Market Rush

"Thank you for your patronage!"

An energetic man hands me a set of black leather armour over a wooden counter. Black hair waves beside his oil-stained smile as I grab my repaired gear.

"I must say, I did not expect a knight to find use for my finest work!"

"Take more pride. This has saved my life numerous times."

I stand in a small shop while equipping black leather once more. Armour stands hang assortments of gear ranging from a tin can of a breastplate to light and breathable robes. These particular sets are normal, the rest being leather and steel dyed in strange colours and patterns. Peo stands beside me in a black cloak that covers her animal parts.

"C…my ears…"

Her hands constantly move in and out of the hood with her eyes narrowed in frustration.

"Bear with it. It would be problematic if people saw what you are."

"I know…but…"

The city just came out of a tragedy involving beastfolk, something that I've heard being gossipped about on the streets. I've seen families in tears at the loss of their sons, friends sharing in their pain, and uninvolved individuals showing sympathy. People like these would not respond well to a beast walking alive through their city.

I place a handful of gold coins on the table and make my way to the door. The peculiar blacksmith scoops it into a drawer below and waves gleefully.

"Do come again!"

"I certainly will. But first, I need some information on the shops around here."

I rattle off a small list to the smith, receiving a series of detailed directions in return. There aren't too many places to visit, but it helps to be efficient.

"You have my gratitude. Hm?"

At some point during our conversation, the beast girl silently made her way to one of the shelves. Propped against small stands are things roughly resembling jewelry. Necklaces and rings of metal take up much of the room, but Peo doesn't seem to be interested in those.

"Ah, she has quite the eye! That necklace is made from authentic Leviathan fangs! It was quite the ordeal sourcing those, but they fetch a high price among collectors!"

Leave it to the beast to have a nose for exotic animals. The large fang hanging from its chain is easily the size of my hand and would be considerably bulky for somebody of her size.

"Peo."

She jumps at my voice as I head out towards the door. The young girl takes one look back at the hideous fang before trotting behind me and out of the store.

The sky is painted a murky grey. You can almost taste moisture in the air, but that does not halt business. There are no drops, so people continue to move with purpose through the streets.

"Our next stop is to obtain rations. We cannot be certain that our food will be free of poison. The motive is more than present for us both."

We passed by several food stalls on our way to our destination. With Peo walking slightly behind me, it took me a second to notice that she had stopped walking at some point.

She stands out with her oversized black cloak, so finding her was not a concern amongst the light crowd. The young beast was standing with her green eyes fixated on a portable grill with trails of smoke floating into the air. The savory smell of grilled squid seems to overpower everything else in the area.

"Peo."

She jumps at my voice again, turning towards me with wide eyes. I can already imagine the trail of saliva leaving her mouth.

"Let's go."

We continue on our way and procure several packages of dried fruits and a hard bread designed to last months. For protein, I found some dried meat with enough salt to kill any flying pests attempting to find an easy meal. The taste likely isn't great, but survival is my first priority.

"That covers food…"

I check the sack of coins hanging from my waist. Between the coins belonging to this body and those found on those in the forest, I'm not short on cash. The armour repair was quite pricey, but these basic rations only costed me some ten pieces of gold.

"We're moving, Peo."

Once again, I have to call the distracted girl. This time, she finds herself infatuated with one of the ducks hanging from its head on a rack. The tent of her hood seems to droop slightly, but she still follows.

The last leg of this shopping trip brings us to one of the many buildings lining the streets. It has a large wooden sign above the door with the image of leaves in a bottle. There is no name, but most would likely recognise such pottery as one commonly used to store medicine.

"Welcome in."

The room is small, but not at all lacking in goods. Shelves run from floor to ceiling with clay and glass containers filled with mysterious liquids. In some places, the bottle is neglected and plants are simply laid in bundles across the wall. A pair of travelers are quietly whispering to each other in the corner with some vials in their hands.

In the back of this space is a man wearing white robes and reading a book. His long grey hair travels down his back and rests on his chair seat.

"I'm looking for ointment for injuries as well as medicine for common illnesses. I would prefer the highest quality."

"You were correct to come here."

The man closes the leather cover and approaches one of the shelves at the back. He picks up a couple of flasks containing a sickeningly red liquid.

"These are ideal for flesh wounds. It stops bleeding and patches up the skin within an hour after being wrapped."

"This truly sounds like magic…"

I was expecting some kind of salve that I could apply to keep a wound from getting infected over the course of days. In just this one little bottle, I can completely erase a wound before the sun can even move through the sky.

The madness continues with the next set of recommendations. A dark blue liquid apparently can be spread across the body along a bone fracture. Two hours without moving is apparently enough for this thing to put the shards back in place and seal the crack. Some brown mud in a glass bottle seems capable of removing all forms of rashes, burns, and allergic reactions while providing benefits to your skin. This world is never short of surprises.

"You also mentioned medicine for illness. This one is basically called a Cure All with how many diseases and poisons it can cure. It will cost quite a bit, but this quality is not available anywhere else."

"Interesting…"

I tally the prices listed for different combinations of each item. Getting everything I want will still be within budget, but this is far and away the largest purchase I've made today. Fortunately, most of these items are precautions that shouldn't be necessary often.

"I'll take this many of each."

"As you wish. I shall have them packaged for you."

The old man is helpful, taking my written list and quickly organising the various sizes of bottle into a sack. The transfer of currency occurs and he bows to us on our way out.

"Please do come again."

Peo trails behind me without any delays this time. I prepare to push open the door for us, but it swings open before my hand reaches the wood.

"Help! My mother is dying!"

It's a small girl, maybe no older than eight or nine years old. Her brown hair is tied into twintails and her cloth tunic is just slightly too big for her. She breathes heavily in front of the door with a large cloth pouch held against her chest.