A Vermilion Gem [Job:A Wrath Like No Other!] (Itori Burakkurõzu/Solo)

Job Description:

As a city known for its trade, a city which is large and prosperous enough to even be considered a sizeable town by people living in the capital, Hargeon Town was once again a busy place, as people came and went from both the large docks and the crowded train station. From other nations goods would be transported to his place by ship, and the trains would then bring those goods to the rest of the small but powerful nation of Fiore. The other way around, trains would bring merchandise to Hargeon Town, where they would then be loaded onto ships and carried away to far away lands to be sold and traded. Many a large and rich company had their headquarters situated in this town, one of the biggest knots of trade in the large net that spanned the whole of Fiore and beyond.

On the streets walked many people, some of them labourers, others sailors whose ship had docked or was still preparing to set sail once more. Others were merchants, visiting their next business partner to try and make a new deal, or maybe spend some of their money at a fancy place together with some of their friends. Children would run through the streets, mothers would look after their children. And amidst of this all there were also the mages, who in some ways could be considered to come from an entirely different world. Sailors, labourers, salesmen, merchants, barkeepers, all of these had different jobs, but still all connected to form that which was called civilization. The mages however could be considered to stand outside of this all, wandering individuals who from time to time would appear to perform difficult tasks for money, using the gift of magic they had been endowed with (or had acquired through hard effort/stealing) to do things which might have taken others much longer. The only way that mages were connected to the rest of society was through the Guilds they were part of, which processed jobs and made sure that all the legal mages wouldn't cause trouble. Of course, this wasn't as easy for those mages who weren't considered legal mages...

A rather outlandish outfit, one which the expert could recognize as being tailored in the style of the rather strange and exotic nation of Midi, clad around a tall and slender figure who wore it as if her entire body had been made for this kind of clothing. Light smooth skin, gentle features, and long raven black hair which cascaded down her back like a waterfall. Even the fact that her eyes were of a clear vermilion, and she had a sheathed sword attached to one hip, did not mar the picture of elegant beauty and serenity that surrounded this woman. She strode through the crowd with a confident stride, silently weaving between the people without ever bumping into anybody. Some people might not even notice that she had passed by at all, while others would temporarily stare at her as she passed by, even though she would disappear amidst the crowd before they could call out to her.

Itori was gazing upon the town surrounding her with a fair amount of interest, not often having visited such a place. This culture was not her favourite one, preferring the land of Midi where she got her clothes from. However she still had to admit that there was some kind of beauty in seeing such a prosperous place, with ships waiting to travel to far lands and return and trains which will lead the people to other large towns in Fiore, carrying goods and people. A cornerstone of the proud human civilization that was in control of the current day and age. Not a human herself Itori did not find this last fact without flaw, but she could still admire such prosperity when she encountered it.

And that prosperity was also why she was here. While procuring groceries she had picked up on the fact that a certain nobleman needed help finding a certain piece of jewellery. Some complicated information gathering later and Itori had set off towards the best jewel store she could find, seeing no reason not to help this man avoid getting into trouble with his wife. She might be part of the dark guild Tartarus, but Itori herself rarely truly did something evil, and in fact found no issue in helping others. Especially since she had some experience with jewellery and this job could be done without any kind of suspicion rising around her. Nobody knew her as being a dark mage, and nobody would see any reason to try and investigate a mage whose only job was to help somebody find a nice present for his wife.

First, however, she would have to figure out which jewel store was the best choice. In such a rich town as this there were plenty to choose from, importing jewels from far away places or buying them from nearby mines. With jewels quality was a very important matter: a jewel filled with cracks and dents was not one which one could give to the wife of a rich man. It would have to be a sizeable gem, a perfect gem without a single flaw, which Itori could then get the proper inscription carved onto. The swordswoman pulled out the piece of paper on which the proper inscription had been written down. It was a simple message, but one that should definitely make the wife happy if she saw it, and would most likely keep her happy throughout the years. Love was a wonderful thing, and Itori smiled as she once again hid the details of the job in the folds of her clothing. She really did hope that at some point she could experience something similar, even though she had been waiting for such a thing for much longer than any human.

Due to her refusal to talk gathering more information was something of a chore, but Itori was used to this and came prepared. Using a pencil and a notepad, and some willing people on the street who didn't mind her unusual method of communication, she eventually learned that the best jewellery store in town was the Reniro Isle Jewellery Shop. It was close to the docks, making it easy for the shop owner to quickly get the best jewels as soon as the ships who were part of the trade of gems returned to the harbour after their long journey. It shouldn't take much effort to find now that Itori had learned what it was called, so after bowing in thanks to the humans who had helped her she once again was on her way, the smooth fabric of her clothes creating a soft swishing noise as she swiftly moved forwards.

Once in the harbour Itori halted as she stared at the sea, and the ships that were docked. The sea would always remain an impressive sight, no matter how many times she saw it. She had seen it so many times that she could most likely draw several versions of the view with her eyes closed, but still she liked watching. If there wasn't a time limit attached to how quickly she should get the jewellery she would have spent some more time watching that scenery, but unfortunately that wasn't an affordable way of spending her time right now. Shaking her head Itori walked through the harbour, looking around for the specific shop she would be able to find what was currently her job to find. There were plenty of shops, of all kinds and sizes. Souvenir shops, grocery stores, fish stores, craftsman shops, tool shops... As always the docks proved themselves to be an endless source of useful items.

After some more searching, enough that Itori was beginning to believe that she might actually have to go and ask some more people to tell her how to find it, she finally found the store she had been looking for. It was certainly impressive, albeit somehow small. Jewel stores weren't known for becoming large even if they became prosperous. A prosperous jewellery merchant might expand his shop to a chain spread across towns, but in any one town there couldn't be too many people who wanted or could afford luxury like jewels, so it was better to keep each store small and well-maintained, and properly stocked as well. Even in the capital city of Crocus the jewellery stores most likely weren't that large when compared to other stores. Nevertheless, the establishment was one that definitely spoke of money and wealth, so Itori didn't hesitate as she stepped inside.

She was greeted by the sound of a chiming bell, a simple mechanism set to announce the store owners to immediately alert them if somebody entered the shop. Something which could only be used for such a type of store as the jewel shop, since otherwise the bell would never stop announcing another arrival. Itori cast a glance around the store, taking in the large amount of jewels put on display. Another reason why jewellery shops would never grow too big is because the merchandise was always small: they took up very little surface while also being quite expensive, so even a small shop could easily contain more money than a large shop which sold something quite more mundane, like tools for crafts. The interior had been designed to make the richer clients feel at home, a lot of money having been put into removing any flaws and covering every surface which something which indicated wealth. The floor was covered with a soft red carpet, the counters and displays crafted from rich mahogany, with clearly cut glass allowing one to view the merchandise without allowing thieves to have too easy a time stealing said merchandise. With a more alert glance Itori also noted that the security in this place was not to sneeze at: no guards, but instead magically crafted devices were keeping an eye on the store, and anybody who was caught would most likely wish they had been up against human guards instead.

While she was still looking around the store owner arrived, smiling and bowing. A tall and lean man in his middle years, wearing a sharp dark green suit and rectangular glasses with a metal frame. His dark brown hair was swept aside, the parting line looking as straight as a ruler. The owner had apparently decided that it would be better to remain clean shaven, most likely because a beard and moustache would just add another layer of appearance that he would have to take care of to make sure it would look tidy at all times. This man was modest enough that he would dress himself sharp without being extravagant, knowing that if he began to cover himself with jewels and other signs of excessive wealth it might actually discourage customers. After all, his duty as the shop owner was to act as their guide and servant in finding the perfect gem. If he looked richer and statelier than they themselves it would make them feel awkward. Yet at the same time he knew of his own worth: he was a successful trader in jewels and jewellery, which meant that he possessed more wealth than many of his customers, merchants and even some nobles. He would be polite, he would perform his job as helpful shop owner to the letter, but if one were to challenge his pride they would find he had plenty of it to go around.

Of course not all of this was known to Itori, but fortunately she was not the kind of person who would try to harm his pride even if she thought she could get away with it. Instead she smiled and bowed back, the shop owner raising one eyebrow in mild surprise before immediately dismissing it. A customer who would return his bow silently and nearly submissively? It would have made him classify her as a messenger for the real client, except that her clothing and her way of moving indicated that she was not some pushover herself. Either way, he would do his job.

"Good day madam. How can I help you?"

This could be considered the hardest part of the job. Itori didn't speak, yet she could not return the politeness of this man with rough gestures that he could possibly misunderstand. However even in this situation she could not speak, so the first thing she did was point at her mouth and shake her head, indicating that she was functionally mute. This once again mildly surprised the shop owner, but he had experienced many strange things, so he would not be brought off balance that easily. Once he had nodded Itori pulled out another piece of paper on which she had written down the requirements of the gem she was looking for beforehand, handing it over to the man, who politely accepted it and read through it, noting how the writing was as elegant and stylish as the woman standing in front of him.

"The highest quality jewel,
suitable for the ring of a woman's finger,
the deep rich colour of vermilion."

The store owner nodded in understanding once he had read the requirements, folding up the paper and handing it back, Itori taking the piece of paper back and returning it to its place of hiding within her clothes.

"I believe we have just the thing for you madam. If you would follow me..."

With his customer in tow the salesman guided her to a display case which was filled with red jewels, each one pricey enough that the common man could only dream of buying one for their wife. They were rested on a pure white cushion, making sure that the colour of the jewel wasn't compromised by its surroundings. Itori looked through her options, listening as the salesman also told her of what he himself believed would be good choices. Eventually after some consideration she choose one of a rectangular shape and cut corners, its colour being identical to her own eyes. There was a fairly obvious reason why Itori chose that colour: both she and her sisters had the exact same eye colour, and it happened to be a very good colour for jewellery.

"All right, if you can provide proof of payment..."

Itori nodded, pulling out the message containing the details of the job. Fishing out the card which should allow her to buy the gem regardless of how pricey it was she handed it over to the shop owner, who raised both his eyebrows as the card told him who was actually buying for this.

"Mr. Spiff, is it? It must be his wife's birthday again. Do give him my best regards, if you would be so kind."

Itori smiled and nodded, the purchase going rather swiftly now that it was clear who the actual buyer was. Within ten minutes Itori was already back outside, now in possession of a gem which would earn the attention of many a thief if they knew she had it. Fortunately she possessed the magic required to disguise it as a mere bauble, which allowed her to be somewhat less paranoid about who might be watching as she set off to find a shop where they could set it in a ring and give it the proper inscription.