Chapter 4
Business


"Ruddiger, stop giving me that look. I know it's dangerous."
"...You don't have to keep staring like that."
"Ruddiger."
Varian then just sighed.

Ruddiger kept glaring at him. Varian was trying to sneak into a tavern located in the dark alleyways to try and trade some of the loot he had, specifically the vase because he wasn't quite sure if he wanted to let go of the Cassandrium yet.

Varian finally ignored Ruddiger and walked into the tavern, it smelt of whiskey, hay and stinky shoes, which is about how Varian imagined it would smell like in here. He could occasionally smell smoke from cigars and cigarettes that the people there smoked.

Varian looked around for a good place to sit until he found an empty table located in the back of the tavern and sat down at that one with Ruddiger crawling up his arm to perch on his shoulder.

Varian set down the vase onto the table and waited for someone to come ask about it. You see, in this tavern, it was all about trading, buying and selling, even if it was a suspicious little tavern. They mostly bartered and sold weapons, drinks and gold rather than vases, but the vase was all that Varian had, except for the Cassandrium and his food... It was a quiet place for a tavern.

He couldn't help but feel nervous though, watching the angry-looking men and woman with terrifying scars and clothing. Ruddiger chirped and chattered, "Just wait Ruddiger." He mumbled.

Eventually, a lady with tattoos on her arm walked up, she had her hair tied up in a straggly, brown ponytail and she wore clothing that was clearly not Coronian-fashion.

"Caine, Lady Caine. Come from outside of Corona. How much you want for the vase, kid?" The woman looked at the vase with a curious eye. "How much are you going to pay?" Varian leaned onto the table and raised his brows in a mischievous way.

Lady Caine let a smirk slip across her face, "Bargainer type I see. Very well. Let's start off with 30 silver pieces." Lady Caine sat down and tapped her nails on the table. "30 silver pieces, eh?" Varian thought about it, "50." Varian replied. "40." Caine responded.

"47." Varian leaned a little closer.

"41." Caine raised a brow, pursing her lips.

"45, take it or leave it." Varian squinted.

Caine leaned in close, "40 silver pieces and 1 bronze piece, take it or leave it, kid."

Varian glared, "Make it 5 bronze pieces and 41 silver pieces." He decided.

"Deal." Lady Caine stood up and got some coins out of her bag and then put it on the table. Varian took the coins, put it in his bag and then handed her the vase. She then put the vase in her bag and nodded at him, "Good doing business with you." Caine walked off.

"See? Told you it would be easy." Varian smirked, talking to Ruddiger.
Ruddiger rolled his eyes and chattered. "Oh com'on, Ruddiger..." Varian sighed.

Caine investigated the vase after sitting back down at the counter, "Interesting design..." She muttered. "Though... it seems fake." She said the last part a bit loudly, catching the attention of a handful of her allies. Ruddiger slapped his own forehead, making Varian worried. "What?"

"You heard me, kid. I hope you didn't just scam me with a fake designer vase." Caine walked over and looked Varian in the eyes. "Um..." Varian didn't know if it was fake or not, he was an alchemist, not a ceramist. "I didn't..." Varian said.

Caine blinked, then, that smirk from earlier reappeared, only wider and more terrifying.
"Confident, are you?" Caine smiled. "I have a friend who's a potter; a ceramist, and I can get him to look at it for me." She added, which made Varian jump back a tiny bit.

One of the men, who had a hood on and a spotty-skinned face, grabbed the vase and looked at it closely, it was obvious that he didn't know anything about vases, but to Varian, however...

"Yeah, Lady Caine, sure is a fake one." The man, Otter, put the vase back on the table.

Varian stared wide-eyed, waiting for a response from Caine. "That's what I thought." Caine put her palm on the table, making a loud noise echo through the tavern. Varian grabbed Ruddiger, grabbed the vase and then ran off with it. "Hey! Come back here, kid!" She snapped.

Ah yes, another chase through a building that Varian was completely unfamiliar with.
Now why does this seem so repetitive... Oh yeah, the chase that got him that vase.

Ruddiger hissed and held his claws up at people as Varian ran by them. Varian suddenly was tripped up by a broom that had fallen in the doorway and fell, but luckily he managed to get up quickly and run off, despite the pain in his leg from the fall and the dog bite he gotten previously.

"You were right Ruddiger, let's not go to that tavern ever again!" He shouted.
Ruddiger chattered and crossed his arms, "Yeah! I know! I'm sorry! Stop looking at me like that!"