Chương 25: Final Preparations

Gloria reached the Adventurers' Guild soon afterward and found the broad space outside almost entirely deserted, with only an elderly adventurer sitting beneath the awning while he repaired a tear in his boot.

The emptiness followed her through the entrance, where the usual mixture of conversation and arguments over quests had given way to the occasional creak of timber beneath her steps, although she had expected as much after learning that the city's yearly celebration would coincide with the Katamaran's departure, since nearly everyone free from work had apparently gathered at the docks to witness both events at once.

The receptionist who had assisted her earlier remained behind the counter, yet the utter exhaustion Gloria remembered she had disappeared so thoroughly that she almost seemed like a different woman. She was arranging writing implements according to size while humming to herself, pausing every few moments to sip from a steaming cup beside her elbow, and when their eyes met across the vacant hall, she straightened with surprising energy before greeting them.

"Bene advenisti ad Gildam Adventuratorum!" Gloria acknowledged the familiar words with a nod before glancing toward Echidna, who displayed no reaction whatsoever and merely continued surveying the building.

"It is a pleasure to see you again, although I must confess that I did not expect to find you in such remarkably high spirits," Gloria said, resting a hand lightly against the edge of the counter.

"Has something of importance occurred since our previous meeting?"

"Nothing important enough to interest an adventurer, although it feels miraculous from this side of the counter," the receptionist replied as she sank back into her chair and released a long breath.

"The entire morning was a glorified nightmare, because Ural's celebration attracts visitors from half the surrounding region, and every one of them apparently arrives convinced that the Guild exists solely to answer whatever question entered their head on the way through the door.

Before noon, I registered thirty-one visiting adventurers, settled two disputes over reserved rooms and recovered a merchant's identification papers from the mouth of his Razard mount, so having the entire hall to myself now feels like a reward personally granted by the gods." The woman lifted her cup with both hands and drank from it slowly, closing her eyes while she savored the rare absence of anyone demanding her attention, which made Gloria tilt her head.

"Are you not disappointed that your duties will prevent you from witnessing the Katamaran's arrival and whatever spectacle the city has prepared around it?"

"Not even slightly, because it returns so often, and I have already watched the performance at least a hundred times," the receptionist answered, waving a hand toward the distant docks.

"The Katamaran is magnificent the first time, breathtaking the second and still reasonably impressive around the fifth, but once you have spent several years watching it block out the sea while its horns terrify every animal in the district, a quiet chair and an unattended cup of tea begin to possess wonders of their own.

Besides, last month a family of tourists climbed onto the Guild roof for a better view and broke three dozen tiles, so this time I intend to remain here and defend the building from anyone carrying a ladder."

"That might not be the choice I would make, although I can respect the reasoning behind it," Gloria said, earning an appreciative nod from the woman.

"Since you have only just escaped the demands of the crowd, I shall make every effort to conclude my business quickly and leave you to enjoy the peace while it lasts."

"You understand me better than most already, and for that alone, I may be tempted to offer you the least insulting price permitted by Guild policy," the receptionist replied, setting her cup aside before leaning forward with renewed professional interest.

"Now then, unless the reports I received were unusually inaccurate, I believe you have brought something for me." Gloria slipped her hand into the inner pocket of her robes and withdrew the teeth she had collected, each one bone-white and perfectly preserved. She placed them carefully across the counter, and the receptionist's practiced composure immediately abandoned her as she rose from her chair and bent over them with both palms pressed against the wood.

"Oh, those are beautiful," she breathed, moving her face closer without daring to touch them.

"I understand that beautiful is a peculiar word to use while admiring a collection of teeth, but look at those edges! There is no cracking around the roots, no discoloration and not a single careless cut from whoever removed them; the Guild butcher is going to carry these around like newborn children." Gloria regarded her enthusiasm with a puzzled tilt of her head, having expected an appraisal before such open admiration.

"You appear remarkably unsurprised by their presence, despite seeming considerably more impressed by their condition than I anticipated."

"Oh, we knew you were bringing them, or at least we hoped you were," the receptionist replied, finally retrieving a dark cloth from beneath the counter and spreading it beside the teeth.

"Bar the Strong and Rali the Silent returned several hours ago, and Bar spent so long praising your power that two adventurers missed their turn at the desk because they were listening to him describe the battle. He told the story three times before leaving, and although the story became slightly grander with every retelling, his admiration remained perfectly consistent." A mischievous smile crossed her face as she reached for a small magnifying lens.

"Rali confirmed the important details himself, which carried considerably more weight. Between their report and the clothing you were wearing when you first entered, I had already concluded that you were no ordinary adventurer, although it appears that 'formidably powerful upon the battlefield' would have been a more accurate description."

'Of course that blabbermouth told them everything… Still, this should cause no trouble, because he witnessed nothing beyond the most basic spells in my arsenal, and the only reasonable conclusion available to him would be that I am simply an unusually powerful adventurer.' This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Rali also warned us that you might return with the Red Willow's teeth, and the Guild's master butcher gave me very specific instructions to purchase them regardless of their condition," the receptionist continued, peering through the lens as she examined each root in turn.

"He normally requires three separate inspections before authorizing payment for monster parts, yet in this case, he informed me that allowing you to leave with them would constitute an act of professional incompetence, followed by several remarks about my intelligence that I have chosen not to preserve in the official record." She lowered the lens at last and looked up at Gloria with open astonishment.

"He need not have worried, because these are in far better condition than anyone expected; judging by the roots and the complete absence of damage, I would almost believe the creature surrendered them before dying."

"Well… I am pleased that their condition meets your expectations," Gloria said, watching the receptionist continue admiring the teeth through her lens.

"However, when I mentioned that our time was limited, I meant that quite literally, for we intend to board the Katamaran before it departs, and we should begin making our way toward the docks very soon." The receptionist shot upright so quickly that her chair rolled backward and struck the cabinet behind her.

"Of course! Forgive me for keeping you here!" She ducked beneath the counter and emerged with a thick leather purse secured by two metal clasps, which she opened before counting twelve rectangular sheets of red paper onto the wood. Gloria recognized them immediately as Obols, the currency used throughout DDO, with each note bearing a draconic insignia across its surface and the number one hundred printed in platinum-colored ink near every corner.

"The Guild authorized me to spend this much without requesting approval from the master butcher, so twelve hundred Obols represents the highest offer I can place before you immediately," the receptionist explained as she slid the notes across the counter.

"Custom would normally require me to begin lower, allow you to accuse the Guild of organized theft and then endure several minutes of bargaining before we arrive at this amount, but I am tired, the teeth are magnificent and you have been considerate enough to let me drink my tea in peace." Gloria gathered the notes and slipped them into the inner pocket of her robes, finding the exchange agreeable.

"I understand that negotiation is customary in such transactions, yet the kindness and efficiency you have shown me deserve equal consideration, so I shall accept your offer without demanding that either of us perform an argument whose conclusion has already been decided."

'Twelve hundred Obols for something I pulled from a corpse and nearly forgot about… Yeah, I can live with that.' Gloria thought as she recalled the prices she had observed throughout Ural. Unless the three of them developed an immediate fondness for extravagant meals, the payment could support them comfortably for close to two weeks. The receptionist's relief lasted until another thought made her eyes widen, and she leaned across the counter.

"Before you leave, please tell me that you purchased passage in advance, because the Katamaran has a limited number of rooms, while this particular departure has been fully reserved for more than a month. People began sleeping outside the ticket office three days before sales opened!" She drew breath to continue, perhaps intending to explain where Gloria might wait for the next departure or which inn still possessed available rooms, yet Gloria raised a hand before another catalogue of difficulties could begin.

"You need not concern yourself with our passage, for I have already considered the matter and possess a means of resolving it." The receptionist studied her for a moment before glancing toward Echidna, whose unwavering confidence in Gloria apparently provided all the reassurance required.

"In that case, I shall trust that you know what you're doing."

"A wise decision," Gloria replied, turning away from the counter as Echidna followed at once.

"I wish you good fortune during the coming days, and I hope the remainder of your celebration proves considerably quieter than its beginning."

"And I wish the same to you, Adventurer Gloria," the receptionist called after them, lifting her cup in farewell.

"Should you return to Ural, I hope you visit again." Gloria raised a hand in acknowledgment while Echidna offered a simple wave of her own, then the two women stepped outside. Rather than going towards their destination immediately, Gloria walked several paces along the Guild's outer wall until the angle of the building concealed her from most of the avenue.

She raised a claw and traced a compact magical circle against the stone, filling each line with mana as its symbols settled into place, then pressed her palm against its center and invoked [Domus Temporaria], causing the completed design to sink beneath the surface until no visible mark remained behind.

'Nice, that makes three,' she thought as the new destination fixed itself within her awareness alongside the cavern where she had awakened and the chamber that had once held Echidna.

'I can return to my original cave, Echidna's domain or Ural whenever I need to, which should save me a great deal of trouble if something important drags me back across half the continent.' Echidna watched the final traces of mana disappear into the wall before turning toward her.

"Does the Mighty expect to return to this city after our departure?"

"Perhaps, for Ural has proven more interesting than I anticipated, and I see no reason to make a future visit needlessly tedious when establishing a point of return requires so little effort," Gloria answered as she stepped away from the wall.

"I still prefer to travel when visiting unfamiliar lands, however, for reaching a destination means very little if I have seen nothing of the world leading to it." Echidna nodded and resumed walking beside her, yet the goddess offered no further observation as they moved toward the avenue, while her earlier curiosity had given way to a silence so careful that Gloria soon understood the cause.

The warning she had given on the way to the Guild had clearly struck harder then she had intended, leaving Echidna afraid that speaking too freely might provoke another correction.

"Concerning what I said earlier, Echidna, you have no reason to measure every word as though conversation itself might offend me," Gloria said, slowing until they walked shoulder to shoulder.

"Your thoughts interest me, and I enjoy hearing you speak." The change in Echidna was immediate, her posture straightening as warmth returned to her expression.

"As you wish, Mighty Gloria! If Echidna may speak freely once more, then she must ask what path remains available to us, since every place aboard the Katamaran was claimed long before our arrival." Gloria grinned as a particularly disreputable part of Ural returned to mind.

'I'm actually rather excited to see that place for myself.'

"Worry not, for I know exactly where we may yet find them."