Durin always had a strange sense of familiarity with Piltover, this City of Progress.
The fast-paced life, vendors hawking in every street and alley, newly introduced Hextech, workers commuting by tram, and large-scale advertisements on the streets.
All of these things gave Durin a subtle feeling of familiarity yet strangeness.
But it was undeniable that Piltover, located at the junction of the Valoran and Shurima continents, truly lived up to its name as the City of Progress.
While the cold Northern Freljord still practiced tribal systems, Eastern Ionia still adhered to the doctrine of unity with nature, the southern sandy deserts still maintained slavery, the magic-forbidden kingdom in Western Valoran indulged in past glories, and Noxus marched steadily towards militarism, only Piltover oddly cultivated a group of big capitalists who held the means of production and were immensely wealthy.
However, none of this had anything to do with Durin at the moment.
He still needed to find ways to earn more money, otherwise, it would be laughable if he couldn't even afford the paid courses by the end of the semester.
After leaving Piltover University and strolling around the "Jindai Luo Sphere" plaza, Durin walked towards Hundred Wine Street.
This was a winding uphill street, with various shops selling alcoholic beverages or taverns as the main establishments on both sides of the street.
One could see vendors selling hangover remedies by the roadside everywhere, as well as laborers waiting for their bosses to call them. The further up one went, the steeper the slope became, requiring laborers to carry wine boxes up with a thick wooden pole on their shoulders.
Durin then chose a tavern that seemed very crowded. The broom and the sign with a wine glass hanging at its entrance clearly indicated it was a tavern, and a sun-bleached ox skull hung on the plaque.
Pushing open the heavy door, the spacious hall contained about a dozen long tables. Looking up, he saw a magnificent crystal chandelier, and the aromas of ale, food, and a hint of rotting wood wafted towards him.
If one distinguished carefully, the mixed scents included body odor and armpit odor.
The floor was not tiled, but paved with neatly cut pear wood.
Many people were already sitting inside, drinking, chatting, and boasting, and there were even gamblers gathered in circles playing strategy games or dice.
Durin saw a bunny girl in a black dress standing at the bar, soliciting customers. Her left hand held a tray with glass bottles of wine, and the bunny ears on her head gently swayed with her movements.
Clearly, these soft, fluffy pink bunny ears were real, not decorative, and she must have been a Vastaya.
"Esteemed Mage, may I get you something to drink?" The bunny girl smiled sweetly at Durin. Her pretty, almost human face had white fur at the temples, and a white ball of fur behind her.
"Give me a meal that will fill my stomach, and then a light beer," Durin replied, sitting on a high stool at the bar.
"How about a salt-baked Onnuk hind leg? This Onnuk was just slaughtered; aside from those barbarians, no one else can successfully raise creatures like this. Just 30 copper circle coins! Light beer, 1 copper circle coin for a large mug, with 3 free refills."
"Fine, let's do as you say," Durin nodded and agreed.
He took a handful of copper circle coins from the inner pocket of his robe, counted them, and placed all 31 copper circle coins on the counter at once.
The bunny girl deftly swept up the pile of thumb-sized, hollow-centered copper coins that had formed a small mound on the counter, looked up, and said gently, "Please wait a moment, your food will be served shortly."
After speaking, she handed a slip of paper to the kitchen and gave the window a firm tap.
Durin sat at the bar and looked around, surprised to find that the walls of this tavern lacked any sort of quest board or notices.
He couldn't help but ask, "Why don't you have a quest board for commissions here?"
"Mister Mage, judging by your accent, you must be from out of town, right? You haven't been in Piltover long, have you! Ionia?" the bunny girl asked with a smile.
"Yes," Durin nodded frankly, admitting it.
"You might not know this, but there is no Mercenary Guild in Piltover, only an Explorers Guild. Mercenary commissions are handled by brokers or by having the tavern post the request," the bunny girl explained as she poured a large mug of light beer for Durin and added a generous amount of ice.
"Then where should I go to find a broker?" Durin asked, puzzled.
The so-called brokers were intermediaries who introduced clients with troublesome matters to mercenaries, allowing the mercenaries to resolve the clients' problems.
The commission between the client and the mercenary was witnessed by the broker as a third party, and the broker would deduct a certain percentage from the commission as their service fee.
As for why mercenaries didn't just contact the clients with problems directly?
Of course, you could, but whether the other party was willing to see you was another matter. If you could establish contact, you wouldn't have to worry about the client driving down the price, or you might be able to find that many tasks.
There was no need for a broker as an intermediary, but for low-level mercenaries, they desperately needed such brokers; they would rather grit their teeth and seek them out than be charged a portion of the referral fee.
Otherwise, if you didn't do it, there were plenty of others who would, perhaps even at a lower price and with stronger capabilities.
Piltover had no shortage of people, let alone mercenaries; there were plenty of people fighting over tasks worth three or four silver lun coins.
"Mister Mage, are you looking to take on a task? Although I'm just a small-time broker, I occasionally have some well-paying jobs here."
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