Wolf cast Clean, a First Order spell, to wipe away the blood from his clothing before leaving a dark backstreet. Inside the alley lay a half-empty sack of potatoes soaked in blood, two headless bodies and a pair of heads with very surprised expressions.

That was literally the stupidest thing I’ve done in my entire life. What came over me to willingly climb into a sack and to try and blend in with the potatoes? I was certain this plan was so stupid it had to be true…

Wolf still couldn’t believe what had transpired, but at least he was now out of the slums. Still using the same Clean, Wolf removed all of the dirt and stains he had previously applied to his clothes. Since this was called the upper district it stood to reason that people living here were cleaner than those that lived within the palisade.

That most definitely wasn't a kidnapping. Yes, it was a sacking. Nobody could ever kidnap me…

Deep in thought, Wolf kept muttering and shaking his head while he walked the Silver City’s streets, “Potatoes… That was so humiliating.… can’t believe…”

As soon as he gathered his wits, Wolf noticed that, compared to the area outside the stone walls, this place was much more orderly. Streets and alleys were as wide as they were in the towns Wolf had previously visited, if not wider. These houses seemed spacious and every one of them had at least one shard of Light-Stone embedded above the door.

Some of the stores were closing, while others were already closed. However there were some that remained open even after dark. Wolf was looking for one type of store in particular. It was the kind of store where heroes, whose biographies Wolf had read, visited from time to time. After walking for a while Wolf finally found one. A dark, shady-looking store that probably dealt in information.

Wolf went into an empty alley, put on his nice Mage’s robe and cast a Third Order spell Alter Form. Unfortunately, the effect of the spell was somewhat limited. Given Wolf’s height the best he could do was change his appearance into a shriveled old man.

Wolf played with his long beard in a satisfied manner as he entered the shop with a large PAWN sign hanging above its door. The store didn’t have any windows and the door was made out of solid wood with numerous bolts and locks. It looked exactly like dens of spies and assassins the way history books described them.

“Shopkeeper!” Wolf shouted as soon as he entered the store, doing his best to impersonate an important old man’s shaky voice.

A well built, cleanly shaven man with a thick mustache sat behind the counter. He was about to yell Shut up when he noticed Wolf’s robes and strange appearance. Few people would dare to wear a Mage's robe in this day and age, especially in a city that had a Mage Academy. An impersonator would be discovered quickly should they encounter a real Mage. Thinking up to here, the shopkeeper decided to act with caution and undeserved respect towards this strange man shouting at him from less than two meters away.

“Greetings customer. How may I be of service?” he said smoothly.

“Do you deal in information?” Wolf asked right off the bat, surprising the man.

Aside from the books which Wolf mistakenly believed to be biographies, Archibald had also described information broker shops as important places where he could find out about the ins and outs of a city's current happenings.

Right now Wolf needed this kind of service. He wanted to settle here for two years before entering the local Mage Academy. He also had to return the Johns and Josh merchant group’s property, but at the moment he didn’t know anything about them.

The pawnshop owner had already realized that something was wrong with this customer of his. They had obviously masked their true appearance behind a goofy mask. It also seemed that they were trying to mask their intention with nonsensical questions. Still, he was a professional and had to play things safe. Everyone knew most Mages were touched in the head, often heavily battered.

“That depends. What kind of information does the esteemed sir need?” the shop owner asked cautiously.

Wolf was pretty smug because his disguise obviously worked and because he had found the kind of place he was looking for. Books really held all the answers. “I need all the information you have on the Johns and Josh merchant group.”

The shopkeeper almost choked once more.

“That’s… a lot of information,” he said after clearing his throat.

The man tried to figure out what the hell this customer was up to as he rubbed his chin. No matter how hard he racked his brains he just couldn't get it.

Johns and Josh was a famous company with a long history. A lot of information about them was easily available to the general public. Even he could talk for a good long while about them. As for the information that wasn’t publicly available, discussing things like that could make a man disappear…

Finally, after making up his mind, the shopkeeper took out a worn out amulet from one of the counter’s drawers. ”How about buying this amulet, Sir? It’s pure gold. I’ll only charge you twenty gold coins. It’s a real bargain.”

Wolf chanted a spell and picked up the amulet to examine it, “This is just a cheap knockoff. Barely worth five silver pieces.”

Seeing Wolf cast a spell, the shop owner was now certain that his customer really was a Mage. Why would he come all the way here from the Nobles' district in the middle of the night? Should I play along, or should I just say I'm not feeling well and that I have to close shop? No, wait, pieces?

A moment later greed won out against common sense.

“Sir seems to be wise in the ways of the world,” the shopkeeper flattered shamelessly. "You should understand why I’m charging that much for an old amulet. After all, this establishment deals in antiques, not information.”

Wolf opened his mouth to argue that the amulet was no antique. It was simply a poor quality imitation. Then he remembered that people in books sometimes spoke in code and in roundabout fashion.

“My apologies, but isn’t that a bit too much for this amulet? Does it come with a… background story?” He asked hopefully, unconsciously shifting his mindset to treat this whole affair as a play-pretend word game.

“Naturally. There is a lot of story behind this little trinket. We got it from the head clerk of Johns and Josh merchant group. And he was really attached to it. If you understand what I’m saying,” the man lied through his teeth while smiling slyly. Apparently he was also getting caught up in Wolf’s role-play, but he didn’t mind playing games, if it meant cashing in a piece of junk for twenty gold coins.

It’s just like I thought. Wolf thought excitedly.

“Fine. If there really is a lot of history behind that amulet I’ll pay the price.” Wolf produced a stack of twenty gold pieces out of his Ring of Holding. A faint jingle of metal clicking against metal echoed as Wolf placed them onto the counter.

I could have fed the people of Oakwood Freeland for four months with this! Wolf’s heart ached when he experienced first hand how expensive life in the city was, but he acted unfazed. “Tell me the story behind that amulet.”

“Naturally honored customer,” the shopkeeper smiled brightly as the coins disappeared into his pocket. “I’ll start with the most basic information, if you don’t mind.”

He cleared his throat and started talking. “Johns and Josh is the only merchant group in Silver City that has their headquarters in the Nobles’ district. As you already know this is because they are the property of a branch family of the SIlverhound dynasty.

“They were founded by John and Josh Silverhound over two centuries ago. John and Josh Silverhound were younger brothers of that era’s Duke. The original name of the merchant group was John’s and Josh’s merchant group, but as time went by…”

The pawn shop owner said a lot of relevant and irrelevant things about the Johns and Josh merchant group. None of which were of any interest to Wolf.

The man even mentioned unconfirmed rumors about shady deals and the alleged connections the group had with the black market. No matter how much the shop owner spoke he failed to mention the only thing that really interested Wolf. Where exactly was their headquarters, and where the branch offices were located.

Finally as the shopkeeper finished his long narration he disclosed the locations of Johns and Josh stores in Silver City as well as other major settlements of Silverhound duchy.

The man’s face had turned blue from all the talking, but for twenty gold coins he was willing to talk until he fainted, let alone this little bit.

Still, in the flood of useless intel Wolf managed to pick one or two that he found interesting. For instance he could go to the black market and sell the army supplies he had taken from the Northshield troops. When he thought up to this point Wolf realized that the man before him actually ran a shady-looking pawn shop.

“Do you know anyone interested in buying large quantities of beef jerky?” Wolf asked out of the blue.

“How much jerky are we talking about?” The shopkeeper instantly turned from an amateur information broker trying to sell a story into what he did for a living every day.

Is this the real reason he entered my shop? Was this some kind of test to see how well informed I am and whether I have enough contacts? the man started wondering, thinking that Mages truly were unfathomable creatures.

“About twenty tons give or take a ton,” Wolf said nonchalantly, as if normal people don’t leave their home without a ton or two of beef jerky.

The merchant on the other hand choked on his own spit for the nth time. This day really was full of surprises… For everyone involved.

“Twenty tons? Are you kidding?” he barely stuttered after pulling himself together.

“Nope, why would I joke about having that much jerky?” Wolf asked not seeing a reason why anyone would make up such a story.

If he wanted to lie and brag, he would have told the merchant that he had twenty tons of mithril, not jerky.

“What did you do? Raid an army?” the merchant asked jokingly.

Then, when he saw Wolf’s surprised How did you know look, the man almost had a heart attack.

“It’s a secret, so don’t tell anyone,” Wolf finally said while placing a finger in front of his mouth in a shushing motion.

Earthmother, did he really raid an army all by himself? What the hell are you doing in my shop then?! Go to the Duke and claim your reward! But this train of thought seemed completely disconnected from the merchant's mouth.

“Five hundred gold coins,” the man offered.

“What do you mean five hundred? That much jerky is worth close to five times that amount!” Wolf might not know about the price of information, but he had bought rations with Archibald, so he more or less knew the prices.

“Dear customer, that’s when you are buying goods, selling them naturally comes at a different rate. Seven hundred gold coins.” Despite his fear from Wolf, a primal cutthroat instinct possessed the merchant.

He could smell it, the scent of easy money.

“Selling stuff yields half the value. Every child on the street knows that. Do you take me for a fool? Thirteen hundred gold pieces.” Wolf was angry that the merchant was trying to rip him off, but on the other hand enjoyed this novelty of haggling.

“Customer is naturally correct, but there are a few differences this time. What you are selling here is contraband and a perishable one at that. If you hold on to it for too long it won’t be worth a penny. Nine hundred gold coins. That’s my final offer.” The merchant raised two fingers while talking heatedly. He seemed to completely forget about the fact that the man before him had exterminated an army.

“Hmmm… You’ve got a point there,” Wolf said, deep in thought. “How about this, you pay me nine hundred gold pieces now and I’ll have three hundred gold pieces as store credit? How does that sound to you?”

It sounds like you’re a god of suckers! The merchant thought ecstatically, but retained a calm expression. Now for the final move, “That sounds reasonable, but the credit is only valid for information. Material goods are off the table.”

“Oh, come on. Do you think you have anything here worth my time except your information?” Wolf got caught up in the heat of the moment so much that he forgot that he was supposed to act like an old sage.

“In that case, do we have a deal?” the merchant asked as nonchalantly as possible while gold coins danced in his eyes.

“Deal. Do you want me to take out all of the jerky here, or do you have a warehouse we can go to?” Wolf asked in a businesslike tone of voice.

“I’m not that poor. Here you go.” The shopkeeper passed Wolf his pride and joy, a Ring of Holding worth two thousand gold coins. It was full of merchandise Wolf referred to as junk. “Put it all in there. How is the jerky packed?” the man suddenly inquired.

“Three hundred and sixty sealed fifty kilo crates. Well, three hundred and fifty-eight to be more precise. I gave two crates to some people I’ve met on the road.” Wolf replied offhandedly.

The shopkeeper frowned as he did the math. “That’s not even eighteen tons!”

“Fine, fine. Let’s go with eight hundred gold pieces.” Wolf closed his eyes and focused on moving the crates from one Ring of Holding into another. Once he was done he tossed the ring back to the merchant.

The shopkeeper scanned the contents of the ring and barely suppressed a gasp. Holy Earthmother! This madman really did clear out a Northshield army! Did he do it alone?

“Seven hundred and fifty, but the amount of credit remains the same. Do you have anything else? Or did that army wage war with nothing but bread and jerky?” While talking the shopkeeper took out a random crate and opened it to check what’s inside. It really was full of beef jerky.

“I have some spare weapons and armor. Also some tents, pots and the like. How about this…” After several more rounds of haggling, in which Wolf even agreed to pay for the scrolls for the information he required, an agreement was reached. The boy felt like quite a businessman. As for the shopkeeper, the man almost felt embarrassed.

Wolf was about to open the door and leave the pawnshop when the shopkeeper called out.

“Sir! The Duke would probably want to meet you in person and award you with the bounty for your merit. Exterminating such a large regiment should net you at least five hundred gold coins.”

“Thanks for the reminder, but I think I'll pass. Just remember that I want even the most common information everyone knows.” Wolf reminded the clerk.

He had asked for quite a few bits of information, mostly regarding Archmages, True-Namers and Sword-Sages and any gossip those groups of people might be interested in.

Then Wolf left the pawnshop feeling great. He had made a lot of money, all of the information he was interested in would be waiting in writing by the end of next week. He was smug about how well he’d handled everything. Just like a hero from the biographies he had read!

Meanwhile the pawnshop owner locked the door and closed the shop. He waited until he was certain Wolf was long gone. Then he started laughing loudly and jumping with joy. He had earned a killing tonight. He was amazed at how big his balls were. He ripped off a True-Namer and the customer even thanked him! Those crazy Mages apparently didn’t know anything about the outside world…

Now all he had to do was make sure he provided real information. First thing tomorrow morning he should head to the Assassins’ Guild and fork out a thousand gold coins to buy information about the things the cooky Mage was interested in. Screwing over a True-Namer was one of the more unpleasant forms of suicide known to man.

Recalling the surreal evening the shop owner grinned stupidly. He still couldn’t believe how lucky he was. What people said really was true. The rich and powerful only liked to haggle for the fun of it, without even knowing whether they were winning or losing money.

After thinking for a moment he decided he couldn’t wait until morning. He ran over to the Assassins’ Guild straight away. Best not to tarry…