Fez’s wagon was resting where it always did, near the village’s north gate. The gray wolfman himself was there, loading and unloading goods.
“Long time no see, Fez.”
“Aoi, my man. Been a while.”
I put my hand up by way of greeting, and he put up his and gave me a high five. The two of us were about the same age, and we’d had something of a bonding experience on a battlefield not too long ago, after which we’d ended up on very good terms. I guess you’d say we were brothers in arms.
“Now, isn’t this a colorful bunch. I had a hunch my lady knight here would end up with you.”
Fez gave Mary a nod of greeting.
“I see you’ve met Mary already.”
“Mister Fez helped me search for a job. I’m in his debt.”
“Mm, yeah, I poked around a bit back in town, looking for a job for my lady knight, but I didn’t have any luck.”
Ah, so he’d been trying to help her out as well. I was curious to find out how that had happened, but I decided to leave it be. I didn’t want Mary to dwell on her struggle to find a job.
“Yer a whole day early, if yer here for business. Can’t imagine yer making social calls now.”
“You guessed it. The thing is, I’m planning to extend the labyrinth, and we’re going to need to do some work in the forest as part of that. I wanted to hire hunters to protect my workers, but I don’t know any. I’m looking for professionals, the kind you can rely on even when the going gets tough. You know anybody who’d fit the bill?”
“My merchant senses are tingling, talking about that labyrinth expansion, but it’s hunters ya need, eh? And reliable ones, too. Yer settin’ the bar pretty high.”
“I’ll be asking them to escort the villagers, so I need people who can be trusted to treat them with respect, as well as to protect them.”
Maybe it was an unusual request, but it didn’t make sense to me to hire bodyguards who weren’t going to be concerned for their charges.
“Do you know anyone?”
“Maaaan, part of me wants to tell ya that yer askin’ too much here, but the truth is, I know just the folks. They’re a skilled bunch, and they just wrapped up a contract. Now they’re just sittin’ around on their tails, bored to tears and wonderin’ where their next paycheck is gonna come from.”
“Huh. Is that a common problem for hunters?”
“Sorta, yeah. These folks, well, they used to roll with a seven-man crew, but first one of ’em retired to get married, and then a couple of ’em had kids and had to retire as well. Now there’s only four of ’em left, so they can’t take on the real dangerous jobs. Tough trade, huntin’.”
“You sure do know a lot about this crew.”
“’Course I do. I’m the one what got married!”
The hell, he’s just trying to get me to hire his friends?! Well, actually, it was probably a good suggestion. Fez and I had been through a lot together, so I was inclined to trust him. He wouldn’t try to dupe me into hiring a bunch of slackers. He was a bit sloppy in his new trade as a merchant, but having once been a skilled mercenary, he surely had a good eye for talent.
“How long you gonna hire ’em for?”
“The initial contract will be for three months. Depending on how things go, maybe three more.”
I planned to finish the construction in three months, but as soon as it was fully operational, I’d be gathering hunters to challenge it. Once things were in full swing, I’d probably need a few additional guards, and if Fez’s people proved trustworthy, it’d make sense to use them.
“Phew, got a nice long contract there, eh? Pretty sure they’ll jump at the chance. Fall’s just rolled around, so most hunters have their next gig lined up already, otherwise they can end up with nothin’ to do through the whole winter. Most hunters would sell their soul to get a contract that’d carry ’em through to spring.”
In fantasy games, the characters just went from adventure to adventure as the whim took them, but real life wasn’t so cushy. From what Fez had said about winter contracts being hard to find, I had a suspicion that monsters hibernated in the winter, on account of the decreased food supply.
“That so. About how much would I need to pay a mercenary for this contract?”
“Well, lessee. These folks are as good as they come, so yer payin’ for quality, but on the other hand, the work ain’t so hard.”
Fez folded his arms and nodded to himself as he ran the numbers.
“You could hire the four of ’em for ten thousand DL per day. That’d run you about nine hundred thousand for three months.”
Far cheaper than I’d expected. Cheaper even than employing the villagers. I glanced at Ann for confirmation, and she gave me a furry thumbs-up and a nod.
“Please do ask them. I’d like to start the work as soon as possible. How long do you think it would take for them to get here?”
“No time at all.”
“I beg your pardon?”
Surely he’d have to go find them, talk them into it, and then come back. I wasn’t aware of any long-distance communication in this world, let alone teleportation. If people could teleport around, peddlers like Fez would be out of business. Obviously there was the Tundra system, and the communication system the labyrinth managers used, but that was exclusive to the labyrinths. More an exception than the norm.
“Remember what I said about work being hard to come by? They had less than nothing to do around the city, so the sad sacks followed me out here to try their luck in Milt.”
Wow, reduced to looking for a job out in the sticks. Life wasn’t easy for hunters.
“There ain’t much work in remote villages, but I’d guess they’re at the mayor’s place right about now, tryin’ to scare up any job they can.”
We must have just missed each other.
“I bet he won’t have anything for ’em, and they’ll come around here before long with their ears droopin’. While we’re waitin’ for ’em, what say you and me discuss the steep discount on the magic potions you’ll be sellin’ me tomorrow...”
Fez produced a piece of vellum, and the two of us set to making a deal.
“Say, Ann, perhaps I’m mistaken, but it seems to me that Aoi and Fez are rather friendly. Do you know how they became so close?”
While Fez and I negotiated prices and quantities, Mary and Ann gossiped about us.
“I dunno! I guess they’re just like, best friends.”
“Hmm, I see. What a strange sight. I never thought to behold a human labyrinth manager and a Daemon peddler who’d built such a rapport. It’s somehow soothing.”