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Sejun Park has taught Teo a lot of things about the art of being a peddler.
First, always haggle. Never accept the first price! You can always get what you want for cheaper, you just got to know what to say and how to manipulate persuade the seller into getting what you want.
Second, always trust your gut! Teo didn’t really believe in himself all that much at the beginning, but Sejun always told him that Teo really did have a knack for peddling, he just needed to trust in himself. Teo suspected Sejun was just trying to butter Teo’s ego, but it helped all the same. Teo began to believe in himself, and his gut instinct allowed him to find useful items like that one hat and dagger for President Sejun!
But the final and most important rule that Sejun taught Teo… was that NOTHING comes for free! He’s a peddler, if he’s to sell his merchandise he’s got to learn to hold his ground. Which is why…
“Therefore, if you want to meet the dragon, you must pay meow!” Teo shouted at the (scary) tiny little hamster in front of him. Elka was looking at him like he just signed all their death sentences, but Teo held firm and didn’t falter as he stared down the hamster defiantly. For a moment nobody said anything.
“Ha!” the hamster, Iona, Elka called her, giggled before descending into a fit of laughter. "Pwahahahahahah!"
“I like your confidence,” Iona wiped a tear from her eyes, “There was not a hint of doubt in your face.”
And that was that. He even managed to get Iona to pay for their shopping in return for going to see the black dragon and they got to use the super cool lightning path to get back to Sejun. Hah, what a sucker! Perhaps it would be beneficial to become very serious partners with this little hamster. Oh well he’s certain he’ll see them again sooner or later.
~
Teo didn’t know what to expect when he entered the 67th floor. Sure, he heard from Iona herself about how the locusts were devouring everything, but it was just so… barren. The dread trees felt stripped of their very color and the crunch of dead leaves under his paws didn’t feel as satisfying as it normally did. It made his fur stand on end just looking at what was once a lush forest.
“They’re horrifying meow,” Teo murmured before spotting some of Elka’s pack cleaning up some of the debris. “What are you doing all doing, by the way? I thought we were only collecting red locust’s meow?”
“Oh, the lizardmen also asked us to clean up the mess while we’re here,” Elka explained. “They appear to be short staffed because everyone’s busy fighting.”
That’s great and all but…
“Are you getting paid for it?” Teo questioned unable to help himself.
Elka tilted his head. “No. It’s not that hard anyway.”
Absolutely NOT.
“What?! You’re being scammed!” Teo growled in outrage as Elka turned to him in surprise. Teo was not one to let people get exploited. Hard work should be getting paid, and he’ll be damned if he lets Elka and his people get taken advantage of. Without a second thought Teo turns and begins stomping over to the nearby camp.
Elka looks at Teo confused. “Where are you going?”
Teo doesn’t stop his charge as he heads down the hill. “Stop what you’re doing and follow me meow,” Teo huffs as he turns his head to look back, “Were going to demand compensation Meow!”
~
The lizard guarding the tent was looking at him like he wasn’t sure whether to take him seriously or not. Which isn’t funny considering this is an extremely serious situation!
“Move I’m here to see your boss meow,” Teo demanded.
“Unauthorized visitors are not allowed,” the guard explained apprehensively.
“I’m not unauthorized! At least let me talk to Iona meow.” Teo was starting to get agitated and waged his tail in irritation.
“Iona is too busy to see everyone who show up without notice,” The guard says a bit more forcibly.
Then it happens.
“But I know her meow!” Teo tried reasoning as he put a paw to his chest. “We are in a very serious relationship meow!!”
. . .
Dead silence envelopes the entire camp as their jaws drop. Then murmurs start in hushed whispers from onlookers. Teo huffs. Did no one just listen to what he said?!
“T-Teo did you hear yourself?!” Elka says, baffled by the sheer nonsense Teo just spouted.
Teo furrows his eyebrow. “What’s the problem?”
Teo works for Sejun. Iona acknowledges Sejun’s authority. Therefore, they both work under Sejun.
That is a very serious relationship.
“If this isn’t a serious relationship, I don’t know what is meow.”
Why is Elka looking at him like that! Why is everyone just murmuring amongst themselves instead of actually letting him through?!
Just as he’s about to make another attempt to enter, the tent flap is suddenly brushed aside, revealing a very familiar hamster.
“Stop making things awkward, Teo!” Iona shouts flustered.
Teo tilts his head in confusion but follows her into the tent ignoring the murmuring crowd they left behind outside.
~
“Take care meow!”
“Save travels!” Iona waves goodbye to Teo. The incident has been resolved, and the wolves are properly compensated.
Iona still can’t believe Teo went to those lengths to secure their due. Though she admires his conviction to stay true to his beliefs. He truly is like no other peddler she’s ever met before.
She knows that today’s story will spread like wildfire and that people will begin to know his name. Rumors will lead to more rumors and Teo’s story will be exaggerated. He will be known as a great peddler, she’s sure of it.
~
Little did either of them know that rumors really do lead to more rumors just not the ones either of them was expecting.
Already rumors were spreading about the strange peddler cat who came into the camp and demanded to see Iona because they were “in a very serious relationship” together. The onlookers didn’t know what happened inside the tent, they only heard the cat shouting. The word spread quickly: Iona, the great wizard of destruction, was dating the up-and-coming peddler Teo, the golden cat, who was rumored to be associated with the magnificent black dragon.
People thought that when Iona tossed the tent flap aside that she would either obliterate the cat for his audacity (as she’s done to others for less) or at the very least deny his claim but instead…
‘Stop making things awkward, Teo!’
She didn’t deny it.
And that was worse.