The Maid and Her Princess [On Hiatus]

Eyes Like Sapphires on Cloth (Spring 8)

VIII.

"Okay," Audrey sighed. "Who knew those guys were, like, insane detectives? Not me, that's for sure. They caught on pretty quickly and even collected evidence at an astonishing speed. Who does that?"

Madoka shrugged and dug into a second Cel Row meat bone that they bought. Her copper bag was lighter now but they had a fortune worth of coins within the princess's portal. She had other foods like "greens" and "balanced dietary" food options but the maid only preferred to devour meat.

The copper commission paid them enough coins to stay for several nights but Madoka knew it was not enough to sustain living. They would have to go and do another commission soon in order to buy more of this delicious food. She was too hungry to process the information Luxgor gave them anyways. Audrey continued her rambling while the maid tore into her meals.

"Now that the ramifications are done," Audrey went on. Madoka offered her one of the few Cel Row chunks to her and was glad the girl took one. Thinking must take a lot of energy so the maid supposed the princess must be hungry all the time since she thinks a lot. Madoka did not even scold her while she talked between bites. "We'll have to resupply at the weapon shop since our low rank sucks then regroup at the inn. What do you say, Madoka? Madoka?"

"Sure," Madoka tore more of the tender meat with her teeth. Three bones rested at her feet already. The princess sighed at the sight of her maid's ravenous behavior.

"That merchant must be hella rich now," Audrey muttered. She tossed the bones into the portal and Madoka put away the leftovers as well. "Anyways, we can't check our weapon inventory right now but I'm sure we're down to our last scraps again. So weapon shop it is!"

Madoka tried to remember what magic the portal was called. Those beautiful and pure white beams of light always arranged in a hexagon. They mesmerized the maid but she dismissed the thought since they were on the march again to what she presumed was the weapon shop. The two poked their heads in through the shop's door and entered timidly.

The shop contained what Madoka expected: Crude weaponry. The shopkeeper eyed them with condescension but did not greet the hooded women. The maid was getting used to people's rude behaviors towards them but still felt the sting of irritation. The shop was quite spacious to her surprise. The wood beneath her boots barely creaked as she walked.

"Pick anything," Audrey examined the weaponry. "I doubt any of this garbage is even Uncommon rarity..."

"They kind of remind me of the shoddy weapons in the dragon's realm," Madoka decided it would best to speak in English to keep their secret. She let the golden strands guide her towards a row of axes. Could any match the quality of Lord Leopride's axe?

"Yeah," Audrey mused. "These weapons were scavenged off battlefields for sure. Efficient, I guess. Though they're probably the reason why their original owners died in the first place."

"What about this one?" Madoka grabbed one of them. The weapon was as large as her own chest but felt quite light. A gasp was heard from the decrepit shopkeeper but looked away when Madoka glared at him.

"Hmm, it should hold up against several of the goblins," Audrey inspected the axe. Madoka handed it to her. They have played this trick on many onlookers and the shopkeeper's reaction amused the maid. Audrey was a lot more stronger than she looked. "The handle is quite weak. The eye is quite worn and not fitting the axe properly so the head will probably fling off in battle."

"That does not sound good," Madoka mused. Audrey placed the axe back and something jingled off of its handle. A copper tag glinted candle light off of it. "Each of these weapons have tags on them."