After somehow reassuring them and convincing them that the expedition is completely safe we went to the nearest blacksmith that they recommended.
"Ah, Mr Darcy, are you sure it's going to be safe ?" Joey asked as we walked towards the blacksmith Shop. Jack was visibly sharing Joey's concern.
"Don't worry it's safe," I said with a smile beneath my mask.
Huh…I sure do hope it's going to be safe…well at least for me, as I'm not going an inch into the Decayspire-affected area. It's going to be you guys..but don't worry I'm going to make it as safe for you as possible.
We entered the shop. Even from the outside, we could feel the heat radiating from inside.
The moment we opened the door, there was a middle aged, visibly balding man hammering some metal and melting some other metal in the furnace.
He made eye contact with me and stopped his hammering mid-air.
"Oh, are you Sir Darcy?" the man asked.
"Huh? How did you recognize me so fast? I'm wearing a mask!" I asked, surprised.
"Well, Mr. Darcy, you are the only person who wears a mask in town." The man said, putting his hammer down.
"Fair enough, so anyway Joey, Jack come forth" I said gesturing my hand.
"Yes, sir!" They answered like disciplined soldiers and stepped forward.
"So, can you make armour for them and an apron for me that is made of 10mm thick lead ?"
"Lead.. that's a weird request.. alright but first let me warn you it's going to be heavy and why do you need it? If I may ask, Mr. Darcy?"
That man…is a terrible businessman. You don't question your customers on why they are buying something or how they plan to use it. No wonder in his middle age he's still running this old @ss shop.
"Well, it's for an experiment. I can't tell you too much, you know, you can't let someone else steal your credit," I said while smiling awkwardly beneath my mask.
"Fair point young man I won't prey any further in your business. So, come with me for your measurements. By what time do you want this done?" he asked with a laugh.
"If possible, today," I said
"That's not possible," he said
"Then tomorrow morning?"
"Well I have many other things to do. I'm busy, I can't do that."he said, gesturing us to follow him
"By the way, how much are you going to charge?" I asked.
"The lead would cost 5k lochu per metre, and 2k for the work of making it," he said, guiding us to the back of the shop.
"I will pay you 7k per meter if you get it done by tomorrow," I said, folding my arms across my chest.
Hearing that, I could almost hear something snap inside the old man.
"Well," the blacksmith said, slowly turning his head towards us, "it looks like you are going to make this old man work all night today."
After that, he happily took our measurements.Once he was done, I remembered one more thing.
"Can you make two cages for rodents that they can't break ?" I asked.
"Well, you are in luck. I already have many cages pre-made for catching them. Many people buy them, especially those who work often in food-related fields."
"So the cost for both?" I asked, as we walked back towards the front of the shop.
"I usually charge 800 lochu for a pair, but for our town hero, I will do 600 lochu-"
"200 seal the deal or there are others too that sell it for less" I said with a straight face.
…
…
…
"That's daylight robbery! Even if you are the hero of town, you can't do that. It doesn't suit you" the blacksmith said, getting a little annoyed.
"Oh, really? Where did that fairness go when you charged us 2k lochu more for the lead per metre?" I asked.
"Excuse me? It's because you want it by tomorrow, and I didn't even offer that. It was your idea," the blacksmith said, getting more annoyed.
"Alright then, forget the armour and apron too. We will get them done by another blacksmith," I said, as I started walking out of the shop.
"Alright, alright! I will give them to you for 200 loch!" the blacksmith yelled as we reached the doorway.
"Thanks," I said, giving him 200 lochu. He went inside and brought two cages.
"Also, for the payment of the armour and my apron, ask Joey and Jack. They will pay," I said as we were finally walking out of the shop.
"What?" said Joey.
"What?" Said Jack.
"What?" Said the blacksmith.
"Yes!" I said.
All three of them looked confused, staring at me as if they were trying to see into my soul.
"Guys understand it, " I said, turning my attention towards Joey and Jack. "It's for you !! you know I saved your lives when we were in the forest of broken vows ?"
"We… we don't really remember everything, but Mr. Carl said that."
"So, you must be feeling indebted to me, right?" I asked.
"...Yes we really are!!" They both said loudly, as if declaring it.
"So, after paying for it, you won't be feeling indebted to me," I explained. "I really don't want anyone to feel indebted to me when I was just doing my job as an honorable man."
"We…we are so thankful and really appreciate your concern for us," They said with tears running down their faces.
"It's alright guys, don't cry about it. I'm like your brother," I said, patting their enormous shoulders.
"Actually we will now pay for every expense of the expedition. You just called us your brother. We can't take money from our brother," they said, crying.
"No, there is no need for that, brothers pay equally. But if you are feeling so emotional and still feeling indebted to me, there is one thing you both can do," I said, patting their shoulders even more.
"What?" They asked, snot coming out their noses.
"You guys work with wood related things right? You can make a carriage whose basic or skeleton structure is made of wood, and covered in lead from all sides except the exit and front. From where you can get out and control it. They will be covered in strips of lead, so you can come out of it while it is still covered by the lead strips. I will pay for the wood, you can pay for the lead," I explained.
"Understood We will first make the carriage then buy lead sheets to cover it. But you really don't need to pay us." They said after finally stopping crying and cleaning their snot from their noses.
"No, I can't let you pay for all of it. I will pay for the structure at least." I Said.
"Alright, we will get it done by morning too," They said.
"Good, I'm proud of my brothers from different mothers," I said.
Of course, I knew damn well I was completely leeching of them. But rule number one of parasitism is moderation. You don't suck out all the nutrients at once; you take just enough to thrive while keeping the host alive to be milked another day, it's not exploitation.
It's sustainable ecosystem management.