When Xia Ya Leiming walked into the shop there were no other customers inside, only a scrawny, dried-up old man sitting behind the shelves. Ragged as Xia Ya Leiming's clothes were, he was not looked down on: the old man rose warmly to greet him, a beaming smile on his face, a gleam of pure profit in his little squinting eyes. That smile was one stroke of the chisel away from having the word "swindler" carved into his face.
"Honored customer, what can I get for you? We've just taken in a shipment of the finest tobacco, every leaf grown by genuine Zakutu tribesmen with their own hands! Ah — judging by your age, tobacco probably doesn't interest you... Ah, but look at you, tall and strong and full of muscle, you must be an outstanding warrior. Hmm, we have fine weapons forged by 'Thor's Hammer' — what do you need? A good sword, or some armor? I guarantee our goods are genuine dwarf-craftsman work, absolutely no imitations!"
Thor's Hammer?
Yeah, right.
Xia Ya Leiming had been knocking around Wildfire Town for years — how could he not know the ways of these crooked merchants?
The whole world knew that dwarf-crafted weapons were the finest. The dwarves worshiped the thunder god, so nearly half the weapon shops on the continent were named "Thor's Hammer," each one claiming to use dwarven craft.
Xia Ya Leiming was sure that real, first-rate dwarf-made weapons could be found on Black Street, but the genuine articles were precious things, and these swindlers were certainly not going to haul them out for some kid in ragged clothes.
Seeing that Xia Ya Leiming said nothing, the old man twirled his beard and squeezed out a smile that said men understand these things: "Or perhaps you need to buy some special medicines? This shop has its own apothecary, able to brew any special potion you like — especially the kind that puts a man straight to sleep! Truly the best equipment for the home and for travel, for murder and plunder, for robbery and — well, you take my meaning... uh, honored guest, what is it you actually need?"
Xia Ya Leiming had already sized up everything in the shop.
The first thing he noticed was a dried sheepskin hanging on the shop wall. It was a contract deed, and below it were two seals: one was probably the mark of the merchant guild this shop belonged to, and the other belonged to the big mercenary corps that currently occupied Wildfire Town.
This contract meant the shop had signed with Wildfire Town's present occupiers: in exchange for that corps's protection, it also had to obey Wildfire Town's rules. If it broke the agreement, the injured party could go to Wildfire Town's protectors and seek arbitration.
That counted as a "lawful" identity.
This was the first thing one had to establish, because... there were plenty of crooked shops on Black Street too!
There are no good men in Wildfire Town... heh heh!
"I came in because I saw the buying notice outside," Xia Ya Leiming said. His accent was the local dialect of the Wildfire Town area.
The old swindler's enthusiasm dropped off sharply at once, but he stayed polite, which Xia Ya Leiming appreciated. At least the man didn't judge by appearance — that showed at least a bit of professionalism.
"From your accent, you're a local." The old man smiled. "Are you a demon hunter?"
At that question, Xia Ya Leiming could not help touching his leather robe, which was full of holes, and the fire fork stuck in his belt. Maybe some demon hunters dressed plainly, but there was absolutely not a demon hunter in this world who fought fierce magic beasts with a fire fork for poking the stove...
Xia Ya blushed a little, but he steeled himself and nodded. "Yes."
The old man deliberately acted as though he had not seen Xia Ya Leiming's ragged robe and fire fork; his eyes did not shift by a fraction. "All right, then you've come to take the commission? The requirements are up there — any questions?"
The buying notice was perfectly clear.
"Top price paid for magic beast cubs.
"Requirements: lion beast cubs. Distinguishing feature: white fur.
"Quantity required: unlimited.
Purchase price: five silver coins per cub.
Commission valid for thirty days."
"No questions. If it's all right with you, let's sign the contract right now." Xia Ya Leiming tried hard to sound experienced.
The old man studied Xia Ya Leiming's face for a moment and actually sighed. "Young man, I hope you understand what you're doing. Anyone can see you're a martial man, but... a lion beast is no ordinary wild animal. And winter's nearly here — this season, magic beasts are hard to deal with, because they're all laying up food for the cold. Not to mention, any beast is savage beyond measure when its cubs are threatened."
"I know what I'm doing. This isn't my first time." Xia Ya Leiming tried to puff out his chest. "But thank you for the warning all the same."
The old man's face went calm again. He turned, took a contract out of a drawer behind the shelves, and tossed it onto the counter in front of Xia Ya Leiming. He gave him a look. "You can read, can't you? Want me to read it to you?"
"No need."
Xia Ya Leiming read the contract through. There was nothing wrong with it.
"Sign your name at the bottom, and your thumbprint." The old man squinted at the young man. "What's your name?"
"Xia Ya," the young demon hunter answered vaguely. He had always felt a certain shame about that name, so he did not give his full one.
"Xia Ya? Hmm, a strange name. What's your surname?" the old man pressed.
Xia Ya Leiming glanced at him and did not answer.
The old man smiled faintly and asked no more. Plenty of the people who made their way in Wildfire Town had a wanted notice hanging over their heads; not giving a full name, or even a real one, was nothing strange.
"I need a little of the money in advance," Xia Ya Leiming said, embarrassed to be asking.
Advance payment was common in Black Street's buying business. As a rule, one could ask for one percent of the price up front.
After all, the things being bought were usually hard to come by, and many of them meant risking your neck.
Of course, to stop people from using the system to cheat — you sign the contract, take the advance, and run? That wouldn't do!
If you dared do such a thing, you would be driven out by Wildfire Town's occupiers — at best beaten badly, at worst hanged.
Unless you never set foot in Wildfire Town again.
Of course, if you died in the course of the job, you wouldn't have to pay it back.
The old man readily laid out five copper coins on the counter. Plainly, he was a man of the world, and he had seen Xia Ya Leiming's predicament. "Take it and eat yourself a full meal, young man. Nobody has the strength to work on an empty belly."
"Thank you. I've already eaten my fill." Xia Ya Leiming swiftly put away the coppers and the contract, hesitated, and then could not help asking, "Why would anyone pay for lion beast cubs? Their hides aren't worth much, the meat doesn't taste good, and a low-grade magic beast like that doesn't even have a magic core."
"So you're not completely ignorant about magic beasts." The old swindler answered the question. "Lion beast cubs are snow-white all over; they only shed that coat when they reach adulthood and turn fire-red. These days... a fad has sprung up among the nobles in the royal capital — they think lion beast cubs are adorable, all white like that, and plenty of nobles like to buy them as pets... Heh, that's nobles for you. They put up the money, and somebody else goes and risks his neck. It's all very fair."
Xia Ya Leiming said nothing more and started for the door. Behind him the old man added, "Since you're so young, I'll give you one piece of important news. Word is somebody spotted a lion beast on a mountain north of Wildfire Town. Heh. I'm pointing you at a clear road, so you don't waste time hunting around for it."
Xia Ya Leiming did not turn back. He left a "Thank you" behind him and strode out with his head high.
In the shop, the old man sat back down, lowered his head, took out a ledger, and made a few entries in it.
Just then an assistant who had finished his work in the back came out and said with an ingratiating smile, "Sir, was that a sale?"
"Nothing much. Just a kid about to go risk his life for money." The old swindler looked up and shook his head. "A shame — a young life. Good luck to him. I hope my five coppers don't go down the drain."
"You're always so merciful!" the assistant flattered him, grinning and baring a mouthful of yellow teeth. "Have you forgotten the saying they have around here? In Wildfire Town, there's a grave on every corner."
Xia Ya Leiming made full use of those five copper coins.
He haggled for a long while at the blacksmith's, spent three coppers on a rusty axe, one copper on a flatbread of black rye, and traded the last copper for a little of the cheapest rotgut — not because he had a craving for drink, but because as a first-rate hunter he knew that going into the mountains to hunt in this cold season, a mouthful of liquor could keep a man's body warm when it mattered.
With the axe on his back, the flatbread tucked in his coat and the waterskin of liquor against his chest, still wearing that ragged wolf-hide robe and his straw sandals worn through at the soles, Xia Ya Leiming walked out of Wildfire Town and headed north.