--- Hunter 23HX443---


    Hunter 23HX443 watched as the merchant''s eyes lit up and new that she made a mistake somewhere. A quick review of her words… and nothing stood out to her. She''d implied that the sale needed to be made to avoid the city but it was not as if the line was moving fast so that seemed eptable.


    She had specifically made mention of the fact she needed it to be a good price, but she didn''t believe that mattered to the merchant. She was going to be gouged, she knew that… but it was annoying to not quite understand where the mistake had been made.


    Then the merchant was speaking and Hunter 23HX443 needed to turn her thoughts back to the present. "Well, the only thing I can offer you is my personal map that I use to help n my travels. I don''t exactly wish to part with it, but I am a merchant at heart so if you can offer me proper payment for the old thing I guess I can let go of it…"


    Hunter 23HX443 waited for the merchant to say more but… clearly they weren''t going to. Hunter 23HX443 nearly let out a hiss but it''d be hard to hide just how snake-like it sounded with her aura already working overtime. The delicate bnce she needed for ''ignore these features'' and ''ignore me'' was tight and adding something like that to it would be quite a lot.


    Hunter 23HX443 considered her options and couldn''te up with one better then "What are you looking for specifically? As I said, I am a hunter by trade so I can offer you some bones, pelts, even a bit of meat. I am strong and the contents of my backpack weigh a bit more then they might seem. So, what are you after?"


    "Well, I''m primarily after coin," said the merchant… though Hunter 23HX443 could immediately tell it was a lie. Hunter 23HX443 bit the inside of her cheek lightly to stop any annoyance showing. She didn''t know if it was a lie she could call the damned man out on. "So… for a map like this? Well I don''t want to give it up so that adds to the price… and it''s not exactly local.


    Not what you''d consider local anyway, it covers most of the kingdom you see… which means it will have to be more expensive then you might like. I DO have to by a fresh map with the money you''re giving me after all. So… I''ll say, twenty gold coins for my copy?"


    Hunter 23HX443 shifted her body to make it look like she was angry as she red back at the merchant and tried to look like she was thinking about the offer… but she had piles of gold bars in her ring. ''Twenty Gold Coins'' meant nothing to her in this context. *I seem to have rushed into this. I should have snuck into the wagon first and tried to uncover the man''s coffers.


    As it stands I have no idea if this is a reasonable price at all. No, that is untrue. I know it is unreasonable but how unreasonable? Is ten gold a suitable price for a map? Or just one? Perhaps I should simply bypass that issue?*


    "Do you truly expect me to carry twenty gold coins on my person? I do believe I mentioned I was a hunter by trade. Keeping that sort of money around is like asking for bandits to show up and try to relieve you of it.


    Rather annoying as I am not paid to deal with the bandit poption atrge," stated Hunter 23HX443, hoping that this would make the merchant see her as ''more dangerous'' in his eyes in addition to having him drastically lower the price, or suggest something else.


    Sadly for Hunter 23HX443, the merchant had a good enough eye to notice that despite her words she wasn''t angry in the slightest with the 20 gold asking price… though he also notice she was very truthful about the bandits. He could tell Hunter 23HX443 didn''t consider them to be anything more than a potential annoyance. "I see… well you have to understand that coin is simply easier to work with.


    I''m a merchant yes, but not one that specialises in animal products, well, not unless you count more refined products like perfumes and glues. Coin would truly be the best… but if not do you have anything you got as a reward for your services? Nothing too precious of course, just gems or ore perhaps?"


    Hunter 23HX443 was a moment away from summoning one of therger gems from her ring and handing them over but paused. *A gem of such a size, and one that is perfectly cut as that one happens to be… is of much greater value then the map. Then again, it is not as if I used my own funds to acquire it. Just… it is a bit beyond what you would see here.


    While overpaying a bit isn''t an issue, if I pay too much rumours might start up and cause our group trouble in the future. It doesn''t matter that my appearance is being suppressed in his mind, those sorts of rumours have an odd way of catching you despite little things like not remembering the face of the person who provided you the gem.


    Hmm… do I go for a slight show of strength or simply offer up some of my smaller gems?*


    Hunter 23HX443 decided to go with the second option in the end. As much fun as it would be to watch the merchant react to her pulling out a bar of gold and then ripping pieces off as payment… that seemed a bit extreme, and likely to draw attention from the other riders. Already Hunter 23HX443 could tell that the two nearest wagons were paying attention to her.


    Luckily it was easy to apply the same set of ''instructions'' to their minds as she was the merchant''s. It would still be an issue if the crowd grew toorge, but for now it was manageable. Best keep it that way.


    So Hunter 23HX443 made a show of spinning her bag around and reaching inside. She''d filled it with various hard to damage things, pots and non-perishable food as cover. Reaching down through them all Hunter 23HX443 summoned a small bag, reached her hand into that, and added a few smaller gems to it.


    The cut was almost certainly still a few steps above what even the best jewellers could manage on this world but that was fine. Hunter 23HX443 pulled the bag out and made a show of reaching in to grab just one of the gems. "Is this sufficient?"


    The merchant''s eyes drifted just slightly the bag before snapping back to her face, searching for something. Clearly he found it because after a few moments of thought, and some obvious examination of the gem, he said, "I''m afraid not. It''s a good start certainly but for a proper map that will save you at least two days of your time? I think I''ll require… at least two more of that quality,"


    Hunter 23HX443 didn''t even bat an eye at that. She knew it was more than she should be paying but that wasn''t really the point. She needed it to seem reasonable and the merchant had clearly picked up on the fact she had ced, perhaps too many, gems in the bag. Asking for two more was reasonable when the bag contained an even twenty after all.


    Plus, as long as the others watching didn''t notice anything too amiss this was fine. So Hunter 23HX443 made a show of thinking about it for a few moments before reaching into the bag and retrieving two more gems and handing them over.


    The merchant examined them for a bit once they were in his hand and tried to hide his astonishment at the quality. He was no gem merchant, but his uncle WAS and he could tell Hunter 23HX443 was massively overpaying… and that she didn''t care. Deciding it was time to seal the deal, just not too quickly or notably happily. "Well, I suppose this is sufficient," said the merchant with a huff.


    He then reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief. He deposited the gems inside, folded it nicely again, and then returned it to his pocket. He made a show of slowly getting up and rummaging around for his map before handing it over, a fake tear in his eye. "This map has been my loyalpanion for most of my journeys.


    So it is truly a shame to give it up… but I understand your desire to avoid the crowds in town so hopefully it serves you well. Even if you are underpaying a bit… I suppose it''s an older map,"


    Hunter 23HX443 red at the merchant for a bit, just until the man was ovee with a full body shiver, before nodding and turning away. It''s what he deserved for being such an awful actor. Hunter 23HX443 debated vanishing in ce, or speeding off… but that too would be more trouble then it was worth.


    So she simple took off at a decent pace, careful to ensure that anybody looking at her would overlook the fact that she didn''t have any legs. No sense invitingst minute trouble after all.