Outconning the Conman

An intense wave of frustration washed over the vendor. But hearing Bil's soft voice made him feel a bit better. Believing he was still in the clear, the shopkeep opened his mouth and looked at Bil. Then he paused. His eyes caught sight of a ring the blind man was casually tossing up and down.

"Y-you thief!!!" roared the merchant. "YOU DARE STEAL FROM ME!!! I'LL–"

"Oh? So you can't pull off your trick without the real accessory?" chuckled Bil, snatching the ring before the shopkeep could grab it. "Return my money, and I'll return the ring."

"How dare–"

"Is something the matter here?" a calm, serious voice parted the crowd. A professionally dressed woman walked up to the stand. "What's going on?"

Glaring at Bil, the shopkeep shot his finger toward the blind man. "Mayor Amma, he's stolen my spatial ring, holding my most valuable wares! I demand–"

"Is that true, Ronica?"

The woman who had offered to buy the pendant shook her head. "The merchant was selling a spatial pendant but refused to allow anyone else to test it. But after this man handed over three gold drits, he was finally allowed to test it."

"Mayor Amma, I demand–"

"Silence. I'm listening to my assistant," interjected Amma. "Continue, Ronica."

With a nod, Ronica explained, "This man tested it and failed. So the man asked the vendor to test it once more. However, that test failed as well. And the cause seems to be that ring, which the man removed from the vendor's finger."

Nodding, Amma extended a hand to Bil, who silently passed the ring over. Afterward, Amma looked at the vendor. "I now have the ring and will return after witnessing you test your product."

"B-but Mayor–"

"Test it. Now. Fail to test it, and I'll have your license revoked and place you on the region's blacklist."

Taking in a sharp breath, the vendor put on his usual smile. "Of course! Allow me to show you all what it can do! In fact, I've got a second one here so allow me to–"

"Touch anything other than that trinket and that pendant, and I'll take your hand."

"U-Uh!" The vendor froze. "Madam Mayor, to say such a thing–"

"I would act carefully if I were you," stated Amma. "In case you haven't yet heard the news of what happened this morning, the man before you single-handedly apprehended a dozen bandits holding up the general store."

"...." The vendor's eyes shook as he scanned over Bil once more, now feeling the true weight of his threat. "I-in that case–"

"Hurry. I'm impatient. The longer you stall, the worse you look," Bil remarked, leaning over the wooden counter. "I hope you can offer a demonstration worthy of my gold drits."

"O-Of course!"

Twiddling his fingers around the trinket and pendant, the vendor hummed. For the first time, the crowd saw brownish-yellow veita surround the pendant. At the same time, the trinket vanished from view.

"See! Just as I promised–"

Crack! "AAAHHhh!"

Gripping the man's right hand, Bil scoffed, "Stop lying already…"

The crowd was shocked, including the mayor. But something unexpected caught their ears.

Thud…

Everyone heard something hit the table. And, simultaneously, the trinket from earlier became visible as it rolled on the wooden stand.

"You've got such low earth affinity, but it makes a great cover for your illusions," stated Bil, still holding the merchant's broken wrist. "Now, where's my money?"

"HERE!! Now let go!" the vendor shouted as he tossed the three gold drits on the table.

Bil eased his grip and took his money as if nothing had happened. However, the rest of the crowd was fuming and refused to forget such thievery.

"Come on, Nelphy. Let them deal with him." He grabbed the girl's hand and started retracing his steps.

The young woman lean in to whisper, "How did you know?"

"There were too man coincidences, like the price," remarked Bil. "Even the cheapest spatial accessories cost–"

"Bil! Please wait a moment!"

Both Bil and Nelphy stopped, surprised to hear that voice. They looked back as Amma approached them after crossing the crowd. "My assistant will handle the thief. But I was only nearby because I was looking to speak with you, Bil, if you'll permit me to do so."

".. And why is that? Is it regarding the event this morning?" Bil questioned.

But Amma shook her head. "No. It's not. It's a personal matter that I wish to speak about in private."

Curious, Bil asked, "Without Nelphy or Jash?"

"That's correct."

"..." Pausing, Bil rubbed the back of Nelphy's palm with his finger. "I'll meet with you. But I make no promise to participate in your conversation. If I have nothing to say, then I'll leave immediately."

Amma bowed deeply, catching the attention of the crowd again. "Thank you, Bil. I'm very grateful to hear that."

"I'll meet you at your inn, the one we checked into last night," remarked Bil, startling Nelphy and getting a chuckle from Amma. "For now, we have some birthday shopping to finish while we're in town."

"Very well. Simply tell the reception you're there for me, and they'll take you to our meeting room. Again, thank you, Bil." With one more quick bow, Amma waved goodbye and left.

A little overwhelmed, Nelphy asked, "What was that about? And how did you know she owned the inn?"

"Just a hunch, I guess," answered Bil, offering a suspicious shrug. "Now hurry! I want to see which armor Jash chose!"

"Oh, me too!"

The duo rushed back to the armor vendor while the market was abuzz about the shady vendor getting dragged away. But they were both happy to see Jash step out from the changing booth.

His armor wasn't flashy, but it was stylish. The sleeves and chest piece were covered in large metal scales, with red steel pauldrons covering the shoulders. Covering his lower body was matching plate mail with red braces protecting his knees and the top of his shoes.

Nervous, Jash coughed to himself. "So.. How does it look?"