By dusk, the bright azure of the sky had faded into a deep, muted red.
The blood-colored sunset sank toward the horizon.
"Leona is dead, Lynn," Giggs said, his voice low.
"Our extraordinary modification failed.
"Ant is missing as well."
Standing in front of the shack, Lynn listened in silence.
He wanted to say something to comfort him, but didn't know what.
Should he say he was sorry to hear it?
That as long as they stayed alive, there would always be hope?
Or remind him that he had warned them from the start, a so-called extraordinary modification for just one basic magic stone was never reliable?
All of it… would only be empty words meant to comfort himself.
After a long silence, Lynn finally said:
"Giggs, do you still have money? If not, I can lend you some."
Giggs froze for a moment, clearly not expecting that. Warmth flickered in his chest.
"No need, Lynn. Keep it for yourself.
"You don't have much either.
"I still have a good portion left from that experimental drug payment earlier, it's enough to cover my debts for a few more months."
The boy, after all he had been through, had grown quieter. He forced a smile and shook his head, then suddenly froze.
Lynn was holding out a lesser magic stone to him.
"Take it."
Instead of delight, Giggs looked at him with a dry voice.
"Lynn, you told me before you only had a few gold dragons left. This is"
But his suspicion was cut off when Lynn pulled out an exquisitely cut crystal.
"This is…"
"A Crystal Spell Plate for a Mind Shock spell.
"I told you, I have some talent in making crystal spell plates."
Looking at the gleaming crystal plate in Lynn's hand, Giggs suddenly felt his nose sting.
Lynn shoved the magic stone into his hand.
Giggs took it automatically, glancing down at it before looking back up. Taking a deep breath, eyes slightly red, he said:
"That's good, Lynn… good. I'm happy for you.
"At least one of us can survive here."
"What are you planning to do now?" Lynn asked.
Giggs shook his head. "Maybe go somewhere else, see if I can find another way out."
Lynn thought for a moment, then added:
"I've heard some merchants in Emeraldwood City make money by buying low and selling high. They buy goods from the Emerald Shadow Markets in the south, then bring them to sell at the markets on Bauhinia Thorn Street for a profit."
"Emerald Shadow Market?"
"Yes, at the far south of Emeraldwood City, near the Emerald Shadow Forest. We went there once when we were still up on the mountain, remember?"
Emerald Shadow Forest…
Giggs nodded, thoughtful.
"Thanks for telling me this, Lynn."
They chatted idly for a while longer before Giggs returned to his shack.
Lynn watched his back, sighing softly.
…
…
The next day.
When Lynn awoke and got ready to head out, he discovered that Giggs had moved away without a word.
At the door, he'd left only a letter.
It didn't mention where he was going or why he'd left.
It merely stated the fact he was leaving, wishing Lynn a good life and hoping he'd one day become a wizard.
The letter was filled with well-wishes, but Lynn could still sense the unspoken complexity in Giggs's heart.
He suddenly regretted telling Giggs about his ability to make crystal spell plates.
When you're stuck in a pit, and an old friend escapes it, the gap between you… Only he could truly understand.
Still, he had never expected Giggs to choose to move away.
Emeraldwood City isn't small… who knows if we'll ever meet again.
He glanced at the two now-empty shacks that had belonged to Giggs and Leona.
A quiet loneliness settled over him.
Of the four young people who had come down from the mountain together, only he remained.
…
Black Ring Assembly.
"Commission: Weed clearing in the Antorin Grove.
"Requirements: Skilled in magical botany, able to handle damned Kein Grass!
"Reward: 3 magic stones."
Lynn's eyes moved to the next one.
"Commission: Hunt Rainbow-feathered Chickens in the Emerald Shadow Forest.
Requirements: Must wield extraordinary power with an attack strength of at least 2 degrees; agility preferred.
"Reward: 1 lesser magic stone, plus 10% of the profits from selling the Rainbow-feathered Chickens."
Mmm… this one seems to fit my conditions. Lynn silently made a note of it.
Even though he had already decided to try his hand at business, that didn't mean he couldn't still take commissions to earn money.
However, from what Lynn had observed, there weren't many commissions at the Black Ring Assembly that suited him; most of them required some kind of specialized knowledge.
For someone like him, whose strengths were purely in physical power and agility, the majority of available work was just hunting tasks.
Shaking his head, Lynn continued reading.
For now, he just kept that commission in mind and didn't plan to take it.
In truth, his purpose in coming to the Black Ring Assembly today wasn't to pick up a commission at all.
"Commission: Venison from a Unicorn Deer.
Requirements: Provide 50 pounds of fresh unicorn deer meat.
Reward: 2 magic stones."
A moment later, Lynn finally spotted the type of information he'd been searching for. His eyes paused mid-read. He pulled out a pen and jotted it down in the small notebook he always carried.
Item: Unicorn Deer Meat.
Price: 4 gold dragons per pound.
Location: Black Ring Assembly commission.
This small notebook already had several neat pages of product information, organized by item, price, and location.
It was the result of Lynn's entire morning's work.
If you wanted to run a business, the first step was obviously to research the market.
Aside from the usual shops and goods markets, places like the Black Ring Assembly occasionally had these kinds of purchase commissions.
Some were short-term, others long-term, but without exception, they generally offered better returns than standard market prices.
They couldn't be ignored.
And so, Lynn spent an entire day conducting market research in the Stonehouse District, paying a total of 65 silver wolves in admission fees.
Strictly speaking, his current physical abilities were already beyond those of an ordinary man, half a step into the extraordinary.
But these markets judged whether a visitor was a commoner based on spiritual power, and Lynn couldn't pass the crystal orb test at the gates. He still had to pay the entry fee charged only to non-extraordinary folk.
Two days later.
On the south side of Emeraldwood City, in the Emerald Shadow Market
Lynn stood with his notebook in hand, brow furrowed.
Over the past few days, he had indeed discovered several goods with price differences between the southern and northern markets.
For example, Silver Moon Flowers were sold for around 95 silver wolves each in the Emerald Shadow Market, while in a northern market called Lanpian, they generally went for 97 silver wolves.
The problem was, Silver Moon Flowers were in short supply; at most 50 could be acquired in a month, for a total profit of only about 1 gold dragon.
What's more, they were only valuable when fresh, meaning that after buying them, he'd have to rush them to Lanpian Market. That round trip would take at least five to six hours and require him to frequently wait around at the market, too much time and energy for too little return.
There's another way, maybe I could hire a commoner to do the deliveries, Lynn thought.
But after careful consideration, he abandoned the idea.
From the Emerald Shadow Market to Lanpian Market meant traveling from the far south to the far north of Emeraldwood City, crossing the not-so-safe shanty district in between. If they got robbed and even one flower was stolen, that was nearly 1 gold dragon gone.
The risk-to-reward ratio was far too poor to be worth it.
Aside from Silver Moon Flowers, there were a few other goods worth noting.
The largest price gap was with Amber Tree Resin Balls, each of which was worth 5 lesser magic stones more in the north than in the south.
Unfortunately, they were extremely rare. From what Lynn could gather, the last time they appeared in the Emerald Shadow Market was nearly four months ago.
So it isn't easy to do business… Lynn sighed.
Either the profit margins were too slim, or the quantities too small, none of it could serve as a stable long-term trade.
Should I just give up…?
He stared down at his notebook, now filled with over a dozen pages of notes, and fell into thought.
Business was troublesome… it was indeed far simpler to grab his sword and head into the Emerald Shadow Forest to hunt.
But after a long moment, Lynn decided to keep trying.
After all, Emeraldwood City was big, with plenty of markets. In two days, he'd only covered about one-tenth of them.
There might still be better opportunities ahead!
Two mornings later, at a smaller commission hall similar to the Black Ring Assembly, called the White Crystal Assembly
Lynn came across a newly posted, long-term commission.
"Commission: Purchase of White Shadow Mushrooms.
Requirements: Medium size or larger. Maximum of 8 mushrooms per day.
Reward: 1 lesser magic stone per mushroom."
White Shadow Mushrooms.
These were creatures of the Emerald Shadow Forest, somewhere between plant and animal, usually found in damp, dark shadows.
Pure white from head to toe, they resembled tiny humanoids lacking arms and facial features, but with an oversized mushroom cap for a head.
When threatened, they would "pull up" their legs from the ground and run, moving as fast as a human adult at full sprint.
In the dim forest, they looked like fleeting white phantoms, hence their name.
Their primary value was culinary.
Not because they had any special effects, but simply because they were delicious.
They had an exceptionally fresh, crisp taste, perfect for pairing with grilled meats.
Lynn remembered that once, when the original owner of his body had gone down the mountain with friends, they'd tried them at a high-end restaurant.
A single plate of pan-fried White Shadow Mushrooms had cost 1 lesser magic stone, just one mushroom, and a piece of steak.
Without the stake, that meant a single White Shadow Mushroom was worth a lesser magic stone!
And that was with a 50% discount for their status as academy apprentices.
Without the discount or the cooking fee, the restaurant called The Wizard's Hand sold them for 2 lesser magic stones apiece.
The point was, in the southern Emerald Shadow Markets of Emeraldwood City, these mushrooms sold for only 7–8 gold dragons each, and they weren't particularly rare!
Without hesitation, Lynn calculated his finances, filled in the expected delivery quantity on the form, paid a 4-gold-dragon deposit, and accepted the commission.
Then, without stopping, he set off at once for the Emerald Shadow Forest.
...
"The small ones are 7 gold dragons, the large ones are 8, right?"
"That's right."
"I'll take both of the small ones."
By midday, Lynn handed the stall owner 14 gold dragons and received two tightly bound White Shadow Mushrooms.
That left him with only 2 gold dragons for emergencies, plus a handful of silver wolves.
The remaining 29 gold dragons had all been spent on 4 White Shadow Mushrooms.
The reason it was 29 instead of 28 was that he had bought a larger one earlier for 8 gold dragons.
But in fact, the White Crystal Assembly's commission only required mushrooms of medium size or larger.
Buying the 7-gold-dragon ones was sufficient, so purchasing that 8-gold-dragon mushroom meant he had earned… no, lost 1 gold dragon!
Still not enough experience, Lynn thought with some regret.
He tucked the mushrooms safely against his body and continued toward the White Crystal Assembly.
Once removed from the Emerald Shadow Forest, the mushrooms would die and rot within a day at most, so he had to hurry.
The rest of the trip went smoothly.
Only when passing through the shanty district did two brainless thugs try to block his way.
But Lynn was no longer the same as before; one swift kick each sent them sprawling to the ground.
Two hours later, Lynn returned to the White Crystal Assembly and successfully delivered the mushrooms.
As he left, he saw an attendant carrying his mushrooms northward toward the area where most wizards lived.
It's probably a wizard, or one of their relatives, who posted this commission, he guessed.
After deducting the 10% fee for non-members, Lynn earned a total of 36 gold dragons.
Subtracting his 29-gold-dragon cost, he had made 5 gold dragons in a single trip, half a lesser magic stone's worth!
And this was only the beginning.
The second day
Expenses: 35 gold dragons.
Income: 45 gold dragons.
Total savings: 52 gold dragons.
The third day
Expenses: 49 gold dragons.
Income: 63 gold dragons.
Total savings: 66 gold dragons.
On the fourth day, before dawn, Lynn got up and headed to the White Crystal Assembly to take the commission.
Since the purchase commission was posted anew each day, he had to accept it again every morning.
Arriving just in time for the 7 a.m. refresh, Lynn immediately took the commission, filling in an expected delivery of 8 mushrooms and paying an 8-gold-dragon deposit.
For commissions like this, the Assembly usually requires a deposit upon acceptance again, 10% of the value.
On the first day, Lynn had filled in 4 mushrooms, so his deposit had been only 4 gold dragons.
This money was gone, whether the commission succeeded or failed, the only difference being that in success, it was called a fee, and in failure, a penalty.
Once he did this, the commission would be removed from the board, preventing multiple people from accepting it and oversupplying the buyer.
Seeing it disappear from the listings, Lynn finally breathed a sigh of relief.
From now on, as long as I show up first thing in the morning, no one else will even know this commission exists.
These past few days, he had worried about someone else snatching it away.
Before, he hadn't had enough funds to fill in a full order, only 4 or 5 mushrooms.
If the delivery quantity was lower than the buyer's requested amount, the commission would remain visible on the board.
And you couldn't just fill in any number you wanted; if you failed to deliver, you'd be banned from taking commissions for a while.
Fortunately, the White Crystal Assembly wasn't a major commission hub.
Not everyone knew the market price for White Shadow Mushrooms like he did.
So far, he had been the only one delivering to this client.
But as long as the commission stayed up for all to see, someone else would eventually notice and take it.
That was why Lynn hadn't wasted a single moment these past few days, nor touched his available funds yesterday, even after his source energy was fully restored; he'd resisted using it for insight practice.
All of it was to quickly monopolize this commission.
From now on, as long as I always take the commission first thing in the morning, I don't have to worry about losing it to someone else.
And as long as that wizard or their relative doesn't get tired of eating them,
This business can keep going.
Energized, Lynn clutched the commission receipt and hurried toward the Emerald Shadow Forest.
"Today, I need to finish this faster and leave some time for insight practice."
...
Two hours later, Lynn arrived at the Emerald Shadow Market.
Before long, he spotted a hunter selling White Shadow Mushrooms.
"How much for the mushrooms?"
"Eight gold dragons each."
"All of them? Can the slightly smaller ones be cheaper? I usually buy them for seven gold dragons." Lynn began his usual haggling.
The stall owner hesitated.
"If it's seven gold dragons each, I'll take them all," Lynn pressed further.
The man looked up at him, thought for a moment, and was about to nod when another voice cut in:
"Eight gold dragons, right? I'll take them all. Pack them up for me."
Lynn's brow furrowed slightly, and he turned toward the sound.
The speaker was a tall, broad-shouldered, middle-aged man wearing a hood.
The most striking thing about him was the long, narrow scar running from his eyebrow down to his chin.
At that moment, the man was also studying Lynn closely, his gaze carrying an unspoken scrutiny.
Lynn frowned faintly, then withdrew his gaze. Without wasting more time, he turned to the other stalls.
By evening, he returned to his shack, slightly weary.
Although he had been unlucky at first, having his purchase snatched away overall, the day had gone well. He had managed to acquire 8 mushrooms.
He'd spent a total of 56 gold dragons and earned 72 gold dragons.
A profit of 16 gold dragons.
Not much, just "a mere" one and a half lesser magic stones.
The corners of Lynn's mouth curved upward as he poured out the bulging coins and counted them carefully.
Two freshly exchanged lesser magic stones and 62 gleaming gold dragons, a total of 82 gold dragons!
Just four days ago, he'd only had 3 lesser magic stones, and now his wealth had more than doubled.
And if nothing unexpected happened, from now on, he could earn 16 gold dragons a day!
That's more than enough to cover the academy's debt and the 20 gold dragons I need each week for Insight training.
Economic freedom at last!
Lynn toyed with the magic stones in his hand, unable to keep from grinning.
The only problem is, this takes quite a bit of time.
He considered for a moment, debating whether he should hire a commoner to handle the buying for him.
They wouldn't need to deliver the goods, just make the purchases, and he could pick them up at noon. That would save him a lot of time.
After all, I still need to cultivate. I can't spend all day flipping goods… I'll need a helper.
As for who… I'll worry about that later. Right now, it's time for Insight.
Holding the lesser magic stones, Lynn closed his eyes, unable to stop himself from thinking:
If only Giggs were still here. Too bad I couldn't be sure I'd make money back then…
In this world, there are no "what ifs."
Just as no one could have imagined that in just a few short days, Lynn would seize an opportunity and make a hefty profit.
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