8 Looking the Part

Two princes walked through the shopping district of Jovial Town, one wearing a typical adventurer's light armour, the other a rich-looking white blazer jacket with matching white dress pants. If it weren't the difference in clothing style that caught one's eyes, it was the fact that this bright attire was worn by someone with dark brown hair - something that was rarely seen in the area.

Jun Long and James Tarker had decided to shop for a new outfit that would match what other adventurers were wearing. James had no real problem with it, but Jun had his reasons for not wanting to stand out, as much as possible.

Jun Long had next to no common knowledge of the world he had found himself in, so he put his trust in the blondie walking beside him. Time to time, he would hear his partner snicker to the side, as he watched Jun being awed by random things. For someone like Jun Long, who had lacked experience in traveling, it was hard to pretend not to be enchanted by the new scenery.

It didn't take long, nor was there any troubles along the way, for the pair to reach a weapons and armour store. The store name was 'Righteous Fight' with a big sign just above the entrance. It looked obnoxious, but it sure did stand out.

"Let's go in here," James Tarker said, walking in without stopping. "I know the owner."

"Right," Jun Long replied. "I'm coming."

Upon entering the dimly lit store, Jun Long was welcomed by a dense metallic smell - one that you'd be able to smell in a steel factory, back on Earth. Thankfully, there wasn't a constant banging to go along with the metallic smell, but it sure did make Jun feel a little nostalgic.

Looking around, Jun Long saw rows upon rows of weaponry and armours being displayed in a well-managed fashion. Closer to the entrance there were bargain bins, where the more crude weapons were dumped to be sold for cheap. Hung up on the wall displays were the better looking weapons that could be bought as ornaments to give your home a better feel. Near the back of the store, where the sunlight couldn't reach, and it had to be lit up with magic stones, there were mannequins dressed up in all sorts of armours. Jun Long even spotted something that closely resembled what James Tarker was wearing at that moment.

Jun Long followed James to the unmanned counter. The counter was made of glass, and it shelved the more intricate items in the store. Jun Long looked into the glass counter, and was amazed at the craftsmanship of the many accessories that he saw in there. He wanted to tell James to look with him, but before he could even make a sound, James had already started shouting towards the back of the store.

"Fuck, this place has shitty service! We've been standing here for an hour, already!"

Jun Long started to panic, a little, as he came from a culture where it was better to be polite, and soft-spoken, when you meet new people, or go shopping. He wanted to pull James to the side and tell him to lower his voice, lest they be kicked out of the store. However! Just before he could make a sound, again, someone had already started shouting towards them from the back of the store.

"Shut yer trap, ya shitty kid!" a powerful voice boomed across the store at the two. "I was just takin' a crap. Can't ya even wait fer a bit?!"

It wasn't the first time that Jun Long had encountered a big, and intimidating-looking person, since he's been here - the Adventurer's Guild took care of that. 'Big' and 'intimidating' were understatements, however, as the one casually stomping their way towards the counter that James Tarker was leaning on was built like The Hulk!

"Yeah yeah," James said, waving his hand in a dismissive way. "No one gives a shit. We're here to shop!"

"..." Jun Long bowed slightly, trying to give his respects to the shop owner.

"Then go shop, ya brat! Why'd ya have to make me stop mid-shit?"

"Haha! No one told you to stop 'mid-shit'!" James said, then turned to face Jun Long. "Let's go find you some armour."

"Um, James," Jun Long asked in a quiet voice. "Do you think I'd be able to trade these clothes of mine for a new set of armour? I don't want to keep troubling you."

"Oi Darkie," the shop owner called to Jun. "If yer wanting to trade that there clothes of yers, come show it to me, first."

"Uh... Now?" Jun Long pointed to the counter. "Here?"

"Where else? What? I ain't gonna touch ya or anythin'! Strip!"

Feeling like he were being casted for some kind of R18 film, Jun Long slowly took off most of his clothing - the blazer, the button-up shirt, and the pants. In the end, Jun Long was standing in front of the counter, two men standing close to him, with his hands covering his private parts. He was blushing, but James Tarker just slapped him on the back and laughed at how shy he was acting.

"You have a nice and toned body, Jun! Hahaha!"

"He's not wrong, Darkie. You ain't quite seasoned, but you'd probably be good for peddlin' wares."

"Is that business I smell, Boss?" James Tarker jumped right in. It seemed that adventurers had a keen nose for money.

"Che! I ain't got no money for you, boy! Just go do yer shoppin' and get!"

"Thank you, Boss! Haha!"

"..." Jun Long could only submit to politely bowing to show his thanks.

Two princes walked through the weapons and armour store named 'Righteous Fight', one wearing the typical adventurer's light armour, the other a... pair of boxer briefs. If it weren't for the fact that it was just Jun Long, James Tarker, and the store owner in the building, Jun Long would just die of embarrassment.

In the back of the store, Jun Long and James Tarker browsed the armours on display. There were pre-maded sets, already worn by mannequins, and there were different pieces of armour either laid out on the shelving or stuffed into 'bargain bin' type boxes. It seemed that leather armour was more popular, as there were multiple different sets worn by the mannequins, whereas the sets with metal plating were fewer. James Tarker tried to suggest to Jun Long a few different armour sets, but Jun Long still took a bit of time to think about it.

"Why not go for this leather-steel hybrid?" James asked him, as the two stopped in front of the mannequin.

"I think I'd rather this one here, with the leather and chainmail. It looks like I could move easier in it."

"Leather and chainmail it is! I'm glad we could come to a decision quickly. The sun's gonna go down, soon, so we gotta go kill us some goblins quick."

"Oh, yeah! Sorry, James. I forgot that we were shopping so that we could go goblin hunting, too haha!"

"No sweat, partner! Let's go take this up to the Big Man!"

"Yeah!"

The leather and chainmail set looked sturdy. Chainmail covered the full torso, sides, and back - like a shirt - while there were leather shoulder guards, and a leather plating to reinforce the front of the torso. On the lower part of the body, there was nothing that could be considered clunky, there was the same theme used, where leather plating would reinforce the mainly chainmail guards. To top it off, a pair of leather boots went with the outfit. If Jun Long were to wear a helmet, to cover his dark brown hair, he would look no different to any other adventurer out in the fields.

"So," the shop owner's voice boomed at Jun Long. "You've gone and chosen this one, eh?"

"Yes, please," Jun Long replied. The different pieces of armour didn't feel heavy at all, so he was able to carry them easily over to the counter.

"This here leather an' chain has been sittin' in my shop for a few months. Was wonderin' when it would sell."

"Gizz'us somethin' for free, Boss!" James interjected. Jun Long couldn't help feeling grateful for his partner's presence. "Jun over here's a mage, didya know?"

"Aye? A 'mage' ya say? The brat don't seem like no arrogant noble to me."

"I'm not a noble, sorry," Jun explained. "But it seems I'm quite suited to be a mage."

"He got Kiko to look at him!"

"Kiko, aye? That loli fox with the legs, aye? Mmm..."

"Um... Boss?" James and Jun looked at each other before James tried to call the shop owner back from his fantasies.

"Here, Darkie," the shop owner said, reaching under the glass counter for a certain ring. "Take this!"

The shop owner tossed the finger ring over to Jun Long, who nearly dropped it. The ring looked like it had been plucked out of a posh jewellery shop back on Earth. It shone like sterling silver, and it even had a small gemstone laid in it. The gemstone was a sapphire blue, and it looked bigger than any ring that Jun Long could've afforded based on just how expensive jewellery was back on Earth. He looked at the ring, then looked back at the owner, just to see if he was really going to give the ring to him for free.

"Go on, Darkie! Try it on."

It seemed like Jun Long really was going to be getting the ring for free. No complaints there! Jun Long slipped the ring onto his left index finger. He stretched out his hand for the other two to see, as if he had just gotten engaged, and was excited to show it to everyone he knew.

The two people had different expressions. On one side, standing behind the counter, the shop owner was beaming with pride, as he looked at Jun Long wearing the ring that he chose for him. On the other side, James Tarker's jaws had dropped, as he knew exactly what the ring was - and just how valuable it was!

"Jun!!" James cried, while grabbing a hold of Jun Long's shoulders to shake him in excitement. "You need to thank the Boss! He's just given you something really precious!"

"'Precious'? How?"

"That there ring is an Interspatial Ring - a storage space - and a pretty sizable one at that, Darkie."

"Yeah, Darkie!" James said, showing his excitement. "I mean Jun haha!"

"Thank you, Boss," Jun bowed to the shop owner. "I don't know much about these kinds of things, so if James says that it's valuable, I'll take his word for it."

"Che! Damn Darkie brat. Don't even know..." the shop owner's mumbling trailed off.

"Okay, Boss! We gotta get outta here and hunt us some goblins, now! Thanks for the gear!"

"Yes, thank you, Boss!"

"Yeah, whatever, you damn brats! Don't disturb my shit, next time!"

The two laughed as they exited the weapons and armour store.