Invitation and Gear

"The Black Strings are the strongest Guild of Thieves this side of Lyre, and I just so happen to be some sort of recruiter," Gill said, crossing his arms slightly as he spoke.

Drew felt a chill through his spine he realized he was probably talking to a hardened criminal. He backed up slightly at the man's words but stopped after Gill chuckled lightly and shook his head.

"No need to worry, Drew. We aren't like other thieves. We are... honorable," He said while searching for the right word.

"We don't steal from the honest folk nor do we steal from the poor, nor do we employ the young as to not soil their youth or purity,"

"The Black Strings are strict and target the corrupt and those that abuse their wealth or power,"

"Such as nobles and dirty merchants. Cheats and scammers. You can probably understand what type of stealing we do by now, right?"

"Yeah, I get the picture," Drew said hesitantly.

Gill seemed a little put down at Drew's lack of enthusiasm but still continued speaking.

"I am a generous man. You let one of our young prospected thieves of the future off the hook today. He broke the Black Strings code of conduct, but seeing as he is not a Black Strings member due to his age there is no real way to punish him,"

"If you were someone with power and a penchant for violence, then the lad wouldn't have seen the light of tomorrow,"

"And since you are ignoring such grievances I would like to compensate you fairly,"

Gill reached under the counter and fumbled for a second before pulling out a small sack that jingled like metal on metal.

'Coins,' Drew thought as he remembered his lack of money to buy armor and gear to get stronger. His cravings for those small bits of metal were something that had filled his mind since he learned the true value they had.

"I can offer you 20 silver pieces and I can put you on the protected list for the Black Strings, guaranteeing that you won't be stolen from during your life in the Kingdom of Seas,"

"I could also offer you a piece of gear from my shop instead of the silver, but that is up to you to decide,"

"And aside from compensation, I would like to formally invite you to be a member of the Black Strings,"

Drew felt surprised by the last statement Gill made. He had only really stolen once, so how could that qualify him for such an invitation?

"I could list the benefits of being a member of the Guild if you are interested, and don't feel as if I'm pressuring you. I'm only interested in your potential but if you refuse the invitation nothing bad will come of it,"

"I'm not sure if I qualify for such a thing. I only stole once, surely that isn't enough to warrant an invitation,"

Gill smiled wide and he shook his head at Drew's words.

"You qualify for more than just 'Stealing Once',"

"You stole from the Church of Bram. One of the enemies of the Black Strings. And in addition, I heard that you escaped from a Cardinal which shows your strength even more than your score at the church,"

"The question is not whether or not you qualify, however. The real question is whether or not you are interested,"

Drew thought for a moment, mulling over the idea of entering this 'Guild of Honorable Thieves'.

'It could allow me to grow... but I best know the advantages of joining them,'

"What are the benefits?"

Gill smiled at Drew's interest before speaking.

"There are a lot of benefits,"

"You have gathered quite a reputation with your stunts so far so I would start you a tier higher than Recruit,"

"You would be considered a 'Dark Hand',"

"You would have a discount from all merchants under the guild, a set of personalized armor, access to the guild open library, And if you ever get into trouble or sent to jail we can help you out," Gill said as he listed off the list.

"In addition, as you would be a 'Dark Hand' you would gain access to the Guild Enchanter and Smith, albeit at full price. You also get access to a tutor that will try and teach you skills, the first session is free while each session afterward is 5 silver, which is reduced to 5 from 10 due to being a Dark Hand,"

"You also get a 1 gold starter reward for being a recruit and a 10 gold reward for raising to a Dark Hand,"

Drew's mind almost seemed to short circuit after hearing the insane benefits of this Guild.

'Not only would I gain gear, but I would also gain a hefty sum of coin and access to the information and tools to grow stronger,'

'Gaining access to a legitimate Enchanter and Blacksmith is also a huge advantage,'

"How much time is a session with a tutor?"

"Typically it is about a day for standard tutors but it can decrease to a few hours if you are looking for unique skills or more advanced skills,"

Drew felt his head get hot as the full scope of what being a part of this guild meant and it took a few minutes and some help from the cooling force in his mind to get him thinking straight.

"I'm in," He said without hesitation.

Gill smiled wide at those two simple words.

"Good choice Drew, I will make sure you won't regret it,"

"So something from my inventory? Or these 20 silver pieces?"

Drew thought for a moment in contemplation. He could use gear but seeing as he was gaining a set of custom armor it wasn't as important as it was just a few moments prior.

"Any of your gear magical?" He asked, remembering Jazzy and her powerful equipment.

"All of it has at least some Runework on it. I make most of the works you see in this room but I am not a Runework Master. I'm more talented in leatherworker and blacksmithing than anything else, fancy enchants are really not my style," Gill said with pride in his specializations.

"Us dwarves are not really good at all that magic business,"

"Dwarf?!" Drew asked, surprised.

'He is short... and has a beard...'

Gill laughed and nodded.

"I am indeed a dwarf. I thought it was quite obvious, given my complexion," He said while motioning towards his pale grey skin.

"You never seen a dwarf before?"

Drew shook his head and got a little flushed.

"I didn't even know how many races there are. I have some memory problems so everything is a little hazy,"

"Interesting... It's quite common knowledge that other races exist,"

Curiosity filled the dwarf's face as he inspected Drew's eyes that vaguely resembled starlight.

"We Dwarves are one of the many types of mortals in Lyre,"

"The other common ones are Elves, Humans, and Warrins,"

"Elves are the pointy-eared folk you might see around every now and again. They stick to themselves for the most part though so you may not see many, especially in the Kingdom of Seas,"

"Humans are what you are, obviously,"

"And Warrins are water folk. They vary in looks but you will know one when you see them,"

"Rarer races would be the Goblins, Catkin, and the undead, though you may go your entire life without seeing them,"

"There are some more but people treat them differently than humans because of their exotic nature," Gill said with disgust in his voice.

"Though they are all rather nice from my encounters so far. I don't see why people hate them as much as they do,"

Drew heard the various words that came out of Gill's mouth and took a second to digest what he had just said.

'So many different types of people... It would be great if I could see all of them one day,'

"So... what will it be?"

Drew snapped back to reality and quickly grabbed the silver on the table.

"I think I prefer more magical items, no offense,"

Gill nodded as if expecting the reply before speaking in a knowing tone.

"I could tell by that aura coming from your bag. It's quite unique if I do say so myself,"

"How did you-?"

"I've got a keen eye for good work kid. It's my specialty," He said with a wink, his eyes flaring white as he does so.

'What the hell does that mean?'

'So many secrets... Why do I even try?'

[Would you like the system to attempt to answer your question?]

A conversational metallic voice echoed through Drew's mind and he nodded his head slightly in answer to the system's request.

[The individual in front of you has access to the Advanced Magic: Appraisal Magic. This is much stronger than base magic and branch magic affinities.]

'???'

[Base Magic affinities are based on fundamental elements and tend to be the most common affinity. An example of this would be light magic.]

[Branch Magic affinities are either innate or developed through specializing your base affinities in more advanced fields. An example of this would be illusion magic, also known as light bending which is a more advanced field of light magic.]

[And Advance Magic affinities are incredibly difficult to learn affinities that typically are found only in people born with them.]

[The man in front of you has either developed or was born with the Appraisal Magic Affinity that seems to be at a relatively high level.]

Drew found the information useful and realized he hadn't been using the new System Upgrade he had painstakingly worked for as much as he should.

'I should really do a research session sometime here soon...'

"Come back here in a week's time and your armor will be ready and we can run you through orientation," Gill said.

"And you," Gill said while pointing a finger at the disheartened red-headed child.

"You better not get in any more trouble or else I will permanently ban you from becoming a member of the Black Strings," He said sternly.

Fear spread across Smith's face as he nodded frantically before bolting out of the shop.

Gill sighed deeply as Smith left and gave a disappointed but loving expression towards the now closed door.

"That kid is gonna be the death of me..."

"But he means well," He said while turning his gaze towards Drew.

"Scaring him a little may be just what he needs right now,"

He was about to nod in agreeance but stopped as a few memories slipped through his fogging memories...