Chapter 5

•Talfen, Capital of Coldshore

•Adler Helton

•March, Year 1720

A couple of ladies that had guards and maidservants following them were strolling together on the streets while holding patterned umbrellas over their heads as they gossiped. They all immediately fell silent and stopped in their tracks when they saw Dante. His good-looking face and elegant clothes had captured their attention.

The women began to whisper among themselves: He's such a handsome noble and he's definitely not from Talfen. Could he be from the next town? Could he be married?

They all blushed as they shyly waved at him. He gave them a heart-stopping smile when he saw them staring at him which made the ladies melt into warm puddles and they all giggled before he headed towards the Adler Helton.

Dante walked into the building and saw people heading into different shops. The entrance hall was very wide and a couple of people milled around in it, still deliberating on which shop they should go to. Some people had already made their purchase and were headed out of the building with servants carrying their boxes while new people entered. There was a water fountain in the middle of the entrance hall that had benches around it. The air was perfumed with flowery scents and the floor shone like the surface of a lake at sunrise.

The building's first and second floor had balconies which overlooked the ground floor. There was a medium-sized round glass in the ceiling through which sunlight streamed into the building. The stairs were twisted in a perfect spiral and each stair was a deep walnut colour. There were a couple of heavily armed guards stationed at different places to dissuade anyone from performing funny business.

Ladies followed by maidservants and guards flocked to the jewelry and accessory shops like fireflies to a lamp, enthusiasm accentuating their features. Men talked about antiques and the expensive clothes they were going to buy for their wives. There is chatter between sellers and buyers in shops, old friends catching up, new friends made. It's a friendly enough place if you have a lot of gold coins to spend.

Dante quickly located the first shop on his left. The dustless shop was a minefield for the clumsy. Beautiful and expensive hand crafted figurines filled a shelf by the door. A sign hung next to the window said, 'You can look at it, you can touch it, but if you break it, congratulations on your purchase'. Dante let out a snort after he read it, drawing the attention of the shop owner that was sitting behind the counter.

"Can I help you?" the shop owner called out and his face was stern, yet peaceful as he got up from his seat.

There were a couple of men in the shop comparing a couple of antique vases and figurines, deliberating on the ones to buy. Most of them glanced at Dante after the shop owner spoke before some went back to comparing antiques while some still stared at him with amazement written on their faces.

"Ah," Dante said as he dropped his box to the ground. "Pardon me. Are you Mival Wilton, sir?"

"Well, that depends," a voice came from behind him and he quickly turned around to see a man standing in the doorway. "Who's asking?"

Some people wear a smile but this man was the smile. There was a soft and understated joy as he spoke and Dante couldn't help but smile because based on what Malcer, his mentor had told him, this was Mival. Mival's face was symmetrical and he had high cheekbones with long black hair that flowed freely down his back. He was slender and toned and had tanned skin while around his deep brown eyes were laughter lines just in the right amount.

Dante cleared his throat. "Oh, well... sure, sir. My name is Dante. I have been looking for you."

A grin broke out on Mival's face as he gestured for the man behind the counter to sit down back. "I'm getting nervous... Pick up your box and follow me."

Dante glanced at the box on the ground and when he looked back up, Mival was already headed away from the shop. He quickly grabbed the box, nodded at the shop owner who nodded back before he quickly went after Mival.

"What do you want to sell to me?" the man asked Dante after he finally caught up with him in the entrance hall.

"Huh?"

"What's in the box that you're carrying? Antiques, jewelry, figurines, clothes. Do you want to sell any of those things I just mentioned to me?"

'He thinks I'm a seller,' Dante thought as they quickly walked past the water fountain to the spiral staircase.

Mival was about to climb the first step when Dante said, "I am not here to sell anything. Your friend asked me to find you when I get to the capital. His name is Malcer."

Mival's leg hung mid-air as he stared at Dante for a while before he let it drop to the ground and narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "You're lying. You're a liar. You tell lies."

"I'm not a liar and I don't tell lies," Dante said, his brows furrowed in confusion, and dropped the box he was holding to the ground. "Malcer –"

"You don't look like Malcer's son." Mival leaned forward and squinted.

"That's because I'm not." Dante was even more confused now. "I didn't say I was his son."

"Then how do you know Malcer? Where do you know him from? Why do you know him?" The man leaned even closer and Dante had to step back. "You don't know him."

Malcer had told Dante that Mival was a little bit crazy but Dante had downplayed it. He pressed his lips together as he thought of what to say to convince the man that he really knew Malcer before he decided to show him instead. He opened his box and pulled out one of its contents, the sword his mentor had given him and the Mival's eyes immediately widened in recognition.