CHAPTER 07 - The Hard Sell
The handsome man held an arm in front of his chest and bowed politely. "Kaelition Xyrosia IV, at your service."
I could only nod in return. "Jeremy Dodd... at yours."
"A fledgling Rogue, I see! Tell me, good sir, have you yet to join a guild?"
Mrs. Zurax found the information she was searching for and spoke before I could respond. "Yes, yes, here we are... representatives from the Sterling Seekers came to the village recently. Perhaps they're still in the area--"
"Lady Zurax!" Kaelition held out his hands as if seeing an old friend for the first time in years, and moved towards the counter. "Ever so wonderful to see you again, madam. Are you taking good care of my new friend Jeremy, here?"
Mrs. Zurax squinted and her lip curled. "Oh... it's you again."
"My timing seems quite fortuitous! Jeremy, were you," he bowed to Ves, "and your
enchanting
companion here interested in speaking to the Seekers' representatives? Why,
we
are those very representatives!"
My eyes widened as I noticed the other person that Kaelition was talking about. With her tall, slender figure, her flowing, silvery hair, and - most notably - her long, pointed ears, she was unmistakably an elf. Most likely some kind of mage, by her outfit. She wore a tight dress that was low-cut enough to put an ample amount of cleavage on display, and had a long slit that revealed little more than a tease of her shapely legs. This was capped off with a shimmering cloak that seemed to billow ever so slightly, despite the lack of a breeze in the village hall.
Ves and Thia were both beautiful women, even while in a dark cave, fighting a giant rat monster. This elven woman looked like she had put a
lot
of work into her appearance, with sensational results. That said... while she was undeniably sexy, her body language and cold expression gave the immediate impression that she had no interest in interacting with anyone in this village.
Ves responded, making me worried that I had been staring at the silver-haired elf. "Yeah, we found one of your guild members in a nearby cave." She held out the coin to Kaelition, who took it and clutched it in his fist, a pained expression on his face.
"And so ends the mystery of our missing comrade... He was a new Rogue - like you, Jeremy - and joined our assignment to Perrenbrook as part of his training. He
insisted
that he could train on his own. Poor lad. We should have been there for him."
A tear ran down Kaelition's face, and I was a little caught off-guard by the fact that his feelings about the loss of the beginner adventurer were genuine. The elven woman's expression hadn't changed. Kaelition cleared his throat, and somehow stood up straighter. "Ullun, let us never forget the lesson imparted unto us today. Even those with extensive potential can fall unexpectedly. There is a reason why we form parties, and none should take even the simple act of training lightly."
The broad-shouldered man took a deep breath. "What happened to young Gev will never happen to another member of the Sterling Seekers; not if there's anything that I can say about it. Jeremy, I would consider it a personal failing if I didn't at least converse with you about the many benefits of joining our humble guild."
Fuuuuck. I've accidentally made eye contact with the guy working a kiosk and now I'm getting a sales pitch.
"Actually, uh, I just got into town and I need to settle in, rest, you know, eat something."
"Then a meal you shall have! Courtesy of the Seekers, of course." Kaelition bowed to Ves again. "My lady, I would be honored if you would join us, as well."
"No fuckin' way."
"Then I shall only borrow your companion for a short while! Until we meet again, my dear Mrs. Zurax."
The elderly goblin made a "meh" sound and turned away.
"Jeremy, Ullun, let us make our exit." Kaelition put a burly arm around my shoulder and escorted me out of the building. I tried to ignore the fading sounds of Ves's snickering.
The guild representatives took me to a nearby inn that also served food and drinks. Kaelition loudly ordered the soup of the day, and the middle-aged human innkeeper seemed more than happy to comply. "Right away, Lord Xyrosia."
"Please, madam, we're all friends here! Call me Kael. And that goes for you, too, Jeremy." I sat down at the opposite side of the table from the others.
The handsome, horned man immediately dove into his speech, talking about the benefits of joining the Sterling Seekers. Most of it went over my head, as he talked about elements of adventuring that sounded too mundane to include in a typical game, amounts of money that meant nothing to me yet, and types of magical items that I had never heard of before. The expressions on his face implied that everything he was saying was meant to be impressive, though.
The innkeeper set down a bowl of piping-hot soup for each of us. Since I wasn't able to get a word in anyway, I started eating. It wasn't half-bad - not something I might order back home, given the chance, but the feeling of warmth it gave me was very comforting. Ullun, the sexy elf, only took tiny spoonfuls and sipped them elegantly.
"And, of course, you'll have the opportunity to train with seasoned adventurers like our own Ullun, here." Kael gave me a quick wink, and that's when it hit me: Ullun was there for marketing purposes. She reminded me of a bored model working a trade show. I wasn't sure how I could tell, but something about her gave off the impression that she really was a powerful mage - maybe the sheer force of her magic was radiating from her. How much of her attitude had to do with her having to present as a sort of eye candy to recruit new members, and how much of it was just her personality?
Kael perked up, noticing something behind me. "Speaking of lovely adventurers! Jeremy, allow me to introduce you to my younger sister, Aralithia."
I turned to see none other than Thia, who looked truly pleased to see me, giving me a warm, but composed, smile. "I've already had the pleasure of making his acquaintance, brother, although we did not have the opportunity to properly introduce ourselves." Thia bowed deeply as I quickly rose to my feet to return the gesture. "Aralithia Xyrosia. It's an honor."
"The honor's all mine..." I moved over so Thia could sit at the table next to me. The first thing I thought when seeing Kael was that his hair, complexion, and horns reminded me of Thia, but I didn't want to assume any kind of relation between the two. Kael was also significantly taller and, well, beefier than Thia, so if I had learned that they weren't actually related, I wouldn't have been all that surprised.
Kael was overjoyed. "Marvelous! Pray tell, sister, how did you happen to encounter our potential new recruit, Jeremy?"
"I... thought I might take an opportunity to practice with my new class while we were here. I partnered with a local Vitality Mage, and we sought a cave rat queen in a cave, outside of the village."
My head whipped in Kael's direction as the man gasped dramatically. "The very cave in which young Gev met his gruesome end?" He brought a clenched fist to his chest and lowered his head as Thia covered her mouth with her hand.
"W-what happened to Gev?"
