The scent of strawberries and various other fruits filled Greg's nostrils as he swayed back and forth inside the carriage after they had passed a pile of rocks. There were many farms around the road leading to the capital, most of the economy was based on agriculture and livestock.
Greg was reading his book once more and Leona was curious as she always tried to peek at what was so good about it, only to find scribbles and more scribbles like that for her grandfather. The boy was dizzy for a moment, covering his mouth with his hand as if he was going to vomit.
"Has anyone ever told you that reading in a carriage can make you sick?" The old man asked, sitting by a red-curtained window and to his left was Felicia. The padded bench they were sitting on was divine.
"I've never ridden... I've never ridden a carriage before." Greg said with one hand over his mouth and the other on the curtain beside him.
"If we count the time we brought you passed out to our house, this would be your second time in a carriage!" The yellow-eyed girl said unpretentiously. Greg stared at her for a few seconds before turning his head to the open window on his right.
The strawberry smell was replaced by the smell of horse and pig excrement grown on local farms. Smoke could be seen on the roads located in the city. When they finally entered Wosgwats, the boy was able to observe several homeless people, people who were dying as time passed. He smelled inequality. This city was like any other big city, a well of lust and depravity and missed opportunities.
"Welcome to the big city boy. Hope you like the smell of shit, you'll smell it all day." Tharmin spoke, scratching his ear.
The entire city could see the large symbol that covered the white carriage on the sides. A red dragon, surrounded by two large golden swords that pierced its head, and the flames behind it, all within a red circle. It was the symbol of the Dernov house, which as Greg had noticed earlier, was also present on their clothes.
The carriage stopped in front of an artifacts and relics shop. The old man left first accompanied by Felicia. Leona leapt from the carriage to the ground as if she were on top of a mountain. And Greg came out throwing up the rest of the breakfast that was still in his stomach. Leona found it disgusting and Tharmin couldn't help but laugh. Greg looked at him with furrowed brows. He placed his book inside the small bag he carried with him.
Two guards accompanying them stood beside the carriage protecting it. Greg entered the store. It was completely different from what he thought. On the outside it was an ugly-looking shop that looked small, but inside it was another world. He looked enchanted in windows filled with incredible and powerful magical objects, staffs, enchanted swords, jewels that guaranteed attributes or curses, there was everything and much more.
The old man couldn't help but notice the boy's excitement as he practically ran around trying to see all the artifacts and relics he could. His granddaughter held back but was about to do the same. Leona was passionate about swords and the older they were, the more amazing the girl thought swords were.
"Want to stop running, brat?" The old man said as he bent down to see a window filled with ancient magic rings. Leona and Felicia walked to the sword room while Gregorios looked around at anything his eyes might find interesting.
He decided to go to the sword room with the girls. There were fifteen more people in the room, all very well dressed and accompanied. They were nobles like Tharmin and Leona. Greg wore a small coat with a piercing in the armpit and short pants with black shoes, he liked to walk simple. A boy and a girl who were accompanied by a man looked him up and down, wondering what someone like him was doing in a store frequented exclusively by the richest in town. They approached Greg, who was looking at an orange sword on the shelf.
"You don't look like a salesman. Much less someone with money. Tell me, what's a beggar like you doing here?" The boy said while laughing. He was dressed in a long white jacket that covered his little legs.
Greg continued to stare at the sword, not giving a damn what the boy had said. In fact, he was so intent on analyzing the swords that he didn't even notice their presence at his side.
"Hey! How dare you ignore me? I Warthon Vernin III won't accept this!" This time Greg listened.
"Who would you be?" Gregorios said completely confused.
"Didn't you hear him? He's Warthon Vernin III! You should show more respect for nobles like us!" The girl whose name was Bella Vernin, his sister, said out of ignorance.
Greg looked at the two of them for a moment. Both were fair-skinned. Both were blond and both were dressed in the same ridiculous jacket. But what really caught Greg's attention were the pointy ears they had. They were elves.
He looked at the man accompanying them and he too had pointy ears. He had never seen an elf before, only read in stories. Pitavius' book mentioned several times that the root of magic began to be explored by the elven race.
"Hey, poor thing! Aren't you going to answer him? I bet your parents don't even have the money to buy any food!" Said the girl as Greg walked away from them quickly. This was too cliché for him to take any longer. Spoiled rich kids who made fun of a poor boy? Super cliché!
He looked back to see if they were following him, but they faced each other and went back to the side of who should be their father. Greg continued walking until he found a completely rusted sword. It was lying on its side by the window and its description on the floor. The boy took the piece of paper and read it.
"Unknown sword. Unknown year of manufacture. Unknown attributes. It is unknown where it was forged and by whom it was forged."
Greg crumpled the paper and threw it on the floor. He picked up the sword, holding it in his hands. It was lighter than it looked. The blade had something written on it, but the rust prevented the boy from reading. On the other side of the blade, some symbols were stamped into the metal. They were runes. Or at least they seemed to be. Greg put it back in its scabbard and took it with him. The boy met with Leona who, not knowing which sword would be best for her, chose ten different swords.
They walked towards the old man who didn't seem surprised by his granddaughter's choices. He looked at Greg, looking at the rusty sword and wondering why the boy wanted to take it. Not even Gregorios quite understood why. He felt he should buy it. That he should use it and that was what he was going to do.
Leona's ten swords cost over five hundred gold coins in total.
Tharmin placed Greg's sword on the counter. The attendant watched it for a few seconds before issuing the price. A bronze coin. The state of the sword was terrible, charging more than that would be a crime against such a respected family. The employees didn't even know how the sword ended up in the store, they simply received it at some point.
Greg came out of the store wielding his sword and Leona tried to balance the ten swords she had bought, missing and knocking them to the ground. The boy let out a light laugh and she blushed.
Before leaving town, Greg would like to stop by the herb and potions shop. As they walked towards the store, Greg heard noises coming from an alley. He waited for the old man, Felicia and Leona to enter the potions shop before going to investigate what the noise was.
To his surprise, Warthon and Bella, the artifact store kids, were facing a fallen boy. Beside them were three other kids, two boys and a girl, who Greg hadn't seen before, but who were also in the store in another room.
Greg approached with small steps. One of the boys he hadn't seen kicked the fallen boy in the face. He was crying in pain. His glasses were broken.
"Have you apologized for touching my clothes, you poor idiot? For trying to rob us?"
"Please... Just stop..."
"I'll show you not to mess with us again!"
The boy conjured rays through his hands, he was able to manipulate the lightning elemental magic. Everyone else laughed at what was about to happen. He raised his arms, in a move to electrocute that boy to death. The dark-skinned boy on the ground put his arms in front of his face trying to defend himself.
When he was about to receive the electrical discharge, a very strong light illuminated his eyes. Greg conjured Ignis, causing the boy to lose concentration and miss him. "What…"
"It's him! It's the boy I told you about!" Warthon yelled.
Greg analyzed the situation. Two girls and three boys. A boy in danger. He had to be careful not to kill any of them, they were just kids.
"I'll kill you, you idiot!" The lightning boy screamed as he inched upward.
"Why does this sound like a cliché?" Greg thought to himself.