I'm not sure what the world record for longest time crying is, but I had a strong feeling Mr. Anzer just broke it.
To summarize, Griesies, the name of his Rhino Tortoise, is a long-time companion and friend. You can even go as far as saying the animal-fusion is his family. Can't say I understand the sentiment of raising a pet, but the way he's talking makes it sound like the idea of separation could kill him, if not physically, then emotionally, from how much he's crying.
I think there's a puddle about the size of my heel on the dark-chocolate colored wood floors.
"I understand your concern, Mr. Anzer. We'll do our very best to ensure Griesies is safely returned to you."
I stopped counting the number of times "Griesies" was said after the 6th mention. It's certainly a name I won't forget anytime soon.
"Now, is there anything you can tell us about Griesies apart from your shared history? Favorite food, habits, noteworthy traits? We wanted to ask you about this to ensure Griesies could be captured without…uhh, resorting to violent or emotionally damaging tactics."
Mr. Anzer sniffed, perking his head up.
"O-of course!"
...
Sorting through all of the touching backstory between Mr. Anzer's and Griesies's growing bond from infancy to adulthood, emotional enough for Richter to shed a tear, though he denies it, this is what I've learned.
Griesies loves getting scratched, belly rubs, eating Halgenberries (whatever those are), and playing games like tag, hide and seek, and fetch. If it weren't for the fact I knew I was dealing with a Rhino Tortoise, I would've thought he was talking about a dog.
"It's best if you come with us, Mr. Anzer," Richter said what I was about to say. "It'll be easier for us to capture Griesies if he sees you."
Mr. Anzer sniffed, wiping away a tear. "Yes, of course. I'm partly responsible for whatever destruction he causes, so it makes sense that I help in the search."
...
After asking Mr. Anzer about some of Griesies's identifying traits, size, colors, shapes, even a drawing of him using a pencil and paper I lied about having on me, I've learned that even if I didn't ask, the Rhino Tortoise would stick out like a sore thumb.
"With such a big animal running around, why aren't more people being sent to help capture it?"
"Did you forget? The adventurer's guild is short of manpower after Koron's attack, so anyone who handles the commission is the best option we've got."
"Just two- three people?"
"Two mages and the big animal's owner."
"Right. I'm gonna go look from the rooftops."
I walked up to a nearby building, erected a flight of stairs leading to the top, and climbed them before making the stairs sink into the ground, making it appear undisturbed.
Richter decided to take a slab from the bricks I used, stood on top of it, and levitate it upwards to the spot I was standing at.
"Why are both of you on the roof?" Mr. Anzer asked us.
"Well, we've heard that the Rhino Tortoise is dangerous when provoked. We're not trying to provoke it, but on the off chance something goes wrong, both of us will at least be out of the way of its rampage." I answered the owner.
"You're treating him like he's a menace! There's no need for that! Get down here so that we can find him together!"
I looked around, seeing countless roofs of many buildings with grass-covered mountains further in the distance.
"I think you should stick with Mr. Anzer," I told Richter.
"Why should I do that?"
"We're 2 people. One of us needs to see what's happening on the ground, and the other needs to see what's happening from above. And if one of us staying next to Mr. Anzer will convince him to cooperate with whatever idea we enact, we should complete this commission as smoothly as possible."
"Are you gonna come down, or what?" I heard Mr. Anzer shout to both of us.
"What's your plan?" Richter asked me.
...
After thoroughly discussing the plan, Richter decided I should accompany Mr. Anzer while he kept an eye from the rooftops. As the party leader and a trained Earth-attuned mage, he was better suited for what I had in mind. I'm sure he also didn't want to admit that he's scared of confronting the Rhino Tortoise on the ground, so I prepared some visualizations in case I had to confront it, and he became aggressive. A giant block of metal should be enough to slow its assault. No, I do not plan on squishing it, just bait it into ramming into metal, hopefully to incapacitate the animal fusion.
While I accompanied the Rhino Tortoise owner, he was whistling, making weird mouth sounds, and calling out Griesies, like a pet owner searching for a lost dog.
"I'm here, Griesies!" followed by weird noises I could only assume were attempts to attract the animal to him, hopefully while keeping it calm.
I just tuned out the odd looks I got while I followed him. Maybe this is another reason why he wanted me to stick with Byclaes, to save himself from the embarrassment of… this.
"Has Griesies ever run away before?" I asked Byclaes, wanting him to repurpose his mouth from ceaseless shouting.
"He has. When he first disappeared, I thought he'd grown tired of living with us, but after we went looking for him, it turns out he was really attracted to the scent of Halgenberries. By the time we found him, there was a pile of stems near the Halgenberry tree he was sleeping under."
"Wait, he lived with you? How did that work?"
"Oh, he lived with us at our mansion."
"A mansion."
"Yes."
It took a few seconds to register that fact. I found myself staring at him in disbelief.
I tried to say something, but found myself struggling to understand how someone who used to live in a mansion became a merchant.
"Are you confused about how I became a travelling merchant despite having once lived in a mansion?"
"Extremely, you're a merchant, right?"
"Yes. Were you not informed when you accepted the commission?"
"Yeah, I was told that."
I withheld the urge to finish that with 'right off the bat,' knowing certain phrases I'm familiar with wouldn't translate well.
"You're not the first to be confused," Byclaes answered before looking around, stopping when he stared down a certain alleyway. "Let's just say that living a rich lifestyle doesn't make you as happy as you imagine."
Mr. Anzer then ran off, and I followed after him.
...
Good news, we found Griesies safe and sound.
Bad news, Griesies was a few paces short of trampling Richter to death.
The scene I was witnessing was Richter evading the Rhino Tortoise to the best of his ability, with a combination of launching himself upwards by quickly erecting pillars beneath his feet, slowing down Griesies by erecting rows of small walls for him to crash into, or creating tripping hazards such as round bumps or short walls a few inches high.
As for him landing from falling midair, he took a chunk of the pillar closest to him and used that as something to ride mid-air on before returning to the ground.
Why isn't he just staying on a floating platform?
I looked toward the ground and got my answer.
A few people in green cloaks and shining armor were helping bystanders escape the very area the Rhino Tortoise was rampaging in. A location that would take a few seconds to charge towards if Richter was no longer the object of his attention.
In other words, Richter was stalling for time.
I saw the array of raised pillars of earth that were either in good condition or broken, and the few bystanders who were witnessing Richter's struggle.
I'll have to discard the metal cube idea for something equally as effective, but not as conspicuous and confusing in terms of 'is that magically possible?'
"Nolval! Help me!"
Frantic, I settled on the first plausible idea that came to mind, making the ground beneath the Rhino sink, effectively making an empty ground cavity like an in-ground pool or terraformed zoo pen.
"Keep it still for a moment!"
I erected a pillar beneath me and raised it to the level of a nearby roof, wanting to get a good view of the Rhino Tortoise and the area he was running on.
Richter erected a pillar and used a chunk of it to stay afloat. He didn't move sideways, but he was sinking.
The Rhino Tortoise tried reaching him by getting on its hind legs like a dog trying to reach for a ball being held by its owner, or a short sibling trying to reach for something their taller sibling was teasing them with.
When it was on all fours, I immediately made the ground they stood on sink, making it deep enough for the top of their shell to be less than an inch off the normal level ground. To ensure the Rhino Tortoise wouldn't suffocate to death from loose earth collapsing around them, I maintained my focus on the walls of the newly dug pool, erecting small pillars of earth to act as supports for the dirt walls.
Griesies tried ramming their enclosure, but got a bit of dirt on them.
Richter was able to float away from where Griesies was trapped, landing next to where I stood.
...
Byclaes Anzer was able to procure some Halgenberries to feed to Griesies to calm him down. These Halgenberries looked like a combination of a pineapple and corn in the shape of a volleyball.
The Rhino Tortoise seemed to be enjoying it. Wonder what it tastes like.
Both Richter and I were observing Griesies in its temporary enclosure on solid ground. He looked apprehensive of the Rhino Tortoise, but wasn't scared silent. I guess that's an improvement.
"Feeling better?"
"Exhausted from having to put up with the Rhino Tortoise." He huffed a bit, catching his breath. I waited for him to finish.
"Do you feel as scared?"
"Huh?"
He looked toward the Rhino Tortoise before turning to me, then shook his head.
"Cool."
"Excuse me, could either of you help bring her out?"
"Sure," I answered Byclaes, being the one responsible for the creature's enclosure.
I looked at the floor of Griesies's enclosure.
"Is he calm?"
"Yes."
Just to be safe, as I slowly erected the floor Griesies was on, I also simultaneously raised a square section of the ground beneath me. The square was large enough to not be destroyed if Griesies decided to crash into it a single time.
After the floor of his enclosure was level with the ground's path, the Rhino Tortoise slowly trotted towards Mr. Anzer and let himself be rubbed and scratched affectionately. Seeing that, I lowered my section of the ground until it was level with the brick paths.
"Thank you, young mages!"
Heh. He thinks I'm young.
My mouth moved to automatically say "no problem," but seeing Richter's fatigued state made me shut it, as it'd be insensitive to dismiss solving this issue as easy.
...
We were on our way back to the guild hall to report the commission completion.
"What took you so long to find me?" Richter asked.
"Did you forget? The idea was for me to confront it and hopefully discreetly trap it."
Thinking about it, the plan wasn't really well thought out, as it hinged mostly on my abilities, not Richter's. Neither of us planned for the possibility of him encountering it first, and we haven't thought of a way to alert the other if either of us had found the Rhino Tortoise.
"What happened anyway? How'd you end up facing Griesies?"
"It sort of just… happened. I saw someone in danger and used my magic to attack Griesies, and that's how it ended up focused on me."
"'Attack Griesies,' did someone try picking a fight with the Rhino Tortoise, or something?"
"I don't know. I only saw it charging toward a child, and just attacked."
"Well, you did a good job protecting everyone while they escaped, even if I didn't see it all."
"Thanks…"
We walked the rest of the way silently, neither of us saying another word. He looked on the verge of collapse, so I stopped talking to ensure he'd expend as little energy as possible.
...
"Alright, here's for completion credits, split evenly. Nolval, congratulations on completing your first commission!"
Ikolees, the clerk who originally gave us the commission, cheered, clapping in celebration. Another clerk behind her, who walked in on this moment, looked momentarily surprised, before clapping along.
"Normally, it'd take 9 more Black Ear level commissions to achieve a Rank-Up, but with the credits given by this commission, you'll only have to do 5 more Black Ear level commissions, or if you continue completing Purple Hide Commissions with Richter and split the credits, only 3 more."
I felt a nudge on my shoulder.
"Congrats on completing your first commission."
"Congratulate yourself, you did the heavy lifting."
"As promised by the posted commission, Mr. Anzer owes both of you a total of 1000 Qiliq, or 10 red coins." Ikolees then presented the commission info.
Red?
"All for a purple hide commission?" Richter asked the lady.
"This is how much finding the Rhino Tortoise meant to him."
The lady who awkwardly clapped to our commission completion then placed a stack of 10 red coins wrapped in a band of paper on the counter in front of us.
"If you like, we can exchange it for smaller denominations. However, we won't exchange all of it for a blue coin."
I remembered how Alicia paid for our desserts. A combination of yellows and greens.
"Could I have 1 red be split into yellows, and 2 reds be split into greens?"
"And how many of those would you like to be ringed coins?"
"What?"
I felt Richter grab my arm and pull me to the side.
"How do you- never mind. If you were to split a red coin, you'd get 2 yellow ringed coins, or 20 green ringed coins."
"So… a yellow ringed coin is 50, and a green ringed coin is 5."
"Yes!"
"Thanks."
I walked back up to Ikolees, having chosen how to split the 3 red coins I'd be getting.
"1 Red coin split into 10 yellow non-ring coins, 1 split into 20 green ringed coins, and… actually…"
"Sir?" Ikolees asked, as if checking for my presence while I was deciding how to split it without being too much of an inconvenience to them, while also ensuring I had a decent balance of each coin."
"Umm… I'll get back to you. Could I take my share of the coins now?"
"Sure!"
I took my 5 red coins to a nearby empty table, then conjured a pencil and paper.
"What are you doing?" Richter asked.
"Trying to figure out how I should split this in case I start shopping." I looked up from my blank paper. "Got any recommendations?"
Richter looked toward the ceiling in contemplation.
As I waited, I started drawing while trying to figure out how to divide it.
"A good rule to follow is to never have more than 30 of a single denomination. Less than 10 for denominations you don't want getting stolen."
"Is that so? Alright."
After drawing it out on my piece of paper, I decided to go for 2 Red coins (200), 2 Yellow Ringed Coins (100), 10 Yellow Coins (100), 15 Green Ringed Coins (75), and 25 Green Coins.
"You got a pouch I could use?"
"Certainly!"
After being given a pouch full of my payment, Richter and I left the building.
...
"So what are you gonna do with the Qiliq?" Richter asked me.
"Not sure, but I'll figure something out. What about you?"
As Richter opened his mouth to answer, there was a sudden repetition of a loud sound. It was a resounding thump, powerful enough for its vibrations to be felt in the soles of my feet.
I looked forward, only to see a Rhino Tortoise strut into view, pulling along what I can only assume is a cart by its mouth. On top of its shell comfortably sat Byclaes Anzer, the owner of the creature. Looking closer, I'm pretty sure there's a chair on the shell. Wonder how that's fixed.
"Ah, hello, you two! Have you already received my reward?"
"1000 total Qiliq split evenly between the both of us?" Richter answered.
"Good, good. Once again, I'm extremely thankful to both of you gentlemen. In fact, I'd like to treat both of you to any 1 item from my inventory, free of charge!"
Seriously?
"Seriously?" Richter asked aloud.
"Positive."
I looked to Richter, and he immediately shrugged his shoulders. I guess that's his way of saying "why not?"
Byclaes quickly dismounted from the chair atop the Rhino Tortoise's shell and moved to open the cart Griesies was pulling. Inside was a pile of stuff I couldn't really make heads or tails of. The light from the sun illuminated the cart's interior, making it clearer what was inside, but at best, I could recognize the geometry of some of the items. Not what they are.
"Quick question," I started. "What are you a merchant of?"
"Oh, just wares I pick up from time to time when visiting different towns. I do pick up some magical items here and there, but I'm not a mage, so I have no use for them. Perhaps they could be of some interest to you?"
"Where are your magical items?" Richter said immediately at an almost incomprehensible speed.
"Can't tell you. You'll just have to pick it out from my inventory. I'm not a mage, so I can't distinguish magical items from ordinary trinkets."
Richter immediately stepped into the cart, rummaging through the pile. Hearing the noise from him digging through the pile made me question Byclaes's legitimacy as a merchant. I merely observed from outside the cart as Richter kept digging.
Eventually, he settled on a metal bracelet inlaid with a dark brown gem. The band's width was about the size of his finger.
"So, what's that?" I asked him the moment he set foot out of the cart.
"It's a Proa crystal aligned with my Earth attunement. With this, my magic should be stronger."
"Substantially stronger?"
"No, but since it's free, who am I to complain?"
It still looked like an ordinary metal bracelet with a dark brown gem, but then again, I can't see what Richter sees, so I was in no position to question his choice. And you know what people say about discarded belongings: one man's trash is another man's treasure.
"You gonna get something?"
"Not for me, but for Kiori. Anything that could help boost his attunement."
He turned toward the pile in the cart.
"I didn't sense anything like that." He then faced me. "You sure you don't want anything?"
Richter was able to pick out that bracelet from the pile of knick-knacks; meanwhile, I'm still seeing a pile of junk that might be valuable to others more in the know.
"Is it all right if I give Richter my free item chance?" I asked Byclaes, who was now standing next to the back of his cart.
"You're not getting anything?" The merchant asked, surprised.
"Between the two of us, he's got a better eye for what's valuable, so it's better if he picks using my opportunity."
"Are you sure about this? No takebacks." Richter reminded me of what I was giving up.
"Go for it."
He happily searched through the pile and got a ring, this time with a glossy blue gem. After that, Byclaes left, somehow getting back on the chair without our assistance, and waved goodbye as we returned to the dorms.