[Hypnosis failed.]
"Hrm…That's weird," Eveline mumbled to herself, rubbing her head as if feeling a light headache.
'A simple command like that failed? Is this girl actually powerful or something?!' He questioned.
"Ah, well, five sounds fair enough, I suppose," Eveline continued speaking, agreeing on the haggled price.
"Wait, what? Really?" Blake asked in surprise.
Even though the hypnosis had failed, he found his suggested bargain still being accepted, somehow.
The girl with glasses laughed, "I'm really bad at haggling! If I'm being honest, I just want to see newcomers succeed!"
"Well, how about this…To make it more even, I'll give you ten gold even if you throw something else in," Blake offered, "I'll let you pick, since you're the expert and all."
The deal seemed to delight the magic-enamored woman as she clapped her hands together in excitement.
"Oh, leave it to me!" Eveline claimed.
He watched as the passionate shop keeper ran around, rummaging through a variety of magical tools.
Meeting the woman at the counter, he found alongside the fiery orb was a silver bracelet. There was a single, cerulean gem inlaid in it, catching his eye.
"That's a Bubble Brace! I take it you're not very knowledgeable when it comes to magecraft, right?" Eveline asked.
"Correct," he confirmed.
"It'll let you conjure water in the form of magic bubbles!" Eveline claimed, noticing the unimpressed look on the customer's face. "Woah, I see that look! It's more effective than it sounds, trust me! Besides that, it's a great tool for beginners to help you get a feel for your own mana."
Though it hardly sounded like an all-powerful boon that would decimate his enemies, he decided to listen to the much more knowledgeable person's advice.
"Alright, I'll take it," he said, opening the sack on his belt as he retrieved the appropriate currency.
"Great! Best of luck on your journey!" The shop worker bowed her head.
"Thanks," he said, stuffing the orb into his pocket and slipping the bracelet on his right wrist.
Leaving the store, he felt completely in line with the adventurers he saw roaming the town, equipped with his own mystical gear to lead him on his way.
'I'll need to find a ride to Emerald Mountain soon. I don't know a damn foot of this world. Before that, the old man mentioned something about hiring somebody from the town guild,' he recalled.
It just so happened in the direction he was staring off at that he saw the prominent, large building made of fine stone with a large sign: "TOWN GUILD."
"Bingo," he quietly said.
There were an assortment of individuals coming in and out of the establishment that fit the criteria: scarred, grizzled men in battle-worn armor, amongst mages that carried staffs that looked capable of breaking the Geneva Convention.
He stood up straight and puffed his chest out, walking in such a way to appear larger than he was as he walked past the seasoned adventurers.
They didn't even seem to notice his presence as he walked through, entering the town guild through a pair of swinging doors.
'Here we go…Woah,' he thought.
The scenery inside was straight out of a fantasy story, in his geeky mind. Dwarves drank at the tables; elves stared daggers into the stout drinkers; cat girls that wiggled their ears at the loud environment.
"Comin' through!"
Blake found his shoulder brushed against as a person pushed past him in a hurry. A young woman stumbled by, wearing a green cloak that covered her head. She seemed to be an archer, going by the quiver on her back, though lacking a bow.
He watched as the hurried girl ran over to the reception desk, stopping as she placed her hands on her legs to catch her breath.
"I need to turn in this quest! Right away!" The young woman in the verdant cloak said, placing a scrunched up paper on the desk.
Blake didn't know what was going on, though watched as the receptionist–an older woman with short, brown hair and a uniform like that of a butler–read the document and handed out the payment.
The girl mumbled as she collected the quest reward, counting every coin, "...This will be enough. I can't believe I lost my bow...How the heck would I survive Emerald Mountain without one?"
He overheard the tired mutters of the girl, deciding to tap her on the shoulder to get her attention before she ran off again.
"Ah!" She jumped up, turning to face him, holding her coin purse in her hands, "Oh, you're the guy I bumped into, right? My bad! I was kind of in a hurry, heh…I'm Emma, by the way."
The girl seemed to be of similar age to him, with a height just below his chin. What he took notice of right away was her bright, scarlet hair that brought out the vibrance in her emerald irises.
"Don't worry about that.. Actually, I heard you mention Emerald Mountain. Are you heading up there?" He asked, introducing himself, "I'm Blake. Kind of new around here, but I was about to head there myself."
"I am–wait, you're going up there, too? Emerald Mountain isn't any place for newcomers!" Emma warned him, though stepped closer as she took a look at his outfit, taking notice of the scabbard and the enchanted bracelet, "...Well, you do seem pretty capable."
"Do I? Well, I was actually coming here to find somebody to accompany you. I'd be willing to let you come along, all expenses paid for–including a new bow for you, if you're good enough," Blake offered with a smirk.
The condition produced a fiery smile from the scarlet-haired, bowless archer as she placed her hands on her hips, looking up at him, "If I'm good enough? I'll have you know I can shoot two sparrows out of the sky, with one arrow!"
"Alright, I believe you," Blake said.
"Wait, you do?" Emma asked, blinking a few times.
"Sure. Now, let's get you a bow before we head out. If you end up being dead weight, you'll have to pay me back," Blake said, beginning to leave the building.
"I won't be dead weight!" Emma shouted, following right behind.
There was something appealing about the young woman he encountered, perhaps how easy it was to talk with her, or her can-do attitude, but he felt she was the perfect person to go on his first expedition with.
He followed along as she brought him to her preferred weapon shop, having to stick around for an entire hour while the energetic archer picked out the bow she wanted. Of course, he tried recommending the cheapest one, but that was promptly denied.
"This one!" Emma picked out her desired bow, lifting one that was made of a snow-white wood with enigmatic engravings on it.
"Oh, that one there is fifteen gold," the shop owner said–a muscular, bald-headed man that was nicer than he looked.
"Fifteen?!" Blake reacted.
"It's pricey, but you're paying for the quantity and sheer efficiency at slaying uglies," the deep-voiced owner said with a shrug.
As much as it pained his frugal self, after a failed attempt to hypnotize the man into lowering the price, he forked over the chosen price.
"You better be Hawkeye with that thing…" Blake muttered, looking at his newfound companion.
Emma held the bow in her hands, playing with the string like a child that had just received a christmas present, "I don't know who that is, but this'll do great! Thanks!"