Trish comes back to her job as Royal Advisor, only to find that while she was away, the king had bought a very expensive piece of fruit. Is it worth the 5,000 gold pieces they paid for it?
Trish looked doubtfully at the golden apple. “This will cure any ailment?”
Dravin, the tall, regal man standing beside the apple, nodded imperiously. “Indeed. The magician who sold it to us has told us it has healing properties that are unheard of. No physician can match it.”
“Is it even edible?”
He looked dumbfounded by her question. “Excuse me?”
“Can you eat it? If it’s made of gold, how do you eat it?”
The man glanced at the apple, then back at her, a small frown appearing on his brow. “Well … it is an apple, so of course you can eat it!”
“It’s also made of gold, which generally you don’t eat,” she pointed out. “You did ask the magician to prove it, didn’t you?”
He nodded smugly. “Of course. We’re not completely at a loss when you’re not here, Royal Advisor.”
“I presume his test worked then?”
“Yes. He had a terrible rash all across his left arm. One tiny bite and he was healed!”
“Impressive. At least, it would be if it wasn’t a con,” Trish sighed.
Dravin shook his head. “You weren’t there, Trish. You didn’t see the rash disappear in seconds. It was a miracle! If we can figure out a way to grow an orchard of these golden apples, we’ll be the richest kingdom in all the lands!”
“At the moment, we’re going to be the laughing stock of all the lands for buying an expensive, useless ornament,” she said.
Irritated, he glared at her. “This is the real deal, Trish! I saw it happen with my own eyes!”
“Did you ask him to test it on someone else?”
“Why? We’d already seen it work.”
“You said he was a magician, right?” Trish asked. “Meaning he’s probably skilled at illusions. He wasn’t ill, Dravin. It was an illusion. He made it look like he had a rash, took a ‘bite’ of the apple and then, wonder of wonders, the rash disappears as he removes the illusion spell.”
Dravin looked at the apple again. It sat on a pedestal at chest-height, gleaming under a small glass dome. “No, this really is a magic apple.” He didn’t sound as sure of himself.
Trish approached the glass dome and peered closely at the apple. “Did the magician bite from this exact apple?”
He nodded. “Yes. I was the one who took it from him when he handed it over to us.”
“How much did you pay?”
His voice was ever so slightly shaky as he replied. “Five thousand gold pieces.”
Trish spun on him. “Five thousand? You spent five thousand gold pieces on this?”
Dravin took a step back. “It seemed worth it,” he said defensively. “Imagine how much gold we can make if we grow these and sell them!”
“You won’t be selling any magical golden apples,” Trish said, placing a hand to her head in despair. “It’s a fake, Dravin! There is nothing special about this apple.”
He stubbornly held his ground. “I saw it, Trish. He really healed himself.”
She pointed to the apple. “You’re sure it was this one he bit?”
“Yes.”
“Then where is the bite mark?”
Dumbfounded once again, he removed the glass dome and inspected the apple. “No. No, this can’t be happening,” he whispered to himself.
“Enjoy your expensive ornament, Dravin,” Trish called over her shoulder as she left the room. Honestly, one of these days they were going to sell the kingdom for a flying carpet.
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