Merchant Crab

Balthazar stared out into the horizon, his arms hanging over the wooden fence next to the entrance of his trading post, his eyes glancing over the plains grass.

The crab sighed.

He didn’t even want to look toward the build site, as he didn’t want to grow even more annoyed by whatever nonsense was happening there. He needed to find some adventurers that could help him find the person he sought. But as always, their kind would only show up when it was most inconvenient.

Or, sometimes, they would show up only to prove the crab wrong.

Two figures appeared from the south, walking up the road. One was a female adventurer, carrying a bag over her shoulder and another hanging from her hand. The second adventurer was a young man, a few paces behind, walking with difficulty, struggling with each step, despite not carrying any visible baggage except for the sword on his back.

Hopping down from the fence, Balthazar quickly made his way around it and onto the road so he could greet them and make his inquiry.

“Well? Come on then, hurry, you’re falling behind,” the girl said to the other adventurer, with a hint of smugness to it.

“Greetings!” the gilded crab exclaimed, waving a pincer as he approached them.

“Oh, hey, look, it’s that talking crab,” she said. “What was his name? Balthazar, right?”

The young man mumbled something unintelligible as he finally caught up to his partner, both now stopped in front of the crab.

Balthazar gave them a closer look.

[Level 14 Fighter]

[Level 15 Swordsman]

“Hey, I remember you two!” the crab said, pointing his silver pincer at the pair.

“Looks like he even remembers us now,” the fighter said to the swordsman. “Maybe he’s learned to be a nicer crab.”

“Your names were… James and Lilah, that was it!” the merchant said, looking proud of himself for recalling the names of two adventurers.

“Aaaaand never mind, I take that back,” she said, rolling her eyes. “No, crab, he’s Jack, and I’m Leah. But points for trying, at least.”

“Ah, well, potato, tomato, who cares? Let’s not allow those little details to get in the way,” the merchant said.

Balthazar glanced at the other adventurer, who was oddly quiet, given his usual boastful nature the previous times. He was slightly hunched over, with both hands on his knees, breathing like he had just gotten there sprinting.

As the crab observed him, he realized the swordsman wasn’t even wearing any armor like the other times they’d met. Instead, all he had on was a light tunic shirt, some cloth pants, and simple shoes. Aside from that, the only other thing he carried on his person was his weapon.

“What’s wrong with him?” Balthazar asked.

“Ah, nothing, don’t worry,” said Leah. “He’s just tired from being overburdened.”

“Overburdened?” the crab repeated, even more curious now. “But he’s not even carrying anything.”

“He is. That stupid sword on his back.”

“This sword,” the young man said, finally breaking his silence between light panting, “has saved our hides multiple times, Leah. You should show a little more appreciation.”

“Maybe so, but so could a lot of other swords, if you had switched by now,” the other adventurer said, looking annoyed at her companion, before turning to the crab again. “I don’t know why he insists on still using that thing. It’s like it’s cursed, but he refuses to get a new one.”

“Because, Leah, this will be my weapon of legend,” said Jack, making an effort to stand straight again. “It has grown in power with me, and the more I use it, the more powerful it becomes. Something like that is a once in a lifetime find. I wouldn’t trade it in for some regular steel poker now.”

“Come on, Jack. I know that thing is very strong and you’re all emotionally attached to it, but look at the state you’re in. You can barely carry it!”

“A true hero does not back down in the face of adversity,” the swordsman said, trying to strike a stoic pose with a hand in front of his inflated chest but giving up halfway. “Besides, you know damn well we wouldn’t have made it yesterday if it wasn’t for this sword.”

“What happened yesterday?” Balthazar asked, growing curious about the sword he once traded for his first slice of pie.

“A bear,” Leah said.

“Not just any bear,” Jack corrected. “It was a massive beast of a bear. Around level 50, or something.”

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“It was level 39,” his partner said. “But yes, even then, an enemy like that, at our levels, deep within the forest? I thought we were done for.”

“Exactly!” the young man exclaimed. “And how did we make it out of that situation? This very sword, as usual.”

Leah sighed. “Please don’t start doing another one of your dramatic tales.”

“We were deep within the depths of the forest.” Jack tried hopping on a stone by the edge of the road, but gave up and sat on it instead, rubbing his lower back. “You know what? I’ll let Leah take over on this one. She… she can do the explaining.”

She shook her head and rolled her eyes.

“So, how did you two get away from the bear?” Balthazar asked.

“Get away?” the girl said. “No, no, we killed the beast.”

“I—” Jack started.

“You killed it with your sword,” Leah quickly said. “Yes, I know.”

“With that big of a level difference?” the skeptical crab said. “Just with an enchanted sword?”

Leah shrugged. “Don’t ask me. Fact is, once Jack finally managed to lift the damn blade and I played bait to bring the bear close enough, the sword cut through it like butter. Ended the beast in one strike.”

Balthazar’s curiosity had enough of being piqued.

“Hmm, mind showing me that sword?” he said to the adventurer sitting on the stone.

“Sure, but you’re not thinking I’ll sell it back to you, I hope?” Jack said, standing up with difficulty and bringing a hand over his shoulder and to the hilt of the sword.

“Don’t worry, I have no use for swords. I’ll gladly stick to pies. I just want to examine your… marvelous weapon. I never really had a chance to, before.”

Straining to unsheathe it, the swordsman brought the blade over his shoulder and let its tip drop to the ground, both of his hands firmly wrapped around the grip, struggling to keep that end from falling too.

“I didn’t have a proper breakfast this morning, is all. I can swing it just fine if you give me a moment.”

Adjusting his Monocle of Examination with his pincer, the crab took a good look at the weapon.

[Sword of Heavy Might]

[+1 to damage and weight per enemy slain]

“Uh… any idea how many enemies you’ve taken out with this sword?” Balthazar asked, glancing over the monocle at the young man.

“I don’t know. Dozens? Probably hundreds, if I count every single kill.”

“Oh… wow… how are you even still using this thing?” the merchant asked. “It must be encumbering you like crazy.”

“A real hero does not let the burden of his destiny stop him from carrying on!” Jack said, trying to raise a clenched fist, but quickly regretting that choice and bringing it back to hold the sword.

“You don’t even wear armor anymore because of the weight, you fool!” Leah exclaimed, dropping both of her bags on the floor and throwing her hands up in frustration. “I have to carry everything now, because you’re no help at all. You need to get rid of that thing before you get yourself killed!”

“And give up all this damage?!” He turned back to the crab. “She keeps trying to get me to change weapon, but why should I, when this sword can do this…”

Taking a deep breath, the swordsman buckled his knees and made an effort to raise the blade from the ground.

With his teeth clenched and face turning red, Jack slowly brought the sword up in front of himself and took a trembling step forward.

Balthazar skittered out of his way quickly, worried the overburdened adventurer might suddenly drop the blade on him.

“Jack, you’re going to hurt yourself if you keep doing that! Just stop!” Leah pleaded.

Ignoring her, he slowly approached one of the large boulders between the road and the pond. With sweat rolling down his face, he grunted and lifted the sword above the rock that stood nearly as tall as him.

Letting out a yell of both pain and relief, he brought the blade down, cutting through the stone with a thunderous crash.

Panting and stumbling, he turned to the other two. “See? I told you. I can’t just give this up.”

He collapsed to the ground, arms and legs sprawled, sword lying next to him.

“Just going to take a moment here. Don’t mind me.”

“Very, uh… impressive,” Balthazar said, looking at the exhausted adventurer with an awkward expression. “Assuming your opponent is immobile and unable to strike you back while you try to raise your sword.”

“It’s no use,” said Leah, bringing her palm to her face. “He’s just too stubborn and won’t listen. He got into his head that sword is some kind of destined artifact of legend that he needs to keep using in order to become the big hero of these lands, or some nonsense like that. Sometimes he’s so childish I just want to leave him on the side of the road and carry on alone. But then I know I’d feel bad and go back, so what’s the point?”

A large, rocky face peeked over the corner from the path leading down to the pond.

“Friend?”

“Oh,” said Balthazar.

Bouldy walked around the wall of boulders and approached them, his concerned eyes going from the crab to the shattered pieces of stone the sword had just cut through.

“Sorry, buddy,” Jack said, sitting up. “I hope that wasn’t a cousin of yours?”

“Friend…” the golem lamented, tilting his head as he looked at the remains of the boulder with sadness.

“Either way,” said Balthazar, “you’re still going to have to pay for that. It was private property.”

The adventurer groaned and let his torso fall back down to the ground.

“Don’t mind him,” the other human said. “We don’t really have much coin on hand right now, but hopefully this will cover it.”

She opened one of her bags and pulled a large, thick piece of black fur from it. “It’s the pelt from the bear. You can have it. I’d rather be rid of it and just get to the inn quick. My feet are killing me and looking at it just brings me bad memories of how close we were to dying.”

“Hey, I was going to have a cloak made from it!” Jack protested as he stood back up to a sitting position.

“And how are you going to wear it with that thing taking up all your carrying capacity?” Leah retorted, with the tone of a mother admonishing her child. “If I can’t rid us of that cursed sword, I can at least get rid of this stupidly heavy pelt. I don’t want to carry this reminder of our near deaths a minute longer.”

The young man crossed his arms but did not complain further.

“Sure, I don’t mind taking that off your hands,” Balthazar said. “But I’d also like something else from you. Information.”

“Oh? Mister merchant needs information from us, ignorant adventurers?” the girl said, raising her eyebrows.

“Precisely. It has to do with igno… with adventurers. That’s why I’m asking you. I can’t really go up into town and visit your guild myself, on account of… all the work I have to do here and all, but if I needed to have a message relayed to one of your fellow adventurers, is that something they could do there?”

“Sure,” Leah responded. “Most of us move around all the time, traveling between cities across the whole continent. It’s common for the guild to save and deliver messages to its members whenever they stop by.”

“Great!” the crab said with enthusiasm. “Think you could take a message from me up there?”

“I guess? We are going there either way. It won’t hurt to do you that favor after the big hero over there just rudely broke a piece of your property for no damn reason!” she said, raising her voice towards the end of the sentence and glaring at her partner, who was still lying on the ground with his arms crossed. “Who do you want to send a message to?”

“I’m looking to send word out to a certain adventurer. Her name is Ruby...”

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