Two minutes ago, inside Benso's grocery store.
A middle-aged man with receding hair and a portly frame set down his Hextech magnifying glass and yelled towards the inner room, "Ekko, is that pocket watch the customer sold us today fixed yet? Ekko? Ekko, you little scoundrel, where did you run off to..."
The chubby man grumbled as he squeezed out from behind the counter, preparing to enter the inner room.
At that moment, the doorbell chimed, and a familiar voice reached his ears, "Benso, it seems your temper has been flaring up lately."
"Vander? How come you're here again?" Benso scratched his receding hairline and sneered, "Didn't I just give you the monthly tribute a few days ago? Are you here to sell me more junk?"
Vander shook his head but didn't get angry at Benso's unfriendly tone. "I'm here for you this time."
"For me?"
"They, do you know them?" Vander pointed towards the young man and woman outside the store, who seemed to be having a discussion.
Benso squinted through the window for a while and then shook his head, "I don't recognize them. Who are they?"
"They're from the Upper City, specifically here to see you and buy something."
Vander pulled out a chair from behind the counter and sat down, casually pouring himself a glass of wine from the bottle on the table. "Have you been causing trouble with Upper City folks recently?"
"Me? You know me well enough; I hardly ever leave the shop. How could I have possibly annoyed Upper City people?"
Benso scratched his beard and chuckled, "Maybe the reputation of the things I sell has reached Upper City."
"A bunch of junk?" Vander lifted his glass, took a sip, and surveyed the items in the store. "I hate to say it, but do you really manage to sell all this rubbish you collect?"
"Haha! Believe it or not, I made quite a bit of money not too long ago," Benso grinned. "It was just a piece of broken glass that Ekko found in the trash, and I sold it for fifty silver wheels! Can you imagine? That kid even said if I could find a complete one, the price would be even higher, possibly worth a few gold pieces."
"I have a feeling you've gotten yourself into trouble," Vander sighed, rubbing his temples. "That shard you mentioned doesn't sound simple at all. Those two Upper City people outside are probably here for it. You should talk to them."
As soon as Vander finished speaking, the store's bell rang again, and Li Lin and Caitlyn entered.
"Welcome, what can I help you with?" Benso put on a "radiant" smile. "Our store has a wide variety of items, including various Hextech gadgets, all of the finest quality..."
"Crystals," Li Lin interrupted, cutting off Benso's introduction. "I'm looking for a glowing blue crystal. My friend was here before and bought a piece."
"Oh, I remember that very clearly," Benso said, his face full of "brightness." "However, that kind of crystal will take some time..."
Benso rubbed his hands together and chuckled knowingly. His expression made it clear what he was getting at.
More money.
"Tell me, how much?" Li Lin said in a tone that suggested he had plenty of money to spare.
Well, it's not my money anyway. The Kiramman family will reimburse me.
He glanced at Caitlyn beside him, suddenly understanding why Jayce hadn't haggled over the price when he bought a piece of the shard for so much.
Benso hesitated for a moment and then held up one finger, "One crystal for one gold hex."
"Deal. And if you happen to come across any more shards, collect them, and I'll pay for them... as long as you don't try to sell me junk," Li Lin added.
Uh-oh! I set the price too low...
Seeing Li Lin's enthusiastic agreement, Benso felt a pang of regret, as if he had just taken a big bite of food and missed a large chunk.
He opened his mouth, thinking about raising the price, but a glance from Vander made him abandon that idea.
For guests from the upper city families, it was best not to push too hard.
As a businessman, Benso understood this well.
Familiarity breeds goodwill, and taking a little loss could result in a repeat customer.
The transaction went smoothly, but it wasn't the best outcome Li Lin had hoped for.
"I heard from my friend that you can only get crystals after Progress Day?"
"Well..." Benso hesitated and exchanged a glance with Vander, then explained, "During Progress Day, Piltover enforces the law rigorously. It's not impossible to obtain crystals, but the risk is too high."
"Are you... planning to steal them?" Caitlyn asked in surprise.
She knew that some items not allowed on the market or stolen from certain upper-city families ended up circulating in the black market in Zaun. But she never expected that these buyers of stolen goods would send their own people to steal.
"What else can we do, Miss?" Benso chuckled, finding it somewhat amusing. "We can't just conjure one up for you, can we?"
"Can it be done faster? I want the goods before Progress Day," Li Lin asked again.
"Oh, you make it sound so easy," Benso sighed theatrically. "Right now, the streets and alleys of the upper city are full of enforcers. My people can't risk going to jail..."
It seemed like Li Lin's money was not enough.
Li Lin extended two fingers, cutting off Benso's complaints. "Two gold hex for one intact crystal."
"Five hex."
"Two hex."
Benso gritted his teeth. "Four hex. This price is already very low..."
"Two hex."
"This kid, he was just acting so generously earlier, and now he's being so stingy!" Benso cursed inwardly while maintaining a smiling expression. "Three hex, okay? I can't go any lower."
Vander and Caitlyn couldn't help but cover their faces.
After thinking for a moment, Li Lin agreed, "Fine, three hex it is. But this is the price before Progress Day. If you don't find it by then, I'll pay the one-hex deal we just agreed upon."
"Alright," Benso reluctantly agreed. "Progress Day is less than half a month away. Can you come back in a week?"
"Yes, just don't disappoint me."
With the deal settled, Li Lin nodded to Vander and then walked out of the shop with Caitlyn.
"Not bad, old man. You earned quite a bit from this deal," Vander said with a grin, patting Benso's shoulder.
"Get lost, you leech! You come here every day to suck my blood!" Benso pushed him away while grumbling. "This brat is so ruthless. If it were that young upper-city kid from last time, I could have earned a few more gold hex!"
"At least you're making a profit. Look at my tavern. It's hard to find any gold coins there."
Vander raised his glass, emptied it in one gulp, then walked to the door and stopped abruptly.
Benso, noticing the sudden silence from his longtime friend, asked, "What's going on?"
"While I was bringing them here, someone was following us," Vander said with a heavy tone, making eye contact with Benso.
"Although they weren't after me, this is the Lanes..."
Vander didn't finish his sentence, but as old comrades who had faced danger together for many years, Benso easily understood his unspoken words.
"I understand," Benso said.