Ruger's eyes lit up. The force of those words, that look of contempt for the gods, those slightly parted, upturned lips pouring out a thick, sour reek of alcohol-it all made this seem like a trivial matter, as though Zorn already had an Evil-Mouthed Demon Fish on hand.
"Your purpose. I need to know what you intend to use it for before I can judge. You aren't simply asking out of curiosity, are you? You need it."
Zorn gulped down another great mouthful of liquor, seemingly waiting for his answer, yet also savoring the drink in his hand.
Ruger thought for a moment.
"Yes. I need it for my Ascension Ritual. A small piece of... deformed back hide from an Evil-Mouthed Demon Fish."
Ruger answered honestly.
"That stuff is very easy to get when it's available, but when it's scarce, you can hardly find it at all." Zorn tipped his head back for another drink. Liquor trickled from the corner of his mouth into the jungle on his chest, where several little heads poked out to catch it. "Evil-Mouthed Demon Fish are mostly bred in captivity, and there aren't many uses for them. So once a Wizard finishes an experiment or no longer needs them, they can disappear from the market for a very long time. Finding any trace of them in the wild is even harder..."
Ruger's expression did not fall, though the explanation sounded alarming, as if he had reached a dead end.
But he had faith in Wizard Zorn. That smile could not be without reason.
"I haven't heard of anyone seeing one in the nearby waters... and of course, I don't have one either..."
As Zorn spoke, he drained the bottle in a series of gulps, then turned his wrist, and another bottle slid smoothly into