Chapter 8

Well, the notice board outside the most popular inn in city certainly didn't disappoint - it was absolutely littered with paper. Not to mention since this wasn't the only inn in the city, just most popular to most of the population, I was sure I would find even more on their notice boards, assuming there was more than one per settlement.

Naturally most of the slips of paper were for the spreading of news, offering of simple work, even more anyonmous sex requests (this world needed internet porn badly), and the usual fair. Thankfully there were plenty of requests that seemed Witcher related for one reason or another. The real question was what I should take and how long did I reasonably expect to be able to complete them.

This wasn't a game after all, where you could grab everything and complete it on your own time.

Hmmm, safe bet was ignoring all the ones that seemed like there were no monster involved at all but rather just people overreacting and assuming monsters. For example someone next to a sculptor's home was certain some statues were watching them as they walked past and wanting to smash them to be safe. Sounded like they were paranoid and I was not damaging someone else's property just to ease them.

I also had to pass over the low paying work and what didn't really seem like it needed immediate help dealing with. Also nothing that required too much travel away from the city itself since I needed to be close to catch boat. That narrowed things down to…

Hello, this looked interesting.

I took off a slip of paper that described how an old abandoned manor house just outside of the city walls that was apparently haunted and the poster wanted it cleared out as soon as possible. Talks of strange noises, lights, and ghastly figures being spotted whenever some used road passing by it had really scared people away from the place despite how good manor and land it was built on was. Didn't help matters that sometimes they would find mutilated corpses of traders that had dared the nearby road outside at night at the front gates come morning.

It paid well, was close to the city, it was proper Witcher work, and I'd be putting the restless dead to rest. Sounded right up my alley.

According to the slip I needed to speak to a guard captain at the barracks by the main gate for details… which means I need to speak with Markus', now my, guard friend. That will be kinda awkward.

Whelp, he did say not to come by till later tonight, most likely when off duty, so that meant I had time to kill and I need to go shopping around anyhow.

"Anything exciting!" Ivar asked like an excited kid as I met up with him after he stabled our horses next to inn.

"Haunted house apparently." I stated and I could just see him vibrating in place.

"Ghosts, wraiths, spirits of the deceased! How exciting! The spiritual implications alone will be a treat to record!"

"Not yet, need to get some supplies and then talk to guard captain we met earlier about job. I don't want to go fighting ghosts without some specter oil at least." I explained.

"You have a substance that allows you to interact with the immaterial! How?!" Ivar said in wonder.

Oh boy…

---

After a long time explaining how specter oil doesn't let my sword touch immaterial beings insomuch as destabilize their forms we made it to our first stop, a blacksmith.

Compared to the local ones in the many villages we passed I wanted someone who was skilled in more than making farming tools look over my swords since I only had basic knowledge of blade upkeep. Not to mention buy a crossbow since I really needed some ranged firepower.

The smithy itself was a reasonably large building with the forge located in an open area outside, though still under a roof, while there was a door leading inside to where I assume customers go to actually buy things. The forge was currently being used by a dwarf hammering something into shape on the anvil while two other human workers assisted him.

Moving on inside the walls were absolutely lined with weapons, armor, and all kinds of metalwork. There were a few customers looking things over while at the front counter was the unmistakable form of a gnome watching everything, his long nose waving every which way before spotting us and his eyes lit up.

"Welcome to Rasben's and Therdur's Weapons, Armor, and Everything Forged under the Sun! I'm Rasben, how might I help you today?" was his pitch as we walked up to the counter.

"Name's a bit of a mouthful, isn't it?" I couldn't help but point out.

"It is a fine name! You humans are the ones who likes shortening things too much in my opinion." Rasben stated with a snort.

"Fair enough, I'm here for a few things. Most importantly, I wanted to have my swords looked over. I've been doing basic maintenance on them, but at the same time I'm no blacksmith to see if there is anything wrong with them I'm not seeing. I'm hoping you can do that for me and fix anything for the right price."

"Hand them here then and let me have a look at them."

I did just that, taking both blades off my back and letting the small man before me unsheath and study them. He examined them for a little bit, letting out various 'hmms' and 'huhhs' the whole time. At one point he put on a jewelers lens to really stare at both swords.

"Fine craftsmanship this is, old but hasn't lost luster despite it. Silver sword has Greater Dazhbog and Veles runestones imbued in it while the steel one has Greater Veles and Chernobog ones. Well taken care of but naturally a few minor places where it has been bent out of shape from hitting something hardier. No surprise there given the kinda work you Witchers take part in." he explained.

Huh, good swords. Also fits Griffin school to use magic to augment natural ability.

"I can have these fixed up in a jiffy with only a small fee for task since the damage is pretty minor." Rasben offered.

"Deal, I would also like a purchase a crossbow. Something that hits hard and from long range accurately would be ideal, along with two quivers worth of steel bolts." I asked.

"Can do! What about you, scholar?" Rasben turned to Ivar, who was looking over a stand of spears.

"Hmm, would you happen to have a good sling around?" Ivar asked and I blinked in surprise.

"Not our most common item, but yes. A skilled slinger can hit a small bird at a hundred meters easily. Course, be next to useless to you unless you trained with it since young." Rasben warned.

"Not to worry! In my youth I practiced by knocking apples off trees, while hardly an expert I won't bring shame to the weapon either."

"Very well, wait here one moment." Rasben said and hopped off the tall stool he had been sitting on before heading into backroom.

"I didn't know you knew how to use a sling, and why do you want it anyway?" I asked curiously.

"There are many wonderful things about me I have yet to share, and I figured if I was to travel with you I need at least a basic means of defending myself should the need arise. The last thing I want to be is dead weight to you." Ivar said sincerely.

I only nodded in understanding. A few moments later Rasben returned to counter with a sling in hand that looked in good condition.

Ivar even tested it out a bit, without ammo of course, and it really did seem like he knew what he was doing.

"Ha! Forget your swords, arrows, and spells! With this sling I can turn any stone into a deadly weapon!" Ivar declared.

At the mention of spells I felt a lightning bolt go off in my mind as I realized that magic beyond my Signs was very much a thing, and the people with it. I had some ideas about that and since I was in the mineral capital of the world…

"Hey, Rasben. Can I make a special commission for something?" I asked the gnome.

"But of course, what did you have in mind?"

"How much would it take to make something simple out of dimeritium?" I asked.

---

Rasben told me that based on commission request it shouldn't take more than a week to complete. After that we continued our shopping spree through the city to collect various supplies we both needed.

We stopped by an alchemist's shop to sell off various herbs and extra monster parts I had collected over the journey here, as well as buy rarer ingredients I needed to make the best potions I possibly could. I was even able to seriously bring the price down by writing down and selling formulas for the alchemist for simply potions and medicines that, thanks to my max level in utilitarian alchemy, lowered the ingredient requirements or outright replaced some with more common ones that worked just as well. Even showed some improved mixing methods to improve effects and reduce time.

To say I had the alchemist eating out of my hand was only a little exaggeration. Not to mention what I did show up he would likely guard religiously for his own research so I could do the same thing again later. I was spreading knowledge and making money!

I was even allowed to mix my potions in his own lab, he was so thankful. Because of all that I now had all the higher level potions from the games along with a few of my own making, mainly based on already established potions. For example I expanded on drowner pheromones to include more necrophages in general, the dumb ones at least.

Ivar was also quite happy to buy up monster parts just to study them and explained that he would let me use once he was done with them.

Practical guy.

It was Ivar's stop next, with us heading to what was basically a store for scholars, what with it being full of books, paper, ink, quills, and whatever else intellectuals need to do their jobs. I stood out a bunch by being the scary Witcher in a store full of nerds, which was sad since I proudly considered myself a nerd as well before coming here.

Ivar restocked on everything so he could record more monsters and things relating to monsters at a later date. He also told me he mailed copies of recordings made already with me to be sent to his university for review and documentation.

After that it was basically just general goods and supplies we need, mainly dried food and such, camping supplies, stuff to make sure horses were in good care, the works.

By the time we got our shopping out of the way the sun had nearly left the sky and I figured it was a good time to meet the guard captain about the haunted manor job, no matter how weird it might make me feel talking a friend of Markus'

---

When we explained we were here for the job notice the guards out front let us into the barracks with no issue.

Insides was basically what I expected. Lots of bunks, armor and weapon ranks, chair and temples for off duty guards drinking and playing games, and in the back, an office area most likely for officers. Ivar and I walked past this all and headed towards where the captain was, all the while I could feel the stares on me and the whispers from the various guards.

"That the one the Captain talked about?"

"He's a Witcher, yeah? Who's the bookkeeper with him?"