The Councilor personally escorted my party to the Magic Shop. This was the first time that I had the pleasure of visiting the Southamptonian version and boy, was I glad that I did! The place was set up very differently compared to the shop in Bristol for a simple reason: it was a bazaar!

Instead of having one seller managing a store, the floor was split into numerous stalls where multiple vendors were hawking different wares. The vendors would call out as customers walked by. "Get your magic charms here!" "Need a love potion?" "Hard to find monster parts available!" "Magic weapons sold here! Come take a look!"

Delkon chuckled when he saw my jaw drop. "Yeah, this place isn't really a Magic Shop but rather a Magic Bazaar," he admitted openly. "When the guild moved into this mage tower, there was a big fight over who should be appointed as the official shopkeeper of the guild. When the dust was settled and no clear consensus emerged from our voting members, the Council decided to split the entire floor into stalls and then rent them out to interested vendors instead. This bazaar proved to be very profitable and also a reliable source of revenue for the guild as the landlord."

"Now, I didn't bother to correct you earlier because I'm a firm believer in the notion of 'seeing is believing.' I'm sure you visited the Magic Shop in Bristol and assumed that all the guilds had set up their shops similarly. So . . . what exactly are you looking for, Brother Mulligan? I don't mind if you want to browse all the stalls, but you could easily spend a few days doing so. Particularly since the vendors have different hours and days of operation," he warned.

The question shook me out of my reverie. I focused my attention back to my guide and nodded. "Yes, I'm looking for two things right now. First, I'm seeking a magic device that could cast Gate, Recall, or similar magic. My skill and professional levels are too low for me to learn and cast these spells successfully. Second, I would like to buy scrolls. I don't have a particular spell in mind but I just want to have something that I could add to my spellbook when my skills in the elemental spheres become high enough in the future. Perhaps an offensive spell would be nice," I explained.

While I was still wearing a Ring of Power, which allowed me to cast one spell (either mage or clerical) at double my professional level, I wanted to save the charges within the ring for an emergency. Originally, I received this ring from the Archbishop in Bristol in order to deal with the undead hidden in a house near the center of the city. I was given this mission because I possessed Spirit Sense, which allowed me to read the auras of living and dead creatures from a further distance than a Detect Undead spell. This special ability allowed me to find the undead that others from the clergy couldn't.

In the end, I managed to locate and vanquish the horde with my companions without using the ring. Since my superior did not ask for the ring's return, I simply kept it on the assumption that I will embark on additional undead slaying missions for the Church and use the ring's power in the future.

The master mage tapped his chin thoughtfully at my answer. He was not the least surprised to learn of my interest in acquiring travel magic given our previous arrangement for Delkon to cast Gate on my behalf. "Travel magic items are rarely sold on the open market. The spells and ingredients involved to create them are very high-tier. Enchanters with the skills to create them have a long backlog of orders to fulfill. Especially since their customers are often members of the nobility and as such, their orders are prioritized first before the commoners."

"Additionally, whatever travel magic items become available, they are publicized by their creators in order to solicit and invite a bidding war over these items. Therefore, I'm afraid you won't find such items here in this Magic Bazaar. On the other hand, there are a handful of vendors of magic scrolls whose stalls are open right now. Perhaps, one of them has scrolls that you may be interested in acquiring. I can take you to them. Right this way please," he said and started walking.

My party quickly followed Delkon in order to avoid becoming lost in the crowd of shoppers. As we walked behind the Councilor, people who saw his approach nodded respectfully to him. A few minutes later, we reached the first stall which sold magic scrolls.

The vendor was a short, old woman dressed in a black robe, cape, and cone-shaped hat. A black cat slept on top of a large cabinet behind the table, which served as a barrier preventing would-be thieves from reaching the cabinet where the precious scrolls were presumably stored. A broom leaned against the side of the cabinet. To me, she looked like a witch. The vendor nodded slightly to Delkon. "Greetings, Councilor. How may Jaledria be of service today?" she asked politely in a raspy voice.

"Greetings Jaledria," our guide nodded to her respectfully. He then turned toward me and placed a hand on my shoulder in a friendly manner to convey our close personal relationship. "It is my great pleasure and honor to introduce Brother Lawrence Eugene Mulligan. If you recall the invasion from pirates that occurred recently, this is the hero who called for divine assistance to repel them and save our fair city. He is looking for higher tier spells to add to his spellbook in the future."

The witch eyed me closely for a moment and then bowed deeply to me. With her hand, she motioned for me to lean forward over the table. She whispered in my right ear. "What is your character level and what elemental spheres have you unlocked, milord?"

Without thinking, I answered aloud, "9 and 6."

Jaledria drew her head back and blinked her eyes several times. "You're an archmage?" Her thick brown brows arched at my unbelievable claim. She resisted the urge to hurl an insult at me. But only because Councilor Delkon was standing next to me with a look of disapproval on his face.

"If you're asking if I can cast spells from all six elements, then the answer is yes." I pulled out the Truth Stone of Order and Chaos from under my tunic to show her. "I swear upon the Gods that I am telling the truth," I added.

The witch recognized my talisman and realized that I was, indeed, telling the truth because the wielder of this holy relic could not tell a lie without incurring the wrath of the Gods. Abruptly, she dropped her skepticism and roughly grabbed my hands. "I am honored to assist you, Archmage Mulligan." She became embarrassed at her own behavior and then a look of being awestruck appeared on her face.

"Um, are you alright?" I asked with growing concern. Her grip was very tight.

Suddenly, a paw smacked the back of her hands, forcing Jaledria to release me. The loss of physical contact finally jarred her back to reality.

"Thanks, Bila," I whispered. I felt her tail smack me on the behind several times. I realized that she was annoyed at me for dropping my guard so easily.

"You need to be more careful," my bodyguard warned.

Jaledria cleared her throat. "I apologize for my unseemly behavior. I have never met an archmage before and they are thought to be mythical creatures like unicorns." She bowed deeply to me.

"It's quite alright," I replied politely. "Now that you understand my circumstances, I would like you to show me some scrolls that I should consider buying. I am a swordsman and also a member of the Church, as you can see. I seem to encounter a lot of undead and bandits in my travel. I'm looking for spells in the Fourth-Tier or higher. I am particularly interested in combat and travel magic," I explained in greater details.

The proprietor nodded at my request. She had several magic scrolls that would satisfy my criteria. Jaledria turned around and opened her cabinet.

The black cat jumped from the cabinet and landed on the table right in front of me. It stared at me with its pale yellow-green eyes and then rubbed its head against my chest.

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I petted the cat on its head and it started purring. I was surprised to see that Bila did not intervene out of jealousy. Huh.

Jaledria interrupted my impromptu bonding with her pet by placing a few scrolls on the table.

Seeing that the witch had moved away from the cabinet, the black cat jumped back onto the top of the cabinet.

"I see that Mou has taken a liking to you. He's my familiar," she added with a smile. "He's really helpful in keeping an eye on my merchandise. Now, let me show you some of my scrolls. First is Firestorm, a Fourth-Tier Fire spell. It rains down droplets of fire on a specific location designated by the spellcaster. The range is 10 feet per skill level in the Fire sphere and lasts 1d10 seconds per level. It causes 1d6 burn damage per second to the targets within the area, with a chance of being immolated. This spell is very mana efficient and excellent for clearing out a room full of low-level monsters. The cost for this scroll is 50 gold coins."

"The second spell I recommend is Dimension Door, a Fourth-Tier Air spell. The range is 10 feet per skill level in the Air sphere. When the spell is cast, the spellcaster is instantaneously teleported to a designated location within his line of sight. It's a spell often used to escape from a dangerous situation during a fight or to avoid a trap while inside a dungeon. The cost for this scroll is also 50 gold coins."

"Last but not least is Anti-Magic Shell, an Eighth-Tier General spell," the vendor began when she was interrupted.

"What!" Delkon blurted out. "I'm not aware of anyone selling this spell!" The mage turned toward me and declared, "If you decline to buy that scroll, I will buy it."

Rijana spoke up. "Pardon me, Councilor Delkon, but how come you don't have this spell in your spellbook?" she inquired.

The mage became embarrassed and looked away. "Well, it took a long time for me to raise my skill level in the General sphere," he admitted. "By then, I couldn't find the spell at the bazaar anymore until now."

"I see. It took me a long time to max out my skill in the General sphere, too," Rijana replied.

"How much for that spell?" I asked. I knew that the scroll will probably cost several times more than Firestorm or Dimension Door. But I was really intrigued by the idea of casting Anti-Magic Shell during a battle against another mage.

"500 gold," Jaledria replied. She had to exert all her willpower to avoid laughing at my stunned facial expression upon hearing her outrageous demand.

Delkon sucked his teeth at the exorbitant price and turned pale. He did NOT carry 500 golds on his person. If I declined to buy the scroll, then he would need to run back to his room to get the money to make payment for the scroll. How embarrassing!

"That's a lot of money for a scroll," I commented in a calm tone of voice. I was thankful that I had the Negotiation skill and it was probably due to this skill that I didn't lose my temper.

"True, it is a princely sum of money," Jaledria admitted. "But that reflects the enormous value of the spell inscribed in the scroll," the vendor skillfully rebutted the notion. She was very impressed with the fact that I accepted her asking price without hurling either a rude comment or an insult at her.

I turned toward my magic instructor. "What level will I need to achieve to cast it?"

"15," Rijana replied helpfully. However, she did not say anything else. The instructor wanted me to decide for myself whether to make the purchase or not. After all, 500 gold pieces was a lot of money and I could easily buy a magic ring from Rijana instead. Since Rijana had a personal stake in my decision, she felt that it would be unethical for her to seek to influence my decision either way.

I thought for a moment. My current character level was 9. But the last time I checked my status screen, I had approximately 75,000 XP, which I believed was almost enough to reach Level 13. According to the old Dungeons & Dragons experience charts, I will need somewhere around 100,000 XP to reach Level 15. In other words, I was short around 25,000 points. But since I was a dual-class character, I will need double that amount or roughly 50,000 XP altogether.

So the question before me was how soon will I gain that much experience points while adventuring across Britannia? Furthermore, 500 gold coins was a substantial sum of money and even I would be hardpressed to make that much money soon. But then again, judging from Delkon's reaction upon learning that Jaledria had it for sale, I realized that the spell was hard to find. Thus, even if I couldn't copy the spell personally, buying the spell would be similar to making an investment which I could resell or even gift it to an influential spellcaster in the future. Therefore, it made economic and business sense to buy the scroll despite the high asking price.

The vendor misunderstood the reason behind my silence. She believed I was going to decline to purchase this scroll because of the price and my lack of appreciation of the spell's utility. She immediately tried to recapture my interest by explaining the effect of the spell in further details. "Anti-Magic Shell creates a barrier that negates all magic effect within 3 feet surrounding your body. It lasts one minute per skill level in the General sphere," Jaledria explained, "and you can dismiss the barrier at any time. For a swordsman, being able to cast this spell will turn you into a mage killer. No mage will dare to challenge you to a magic duel!" She exclaimed this while shaking a fist in the air dramatically.

I thought for a moment about how I would use this spell. As I pondered the scenarios inside my head, I soon realized that this spell could become my trump card, along with my nearly unlimited access to elemental mana as a Spirit Magi. In the end, I really had no choice but to buy the spell if for no reason other than to prevent a potential enemy mage from using it on ME. "If I buy this scroll, can you throw in the other two scrolls for free?" I may as well try to negotiate a better deal with Jaledria since I was going to buy all three scrolls from her.

The witch grinned, revealing yellow-stained teeth. "Sorry, Archmage Mulligan. I can't offer a discount on these scrolls." She quickly raised a finger and made her counteroffer. "But if you buy all three scrolls, I can toss in a lower-tier scroll for free."

I received a pop-up message which stated, "Negotiation SUCCESSFUL. +50 XP." "You got Fly?" I asked immediately. I remembered Rijana casting Fly on me while we fought the guardians inside the dragon's lair. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and I may as well add Fly to my spellbook.

Jaledria tilted her head and thought for a moment. "I believe I have this magic scroll in stock. Let me check." She bent her knees and lowered her hips; the merchant opened a lower drawer in the cabinet and searched for the scroll in question. A moment later, she yelled, "Aha!" The vendor stood up and casually dropped the new scroll on top of the other scrolls. "The total cost is 600 gold coins, milord." Her eyes danced with greed and anticipation as she stared at the sacks tied to my belt.

Instead, I took off my left boot and turned it upside down. I placed my hand under the opening and caught the platinum coin rolling out of the footwear. I handed the precious coin to her.

Jaledria accepted the payment and gave me 400 gold coins as my change. "It's been a pleasure doing business with you." The witch bowed deeply to me.

"Aren't you going to put the change back in your boot?" Bjoukia teased me mischievously, earning an elbow from her brother, Bjoukin. "Ow!"

Dovarata chuckled and covered her mouth.

I rolled my eyes at my companions and sighed aloud as I put the coins in a new sack. Once I stored the scrolls and the sack of coins in my messenger bag, Delkon asked me, "Do you need to buy more scrolls?"

I shook my head. I had spent far more than I originally anticipated and I didn't dare to be tempted again by looking at another stall carrying magic scrolls. "I paid too much, didn't I?" I was having a serious case of buyer's remorse now.

"Yes and no," Delkon replied sympathetically. He understood what I was feeling because he often found himself in a similar situation. That was why he avoided visiting the Magic Bazaar nowadays. For him to walk out without spending a single coin was a major victory for him.

"For the more common spells, that is up to the Fifth-Tier, you should pay no more than 100 gold coins for a magic scroll. However, when it comes to the higher tier spells, such scrolls are much harder to find. 500 golds, while expensive, is a fair price to pay for a spell that is highly sought after." He looked at me for a moment and made a joke. "Please warn me when you have added Anti-Magic Shell to your spellbook. I'll know better than to challenge you to a magic duel then."

We laughed together and I felt much better about my purchases. I was very appreciative of Delkon for cheering me up.

"I hate to interrupt when you're making so much fun. But isn't it time for us to head over to London?" Bila reminded me.

I nodded in agreement. "Yes, we should go now."

Delkon held out his arm and pointed at the exit out of the bazaar. "Please walk this way." He walked ahead of us and led us to the front lobby of the floor. Once everyone joined hands in a circle, the mage used a power word to take us to another location.

We arrived in a large, circular room. There were neither windows nor exits. The walls, as well as the ceiling and the floor, were lined with inscriptions.

When I activated my Magic Sense and examined them, I confirmed that the inscriptions were magical in nature. A closer examination of the magic auras revealed that they were defensive in nature. But I had no idea what, precisely, effects these barriers contained.

"This is the Room of Summoning," my host said. "In a moment, I will create a Gate connecting to our counterpart at the London branch of the Magic Guild. Please ask to see Mordekai the Wiseman. He has been apprised of your needs and he will help you find a proper guide for your mission." The master mage closed his eyes and raised his magic staff. He started chanting the words of a spell softly.

Strong winds started blowing as a circle of light formed at the center of the room. The circle slowly increased vertically until an oval-shaped portal was formed.

Finally, Delkon finished his chanting and opened his eyes. "I bid you all a safe journey."

I bowed deeply to him and entered the portal.