Chapter 89

A Monster Among Humans.

Thrush

The road to Greditch city was narrow, overgrown and misshapen by neglect. It was devoured by nature. The road was pierced by teeth made of dandelions, knapweed, and sow-thistle. Tree roots lay like serpent tongues across the way.

Three hot suns and four glowing moons circled overhead as I traveled. The mornings laid out crystal drops of dew upon the leaves that fell from the canopy through brilliant sunlight before being robbed by the heat of the day.

A shepherd drove his sheep up the road with great difficulty. His sheep trembled and bleated in fear. Though I concealed myself in my cloak, the sheep still knew. The shepherd didn’t and he scratched his head at the herd that put their heads down and made themselves small as I passed through them.

I followed the tracks of the sheep down the long road. They brought me to the outskirts of Greditch city. Every building had thatched roofs. The roads were paved with dirt and cut with wagon wheels. The compact city shimmered in the haze of the day.

In the haze was a figure beside the road, just outside the city wall. Beneath his seated form was a cushion with tassels on the corners. The wagon behind him was new and filled with used wares and weapons. The wood of the wagon was glossy. The figure waved and smiled when I approached. I tightened my cloak around me and hid my face in the hood.

“Merchant?” I asked.

“Perceptive,” the man said. “The name’s Lionel. Need anything?”

Lionel’s inventory came up and I browsed until coming to some fish. I licked my lips.

“Hungry?” Lionel said. “I’ve also got red meat, fruit, sprouts, and corn.”

“I’m always hungry,” I said.

“Tell me about it, I had some of that corn this morning and you would not believe what a little bit of butter on grilled corn can do for a man. You’ll see that I have some butter there for an equally fair price as well. You must be hungry having come down from Lunstad, I'm guessing.”

“Did I miss Lunstad?” I said.

“Miss Lunstad? You came down from further north than Lunstad? You must be hungry! It’s a good thing that I’m here!”

“I'm so hungry I could eat a horse,” I said. “Or a human. Haha.”

Lionel bubbled with laughter.

“We all feel that hungry sometimes, don’t we?” He said.

“Do you know where I can find people?”

“A lonely traveler, starving for some company. I understand the plight. How long has it been since you’ve seen a person? Try the Reedy Tavern just in town. A word of warning though, the food is atrocious. Rancid. They only serve day-olds. Nothing close to fresh fish, fresh butter, and fresh corn. Just saying.”

“I’d love to eat everything you have,” I said. “Unfortunately, I have to be a picky eater for the moment.”

“Ah, yes,” Lionel said with a knowing nod and a wink. “The butter is separate so you can just have yourself some healthy fish and corn!”

Hmm.

[You have entered Negotiations.]

“Alright,” Lionel said as he adjusted himself and rubbed his hands together. “Everything is priced at a steal!”

I mentally picked the pair of catfish which enlarged over the inventory screen, leaving the rest of the inventory in shadow. They were selling for 30 copper. I wanted them for later, but mostly to level up my merchant skills.

[Merchant Options.]

[Purchase 2 catfish for 30 copper.]

[Haggle the price.]

[Negotiate add-ons.]

[Continue shopping.]

[…more options.]

Haggle the price, I thought. More options came up under the new category, offering different ways to end up haggling.

[Complain about the price.]

[Feign sticker shock.]

[Bluff disinterest.]

[Lowball an offer.]

[Accuse of price gouging.]

“Thirty copper for catfish,” I said.

“It’s the size of them,” Lionel said.

“I’ll pass on the price.”

“You might find cheaper fish in town, but at half the size of these bad boys.”

“I’m not thirty-coppers hungry.”

“You will be when you see the prices in town.”

“Are you saying that I’ll probably look back and think I should have bought fish from you.”

“Exactly.”

“Or perhaps I’ll find something else to eat. You don’t have any squash, do you?”

“No squash.”

“At thirty copper, I think I’ll go vegetarian. I doubt I’ll have trouble finding vegetables for sale in the city.”

“Tell you what, how about twenty five copper.”

Following my merchant prompts, I was able to secure the pair of catfish for 20 copper. Lionel frowned by the end of our negotiations, muttering that he would never usually go that low. He’d surprised himself by agreeing to my final offer.

“Thank you,” I said. “Take care.”

“One more thing, stranger,” Lionel said. “Be careful if you venture down the eastern road. There’s a bandit camp. They’ve attacked multiple travelers since the summer began. There’s a bounty on them if you’re that sort of adventurer.”

I thanked him and entered Greditch city like a living shadow. Although the streets were busy, it was quiet. Many looks passed my way. I heard the people whisper. I smelled a trepidation in the air.

The residents were hesitant to give me directions, draped in black as I was. I offered no explanation and they didn’t seem to mind so much after I showed interest in the bounty on the bandits. All that mattered to them was getting rid of the bandit nuisance.

“Can’t miss them,” a woman said. “Straight down this road. They’ve set camp off the road where it makes its first curve.”

I found those bandits exactly where the road curved. Smiles slit their faces as they surrounded me. When I deposited my cloak into my inventory, I saw fear chill their blood. Each of the bandits stiffened.

They stood no chance against me. I massacred them. Each one fell to a swift death. Not one of the thirteen men dealt me any damage. I ate their bodies and organized all of their affairs into my expanding inventory. I ripped apart their base made of sharpened logs and stacked them in my inventory. I added so much weight that stones burst when I stepped on them. I tried but couldn’t see where I stepped because my belly was bigger than it had ever been.

My belly grumbled. My beastly fingers elongated. They paled and then tanned with a combination of skin colors. My fur receded, and my hands looked human, but goblin-shaped. My head shrunk and I grew by a few inches. The shapes of my nose, chin, and mouth changed. My hind paws morphed into a semblance of human feet.

After belching long and loud, I realized that my satiation had reached 160%; my human composition, 37%. As a result of my high satiation, I knew I’d be forced to rest, so I waddled far out into nature, fell onto my back, and fell into a deep snoring sleep.