Chapter 573 Roderick
When Kaizen and Nix finally emerged from the sewers, the sun bothered their eyes that were used to the darkness. The foul smell of the sewers was still permeated in their clothes, only not as strong as before.
"That was amazing!" exclaimed Nix, still a little out of breath. 'We defeated a sewer abomination! That's going to be the talk of the town for a long time."
Kaizen smiled, feeling satisfied with the outcome of the battle. "It really was a great fight. We worked well as a team, Nix. If it weren't for your daggers, we might still be fighting that abomination."
Nix blushed slightly at the compliment, but soon smiled back. "Thank you, Klaus. You were impressive too. Your speed and your skill with the sword made a big difference in the battle."
"So, what was your mission? You didn't want to tell me." Kaizen asked, wiping some of the goo that was still stuck in his hair.
"Oh, that's right. The goal of my mission was 'Find out what's disrupting Pokkir's sewer system and put an end to it'." She replied.
"Ow! This game and its less than intuitive objectives and missions. Anyway, glad you managed to complete it."
"That reminds me, I have to split the drops with you..." She said, opening her system.
"No, it's not necessary. We made a deal, didn't we? Just walk me to where Roderick is, if you can." Kaizen stated. "If he knows you as well as you claim, he might give me a discount."
Nix smiled and nodded. "That's right."
Without wasting any time, Kaizen and Nix left the sewers and returned to the normal streets of the city. The cold and damp atmosphere of the sewers gave way to the warm yet icy air of the city.
On the way, everyone who passed them made sour comments or expressions because of the odor they were in, which made Kaizen and Nix look at each other several times and laugh a lot.
They headed towards the hills of Pokkir, where they hoped to find the mysterious merchant. After a few minutes of walking, they spotted Old Roderick's wooden wagon parked among some trees. The wagon was packed with trunks and boxes, each containing seemingly valuable items, and as it was almost dusk, Old Roderick was already preparing things to leave.
Roderick was an old man, with a white beard and keen eyes. He had a large belly and wore a beret to hide his baldness, although he had a very voluminous moustache.
Upon seeing Nix, Roderick cracked a wide friendly smile, but upon realizing there was a man with her, the smile quickly faded.
"Ah, hello, Nix and.... stranger. What brings you to me today?" said Old Roderick in a puzzled voice.
The woman took the initiative to speak. "Hello, Roderick! Are you willing to do business?"
"I am always willing to do business. What is the demand of the time?" He inquired.
Kaizen stepped forward. "I am in search of Teleportation Crystals for the Kingdom of Tretidian. I have heard that you may have rare and valuable items in your wagon. Would it be possible to find those crystals here?"
Old Roderick squinted his eyes and appraised Kaizen from head to toe. "Who is this man, Nix? I've never seen him around here."
"His name is Klaus. Rest assured, he can be trusted."
At that, Roderick nodded and rubbed his chin, pondering Kaizen's words. "Teleportation crystals for Tretidian, hmm? I do indeed possess some interesting items, but these crystals are rare, even in my reserves. However, I may be willing to trade with you."
Nix intervened once more. "What is the price?"
"Five thousand gold coins."
Kaizen's eyebrows arched and his jaw dropped. 5,000 gold coins was the equivalent of 50,000 dollars. Kaizen wasn't crazy to pay that amount just to get a quicker ride home.
"You've got to be crazy..." Kaizen muttered, turning his back to walk away.
Nix smiled briefly at Roderick and hurried over to speak to Kaizen.
"Hey, wait, man. That's just the way Old Roderick is. He's not nice to anyone he doesn't know and he often overcharges for the items he has, especially the rarer ones. You need to bargain with him though." She said.
"Fine, but if he doesn't lower the price, I definitely won't buy it."
"Don't worry, you'll get that crystal out of here today. Let me negotiate for you." Nix smiled and whispered, "Pay attention to me and learn."
Kaizen was a little surprised by her teasing, however she was the one who had a relationship with this merchant.
"We have something to offer in return." Nix said, to pique Roderick's curiosity.
"What is it?" The old man asked, crossing his arms.
"We found a mysterious substance in the sewers, a kind of virus that infected rats, but also seemed alive.... We are willing to share it with you. Perhaps it might be of interest to you."
The merchant looked puzzled. "A mysterious substance, you say? Well, I am always curious about rare and unknown items. Show me what you have."
Nix then presented the samples of the greenish substance he had collected in the sewers. Elder Roderick looked carefully at the samples, examining them in the dim sunlight. His eyes sparkled with interest.
"This is really interesting." he said, scratching his beard. "This substance may have value in certain circles of alchemy and magic. I am willing to make a trade with you."
Hope grew in Kaizen and Nix's hearts. They could hardly believe that they were about to get what they had been looking for.
"You give me all you have of that substance, and I will give you a Teleportation Crystal to the Tretidian Realm." proposed Old Roderick.
"I can't give you everything. I need at least a part to prove to the association that I have completed the mission I took." Nix replied.
"Very well, then I want most of that substance and 500 gold pieces."
"But 500 gold coins is the normal value of a Teleportation Crystal like that. You'll just get the substance for free." Kaizen stated.
The old man shrugged, as if he didn't care. "That's business, man, just business."
Kaizen and Nix exchanged glances, assessing the merchant's proposal. They knew the substance could be valuable to them in the future, but the opportunity to obtain the Teleportation Crystal now and return home immediately was too tempting to ignore.
"All right, we agree to the trade." Kaizen said, firming his decision."
*
After concluding the deal and the exchange, Kaizen and Nix walked a little ways away from Roderick's carriage to say their goodbyes. They returned to the city of Pokkir for a while, and Nix spoke of how he planned to report the discovery of the source of the infection to the other adventurers so that they could take steps to contain the problem should it resurface.
Finally, Kaizen thanked Nix for his help and wished him good luck on his mission.
"If you need anything or if you want to join me in some other adventure, just look me up in the Capital of the Kingdom of Tretidian. My store is called Feather and Raven." Kaizen said, more mockingly than seriously.
Nix nodded with a smile. "I'll certainly do that. It was an honor to fight alongside you, Klaus. Goodbye!"
Kaizen smiled and, with an involving glare, returned to the Tretidian Capital.