We continued our journey the following day and passed another rest stop in the late morning, but it was empty. We reached the next one in the early afternoon, and it had some people. There were fewer than at the previous stop, probably because it was the middle of the day, but I stopped anyway. The air was fresh, carrying a hint of pine from the trees that dotted the rest stop and shaded the tables, while birdsong added a pleasant background. No wonder people stopped here even in the middle of the day.

After lunch, I approached a large group of people, raising my voice just enough to carry. "Greetings. I'm a merchant and a skilled healer. If you require any of my services, I'm at your disposal."

A man stepped forward, folding his arms as he studied me. "What do you have?"

"What interests you? Tell me, and I'll show you."

Before he could answer, the woman beside him nudged his arm. Her curious look shifted into something more cautious. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves. If he really is a healer, he can help Reno." She turned toward me. "Can you mend bones?"

"Yes, I can."

"Come with me." She beckoned and led me to a cart where a teenager sat hunched, his face twisted in pain. She let out a weary sigh and shook her head. "He thinks he's a russ and climbs every tree he sees. Maybe now he'll learn his lesson."

The boy winced but stayed silent. When she looked away, he shot her an offended glance, his pride clearly more wounded than his body. I knelt beside him and ran a quick Diagnose. A broken ankle and a badly bruised knee. Placing my hands over the injuries, I cast Heal Bone followed by Healing Touch. There was no need to fortify him; his body was otherwise healthy. He hopped off the cart and tested his ankle, a cautious smile spreading across his face. A moment later, he gave his mother a sheepish look before darting back to the rest of the group.

"How much for the healing?" she asked, reaching for her purse.

"Three copper."

Her eyebrows lifted, but she handed over the coins without hesitation.

I accepted them and tilted my head. "Why did you look so surprised when I told you the price?"

She tucked the purse back into her belt, still eyeing me with curiosity. "I've never met a healer that charged less than a silver for anything."

"Ahh, I like to help people and don't like to exploit them."

She gave a soft chuckle, then patted my shoulder warmly. "You are a good man. A little young and naïve maybe, but a good person."

I blushed and thanked her. We returned to the group, and I showed them some of my goods. The men admired my jeans, especially enthusiastic about the sturdiness of the fabric, so I showed them some jeans from the thrift stores, and they were an instant hit. The women fell in love with the zippers, calling them a "clever invention." I showed them a box full of zippers in every color and length. At first, I had been unsure about the zippers when I bought the rest of the sewing supplies, but now I was glad I did. They went crazy over them. Appraisal said they were worth a silver each, but I sold them for seven coppers, still feeling uncomfortable charging the full Appraisal price.

The women's excitement grew as I displayed my other sewing and knitting supplies. When one of them mentioned they were a traveling theatre group, it gave me an idea.

"I also have theatre costumes," I announced, pulling evening gowns, men's jackets, and colorful clothes from my Storage. Gasps rose from the group, and their eyes widened with every item I laid out. A few exchanged quick whispers, pointing at the items.

"Those are noble clothes, not costumes," one woman said, her fingers brushing a fancy evening gown.

"Those are costumes of noble clothes, so they're cheaper," I countered smoothly, giving my Merchant profession a silent pat on the back.

I ended up selling them a good assortment: clothes, two rolls of fabric in red and purple, sewing supplies, jeans, every marionette I had, plus pillows, blankets, and cookware. When I counted all the silver and copper, the total came to 37 gold, 5 silver, and 2 copper. They were good customers, and their excitement filled the air. Stretch made friends with the boy I had healed, and the two of them tore around the rest stop, the boy laughing and shouting. Their antics were adorable, even if a few people grumbled.

Other people approached me, and I sold a few more items, though significantly less than before. I made another 3 gold and 1 silver, mostly in copper coins. After spending about two hours at the rest stop, I decided to move on and either reach the next stop or camp along the road. By evening, we arrived at another rest stop. I made some sales and did a bit of healing before spreading out my blanket and settling in for the night. Stretch found some children to play with and had a great time while I "worked."

The following day, after a few hours of travel, we arrived in a town that bore a striking resemblance to the one I had visited earlier. The road cut straight through it, lined with shops on either side, with streets of houses branching off the main road and fields stretching into the distance.

I located the inn, which looked much like the other one, and went inside. The scent of baking bread and stew drifted from the kitchen, which felt very welcoming.

The innkeeper looked up from wiping the counter, a friendly smile on his face. "Hello, traveler."

"Good day. I want a room for two nights, three meals a day, and a hot bath in my room every day."

He leaned on the counter, counting quickly on his fingers. "Two silver and four coppers. Food for the dog is another silver for two days."

I shook my head and gave a small wave of my hand. "There's no need; I have food for him. It's only for me, and he will stay in my room."

The innkeeper shrugged, slipping the rag over his shoulder. "It's your room, do what you want."

I couldn't help but smile. This world's policy about pets was the best.

"I'm also a healer and merchant. If you're interested, I have fancy dishes to serve nobles. Also, if people in town need healing, I'll rent another room tomorrow to treat them, if you don't object to your inn turning into a treatment center."

The innkeeper straightened, his expression brightening. "A healer is always welcome; I will spread the word. For the dishes, I will call my wife."

He turned toward the kitchen and called out. A woman came out, wiping her hands on her apron. She approached as I unpacked my wares, her eyes widening at the polished serving trays, carved plates, and gleaming bowls I set out on the table.

I spent the next hour showing her my goods. She lifted a plate, tilted it to catch the light, then set it back down carefully. "Beautiful, but too fine for everyday use." When I unwrapped a bundle of linens and towels with printed designs, her whole expression brightened. Holding a towel against her chest, she smiled and called back to her husband, "Look at those flowers, dear!"

The innkeeper chuckled from behind the counter, but she was already setting aside a growing pile of linens. She bought fewer serving dishes and plates than I had expected, but eagerly gathered up the linens and towels, running her fingers over the patterns with obvious admiration.

The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

It started raining again during the night. Ugh. The sound of it pattering against the roof was soothing, but the rain itself was frustrating. I just hoped I wouldn't end up stuck in town for days on end.

In the morning, the common room was full of people waiting for healing. After breakfast, I rented another room, pushed the bed aside, brought in two wooden chairs from the common room, made a mental note to buy some regular chairs for such occasions, and told the people to arrange themselves by order of severity. Then I began treating them. From my experiments with the mukar/bison, I had learned to control the amount of mana I used, and during healing, I focused on using only the minimum needed for each person. It worked. By the end of the day, I had treated everyone, with no operations required, and still had a little mana left: 370 out of 6,900.

Progress. I love it.

It was still raining, so I paid for another two days at the inn. The next morning, the rain hadn't let up, drumming steadily on the roof as I stepped outside. I made my way to the general store to offer my merchandise, water dripping from my hat. Stretch refused to leave the inn. He stretched out in front of the fire, gave me a lazy yawn, and went right back to sleep with his paws twitching in a dream.

Lazy dog.

The shopkeeper was more amenable and bought quite a lot of general household goods and cookware for his store, not only for himself and his family. He used the hated "too fancy" a few times, but I forgave him. This store also had a bucket with chipped, rusted swords.

Standard display method?

I got an idea, took a sword, and appraised it.

Damaged Iron Sword

Worth: 1 silver

"How much?" I asked, holding up the sword.

"Two silver," The shopkeeper said.

"Two silver?! Please remember I'm a Merchant, not just a person from the street. I know how much things are worth."

He looked at me sheepishly, thought for a moment, and said, "Nine coppers."

"That's more like it, I'll take it," I said.

Outside, I cast Mend on the sword. Some of the chips and nicks disappeared, but it still looked terrible. I cast Clean. The dirt and rust flaking off vanished, but the blade was still rusty.

Hmm.

Purify did nothing, and neither did Cleanse. I was stumped, and the rain was soaking me, so I ran back to the inn. After some thought, I got an idea. I checked the Spell list and found Restore. It cost two ability points, like the light spell, and was a channeled spell.

RESTORE

Restore is a focused channeled spell designed to return objects to their original state. It cannot be used on living beings. The caster channels mana into the item, gradually repairing and renewing it. The process can be stopped at any point, resulting in partial restoration, or continued until the object is fully restored. The amount of mana required depends on both the size of the object and the extent of its damage or wear. This makes Restore versatile, but also potentially demanding when used on large or heavily deteriorated items.

Cost: 2 Ability Points

41 ability points left.

That was worrisome. It was my first world, and I had already spent nine points. Maybe I didn't "farm" enough points?

I channeled the spell into the sword and watched as it restored. When the blade stopped accepting mana, it looked new. Even newer than new.

Magic is awesome.

Returning to the store, I appraised all the junk swords, and calculated a total of 2 gold, 4 silver, and 3 copper.

"I'll give you two gold for all the swords." I offered the shopkeeper.

He thought about it and agreed. Restoring all the swords immediately wasn't an option, since my mana was still low and regenerating, so I stored them away to deal with later. A look around the store didn't turn up anything else worth using the spell on.

"Do you have other damaged cheap things?" I asked.

He frowned at me. "Why damaged?"

"Not everybody can afford good new things. I have a lot of good things, but nothing for poorer people."

"Just a moment," he said, then walked back and forth from the rear of the store to the front, bringing out three saddles that had seen better days, five swords, two of them extra large, two axes, and a bow without a string. The saddles looked different from what I had seen in the movies. They were shorter, thinner, and had almost no curvature in the seating area.

"How much for all of it?" I asked.

He pulled a scrap of paper closer, scribbled a few quick notes, and looked up. "Five gold."

Appraisal showed a total of six gold and three silver. I counted out mostly copper I had collected on the road, mixing in a few coins from my personal stock from Earth, and slid the pile across the counter.

The shopkeeper paused, picking up one of the Earth coppers to turn it over in his fingers. "I never saw coins like this. Where did you get them?"

"From my homeland in the islands in the south."

"Do you have more?" His eyes gleamed as he leaned forward.

"Yes."

He went into the back, returned, and counted out sixty-three gold and forty-one silver coins. "You think you have enough copper?"

"Yes, give me a few moments."

I got to work, counting out six thousand seven hundred and ten coppers. The process took a while, and a piles of coins piled higher and higher between us. He seemed just as pleased with the pouches as the money, fingering one of them and nodding in approval. The Appraisal showed their worth at one silver, and I sold them for that price. His grin made it clear he thought the leather was genuine.

He scooped the coins into a box. "I have more old weapons at home if you are interested."

"Very interested."

"Wait for me a few moments to close, and I'll take you."

I waited outside while the rain poured down, dripping from the eaves onto the street. After a few minutes, he joined me, pulling his cloak tighter, and led me through the wet streets to his home. It was a handsome two-story house of wood and stone, much fancier than its neighbors. He guided me around the back to a large wooden shed and pushed the door open. Inside lay an extensive assortment of old, rusty weapons stacked and piled in rows.

I stepped closer, picking up a blade and turning it in my hand. "Why so many weapons, and why are they in such terrible condition?"

"After the war, a lot of people sold their weapons. My father bought them, thinking he could resell, but nobody wanted to buy. He tried blacksmiths, but with ore prices dropping after the discovery of the northern mines, they weren't willing to pay much. So he got stuck with them." He nudged a spear with his boot and let out a sigh. "I do what I can so they don't all turn to rust, but it's a lot of work, and I'm no expert. Once, I even paid a metal mage to improve them, but the best he could do was slow down the deterioration.

"I see. How much for everything?"

He eyed me skeptically. "You sure? A lot of them are in terrible condition."

"Yes, I like a challenge," I said with a grin.

He gave me a funny look but didn't say anything.

He began sorting through the weapons, picking them up one by one and studying them closely. I suspected he had Appraisal or something similar, because his eyes kept going unfocused and then sharp again. After ten or fifteen minutes, he finally said, "Fifty gold if you pay in regular coins. Forty-eight if you pay with the fancy copper."

I counted out another 4,800 "fancy" coppers and handed them over, then stored everything. My plan was to restore the weapons in the evenings when I stopped for the night, as long as my mana was full. Back at the inn, I took a long hot bath, had lunch, and spent the rest of that day and the next one in front of the fire with a book. Stretch clearly had the right idea about the essential things in life.

Lazy, smart dog.

Two days later, it was still raining, but we set out to continue the journey. I didn't want to get stuck for a week or two because of the weather, and the road still looked usable. My mana wasn't full yet, only 5,100 out of 6,900, but I could always regenerate on the way.

The trip to the capital stretched on for another three weeks. Most days meant one or two rest stops, camping in the forest in my "fancy" tent, and reaching a town every couple of days. I healed people, sold goods at rest stops and in the general store, bought old junk weapons and other leftovers from the war, then spent two days in town to regenerate and rest out of the rain. The downpour finally stopped after two weeks, and I felt like kissing the heavens. Maybe I was the spoiled one, since everyone else on the road didn't seem to care. The closer we drew to the capital, the more crowded the road and the rest stops became, with caravans, merchants, and travelers all heading in the same direction. My bicycle was an instant showstopper everywhere, and I got higher and higher offers to sell it, though of course I didn't. We also passed a few crossroads where other roads joined ours, bringing even more people into the flow. The towns grew steadily larger, their main roads busier, the shops better stocked, and the noise constant. The last three were almost small cities, with rows of stone and timber houses spreading far from the main street, markets packed shoulder to shoulder, and inns that looked more like bustling tavern halls. After three weeks, we were closing in on the capital, with only one more town left after the one we were in. Stretch had been eating much more than usual for the past two days and sleeping a lot.

Stretch

Adult Bushland Dog

Progress to awakening 98%

Okay!!

I didn't know what awakening entailed, but I figured the town wasn't the best place for it. Thank God I finished the healing yesterday. I took out my bicycle and woke Stretch. He yawned, stretched his legs, and gave me a look that said he wasn't enthusiastic about the idea. Together we headed out of town.

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