Cheers and applause shook the garden hall. Only falling flowers were missing; otherwise, it could have been the homecoming of a hero who had slain an evil Dragon.
"Freeman! Welcome out of prison!"
"Well done!"
"Where's Andy? Let us see Andy!"
The Nobles no longer looked at the Old Orc with disgust or confusion. They looked at him the way they looked at Freeman.
That was what a good story did to its audience. Even Nobles who had never encountered Magic Film found it hard to separate the story from reality.
Annan returned their attention with a reserved smile. The Old Orc looked wistful. The last scene like this he remembered was from his childhood, when humans had caught him, locked him in a cage, and left him in a market for curious townsfolk to stare at.
While Lady Deepwinter was still there, Annan pitched Recording Magic Stones to the Nobles, who were still caught up in the story. A stone containing Betar's Redemption normally cost 100 Gold Coins, but they could buy one now for just 90.
It was hardly Noble behavior. He looked like a merchant through and through. But the King of the North, Lady Deepwinter, and "Freeman" were enough to send the Nobles crowding around the stacked Magic Stones, waving their Purses and demanding that he take their money.
Annan seized the chance to take the Nobles' money. Both the story's emotional impact and their goodwill toward Freeman would fade into sober judgment with time. Then they would decide that a Magic Stone was not worth 90 Gold Narls, and that spending so much on an Orc they could see but never touch was foolish.
After the Premiere, the garden hall naturally became a banquet. Annan left the Old Orc there to watch for potential customers,