Chapter Twelve - A Simple Deal
Mister Numbra, the man who may or may not be the leader of the Thieves Guild, was still obviously suspicious of her, but Rosario couldn't find it in herself to blame him. She had just shown up in a place that ought to have been secure and asked for work.
He had otherwise been quite kind, though he didn't have the easy answer she wanted.
"I don't know about maid work," he admitted. "But... that doesn't mean that I can't find something. Of course, you need to understand that our guild functions off of principles of mutual benefit."
"I understand more than most that nothing is ever truly free," she replied. Honestly, it just sounded like a good line. "Tell me more about this rebellion you mentioned? I've been out of the loop when it comes to Alpta."
"And Lithos in its entirety," he said. "The rebellion has little to do with the guild, except that we're not antagonistic with them, and they are ready to purchase a lot of items in bulk and they don't ask questions about origins."
"I see," she replied. "They're acting as fences?"
He shook his head. "Buyers. And on occasion they put out contracts. Right now, information is worth more than gold. If, hypothetically, I could get you some work in a mansion or shop, would you be able to copy receipts, journals or the like?"
She considered it, then nodded. "Yes. Easily. I imagine that I'll have to do this work disguised?"
"If you don't intend to make this a one-off situation. It may take you several days to infiltrate some of these places."
"That's fine," she replied.
Several days was perfect! She could do so much maid work in that time. Better yet, she wouldn't have to limit herself. She could come in, clean a place top to bottom working at her own pace, then leave once she had what she needed for the contract only to work elsewhere.
"Do you have a name changer?" she asked.
He nodded. "We do."
"Fantastic. In that case, yes, I'd be willing to assist the guild in turn."
Mister Numbra smiled rather pleasantly. "Fantastic! It may take a day or two to arrange things. This is quite sudden."
"That's entirely understandable," she replied.
"Do you have a place to stay in Alpta?" he asked. When she shook her head, his rat-like tail twitched. "Well then, you can remain here. It's not like you don't know where the guild house is. Ah, but while you're here..."
Mister Numbra reached into thin air for a moment, then plucked something out of his inventory. Three somethings.
He reached over to her slowly, fingers pinched around a set of ribbons. On the end of those were some jangly little bells.
"Are... you dressing me as a jester?" she asked.
"Hm? No. These are a bit of a tradition in here. A way for new members to prove their worth. And it allows the hazing to be... targeted and reasonable. Wear these in obvious places. Hair, belt, tied around a wrist. The others here will try to steal them off of you. Let them, or don't. It's a good way to level pick-pocketing and stealth skills."
"Should I allow someone to steal from me?" Rosario asked.
"Up to you. But if you're actually aware, then the experience isn't as good."
She wondered how he knew that. Unlike a game, there were hardly little numbers floating off into invisibility when a skill was used, or anything that mentioned experience in any of the menus she had looked at.
Shrugging, she took the ribbons and the bells and festooned them upon herself. One around the arm, another around her waist, and a third around her thigh. She didn't like the way they made noise when she moved.
Somehow, it was okay for Cricket to make a racket, but on herself?
"We have a small barracks," Mister Numbra said. "It's not much, but there are beds, and of course there's the bar and the kitchens. We don't exactly have a [Cook] but we make due."
"Would you mind if I cleaned?" she asked.
He blinked, then chuckled. "I very much doubt that anyone would mind if this place smelled a little better and wasn't quite so dusty."
That was a fair point, the room was dusty, even the table between them had a fine sheen of it on its surface.
"Thank you. I'll do just that. Ah, but while we're chatting, I have another question, if you don't mind. Two, actually."
"Go on," he said casually.
"First, are there rules for... liberating items in the city?"
His eyebrows rose. "Good you asked. Yes, there are. I'll show you the panel by the exit with all of the signage, but some businesses have marks on them. Don't touch those. Other marks mean other things."
"Are there any particularly... ah, unfriendly people that no one with too much moral sense would mind seeing robbed?" she asked.
"Heh. There are a few. Lord Gromit, the money-lender of Bardsway. He runs a small gang of finger-breakers. Not particularly beloved that one. Has a good in with the Aerie nobility, so the rebels hate him. Oh, and that potion shop by the east side of the Crowns. Always water things down. Could do with lifting a few things off the shelves there. Otherwise... a couple of folk have a bad rep in the red-light district. Some crooked shops here and there. Depends on what you mean by 'moral sense,' really."
"That's fair, thank you," she replied.
She was thinking of the distant future. If it came out that she stole something, then she'd want it to be from a disreputable source, to make the crime more... forgivable. In the game, she could just rob every shop blind and then fence it. Most things respawned eventually.
"My second question is with regards to the bank."
"Don't use it much," he replied. "Though the proper bank is fine, if you can get past the guards out front."
"Is it system controlled?"
He nodded.
Well then, that was another option. "And what kind of guards are there?" she asked.
"Good ones. Third tier, at a minimum, mostly former [City Guards] and [Soldiers]. You know that the International Bank doesn't cheap out, and they want their cut."
"Of course," she replied. "Last question. The castle--"
He raised a hand. "Off limits."
"Truly?" she asked.
"The real nobility of Alpta live in the north city. There are ferries from the north docks to the glass docks running all day and well into the night. Some posh folk live in the Noon Docks, behind the old castle. But the castle itself? That's something else."
"How so?" she asked.
"Guarded by [Aerie Royal Guardsmen]. That's a special third tier job. Two Titled as well, round the clock. They have some [Thief-Catchers] as well. Some of them are still members here, believe it or not, but they'd sell anyone out in a second if they tried something on the castle."
"That sounds... very well guarded."
"The city could fall thrice over and not a stone would be touched," he said.
"And the rulers don't stay there?" she asked.
He shrugged, then leaned back into the booth. "Not if they can avoid it."
"What's there, then?"
"Something above my pay tier."
Rosario hummed, then changed the subject to something safer, notably what the local traditions were and which foods tasted best. Mister Numbra was adamant that Alpta culture was wholly unique across the world, only they overfed guests and no one feared their grandmothers more and so on. Rosario put on a gentle customer support smile--which she feared was the closest to a maidly smile she could yet manage--and listened with rapt inattention.
The discussion eventually petered out, and she stood, shook the man's hand, then followed him to the back where they had their kitchens and barracks.
The place was... not exactly a mess but it was a long way from clean. "This is perfect," she said.
"Fantastic. Ah, and since we're entering a working relationship, I feel like I ought to warn you; be careful with any ratkin women you meet."
"I... see."
He nodded. "If you show any weakness, she'll press. She's not always the best when it comes to picking fights. Please don't kill her."
"I'll do what I can," she replied.
It was still a few hours short of noon. She had plenty of time to clean the place up before her meeting with Cricket tonight. In fact, it was probably enough time to clean up, then slip out and maybe... procure a few coins, she could even stop by the bank.
She wasn't sure if her 'account' had anything in it, or if she even still had one, but it was maybe worth looking into, as long as she could be discreet about it. If she could without setting off any alarms then...
Well, then she had six hundred levels worth of random currency and crafting materials and gear stuffed in there. That was certainly worth a slight detour for.
If she was going to live the rest of her life in a fantasy world, she'd rather do it rich.
Or at least in the service of someone who was.
***