CHAPTER 42: QUEST OR DEAL?

In the grand scheme of things, it was a tiny loss. Just 0.5 cosmic trade value.

But to Wade, it was more than that. It was an insight into the inner workings of the Dimensional Ledger.

’So this counts as a trade?’

His horse clopped slowly down the road beneath him, but his attention was on the screen still in front of him.

His first quest in which Sebastian had used to test him, when he’d gone to find the Nightbloom in Mirewood Swamp, hadn’t been a recorded trade by the Dimensional Ledger, but this one had been recorded.

’So, what’s the difference?’

He thought about it for a second, and the answer came to him.

For a deal to be a deal, there needed to be a trade of some sort. A trade between two parties.

In that quest he’d taken, it hadn’t been a deal. It had been a job.

He’d gone to the guild hall, Sebastian had picked it out, and he’d tried his best to do his job. It had been just a quest.

But when he’d negotiated for the free barrel of honey with the beekeeper, it had been a deal.

The beekeeper wanted something, and he wanted something in return. So, they’d negotiated, and a deal had been made.

It was the same thing with this trade. He’d wanted money, and the man wanted his business back.

They’d negotiated, and had settled on money in exchange for safe passage.

And so, since he failed to deliver, it had been a loss in the Dimensional Ledger. After all, even though he hadn’t put much effort into it, he had upheld his part of the deal from Crowhill to this place.

That meant he’d put in a little bit of work, and had nothing to show for it.

If he’d escorted the man all the way to Hiving, and the man hadn’t paid him, it would’ve been a bigger loss.

’If I was going to take a loss anyways, this is probably the best case scenario.’

He smiled to himself. At least he got a dungeon key and a barrel of honey out of it.

A few minutes later, he caught up to the larger group.

Rowan and his men had caught the beekeeper, and now, their horses surrounded the oxen as they led them back to Crowhill.

As they passed, the beekeeper caught sight of Wade. "Adventurer! Help us! Please!"

One of Rowan’s men leaned from his horse, giving the beekeeper a whack on the head with his club.

The man’s voice only rose as he pleaded with Wade, and the thug began beating him, forcing him to shut up.

Wade simply glanced at Rowan, who refused to even look at Wade, his eyes looking straight ahead.

Wade glanced at the beekeeper, who was being beaten, before shaking his head. There was nothing he could do about this.

At least not now.

This was the reality the guilds had made possible. A world in which only the richest wins.

Wade sighed, his mind on his dungeon key.

One day, he would stand at the top. And when that day came, he would fashion the world in the way he wanted.

And so he continued on his way.

He soon reached Hiving, making his way through the gates and to the stable to return the horse.

Then, he walked through the city, trying to find his way back to his new apartment.

A few minutes later, he was sure he was lost.

’What the hell?’ he turned this way and that, wondering if this was the road he’d passed when he’d been on his way to Crowhill.

That was when he remembered that he hadn’t gone to Crowhill directly from his house. He’d gone from the apothecary.

He retraced his steps back to the gates, then from there, to the apothecary.

And from there, it was easy to get back to his apartment.

When the familiar building was finally in front of him, he exhaled in relief. Later, he’d have to walk from his house to the city gates.

Or better still, he’d have to find a day he’d use to wander the city. It was large, but nowhere near as large as an earth city.

He was sure he’d be able to familiarize himself with the major roads in a day. The nooks and crannies would take longer.

He was about to go up to his apartment when he remembered he had clothes to collect.

And so, he entered the shop below his apartment, the bell jingling above the door.

The assistant that had answered the first time was there, waiting. "Welcome, sir." The young man bowed slightly.

"Hi." Wade nodded. "Are my clothes ready?"

"Yes, sir." The assistant nodded. "But I’m afraid master James is not in at the moment."

"That’s okay." Wade waved his words away. "I don’t need to see him. I’m here just for my clothes. Can I have them?"

"Right away sir." The assistant moved to the side, retrieving a package. "Here you go."

Wade collected it with both hands. It was a fairly bulky but light package, wrapped in large pieces of paper, and bound by colored rope.

Wade moved it into his inventory, and with a final nod, left the shop.

He made his way upstairs to his apartment, unlocked the door, and made his way inside.

He immediately walked to the couch and slumped onto it, sighing in relief.

It has been a long day. All he needed was a nap. Then later, he’d go over his rewards.

[][][][][]

Sebastian knocked on the door, waiting.

"Come in." The voice sounded from inside, and he opened the door.

The office was cramped, with every available wall crammed with cabinets.

In the middle was a table, and it was overflowing with various documents.

From what Sebastian could see, the documents were related to the operations of the guild. But he tore his eyes away from it, focusing on the woman sitting behind the table.

"You called for me," he said.

"Yes, I did." Handler Calista said, putting aside the document she was reviewing. "Your party just completed a dungeon run, right?"

"Yes, we did." Sebastian nodded.

"Good. Give me your report on Wade Barrett."