[Job Quest, "Elderwood Delivery," complete! Rewards have been distributed accordingly.]
'Sweet.' Xavier thought to himself as he removed some coins from the bag.
Stephan peeked into Xavier's hands from over his shoulders, "How much are you taking?"
"Well, the reward was a third of the profits, so... One platinum crown and six golden suns. That leaves two crowns and four suns for the Duke. Hopefully he won't mind... He has enough money as is, I'm sure..." Xavier's gaze shifted off to the side as if he were committing a crime.
As they walked around the statue in the town's central plaza, they passed by a sturdy stone and wooden building with a distinct blue and gold banner fluttering above it in the wind. The chatter of sellswords and hopeful newcomers drifted from within, accompanied by the occasional burst of laughter or the clinking of tankards.
Across the street from this curious building was a row of inns and taverns. The most noticeable establishment was the largest one in the center of them all. A sign marked it as "The Dragon's Rest." The sign also featured an intricately carved depiction of a slain dragon.
The trio continued past all of this, however, as they had yet to reach their original destination: the Bank of Mesios.
The entrance to the grand building was not directly on the ground; the trio had to walk up a few stone steps to reach the arch-like doorway. On either side, giants of marble shaped as pillars stood as a foundation for the outside roof that hung overhead.
An influx of people was both entering and exiting the bank at all times, all of different sizes and wealth classes, though their class could only be assumed by the clothing they wore.
The interior of the building was just as luscious as the exterior had made it appear, if not even more so. The inside was primarily constructed of expensive-looking marble and pillars similar to the ones outside, though smaller. The walls and pillars had golden linings, though it was difficult to tell if said gold was real or not.
There were lines leading to different desks and windows all across the area, with ropes and red carpets to keep an orderly fashion amongst the organized chaos.
A hefty, solemn sigh escaped Xavier as his shoulders slumped, "This is going to be hell..."
━━━
As the trio exited the bank, there seemed to be a visible aura of gloom surrounding both Bruce and Xavier.
"Three hours..." A tear rolled down Bruce's left cheek.
"I guess banking is hell in every universe..." Xavier nearly collapsed to his knees while speaking.
"Ah, cheer up, you guys!" Stephan gave them both a forceful pat on the back. "We still have plenty of the town to explore. We should get a move on!"
Bruce recollected himself in an instant, but Xavier still seemed as if he was going to fall over dead right in the middle of the street.
Bruce raised his hand to his chin and scratched it for a moment. "Maybe we could check out the Adventuring Guild?" He pointed to the wood and stone building with the blue and gold banner from earlier. "I noticed a small sign by the door stating that the building there was the guild. It was difficult to notice since we were quickly passing by, but the banner really caught my attention, so..."
Xavier fixed his posture and stretched for a brief moment before letting out yet another sigh. "If this takes up another three hours of our day..."
Stephan and Bruce subconsciously took a step back from Xavier, afraid that he was going to punch whatever was closest to him. Their fears, however, were left unjustified. Xavier simply rubbed his face and began walking towards the guild building.
As Xavier pushed the swinging wooden doors inwards to enter, it felt as if the gaze of the world itself shifted upon the trio.
The interior of the guild felt surprisingly welcoming, disregarding the stares of everyone. The people scattered about were, unsurprisingly, mostly human, though there were a few non-humans littered around. A noticeable trend in the area was that the population was predominantly human. It made Xavier think for a moment...
There were also intimidating presences, of course. Tall men with bulky armor and heavy weapons were placed about. They seemed to have small crowds around them. One could assume that tanks were scarce in town, making their services extremely rare and sought after.
The general crowd seemed to be gathered around a bulletin board that housed a plethora of papers pinned to it. There was a worn-out, wooden sign hanging just above it that was labeled "Job Board."
After a brief moment, the gazes of all the people inside shifted back to what they were occupied with before the party entered.
Xavier broke out into a cold sweat before slapping himself lightly to recollect himself. He dragged himself forward to the desk, where a short, bald man with a goatee was scribbling on some paperwork. The hand he was using to write was the only hand of his that was visible.
Stephan and Bruce stood closely behind Xavier as he lightly tapped the desk to attract the attention of the short man.
"Ah, hello...?"
The man ignored him.
Xavier looked back at his friends with an annoyed and confused face before Bruce pointed out a bell with a small sign that stated: "Ring for service."
Xavier's eyebrow twitched as he took a deep breath to prevent himself from lashing out verbally... or physically.
He reached out his finger and lightly pressed the button on the bell. A quiet, melodic ringing noise sounded past the trio and lightly throughout the guild. A few people tossed a glance or two their way, but no one stared for long, if at all.
A few moments passed by with nothing...
But, finally, in response to the bell, a white sock puppet with googly eyes and yellow strings of yarn as hair appeared from below the desk and began moving erratically.
"Sammy will be with you in one moment!"
It was commonplace for facial expressions to have different meanings. But the one Xavier currently wore clearly expressed a singular phrase.
And that phrase was:
"You have got to be kidding me. Genuinely."