Made a Fortune

"Come on, let's take care of business." Anse called out and turned back toward the Guild Hall. Strengthening himself was more important now.

"The Flaming Fist... they'll be able to hold the line, won't they?" Brat hurried after Anse.

"Hard to say." Anse's expression was grim. "What level of Professional do you think a gate and a high wall can stop?"

As their levels rose, many Professionals no longer feared being overwhelmed by sheer numbers. They could leap, fly, turn invisible—terrifyingly powerful.

The Guild Hall was more than half empty. The love of a spectacle was part of the nature of intelligent creatures, regardless of race.

"Where are we going?" Brat looked at Anse. "The third floor is the trading hall. It's all official shops and big merchants. The goods are good, just a bit expensive.

"The back courtyard is a marketplace. You can set up a stall if you pay, and there are lots of people, but you have to judge for yourself whether anything's genuine."

Anse considered it for a few seconds. "Let's go to the third floor. We mainly need to sell that warhammer, and ordinary people might not recognize its value."

"Okay."

They climbed the stairs to the third floor, passed through a bronze door, and entered an enclosed trading hall bustling with people.

More than twenty neat little shops were scattered throughout the hall, connected by corridors.

Most of the shops had no doors. A few shelves and counters formed their boundaries, so passersby could see the goods and shopkeepers. The layout was somewhat like a shopping mall from his previous life.

"Valuable goods are usually traded here. Shops with guild emblems on their signs are run by the guild; the rest belong to outside merchants..." Brat explained.

"Mm."

The three of them made a round of the place. Anse noticed that although there were many shops, no more than two sold the same kind of goods. Clearly, they'd deliberately avoided competing with one another.

"Follow me."

Brat led them to a weapon shop. Its sign read: Soradin's Fine Goods.

The shopkeeper was a Dwarf with a full red beard. He stood nearly one and a half meters tall and was probably a Mountain Dwarf.

Don't assume a shop run by Dwarves will be any good. Not every Dwarf knew Blacksmithing.

Dwarves were hot-tempered, stubborn, and greedy, but they weren't necessarily straightforward or honest! They lived long lives, often reaching four hundred years, and after spending so much time around humans, they inevitably became shrewd. They could lie without batting an eye.

So no matter what race a merchant was, you couldn't trust them blindly.

Anse focused on the Dwarf, and his Dice quietly detected the man's information.

[Soradin, Dwarf, Level 4 Warrior (Champion)]

"Another Level 4. Looks like advancing to level 5 is pretty difficult."

With a clank, Brat set the bundle on the counter and opened it, revealing a pile of weapons and miscellaneous items.

The noise drew the nearby Adventurers over. There were still bloodstains on the goods, and their designs differed from human weapons. Their origin was obvious.

The red-bearded Dwarf walked over and prodded the pile with his thick fingers. He didn't seem very interested.

"...It's all shoddy junk. Needs to be reforged. I'll give you... 85 Gold Coins."

Brat wasn't good at bargaining, but he knew this was a seller's market. With the disaster upon them, the most valuable things were food and weapons that could be used to seize food or defend yourself.

Whether you knew how to use one or not, just having a weapon in your hands could at least intimidate others and put your mind at ease.

"Don't rush. Take a look at this." As he spoke, Brat took out the Gray Dwarf Warlord's Black War Hammer and set it on the counter with a clank.

"Huh?" The Dwarf's eyes widened. He picked it up and gave it a couple of casual swings, delight showing on his face. "The workmanship, the material... a Gray Dwarf Magic Weapon?"

Brat folded his arms and lifted his chin, deliberately looking down his nose at the Dwarf. "You know about the Gray Dwarf Warlord, right? It took two elite Paladins and a genius Sorcerer working together just to defeat him."

The Dwarf froze, looked around, then fixed his gaze on Anse behind Brat. His voice was full of surprise.

"Are you the Adventurer who helped Land hold off the Gray Dwarves at Flying Dragon Bridge?"

"You know about us?"

Brat couldn't keep up the act. He looked down at the Dwarf, only to realize the man hadn't paid him any attention at all. Instead, he was staring intently at Anse.

The surrounding Adventurers looked confused. Most of them didn't know what had happened at Flying Dragon Bridge.

The Dwarf's huge, bell-like eyes kept staring at him, and even Anse found it hard to take. He could only reply, "That was us. You're pretty well informed."

"All the big names are keeping an eye on the Underdark Creatures. How could we not know?" The Dwarf laughed, his voice deep and resonant. "You've got guts, unlike those cowards who only know how to run like hell..."

The Dwarf cursed and ranted, clearly insulting everyone at once. The Adventurers around them looked at least a little uncomfortable.

There was nothing to be done about it. No matter how prosperous Baldur's Gate was, it was the private property of the Upper City nobles. What did it have to do with Adventurers and commoners?

After a long while, the Dwarf finally finished venting. He looked at Anse with admiration.

Little did he know that Anse had simply been too slow to run and had fallen into the Giant Pit with no way out. Otherwise, Anse would have run faster than anyone.

"You're unusual. Those old Spellcasters are still feeling their way around, but you've adapted so well. What's your secret?" The Dwarf changed the subject, asking about the barrage of spells at the bridge.

"Uh..." Anse paused for a few seconds. "Me... I mostly rely on talent."

The Dwarf's expression froze. It wasn't wrong—what else could a Sorcerer rely on but talent?

"That makes a damn good point." He nodded solemnly and didn't press further. Picking up the warhammer, he examined it closely, feeling along its surface and occasionally focusing on sensing its magic.

The Adventurers around them immediately fell silent. Their eyes gleamed with curiosity; they wanted to know what weapon the Gray Dwarf Warlord had used.

Anse remained calm. He'd already checked the warhammer's stats on his Character Sheet.

After a long while, the Dwarf spoke slowly. "Gray Dwarf Warhammer, fine quality, requires attunement, comes with Mind Attack."

A chorus of sighs rose around them. Even Brat couldn't hide his disappointment.

Common and fine-quality Magic Weapons were fairly common. Common Magic Weapons were worth over 100 Gold Coins, while fine-quality ones generally went for 300 to 1,000 Gold Coins—within reach for an ordinary Professional willing to work for it.

Few people had ever even seen a rare-quality Magic Weapon or better. Their prices varied, but they started at several thousand Gold Coins at the very least—far beyond anyone's reach.

"However..." The Dwarf paused. "The material of this warhammer is very special. It's probably an alloy unique to the Gray Dwarves, with excellent properties. Its maker didn't bring out its full potential..."

Anse's eyelid twitched. He kept his expression neutral. "Then how much can you offer?"

"For Land's sake, I'll offer 1,500 Gold Coins. Add in that pile of junk, and I'll give you 1,600." The Dwarf considered it, then added, "You can ask around. Nobody will offer you more."

Brat gave Anse a slight nod. In his opinion, the price was indeed very fair, even a little generous.

"Deal." Anse smiled. The offer had far exceeded his expectations.

"Wait here." The Dwarf didn't waste words. He turned and went behind the shelves, rummaged around for a while, then returned and handed Anse a money pouch.

Anse opened it and saw that it was full of Platinum Coins. They bore the likenesses of Roldan, the Sun, and the Unicorn, with 160 coins in all. The pouch was heavy in his hand.

"They're so beautiful." He narrowed his eyes as he counted the money. The clinking coins sounded like music, and he was in a wonderful mood.

"Exactly the right amount." He counted them twice. Not a single coin was missing.

He casually handed a few Platinum Coins each to Brat and Finn. They were entitled to a share of the "junk," and the rest of the money was all his.

"If you want to buy anything, hurry up. Wait much longer and you won't be able to buy it. Give them my name, Soradin's, and they'll do you a favor." The Dwarf shouted loudly enough for half the trading hall to hear.

"Thanks."