Dungeon of Niflheim

Chapter 57: Chapter 57: Alcohol shopping

Frost had never seen gold coins before, but he knew the value of them.

‘100 silvers,’ he sucked in a sharp breath as he realised the amount placed on the table. Maya however was unfazed; she’d seen treasures far more valuable and had seen coins of much higher value before.

“The investigation of a new monster lair is usually priced at 50 silvers, that’s what we paid the Glacial scions. The work you did defending Luna and Leo from the red hawk bandits as well as the other person.” Bastion didn’t reveal Alex’s name since Kamey was still in the room and he didn’t want her to be involved.

“Would count as at least a D-rank bodyguard quest on the behalf of a noble, going for anywhere between 25 and 50 silvers depending on the opponents and destination. The remaining gold coin is my personal thank you for saving my niece and nephew as well as young members of this guild branch.” Bastion then pushed the two gold coins to Frost after explaining his reasons. Kamey initially wanted to oppose at least some of the payment since she didn’t know the full story, but it was the guild masters own money, so it wasn’t her place.

There was silence in the room, Bastion had his head lowered in thanks, Kamey with her mouth agape unsure on how to act, Maya who was staring at Frost waiting for him to react and Frost whose gaze was fixed on the gold coins as multiple thoughts went through his head.

‘That’s gold, 2 gold coins, that’s more than 5 times the current amount I have on hand, that’s 2000DP if exchanged.’ His mind raced as he suddenly felt rich and had the urge to go shopping. His daze was broken by Maya nudging him with her elbow.

“.... Thank you, guild master, for your generosity.” Frost didn’t quibble about receiving payment in gold coins. Bastion had already told him of his reasons and the guild receptionist Kamey wasn’t interrupting so the numbers probably checked out.

.....

He picked up the two gold coins and calmly placed then into the coin purse stored in his sleeves, tapping it a few times instinctively.

Bastion smiled, he was happy that Frost chose to accept the money, a weight was lifted from his shoulders allowing him to relax somewhat.

It was at this time that a knock was heard on the guild master’s door along with the sound of a middle-aged man.

“Guild master it’s time for your meeting with the merchant guild leader.” The man didn’t open the door only reporting the information before walking away.

Bastion sighed and clicked his tongue, but he had his duties.

“Sorry about this, looks like we need to cut this discussion short.” Bastion stood up and nodded towards Kamey who nodded back.

“It was lovely to meet the two of you, if you could come over tomorrow morning, we can go the lord’s manor together.” Bastion patted Frost’s and Maya’s shoulders before returning to his desk to prepare for his next meeting. Kamey moved to guide Frost and Maya out.

“See you tomorrow guild master.”

“See you tomorrow guild master.” Frost and Maya both bade farewell with a smile before following Kamey out of the office.

As they walked down the stairs, they passed a much older gentlemen who was lavishly dressed and had a calculating look. His gaze quickly examined Frost and Maya as they passed, his brows raised ever so slightly as he gave a gentle nod before facing forward again.

‘He must be the merchant guild leader.’ Frost could feel that he was being analysed not for his strength but based on his appearance, attire, and aura and that the old man was impressed. Kamey confirmed his guess.

“That’s the current guild leader of the Furano merchant guild, he holds a similar status to our guild master.” Kamey whispered in a very respectful manor, she treated him with great importance.

“Thanks to his skill and charisma the commerce capabilities of the Furano viscounty have vastly improved in the past decades....” Her tone grew soft and sympathetic.

“Such as shame that’ll end soon.” She felt pained as she watched the merchant guild leader elegantly walk up the steps to the guild masters office.

Frost and Maya grew intrigued, their urge for gossip growing however before they could ask for more details Kamey cut them off.

“But that’s not important.” They had reached the bottom of the stairs, the main area of the guild hall.

“Congratulations on your guild promotion, I hope you’ll continue to bring glory to our branch, bye bye.” Kamey politely bowed before returning back to behind the reception desk to continue her regular work leaving Frost and Maya a little out of sorts.

“That’s a flag, right?” Frost leaned over and asked Maya.

“Yes, young master, it’s highly likely we’ll somehow end up involved with the merchant guild, I’m sure of it.” Maya was a big fan of novels and had told Frost multiple things, flags were one of those things. Whenever you talk about something unrelated to you or something with low chance of actually happening, chances are it will. Maya was filled with excitement of being involved in a possible flag situation, she couldn’t control the wide smile that formed on her face and the laughter slipping past her lips.

Frost was also rather interested, not in the flag situation but more in the man himself.

‘Someone who vastly improved the regions commerce hmmmm.’ Frost felt that that knowledge would become useful to him in the future. As the dungeon grew in size and inhabitants so would the visitors, creating something similar to a town or city or perhaps even a country, commerce and trade would eventually become a key part of its development.

Frost and Maya still had some time left before the sun fully set, bringing the beginning of the night. With some daylight left they decided that they should spend a little of their newly found wealth.

“2 gold coins, 6 silvers and 48 coppers along with the 20 in silvers and the 8 silvers worth of copper we already had makes for about 2.3 gold coins” Frost counted the money still in the coin purse kept in his sleeve.

“How much was a good bottle of sake again?” Frost remembered that he owed Maya a decent bottle of sake after having her tell him about the Holy White empire and their Church of Light.

“To replace that bottle with like for like you’d need at least 10 gold coins... but we can get a nice upper-class bottle for around 40 slivers, I can make do with that.” Maya smiled while showing her teeth causing Frost to shiver.

’10 gold coins for a single bottle, no wonder she wasn’t fazed by receiving gold coins as payment.’ Frost looked strangely at Maya, thinking of her personal items such as the dresses, alcohol, and snacks and then finally her strength.

‘She must have been quite rich before becoming a guardian.’ The expensive clothes, booze, and those hammers, he felt ashamed and embarrassed over his excitement in seeing gold for the first time.

He sighed and shook his head before responding back.

“Hopefully, it’ll suit the young miss’s tastes.” He spoke sarcastically while increasing his pace towards the shopping district where they purchased the adventurers bags.

“Hahaha” Maya giggled charmingly as she matched his walking speed and wrapped herself around his arm, ignoring his feelings.

“So long as it’s something young master buys me, I’ll love it.” She spoke with pure unfiltered honesty as she leaned her head against his shoulder causing him to blush.

It didn’t take them long to find an alcohol shop specialised in pricey wines and spirits, in fact it was on the same street as where they bought the adventurer backpacks for 1 silver each.

Ding dong

A bell attached to a string rang as Frost opened the shop’s door.

“Welcome dear customer, how can we be of service.” An old man seated behind a counter greeted Frost happily. Frost’s attire looked anything other than cheap, so the shop’s owner believed him to be a worthy patron.

The shop itself was rather modest in size, there were several wine cabinets covering the walls and a few placed within the centre. By the shop window were some of the more lavish looking bottles with their own crystal cases on pedestals. There was also a soft scent of rose wood as well as oak.

‘Smells expensive’ that was the best way for Frost to describe it, compared the general store where he bought the bags this place screamed money and specialist. Maya was already getting antsy, holding back her drool. This shop was practically heaven for her.

“Yes, I’m looking to purchase some fine alcohol, preferably some sake.” Frost responded calmly as he looked over some of the goods for sale.

Each area of the shop was divided by type and by price with the less expensive goods being closer to the door and the pricier ones being either in front of the window or behind the counter.

The shopkeeper could see Frost looking as well as the excited expression on Maya’s face and smiled.

‘Some true alcohol lovers.’ Very few people would request sake when they entered his shop, only those from the east or true alcohol lovers would request it. He already felt good about Frost and Maya.

“Yes of course, we have a fairly good collection of sake if I do say so myself.” The shopkeeper lifted up the door to the counter and walked over towards them.

“Do you have a price in mind?” The quality of sake was divided into levels with each of them having their own corresponding price range. The most expensive bottle in his job was a B-rank bottle costing 5 gold coins, he kept it in back for any true connoisseur afraid to drink it himself.

“Something between 30 and 50 silvers preferably, but we can go a little higher if need be.” Frost could see the appreciation in the shop keepers eyes as he looked at them inwardly thinking.

‘Ah he’s an alcoholic too.’ Frost decided that around 65 silvers was his absolute limit for now, they could always return when they had more money.

Frost’s response caused the shop keeper to feel elated yet slightly disappointed at the same time. The price of 30 to 50 silvers was enough for a decent C-rank sake, still a fairly expensive purchase but he couldn’t help but always get his hopes up when someone asked for sake, hoping that they’d ask for his prized B-rank bottle. But he was a professional his slight disappointment never showed on his face as he smiled and nodded in response.

“That’s the price range for a mid C-rank bottle, we have a few of those in stock.” The shop keeper then led Frost and Maya to the counter while he took down 3 different bottles from the shelf behind him.

“Fire lizard sake, 30 silvers.”

“Moon doe sake, 60 silvers.”

“And finally snow rice sake 50 silvers.” The shop keeper placed each bottle on the counter and read out their names and prices.

‘Hoh one is above the budget, as expected of a merchant.’ Frost smiled but the decision wasn’t his to make, he just had to pay. He turned to look at Maya whose eyes were staring at the three bottles as if she was trying to see through them.

“Sir?” The shopkeeper felt awkward not receiving any response from Frost.

“She’s choosing” Frost responded by nodding his chin towards Maya.

“Ah!” The shopkeeper’s eyes opened wide as he turned to Maya, he assumed that Frost would be the one deciding completely overlooking the young woman at his side.

Maya was in a very difficult position; she was having an internal struggle. She couldn’t choose which one to get. She’d at least heard of all three but never actually tasted them. She needed more information.

“Shopkeeper what can you tell me about each of these bottles, the more details the better, I’ve heard of each of them but never personally tasted them, so I’ll be relying on your expertise.” Maya looked at the shopkeeper with avid concentration like a student to their teacher. Anyone selling alcohol must have a wide and varied palette and have a great extent of knowledge about the products they are selling, well a good shopkeeper should.