Chapter 293: It Isn’t Easy For Outsiders
Translator: Pluto Editor: Vermillion
"Special Item Appraisal Fee: 4 Big Crystals."
The few appraisal agencies she found all had a sign with the same words hanging at their entrance. This unfortunate discovery instantly made Lin Sanjiu feel like a loser. She stood at the outside of one of the appraisal agencies with a helpless expression as she watched other posthumans walking in and out of the store. They looked at ease, so it was obvious that none of them thought much of the 4 big crystal fee. As people walked past and saw her standing outside foolishly, they would show a bit of empathy. Apparently, she wasn't the first person from outside the Twelve Worlds Centrum that did not have the money to appraise her item.
"How do the other newcomers manage?" Just as this thought surfaced in Lin Sanjiu's mind, the glass door of the appraisal agency beside her suddenly opened. The glass used was very special. Looking through the glass, a person could see everything, except humans. When she first saw a flower vase floating in the air, she nearly thought that she was seeing a duoluozhong.
This time, a young man opened the door. She seemed to have seen him at the entrance once. His body was behind the door so it looked as if his head was floating in midair. The man observed Lin Sanjiu from head to toe before asking, "Are you new here? You don't have any money?"
Lin Sanjiu nodded.
"Our agency requires an upfront appraisal fee," the man frowned. "It's no use waiting here. I can tell you another method but you will be on the losing end."
Lin Sanjiu's eyes lit up.
"There are some private appraisers who target business from newcomers like you. They'll appraise your item for free but you will have to sell your items in their stores. After the item is sold, they would take a percentage of the sale," the man seemed convinced that Lin Sanjiu was affecting his business by standing outside his store with her two large skeletal wings so he gave her very precise instructions, "Go to B2 of this building. You will find a shop assistant trying to get customers. You can just follow him."
This information was a life-saver. Lin Sanjiu couldn't care less what percentage of the sale the people would collect. She thanked the man hurriedly and went to basement 2 of the building.
The shops in the basements weren't beautiful and clean like those on the upper floor. As she went down further, the shops became smaller and the people seemed shadier. When she reached B2, she found it chaotic. People were just everywhere, the stalls were disorganized and it was smoky. After observing for some time, Lin Sanjiu found the people here very interesting. Since this place was very crowded, it was inevitable that people would accidentally bump into each other. A bald bloke with a white dog-like creature on his shoulder accidentally bumped into a little girl in red. Two of them stopped and they didn't speak for a moment. They observed each other for a few seconds and it was as if they were judging who among them was stronger. Shortly after, the bald bloke bowed and apologized softly, "I'm sorry." Then, the two people went their own separate paths.
Lin Sanjiu found a corner and stood there. She looked rather conspicuous because of her height and her wings. After a few minutes, just as what the man upstairs described, a skinny man, who seemed rather young, walked over after seeing her.
Lin Sanjiu could tell that he was very weak from just one glance. He probably didn't have much experience outside the Twelve Worlds Centrum.
"Sis, would you like to appraise your Special Items? We'll cover everything. You just have to wait and get your money!" The young shop assistant started a conversation with her, smiling.
"Where's your shop?" Lin Sanjiu gave him a cold expression and tried to act as if she had lots of experience.
"It isn't far. It's just ahead!" the shop assistant replied even more enthusiastically once he knew he had a potential customer.
"Lead the way," Lin Sanjiu said mildly. She was hiding her excitement.
The shop assistant agreed and brought her further and further away. It was apparent to Lin Sanjiu that the young chap was very familiar with this place. After many twist and turns, they walked out from a back door. Then, he walked confidently through a few different small alleys. "We are reaching soon. It is just in front," he assured many times. After more than ten minutes, Lin Sanjiu finally saw a shop.
It was worse than those shady and dimly-lit Special Item recycling shops.
Lin Sanjiu nearly damaged the small and narrow doorway with her skeletal wings. She scrunched her body. Without anyone teaching, Lin Sanjiu squished her wings downward and stretched them lengthwise behind her. With much effort, she finally managed to squeeze through the doorway and entered the courtyard.
"You can just sit here and wait for a while. I will go call my master." The shop assistant led Lin Sanjiu to the guest hall. As he spoke, he poured a cup of tea for her. Lin Sanjiu looked into the cup. The tea was bright red and there were a few pieces of solid dregs. She questioned the shop assistant casually about the tea. He quickly explained that the tea was made from something derived from the Red Nautilus shells. Lin Sanjiu could smell a meaty fragrance from the tea.
Lin Sanjiu held the cup for two seconds and decided to put the tea down.
It felt as if the young shop assistant had only disappeared for a second when his master opened a door from another room and entered the guest hall. His master's face was covered with wrinkles and knife scars. He was a middle-aged man with a bit of bright red hair. Once that man wearing a robe with the word "Appraiser" entered the guest hall, he stared at Lin Sanjiu with his large bulging eyes and asked loudly, "You are the person who wants her item appraised?"
If Lin Sanjiu wasn't as confident about her combat abilities, any other person might just run away after being scared by that man like that.
"Okay. Following the usual rules, give me your item and you can wait here," the voice of the red-haired appraiser seemed to be naturally loud. The man stretched out his large palms, "You will get the results after two hours! After we sell the Special Item, I want 20%!"
Lin Sanjiu immediately felt hesitant.
This place was too suspicious. She did feel somewhat uneasy that the man would disappear from her sight with her item. After contemplating, she tried to her best to appear calm as she asked, "Can I follow and watch you?"
"Of course not! It's our rule!" the appraiser answered rather agitatedly as if he had heard such questions many times before. He waved his hand dismissively and assured, "Come on. You are sitting in my house. Are you worried that I will go somewhere?"
"This is this man's house?" Lin Sanjiu was slightly stunned. She couldn't help glancing outside the window. Even though it is rather dark outside because of all the skyscrapers, she could see a clothesline in a corner outside. There were still a few pieces of men clothes on the clothesline. She didn't know why, but this simple everyday detail immediately convinced her.
"Okay. I want to appraise this book," Lin Sanjiu said as she thought about the phrase, "never doubt the person you hire, never hire the person you doubt" . She clenched her teeth and took out [A Girl's Sorrow] decisively. "Ah, after the appraiser…"
"We always have customers," the red-haired appraiser took the book from her impatiently, "When we have new goods, we would just inform them. Items get sold in just a few days. Anyway, the item will be with you. No matter how much the customer offers you, you will give 20% to me. Understand?"
Lin Sanjiu felt slightly assured. The appraiser seemed to be an impatient man. Before he finished his sentence, he had already entered another room. Lin Sanjiu sat in her seat without doing anything. She took a sip of that Red Nautilus tea as if trying to relieve her awkward unease.
Two hours passed very quickly.
However, no one returned.