Bai Shi looked at the two items in Patches's hands. One was indeed an item that Patches sells in the game: Margit's Shackle, also known as the Fell Omen's Shackle.
But Bai Shi knew that was just an alias, an avatar.
This item was actually the secret shackle of the 'Grace-Given King,' Morgott.
Root-like objects were entwined around a stone block marked with the sigil of the Elden Ring. It was a shattered fragment.
Bai Shi guessed that the original shackle used to imprison Morgott must have been massive, shattering when Morgott broke free and destroyed it.
That's why this fragment only possessed a faint magical power, capable of restricting Morgott's movements for only a very brief time.
But the other item Patches presented caught Bai Shi by surprise.
It was the statuette of a baby, but not an ordinary one.
It had crude, thick skin and countless circular-cut surfaces daubed with red pigment.
A Regal Omen Bairn statuette.The people living under the Erdtree believed that Omen children were born under a curse.
These children were born with hideous, hard horns, and an ordinary mother would die from the massive blood loss caused by them during childbirth.
All the horns on these children would be cut off, a procedure from which most would also die. Then, whether dead or alive, they would be discarded in the sewers.
The Regal Omen Bairn statuette was crafted by the people who performed this work, an offering to pray that the Omen children who died would not resent or curse them.
Bai Shi's gaze shifted back and forth between the two items. Just who did Patches rob to get his hands on these things?
"Who did you get these from?"
Patches didn't answer, instead placing the items aside and holding out his hand.
"Pay up first, then I'll tell you."
Bai Shi didn't hesitate. Leaving aside the Omen Bairn, he had to get the shackle.
"Alright, name your price."
Patches began to ponder. He didn't know what price to set for these two items.
Although the statue could be infused with magic to summon a group of strange attackers, which was quite effective.
As for the stone, Patches was certain it was related to the Fell Omen. He had seen the Fell Omen from a distance once; he couldn't be mistaken.
However, Patches didn't know what the stone was for and just treated it as a byproduct.
As for why he told Bai Shi just now that with these two items, defeating the Fell Omen wouldn't be impossible?
Patches considered himself an excellent part-time merchant (robber). What's wrong with using a few sales tactics when trading goods (disposing of stolen property)?
"So, 7,000 runes. How about it?"
Patches was a bit apprehensive himself. This price was astronomical; an ordinary Tarnished couldn't possibly afford it.
Bai Shi's soldier attire didn't look like he was wealthy, and Patches was already prepared for him to go back and scrape together the funds for a month or two.
Patches didn't mind waiting. As long as he could get rid of the stolen goods, it was a profit, and a huge one at that.
Besides, at this price, Bai Shi wasn't really getting ripped off, because behind these two items lay a secret.
Patches believed the information about that secret was valuable enough on its own.
He was just afraid Bai Shi would hear the price and walk away.
Bai Shi nodded. The price was quite reasonable, and he wasn't short on money for now. He extended his hand toward Patches.
"Deal."
Patches was stunned, momentarily unable to understand Bai Shi's gesture.
"Er, why are you extending your hand to me? Aren't you going back to raise the funds?"
Bai Shi was a little confused.
"What are you talking about? Can't I just pay you the runes directly?"
Patches didn't quite believe this fellow had so many runes on him, but he placed his hand on Bai Shi's with a mix of doubt and suspicion.
"Hiss!"
Patches sucked in a sharp breath, contributing to the rising temperature inside the cave.
Patches saw an amount of runes on Bai Shi he had never witnessed before—over 8,000!
He could buy both items and still have some left over!
The way Patches looked at Bai Shi changed. This guy was a tycoon.
"Well, I'll be taking the payment then?"
"Mm, go ahead."
Bai Shi released his control over the runes, allowing Patches to transfer them from him.
Patches carefully extracted 6,500 runes from Bai Shi.
"Huh? The amount doesn't seem quite right?"
A brilliant smile appeared on Patches's face, making Bai Shi's skin crawl.
"Oh, I took a liking to you, so I gave you a little discount. Don't worry about it."
"Of course, you should come back and buy more things from me in the future. You're getting a great deal doing business with me."
Bai Shi smiled. It wouldn't hurt to give Patches some business. Who knew, maybe one day he'd find a +22 greatsword for sale here?
"I will in the future. For now, give me the items and tell me where they came from."
Patches handed the two items to Bai Shi and began to recall the robbery from some time ago.
"The previous owner of these two items was a resident who fled the Royal Capital, Leyndell, a long time ago."
"He was a fellow born at the foot of the Erdtree, so the grace of the Golden Tree was a bit stronger in him. That's why he was still conscious until recently."
"Thanks to that, I managed to learn some news about the Royal Capital from him."
Bai Shi grew thoughtful. A guy who ran from the capital might indeed have had access to these two things.
Patches continued:
"That fellow used to be a subordinate of the Sheahed clan, specifically responsible for disposing of newborn Omen children. He made that statuette himself."
"During the Shattering, he was disposing of a de-horned Omen child in the sewers of the capital for the last time."
"It was then that he heard two consecutive, beast-like roars echoing from the sewers."
"It was accompanied by the sound of something gradually crumbling to pieces."
"He said he hid in a corner and saw two terrifying figures burst out of the sewers. Based on his description, I'm almost certain one of them was the Fell Omen!"
"After that, he picked up that mysterious stone fragment and fled in a hurry."
"During the Shattering, he escaped the Royal Capital with a group of refugees, eventually hitching a ride down from the plateau with Godrick's caravan, and had been wandering Limgrave ever since."
Patches licked his lips. There was a lot of hidden information behind this tale.
He had been shocked when he first heard it. The legendary, prosperous, and eternal Royal Capital actually had beings like the Omen children.
And not just one or two, but so many that a specialized clan and craftsmen were needed to deal with them. It was truly unbelievable.
And the Fell Omen, who had made heroes bleed rivers during the Shattering, was actually a being who had once been sealed in the capital's sewers.
All other Omen children had their horns cut off before being thrown into the sewers, but the Fell Omen did not. He was even specially imprisoned.
What kind of person could receive such treatment, to be allowed to keep his horns and grow to maturity even as an Omen?
Patches was a clever man. He had probably guessed some of it, but he didn't dare to think any deeper.
Because it was simply too blasphemous!