"They might in a few weeks! And then you could buy them from cheaper people."

"I guess." Handwave. "I'd have been so frustrated if it somehow didn't pan out."

"If it didn't pan out I'd still be in town."

"You adventurers are always wandering off. I have a son who's an adventurer. Can never even figure out which continent he's on."

"Is he a cleric? I hear there are lots in the family in general and they're handy in an adventure."

"No, no, he stabs things. The pharaoh's a cleric, and Merenre, and some of my father's descendants by his second wife."

"Well, sometimes things need stabbed, too. I haven't wandered too far from the Inner Sea myself."

"Oh, sure, he does good work. Or might, at least, I wouldn't know. How'd you end up in Osirion particularly -"

"I wanted insurance. I also like the nice legible investment system, though I may eventually decide it's spoiling me or go to another country on some adventure and not bother coming back."

"Huh. The investors mostly seem like idiots to me."

"Well, their value-add is capital, not, uh, non-idiocy. I tell them a sad story or three and they give me money and I go zap stuff."

"Right, but why is the capital held by idiots? I guess less of it is eventually."

"I usually don't ask them how they made their money. It could be that adventurers are not a good investment so the non-idiots with capital are all backing, uh, grocery stores and smithies."

"I don't know. Merenre probably would."

"He hasn't seemed super interested in talking to me."

"Did you want to talk to him?"

"I don't know, should I? I usually don't know of total strangers if I will get something out of a conversation of them, let alone how to get something out of a conversation with them. You're unusual in this respect."

"Well, most people are boring to talk to because they're stupid, but none of my children are."

"If you want to introduce us I won't object."

"Sure." He walks over and knocks on the door. "Merenre!"

"- hmm - you. What?"

"You should hire her to go scout, get this thing started."

He looks over at Belmarniss more closely. "I haven't actually looked at our options yet. Luar'll probably have noticed, if it's a good idea. Are you done with your language lessons?"

"For now. She's very clever."

"I figured." He turns to Belmarniss. "I'm very glad you dropped by."