It took some time for me to draw out the intricate rune circle, after all, the characters were quite complicated, but the actual issue was that the process did not allow any room for error. If there were mistakes in the written characters, they would not function at all, forcing me to restart the entire procedure.

  While I was leaning over a small table in the corner and focusing on my tedious task, Bella was having the time of her life listening to Master Tuz’s explanations regarding various items showcased one by one over the counter.

  In the meantime, seemingly having enough of her silent, glaring session, Aria have joined us in the shop. After a few quick words exchanged by the old master, which I didn’t care enough to listen to. She proceeded to start walking along the walls, where many enchanted items were showcased, looking for something.

  It took some more time, but eventually I finished my work, checking it over a few times just to make sure of its integrity. When I didn’t find any mistake, I channeled the slightest bit of magical power into the circle and smiled elatedly when the runic words lit up with the gentlest hum of power. I knew immediately that the circle was working as intended.

  I looked up from the paper, my tense neck and shoulders cracking a few times as I straightened my back from the less than comfortable posture. Suddenly feeling mentally drained from the intense concentration, after all my mana was still at a lower regions thanks to Axis’ previous visit.

  I let myself relax a little instead of jumping up with the finished circle in hand. I leaned against the chair’s backseat, allowing some of the tension to leave my body. Rubbing my eyes with a gentle touch, I sighed, swallowing back the urge to yawn.

  For the first time since I arrived to the shop, I found myself having nothing to focus my attention. It was the perfect opportunity to take in the shop as a whole. Naturally, the shop’s general appearance, just as the rest of the noble district’s style, was practical and subtly ornamented.

  The interior was not very large, so to speak. It reminded me to that of a jewellery from earth. Most of the things sold here, disregarding a few exceptions, like the occasional sword and shield, were small, but made with utmost care. Either way, most of them were locked behind glass or placed on high shelves. One would think that they were designed that way so young children couldn’t carelessly grab onto them.

  My eyes hovered over the excited form of Bella, then with a new realization, I embarrassingly corrected my previous assessment. They were definitely designed that way, intentionally, and I was associated with the sole culprit.

  My eyes lazily turned back to the excitedly bouncing girl, as the Master was presently explaining the functions of a handful of colorful marbles.

  “These things are quite interesting, a novelty in design instead of function. It is a new variation of the more mundane mana stone. The material is compressed and chiseled to perfection, giving the item a vivid color and a smaller size, allowing the spellcaster to carry more while achieving the same function.” — Explained the master, followed by a thoughtful silence before continuing. — “Quite wonderful, I must admit. The price was naturally higher, but it is still far from outrageous, I solely bought this batch to have a chance of trying them out. For me personally, the size of the mana stones are meaningless, these particular items are more suited for adventurers and battle mages.”

  “They look like large marbles!” — Bella giggled, grabbing a pair of the glistening orbs and knocking them against each other with a loud click. — “They sound like marbles too.” — She said with a widening smile.

  The Master silently twirled the tip of his beard and nodded. — “Now that you mention it, I can see the similarity.”

  “You can even play with them if you are bored!” — The dwarf girl squealed elatedly.

  The old master chuckled, seeing the girl’s excitement and attempted to ruffle her hair, but Bella agilely ducked out of the way of his hand, causing the man to burst out in open laughter.

  Then, with a subtle shake of his head, he added a few more words to finish his explanation. — “Aside from that, they are mostly the same as regular mana stones. Thanks to the condensed material, they can store slightly more mana, but not so much to make up for the price, and they are reusable, just like the regular stones.”

  Listening to them, I have become very interested in those mana stones. I felt downright stupid to never consider the possibility that instead of painstakingly expanding my internal magical capacity, I could simply buy a handful of mana stones that I could use to cast spells in emergency situations. I really wanted to buy some of those, but I couldn’t quite allow myself to grow excited before learning about their price.

  Who knows, one of those could go for a hundred gold for all I know… Then again… If that was the case, would Master Tuz allow Bella to play around with them? I find that prospect quite unlikely. That ignited a flicker of hope in my heart, but before I could interrupt their talk, Aria unexpectedly stepped in, earning both Bella’s and Master Tuz’s attention.

  She was holding a silver medal engraved with runic writing with a tiny empty glass container secured at its middle section. My mind automatically translated the previously unknown runes, thanks to my blessing to know all languages of this world. A blessing that I can’t seem to emphasize how useful it truly was. The runes on the silver medallion were the following: “A promise of eternity.” It hanged on a thin silver chain, as it was likely supposed to be worn as a necklace of some kind.

  Aria’s voice sounded in the room in a suspiciously neutral tone. — “Master Tuzumin, I wondered if it was possible to buy only one of these instead of a pair?”

  The old dwarf’s eyebrows raised slightly. I also noted to myself that his full name was Tuzumin, apparently I was already on a nickname basis with the old master without even realizing so. I felt my cheeks blazing with fresh embarrassment. Why did I thoughtlessly follow along with Bella’s lead, instead of asking the man’s name properly?

  “Ah.” — Master Tuzumin took the necklace from Aria’s hand and carefully examined it. — “Just as I thought, the necklace of eternal promise.” — His eyes looked up at the elf with a measuring gaze. — “It’s elven magic, quite powerful, but you must have realized already.” — He hummed, as he placed the necklace gently on the counter.

  “Naturally, I can sell one for you, my lady, but usually they are sold in pairs. After all, they are one of the most favored items of lovers and married couples, placing a small amount of blood in the glass container at the middle will allow the wearer to sense the location of the one whose blood it contains. Do you mind if I ask you why you would only like one?” — Aria’s eyes momentarily hovered over to me, our gazes met, and I felt a cold shiver run up my spine as the realization dawned upon me.

  “It is going to be a gift.” — The woman answered simply, then she turned her gaze away from me, back to the old man.

  I felt my throat tighten as a sense of frustration burst inside me.

  Gift my arse… She is practically buying a leash for me. I felt enraged, humiliated, and helpless regarding the entire situation. I wanted to argue with her, but knowing the elf’s suspicious nature, my vehement refusal would only make her twice as annoying and suspicious.

  I took a deep breath and swallowed down my pride, along with the rebellious rage that threatened to explode out of me on the spot.

  Right… it is not even certain that she wants to place my blood inside it… even if… well, who am I trying to deceive… It’s obvious enough, still… let’s… let’s see what she plans to do…

  “Alright, one necklace will cost 80 gold coins.” — The master stated.

  Aria placed a large skin of clinking gold coins on the table, and counted out the exact amount, before tying the drastically lightened purse back on her belt. — “That should suffice.” — She added and the old dwarf smiled quickly, placing the coins into a metal box behind the counter.

  I decided to choose that moment to stand up and walk up to the counter. — “I have finished drawing the rune circle, but before that I want to ask how much one of these stones cost?”

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  Master Tuzumin’s eyes seemed to glint with satisfaction, hearing my words. — “Ah, one of these cost ten gold coins, but if you buy at least three, I am willing to give you a discount young lady, after all this is your first purchase in my shop, I hope it won’t be the last.” — He smiled twirling the tip of his beard.

  “Fine, I want to buy three, how much with the discount?”

  The master’s smile widened even further as he said. — “That’s the spirit, for a first purchase I will offer you a twenty percent discount, meaning that instead of thirty gold you will have them for twenty-four gold.”

  “Alright.” — I also counted out the money, which the dwarf happily pocketed. Then he placed a box containing eight circular mana stones in front of me with two slots already empty. Reminding me that Bella was still clutching two stones in her hands.

  “You may choose whatever color picks your fancy, the color has no effect regarding its function, therefore the price is the same in all cases. When the magic in the stone dries up, the color of the stone will dull, since you are a witch, you can refill the magic on your own. Simply hold the empty stone in your hand and channel your mana into it until it stops absorbing power, or you run out of mana. Similarly, when you want to use the stone for spell casting, you have to coax the mana out of the stone into your spell. To do so, it is recommended to hold the gem in your palm as it considerably eases the process.” — The master finished his explanation.

  I nodded, understanding the general way it was supposed to work. — “I will take the two gems in Bella’s hands, along with this shiny red orb.” — I lifted the sole blood red mana stone and pocketed it with a smile. Bella offered me the gems in her hands, a blue and a green one, and I pocketed those as well.

  I noted the subtle frown Aria directed at me seeing my choice of color, but I ignored her. If she wanted to leash me like a dog anyway, then I will be her stereotypical blood mage.

  “Now then, let us see that diagram of yours, lass.” — Master Tuzumin rubbed his gloved palms against each other in an excited gesture, with a smile I placed the notebook on the counter.

  There was a long silence after that. All three of them were leaning above the notebook, studying the runes in their own pace, while I stood beside them waiting a verdict of sorts.

  It didn’t take long before Bella got bored with the strange runes and wandered off, looking at other items in the shop. Aria and Master Tuzumin, however, struggled for several more minutes before the old man spoke up.

  “Based on the subtle pulse of power, I can already tell that the runes work, but aside from that, I have absolutely no idea what these runes are depicting. It is written in a runic language that I have never seen before… well, that is not entirely true, because there are several characters that seem familiar, but I can’t quite remember where I have seen them…” — The old master mumbled.

  Aria, being not present at the time of my offer, turned to me, pointing a sharp question at me. — “What is this circle supposed to do?”

  Under the heavy gaze of the intimidating elf, I couldn’t help but shrink and answer with a sudden burst of shyness, now fully realizing how stupid the actual function of this rune circle was. — “Uhm… carrot…”

  “What?” — The woman’s eyebrows skyrocketed as she made an incredulous expression.

  “It makes carrots… well, just one at a time, in an exchange of mana… a lot.” — I scratched the back of my head, wholly aware of how stupid it sounded.

  I blushed lightly under the combined stare of Aria and Master Tuzumin.

  There was a long and awkward silence, then the master, bless his heart, coughed, and suggested with a slightly strained smile. — “Shall we try it out?”

  “Yes!” — I immediately jumped on the offer.

  “Yay!” — Bella, noticing that something was happening, immediately squirmed her way back to us, and Aria nodded silently with a baffled frown on her face.

  “Miss Selora, would you do the honours?” — Master Tuzumin asked.

  I instinctively reached for the magic circle, then my hand froze in midair. I awkwardly lowered my hand and shook my head politely… — “I am sorry, but I already used most of my mana for the day…” — I admitted it ruefully.

  Aria’s cold hand was placed on my shoulder with an ominous gentleness. My heart skipped a beat in fright and I could feel fresh perspiration forming on my forehead. I blinked, my stomach shrinking in on itself as the sweet voice of Aria rang in my ears. — “Do tell, Selora, how did you exactly managed to spend your mana?”

  I gulped, biting down on my tongue. Suddenly reminded of the promise I made to Aria before leaving the house. — “Uhm… I spent it at home… I swear…” — I said, weakly, already knowing that the small amount of pity I might manage to garner with the older elf was quickly evaporating.

  My expression must have been a sight to see, since Master Tuzumin almost immediately took back the lead in the conversation. — “No matter, no matter… I wanted to try one of these beauties, anyway.” — He picked up a light blue gem and put it in my hand. — “Even better, why don’t you try it? Touch the circle and channel the power needed for it to work directly from the mana gem. It’s really easy!”

  I glanced up at Aria, who, noticing my hesitant glance, lightly nodded, allowing me to go along. She was likely just as curious about the result as the rest.

  “Oh, r-right.” — I closed my eyes and focused my mind on the gem in my hand, the mana locked in the crystal was eager, ready to move with the slightest direction offered to it. The moment I gave the slightest nudge, the mana was flowing like a warm, steady stream across my body, until it was eventually released into the whitely glowing runes.

  In a few seconds, a carrot about four to five centimeters long and no thicker than my little finger manifested straight out of thin air at the middle of the circle. More precisely, it was synthesised from the air molecules and the lingering dust pieces hovering in the air with the help of a tremendous amount of mana.

  I glanced at the now dull mana stone in my hand while the others stared at the result on the table.

  There was a moment of shock and disbelief lingering around the counter. Evidently, none of them, besides perhaps Bella, expected the runes to actually do what I said. Just then, before any of us could say a word, Bella grabbed the tiny carrot and throw it in her mouth without a second thought.

  There was a chorus of gasps, but before anyone could do anything, the girl already chewed the carrot and swallowed it with a satisfied sigh.

  “Oh! That was surprisingly good.” — She said. — “Is that how fresh vegetables taste?”

  Aria’s hand snapped out with merciless precision, hitting the girl on the top of her head with quite the force. — “What were you thinking!? Idiot girl!”

  Both me and Bella flinched, hearing the familiar phrase, and I was secretly ecstatic when I realized that for once it was not me who was called that way.

  Bella was so surprised by Aria’s reaction that she forgot to pout. She was dumbly holding the top of her head and staring up at the infuriated elf, who continued to lecture her.

  “I swear I am surrounded with idiots! Why the hell would you eat that out of nowhere? It could have been poisonous or merely look like a carrot while being unedible!” — Aria scolded her harshly. — “In fact, it still could be poisonous! Spit it out immediately!”

  Bella skittered over to my side, hiding behind my skirt while desperately grabbing onto it.

  “Uhm… A-Aria, you might be going a bit far there-…” — I was cut off as her gaze snapped up to my own. — “Shut it.” — She said, her narrowing eyes, however, told a different story, and that did manage to silence my incoming protests. You better have an explanation about this.

  The atmosphere in the shop has once again grown quite tense, all thanks to the spiteful elf, still, the master wise in his years managed to mediate the situation, at least to an extent. — “Ladies, there is hardly any reason to argue like that.”

  Not from his perspective, anyway. I admitted internally.

  “After all, a carrot is meant to be eaten, is it not?” — He chuckled, and for better or worse Aria this time didn’t retort. — “Sadly, I do not know just yet how much these runes might worth, but if Miss Selora is willing to leave them with me for a few days, I will look into the matter. I am certain that I have seen some of these letters somewhere before.” — The master’s words trailed off as his fingers absentmindedly brushed through his beard.

  “I will send a letter to the Dimhollow House when I figure out their origin.” — He smiled politely. — “Now if there isn’t anything else you wish to buy, I would love to return to my brewing process.” — His voice sounded weary, he was clearly tired of our argument.

  Noticing the subtle clue, I bowed my head lightly, simultaneously grabbing onto Bella’s hand before she could skitter away, earning a stink eye from the captured girl. — “Thank you for the hospitality, Master Tuzumin, and sorry for all the trouble we caused. Of course, it would be my pleasure to trust you with the runes, and to learn if they are worth anything.”

  The idea of getting that bottomless bag was still high on my mandatary fantasy bucket list after all.

  We exchanged goodbyes with the old master and quickly found ourselves outside of the shop with a closing and, to my amusement, locking door behind us. Even the sign hanging on the inside was turned from open to closed. — “Ugh… we must have strained his patience more than I realized…” — I mumbled silently, then before I could say anything else, my one free wrist was grabbed as I was solemnly being dragged towards a nearby restaurant. Incidentally pulling along Bella, who I was quite similarly holding onto. I glanced up at Aria, who was, of course, the creator and leader of this strange train, and I was unsure how to react about the situation.

  Well, not until I heard several amused chuckles coming from various passers-by, seeing us walk like that. Still, before my protest could form in-spite of my embarrassment, I was already pushed down on a chair in the open part of the restaurant. Well, as open as one could be in a cave.

  Hearing the various chuckles and whispers of the other guests around me only added to my reddened face.

  Among the various noises, Lady Nerha’s delighted snort wasn’t missed either. The woman was already sitting across at the table and was presently staring at the three of us, along with another pair of unfamiliar dwarven women. A mother and her daughter, I suspected, based on the similarities.