Merchant Crab

It was morning and a timid autumn sun peeked from behind a cloudy sky over the Marquessian town square, where the townsfolk were quickly gathering by the front of the city hall.

The murmuring and gossiping filled the air. News tended to spread fast in the city of Marquessa, even more so when it involved something that impacted the lives of so many of its citizens.

After the successful assault on Damask Manor the night before, Captain Leander wasted no time getting word to the mayor and bringing some of his men over with carriages to take the mangoes back to their rightful owners.

The good workers of Marquessa wasted no time getting to work once the good news arrived.

Fruit sellers were setting up their stalls before dawn was even a twinkle in the horizon, eager to make up for lost business that harvest season.

The owners of inns, taverns, restaurants, tea houses, food stands, and every other possible establishment that sold mango-related foods—which was nearly all of them in Marquessa—were already hard at work in their kitchens by the time their share of the recovered fruits reached their doors.

And inside the bakeries across town, ovens were hot, doughs were already kneaded, and bakers were anxiously awaiting the arrival of the city’s main delicacy, so that they could turn them into many other forms of culinary delight.

The heart of Marquessa was beating strong again, and its stomach roared for its mangoes.

Balthazar stood around by the side of the city hall, occasionally peeking over the corner at the increasingly larger crowd gathering in the town square, and looking for any signs of the mayor.

“Where is she?” the pacing merchant mumbled to his own nonexistent buttons. “It's a bit rude to leave the one who just saved your reputation waiting outside like this.”

Druma and Blue stood nearby, waiting along with him and just watching the crab pacing from side to side, equal parts amused and confused by their friend’s anxious behavior.

After the manor, they had split up from the others, everyone going their own ways.

Captain Leander remained at the manor, ensuring the place was completely clear and overseeing the return of what had been stolen.

Olivia set off back to town as soon as she could, eager to finish the job of ridding Marquessa of its corrupt guard and any remnants of Onion Jake’s crew.

And Suze… Well, that little rascal simply vanished from the manor while nobody was looking, along with a couple of golden candlesticks and a crystal decanter from the dining room.

Balthazar didn’t blame her. He was starting to see the merit in just grabbing your own rewards for the job and taking off.

“I’m a busy businesscrab,” the grumbling crustacean continued, pacing even faster.

The chattering crowd around the corner continued to grow larger and louder, and no signs of the mayor yet.

“Doesn’t she realize I might have things to do, places to be? I can’t waste my time around here forever!” the adventuring merchant who had just spent practically a week doing a side quest complained.

“Please come with me. Lady Marquessa would like you to join her now.”

Balthazar jumped in place at the words of the young woman who had just appeared around the corner.

“Finally!” he said, following the city hall staff member.

The large doors of the domed building opened and Baroness Marquessa stepped out of the city hall, shiny and resplendent in a silver and blue dress, her many gems and jewels sparkling all over under the sunlight. The crowd let out a collective gasp of awe at the sight of their mayor, before diving into whispers and hushed gossip.

“Mr. Balthazar,” the mayor said, giving the crab a nod as he arrived next to her.

“Uh… hi,” the merchant said, his eyes blinking erratically at the shimmering refractions from the countless jewels.

“I needed to address my citizens, and this seemed like an opportunity to take care of two things at once,” said the woman, resuming her walk forward, toward the crowd.

“I’m not sure if I get it,” Balthazar said, following her along. “I’m just here to get my reward and those directions, lady.”

“Marquessians,” the baroness called, projecting her voice and arms forward at the populace gathered before them. “It is with great joy that I come to you today with good news. The fruits of our labor, the symbol of our very city, the mangoes we all love and cherish, have been saved!”

The crowd erupted into cheering, a small sea of arms being thrown up, along with a few hats, and what Balthazar could swear had also been at least one walking cane.

“The bandits responsible for taking them from us have been caught,” she continued. “And the disgraceful guardsmen who have tarnished the honor of our watch are currently being rooted out from our ranks. I promise you, after this process is over, we will come out of it far stronger and more secure than we were before.”

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The people all clapped vigorously at the mayor’s words, nodding and commenting positively to the fellow citizens next to them.

“This is nice, but I’m still not sure why I needed to be here for this…” Balthazar muttered under his breath.

Lady Marquessa glanced at him from the corner of her eye and a faint smirk the crab remembered well from their first encounter appeared on her thin lips.

“Of course,” the baroness announced loudly, raising her arms again to quiet the crowd, “none of this could have happened without the priceless assistance from a guest into our city, Mr. Balthazar.”

The mayor turned to her side, presenting the crab standing a few steps behind her, and practically shoving him to the front without so much as laying a finger on him. She was good at her game, that much Balthazar was certainly learning.

“Uhh… Hello,” the traveling crustacean said with an awkward wave.

The merchant experienced no trouble with crowds these days. He had grown used to being around large groups of people and standing his own ground when necessary. Whether it was a tough negotiation with a group of adventurers or simply shoving people’s knees out of his way on a busy road, he could handle it all.

Yet, there and then, Balthazar was very much feeling like a crab out of water. But not on land either, because crabs do fine there too. Perhaps more like a crab high in the sky, where they definitely do not belong.

Maybe it was the fact that the crowd of Marquessian citizens in front of him weren’t customers, or that they were actively paying attention to him as he was being lauded. Either way, it was a good thing that chitin couldn’t blush.

The baroness carried on with her speech. “Mr. Balthazar came to our city from very far away, and right away his sharp wits put him on the scent of our town’s troubles. This valiant crab managed to sniff out the bandit plague festering in our streets.”

Balthazar cocked an eyestalk. Was that a pun on the bandit’s leader?

“He single-handedly exposed the corruption sneaking its way into our ranks.”

“I didn’t do that alone,” he whispered to her from behind his pincer. “Couldn’t have gotten there without the help of Suze and your niece.”

“Optics, my friend,” she murmured back, before addressing the crowd again. “And in the end, Mr. Balthazar faced off against the twisted witch behind all our recent woes and defeated her in combat. This crab is more than just a kind and helpful traveler. He is a hero!”

Once again, applause erupted from the ecstatic crowd.

“Hey, you do know that I didn’t get to that manor on my own and that Velvet is still out there, right?” the merchant grumbled to the woman.

“Certainly,” Lady Marquessa said quietly. “But people who have been through troubling times need a hero to celebrate and a happy ending, not paranoia about the bad witch that might still come back to steal their livelihood.”

Balthazar scowled. He was all for embellishing the truth when it came to selling junk at a slightly higher price if it didn’t mean anyone getting hurt, yet he wasn’t feeling entirely comfortable with that version of the facts.

It would seem traveling the continent and experiencing new things was having many effects on the merchant. Growing new principles being one.

“However,” the mayor proclaimed, “our new hero could not have done what he did without the aid of his loyal companions.”

She signaled back to one of the staff girls, who ushered Blue and Druma to come forward and join the crab.

“They proved vital to Mr. Balthazar’s efforts, with their unwavering loyalty and brave deeds. Which is why I am proud to announce I am bestowing upon our new heroes the Marquessian Mark of Honor.”

One of the city hall girls moved next to the mayor and handed her two elegant blue cases with golden latches. Flipping one open, the baroness retrieved a golden medal from within.

His eyes widening, Balthazar suddenly felt much better about accepting all the laurels the woman was bestowing upon him. If it meant receiving new shinies, the crab was in complete agreement that his valiant efforts were everything she had said.

It would seem certain things could not change no matter how much he traveled. Mainly the fact that the crab loved shiny objects.

Standing nervously with his hands behind his back and clearly clueless about what was happening, Druma accepted the medal the baroness placed around his neck with a shy smile and a bow that nearly dropped his wizard hat at the woman’s feet.

When it came to Blue’s turn, Balthazar expected trouble to come from the feisty creature. To his surprise, it seemed she was somehow quite aware of the ceremony taking place and calmly allowed the human to place the ribbon and medal over her head and around her long neck. Her expression and gaze cast down upon the crowd convinced the crab she was not only aware of the praise she was being given but also certain it was entirely deserved.

“Hey, wait, why are there only two medal cases?!” the crab asked, concerned about his expected new shiny.

“For you, my friend, I have something even better and far more valuable,” Lady Marquessa said, her hand reaching toward her cleavage.

“Hmm,” Balthazar said. “Is that where you keep your money pouch? I’ve seen some lady adventurers pull theirs out of there back home, but I never really—”

The mayor grabbed the large key hanging around her neck and pulled it over her head before offering it to the merchant.

“Oh,” said the surprised crustacean.

“To Mr. Balthazar,” she loudly announced to the people, “for his great services to us, I offer the Key to the City of Marquessa.”

The increasingly larger crowd exploded with resounding applause, cheering and hollering for their mayor and their new heroes.

The crab looked at the massive key the woman was presenting to him. It was golden and finely crafted, with each edge perfectly finished by either an incredibly meticulous blacksmith or an unusually versatile jeweler.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“The key to the city? For me?” he said, still baffled. “What if you ever end up locked outside the city and can’t get back in?”

Octavia Marquessa laughed discreetly, like a prim and proper lady of her rank does.

“Worry not, Mr. Balthazar. I have spares in my office,” she replied, apparently not realizing the crab was being entirely serious with his concern.

Balthazar took the heavy key into his pincers, his eyes gleaming at its golden beauty.

As if the simple fact that the key was shiny and golden wasn’t already enough to make the crab happy, the system appeared in his eyes with a description of what possessing that item offered him.

[Marquessa’s Golden Hero]

[Item Trait]

[While in possession of the Key to the City of Marquessa, its inhabitants will treat you with great respect and be more likely to agree with you. Marquessian traders will offer you better prices and more unique deals. Note: item is purely ceremonial and using it on any of the city gates will not actually open them.]

The baroness waved at the cheering crowd as she spoke to Balthazar.

“There are a number of important traders and other figures in this city who’d very much like to talk to you, Mr. Balthazar.”

The crab realized that maybe fame and fortune did go well together, and if the former was another way to gain more of the latter, he was definitely not going to shy away from it.

A grin grew across his face as he too waved at the populace.

“Finally, time to do some merchanting!”