How much?

Walking after her through a door into a big backroom, they stood before a table. On the left was a neat pile of metallic plates, and in the middle a basin of a strange, thick solution that looked almost solid.

Lizzy opened a window, one without any glass leveled.

"Try to keep your breath shallow." advised Robert, already having witnessed the process.

'Keeping my breath what?'

"The process will then begin." she said, wearing some thick leather gloves that reached up to her elbow.

She took a plate, slowly sinking it into the mixture. Upon contact a loud sizzle echoed through the room, and a slight gas wavered around the room.

Mikael got a nose full, and the stench reminded him of rotten flesh tossed into a fire, together with a bunch of eggs that got bad three years ago.

He did his best to keep everything in that he had, which wasn't much, and could barely follow the procedure.

She took it out almost 30 seconds later, the smoke leaving through the little window far to slow.

Laying it out onto the table, she held a wooden branch with a pointy tip, engraving onto it strange symbols, which he identified as letters and numbers.

"Come here!" she commanded, and Mikael followed. "Hand!"

"What?" he asked confused, the smoke rising to his head, making him dizzy and sickly.

She forcefully took his hand, taking a small, very sharp looking knife and using his index finger.

A sharp pain later, and he felt his finger on the surface of that card.

'Cold!' he winced, wanting to remove his arm, away from the excruciating pain. The process of sizzling looked hot, but the opposite was the case.

Lizzy's iron grip held him firmly, not budging an inch.

When he calmed down a bit, and the smell escaped, he took a better look at his finger, and the process that took place right now.

On the part where his finger connected, small cracks formed under the surface, like the ones on Roberts and Diana's card.

Some time later her hand loosened, his finger no longer bleeding and separated from the now clear, dark red tinted card.

"Nice color." She said, inspecting the card and handing it to Mikael.

"This town never really received a name, so our Guild Branch acts as one, simply Chrysalis. That is also on your card now. If you ever need to update it, as a name changes or your rank, come here or any other Branch, and it will be done. Then you have to give it some of your blood again, as it acts like a reset."

Holding his finger, that pulsated lightly, he nodded and asked:" How much do I owe you now?"

He knew it would be costly, so he braced himself.

"For the first time the cost is quite low, only 6 gold."

"Come again?" he said, as the number was quite high, and for that piece of metal a bit much in his eyes.

"6. Gold. For a half magic item a solid price. If you ever loose it, we charge 15. And it happens sometimes, or gets stolen. But it is durable, so barely any risk of breaking. When not doing it deliberately."

"That is why you should begin working soon." Robert chipped in, reminding them of his existence.

"Diana should have searched a suitable quest for you, as you can't read. For the record, Guild staff can help you out with reading and searching for stuff, but don't annoy them."

Mikael heard him, but another word mentioned raised another question in him.

"A half magic item? What is the difference?"

"Isn't that common knowledge?" Lizzy asked with a bit of doubt in her eyes.

"Not for him." Robert said, tipping Mikael's forehead and explaining, "That guy comes from a small hamlet quite far from here. And he has a growing stomach for knowledge."

Nodding, she began explaining, sitting down on the sole chair in the room.

"A magic item is made, simply put, by a magician, a person capable of directing the Mana inside their bodies to make phenomena beyond our understanding. What is necessary to become a magician is not clearly researched, but naturally very, very few manage that feat.

Your ID Card, ID stands for Identification, was made by soaking it into a mix of fluids, metal and extract that can effect other materials and produce a magic like effect afterwards, in this case the lighting up of the card and recognizing the owner by the blood."

She massaged her temples, visibly tired.

"Sorry, but can we quit for now? I have still work to do, and that process needs quite some concentration. If you still have questions, come by later, around midday, then my colleague responsible for help and information is available."

"Sure Lizzy, and thank you."

She weakly smiled, guiding them. She let them out from the counter area, waving Diana who sat by a table and vanished in another room, most likely a break room.

Mikael still held his newly acquired card, the cost already somewhere suppressed in the back of his head. Sitting down, he wanted to try what he saw before.

"Can I borrow your needle?"

Handing him one, Robert sat next to him, all three of them on a round table.

He carefully used his little finger like he saw before, and put the droplet on the part where the fine lines where centered.

Soon, the lines lit up in a beautiful red color, spreading across the entire card.

The lines with his information also shone, and as he felt the area with his finger, he noticed the carved lines, containing all necessary infos about him.

"What happens when someone else put blood on there?" he wondered loud, and Diana answered:"Nothing, no light or any reaction. Here Rob, take a look."

She handed a piece of paper made by crude hide, with rigid letters as if drawn with lacking knowledge or tools, but sill readable.

"The job for me? What can I do?"

Robert first read through, nodding his head while checking the content. He left Mikael hanging, not answering.

"Yeah, that works. It says a smithy here is in need of an assistant, and your past experience fits the bill. The pay may be on the lower side, but can give you some air for a meal or equipment."

"It is around the west side of the village, near the merchant streets. Not too far, maybe around 10 minutes on foot."

"And what should I do with that?" he asked, getting handed over the paper and not understanding a single line of text.

"Go to a counter, give them that paper and your ID. You have to make a sign on the paper and the card, and when everything is good, you get a emblem made from wood, based on your rank, to show you accepted the quest."

Robert exchanged a quick glance with Diana, and both stood up, signifying their leave.

"Well, that's that, have to go now, too. Let's make that quick and painless."

He raised his arm, ready for the hunters greeting/farewell. Mikael received it, also arisen from his chair. After repeating it with Diana, they left, walking down the stairs, not looking back again.

'Guess now I'm on my own.' Mikael looked down on himself, his sorry clothing barely meeting the standard, weighted down by the book and the sorry amount of money, together by the bag that contained the vial and memento.

'Should get some better clothes first, or my employer might kick me back out after I introduce myself.'

He walked to the right counter, as Lizzy still took her break. The aroma of something pleasant came out the door she went in, and he saw her a bit sitting through the open door, sitting on a table and drinking something.

"What can I do for you?" the man in a similar west with a smaller emblem asked. His thick eyebrows and thin lips together with the height difference intimidated Mikael.

"Fear not, little one, and show me that paper. You have an ID?"

Both Mikael gave the man, and after another command, he laid his hand on the counter. He had to tip toe a bit, but it was over quickly. A quick sting, the card shone and the man said:" Then please leave your finger print here." The paper had a stomp in the shape of a tree branch, with some words under it. Mikael placed his already bleeding finger on the paper, and a small print appeared.

"Good, but I must say," he handed him a small token, round and smaller like a plate," You are quite young, and already a ID. Must have it rough, but anyway. Your employer is called Roàn, a particular fellow, bit of temperament, but a honest man. The smithy is next to the armor shop, in the merchant district. You'll manage."

With these words he was dismissed, now making his steps a bit unsure down the stairs.

The floor was filled with more people, but no sound of the instrument before was heard. Nonetheless, the atmosphere was good, talking and pleasant smells in the air.

"Are you perhaps Mikael?" A lady with a tablet asked, just about to past him to clean a table.

"Yeah, why?"

"Take a seat here." She said, quickly removing some plates and taking out a cloth, wiping away the most crude of crumbs and stains.

"Your friends paid for a meal with a drink, and looking at you, I see why the said to make it larger. Just a moment."

She left as quickly as she came, leaving Mikael no room to talk back. He simply sat down, wondering why they would do that, but also thankful, as he had quite the hunger.

He sat there like on coals, all alone and out his usual environment. But except the occasional glance of other guests, he wasn't bothered, just the seats next and opposite to him remained empty.

Distracting himself by watching the barman he saw this morning skillfully give out different beers and chat with many people, the waitress came, holding a steaming plate and a wooden jug, placing it before him in a fluid motion, with a "Good appetite.".