59 A Trip To The Bank

The price had gone up by another 10 Gold dragons, making it 70. But just as Vy was about to award it to the bidder, Linx pushed through the crowd and raised his hand.

"200 golden dragons," Linx shouted his offer.

Everyone's jaw dropped to the ground, the crowd went silent. Even Vy could not believe the amount that had been mentioned. But she came to her senses swiftly and as no one else could beat that bid, it was awarded to Linx. The crowd cleared a pathway for Lord Estagard and his guards who came to make payment for the Lava Agate.

The cold demeanour of Lord Estagard did not intimidate Vy at all as she requested for payment to be made to her account. This meant that they had to make a trip to the bank but Lord Estagard whispered something to Linx.

"Lord Estagard says that there is no need for a trip to the bank. We will pay up in full right here, right now. If you would like to deposit it into your account, we will send two of our guards to help carry the money to the bank with you," Linx explained.

-Rich people do things differently, don't they, Dotty?-

\u003cThey sure do, Vy!\u003e

Vy agreed to the deal and shook hands with Linx to complete their deal. With a clap of his hands, two guards came forward holding one chest. When they opened it up, Vy saw that the entire chest was filled with Gold Dragons. Most people had never seen such wealth in their entire lives, this must be Vy's lucky day!

"Would you like to count them to ensure there's 200 of them," Lord Estagard asked.

Vy shook her head and replied with a smile, "There's no need for that. I'm sure Lord Estagard is trustworthy enough. It's been a pleasure doing business with you, My Lord."

Vy bowed, asked the guards to follow her and left the marketplace, heading for the bank. Mr Roods watched as she left, still amazed and in awe of what has happened. When he turned back to look at the stall, customers were swarming to buy up all the rocks that were for sale. Vy's lucky finds had them wildly popular. People were buying rocks left and right, much to the pleasure of the seller.

On the other hand, Vy went straight to the bank with Lord Estagard's guards and deposited all of her newfound wealth into her account. With the accumulation of her wealth, she was now a preferred customer at the bank. A bank employee was assigned to her for all her banking needs.

"It's my pleasure to meet you, Miss Blackfire. My name is Roco. For all your current and future banking needs, I am here to assist you. Even if you are at a different branch, they will be able to direct you to a representative who would be able to contact me."

Roco left after ensuring all of Vy's needs were met and the guards that had accompanied her left as well. As she stepped out of the bank, she saw Mr Roods waving at her. She went up to meet him and asked what he was doing here.

"Well, I realised I had forgotten to give you any way of contacting me! Would you care for a cup of tea? We can have a chat if you have time to spare."

Vy agreed and asked him to lead the way. Mr Roods brought her to a small cafe in the dining district. It was quaint and serene, with floral displays all around the cafe. As they sipped their cups of freshly brewed tea, Vy first introduced herself to Mr Roods and so did he. His full name was Wells Roods, an expert in gemstones, geodes and anything related.

The two of them went on to have a lengthy conversation about geodes and it's unique properties. Vy learnt that different regions produced different types of geodes and rare rocks. While one might be common in one region, it could be sold at a high price in another just because it is difficult to be found in the other region.

"Are there people who have the ability to identify if a rock has a geode within it," Vy asked out of curiosity.

"There are, some of the stone elves are born with that ability. However, it's still quite rare. That has led to those with the ability to be trained from a very young age," Wells explained.

By the time they parted ways, the sun was setting on the horizon. Vy needed to meet up with her new acquaintances as per their agreement and Wells had other matters to attend too. Vy thanked him for his advice and went on her way. When she reached the appointed location of her meeting, she could not see any of them. They had arranged to meet outside the restaurant but they were nowhere to be found.

\u003cMay be they are waiting for you at the hotel instead.\u003e

Dotty could be right, Vy thought to herself. Hence she went back in the direction of the hotel. It was only a short walk to the hotel, but as soon as she came through the door, her acquaintances rushed forward to meet her.

"Vyrena! Thank goodness we found you," Clare exclaimed.

"Is something wrong? I thought we were…" Vy trailed off the moment she saw a sealed letter in Arkon's hands.