Direct continuation from the previous chapter, mostly so I can make a few jokes about just how... naive some of the characters are. And yes, all of the equipment mentioned is based off of something that actually exists.
Married Life
Chapter Four: Momentoes
The courtyard behind the Guild Hall was usually quite midafternoon: those Adventurers who'd found Quests had left, while those without usually left for home or to find something more interesting to do. Which is why it would have been all the more surprising to an outside observer that a small crowd had gathered around a long wooden table that had been set up, upon which had been emptied the contents of the duffle bag Minotaur Blacksmith had delivered to Goblin Slayer.
Swords, knives, daggers, axes, a mace, two small crossbows, two helmets, several chain mail shirts and a few seemingly random items that defied explanation had been layed out for inspection and cleaning. None of it was exactly high-end, but it was unmistakably of good, decent quality that could be depended upon in a tight spot.
"From when I was younger." Goblin Slayer offered by way of explanation from where he stood at one end of the long table, "Didn't know best way to kill goblins, so experimented."
"Normal people collect stamps or pressed flowers." High Elf Archer tested the balance on a throwing knife, finding it to be perfect, "Trust you to be anything but normal."
"That's our Beard Cutter." Dwarf Shaman tossed an axe into the air and caught it a few times, "But who are we to judge?"
"What on earth is this?" Apprentice Cleric held up a short length of hollowed out bamboo; the exterior had been polished smooth and four razor sharp blades afixed to the inside, "Some kind of cooking implement?"
She showed it to Priestess, who picked up an identical item an examined it herself. Grinning, Witch bent down between the two and whispered something in their ears that immediately made the two younger women turn bright red and drop the bamboo tubes like they were suddenly scalding hot.
"Do we want to know what you were doing with those?" Spearman asked, only just keeping a straight face.
"Had heard that some Adventurers used them when hunting goblins." Goblin Slayer responded quietly, "Nobody had explained exactly how." he paused, then hastily added, "They've never been used."
"Glad to hear it." Female Knight giggled, setting off Witch and High Elf Archer.
Priestess tentatively picked up bracer equipment with a strange mechanism. She pressed a switch built into the face of the bracer, and dropped it in surprise when a razor sharp blade snapped out.
"A Hidden Blade." Guild Girl shook her head, "Those are illegal in many parts of the country."
"But not out here on the Frontier." Spearman took up the dropped weapon and examined it, "Extremely useful in a tight spot. And easy to hide under loose clothing."
Cow Girl ignored them, and picking up one of the small crossbows, examined the mechanism. She'd seen similar weapons carried by the drivers of mail coaches: they were designed to be easy to reload on the move, and accurate enough to hit a target at close range. Unfortunately to do this they sacrificed range and stopping power, making them useless in normal combat. Pulling back on the lever under the bow, the complex arrangement of springs and pulleys drew the string back until it snapped into the ready position. Carefully loading one of the bolts, she aimed it at an archery target set up across the courtyard. Holding the crossbow with both hands, she took careful aim before pulling the trigger. The weapon unleashed with a loud snap, the bolt slicing through the air and hitting the target just outside of the bull.
The assembled Adventurers looked at her with a mixture of surprise and awe.
"My uncle uses a crossbow to shoot foxes if they get too close to the chicken coop." she explained when she saw the way they were looking at her, "He taught me how to when I was onld enough to handle his bow."
Not to be outdone, High Elf Archer let fly with four throwing knives, hitting each of the cardinal points on the target, followed by a fifth dead center. She then examined the leather holder they'd been in, with a strap that could be easily adjusted to fit either an arm or leg.
"Nice." she smiled, then turned to face her husband, "Mind if I keep these?"
"As you wish." Goblin Slayer nodded, "I was planning on selling it all anyway..."
There was a moment of silence, then the group descended into a mad scrabble to examine the various weapons and equipment that were suddenly up for grabs. Rookie Warrior grabbed the mace and a mail shirt, then tried on one of the helmets. Confident that they fitted, he reached into his coin purse, only to discover that it was lighter than he had realised. He looked over to Apprentice Cleric, but she was clutching a long mailed gambeson that would serve as both a tunic and skirt for her, and a single silver coin that was only a fraction of its value, even second-hand.
Priestess saw the two young Adventurera and felt a pang of sympathy: she'd been in their place when she started out, with nothing more than her vestments to protect her, and it had almost cost her her life, as it had two of her party members. She knew that the two of them were discussing changing from hunting giant rats and bugs in the towns sewers to tackling their first goblin related Quest, and just how dangerous that that could be for them if they weren't prepared. Far too many Porcelain Adventurers died on those early Quests as it was, and she felt every single loss like a knife to her heart.
Goblin Slayer caught her eye, having already come to the same conclusions, and nodded silently.
Smiling with genuine joy, Priestess ran over to the other teenagers and closed the hands holding their meager offerings and shaking her head. It took them a moment to realise what she meant, then they quickly returned her smile and clutched their newly acquired weapons and armour to their chests, Apprentice Cleric trying to hide the fact that she'd also picked up one of the bamboo tubes.
"That was unusually charitable of you." Whitch stood just behind Goblin Slayer, her voice kept low enough that only he could hear her over the commotion around the table.
"No. Soon they will face goblins." he explained without taking his eyes off the two trainees, "If they survive, they will kill even more goblins. Dead goblins are worth more to me than a few coins."
"That sounds about right." Spearman chuckled as he handed over a couple of gold coins, holding up the hidden blade, "I'll be sure to put this to good use."
"Indeed." Female Knight held up a pair of daggers and a gold coin, "I think I've still got a few bits from my early days left over somewhere. I'll see if there's anything worth passing on."
Goblin Slayer looked around the table: High Elf Archer was strapping her new throwing knives to her left thigh, Cow Girl was teaching Guild Girl how to aim one of the crossbows, Dwarf Shaman was practicing with the throwing axes, Rookie Warrior and Apprentice Cleric were adjusting their armour while Priestess was trying out a short rapier style sword. There was still enough left over to earn him a small profit, and he made a mental note to ask Smith to make sure that it all went to a good home.
To Be Continued...