The sign above the shop creaked in the wind, the faded golden lettering hardly readable against the cracked wood. For a long time, Eldrin's Emporium of Marvelous Beasts had been a beacon to adventurers, mages, and merchants seeking the rarest creatures. Now it was just one more shop in the lower district of Lytheris, which was also the heart of the most magical city, well that he had even been to.

Kael had in fact not been the original owner of this body he had been struck by a shooting star and woken up in this magical world, however he had no boon like ordinary transmigrated protagonists and eventually he came to terms with it but now he was stuck working in this “emporium” which was far more suited to shelter some homeless runts in the street then actually sell anything however he didn’t really have a choice in the matter.

He stepped inside; the door groaned on its hinges. First, the smell hit him: a pungent mix of mildew, old wood, and a faint trace of beast musk. It wasn't bad, exactly well it was but he had long grown used to it these last few weeks, but what it really reeked of was abandonment. The walls were lined with rows of wooden shelves, some of which bowed under the weight of rusted tools, tattered books, and empty glass jars that might once have held rare herbs, spell tomes or other trinkets.

Hanging all around, from the ceiling or sitting in corners, were cages in every shape and size. Many were empty, their iron bars corroded. The few that weren't held faint traces of straw or dried droppings—signs of animals long gone.

Kael sighed and ran a hand through his hair, brushing away the grime that had already settled on his forehead.

This was Eldrin's great legacy? he thought, stepping over a broken crate. His great-uncle Eldrin had been a legend, or so the stories went. He'd built the Emporium from the ground up, trading in beasts that could breathe fire, summon storms, or bolster mana reserves with their mere presence. Adventurers from across the Southern continent and even the other continents had once flocked to this very shop.

Now, even a single Bronze ranked beast was too expensive for Kael to maintain. Kael still didn’t really know how the world worked but he had slowly started to inherit memories of the pervious bodies owner and he learned afew simple things that helped seem not too strange to his family, he knew of the first three ranks that everything seemed to be classed into and they were bronze silver and gold but he also thought there was bound to be more, he had never actually seen anything of the gold rank but heard the lord that governs the markets is of the gold rank and he later learnt that he hadn’t awakend yet and he was considered dormant like most of the population t=you had to kill a beast after all to become bronze so you'd either have to be lucky enough to stumble into a weak beast in the wild had a rich family to buy you one or be a fearsome adventurer and go and sleight some colossal beast.

After a while he picked up a broom leaning against the wall and began sweeping the floor half-heartedly. Particles of dust danced around him in the process, and the harsh sound of the bristles echoed through the silence. His mind wandered as he swept.

Outside the city teemed alive with activity. Down here, the lower district sprawled chaotically—rows of market stalls, smithies, potion brewers, and shops like his but far better. A steady influx of adventurers flowed into this place, their equipment alight with enchantments, as they exuded power in mana. Most of them were bronze ranked but occasionally a silver rank would walk the streets catching the awe of the onlookers’ eyes

Kael had watched one such silver ranked adventurer that morning: a swordswoman in gold-plated Armor buying a sliver ranked grey wolf from the other beast selling shop in the cities market there seemed to have been some rivalry between the two shops in the past but now Puberts magical beats had complete monopoly over all the beast sales while kale’s shop slowly withered

He stopped sweeping and leaned on the broom, his chest tight with frustration. "How the hell am I going to compete with that?" he exclaimed, exasperated.

Competing shops like Puberts didn't sell beasts; they sold prestige. Their customers weren't buying power but status—the kind that made heads turn in the crowded streets. Even the lowest-ranked beast in their inventory would fetch more coin than Kael had seen in months. Even know he was new to this world it still infuriated him, maybe because of the emotions from the previous bodies owner or maybe it was just him he didn’t know but he wanted to do something about it.

He ground his teeth and went back to sweeping, his strokes rougher now.

But as he was shifting one of the shelves, something caught his eye: a glint, ever so small, through the heavy dust covering. He bent down, and thrust his hand into the dark; his fingers met with smooth wood. When he pulled it out, he found himself holding a small, box with strange writing on its sides. The wood was dark and polished, the runes intricate and faintly glowing. Kael frowned, brushing the dust off the lid. Two eggs were in the box, which opened with a soft click.

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

Kael leaned against the counter, exhaustion creeping over him. He picked up the gleaming egg absentmindedly, turning it in his hands. "What even are you?" he muttered, his grip accidentally tightening.

A sharp crack split the air.

Kael froze, staring at the fractured shell in his palm, resulting in a surge of mana that exploded outward. The room blurred, the air thick with swirling energy that seeped into his skin, burning and exhilarating all at once. It seemed to be targeting the center of his chest, forcing its way through without resistance until it was gone.

When the light finally dimmed, Kael was sprawled on the floor, gasping for breath. He blinked, his vision swimming, and suddenly a jolt of clarity struck him.

He sat up, trembling. His hands still tingled, and his gaze fell on the shattered remains of the egg. He stumbled backward in shock, then tripped over his broom. He gasped, his vision flipping, and his hands flailing about without coordination. He grabbed onto the clock that hung on the wall and fell onto his broom, landing in a pile with both objects. Slightly dazed and surprised, Kael tried to stand up and regain his bearings, but when he looked at the floor, the clock was missing. He rubbed his eyes again, checking if they were deceiving him, but to his surprise, they weren’t. Then something unexplainable happened: the broom started to move by itself, sweeping the floor and the shelves with pristine technique that even Kael didn’t have after weeks of sweeping. He decided to give his eyes one last rub, but after he did, he felt a voice in his mind:

[You have stepped out of the pond and into the sea, Bronze Rank Awakened.]

He came to the realization that he must’ve killed the creature in the egg and awakened an ability that caused the broom to work by itself. He then tried to pour magic into other things in the room, but to no avail. Nothing he did stirred any reaction.

How did I do it with the broom, then? Is it because I don’t know how to channel my power, or maybe it has a cooldown? He stared at the broom intently, looking at every nook and cranny. Then, more words appeared:

[Time sweeper]

[Utility]

[Bronze]

[This broom will keep sweeping until time itself has given out before it.]

He could view into objects now. He had heard this would happen if he awakened, but to see it in person was different—it was magical. He paid close attention to its name, noticing that it seemed to be linked to time. Huh, maybe that’s why the clock was missing… they had combined!

Kael stared to think of the possibilities could he just keep combining items? Would the rank increase each time? Could he combine more than two? Well there’s no point in asking these questions he had to find out.

Kael went rooting through the shop trying to gather everything remotely valuable or interesting and also some mundane items to test his theories out,

His first combination was two sticks, he grabbed both and willed them to combine, they did in a dance of swirling light he then tried to look at the description, however there wasn't one, so it seems not everything can become bronze rank, but he suspected this and now it was time to see if quantity helped, he took a pile of over 30 sticks and willed them to combine, they did and a single stick appeared, this stick much darker in colour he tried to look at the description but there still wasn’t one, so I guess the item has to have some value to become bronze rank or maybe I just need more sticks? However that was for another time, now he had a sword that used to be owned by his great uncle and he was told to never touch it as it was a family heirloom and was of the bronze rank he also managed to find a damaged spell tome they had been sold recently which was meant to make a small flame however it couldn’t be used anymore, these were without a doubt the most valuable items in the shop currently which was quite a depressing thought everything that was remotely rare or useful was sold to keep his family from starving.

Kael's fingers hovered over the heirloom sword, a weight of history pressing upon him. He could feel, in the worn hilt, the echoes of generations in service, reminding him of the family's legacy and the rule never to touch it unspoken. Yet, having the sword in his hand now, he was too strong for the temptation to resist testing its potential.

The sword was bronze rank, aged and well used but still undeniably powerful. Beside it lay the damaged spell tome, its pages ragged and torn, though there was still the faint scent of magic within its fragile pages. It had once been capable of summoning a small flame, though Kael wasn't sure though.

He felt the pull of something greater, a compulsion to combine them, to see what might come from joining a weapon with magic. But would the result be something more? Something greater than either on its own?

His hands trembled slightly as he laid a hand on each, his fingers taking in the weight of the moment. The world held its breath. He focused hard, willed the two objects to merge, to be something greater than the sum of their parts. For a fleeting moment, there was nothing. Then, a great surge of energy swept through him. The air crackled as the objects began to shift, the sword's blade beginning to twist and warp, the pages of the book curling in strange, intricate patterns. Kael watched, wide-eyed, as they fused together in a dazzling burst of light. When the light faded, he found himself holding a new book with an image of a fiery sword

[Flame blade]

[Spell]

[Silver]

[A blade that provides light in a time of dark, but will also burn the dark]

[Learn spell?]