Omen: 1, 9
[I would like to make a deal.]
Adam wiped his brow, finishing his tenth and final Fme Bde. He had passively ented the st two over the course of twelve days. He stared down at the bde, befng off to one side.
“Well, well, well, how the turntables have turable,” Adam said, butchering the phrase. He he way the nearby Iyrman looked at him, though they had been informed that sometimes Adam spoke to himself.
‘Well, well, well, how the-,’
[Yes.]
‘What is it that you want, little Bell?’
[I am not little. I am a system.]
‘Right, right. Are we going to get to the point?’
[Creating an enting formu should take much longer, and should require effort.]
‘I don’t like where this is heading.’
[I would like to make a deal.]
‘I’m listening.’
[I will allow you to make enting formus. You may request a quest, and I will send you a quest that, upon pletion, will grant you the enting formu as a reward.]
‘Sure, but…’
[I will grant you additional XP in exge for this formu, and I will grant a special quest to you iure iion to enting.]
‘Will it be good?’
[Yes.]
‘Okay. Sure.’
Quest plete: Deals StruckXP Gained: +1000XP: 9 700 -> 10 700
‘Should have said I would have gotten a thousand XP,’ Adam thought, before smiling slightly. He sighed, gng over to the side. “I o go speak with Elder Zijin, maybe even the Chief.”
Adam made his way through the Iyr, following his escort, the greyish skinned Iyrman. His eyes wandered about, noting the various Iyrmen moving about. Some pulled along rickshaws carrying bags of wheat, others carrying small crates. Some where adult Iyrmen, assisted by teens with their own rickshaws.
Eventually, Adam pced dowenth fme sword in front of Elder Zijin, the Elder pg aside his book.
“Elder Zijin, a word?”
Elder Zijin smiled, waving a hand towards Adam’s escort to dismiss them casually. “Of course, Adam.” The Elder poured Adam a cup tea, and offered the Half Elf dried fruit he had mao procure.
Adam chewed ohick fruit, feeling the fibres break apart within his mouth, before chewing it further to swallow it down. It was as sweet as ever, and still mushy and juicy even after it had been dried out. He sipped the tea slowly, tasting the light fvour, something akin got berries, before sighing.
“That’s some good stuff,” the Half Elf said, smiling.
“Others prefer stroea, but I prefer my tea lighter,” Zijin admitted.
“I get that. Where I’m from, we have tea with milk and sugar. Pop otle, ahan five mier you sip your tea, ten minutes if you don’t want to scald your mouth.”
“Sounds reasonable,” Zijin said, sipping his tea. “Why did you wish to speak with me.”
“Well, you know, something awkward happened,” Adam fell silent for a moment, gng downwards, thinking of how to say it. “The formu thing is a little harder than expected. I was dehe, uh, rights to the formu.” Adam wi his little joke.
“Denied?”
“The baby,” Adam said, raising his brows slightly.
Zijin slowly nodded. He had heard of the tale, and about this baby which seemed to be ected to Adam in some way. “So you ake formus?”
“I , it’s just a little more difficult. Requires a lot more effort than just sitting at home and passively enting while kig it.”
“I see.”
“So unfortunately, I am uo hand over formus quite as easily as I expected.” Adam smiled awkwardly. “However, I still fihe fme sword, and it’s still out to be sold. I make more if needed, and whatever deal we made to split the gold, it tinue as per usual, and we sort out as I owe.”
“You may speak with the Chief to deal with such matters.”
“Yeah, that was the pn,” Adam replied, sighing. ‘Seriously, Bell, you couldn’t have warned me beforehand?’
[…]
“The baby made a deal with me, so perhaps I’ll get something iurn fiving up the rights, something which will help the Iyr better than a formu for an entment it doesn’t want in the world.” Adam fshed a smile, hoping that it would at least help out with any thoughts the Iyrmen may have against him.
"What kind of deal?”
“I had to give up the formu, but…” Adam wasn’t sure quite how to expin XP. “It made me a little more experienced in the ways of life, and it offered me a ce for something else. I’m ly sure what it is, but it should be good.”
Zijin remained deep in thought, but still couldn’t figure out what Adam eaking about exactly. “Okay.”
“I should go and speak with the Chief. Thank you for the tea and the fruit, Elder Zijin, and your pany was wonderful too.”
“Do you have anything you wish to tell me?” Zijin asked, not liking how cordial Adam was being.
“I don’t believe so,” Adam said, seeing the look on Zijin’s face. “Actually…”
“Yes?”
“Did the Jin family also have babies?” Adam asked.
“…” Zijin narrowed his eyes slightly. “Yes.”
Adam made a face. Zijin could see the face Adam made, ahought to stop Adam, but he decided against it.
Adam left the Elder to his thoughts, making his way to the Chief. The pair shared drinks and Adam expihe situation.
The Chief fell deep in thought. This matter wasly that huge. He was certain that Adam wasn’t trying to get out of their deal. Adam may have been a fool, but he wasn’t stupid. He thought about whether he should mention that thing to the young Half Elf, but decided against it.
“I uand,” the Chief said. “We will take the fme sword you ented today.”
“Sure,” Adam said, before he was dismissed by the Chief. ‘That went smoothly…’ Adam frowned. He looked up towards the sky, seeing how it was beginning to darken. He sighed, returning back to the shared family estate.
Jirot babbled angrily towards Konarot, pointing towards the irl, before crossing her arms. Konarot blinked in response and remaiill and silent, like a tiny statue.
“Jirot, what’s wrong?” Adam asked, resisting the urge to start doting on his children.
Jirot twisted her body to look upwards, and almost tumbled over before she squatted to catch herself, and then shuffled her entire body to face her father. “Iz!” She poi her eldest sister and babbled noisily in her passion towards her father, before she let out a huff, and waited.
“I see,” Adam replied. His eyes gnced away to the side slightly. ‘Should I cast it?’
Spell: prehend Languages
‘No.’ “Konarot, what is the matter?” Adam asked, reag down to rub her hair.
“Pying,” Konarot said.
“You’re just pying?”
“Yes.”
“What are you pying?”
“Iyrmen.”
“Oh, I see, you’re pying as Iyrmen?”
“No! Iz no!” Jirot said, pointing at Konarot. “No paying!”
“You don’t wao py?”
“No!”
“Konarot is not pying with them,” Sonarot said, bringing some cut vegetables for Jirot and Jarot, letting them sna the hard vegetables.
“Oh. Konababy, why are you not pying with them?”
Konarot turned, pointing up towards the bird that was resting on the edge of the building. “Bird.”
“Konarot, use your words.”
“Pying bird.”
“You’re pying with the bird?”
She nodded.
“I see…” Adam ruffled her hair again. “Jirot, your sister is pying with birds, so she ’t py with yht now.”
Jirot tio bite into the vegetable, staring up at her father as she chewed noisily. She turned slightly to look at her sister. “Ater?”
“Later?” Adam asked.
“Paying?”
“Konarot, make sure to py with your sister ter, okay?” Adam said, rubbing her hair, before also rubbing Jirot’s hair too.
“Okay,” Konarot said, befoing off to the bird to growl lightly towards it, causing it to tweet iurn. Kirot and Karot also followed her, while Jirot and Jarot sat and ate their vegetables.
‘Now that I think about it, Karot and Jarot are pretty meek. Should I try and py with them more often? I don’t want them to be too shy when they grow up…’ Adam lifted Jarot up, causing Jirot to stare up at him in shock. She turned, looking for her nana, before looking back to her father and brother.
“No!” Jirot held up her arms, still fbbergasted she hadn’t been picked up yet.
“Sure, sure,” Adam said, giving in to his you daughter, lifting her up so she could embrace him as she ate. He kissed her forehead, before rubbing his cheek against Jarot’s forehead. “Jarot, why do I never hear you cry?”
“No,” the boy firmed, smiling slightly.
“What a good boy you are,” Adam said, nuzzling his nose. “If you want to act up a little, daddy will five it.”
“Jarot is a good boy,” Mirot said.
“I ’t believe you’d call your own father by his name,” Adam gasped.
“Do not corrupt him.”
“I corrupt him, he’s my son,” Adam said, kissing his son’s cheek and ear. “Isn’t that right?”
“Daddy…” Jarot smiled wide, revealing all eight of his es, and he quickly hid his head into his father’s chest.
Mirot gnced away from Adam, though the stupid grin on his face had seared deep within her mind. She looked towards her own son, Gurot, who was ying down and staring at the sky.
Gurot narrowed his eyes and frowo the one who had picked him up, but upon seeing his mother’s face, he smiled and his eyes lit up with delight. “Mama.”
Mirot held her to his chest, holding his rge fainst her. She brushed his hair and his cheek gently, before pnting a soft kiss against the side of his head. “What are you thinking so deeply about?”
“Mama.” The boy smiled.
Adam eventually let his children dowhey were called to eat. The Gak family had finished cooking a meat soup, and had baked plenty of fluffy bread for dinner.
“Papa!” Lanarot said, reag up with her bread in hand.
Adam took the bread and waited, raising his brows towards her.
“Peas.”
He tore the bread in half, and the girl grabbed the pair in each hand, dual wielding the bread. She dipped oo the soup and brought it to her mouth.
“What do you say?”
“Yummy!” Lanarot said.
“What do you say to me for helping you?”
“Thank you.”
Adam smiled. “What great manners my sister has, so polite, so polite. Do you hear how polite she is? You all o be that polite too, do you uand?”
Konarot was handing out the bread she had broken apart to each of her siblings, before beginning to eat. She began to break up more bread for her siblings, and Adam thought to reach down to assist.
‘No, I ’t spoil them too much today. I should spoil them the week instead.’
Pray I do not alter it further.
