Back on Alana's Regret, Lampa was observing the returning cutter with puzzlement in his eyes. Hadn't the captain said that the plan was to remain in Yort until morn? However, he wasn't qualified to question the captain's plans and thus he ordered the cutter be docked next to the ship.
After exchanging a few words with Krill, Lampa had a clear understanding of the events that took place in Yort. Silently agreeing with the captain's decision to plunge the city into chaos, he instructed a few men to weigh anchor and Alana's Regret began leaving the artificial port of Yort.
However, a masked assassin was approaching quickly beneath the surface of the water. The assassin's orders were to board the ship and slaughter as many as he could before he got discovered. Thus, he readied himself to scale the hull of the ship in absolute silence.
The moment that the assassin's hand touched the hull of Alana's Regret, a bolt of arcane energy pierced his heart and he was killed instantly. Farmer had taken a few days to set an ultimate killing array on his ship which would only target those that boarded without his permission; he had done so after he easily snuck past the patrolling guards after obtaining the compass. The results of his efforts were evident with this act alone.
Thus, Alana's Regret left without any incident, just as Farmer had predicted.
--
The following morning Farmer left the inn at the crack of dawn without telling anyone where he was going. Looking around the entrance, he chose a random direction and walked down the street brazenly with his head held up high, fully intending to be seen by those trailing him.
Sure enough, his spiritual sense perceived six people following his movements closely. Farmer smiled to himself; it seemed that the two spies from the night before had asked for reinforcements given that their location had been compromised. Furthermore, Farmer could tell that the six people were keeping a great distance between Farmer and them.
Farmer had to exert all his strength not to burst out laughing. These people were simply too predictable! He ridiculed them in his head. Having realised that Farmer could tell their location, their only solution was to increase the distance; not realising that they would have to move to a spot two hundred miles away if they wanted such an approach to work!
However, this was also what he wanted and thus he acted as if he couldn't tell that he was being followed. After all, he needed these spies to keep an eye on him if he wanted his plans to work.
It was with this dynamic of being followed that Farmer paced up and down streets randomly, saying hi to a few people and nodding to some guards politely. They, in turn, responded in kind. After all, it was well and proper to return niceties to others. On the other hand, the spies who watched this couldn't help but jot down the names and faces of everyone Farmer was interacting with.
Farmer then entered into a cafeteria on a busy street and ordered himself some breakfast. Calling someone over to his window-side table, he asked a waiter to bring him some of the local specialties and an entire jar of their strongest coffee. Then, he left a generous tip and excused himself to the water closet.
From the outside, the men trailing him stopped in six separate alleyways and kept an eye on his table, half expecting him to not return. Still, they had orders to follow him for as long as possible. None of them took notice of a frail old man who walked out of the cafeteria.
The old man was Farmer in disguise, of course.
However, he had no intention of losing the men trailing him. Instead, he turned into a partially hidden one-way street and moved at blinding speed. Using his skills to remain undetected, he appeared behind each one of the spies and carved a tracking rune on each of them. Even though his spiritual sense was powerful, the further away he sent it from himself, the less clear were the things he perceived. In a city like Yort this meant that although he could have a general idea of things, he couldn't pinpoint the movements of particular individuals. Thus, he had come up with this plan.
By the time he was finished, not a minute had passed. Then, he returned to the cafeteria and took off his disguise in the water closet.
Satisfied with how well things were progressing, he went back to his table and waited patiently for his food and coffee to arrive. Once it did, he calmly ate everything without a care in the world. The men observing him from the shadows were startled by Farmer's demeanour. Could this really be the man they were meant to follow?
After he finished with his food and coffee, Farmer left the cafeteria with a smile of contentment on his face. Looking around, he stopped a group of individuals dressed in rich clothing and asked them about where he could find the best trading establishments in the city. They pointed him to the right direction and bade him good luck with whatever his business was.
Farmer then set off in that direction and came across a massive street very quickly. Lining the street were large marble edifices at least six or eight stories high. Each of these buildings was a large trading centre representing different organisations and rivers of people could be seen flowing in and out of them.
Examining the dozen buildings or so carefully, Farmer chose to enter the one with the sculpture of a howling wolf in front of it. At first, he'd considered entering the biggest store, but he was drawn to that sculpture as it reminded him of Wolfie.
Without a second thought, Farmer pushed through the sea of people and made his way in. To his surprise, those trailing him didn't follow him inside and merely
Inside, he was greeted by a young man dressed in a black and white uniform. "Welcome to the Wolf's Howl, how may I be of assistance?" Said the young clerk.
"I'm here for a few matters. Firstly, do you have any nautical charters for sale?"
"We do, good sir, but I will have to ask for your corsair licence?" Upon mention of the charters the clerk realised Farmer was a sailor of sorts.
"Corsair licence?" Asked Farmer in surprise.
"Yes, good sir." Sighed the clerk, realising immediately the Farmer had no such thing in his possession. "It's the document symbolising your status as a corsair in the service of the city of Yort. Without it, I'm afraid that I cannot allow you passage."
"I see." Laughed Farmer. He wasn't concerned about this rule as he was sure he could come across a few methods to surmount it easily. "Well, before you drive me away for not having this licence, you would do well to mention to your boss that my name is Farmer."
"Farmer?" The clerk asked suspiciously. He was about to call the security officials over when he noticed the confidence in Farmer's violet eyes. In addition, he was dressed in ornately decorated dark leather armour that looked to be expensive. Maybe he did have an impressive background? "Very well, fine sir, please wait here while I go do as you ask."
The clerk decided that he wouldn't risk anything by checking the truth of Farmer's words. At best he would be given a large commission and maybe even a promotion, at worst he'd just get a slap on the wrist for listening to a madman.
With that in mind, he took a hidden corridor down to the office where the owner remained. Quickly, he reached a large oaken door that he knew was protected with strong killing arrays. Knocking in a pre-established manner, the door swung open and two large bear-like men walked out. They patted the clerk down and, satisfied he wasn't carrying anything suspicious, grunted to inform the owner that the clerk wasn't armed.
"What is it? Why are you here?" Asked a melodious voice from inside the office. The clerk wasn't taken aback because of not being let in; he had already worked there long enough to know that only a select few were allowed in there.
"Replying to owner, there's a man here, a pirate of sorts, without a corsair licence."
"Then have security kick him out." Replied the voice somewhat annoyed.
"I wanted to do so, but he said I should tell you his name. He said he's called Farmer."
"Farmer?" Suddenly chuckled one burly men. "You're a fool, kid." He mocked, pushing the clerk away.
"Wait!" Suddenly exclaimed the voice excitedly. "What does this man look like?"
The clerk was only stunned for a moment before realising he'd done the right thing. "He's big, very muscular. And he's dressed in expensive leather armo…"
"What about his hair? And his eyes?" The voice interrupted him.
"His hair is red like blood and his eyes are violet."
"A freak of nature!" Ridiculed the other guard. "Boss, we'll go kick him out right away."
"Do that, and you'll be sentencing us all to death." Said a beautiful middle-aged woman dressed lavishly in silk robes that walked out of the office; clearly, the voice belonged to her. Contrary to what was typical, she wore no make-up on her face. This somehow accentuated her beauty. "Don't you keep up with current events?"
"What do you mean, boss? Don't you trust us?" Asked the first guard visibly displeased.
"Calle, you know full well that I trust you and your brother completely. But I also know for a fact that this man is far beyond your level. After all, he's the one who brutally mutilated Lenion and Dachir last night."
At the boss' words, the three men instantly paled; the young clerk, in particular, began trembling furiously. To think that he had nearly kicked Farmer out! The news of what happened at the Little Garden had spread like wildfire and everyone was talking about it. However, much like any rumour, details had been exaggerated continuously and many questioned the veracity of the event. Whatever the case, if the boss said that it was true, then it was true.
"You, take me to him immediately. You two, stay here." Ordered the woman in a tone that accepted no negotiation.
The young clerk obeyed his boss' order and swiftly led the way back to Farmer. They found him standing right where the clerk had left him earlier.
Upon seeing how the clerk was visibly shaken, Farmer could guess that he had been right to mention his name and knew instantly that he was already well-known around Yort.
"Good Farmer, my name is Mhyrra and I'm the owner of the Howling Wolf." Without waiting for the clerk to speak, Mhyrra bowed to introduce herself. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"
"Good Mhyrra, are you asking about the business I want to perform today, or about the prospects of business tomorrow?" Farmer smiled mysteriously. He could tell that the woman in front of him was not to be underestimated.
"Both." Mhyrra smiled back at Farmer in a similar manner. "But perhaps this is a conversation to be had in a more… secure setting. My office, perhaps?"
"Please, after you." Farmer bowed and extended his arm to let her lead the way.
Mhyrra nodded and proceeded to lead Farmer back to her office.
They made their way in silence and passed by the two guards without muttering a word. Mhyrra then instructed the young clerk to remain close by in case they required his services and quickly shut the large oaken door with only Farmer and her inside the office.
Farmer observed the large room with avid interest. The room was well lit and he could observe everything in there with a single glance. Large bookshelves lined up every wall and he could tell that each tome there was a priceless treasure. In addition, there were many containers that contained arcane artefacts of untold value decorating the chamber. He saw objects like arcane stones brimming with power and swords emanating majesty. Just this collection of items raised the respect he felt for Mhyrra incredibly.
"I'm afraid none of the items here are for sale. They're my own personal collection." She said as she sat down behind a large desk and produced two vintage goblets and a bottle of fine wine. "I confess I thought you'd be older." She added.
"Pity. I would have paid a fair price for that copy of Zlatan's account of the Primordial Era." He said, taking a seat in front of Mhyrra. "I thought the book was lost."
"Clearly not as lost as is often believed." She replied handing him a goblet. "Tell me, what brings you here?"
"Pray tell, what do you mean?" Farmer feigned ignorance.
"Let's dispense with the bullshit, alright?" Scornfully remarked Mhyrra. "The fact that you're here shows that you have plans for the city of Yort. From the way you dealt with the city lord's son, I'm almost certain that you're planning to overthrow Nightsky. For what reason, that's your own business."
"And the fact you're meeting me privately instead of sending a missive to Nightsky shows that you don't think of him favourably and are even willing to work with me towards his demise."
"Maybe I'm just keeping you busy while we wait for the city lord's arrival."
"I thought we were dispensing with the bullshit, Mhyrra. You know as well as I do that I'm being watched carefully. Even if I wasn't, you would never risk having me close by whilst we waited for reinforcements to come. After all, who knows what a madman like myself would do?" He smiled nonchalantly.
"You're many things, Farmer, but not a madman." Replied Mhyrra downing the goblet down her throat. Farmer, to not be left behind, copied her. He wasn't worried about poison given that his unique body could even fight off a sea-dragon's venom. "I think that you and I could have an interesting conversation one day."
"We're having one now, aren't we?"
"Very true." Nodded Mhyrra. "But you have yet to answer my question."
"You're right. Forgive me." Farmer bowed his head apologetically. "I want to buy a few things. Firstly, I need the most detailed nautical charter you have. Money is no object. Secondly, I want all the black powder you have, as well as all the arrows you can supply. I reiterate, money is no object."
"This much is easy." She nodded. "What about tomorrow? What do you want to do then?"
Farmer smiled mysteriously and took out a leather bag from the inside of his cloak. Without saying anything, he tossed it at Mhyrra. She opened it and widened her eyes like saucers upon seeing what it contained.
"I have a lot more than that. And much better things, too."
"I see. But what do you want me to do with this?" She asked quizzically.
"You can consider that a goodwill gesture from me. As for the rest, I want you to organise an auction in five days time. The biggest auction this city has ever seen. And you will auction a few of your things alongside my items. Worry not, the benefits you'll make from this auction will be astronomical in the long and the short run."
"I understand now. You're planning to destroy the economy here."
"No. I plan to plunge it into chaos. And whether you rise to glory or fall into despair during that chaos will depend on you alone." Farmer flashed her a smile that wasn't a smile. Her agreement would mark the beginning of his plan being set into motion.
Mhyrra couldn't help but shudder upon seeing the look in his eyes. For some unknown reason, she found it both alluring and disconcerting to the extreme. Knowing of the effect that an auction offering such items would have, she had no doubts that Farmer would succeed in his endeavours. In addition, by organising it in just five days would avoid word travelling too far; thus precluding experts from all around appearing and destabilising the auction. Truly, Farmer's plan seemed flawless.