Snippet #1778752

Lucas let out a seemingly heartfelt sigh
“60 Rupees is asking a lot” he said, looking out into the distance trying to look thoughtful.
He hated doing business Kakariko village, everything here reminded him of the innocence of his youth. To him the first and foremost rule of any business was to Rip Them Off. He didn’t like that rule here, he didn’t like giving the occupants of his former home a bad deal. It was like stealing from a friend. But that wouldn’t stop him.
“I won’t go any higher than 45” the man looked shocked.
He had come into possession of some kind of lute. Quite rare and beautiful, Lucas imagined it could fetch anything from 80 to 200 Rupees in Castle Town Market. What the shocked looking man had not realised when he had acquired it however was that it was stolen. A stolen item such as this certainly came from a place of wealth, an aristocrat or noble maybe, and they would be most likely looking for it. Thus the man’s eagerness to be rid of it. Lucas knew this, knew the man was desperate to sell, so he wasn’t going to throw Rupee’s away he didn’t have to. It sounds brutal but that’s life in Lucas’s world, brutality and shady deals were all part of smuggling, and he wouldn’t be a very good smuggler if the profit he made was marginal. The man made a face of protest, he knew the worth of the lute as much as Lucas did, but Lucas knew how to hide it, knew who to sell it to so it never gets traced back, how to lose it in the dirty underground of Hyrule. The man did not, and if he was found with it, his reputation as an honest trader would be shattered. Finally he gave a reluctant nod and Lucas smiled almost sadistically.
“ You won’t regret it” Lucas said throwing the man a sack of Rupees. “Look on the bright side, at least it’s out of your hands” The man gave a disproving snort as he counted the Rupee’s. “Get your hired hands to put it on my cart, it’s at the stable. And get them to be discrete yeah? Put a damn towel over it or something.”
The man walked of solemnly into the distance, Lucas was happy with himself; it was a good deal after all. He felt relatively safe applying his trade in Kakariko, the authorities here concerned themselves with the crime that tends to be in your face. Thieving street urchins and tavern brawls was the things they were used to, white glove crime such as smuggling was neither too petty nor to serious to be noticed here. That’s what he had always figured anyway. Something that changes abruptly upon entering Castle Town, with the day done Lucas walked out from the alley back into the street. He noticed an Orphanage matron buying vegetables in the market. She caught his gaze and gave a slight aged nod at him, Lucas in return gave a massive grin and with that she carried on her business.
“They love to hate me” he said jokingly to himself.
Lucas made his way to the tavern, it was early but what better way to waste the time than to spend it drinking Ale. He might as well, he was stuck here for a week now. He figured that whoever wanted that lute back would be out on Hyrule Field checking travellers and traders. Best to wait a week, by then he reckoned they’d move into the villages, at which time he would move out. As Lucas casually walked towards the tavern he noticed a lute in a shop window, two teens sat outside it,
“Ah to be young” he said to himself with nostalgia.
As he looked at the shop he realized it might be a good idea to have someone who knows something about lutes to come and have a look at his new one, find out the gritty details before he hits the road with it.
“Knowing my luck it probably has a monster inside it” Lucas said to himself sarcastically “or woodworm” Lucas cursed under his breath “I hate wood worms”
But this simply went down on his to-do list, as he found his way into the tavern and ordered his first Ale.