"This topic's too heavy for me. I can't take it. Let's talk about something else." Elhart wiped away his sweat and changed the subject. "What did you need me for?"
Elhart tapped the counter lightly, indicating that he was only a Weapon Shop owner by trade. Matters that lofty were beyond his reach, and he had no desire to get involved.
Chuan Wenwu shook his head regretfully, but quickly shifted gears and said jokingly, "All right, I did come here to ask a favor-you see, Talia's still wearing the clothes you gave her yesterday. They don't fit very well, and they don't look all that nice, either. Have you got anything a little prettier that would suit her?"
Elhart: (╬ಠ益ಠ)
A vein twitched at his temple as he answered with a smile that never reached his eyes. "Kid, didn't I tell you yesterday? If you want clothes, go to a clothing store! Don't come to my Weapon Shop to mess with me!!!"
"See? There you go getting worked up again. It was just a joke. You really can't take one, can you, boss?" Chuan Wenwu grinned cheekily, but soon turned serious again.
He took a collar out of his shield and handed it to Elhart with considerable solemnity. "This is a Magic Item I bought from that Slave Trader yesterday. According to him, once it's bound to its wearer, it can freely grow or shrink along with them. There's also space inside it for storing personal belongings... I had time yesterday, but I forgot because I was looking after Talia. Now I'd like you to check whether there are any hidden risks, or anything that doesn't match his claims."
Chuan Wenwu hardly dared give Bruce something from a slave dealer of such rotten character without checking it first, especially a "collar," with all its uncomfortable implications. He didn't want to put a collar bought from the Slave Trader on Bruce, only to discover that it worked much like the Monkey King's tightening headband.
"A Magic Item that can grow and shrink freely?"
Muttering to himself, Elhart accepted the rather aged-looking collar from Chuan Wenwu. A green glow rose from his palm and sank into the necklace, after which he seemed to fall deep into thought.
After a moment, he came back to himself and nodded at Chuan Wenwu. "It's fine. A decent Magic Item, with no hidden tricks left in it. However..."
"However, what?" Chuan Wenwu pressed.
Elhart glanced at Bruce, who stood quietly nearby. "There are certain requirements for wearing it. The wearer needs to be strong enough, or once it grows with their body, the entire weight of the items stored inside will bear down on the necklace. That could easily break their neck. In other words, you need enough strength to support the weight of your weapons and equipment with your neck before you can wear this thing."
"If you're strong enough, you can wear it as a necklace with a rather unusual design. It also offers some protection, so you won't have to worry about injuries to your neck."
Chuan Wenwu relaxed at Elhart's answer. "As long as there's nothing fishy about it. Needing strength isn't a problem. Bruce's strength grows very quickly, and it increases dramatically when he returns to his beast form. He can handle it. I'll take him somewhere open outside the city to try it later. Sound good, Bruce?"
"No problem, boss!"
Chuan Wenwu nodded, then turned back to Elhart. "So, how's the equipment I commissioned coming along?"
Elhart's face darkened. "Do you think I'm a pack mule? You only placed the order yesterday! Barely any time has passed, and you're already asking for it. Do you expect me to conjure it out of thin air? I'm still gathering the materials, and I don't have everything yet..."
Chuan Wenwu keenly caught a hint of frustration in Elhart's voice. "What's wrong? Run into trouble? Short on materials?"
Elhart gave him a surprised look, taken aback by his perceptiveness. He made no attempt to hide it and answered frankly, "I have run into a little trouble... Have you heard of Rude Village?"
"No."
"It's a village at the end of the road, in the opposite direction from the forest. Take a better look at the map I gave you, would you?" Elhart sighed helplessly and continued, "There's a mine in Rude Village. I've done business with them before, buying a batch of ore every month to smelt and forge into equipment. But it seems the aftermath of the last Calamity Wave has affected their mining operations."
Elhart looked up at Chuan Wenwu, then glanced at Raphtalia, who stood timidly by his feet. "Apparently, a large number of surviving monsters hid in the mine, using the darkness to attack people. Now the miners are too afraid to go down there, so naturally, ore production has become pitiful. Most of it gets bought up by the lords or bigger merchants, leaving only a tiny amount of ordinary ore by the time my turn comes. It's giving me a real headache. I could buy from villages farther away, but that would cost a lot more and take quite some time..."
"Say, kid, you're a hero, aren't you?" Elhart winked at him.
"Yeah..." Chuan Wenwu had a pretty good idea of what he was about to say.
"Then isn't wiping out those leftovers from the Wave your job? Look, kid, it's been a while now, and the other heroes have more or less made names for themselves, but you're still unknown. If you have time, why not take a look at the Rude Village mine? Think of it as helping us get rid of a lurking threat!"
"Ah, head to the mine and defeat the monsters occupying it... That sounds awfully familiar. Does this count as a local giving the hero a quest?" Chuan Wenwu quipped to himself. Still, he was more curious about Elhart's claim that the other heroes had already made names for themselves.
"Speaking of the other heroes, I haven't seen them in quite a while. Where have they all gone? Have you heard anything?"
"How would I know? You heroes are always coming and going without warning, hunting monsters everywhere... But I hear they're mostly active at the Adventurers' Guild. They pick up all sorts of commissions there, then travel around slaying powerful monsters that terrorize the locals. They seem to never get tired of it."
As he rambled on, Elhart suddenly looked at Chuan Wenwu and teased, "You, on the other hand, have been here for over a week. Aside from making a bit of a name for yourself with that incident a week ago, you've practically vanished. Shouldn't you live up to your title as a hero and help ordinary folk like us when we need it?"
"The whole reason my ore stocks are running out so quickly is that I'm making all those strange pieces of equipment and items for you. You can't just sit back and do nothing!"
"All right, all right, I get it. If you're having trouble, just tell me. Do you really need to beat around the bush like this? You've helped me so much-would I turn you down over something this small? I was just wondering where to grind monsters anyway, so let's make the Rude Village mine our next stop for now." Chuan Wenwu smacked his lips, wearing a bizarre expression that seemed to say, "I'm being sincere with you, buddy, and you're playing mind games with me." It made Elhart want to whack him with a hammer.
"Leave it to me, boss. There's one last thing I'd like to ask you."
"Go ahead."
"I'd like you to check whether Raphtalia has any potential for learning magic... Oh, and Bruce and me, too."
Before you continue