"Underground chamber with stolen items? I can already smell the trouble from here."
Noah fell deep in thought after learning that information.
"Those items must come from wealthy cultivators, there is nothing that prevents them from stealing them again from me after my purchase."
Noah was aware that the best way to maximize profits was to rob your customers, those that seemed weak at least.
"I am alone and lost, I would be their perfect target. Dammit!"
Noah threw a few thousand Credits to the merchant before opening his mouth to speak.
"Where is this place and how do I enter that room?"
.
.
.
A few minutes later, Noah found himself in front of a simple-looking tavern.
It had a wooden tag that depicted a broken cup, Noah knew that he had arrived at the right place.
The tavern was small, it only had two floors filled with wooden tables on which men and women happily drank.
The main hall was messy and the sound of cheers and shouts could be heard coming from each group of people.
"So many cultivators, they don"t seem particularly strong though."
Noah crossed the main hall and reached for the reception desk, yet, he was soon interrupted by a few women with revealing clothes.
"Hey handsome, why don"t you buy us a drink?"
Three young women approached him, they immediately tried to lean on him or to grab his arms.
However, they soon stopped in place, petrified by the cold gaze that Noah showed them.
He then continued to walk toward the desk as if nothing had happened, uncaring of the mocking that followed his actions.
"Hmph, I hate men that don"t know how to have some fun!"
"He doesn"t deserve us! His thing must have some kind of malfunction anyway."
"That"s right, only eunuchs are able to turn us down!"
Yet, seeing that their words had no effect on him, they soon stopped, searching for another man to exploit.
"What can I do for you?"
A waitress spoke to Noah as soon as he reached the desk.
Noah didn"t answer, he took a small bag from his s.p.a.ce-ring and handed it to her.
The waitress was confused, she inspected the bag only to find that contained five thousand Credits.
It was at that moment that Noah spoke.
"I need to meet with Miss Gillian, I have some business with her."
The waitress stood in place for a while before hiding the bag inside her robe.
"Wait here, someone will come for you."
She then filled a jug with wine and handed it to him before hurrying somewhere.
Noah inspected the wine and slowly tasted it, its quality was far worse than the one he usually had in the Capital but he still drank it, he wanted to show his goodwill to anyone that was observing him.
It was only when he emptied his jug that another waitress reached for him and spoke with her head lowered.
"Miss Gillian is waiting for you, follow me."
Noah followed the waitress in a deeper part of the hall where they entered a small corridor that had many doors on its sides.
The waitress then went to one of them and pressed on some specific points of the door, activating some kind of inscriptions that kept it locked.
The door opened, showing a dark staircase that led toward an underground area.
"Miss Gillian is down there, I can"t escort you anymore."
Noah nodded and carefully went down the stairs, enveloping his figure in a layer of mental energy and focusing his senses.
At the bottom of the stairs, Noah could see a wide table that radiated a soft light.
A middle-aged woman was supporting herself on that table, she had long brown hair and was smoking from a long pipe, filling the room with a strange scent.
"That smoke should have relaxing proprieties, it"s not strong enough to affect me though."
"So young and yet so lonely, I wonder what course of events led you here in this forgotten city."
Gillian spoke, laying her pipe on the table and crossing her legs as he sat on it.
That gesture was slow but firm, Noah couldn"t help but think that it had a more profound meaning.
"Your mind is also quite strong, there aren"t many men that can look at me and still be so stern, it seems that the scent of the Pink Rose has no effect on you."
Gillian continued to a.s.sess Noah, she was quite surprised to see someone with a strong mind at such a young age.
Noah bowed and didn"t waste time in further greetings.
"I"ve been told that you might have something I need."
"Who told you that?"
"Someone."
Silence enveloped the room but Gillian nodded at his answer.
"Young, handsome, and righteous, are you sure that you don"t want to entertain me for a while before we start doing business?"
Noah bowed again but shook his head.
"I"m tempted but I"m in a hurry, I"m sure that anyone would be willing to please you after I"m gone."
Noah gently refused her offer while still complimenting her, surprising Gillian even more.
"So, you even know your way with words. Tell me, what brings you here?"
"I"m looking for a map of the continent, a detailed one. It should feature the political borders and the known danger zones at least."
Gillian fell deep in thought before tapping a few times on the table behind her.
The light of the table flickered a few times before three items appeared on it.
They were three simple-looking scrolls but Noah could immediately notice that they were inscribed items.
"I have three items that meet your requirements, their prices indicate how many details there are on them. The cheaper one is twenty thousand Credits, the most expensive one is fifty thousand Credits."
"As expected, they are way overpriced. Luckily, money isn"t really a problem for now."
Noah neared the table but the scrolls immediately disappeared and Gillian released a soft laugh.
"I don"t do business with men that I don"t trust."
She left the table and neared Noah with those same slow movements as before.
"And I don"t trust men than don"t have time to please a woman."
She then placed a hand on his waist and used his other one to slowly caress his face.
Noah watched the scene unfolding and sighed internally before opening his mouth to speak.
"Is this really necessary?"
Gillian laughed again and nodded.
"If you want the map, you need to earn my trust."