Death... and me

"Something else?" Rean asked back. "Well, that's better than being killed, I guess."

Fran then caught Rean with his Spatial Powers and disappeared from that place. In the next second, Rean found himself and Fran in another part of the mountain range. What really caught Rean's attention was not that, though. Instead, it was the many different spirits as well as demon beasts and humanoids.

Fran then pointed at a rare building, something one would hardly see in the Winged Provis race's territory. "Our Winged Provis race does a lot of trading with other races. As a spirit race with such high affinity with the Wind Element, a lot of the things produced by us carry very pure Wind Element. However, it's hard for us to negotiate with the humanoids and demon beasts since we don't really know what those items would be worth in their territories."

He then looked at Rean, saying, "You mentioned that you're a blacksmith and a merchant, right? I want you to give us a little help with these trades and use your knowledge about the prices to get us some good deals."

Rean didn't really expect that he would be put in the position of a merchant, though. However, he also heard good news from Sister Orb.

[Rean, we're at the very edge of the mountain range. If you head out a little further, the space won't be scrambled anymore. You and Roan can use the Circuitry Teleport Formation if you do that.]

However... 'That's good and all. Sadly, we need those Iridescent Tears that only appear in these guys' sanctuary.'

Rean decided to ask Fran about it. "Sure, I can help you with that. But since you know I have nothing to do with Jakar, shouldn't I get some payment for my services?"

Fran smiled in response. "I thought your life was quite a good price."

"Errr..." Rean felt like crying. "Alright, alright. Then, let me ask this. I have heard about your Winged Provis race before, especially about a certain item. Do you guys happen to sell Iridescent Tears?"

Fran was surprised that Rean even knew about it. "Where did you hear that name?"

"If it's related to blacksmithing, you can be sure I know of it," Rean answered.

"Hmph!" Fran wasn't completely convinced about it. Then again, the item wasn't exactly a huge secret either, as other spirit races knew about it. "That's not something the likes of you will ever get your hands on."

"Wait!" Rean was surprised to hear that answer. Why? Because it wasn't a denial. "Does that mean you really have those tears for trading?"

Fran glanced at him but nodded in the end. "We do have Iridescent Tears for trade. However, almost no one dares to pay the price for them. That already includes experts at my level, so you can forget about being able to afford it."

"Who knows?" Rean wasn't convinced. "I'm very good at trading. If you don't tell me what you're asking in exchange for the tears, how do you know if I can pay or not?"

"Simple," Fran answered. "Because if you could pay, I would rather just kill you and grab the payment for free."

Rean wanted to cry again. "That's not a nice answer."

Fran didn't care, though. "Is that so? Anyway, the price for an Iridescent Tear is a Rank Eight Divine Stone of the Wind Element. Only such a thing would be worth more than the tear for us."

Rean took in a deep breath after hearing that. "Rank Eight Divine Stone..." Until today, Rean's group found a single Rank Six Divine Stone, which happened to have Water Element. In the end, they gave it to Havek, who used it to break through. Yet, Fran was asking for a Rank Eight. Was such a thing even possible to be found by the likes of him? Even if, due to a miracle, he found such a Divine Stone, would it even be a Wind Element one? "Ahem... that is indeed a bit out of my league."

"Obviously," Fran nodded, satisfied.

"Isn't there anything else you want? Surely there must be something else." Rean could only hope now. What bothered Rean the most was how fast it escalated. Sure, the last item of the Starlight Body Cultivation Technique was already hard. However, the next item's difficulty just jumped several folds.

Fran was just about to say no when suddenly, he had an idea. "How about this? If you can convince Jakar to forget the idea of escaping from his race, I don't mind giving you a drop of Iridescent Tear."

Rean was taken aback for a moment but immediately pushed forward. "Two drops!"

Fran's expression darkened in response. "Aren't you being too greedy for your own good?"

Rean only smiled when he heard that. "Greedy? We're talking about the future of your Winged Provis race, aren't we? Surely it's a lot more important than just a mere two drops of Iridescent Tear. Don't forget he was successful once. Who knows, someone might let their guard down at some point, and before you know it, Jakar already threw himself inside another teleport formation."

Fran had to admit Rean was right, even if he didn't like it. "Fine, two drops it is. But you better succeed. Otherwise, forget about ever leaving this place alive again."

Rean nodded in response. "Good! Now then, what guarantees do I have that you will fulfill your end of the deal?"

"You don't," Fran answered straight away. "Whether you want to trust me or just give up is up to you."

Well, Rean would be lying if he said he wasn't expecting something like that. "Yeah, yeah... you guys are all like this, aren't you?"

Fran shook his head. "I like to think that we spirit races are a lot more patient than the others."

"Fine, I'll give you that." Rean couldn't disagree with that. "Just arrange for Jakar to come and see me here every now and then. Make it look like you wanted to show him that I'm fine and things like that."

"What do you mean?" Fran asked back.

"Simple," Rean answered. "You want it to look like it wasn't you who asked me to do that. The chances of me convincing him will be much higher like that."

Fran understood and nodded in response. "I'll see that arranged."