Go On A Fetch Quest For Eggs

“Okay?” I nodded. Least it get me out of the tavern for a bit.

“Thank you dear?” My aunt walked over to the strong box she had on a shelf in the kitchen and brought it to the long kitchen table. “Try and make sure they are fresh.” My aunt glanced up as she counted out the coin.

“Always.” I smiled.

“Here. This should cover the eggs.” My Aunt handed me a handful of coins. “Get whatever you can. Sweet talk someone if you can.” She gave me a wink.

I grabbed a basket and decided to try my luck at the bridge and sit and read a bit while I waited. The other side of the bridge was the Duchy of Fairfeilds with a handful of farmsteads just across the river. The farmers would come into town to sell there produce to the town almost daily so if I wanted fresh this would be my best bet. If you waited on the bridge long enough stuff came to you. I could buy eggs cheaper from a farmer then I could from a merchant in the market. If I was going to hit the market for perishables it was best to go later in the day. Bread, milk, cheese, and eggs were always negotiable when a shop keep would rather sell them cheaper then throw them out not to mention they were typically haggled out by that point after a long day and would agree to almost anything.

As I sat and read I would steal glances of passers by. No one of major importance really passed by but I would smile whenever a girl or another would pass from time to time. A gnomish milk maid caught my eyes as she carried a large clay milk picture with her arms in front of her pressing her impressive bosom together making it swell and jostle as she walked as she struggled a little to hold the large pot steady of what had to be sheep's milk. Another gnomish girl beside her who could easily be her older sister, likewise had very nice breasts that were pushed together by ropes tied to the large bundle of what looked like wool on her back. After the war many gnomes had become wondering vagabonds taking work where they could find it and with so many men dead farm lands still needed to be tended so many nobles took on gnomes to work the lands while other gnomes I had meet were traveling entertainers and merchants.

Truthfully I seemed to have picked the best spot on the old wooden bridge as the worn wood gave the girls a bounce in their step and in their breasts. It didn't take long before I spotted two girls from the countryside that might have what i was looking for, each carrying a basket under there arm perfect for carrying eggs. One had blonde hair who I think was named Agnes, while the other had a brunette mane who was named Margery. Both were from farming families that worked a nearby farmstead, and the chances of finding fresh eggs were good. I had seen them both a few times now but hadn't really spoken much other then the polite hello. I closed the book and walked over.

"Excuse me?" I approached the two with a friendly tone.

"Yes?" The brunette Margery responded with a warm smile.

"Are you going to the market to sell eggs?" I inquired while eyeing the covered baskets they held.

"Yes, why?" The other girl Agnes asked, a hint of skepticism in her voice as to what I wanted, her guard raised.

"I work at the tavern and was hoping to buy some from you," I explained with a shrug, hoping to put them at ease.

"Wait, you're the hunter's cousin," The blonde interjected, her demeanor shifting as she recognized me, perhaps as one of my cousin's fans. I knew that he sometimes made a few extra coin eliminating pest that attacked crops and livestock or he could have just stopped to flirt with her and her friend at some point after meeting them.

Yep," I confirmed, offering a small smile before swiftly transitioning to a different topic to divert attention from my brother's shadow that I was often under. "How much do they pay you per egg at the market?"

"One copper for two eggs, why?" Margery answered as she was the more approachable of the two and the one I rather be dealing with but they were a package deal so to speak.

"What if I give you two copper for each three?" I proposed, quickly doing the math in my head. Eggs typically cost me one a copper in the market so I would be getting one egg free this way.

"How does that make any sense?" Agnes questioned. Clearly she was not good at math.

"Instead of getting six copper for twelve eggs at the market, I'll give you eight copper for the same amount, saving you a trip," I explained. It was a better deal for both parties, though I was hoping they wouldn't analyze the details too closely as I was getting the better end of it.

"What's in it for you?" Margery shot me a sly smile, clearly recognizing I had a motive.

"They charge me one copper per egg at the market," I replied nonchalantly not wanting to explain the math in great detail. It was better then what they had charged during the winter but still every copper saved helped buy more. I was hoping my offer of buying in bulk would sweeten the deal and if we ended up with extra eggs Aunt Caris could preserve them by boiling and pickling them so none went to waste.

"It doesn't seem like much for just an extra copper or two," Agnes countered, shaking her head. Of course she wouldn't see it.

"Not if you keep selling to the tavern. A few extra coppers every few days add up to more than a silver in a week in your pocket," I pointed out. Convincing them to become regular suppliers to the tavern would save me future trips to the market for eggs and provide them with a little extra money. If they didn't tell their folks they could easily pocket the few extra coins.

"It's a good reason for us to visit your brothers," Margery smiled exchanging a knowing glance with her friend. She seemed to be on board now that Jon was involved. In the end, I managed to purchase three dozen eggs for the price of around four dozen at the market, and I still had some change left over. They offered to come by the tavern during there next trip into town with a little suggestion. Nothing else unleashing two girls of marriageable age on my cousin Jon was an added bonus.

I brought the eggs back to my Aunt giving her back the money I hadn't spent then went to my room and spent the next hour making up notices for people looking for work. My Aunt wanted to hire at least two girls for the season since the last two had gotten married. Though it depending on how much the girls could work and rather they need room our board if she could hire more. We had room for two to bunk near the kitchen though someone could always sleep in my sisters room.

My uncle was looking for a stable hand with the offer to train one who was local or didn't mind sleeping in the loft over the stables as he was getting to old and Gareth had a lot on his plate as it was and with the wounded knee Gareth always pushed himself more then he should being the most stubborn person I knew. If we didn't find someone I was sure there would be a lot of shoveling horse manure in my future most likely. Of course every farmstead in the duchy and the fiefdom would be looking for male workers but if he was lucky he might find a stable boy looking to learn the trade instead of farming.

I ran out of ink eventually well before paper as I had so much to write per page so I left the pages to dry. I sat by the window and began to read. The next spell was mending bone and was a apprentice to advanced level spell depending on the thickness of the bone and location as well as the type of break. Healing seemed to have a lot of rules to it and it wasn't just throw your hands and cast heal like I thought it would be. A minor break was easy but a bone that has came through the skin or has been shattered would be a challenge for even the greatest of mages and could cause debilitation if done poorly so I skipped over the section.

Going a spell called Alleviation which was designed to ease a persons pain next it sounded easy enough. Three fingers placed against the skin and were moved in a circular pattern over the area of discomfort. The spell came with a warning that though a novice could do it with ease it drained a casters energy slowly so over use was cautioned against as it required constraint on the casters part to know there limitations. So a novice could handle the occasional person but not a battlefield after a major conflict. After awhile I stopped and rubbed my eyes having been reading to long wondering if there was a spell for eye strain in here not that I could do it probably.

I headed downstairs and brought one of the papers with me as I went down to the barroom which was empty except for Uncle Roland who was polishing the bar-top to a mirror shine. Even when it was dead like now someone always stayed in the barroom or nearby encase someone wondered in for a drink or a room. He stopped to straighten the mug that sat behind the bar on a shelf. According to the story the king himself, back when he was a prince, stayed here and drank from the mug when my uncle was a young man. It was sometime after the last battle of the usurper war. That battle placed the then prince on the throne over his older half blood bastard brother. I had seen a few lesser nobles pass through but doubted I would ever meet the king as he had no reason to come this far north now that his ass sat comfortably on his throne in the south.

I shook my head at him and went to the notice board and found a blank spot pulling out the nail and then sticking the paper up and pushing the nail back in wiggling it back into the hole. So many notices had come and gone over the years one didn't need a hammer anymore for the nails. I browsed a few others that people had posted that I hadn't seen but it was all stuff I had heard about already.

“That the notice for work.” My Uncle glanced over.

“Yep. I did up a few more but ran out of ink.” I replied. “I will hang up some more later around town.”

Preferably after the sun was not so high in the sky. I walked over to see him straightening the bottles on the shelf that rarely got ordered. The elven wine was a bit to expensive and mild for the locals taste while the dwarven stuff got ordered only when someone wanted top shelf.

“Thanks lad.” He nodded.

“Your welcome.” I replied and looked around the tavern then made a little joke. “Seems a little busier today then usual.”

He shook his head and laughed. “Give it time. The snows only melted a few weeks now and the roads are muddy still. Once the flowers come up good you will be complaining we are to busy and your feet hurt so be careful what you ask for lad. Don't you have something else you could be doing besides harassing me. I can find you work if not.”