of a higher level before in his encounter with Raulh and Cygnar, the odds were quite high that he would have instinctively fled the store. The difference here was that Verranuva seemed to want to actively impose his presence on the world and suppress him, while Raulh and Cygnar seemed to be doing it unconsciously.
Tom’s mind worked rapidly as he considered his next move. If he tried to use Maya on this man, without a doubt he would trap himself in the state of Zhan. Not only did the man seem absurdly powerful, but Tom didn’t like the calm, composed gaze that had met his own. If his cover was exposed….
“I want ten of those,” Tom pointed to a wooden rack, where ten flowing, unmarked robes in different colours were hooked on. The words ‘basic combat robes’ were etched onto the rack, the robes themselves seemingly stitched out of a light-weight and flexible linen.
“Huh? What do you want those cheap robes for?” Verranuva asked, a flicker of interest audible in his otherwise nonchalant tone.
Tom just gave him an inscrutable look.
“Fine, fine. Not like I give a shit about what you noble sort get upto behind closed doors,” Verranuva shrugged, his tone equally as rough as his mannerisms.
“And that,” Tom pointed to what was — more than likely—- the single most expensive item in the entire store.
“You’d have to sell your entire estate to afford that, boy. Besides, why in purgatory do you want a level twenty [Rare] card gauntlet?” Verranuva interrogated, his expression turning odd. Odd, but more interested than he’d previously been.
“I don’t want it,” Tom replied, having rehearsed this response in his mind. “I just want to study it for a few minutes.”
“Oh? Planning on walking the path of the artificer like yours truly?” he asked, half-jestingly.
“As one planning on climbing the Aerianiculumn, it is imperative that I understand the abilities of as many high-level artifacts as I can,” Tom responded with poise, even though he was sweating bullets behind his disguise. One look at the artifact — sheltered in a black crystalline box that had dozens of runic markings etched upon its surface— and Tom could tell that it was incredibly valuable, but even then, Tom had underestimated it. From what he understood, [Rare] items were incredibly hard to find on the surface world— usually only reserved for nobility; whilst higher rarity items were basically unheard of.
Who this old man, or retired warrior was—- to have a [Rare] item for sale in his shop…. Tom really couldn’t afford to screw this up.
“Well,” Verranuva scratched his grizzled hair in a rare display of emotion. “I suppose it’s not bad for a brat like you to show some interest in artifacts. Alright, fine, but just for a few minutes,” he relented with a shrug.
Tom patiently waited as Verranuva withdrew something from his inventory, palming it in his hands too quickly for him to get a glimpse before pressing it against the runic box. The azure engravings seemed to lose their brilliance and without further ado, Verranuva lifted the glass lid, revealing the card gauntlet in all its glory.
Polished obsidian scales adorned the gauntlet’s vambrace, casting a dark lustre upon the surrounding atmosphere that caused a burst of uneasiness to well up in Tom’s heart. Nonetheless, the arcane power it contained was enough to beckon his heart; the heart of anyone who sought power. The gloved portion of the gauntlet, if it could even be called that, resembled a beast’s claw, with long, razor sharp tines jutting out that seemed sharper than his own [Nether Blade].
Tom had never really seen such a versatile weapon— not only could it use the power of all the cards in his possession, but if his guess was accurate, it could also double up as a close-quarters melee weapon..
His eyes flashed with desire as Verranuva placed the gauntlet upon the table.
Tom blinked in shock.
The robust-looking wooden table began to buckle under the weight of the gauntlet, the very same gauntlet Verranuva had hoisted casually with a single arm.
“Don’t try to lift it,” he warned as he reached for his sword and seated himself, seemingly wanting to resume his maintenance duties.
“Alright,” Tom offered a nod, his hands reaching for the card gauntlet with the reverence of a sword enthusiast reaching for an ancient relic.
The moment his hands made contact with the artifact though, Tom inwardly grinned.
‘Fool’s Gold— Mimic’