She stood in the house, her eyes wandering around the interior, until it got stuck on Mikael, and the object he held.
"I suspect that is mine?"
"It is, finished and got its last polish yesterday. Quite happy how it turned out."
"I will be the judge, or rather the actual receiver. I only collect that and pay you. What was the price again?"
Roàn didn't let her ask twice, holding up three fingers, and the other nodded, taking out a purse, letting it fall on the table.
'Only three gold? No, more likely thirty.'
"Let me see it." She ordered, holding out her hand. Mikael didn't dare to delay, handing over the sword, it beautifully displaying the dancing flames from the candles.
She took it, eying the shiny exterior before holding the grip, sliding out the weapon in a fluid motion and holding it vertically in front of her face, examine the sharp blade. She hold it then horizontal, holding the tip between her slender fingers.
'What is she doing now?' Mikael wondered, only holding his breath the next moment.
She bent the sword, bit by bit, looking void of worry as it continued to gave up under her pressure.
As it was put under stress, she loosened up, the blade recovering to its original form.
"To ya satisfaction?" Roàn asked, without any worry about her reply.
She sheathed it back again, taking the purse and threw it over.
"30 Gold, as agreed. Excellent work, true to your reputation."
"Ya flatter me too much. The lad here helped me quite a bit, else I might not had finished it in time."
Hw took from the purse a gold coin and gave it to Mikael without a second thought.
"Part one of ya pay."
The woman clad in her cloak left, the sword in her hand she entered the carriage, the driver giving a signal in Form of a whistle. The Bird like creature pulled, and the carriage began moving, slowly away up the road, towards the important residents and shops for more whealty clients.
"Is this really alright? A whole Gold?" Mikael asked, the yellow glistening round object between his fingers.
"Aye lad, ya heard me. And for the other part, follow me." He stowed away the purse in one of his pockets, not bothering to count the amount.
'Right, he said something about another reward.' He wondered, following full of curiosity.
Roàn went inside the inner smithy, the air still rather hot from the furnace, making his mouth immediately dry.
"Ya forgot the most important part of ya things, the weapon. So I took the liberty to craft one. Nothing special, but it should do its deed well."
He removed a rag from the table, it covering something long and square.
Forth came a weapon Mikael didn't think of. A simple looking hammer, a bit long for him, but still suitable, with around 55 cm, the long handle made of a strong, dark wood and reinforced with metal stripes, connecting it with the head.
Roàn lifted the hammer with ease, tossing it up once, making it spin in the air.
"Here, treat it well."
Mikael received this tool, in a daze, not knowing how he could accept.
It weighted quite a bit, the head made from dense metal, making it pack more with a smaller volume.
'This might be perfect for me.'
"Ya handled the hammers here quite good. A sword or other fancy weapons need long time of practice, but with this it only really counts to connect with the target. If ya get yourself some kind of shield, ya make a sturdy fellow. And don't start now tearing up or get all emotional, can't handle that. Take it, and continue, Mikael."
Mikael could not believe this big man's generosity, not having anything in return felt wrong. So he chose simply to hug him, and after a second of hesitation, Roàn also wrapped a arm around his little back.
"Go now, I already talked with the Guild staff of ya completing my request. Still need time to prepare for ya next job."
He downright shoved Mikael out the door, making the farewell come to a quick end.
'Well, it's not like we don't see each other again. But it felt like it.'
He held onto his belongings; book, purse, little bag on his hip and the backpack.
The hammer as his addition, he now really felt ready to take on his next job, being what it want.
The day was still early, around midday at best, the street only visited by merchants trying to sell their goods to the people wandering along.
Many sounds escaped the shops, and smells of baking bread, cooking meals or the sound of pitchman filled the air.
The Hammer now hanging at his belt, which he also newly bought, secured it, and walking towards the guild building, feeling the weight that came with it, he was more comfortable.
A light drizzle fell from the sky, together with the chilling wind making a uncomfortable combination.
Relieve soon followed as he entered the grand building with its glass windows,sheltering the inside from the nature's power.
The last time he went inside was when he got his card, and now with the gold coin and his salary he could at least pay back part of his dept.
Many more people with differing attire filled the ground floor, either escaping like him, eating a good meal or enjoying the lovely atmosphere alone or with their party.
'Less out of place, for sure.' he felt, looking around and walking past the tables and avoiding the waitresses balancing trays with food and drinks.
A fireplace filled the inside with a comfortable warmth, together with the chattering noise and many people creating a lively scene.
'If Robert and Diana are back? Didn't see them for quite some time. But who knows what they are doing. Maybe one future Quest requires me to travel for some time. Not that I really have a place to come back to...'
Walking up to the first floor, he did not see Lizzy at the counter, but the same guy he got the permission back then.
The line wasn't too long, making him only wait 10 minutes before two single man and a group of three took their papers and medals, either leaving or sitting back on the table, skimming over their Quests once again.
"Didn't see you for a while, means everything went well?" the man with the thick eyebrows said, looking at him with more respect than before, at least that was the impression Mikael got.
"You remember me?"
"How couldn't I? A small lone hunter with quite the debt, broken arm and torn clothes, sorry sight back then. But look at you now. Arm better, clothes appropriately, some gear and even gained some height? Glad it turned for the better, except the money part. Speaking of which, how is your situation, able to return some?"
" A bit of it, yes. And I also come to return the emblem, as my mission of helping Boss finished today."
"Ah yes, he came over with a report he wrote, praised your skill and autonomy.
We included it into your profile. Great job, glad that old man wasn't too moody."
"What profile, never heard of that before."
"Seriously? And you work as a Hunter, Handyman or Adventurer, whatever you want to be called. Term is quite loose."
Seeing the genuine question in Mikaela eyes, the staff member sighed.
"It's easy, every time you do a job, the employer can write a report what you did good or bad, how you behaved or to what extent your knowledge fitted his request. We add that to a stack of paper, and if someone wants to know who would like to accept his quest or even wants a specific person, he can ask us, for compensation, to look into it."
"Do many want to see my profile?"
"Depends on the quest. The more specific, the more skillfull they want the person to be. Or if you come over as suspicious, they also want to look into your history. So show your good side to the employer."
"But what happens when the employer writes a false report? To damage my reputation?" Mikael asked again after he heard this piece.
The employee nodded, snapping his fingers. "Good question. As we have a profile of you, the same goes the other way. They are required to leave their name, so you also can look into it.
But some risk still remains, for both sides." he shrugged his shoulders.
"Okay, got it then. Here, the emblem and first part to pay my debt."
"Gold coin? Well, didn't Roàn pay you well. Noted, see."
He pulled out a paper, showing Mikaels debt of 6 Gold. Writing a minus symbol and a one, putting a fingerprint next to it, he stoved it away, in one of the many shelf rows at the wall, all having some kind of writing on a plate at the wood.
"If you want another quest right away, the board was updated just recently, and some for your rank as well. Better pick in that spectrum, or the employer sends you back straight away."
Turning around, the long wooden board reached across the wall, many people reading through the information and taking off other papers.
Mikael went to the left side, as the quests were sorted ascending by rank.
'My reading is still not good enough.' he noticed quickly, only able to make out single words or the numbers, but no coherent sentence.
"Should o help you searching?" he was asked as a employee approached him, his struggle clear.
"Yes, if you can. I want something easy, wood rank I guess, outside this village, but not anything with traveling."
"Something as gathering herbs for apothecaries or investigate the woods?
Can it involve the possibility of danger, like weaker creatures?" The employee inquired, seeing the weapon dangling from his belt.
He considered it a moment, but then nodded his head.
"Then we might have here something. But it involves another person."
"In what way another person?"
"He wants to go with you, getting some protection on the way, only a bit inside the woods, for the more common herbs. Pay is good, and the employer is only slightly older than you, if I guess right."
'A escort request for a wooden ranked?'
But he did not want to look further, getting some real experience as fast as possible, not wanting himself to tuck his tail. His gift reassured him, the weight giving confidence.
"Alright, I take it."