“So, what’s the difference between this Ring of Poison Warding and this Pendant of Poison Immunity?” Isolde asked. “Both can be used five times every day, and their effects seem similar.”

The staff member was clearly flummoxed by that question, and his eyes shifted to Claud, who was whiling away the time by looking at a bunch of one-use artefacts called Life Cloaks. Once activated, detection artefacts and skills that relied on detecting life would not work on the user for thirty minutes, but Claud was wondering if he could get a reusable variant of such an artefact.

“Claud, do you know what are the differences between these artefacts?” Isolde asked once more, directing the question to him.

“One prevents poison from entering the body, the other prevents poison from taking effect on the body,” Claud replied. “It is reasonable to assume that the ring has an effect similar to Cleanse, a skill one can learn from the Green God’s clergy and Blessed. The pendant is closer to Detoxify, a skill that nullifies the effects of poison in the body.”

“Great, but which one’s better?”

“You’ll have to ask how the ring works, then. Does it cleanse poisoned items that come into contact with the wearer?”

“That’s how it works, sir.”

“In that case…I advise you choose the Pendant of Poison Immunity,” Claud replied. “Most people say that prevention is better than cure, but with your skills, you’re most likely to be poisoned by tainted weapons, where you just can’t choose not to partake of the poisonous element.”

“Partake of the poisonous element. What an odd way of phrasing it.” Isolde raised the pendant to the light. “Well, I accept your advice. We’ll take two pendants, then.”

“Very good, ma’am.”

“We’ll conclude the purchase before we choose our second artefact,” said Isolde. “I need to keep an eye on the budget. Claud, can you handle the payment? I’ll go check out the other artefacts in the meantime.”

“Sure, okay.”

While he made his way towards the counter, Claud couldn’t help but think about a kid who had been authorised by his parents to make payment. With an odd look on his face, he paid for two Pendants of Poison Immunity, and then returned to where Isolde was.

“Having fun?”

“Rarely do I get to touch a platinum coin,” said Claud, passing her the second Pendant of Poison immunity, “so it was a novel experience.”

He was telling the truth here. Although high and pure-ranked lifestones were valued in platinum, the rarity and utility of these objects made it so that he would never sell them for money. Furthermore, selling lifestones of such quality was usually a reason for trouble; their value was enough for the less scrupulous lifestone shops to send out some…investigators.

The kind of investigators who carried swords. Claud, who was more averse to conflict than a sleeping baby, wasn’t going to risk his life for some money, even if it paid out in platinum coins. Besides, as it stood right now, high and pure-ranked lifestones increased his lifespan far more than middle-ranked ones, and low-ranked lifestones had no more effect on him.

“We rarely deal with platinum here,” said the attendant accompanying Isolde. “Usually we get dealings done with gold coins, or notes worth a hundred gold each.”

“Notes?” Isolde asked.

“As part of the banking reforms,” Claud replied. “It rolled out here last year, but hundred gold is still a lot of money.”

“Oh, right.”

The attendant nodded. “Furthermore, the cost-effectiveness of more expensive artefacts is lower than their cheaper counterparts, even if they have features like more uses and whatnot.”

“We pay a premium for security, after all. I got my Ring of Poison Resistance from this shop for ten gold, which is really a small price to pay, considering that it only has one-fifth the uses of the pendant we just brought,” Claud supplied.

Incidentally, the deal Claud had closed with Brilliant Green was done in gold notes too, which was one reason he wasn’t literally weighted down by money.

“I did ask for the best, after all.”

Claud nodded. “Given the nature of your...circumstances, I recommend that you spend some money to buy some lower quality artefacts too. Things that can create solid defences and obstructions, offensive artefacts that can replicate attacking skills…the more you have, the better.”

“We do have a batch of such defensive artefacts, sir.”

“Oh?” Claud paused, and then controlled himself. “We should settle her requests first, however. She needs an impeccable disguise artefact. Is there any in the selection you brought out?”

“Impeccable disguise?” Isolde asked.

“It’s going to be costly, but basically, it’s a term given to artefacts that can maintain a disguise permanently, as long as mana is supplied. The effects of these artefacts will not be dispelled upon contact with other people or objects, only when the Dispel skill or some variant of it is used,” Claud explained. “It’s the best type of artefact one can have if they want to maintain a long-term disguise.”

“Couldn’t have explained it any better,” said the attendant. “Sir, are you looking for a job? You seem very knowledgeable about artefacts.”

“Let’s just say that I love them for their utility,” Claud replied, glancing at his nametag. “Thank you for your offer, Holtman. But your boss asked me that question before, and my answer’s the same: I’ll consider it if I ever am unemployed.”

“Someone as gifted as you probably won’t be unemployed, however.”

Claud chuckled, and engaged in a few rounds of flattery with the attendant, before turning his attention onto two artefacts the attendant produced.

“The Umbral Undershirt. A specialty product of Ruler Umbra’s personal production team,” Holtman explained. “It has massive utility; one can adjust the five main identification factors with it: appearance, voice, scent, mana and life signature.”

“Wow.”

“There’s one downside, though.” Holtman smiled. “Have you heard of anyone willing to wear an inner shirt for the rest of their disguised days?”

Isolde shuddered. At the same time, a phantom itch assaulted Claud’s mind, and the master thief scratched his neck. Wearing the same thing without removing it, even if he had the Refresher, was somewhat gross to Claud, and if a seasoned master thief as great as himself felt that way…

“What’s the other artefact?” Isolde asked, her eye on the bangle. Claud could see hope in those eyes.

“It’s the Band of Duplicity. Wearers can change their identification factors to that of someone in their vision, while making some minor adjustments,” the attendant answered. “This obviously presents some issues of their own, notably the fact that you’ll be using someone else as a base template. You might end up in unwarranted trouble, or vice-versa.”

“It is better than wearing the same thing all the time, though.”

Claud nodded his head. “How much is the Band of Duplicity?”

“Four platinum.”

Isolde’s mouth fell open for a moment. Turning to Claud with a sheepish expression on her face, she said, “I don’t think I can get one for you.”

“Hmm. Forty thousand gold, right? I think I actually have that much,” Claud forced out. “I’ll take one.”

“You have that much?” Isolde asked.

“Call it my life savings,” Claud replied, his voice strained. “I’ll be surviving on apple juice from now on. But it’s crucial to preserve my life.”

“O-okay.” Isolde patted his shoulder, a hint of guilt on her face. “Stay strong.”

“Mm. I still have a thousand gold left, but I’m going to splurge on more defensive artefacts.” Claud gritted his teeth. It was okay to survive on apple juice, or failing that, he could — very reluctantly — sell some of his newly-obtained spoils at Brilliant Green.

Even if that resulted in some suspicion on him.

On me…For a moment, Claud had the makings of an inspired idea, but he couldn’t quite grasp it. After struggling fruitlessly to revive that moment of inspiration, he gave up. Making their way to the counter, Claud passed four stacks of hundred-gold notes, while Isolde watched on.

“Incidentally, what’s on the higher floors?” Isolde asked, once the transaction was complete.

“The cheaper artefacts,” Claud replied. “You get personal service on the ground floor. The higher floors, however, you’ll need a professional.”

“I’m all too happy to help, however,” said the attendant. “You two are, after all, valued customers.”

“Is there something like a membership for Artisan’s Adherence?” Claud asked, curious.

“Unfortunately, no,” Holtman replied with a shrug. “But I believe that good service from me would prompt customers to return here if they ever have the need for service.”

“That’s an interesting philosophy.” Isolde looked down on the Bangle of Duplicity. “Right, how do I tell if an artefact’s effects and the number of charges? Do I need to use it myself?”

“Look for someone with an Appraisal skill,” said the attendant. “Of course, at our famous establishment, we naturally provide skillstrips with Appraisal. I was about to pass you two some of them when I found the opportunity to do so.”

“Let me try, let me try!” Isolde, all eager, took the skillstrip and tore it into two. Claud mirrored her actions, and his vision took on a shade of purple.

[Appraisal activated. For ten minutes, you can learn the effects of mortal tools by looking at them.]

He’d used it before, so after checking that the two items were indeed the same, Claud got bored and started examining everything around him. Most of them were rather mundane, unless he was staring at an artefact, in which case lots of words would appear on the pop-up panel.

[Dress: covers the skin of someone usually of the female gender.]

[Door: Prevents and allows entry into a designated area]

[Mana Blaster: Fires a concentrated beam of mana that can only be stopped by a mana barrier of equivalent power or a stone wall three metres thick. Charges: 5/5. Time to fully recharge: 18 hours]

One had to be careful when using Appraisal, as sweeping a gaze across a shop full of artefacts would trigger a whole lot of panels to show up. It was easy to tell if someone was currently blind, as—

Something smacked into his nose, and Claud stumbled. “Isolde, what are you—oh, crap. You there, help me hold her down!”

Restraining the blinded bounty hunter with the attendant’s help, Claud forced her onto a sitting position. “Don’t move. Just relax and wait for ten minutes to pass. The panels in your vision will vanish once that happens.”

She nodded.

Exchanging helpless looks with the attendant, Claud sighed. How did this bounty hunter seem so experienced and naïve at the same time? He couldn’t quite tell.