(xv.)

The troublesome party began kicking up a fuss, looming threateningly over the grizzled dwarf. One of the taller members had the audacity to attempt to use the shopkeeper's head as a rest for their elbow only to have it immediately slapped away. That was all it took for the old dwarf to get fed up and kick them out. Bodily.

“A party of Rubies! You mean a sack of shit, don't you?!” The dwarf exclaimed derisively at the groaning pile of bodies. “I damn well don't even want you in my shop if you're not at least Emerald! Asking for a discount and disrespecting my personal space? You whelps are little more than stretched out skeletons! Get the hell out and do some damn running, and not with your mouths this time, either!”

Oh my. Well, I'm sure he didn't mean that personally. I'm a perfectly nice skeleton, thank you very much! Er, lich. Not that he'd know, anyway.

Nevertheless, Lazarus found himself straightening his helm self-consciously before he skirted around the struggling flesh heap. He walked into the shop and flashed the Emerald gem on his card to Ashbard who smirked knowingly at him in return.

“Now, don't you try to haggle down my prices either, boy. They are more than fair,” he warned.

Lazarus nodded to the shopkeeper and waltzed up to the counter. The shop was filled with a vast array of goods that he did not recognize as well as many items that would seem commonplace in a sporting goods shop. The back wall was stocked with basic camping gear: ropes, metal spikes,

simple tents, and sleep rolls were neatly arranged. Two tables were dedicated to knives of all types. Boxes of rations were stacked high in the corners.

“Aye, so what you want, boy?” Back to business, the dwarf leaned against the till.

“I'm looking to purchase supplies that will last me until I reach the monster invaded country. Your shop came highly recommended.”

The dwarf snorted. “You mean the recently fallen Tal Kingdom? That's quite a ways away. You have a team with you or is it just yourself?”

Lazarus considered the potential complications of assembling a team for a moment before answering, “Just myself.”

What if I wanted to have a nice, hot bath? I wouldn't dream of soaking in this armor! Not to mention having to stop for someone else to eat. That's another issue entirely. Perhaps the lonely life of a researcher isn't so different from an adventurer's, after all.

“Hmm. I can getcha an adventurer's kit with all the basic tools for 10 gold. The map that will get you from here to there, though, that will be 50 gold considering they don't make them anymore.” Ashbard scratched at his beard thoughtfully. “That's a good deal for you, son, especially since you have not been rude to me.”

“I've found it beneficial not to treat sentient beings like so much furniture. Anything else you would recommend for a new adventurer?”

The dwarf barked a short laugh before the lich's words set in. “Hang on. I thought your rank is Emerald, or did my eyes stop working?”

“That's correct,” Lazarus replied, setting his card on the counter for inspection. “My rank is Emerald. I just passed the paid assessment.”

The dwarf was utterly taken aback. Sputtering, he snatched the card from the counter and turned it over in his meaty hands.

“You passed that un-passable farce of a test? I remember when I started out I fell for that test, meself! They kicked my ass by beast and by man! Before it was all over I got the same Quartz card as everyone else, but you... you passed it!” Impressed, Ashbard handed the card back. He then leaned over the counter and whispered, “So who did they put you up against in the fourth test?”

“Ah, Madris, was it? Tall, haughty elf with a lot of knives?”

Ashbard laughed out loud, tears streaming down his ruddy cheeks. “Whoo! 'Bout time someone whooped her tight ass! She is no other than the same one I faced in my test. Ye gods, that bitch has a complex.”

Lazarus smiled to himself.

“Well.” The lich cleared his throat. “That aside, I'm looking to leave the country to help reclaim the Tal Kingdom as soon as possible.”

“Aye. It may be a fool's errand, but you seem a capable sort. The supplies we discussed should do just fine, unless you require rations?”

“That won't be necessary,” Lazarus replied smoothly, waving the dwarf's concerns away. “I have 30 gold on me; let me run back to the guild to get the rest, if you don't mind.”

Ashbard smiled. “Good lad. You should see if you can grab quests off the job board for the Tal Kingdom while you're over there. I'm not going anywhere. I'll have your order ready by the time you get back. Bring me an extra 5 gold, and I'll give you some extra valuable information to go with it all.”

Lazarus ran back over to the guild and Linda, and withdrew the necessary gold for the supplies.

“I see he sold you on the adventurer's full load out. Really good buy, overall. But 65 gold?”

“There were some... unforeseen complications in the navigational department. But nevermind,” he said, seeing the glazed over look in her eyes.

“I... see. Well, you get some extra junk you may not use in the kit but it's well worth the price.” She handed Lazarus the gold. “Your account has 65 gold remaining.”

“Thank you. Do you have any quests for the Tal Kingdom reclamation while I'm here?”

“Ye-es, we have many. The Tal nobility fled ahead of time with much of the wealth of the country so we have all kinds of quests for monster extermination throughout the entire region. As an Emerald rank adventurer you can accept the monster extermination quest and it will count as a completed quest for every 10 monsters you kill of normal difficulty.

“If you run into a higher level monster, killing it could count as its own reward. Your guild card will keep track of your kills so when you turn in the quests just provide your guild card.”

Lazarus turned the card over a few times.

“That's convenient. What doesn't this little card do?”