Darius felt like he was currently being swallowed by quicksand. Only that the mud forming this trap came from the concept 'Luck' and all it entailed.
His mind was getting suppressed by the notion of it, the events that led him here, and how it clashed against Darla's own.
Darius began to sweat profusely as his cognitive functions were busy with computations and scenarios where, no matter what, he would have been brought here under the influence of fate or Luck.
Darius truly did not have a problem with cosmic forces leading him. He wasn't so arrogant to believe that sentient beings possessed free will. It was pseudo-free will at best, and just like his current situation, if a deity wanted you to dance like a monkey, you would dance whether you liked it or not.
It was only in fiction that a mere mortal through plot armor and convenience would stumble upon the means to defeat such a deity that should not even be within the same breath as them, but that was a different thing altogether.
No, what bothered Darius was a simple question.
Whose Luck was superior in this confrontation? His or Darla's?
Who had won this engagement/clash of fortune? Who had come out on top? Was it her? Was it him? Was it a tie?
It might seem like a pointless rabbit hole to think so much about it, but it was actually quite important.
Think of it like this: If Luck was so powerful that it could bend reality to grant fortune to its wielder, then what was the use of other stats?
Just invest everything into Luck and thing should work out. By solely focusing on it, he could have walked into the Necropolis of Marasmus, where the powerful Stonekeeper would have tripped over his robe and shattered his bones, the First Resurrection Stone falling into Darius' hands without any struggle.
By that same stroke of 'Luck', the stone would have cracked and lost its beacon-like effect. Once Darius returned to the camp, he would chance upon the Royal Faction sending a squad back to the capital in a rush with a Griffin squad, allowing him to reach Listo in mere minutes while smoothly completing his quest.
This might seem a bit far-fetched, but how was it any less fantastical than dying on Earth and waking up in a world of magic and fantasy where even bloody dragons existed?!
Darius was suffering from this because he was a man who had lived on his Intellect and Charisma on Earth. He had acknowledged Luck, but to a lesser extent. He gave it respect but did not rely on it.
Ever since he came to Faust and came to understand that Luck was a real thing that could be quantified and that he was born with above-average amounts, he subconsciously began to believe that all his feats were accrued through Luck.
It was a mental trap that was quite dangerous, one easy to fall into when you overthought things and put too much faith in the unexplainable.
A scientific man would never have been harmed like this because to him, Luck was simply a factor in the equation, not the entire thing.
Darius was a merchant, and he was subtly convinced by the powers of cosmic forces ever since he miraculously entered a path of 56. He attributed it to Luck entirely because he couldn't logically believe that out of 1.2 billion endings, he fell onto one of the 56 roads that lead to a good one.
This wasn't wrong, Luck played a huge role. However, it wasn't right either, because his Intellect, choices, the three hints, and his willingness to move forward despite the obstacles ahead had also played a significant role.
Darius, lost in rumination, felt a heavy hand on his shoulder. It was just a light pat, like a friend reassuring their pal that no matter what, they had your back.
He snapped out of his reverie, feeling his quaking thoughts subside and his confidence in his own intelligence return.
Darius patted Gunner's hand on his shoulder, greatly thankful for choosing not to venture into this brand new world alone but to acquire useful aides to share his burdens.
Foldo hadn't been wrong, Gunner was a perfect choice. Not only because he perfectly complimented Darius' fighting style, but also because his 'simple-mindedness' could act as an anchor for situations like these.
Darla, who had been watching Darius all this time, frowned slightly but resumed her normal expression the next moment.
Ever since he had shown up she had felt a certain type of… aura coming off from him. It was the same type she usually felt when her Luck was high.
As such, she had tried to test to see if he was aware of his Luck - and hers as well - and his reaction was quite obvious.
That was why she was shocked when he asked for 'friendship', because she knew full well the real reason he wanted to 'befriend' the guild.
When he decided to appraise her items, her reaction had been genuine, because she knew that his accuracy was extremely high. If she could get him to appraise some of her truly rare items…!
As for giving him these items, it wasn't a big deal. Darla was clever but also simple-minded. They had been things she could not use because she lacked the knowledge of their true worth, so gifting them to a powerful appraiser was a good way to get his goodwill.
She was confident that the rest of the items would be just as good. Even if they weren't, her Luck was still there. In due time, she would amass more goodies, and using the goodwill she had built now, she could have Darius appraise them again!
Why force 1+1=2 to become some convoluted formula? It was a very simple thing after all.
This might be the one advantage Darla's peasant upbringing brought her over Darius' world conquest through mind games and intrigue.
Darius put too much stock in each and every action of a person, expecting a hidden trap or trick due to how he had earned his way to the top.
Darla was far more down to earth and living a simple life. If doing A could grant her what she wanted, why even bother considering if doing B or pretending to do B might earn her a bit more profit?
Just do A and get what you want, simple.
