My shock subsides quickly, and I look down at the little girl, silently appraising her potential. She is 12 years of age or so, but from my experience, appearance can be deceiving. But then again, I doubt that she is much more older than her apparent age mentally.
It is not like she is an immortal loli or similar. I really hate dealing with them, as they make use of their appearance and innocence to get what they want.
Anyway, it is a very good thing that I had come across a toy store the day before yesterday, thus, I do have something to barter with. If not, I can always persuade her with my Charismatic Aura. With high enough Charisma, it can affect anyone or anything. Girls are more susceptible to the effect regardless of their age.
Of course, cheating a little girl out of her rewards seems to be villainous of me. But her asking price is outrageous even if it cost me almost nothing in return.
"Sorry, little miss, but that price is too high for me," I tell her. "I can only offer one toy of your choosing, and I believe that is fair."
The girl shakes her head. "4. I want 4 toys."
Oh. I see what she is doing. Smart girl. Someone must have taught her that. It could be her parents or an older sibling. But unfortunately, negotiation only works if she is the only seller.
"My offer still stands," I response. "And I suggest you take it before one of your friends find what you have found yourself, and I only really needed one."
The girl stares at me, seemingly understanding the situation. I admit that she does have the advantage right now, but that advantage of her is not absolute. It will render moot as soon as someone else have found what she has.
"Okay," the girl agrees to the deal and offers up the fragment of Mithril.
I accept the fragment of Mithril before putting it away into my Inventory for later processing. I cannot make use of the Runic Furnace in front of everyone. They would ask way too much questions, and I do not want to answer them.
"I will give you your reward if you tell me your name and what your parents or guardians do," I request while examining the little girl in more depth. From her clothes, she does not appear to come from any sort of stable family, and I believe that allows her to grow faster than other children.
Honestly, I did not expect her to understand the situation clearly and accept my offer without further haggling on her part, and that alone makes me interested in her – interested enough to try and learn her name.
If she survives until the Life Zone finally collapses, she would likely grow up to be someone important in the new era. There is no doubt in my mind about that, and therefore, it is a good thing to be friends with her. Or at least an acquaintance.
"I'm Stellar. I don't have any parents. They left and never came back," Stellar answers before pouting and then smiling. "An uncle is looking after me. He works at a really big company with a big letter L."
Wait? What? Stellar? Her name is Stellar? The Hand of Fortune!? Wait. That cannot be… the Hand of Fortune should be… 11 years old. Oh. Oh! And I cannot help but grin madly.