The fallen angel had quietly followed along as the group had left the church, hoping they would lead him on to where he could find the means to overthrow Strahd and return the sun to this domain of dread. He gives the others a skeptical look as they seem to want to waste time bartering for petty gold. He wondered what that gold could possibly buy them in these lands.

"Who are you and howcome you expected to meet these adventurers here now?" The fallen angel says with a firm tone as he steps closer to the man. He is not threatening but it is clear that he expects answers.

Intimidation/Persuasion: 17

The rogue raises an eyebrow as the warlock addresses Vasili. She had been planning to wait to get the money before possibly scaring the man off with questions. She watches his reaction carefully.

Insight: 9

Vasili pauses after hearing the price, then starts nodding slightly. "300..... I can do 250 platinum."

Razz and Hooty can't see anything unusual. Vasili seems confused by your suspicion. "I have nothing to hide. The only thing I'm that wagon is my gold, and hopefully some books when I leave. I assure you, you can rest easy."

Vasili seems slightly offended at Gairynzynl's firm tone. "I am simply a wealthy traveler who is looking to buy some books. An acquaintance of mine wrote me that someone was looking to sell a collection of books, so I made my way here."

“You can understand us taking precautions with items of such wealth as I’m sure you have with your valuables as well. How about 275 platinum and we both walk away happy?” (Persuasion 18)

Kessintra steps forward, putting on a more diplomatic expression as she nods along with Garrick. "Yes, one can't be too careful. Consider the little extra a favor for fellow friends of the Watcher family."

Deception: nat 20+7

Razz watches Vasili quietly for a beat longer, then gives an exaggerated little sigh, brushing a stray lock of his hair dramatically back from his face. "You know, you’re suspicious to me only because you didn’t even blink at my outrageous hair. Maybe you’re just being incredibly polite...?" He lets the grin fade just a touch, wings flicking once as he leans slightly forward, his tone shifting to something a bit more serious. "So, tell you what. You overlooked the hair, you can throw in the fare. A lift to our next stop, part of the price for the lot. Seems fair, right?"

"So who is this acquaintance?" The fallen angel presses on.

Ada's eyes go wide when Garrick suggests 300 platinum for the pile of books. They go even wider when Vasili actually says he can pay them 250 platinum. Though not normally concerned for wealth or coin, the amount on offer is a hefty sum. Though she hasn't seen anything worth buying yet in this dreary place, such coin could still aid them in their quest against Strahd. Many people could be swayed by the allure of a fat purse. 

The aasimar folds her arms and regards Vasili with an assessing expression. She is curious to hear more of his story and how he came to be in Vallaki so quickly. Gairynzyl's forthright approach perhaps came off a touch too aggressive, but Ada had quickly learned you always needed to keep your guard up in Barovia. 

"What interests you in these books anyway?" the paladin asks, honestly curious. 

"275? That would work wonderfully! Though, I don't think being friends with the Watchers would help much. They did start a cult and a hostile takeover, after all......" Vasili retreats to his wagon and emerges with 10 small pouches, totaling 275 platinum in both platinum and gold coins. "Here you go. I assume the books are in some extradimensional container, right? Or are they somewhere else? If you have them on you, feel free to dump them in the wagon."

"Ah, so that hair is.... intentional..... I see. Sorry for not pointing it out. I just figured I wouldn't want anyone to mention my bad hair days, so..... In any case, my wagon isn't in any shape to transport people. I doubt you'd enjoy the trip in that moldy old thing, stuffed in there with the books."

"My acquaintance is simply a.... less than reputable businessman I met a long time back. I told him to contact me about anyone who was trying to sell something quite.... expensive. And here we are."

"My interest? I am a wealthy man from a distant line of nobility. It's part of my job to collect shows of wealth. This is no different. Besides, I'm sure they'll be quite enlightening reads."

Kessintra takes one of the pouches to examine the coins more closely and make sure they are real.

Investigation: 14

"Hm, distant nobility. Is that why you look so...familiar?" She asks curiously, watching closely for his reaction. "A descendant of Strahd's cousin or something?"

Insight: 4 lol

Garrick takes the gold and does dump the books into the wagon from his bag of holding, finally relieved to be rid of them. (In total, Garrick has 2975gp from book sales)

The fallen angel looks between his new companions and the wealthy buyer, hoping that their greed would not make them sell anything that might be useful in overthrowing Strahd. He wondered if they even would let themselves be bought by Strahd himself when the time came to confront the man, but that would be a problem for the future. He gives the suspicious and not so forthcoming man a last scrutinizing glare before taking a step back to let the others conclude their business here.

“I think our business is done and I wish you luck in turning a high profit with those tomes.”

"At least we're done with this business now," Ada says.

She continues to regard Vasili with a certain amount of suspicion, but there's nothing to really be done about that at the moment. Whatever his intentions or possible connections to Strahd, at least he is taking all these books off their hands so they can get back to more important matters, like figuring out a way to defeat Strahd.

Razz watches the final pouch hit the wagon, then gives Vasili a smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. His wings flick once as he flies back toward the group.

"Alright, that’s one creepy mystery merchant down. How about we aim for something more pleasant next —like wine and wisdom?"

He starts toward the road, throwing one last glance back at Vasili with a grin. "Seriously though, rough time to be a Strahd look-alike. Hope the books are worth the dirty looks."

He gestures ahead, wings giving a light flick as he moves. "Wizard of Wine. Let’s see what secrets the grapes are hiding. Who’s in?"

"And I wish you luck with your newfound wealth, good sir."

The coins are as real as real can be. "Oh, no, I'm not related to Strahd. My family was originally from outside of Barovia. We passed through the mists about eight generations ago."

Kessintra tilts her head, skeptical about Vasili's story but satisfied that his coin is no illusion at least.

"Hm...If we find more 'shows of wealth' that we don't need, maybe we'll do business again." She turns and heads for the road with Razz.

"If you believe going to the vineyard would bring you closer to defeat Strahd and cleanse this domain of dread from evil then I will go with you." The fallen angel states firmly, quite ready to leave Vallaki. "Can I ask you all, out of curiosity shall we say, and to understand your thinking here, the books you just sold was stolen from Strahd, and now a man looking just like him conveniently turns up to buy them, what do you make of that? Aren't you worried that the books might have held information that could help you overthrow the vampire in the castle?" He asks as the group is on their way.

“The books didn’t contain any useful information to our cause as far as I could tell.”

Kessintra nods at Garrick's words, looking to the fallen angel. "Yes, Garrick skimmed through them and I checked for hidden notes. It seems more useful to have money for better equipment and space for other things. The prices in Barovia are ridiculously high."