Chapter eight C.

The guards eyed me suspiciously as I walked through the door but did not move to bar my passage. The inside of the bank was more reminiscent of a cathedral than a standard bank on earth. Along the far wall where an altar would normally have sat, there was a long stone counter with male and female attendants helping men and women who were clearly of the nobility.

I approached one of the women behind the counter and said, "Good day, I am in need of opening an account today. As well I was wondering if I could exchange gold and silver here for currency?"

"Most certainly my Lord, we can assist you with that today." The pale-skinned elf woman said, brushing a strand of her long black hair behind her ear. "Let me just go get one of the managers and he will take you into a side office where you can conduct your business."

The elf woman politely bowed as she moved away from the desk and went into a back room. A few seconds later, she returned with a round portly man dressed in an immaculate blue robe. "Ah my Lord?" The man said, phrasing it as a question.

"Lord Grayson, Lord Eric Grayson." I offered.

"Ah yes, very good Lord Grayson if you will follow me to a side room. I would be happy to assist you today."

The man came out from around the counter and walked towards one of the doors that lined the interior of the room. I followed him in, and soon I was sitting in front of a large wooden desk with a man on one side and me on the other.

"My name is Lord Allen Roth. And I have the privilege of being one of the managers here at the imperial Royal Bank. Now how may I assist you today." The man said in a sickly-sweet slimy voice. Not all too unpleasant, but it reminded me far too much of a car salesman.

"Thank you, Lord Roth. I need to open an account today, as well as exchange large amount of raw gold and silver I was able to acquire on my expedition into the wilds of the mountains upriver."

"I'm surprised you did not already have an account Lord Grayson. But no matter. We have several accounts that may be to your satisfaction. The standard peasant and commoner accounts I do not believe would be suited for a man of your standing. So, I suggest we open a noble account. This will give you access to your funds anywhere within the Empire of Tagin, at any of our branch locations. The minimum amount that you can have within the noble account at any one time is twenty gold coins. I suggest we weigh and calculate how successful your prospecting venture was my Lord Grayson." Lord Roth said as he got up from the desk and moved to a table along the far wall. There was a large box on top of the table, and he indicated to me to come over.

"I'm afraid Lord Roth that I have been away for some time and am not current on the current exchange rate for gold?" I asked.

"Most understandable Lord Grayson. The prices do fluctuate slightly. The current exchange is 1 ounce (28g) of gold for ninety-five silver coins. Silver is currently exchanging for 2 ounces (56.7g) for three silver coins. If you would my Lord we can start with the gold. Simply place the gold in the box and it will evaluate the quality and weight."

I reached into my bag and pulled out a handful of the gold nuggets. As the handful of golden nuggets landed in the box, a number on a display in the front indicated the weight. That one handful was equal to 4.8 pounds of gold. That equated to 76.8 ounces (2.2Kg) or 7296 silver coins. "How may gold coins does that equate to?" I asked as I ready another hand full of gold.

"Let me see here my Lord. Yes…just a bit over seventy-two gold coins. Or seven gold palms, ninety-six silver." Lord Roth said as he calculated in his head while tapping his lips with his finger.

Deciding it was safe to assume that I was not going to draw too much attention with the amount of money I had in my bag, I tilted it over the box and, with a gentle focus of mana, began dumping gold nuggets in. I slowed periodically to check the number on the front and to make sure it was keeping an accurate count. The box was about three-quarters full; I slung the bag back over my shoulder.

The number on the front of the box read fifty-five and a half pounds (25.17438Kg) exactly. I looked over at Lord Roth to see if I had garnered too much attention. He had a happy smile and looked impressed but not overly so. Looks like my time dredging the river on my travels was worth it.

He saw me looking and tapped his lips a few times, "That comes to eight hundred forty-three gold and sixty silver coins. Most well done. The imperial tax on all raw minerals is set at five percent. The emperor does like to encourage prospecting even with the dungeons. The tax has already been calculated out of your total. You said you had silver as well?"

"Yes." I said as Lord Roth stored the gold in a bag and wrote down the total on a piece of paper.

I had only emptied all of the gold nuggets I had formed and brought from the ship but still had some onboard The Ever Grove. I decided I was going to get rid of all the silver nuggets, though. Lord Roth never batted an eye as I emptied nearly a hundred pounds (45.5Kg) of silver into the box. He just wrote the number down and stored the material with a wave of his hand.

After I had finished and the last was stored away, Lord Roth did a few calculations then said, "The silver comes to another twenty-four gold, after taxes of course. Added together that will place your account with us at, eight hundred and sixty-seven gold and sixty silver coins. Well done my Lord, I would say that was indeed a successful prospecting venture."

"Yes, it was a most arduous journey but I am happy at how it has paid off." I said, feigning a triumphant smile.

"Now all we have left to do is open your account and you'll be good to go. If you would be so kind as to prick your finger in place a small amount of blood on the synchronization orb." Lord Roth said, holding out a needle.

I took the needle and drew a small bead of blood, and place my finger on the large crystal orb that sat on the desk. The orb came to life as soon as the blood touched it. Lights and smoke swirled within it. As I held my finger on the orb, Lord Roth explained, "This will formulate your account with us and will grant you access at any of our branches. All that is required is a small amount of blood when withdrawing funds directly from the bank. If you are at any of the certified shops within the Empire you will be able to use your bank identification card to pay directly instead of carrying coins. This should only take a few more seconds before the card is ready and your account is finalized."

I chuckled internally at the last. Though I imagine hard currency was still a major factor within the city, it was nice to know that they had a debit card of sorts. A few more seconds passed, and then a soft chime sounded from the crystal orb. A drawer opened from the bottom of the box that the crystal orb sat on. Lord Roth picked up a coin card about the same size as the credit card. The card was a golden color and had intricate silver scripting worked all throughout it. "Here is your bank identification card, or coin card, all that is needed to do to bind it is apply another drop of blood. When using it at any of our certified vendors only you will be able to use it. So, no need to worry if it is stolen, as the card is keyed to your blood."

I took the card and smeared some blood on a small open spot. It faintly glowed in my hand, and then I received a notification with the same soft whispering voice in the back of my mind [You have soul bonded an item, Imperial Royal Bank identification card.] I placed the card in the inside top part of my onesie, where I had a pocket of sorts.

"Is there anything else I can do for you Lord Grayson?"

"Yes, if it would be possible, I would like to get one hundred silver coins and fifty gold coins?" I asked.

"Certainly." Lord Roth said as he handed me the desired amount in small pouches divided into fifty coins each. "Anything else?"

"No that should be good for now. Do you also evaluate precious gems?" I asked as I got up from the chair I was seated in.

"No, unfortunately not. By imperial law we are only allowed to exchange copper, silver, gold, platinum, mithril and adamantium." He said as I made my way out of the office.

"Good day, Lord Roth." I said,

"And Good day to you as well Lord Grayson."