Butch and Sable step out of the guild office and into a cramped armory tucked behind a blackened door. Hot oil, old steel, and whetstones sting the air. Racks of blades crowd the walls, and lantern light glints off hammer marks on every surface.
The Armorer
No coin on the bench. No gear in my hands. Keep that wax away from me.
The Armorer lifts his iron hand half an inch, then stops, staring past Butch's shoulder into the dim corners. Sable stays near the door, shield ready, watching the room more than the man.
Sable
We need travel-ready steel. Fast. What do you have that does not crack under hard use?
The Armorer
A spearhead that bites, a mail shirt with three fresh rings, and a shield boss fit for a battering. But I am not taking payment from a marked glove.
A draft skates under the door, and the lantern flames lean toward the back wall. The unlit corner there seems deeper than the rest, as if something is standing just out of sight. The Armorer edges away from it without turning his back.
✓ Quest Accepted
Acquire travel-ready gear
“I slam my coin pouch onto the counter and ask for everything he's got”
SUCCESS (Superb Intimidation, rolled +1)
Butch slams the coin pouch onto the bench. The sound cracks through the armory, and the Armorer flinches hard enough to step back from the anvil.
Butch the Wereboar
Everything you’ve got. Travel-ready.
Sable shifts aside, giving the counter space while keeping her shield turned toward the dim corner. The marked glove lies where Butch drops it, ignored for the moment.
The Armorer
Too much coin. Too much presence. And that glove is wrong.
The Armorer
Fine. Spearhead, mail, shield boss. I set them out. Touch them with that glove, and I stop the deal.
He reaches for a rack with his iron hand covered, keeping his body angled away from Butch's pouch. In the back wall's shadow, something unseen seems to draw the lantern light thinner.
Sable
Put the gear down, and stay where I can see your hands.
+ New Item Acquired
coin pouch
“Is the weird shadow debt collection stuff from years ago truly finished”
YES, AND MORE (Unlikely, rolled 1)
The shadow in the corner does not stir, yet it feels lighter, as if the weight of the moor has finally been lifted from the air.
The Armorer
The air is still. The debt is gone, and the shadow is just a shadow now.
The Armorer
The tether is broken, traveler. I can feel the coldness leaving the steel.
“Then stop being weird and give us what we're paying for”
SUCCESS (Superb Intimidation, rolled +1)
Butch's growled demand lands hard in the soot-stained room. The Armorer flinches, then reaches for the gear laid out on the bench.
Leather straps, a travel cloak, a whetstone, and a rolled bed mat slide into a rough but careful stack. Steel clinks softly as he adds a belt hook and spare buckles.
The Armorer
There. Proper road kit. No cursed fuss, no questions.
Sable lowers her shield a little, eyes still on the room, while the Armorer keeps his iron hand near the bench as if expecting the shadows to move again.
Butch the Wereboar
Then it's settled. We paid, now you hand over the rest.
The Armorer swallows, then nudges the last bundle toward Butch. The black corner stays quiet, but his glance flicks there anyway.
The Armorer
Take it. And leave clean, before the room remembers you.
Quest Complete
Acquire travel-ready gear
Skill Upgrade: Intimidation Superb→Legendary
+ New Item Acquired
leather straps
+ New Item Acquired
travel cloak
+ New Item Acquired
whetstone
+ New Item Acquired
rolled bed mat
+ New Item Acquired
belt hook
+ New Item Acquired
spare buckles