A Soldier's Life
Chapter 221: Aggravations

Chapter 221: Aggravations

As I walked through the city of Sierra, I noted that the people in the lower city were gaunt and distressed. Parents kept their children close, teenagers rushed about trying to make a few coins, and many adults stared blankly ahead as they went about their day, bundled in their clothes to fend off the cold. It was not just the winter and hunger, but the looming and inevitable war pressing down.

I checked behind me several times to see Savino following me. It angered me that Castian’s lackey was tracking me through the city, but I had nothing to do for it at the moment. Most of the men had headed straight for the brothels to satisfy their urges. I turned into an apothecary shop. The middle-aged man with black-stained hands looked up from his pestle, where he was crushing cloves by the odor. “How can I assist you?” he asked respectfully.

“I have a list of a few things I hope you have. Purified vinegar, powdered lilac stamens, and birch tree ash.” The man’s brow furrowed at my request. Even though I was no longer skunked, the odor cleanse potion could be very useful in the future. A number of the creatures that Hearne had lectured us on relied on their sense of smell to track their prey. Most would be foiled by myconid powder, but not all.

“The ash and vinegar, yes. Alchemists use lilac stamens, and obviously, they are out of season.” He pointed outside to the icy streets to emphasize his point. “I might know where in the city to get some, though. A private alchemist and friend of mine,” he said with a wink. “Filtered aged vinegar, one silver for a jug. The birch ash is three copper for a pouch. I use it in my abdominal cramping syrup. The stamens, if my friend has them, will probably be twenty silver for a vial.”

I placed a large silver on the counter. “Six jugs of vinegar and twenty pouches of birch ash. How long until you get the powdered stamens?”

His eyes popped at the coin. “I only have four jugs of vinegar but plenty of ash.” He shuffled and returned with four clay jars and two dozen packets of the ash. I checked each jug, sniffing the contents of the pale red liquid. I shook one and poured it into a clear glass container. It looked decent in the light, with only small amounts of sediment.

He handed me the change. “Come back tonight, and I may have your lilac stamens.”

“Thank you. But do you think you could direct me to your friend’s residence? My time is tight.” I made the jugs disappear, to the man’s disbelief. I just smiled as the packets of ash also vanished. There was no point in hiding my ability if I had to carry four awkward gallon jugs. They fit easily into the crate I used while I was in the company.

“He only makes potions on commission. He may converse with you. Sixty Pegasi Way. The large red brick building. Tell him Armani sent you. His name is Desaran.” I spent some time buying more ingredients that I didn’t need at the moment but could use. It was to give the apothecary some added business for the hard times. Apothecaries didn’t have the aether control to infuse potions, so their products were mundane in nature.

When I left the apothecary, Savino was shopping across the street in a pottery shop. He was terrible at following me, but I supposed he would soon be trained to be better. I turned, ignoring him, and headed to my next stop, a cobbler. The cobbler was replacing the sole on some boots when I entered. This was exactly the service I needed. He looked up but didn’t say anything. “Do you mind if I look at your boots?” I stated. His eyebrow arched, and he nodded to the display.

Boots were rare in the Empire and were only common for riding and in the legion. This shop was in the middle of the city and had a dozen pairs, but only a few looked to be close to my size. I knew it was a long shot as I ran my hand across them using my earth speak spell form, looking for something that resonated with it.

Only the smallest pair of used boots resonated with my spell form. “This pair is interesting. Do you know what these boots are made from?”

The cobbler motioned for me to bring them to him. He inspected them for a moment, stretching and sniffing them. “Earth drake hide. That is why they are 30 silver. They are very durable, but I don’t think they would fit your feet,” he said sarcastically. I didn’t understand his poor customer service but bore with the man.

“I like the look and feel of the hide. Could you make me a pair with this material?” I asked as I replaced the boots on the display.

The cobbler scoffed, “I mostly do repairs.”

“Do you know someone in the city who could?” I asked.

“I didn’t say I couldn’t do it,” he replied tersely. “Getting the hide is costly, and the material is difficult to work with.”

“How much and how long?” I asked, stopping him from explaining his process in detail to drive up the price.

He seemed to consider for a long moment. “A gold and five silver if I can get the hide.”

I pretended to gag a little at the price. “Ninety silver, and I want them in a week.”

“Ninety? And you want me to drop all the repairs I am working on.” The gruff man was shaking his head in an experienced act. “Couldn’t do it for less than a gold. The material alone would cost me half that.”

I doubted his words. Or, more than likely, he would buy enough material for multiple boots. “Two pairs then. One natural and one dyed black,” I said, placing two gold coins on his work table. His greedy eyes locked onto the coin. “A bonus large silver if both are ready in a week and to my satisfaction. This style,” I pointed at my feet. He looked down, nodding and sliding the coins into his hand.

“Come, and I will size your feet before you leave,” he said finally in a cheerful tone. Boots were some of the most expensive items in the Empire, and if I had known about the earth-speak limitations, I would have purchased them in the capital. After he traced my feet and took the diameter of my calf, he scribbled some notes, ushered me out of the shop, and locked the doors behind us. I assumed he was eager to get started to complete the commission.

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I probably should have withheld the balance of the payment until I received the boots, but it didn’t occur to me. I was in commoner’s clothes now, but if there was a problem, I was certain all I would have to do was return in my Hound gear.

I asked for directions from an urchin and made my way to Sixty Pegasi Way. My shadow was still following me. I thought about confronting Savino but opted to ignore him instead. He was wasting his time. I was not doing anything unusual other than spending more coins than a normal legionnaire. The seventy-seven gold I got from my share of the dungeon discovery was already public record.

The alchemist’s building was in the upper part of the city. As I knocked on the door, the two-story black brick building looked slightly out of place on the street. A middle-aged man with long raven hair answered and looked at me skeptically. I gave him a slight nod of respect. “Desaran? Armani sent me. He said you might have powdered lilac stamens.”

The man seemed to think for a long time while looking me over. “I do. Are you brewing a perfume?”

“Neutralizing scent potion,” I replied.

“Ah, someone got skunked,” he said, his eyes lighting up in a friendly manner.

“Ogre skunked,” I replied.

He smiled and nodded in a knowing way. “The worst kind. Come in.” He moved aside, and as I entered, the air hung with the familiar scents of an alchemy lab. “Up the stairs,” he indicated with a wave.

I headed up the stairs, and the entire second floor was one room with an expansive alchemy lab. A few processes were bubbling away, but the room looked mostly underutilized. Some crates were halfway packed in the corner. He moved to the shelves with hundreds of jars of all sizes. I moved over to another shelf of alchemy books.

“I already packed it, so give me a minute,” the alchemist said as he started unpacking a crate.

“Are you moving?” I asked, inspecting the titles. I immediately noticed most of the alchemy books were in Elvish.

“Unfortunately, yes. Haven’t decided where to yet, but probably south,” he answered as he stacked items on the floor, searching the crate. “Did you know it takes an entire bush just to get one vial of these stamen? At least they are viable for over a year if stored properly.”

“No, I didn’t. How much for the powdered stamens?” I asked, pulling an elven book on alchemy basics. I had only a limited number of alchemy books in my dreamscape.

“Twenty silver. If you want both vials, thirty,” he said, standing. “Less things to pack.” He brushed his long hair aside, and the distinctive pointed ears of the elves showed.

“You are an elf?” I asked, confused.

“Half-elf, actually,” he replied curtly.

I didn’t want to jeopardize the sale, but I had to ask, “You are the first half-elf I have met.” My tone was inquisitive and not accusing, which caused him to relax a little.

“We are rarer than true dragon riders,” he said dramatically. Even though I hadn’t inquired about his life story, he explained anyway. “My mother was held prisoner by Duke Blandus for many years. Although my father said he didn’t rape my mother, I have my suspicions. She disappeared shortly after I was born due to her shame at birthing a half-breed. My father raised me and treated me well enough among his children.” Desaran said conversationally.

I didn’t know how to respond to his blatant statements and oversharing, so I held up the book. “Who taught you Elvish?”

“One of the other elf prisoners in the citadel took pity on me, as I was trapped between two cultures. My father allowed it. At first, I felt knowing Elvish gave me some connection to my mother, but then I found alchemy.” He indicated the books.

I sensed there was a lot more to the story, and he seemed to want someone to talk to, but I decided to pass and produced three large dungeon silver. “Ah, dungeon coins. Are you an adventurer, then? I usually only work on commission as I don’t need the coin, but are you interested in some potions?”

“Any healing potions?” I inquired, glad to be off the topic of his colorful past.

“The Count purchased my entire stock a few days ago. I am probably not going to brew anything else before I leave. I have hair growth, disorientation, wart remover, a bowel purge, and some impotence potions.” He walked over to a rack of potions.

“Can you explain their applications?” I asked, not planning to buy anything.

“The hair paste will grow hair wherever it is rubbed permanently, so apply it carefully with a spatula. Otherwise, you could have hair growing on your palm. Once it dries, peel it off. The disorientation makes it harder to access your aether core—used mostly in subduing weak mages. The wart remover burns a bit but works well. If you are constipated, the bowel purge works quickly, so be near a privy. The impotence prevents arousal in both men and women.” He explained.

I considered some possibilities for getting back at Castian and his lackeys. “All the recipes in these books?” I indicated the shelf.

“The base recipes are. Are you interested in purchasing some of the alchemy guides? I am not planning on taking them all with me—not enough space.” He said, moving to the shelf.

I left Desaran’s house with six basic alchemy tomes and a handful of his interesting brews in my dimensional space. I returned to the barracks with Savino still in tow. No one was in the barracks, but Savino followed me inside. “Did you have a good walk through the city?” I asked him casually.

He grunted as he crashed onto his bunk, exhausted from watching me all day, presumably. I checked my pack for tampering, and it looked secure. The only valuable item inside was the summoner’s belt, which was still there, curled in the bottom. All six pouches were empty, but I still hadn’t figured out what it did after inspecting it numerous times. Maybe I should have asked Zyna before I left.

As if summoned by my thoughts of the Fire Mage, Konstantin came into the room. “Good, you are back. A message from Chancellor Zyna has arrived for you.” He handed me a folded letter, and Savino sat up interested.

I was certain Konstantin had already read the message as I unfolded it. It must be urgent if she had not waited to use the anchor stone Konstantin had recently given me.

Hound Eryk,

I do not have good news for you. I regret to inform you that the acquisition you requested has not been completed. The device’s owner has decided to keep it, as the Emperor has called him back into service as I prophesized. He has also used your funds to pay his debts, and I am having trouble reclaiming the coin, but I will do so in time. It may take a while before I can find another party to purchase the artifact you wanted, as they have become valuable commodities with events unfolding.

Additionally, even more regrettably, people know that I do not have the dreamscape amulet.

My Greatest Apologies, Baroness High Mage Zyna, Chancellor of the War College

The aether shield amulet Zyna was acquiring on my behalf wasn’t going to materialize, which was regrettable. The lost gold was an annoyance, but I was certain Zyna would reclaim it on my behalf eventually. The warning about the amulet was welcome. If my enemies thought I might have it, I would need to be even more on guard.

Konstantin shared even more troubling news. “This isn’t the only bad news, Eryk. The Bartiradians are gathering at the border for an early spring offensive.”

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