Return of the Runebound Professor
Chapter 224: Arnold

Moxie raised an eyebrow. “Noah, did you filter out half of what I told you? Small musical instruments aren’t going to be all that difficult to get, but a violin? That’s for serious music. You aren’t going to find something like that just being sold for cheap. It’ll be thousands of gold at the minimum if you want it to be good.”

The wind left Noah’s sails abruptly, and he swore under his breath. Running a hand through his hair, Noah shook his head. “Damn it. I guess I was getting ahead of myself. What about something similar, then? I’m sure it wouldn’t be all that hard to adapt. What kind of instruments would be less commonly perceived to be for a Formation and thus cheaper?”

Moxie thought for a few moments. “Maybe a banjo? I’ll be honest, I don’t know enough about this to really give a good answer. Formations were far from my expertise. These questions would be better directed at Todd.”

“Unfortunately, Todd isn’t here.” Noah looked back down at the book in his hands, then snapped it shut and let out a small sigh that didn’t come close to conveying his disappointment. “We’ll circle back to this. Formations are interesting, but they aren’t the only thing I can work on. I don’t want to get my hopes up for no reason, so I’ll just focus on fixing my Imbuements for the time being. But I should ask – can I even buy a violin? Or would doing that end up getting me on some sort of list?”

Moxie waggled her hand back and forth in the air. “There are definitely noble families that keep someone around specifically for their ability to play music. The problem is that not a lot of people would be making instruments like that, so purchasing it will be difficult to do without being spotted.”

“Figured. No matter, then. Imbuements it is.”

That wasn’t the most thrilling conclusion, but spending time pining after something that he hadn’t had for a few thousand years wasn’t going to change anything. Waiting just a bit longer wouldn’t kill him. It was more important to focus on the problems that he could actually solve than the ones that he couldn’t.

There were still several good hours left in the day, and Noah had no plans of wasting any of them.

“I’ll be in my mindspace working to see if I can figure out a way to fix my Imbuements,” Noah declared, leaning against the back wall and closing his eyes. “Let me know if anything important happens.”

***

The moon hung in the sky, a silver eye peering down on the shadowed Dawnforge. Even in night, the orb at the large tower in the center of the city burned with a soft radiance, almost like a star that had fallen from the sky.

It was several hours into the night, and a cold breeze slithered through the tight alleyways of the city, dancing across Moxie’s skin. She pulled her cloak tighter as she increased her pace, striding with purpose and keeping to the shadows as much as she could.

She came to a stop before a small, rundown storefront at the base of a several story building. Cracks ran through the bricks and the wooden door was nearly rotted off, but faint candlelight burned behind the dirt-covered windows.

This wasn’t the first spot that Moxie had stopped by that night, but judging by the light just barely managing to slip out the crack at the bottom of the doorway, she was hopeful that this was the place that she’d been searching for.

Moxie raised her hand, pushing the door open with a loud creak. The light was so weak that, instead of spilling out into the street, it almost felt as if the night pushed intothe room before her.

A single desk sat in the center of a pile of scrap. Pieces of polished wood and metal littered the ground, arranged in a strange pattern that would make sense only to the eyes of a madman.

Sitting hunched over the desk, a pair of long, thin implements held daintily in massive, gauntleted hands, was a seven-foot-tall man. His body rippled with sheer muscle and a thick mat of braided hair hung from his head, wrapping all the way around in a long, black beard.

He glanced up at Moxie as she stepped inside, pausing the work on a wooden box the size of a small dog that sat on the table before him. His eyes lowered to the insignia on Moxie’s breast and he slowly lowered his implements, straightening his back.

“The store is closed.”

“I have a brief question,” Moxie said. “It won’t take that much of your time.”

“Do you not understand what closed means?”

“Your door was open.”

“It never closes.”

“Then I can’t be remiss in assuming that you aren’t closed.”

The large man pursed his thick lips, then shook his head. He gestured impatiently at Moxie. “Spill it, then. What do you want? If you insist on asking, then ask. The sooner you do, the sooner I can tell you that I can’t help you.”

“I’m trying to find a talented woodworker,” Moxie said. “Someone with some degree of Imbuing skill. I recall my family visiting you several years ago, and I know you’re in possession of those skills.”

“You got the wrong man. I don’t have them. I’m just a tinkerer.”

Moxie’s brow furrowed. “I know for a fact that you’re lying. I won’t force you to help me, but you could just tell me no. You’re Arnold, aren’t you? I remember you helped make Evergreen’s staff.”

There was a loud crack. The metal rod in the man’s hand snapped, its top half spinning off and clattering to the wood. Veins bulged along his arm as his muscles tensed, but the man’s face hadn’t even shifted in the slightest.

“I am Arnold. You are correct about that – and you are correct about the other part as well. I will not help you.”

Moxie grunted. “You could have just said that from the start. Have a nice night.”

She turned on her heel and pulled the door back open with a loud creak.

“That’s it?” Arnold asked.

Moxie paused. She glanced over her shoulder, a frown crossing her lips. “Yes. You said you wouldn’t help. Why would I bother wasting either of our time any longer? You aren’t the only person in the city, you know. I’m not going to beg.”

It was Arnold’s turn to grunt. “You aren’t here on family business, then.”

Moxie’s eyes narrowed and she turned to fully face the large man. “What makes you say that?”

“The Torrins don’t take no for an answer so easily. None of the large noble families do. You’re looking to get something made on your own terms. What is it? I will abide under the terms of my Oath. All information you share with me will be kept in complete and utter secrecy, provided that you only speak the truth.”

“Why? Does it even matter who I’m working for?”

“If you want my help, it does.”

“You said you weren’t going to help.”

“That was before you showed that you listened to instructions.” Arnold set one of his gauntleted hands down on the table with a loud thump. “Do you want my assistance or not?”

I remember him being a pain in the ass to work with, but Evergreen’s staff turned out so good that it’s worth it. I told Arnold that there were other places I could go to, but I checked seven of this prick’s other workshops before I found him here. If he’ll actually work with me, I can’t just pass that opportunity up.

“Yes, I do,” Moxie admitted. “And, as you guessed, I’m not working on an official capacity right now. I’m doing this purely for selfish reasons. I should mention that the funding is mine as well, so I’m not sure I can reach the price the Torrin’s paid you for Evergreen’s staff.”

Arnold let out a bark of laughter. It had a bitter note to it that Moxie hadn’t expected. “Under no circumstances would I ever believe that you could match what the Torrins paid me for my work. I won’t ask again, though. What do you want made? I’m not in the business of making armor or weapons anymore. If you want a piece of art, then I can help. Otherwise–”

“I want a violin.”

“A violin? You said you weren’t here on official business. I refuse.”

“It’s not official business,” Moxie snapped. “The violin isn’t for the Torrins.”

“So you want to become a Formation Master yourself.” Arnold shrugged. “Don’t care. I’m not helping.”

“It’s not for me.”

“Then you’ve lied.”

“It’s for someone outside the Torrin family,” Moxie said irritably. “And I’m only sharing that with you because I know you’re more than capable of keeping a secret. I suggest you maintain things that way.”

Arnold arched an eyebrow. “Yes, yes. I already told you that the Oath was still in effect. The nobles don’t exactly let lone adventurers learn their secrets without one. You’re planning to betray the Torrins by raising a Formation Master for another house, then?”

“What? No. It’s not for that. Well, you aren’t completely wrong, but the rest is none of your concern. I’m not betraying the Torrins. It’s for someone that really wants to use the violin for music. The Formations are just a bonus.”

Arnold studied Moxie’s expression closely, an inscrutable look on his face. “I’ve never heard that argument before, but the Oath isn’t burning, so you aren’t lying. Never heard of someone that wants a violin just to play music with the damn thing, though. They’ll get run through for playing it in public.”

“That’s hardly your concern. Can you make the violin or not? I’m willing to pay two thousand gold. I’d imagine that’s nowhere near as much as we paid you for Evergreen’s staff, but this is a lot simpler, isn’t it? There shouldn’t need to be nearly as many Imbuements.”

“Two thousand?” The corner of Arnold’s lip quirked up in amusement. “Well, the project actually seems somewhat interesting. I’m quite fed up with all people asking me for weapons and armor.”

Moxie’s shoulders relaxed. “Then–”

“I can’t help you.”

“What? Why? You just said you could!”

“No. I said it was interesting, and that I can’t help you. Not won’t. Can’t.”

Arnold braced one of his arms against the table and pressed the other down on the top of his metal gauntlet. With a grimace and a soft pop, he pulled his arm free from it. He was missing his hand from the wrist down. All that remained was a heavily scarred nub.

“Part of the payment that the Torrins gave me for Evergreen’s staff,” Arnold said, his voice tight with fury. “Made sure I couldn’t make an equivalent weapon for anyone else. I included a lot of things in our contract, but I foolishly forgot to include anything about leaving me uninjured.”

Moxie’s chest clenched as she stared at Arnold’s hand. Judging by the gauntlet on his other arm, he’d lost more than just one hand. Bile built in her throat and she pressed her lips together, clenching her hands at her sides.

I hate Evergreen. She did this – I know it. That vile, rancid old woman.

“Don’t apologize. If you try to say anything about it, I’ll kick you out here and now,” Arnold warned, thrusting his arm back into the gauntlet. “I don’t want any useless apologies. I’m well aware that you weren’t the reason this happened, so even if I did want an apology, it would mean nothing coming from you. It won’t fix the damage that your people did to my arms. Ten thousand gold for a powerful healing potion would, but I can’t make anything nearly worth that in my current state.”

Moxie nearly apologized anyway before she stopped herself. The look in Arnold’s eyes told her that he was serious.

But… with his talents, even without his hands, couldn’t he have asked someone for a loan? He could have made that money back easily. There’s no way I can ask right now, though. Not without getting kicked out of here.

“I see,” Moxie finally said. “You were working on something, though. Is there no way you could still help with the violin? I could find another craftsman in the city, but there was a reason I’ve been searching for you. None of the others compare.”

“So Evergreen agreed,” Arnold said with a cold laugh. “Unless you were to be my hands, then no. There is nothing.”

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“A figure of speech.” Arnold shook his head. “Disregard it.”

“You just mean do what you order me to, right?” Moxie asked. “Help you craft it by taking care of the small details while you handle the larger ones?”

Arnold sighed. “Do you have any experience crafting and Imbuing objects?”

“No, but as I said, I’ve got two thousand gold. That goes a long way toward ten thousand.”

Arnold didn’t respond for several seconds. Then, with a sigh, he stepped around the table and approached Moxie.

“You are determined. Tell me about the person for whom you wish to make this violin.”

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