Abel went through the shelves one by one, browsing through the variety of alcohol that was put on display. It was much more than what he had thought would be available. Nicolas, as Abel had come to know the timid boy as, led him around the store, bringing him to the shelf that held wine with the highest percentage of alcohol.
Over the time they had spent wandering around, Nicolas had begun to calm down, and had begun acting less like a stiff golem, and more like a human. The boy's eyes furrowed cutely whenever he tried to focus on the tiny writings that pointed out the alcohol percentage of a drink, and that made Abel laugh.
"W-what?" Nicolas jumped when he heard Abel's laughter.
"It's nothing. I just found your jittery movements cute." He ruffled the boy's head of brown hair. A bright red blush stained Nicolas' face as he looked down at his worn shoes.
"S-sorry..."
"It's okay, there's no need to apologize." Abel shrugged before turning to look at the cart that sat behind him. Over a dozen different bottles of alcoholic wine sat in the cart, waiting for Abel to take them home.
"I think these should be enough for y old man." Abel murmured, placing the bottle he was holding into the cart.
"A-alright. Please follow me." Nicolas led Abel back to the counter so he could pay for the bottles of wine. There, Abel saw an older version of Nicolas, albeit the man held himself in a much higher regard. His broad shoulders and defined chin made his look much more manly than Nicolas. Nicolas was on the skinny side, with his clothes drowning him in their depths.
The older man looked at Abel with a wide smile. "Hello, welcome to Vinny's Vintage. I hope you found our collection to your liking."
"Yes, I'm quite satisfied with what I've picked out." Abel returned the smile, although it was a bit restrained. He could feel the strength that radiated off the older man. The man was clearly a Tower Runner, or perhaps a retired one.
"I hope you do more business with us." He extended an arm to Abel, which Abel returned. The man's grasp was firm, and Abel could tell that the real purpose of the handshake was to test his strength.
The man nodded once more before retreating into the back room without sparing a single glance at Nicolas. The boy only remained a few steps behind Abel, his head lowered to look at his feet. The moment his father stepped behind the curtain that led to the back room, Abel rushed behind the counter to work the register.
He arranged the fifteen bottles of wine that Abel had picked out before taking note of their prices.
"That'll be a small gold piece, and three large silver." Nicolas pushed up his glasses after he rounded everything up.
The money system of Montreya was quite simple, really. The major denominations of currency were Copper, Silver, and Gold coins. These major denominations were further divided into minor denominations. These were the Large and Small variations of the coins. Large and Small Copper, Silver, and Gold.
The coins were made from their respective materials, with a square hole in the center. A string was usually strung through these holes in order to tie the coins into bunches that made them easier to carry about and easier to differentiate.
For example, a merchant to string together his large copper coins together, while stringing the small copper coins together in order to make sure he didn't mess up a payment, or expose all his money at once.
Copper coins were the least valuable denominations of money on Montreya. A large copper coins was equivalent to ten small copper coins, while a small silver coin was equivalent to a hundred large copper coins. This went on, until the level of gold coins. Ten small silver coins made up one large silver, while a hundred large silver made up one small gold. Ten small gold coins were equal to a single large gold coin.
The denominations were quite simple, really.
Abel pulled out a couple of small gold pieces and slipped it across the counter. "Get something nice for yourself, Nick. You look like you need it." He smiled and patted the boy's head once again before beginning to pack the bottles of wine into a wooden crate that had been placed to the side.
"Um, I... I can't take this, sir." Nicolas stumbled over his words.
"Says who?" Abel quirked a brow.
Nicolas sucked on the inside of his cheek instead of replying, and Abel sighed. He had a pretty good idea of who it was who told Nick that.
"Okay, then. How about this, what time do you get off work?" Abel leaned against the counter.
"Um, we close shop around eight, so I should be free by 8:30." Nick looked nervous.
"Good, I'll come around by that time. We can go get something to eat, and then, we can have a good talk, okay?" Abel smiled as he got out the three large copper coins and switched them out for the second small gold piece he had given Nick.
"O-okay!"
"Good." With a final nod, Abel packed up his load and left. A bit of tension had built up in his shoulders as he thought of what Nick might be going through. He didn't want to jump to any conclusions, but that was a rather difficult thing to ask of him. Of course, he was going to jump to conclusions!
The boy was barely a skeleton, and his father acted like he almost didn't exist. There was definitely something wrong there. Although he knew it wasn't his place to pry, he couldn't help the feeling that he could maybe help with Nicolas' predicament.
Sighing, Abel shook his head as he made his way through the town. He would have to get back home, deliver these bottles of wine he had bought to a drunk old man, tell that old man that he was going out for the night, and then prepare to take Nicolas somewhere he hoped the boy would be comfortable enough to speak to him.