Going back to the merchant, though, let us explore how I got to Adeluna in the first place. I did say that I was searching for the purple star sapphire in Iria and that I didn't know Robin was in the seat of the formerly great empire at the time. Yet, due to the nature of my search, I had no way of knowing how long this situation would last. The gem could have been anywhere, but, thankfully, luck was on my side this time. I completed the quest and acquired the gem far sooner than anticipated; at the exact moment that Robin had docked in Adeluna. It just so happened that I had a receptacle ready to receive said gem already in place, so I was able to prepare Robin's gift in record time before she had even set foot in that merchant's stall.
Obviously, that was only half the battle, however. I wrapped the gift in a bag for transport after it was done – one tiny enough to be carried in one hand – but then actually had to find the receiver. SAI's scrying abilities were more than sufficient for that purpose – although I admit that I was surprised to find her all the way across the sea. Regardless, after I discovered her exact location in the city, I made my way there via a void gate.
It was at that point that the merchant entered the picture. Having not wished to startle Robin or the already jumpy populace of the empire's capital, I teleported into a warehouse near her rather than into the open street. I wasn't expecting anyone else to be in that place at the time, but there he was: the merchant squirreling away into a box he had retrieved from a hidden compartment at the back of the store.
"Threaten me in my own shop, will you? I'll show you." The man hadn't noticed my entrance thanks to the clattering of glass vials he was eliciting; but his voice was enough to startle me into invisibility. I didn't want any trouble from him, so I was about to slip out of the building in that state. Yet, just as I was about to leave through the front door, he opened his stupid mouth once more to say, "Robin, eh? Who names a girl after a bird? Well, she'll be nice and crispy after this: perfect for a red robin dinner."
Mr. Merchant held up the vial he was looking for then in the dim light of the candle by his side: a glass sphere of orange, iridescent liquid that glowed brightly. He stuck a crossbow bolt in the cork of that flask, and then pulled off a trick board from a nearby wall so he could aim through it. His crossbow was pointed straight at Robin and her group through that kill hole, but, despite his original intent, he didn't loose that flask even after he was given a clear shot.
Creak~
Just before he unleashed his vengeful scheme, my boots caused the wooden floorboards underneath him to groan. He couldn't ignore that, being the overly paranoid man that he was, so he turned around to see who was there. I relaxed my invisibility at that exact moment, timing it just right so he could see my eyes in the light of the flickering flame.
What happened next was chaos. The merchant, shocked from the appearance of someone clearly not human in a dark, enclosed space, forgot what he was holding for a moment. He squeezed the trigger bar, firing the flask in my direction rather than at Robin and striking some spirits in the process. That was what had caused the explosion, and what had originally sent him out into the streets.
Despite this destructive blast, however, the con artist from before was rat-like enough to escape virtually unharmed. His clothes were singed from proximity, but his legs were empowered by just enough cowardice to avoid serious damage. As for myself, SAI had protected me by activating fire meld at the last second, so the most I got were some mild burns that healed quickly enough after I stepped out of the flames. In this way, both parties survived the unintentional arson while the destroyed store summoned a swarm of watch members to contain the fire.
Unfortunately for Mr. Merchant, however, that safety of his was fleeting. He had let me hear something he should have never said; and, after combing his memories for how he knew my dear Robin, I succumbed to a rather nasty and pointed bloodlust in his direction. Flames still coming off my coat, I listened to him beg for his life whilst slowly approaching from the arson site. His black eye during that whole ordeal had been inflicted by flying debris, and soon I gave him another to go with it. Just as he tried to run, I sprinted ahead in my adrenaline filled state and planted a heel on his face. I broke his nose with the motion, and probably would have killed him had I not suddenly remembered that Robin was there. The sight of her out of the corner of my eye soothed my wrath just long enough for the merchant to crawl away, but not without reparations.
When he finally broke into a sprint to escape into the alleyways again, the merchant found himself pinned to a wall by crossbow bolts. I had loosed five from a conjured, hand crossbow of mine: one for each limb and one for his belt. The belt one made his pants fall down for everyone to see, which caused some children to laugh at him. His pride would never be the same; although he was lucky that he got to live at all past that point.
Afterward, and with some encouragement from SAI, I turned my attention back to Robin. The two of us locked eyes as I approached, but she seemed more in shock than I anticipated.
"Natsumi? What are you doing here," she asked with a dumbfounded but innocent expression?
"I could ask you the same thing," I retorted with a smile. "You didn't tell me you were taking this long-distance of a trip. When you said shopping, I thought you meant Karith or something closer. Y'know: something not across the ocean?" My tone was anything but harsh. Far from it, in fact. I was being playful because I had a sneaking suspicion she was trying to surprise me with something. Ironically, I didn't notice that Kat was just around the corner at that time; otherwise I probably would've stopped the developing scene to call her out. That was for the best, though, as what happened next was a moment that needed to happen in my relationship with Robin if we were to become anything more than ships passing in the wind.
