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[birdy51]

Miguel nodded in affirmation.

: "Ah yes! Leo I believe. He's over on yonder crate. A fine man that one. He's good with that staff of his."

He stopped to think a moment.

:"Hrmm... By chance, is he leader of this merry little band?"

[CrimsonEon]

Alec stood up again to look at the figures from a high angle.
: "Into the tactics end of the mercenary business then." The bard rubbed his chin as he craned his head, "Do we have a future general in our midst, Miss...ter...?" Alec paused, catching a side-glance at Sara's mask.

[Blade Master Model 42]

"Well, I suppose right now Matilda is our leader. But before we were... Hired, I guess, Leo was more of a front man than a leader. We made decisions as a group."

[birdy51]

: "I see!"

: "How odd."

Miguel scratched at his mustache. How strange that a mercenary group would not have a designated leader. Who would take care of paper work? Contracts and the like? Recruitment? Having dealt with mercenaries in the past, Miguel knew it was not a simple business. This issue would be compounded when there wasn't someone to stand in and conduct official business within the guild. He pointed a finger questioningly.

: "So... How do you conduct business? Contracts and the like? Does this group have a name?"

[Blade Master Model 42]

Shiela chuckled at Miguel's pointing finger. "Well, we never had a name. Five people doesn't warrant a name like the Golden Company or Greil's Mercenaries or anything of that sort. And our business was pretty informal. We'd come to an agreement with a perspective employer, do the job, and get paid." And that's worked pretty well, up until now.

[birdy51]

Miguel thought he was beginng to understand.

: "Ah! I see! So you are essentially a nonprofit group, yes?"

[Taricus]

: "Elenore, Though general might be a bit much, especially since there is nothing to command here. Not that I wouldn't try changing that, but that's not really possible at this time. And your name is?"

[Blade Master Model 42]

Sheila laughed again. "Oh no, we were definitely in it for the money. But we never really had group funds- Once we could be sure we were all outfitted for work, we split the money."

"Maybe the set up seems odd to you, but it worked for us while we were using it. And I hope someday we can use it again."

[birdy51]

Miguel had a concerned look on his face.

: "So... You have a communal system then?"

He counted the figures on his fingers and muttered as he did the math in his head.

: "I suppose I can see how it works a little bit, but the system still strikes me as a tad odd. How are negotiations handled? Do you perchance one of you have a background in arranging contracts?"

[Blade Master Model 42]

"Uh, not as far as I know? But we have a pretty good idea of what it takes to keep us fed and equipped, so we make sure our contracts cover that and more."

"To be honest, these aren't the sort of questions I expected to get from a wandering knight? What's so interesting about this for you?"

[birdy51]

Miguel was deeply disturbed by the fact that these poor folks were without any knowledge of true business sense, but chuckled good-naturedly anyways.

: "Oh my apologies, I allowed my thoughts to ramble. Do forgive me, for I was a merchant in my past life."

: "I may not be employed in the mercantile trade any longer, but I'll ways have a nose for business whether I like it or not. Come to think of it though, we've not yet engaged and been properly introduced to one another have we? For give the wanderings of my mind, I am Miguel Cervantes, Knight-Errant of Garaz. And you are?"

[Blade Master Model 42]

"Sheila Vega. Axe for hire." Sheila extended a hand to Miguel. "So, a former merchant eh? Why'd you pick up the lance? I'd think a merchant's life would be pretty easy."

[birdy51]

Miguel shook her hand with a tight business like grip and smiled with a weary face.

: "Ah yes! It was an easy enough life at times, but you would be surprised just how busy it can keep you."

He took a deep breath.

: "As my father used to tell me, 'A good merchant must be one part fox, and two parts shark.' I had to learn at an early age where to find the good deals and how to have the voracity to pursue the merchandise. We dealt with a little bit of everything that we could get our hands on; shields, weapons, armor, food, common household goods such as couches, lamps, and beds! You name it, we stocked in our warehouse."

: "Of course things didn't stop there when they arrived to the warehouse. You had to pay for guards to keep an eye on it, couriers to sell it to stores, and even the warehouse itself had it's own taxes attached to it that cost a pretty penny! Then when the day was done, you had to wine and dine with the customers to convince them that they need your products and that you can provide them a deal that's better than any other you can find in the entire kingdom!"
: "But to say the truth... It was all so tiring. You work day in and day out, slaving over papers and meetings to accrue wealth. When I was a young man, I was afforded some freedoms however."

He waved his hand dismissively.

: "Bah! There I go rambling again. How I go on sometimes like an old woman! Am I perchance boring you Miss Vega?"

[Blade Master Model 42]

"No. I mean, it doesn't sound like something I could do, but it seems interesting enough. So what happened? Did you give it up by choice or circumstance?" Sheila supposed she could bother Leo later. After all, it was some way to Kretos...

[birdy51]

Looking past the horizon Miguel shook his head.

: "..."

: "Well now... That's a bit of a long story... I did after all spend more than fifty years as a merchant in Garaz. It's a long and complicated tale."

He smiled wryly and tried to change the subject away from his life as a merchant.

"But to make it short, my daughter owns the warehouse now and she and her husband conduct business without me. I was told to go retire to some pretty little villa away from the city where I couldn't cause trouble. And well... I got bored. So I decided to revive an old dream... I'd had wanted to be a knight ever since I was a little boy but I never had the time. Now that I was retired however, I had all the time in the world! So I procured myself a handsome lance, armor that glistens like the sun, and a horse that will ride me to glory!"

: "I burst out of that prison cell with manly vigor and rode off to stake my claim in the world, no longer Miguel Cervantes the Merchant, but Miguel Cervantes, Knight-Errant of Garaz!"