Night had just fallehe pond and the pins across from it were dark and quiet, save for the chilly breeze that blew across the grass. With summer finally gone, being out after sundown was no longer as pleasant, but Balthazar stood steadfast by his bazaar’s entrano chill or sleepiness able to pull him away from su important moment.
That night would be the first meetiween him and the mysterious lizardfolk he had heard so much about.
And by so much, he actually meant barely anything.
He khey were reclusive, they lived in the marshes far to the south, and little more. The orcs had been short on words about them, despite the orc chieftain’s cim that they hold good retions with their tribe, and human books were of little help, as it was usually the case with aient nonhuman race, sihey merely described the lizard people as savages and dangerous.
It came as no surprise to Balthazar, seeing as, acc to human books, crabs were also just unintelligent iebrates and their writers seemed entirely unaware of them possessing any ability to start a business or even talk.
Clearly, human knowledge was very limited iain fields. If he was not so busy running his bazaar and talking to low intelligence adventurers all day, Balthazar would love to educate them reatness.
Standio him was Bouldy, guarding him as usual, and Hea, sitting on the ground with her Bag of Holding strapped around herself.
If the giant crab looked small o the golem, the toad looked just tio the two of them.
That night was also important for her, as it would be Hea’s first time handling the night business for Balthazar. If all went well, the pn was that iure she would stay up, dealing with the nighttime tele, while the crab enjoyed his much deserved rest after a day of adventurer handling.
As much as Balthazar liked to be very cws-on with his business, he khere was no feasible way for him to do both shifts, and the idea of leaving potential oable upset him slightly more than having a toad w for him.
“W with you,” said Hea.
“Huh? What?” Balthazar said, snapping out of his thoughts.
“I don’t work for you,” she crified. “I work with you, remember? You’re not my boss. I’m not taking orders from any big ego merts ever again.”
“Right, yes, of course,” the crab said, nodding his shell while w at oint had he started thinking out loud.
Before he could ask her any further questions, the light of a tornouhe arrival of the orcs.
Stepping out of the grass, Khargol and his two warrior-brothers, both carrying rge bags of loot over their shoulders, approached the awaiting trio.
“Greetings,” said the chieftain with a nod.
His expression was serious and only mildly intimidating, which Balthazar had e to lear the orc robably in an agreeable mood.
It was a very fine lio distinguish.
“Wele, fels,” the crab said, opening both arms in a weling manner. “Let’s step inside, where it’s warmer.”
The six of them walked ihe bazaar, where the warmth of the fire pit and shelter from the cold outside breeze made for a much more cozy enviro. Despite that, Balthazar had a feeling the visitors cared little for such things, or else they would not be walking around with sleeveless leather armor. Or perhaps they just ehe feeling of a gentle breeze on their biceps. The crab would just never know for certain.
“The lizardfolk envoy will be arriving ter,” Khargol bluntly stated, before Balthazar made any questions. “Their homend is much farther away from here than ours, but worry not, their kind are masters at navigating the wilds quickly and discreetly.”
“Excellent!” Balthazar said. “I look forward to meeting them, but until then, I’m guessing you guys brought some business of your own?” He poiowards the other two ord their heavy bags.
“Indeed,” the chieftain firmed, while signaling for his panions to e forth with their cargo. “A rge party of foolish humans came upon our settlemely. We advised them to turn bad leave.”
The two orcs opehe bags and unceremoniously dumped their tents on the floor between them. Multiple pieces of leather and steel armor with blood spttered all over them, a helmet with a patch of hair still hanging from it, and even some loose teeth came rolling out of the bag like dice being thrown.
Khargol crossed his arms, and a smirk formed behind his tusks. “They did not turn bad leave.”
Balthazar g Hea, who sat o him with wide eyes and a mixture of and disgust as she looked at the dispy of items in front of them.
“Uh, very… iing choice of goods yht us today,” the golden mert said.
“We will take 110 gold for the lot,” the orc stated in his usual assertive tohat was meant to sound final.
Balthazar gave the bloodied gear annce. “Well, I guess if—”
“Excuse me,” Hea said, looking at the crab. “If I may?”
“I… yes, sure, go ahead,” Balthazar said with some hesitation. “I suppose I should let you take care of it, sihat was the pn. Force of habit, I guess.”
The toad hopped forward as the crab skittered back to give her space.
“So, if I’m getting this straight,” she started, “these are items you took from fallen adventurers who came to your vilge and fought yht?”
The er of Khargol’s mouth twitched slightly and made a brief snarling sound before he answered. “Yes, they are. They came to us, we are entitled to collect the spoils of foolish—”
“No, no, I get that part,” Hea interrupted. “A bit gruesome, but I’m not going to dwell on the whole human sying part right now. Business is business.”
“Good. Then what seems to be the problem?”
“Well, for starters, look at this.” She extended both of her fs towards one of the leather chest pieces. “Big hht over the heart. I’m guessing from one of your bdes. Who’s going to want to buy torso armor with holes over the important parts?”
“Minor damage,” the orc said, giving the armor a disdainful look. “Nothing some quick patchwork won’t fix.”
“Oh, alright, and who’s going to do that work? Not you, apparently. So, us? The t? Who covers the costs of repairs?”
Khargol’s lips twisted in a displeased manner behind his fangs. Balthazar swallowed dry and sidered interjeg, but before he could say anything, Hea tinued.
“And look at those pants, all bloodied. Nobody’s going to buy gear covered in blood. Do you have any idea how hard it is to remove dry blood from these? No, of course you don’t, since you clearly made no attempt to wash it off before bringing it here. I’m guessing your wives do all that bae, so you’re used to things just appearing in front of you, without putting any value into what it takes to make that happen.”
Khargol’s brow furrowed even deeper than usual, which was already pretty deep by default, and his crossed arms tightened on each other. Balthazar could swear the sound he was hearing was the leather from his armor straining as his chest puffed out.
“I think what Hea is trying to say is that 110 gold is perfectly—”
“I’m not done, Balthazar,” the toad quickly and firmly stated. “I think 100 gold would be a fair price for these pieces if they were all in good dition, which is clearly not the case, so 110 is not an acceptable value at all.”
“110 is our only offer,” Khargol said in a low, deep tone. “If you don’t want them, then we will just leave with the items.”
The chieftain signaled for the other two ord they began opening their bags to collect the ons and armor.
“Fihe green mert calmly said. “Better han a bad deal. You might try your luck with a human mert , or stop by one of the many other non-human trading outposts on your way home. Perhaps you bring all these back to your vilge and ask your wives to wash and fix them up before you try selling them again. I know enough about oren and their temper to know they would probably not be too pleased to find you returned after being out all night without selling anything and that you shamed orcish pride by presenting such dirty and poorly maintained gear to a trading partner. From what I hear, it’s them who do all the leather w and smithing in orc vilges, right? I only imagihe talking to they’d give seeing these presented as what their tribe has to offer for trading.”
Khargol’s eyes slowly grew wider as the toad spoke, and Balthazar started fearing for the worst, until the chieftain held one hand up, his fellow orcs to stop pig the items back up.
“Go stand outside, keep a for threats a us know when the lizards arrive,” he said to them in a low and calm voice.
The warrior-brothers nodded and promptly walked out of the bazaar through the front gate, leaving their chieftain standing alone over the bloodied ons and torn up pieces of armor strewn across the floor.
“You are astute, toad,” Khargol said, his arms still tightly crossed, enhang his bulging muscles in a mildly threatening manner. “I will accept a deal of 90 gold pieces this time, ierest of a good startiionship.”
Looking not the least bit threatened or bothered, Hea responded without even taking a moment to think. “80 gold.”
The orc let out a quiet snarl once again. “85 gold, no less.”
“75.”
Balthazar could nearly swear he felt the gust of wind that shot out of the orostrils as he heard the toad’s answer.
“Fine, 80 gold pieces aalk no further of this matter,” the tall orc said, letting his shoulders rex down but still keeping his arms firmly crossed.
“Deal,” Hea said with a wide smile.
“You are a shrewd deal maker,” the chieftain said, finally uncrossing his arms aing his scowl ease up a notch. “I will e to respect that once my displeasure for this deal fades away.”
“No hard feelings, chieftain,” said Hea, with a gentle bow of her head. “I tell you’re a harsh but ultimately fair oo deal with.”
As Balthazar stood to the side watg the other two, he felt a mixture of very fusing and flig feelings.
He felt nearly ie, watg such a polite exge between them, making him wonder if it really wasn’t the norm to walk out of a trade where one party was strong-armed either feeling triumphant and superior or irritated and hating the uts.
The crab also felt a slight hit to his own pride, realizing the toad had just quickly and nearly effortlessly done what he had never achieved, by making the orc chieftain accept a lower offer for his goods.
Was he not as great and successful of a mert as he had thought?
Had the charismatic crusta really just been schooled o of making deals by an amphibian?
A hint of prideful irritation was starting to bubble up inside his shell, but then, as if throwing pond water over fming coals, Balthazar felt that feeling subside.
He realized he should not be upset. If anything, he should be happy instead. Maybe there were a few things to learn from others, and if they made him an eveer mert, that would be his own gain. Her being a good deal maker was, in fact, a great thing, as it would mean he could rest easy every night knowing she would hahings at his bazaar well.
There was no reason for him to feel diminished, for at the end of the day, he was still the famous mert who owned his own bazaar down by his beautiful pond, and such a crab had no reason to pare himself to others.
Balthazar would not feel any lesser, because he already knew he was great.
tent with the lesson he had just learhere, and feeling sure he had taken the right clusions out of it—at least for the most part—he turo the toad to gratute her on a deal well made.
“Nicely done, Hea. That was nearly as good as if I had do myself. I’m gd the night business will be in good hands.”
The toad squi the crab’s remark, but before she could say anything, one of Khargol’s traveling panions stepped bato the bazaar.
“The lizardfolk envoy has arrived.”
“Good,” the chieftain said with a nod. “Let us introduce you to him, crab.”
“Worry not, Khargol,” Balthazar said, giving the top of his golden shell a quick shih the back of his cw, “first impressions are one of my specialties.”
H0st