“Why did you fight?” Nana asked.
“There’re constant battles where I’m living. I own a place there, so I have to fight to protect it,” he said.
“You can't leave?”
“I have some plans for the place, I can't leave yet,” Ewan said.
“So, you’ll keep fighting?”
“I’ll try not to get hurt, but it’s likely to happen again,” he said. “You got hurt too, didn’t you?”
“Don’t turn the topic to me,” she said.
Ewan laughed at his failed attempt and shrugged it off. “Alright, no matter how much I get injured, I promise I won't die,” he said. “I won't break it.”
Her blob flickered at his words, and a moment of silence ensued. “Lime succeeded, and I have your blueprint ready,” she finally cracked the quiet and said.
Ewan breathed a sigh of relief when she changed the subject. Emotional conversations had a way of tripping him up, a calculated conversation concerning give or take was more up his alley, where he strived to gain an edge. With Nana, though, he could never remain pragmatic, and he could never weigh his words. Given their shared years and their relationship, he didn’t want to either. That he was different with her, he’d long embraced the fact.
“I’ll give you all the materials, build me the artifact,” he said. “And anything new about the island? You’re still on the beach, right? Did anyone attack you again?”
“No, nothing new, the beach is still the same, peaceful and quiet. I saw them hanging around at the edge of the forest before, but they don’t come out,” she said.
“Still, be careful,” Ewan said. “And don’t provoke them. Don’t try to negotiate too before you can hold your own.”
“You’re nagging again,” she mumbled.
“Fine, I won't nag,” he said. “By the way, does this shop ever see any business. It’s empty every time I come here, and your stock isn’t shrinking either. Are you even earning anything?”
“I-I earn…from time to time,” she said, inching away from him, her voice shrinking.
“That’s a no then,” Ewan said. “Forget it, let’s just combine our shops. Sell my potions here and I’ll sell your artifacts at brewed, keep a constant influx of customers until you start producing more artifacts.”
“We can do that…,” she murmured. “We can do that! I’ll be your business partner!” She bobbed and jumped closer.
“Y-Yeah, business partner.” As a family, in fears and wants, they shared and would share weal and woe. So, merging the two shops was a natural step moving forward. But if she was having fun with the idea of roleplaying as business partners, then so be it.
“One more thing. I’ll give you books on star navigation, study them and learn how to memorize the star map.” She hummed in agreement, but her mind wasn’t here anymore. The business partner roleplay must’ve triggered her wild thoughts. “Did you get what I said?” Ewan asked.
This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
“Hmm? What? Star map, right? Yeah, I’ll note it down for you,” she said and went back to her imagination.
Ewan shook his head. “I’m leaving then, you go back too,” he said and headed back to his shop. His battle with the other potion business owners reached the final stage—it was time he ended it.
……
The seesawing discounts had taken an extreme form and already encroached deep into everyone’s profit margin. The customers were having a field day, but it was a headache for the business owners, including Ewan. Even though his sales turned over a profit of five to six hundred percent in the beginning, the large discounts gobbled more than half of it at this point. Though he wouldn’t suffer any losses even with higher discounts, the retaliation could be heavy—cornered people were the most dangerous after all. He started the battle, and he was ready for it. But if it went beyond his estimation and outside his prediction, he could lose his business—the blowback would crush all his prospects in the hub.
The soaring scope of the race annihilated the small business owners, eliminated those who couldn’t keep up. Now, only the giant sharks remained in the game. Their bottomless pockets supported the discount war even when the price cuts must’ve zeroed out their profits and shoved them into losses. All would amount to nothing if any one of these sharks decided to take him out with a glory of a shooting star—a kamikaze would be devastating for him. He had to end it before they snapped.
So, Ewan attacked first and played his final card. He hired several rogue Starons like he did last time, signed a contract with them, and sent them off on a shopping spree—they targeted the sharks. His Novas balance plunged in minutes as crates and crates of potions from these shops stuffed his storage. It was the early hours of a fresh day, and his binge purchase drained their inventories bit by bit. Regardless of whether they caught on to his plan or not, they couldn’t stop it anymore. He hired the customers, but they were still customers. They ran a business, and it prevented them from picking and choosing. Thus, Ewan splurged.
They had the numbers to quash him, but the outrageous discounts allowed even his Novas balance to buy everything they had. And when their stocks emptied out, when they shut down their shops for the day, Ewan swung open his door and announced his presence—without the discounts.
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Status: Injured
Step-0 [9th Awakening]
Name: Ewan Ayres
Species: Human
Vitality: 2.0
Spirit: 18.5
Anima: [Fire – 18.5 | Ice – 18.5 | Blood – 18.5]
Astylinds: 4 [Potential: 0]
Rolling Cat [Toast]: Step-0 [9th Awakening]
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Fire Monkey [Orange]: Step-0 [Level-9] [Grade-B]
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Imp [Frost]: Step-0 [Level-9] [Grade-B]
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Blood Lotus [Iris]: Step-0 [Level-9] [Grade-A]
Equipment: Common Clothes; Yurn [Neck Gaiter].
Storage: Journal; Elementalist—The Path of Anima [Subtype-Book]; Spellbook; Bloodlust [Spell]; Transmute [Spell]; Anima-Crystals [Novas Coins]; Obsidian Dagger; Hub-Connector; Ingredients.
Novas: 3,958
Crelith: 4,049