Demira’s residence appeared as a mansion from the outside though it was obvious the outside grounds had not been much worked on in a while. The grass seemed overgrown and missing in certain areas. The surrounding bushes and shrubs were overgrown, and some were dying.

We followed a straight path from the front door of the mansion to the gate that was situated almost a quarter mile away. I turned to look back at the mansion and I could see that part of the house had been in ruins. The left side of the house especially looked worse for wear with roof that seemed like it may have suffered a fire a long time back and was never fixed back up properly.

Outside the gates things only looked worse as there were many people living out on the street. The tall walls and the gate of the property hid the poverty that laid rampant. There were many people that were walking around going through their usual life. Some sold various things on the street and others offering work for money.

The homes were spaced close together on the streets and carried a stale odor of pollution and waste. I was accosted several times by beggars looking for any type of coin or food. Daniella simply walked past them as I imagined she had become immune to their plight.

“Is the entire city in such poverty?” I asked Danielle as we walked.

“Mostly in this district. My Mother has tried to get the Governor to acknowledge the state of this district, but he has seemed to turn a blind eye to it. Once our father had died, we lost much power and were forced to close businesses. Also, somehow the warden of this town and its guards avoid coming here. My mother believes it to be a conspiracy against our family.”

“Why would there be a conspiracy against your family?”

“The usual nonsense.”

“The usual nonsense?”

“Yea, you know, power, politics. The boring P’s.”

“What are the not boring P’s?”

She turned just slightly and smiled, “If you don’t know that then I’m not going to be the one to teach you.”

After a while of walking some blocks and a few turns, we arrived at our destination, an alchemy shop as I had asked for.

“Elixirs for your troubles” was an alchemy shop run by a man named Henrik and his son, Robie. Henrik was one of the original settlers of this location, which he eagerly let every new and old customer know followed by how it was two hundred years ago and that he had only managed to stay alive this long was due to one of his special elixirs. Many doubted his claim and suspected that perhaps he had some elven heritage in him or maybe he had a magical item that kept him alive. Despite many requests for this youth elixir, Henrik had never been able to produce even one for his clients.

Some even suspected him of being some type of undead given his youth. His son appeared equally young, which perplexed the masses even more. They both had survived many years but despite the progressively failing business, they continued to keep their place running.

The decline of their shop had come a few years back when many of their customers had complained that the potions, they were sold had no effect on them. Some even claimed it had an adverse effect. Which most assuredly could be detrimental to an adventurer in middle of combat. Over time less and less people came to the shop. They were offered to sell their place from a generous benefactor, but they declined. Multiple crimes were also committed in the middle of the night at their place of business, but they continued to hold strong.

The store smelled of a mixture of aromas. None were bad and some were quite pleasant. It was quite a drastic change from the malodorous outside. I stood there for a moment breathing in the air. It smelled like fresh flowers and waterfalls and heaven. Henrik, who was behind the counter, noticed me standing near the door with my head up and eyes closed clearly enjoying the room and quickly rushed to greet us.

“Greetings, I can see you love the aroma in here. It’s a mixture of several things. We sell those here and we can even tailor some of the aromas to your preferences. Goodness, I even recall a lovely knight that one time requested the scent of a fair maiden he once loved and lost. We were able to create that for him and he just showered us with praise forever after. We can also create aromas of your favorite food or drink”, he leaned in close and whispered while throwing a quick glance at Daniella, “or even your lover’s bedroom gift for those nights you are alone and out adventuring.”

The awkward wink that Henrik gave me several seconds after that comment made the situation just that much creepier.

“Have I mentioned that this is the one and original alchemy shop from when this town was established? We have been serving lords and ladies of all types. Adventurers come to us for all their potion needs.” Continued Henrik.

The room was a large square, there being a counter at the end. Behind the counter were shelves upon which sat multiple different potions and elixir bottles. Under each of the bottles was a small sign that showed the name of the respective liquid. Potion bottles were most often very thin and small. Often just being the size of a thumb of a young adult. They were typically only bought by adventurers, and it seemed to make sense to keep them as small as possible for ease of carry.

The crystal bottle that the potions were kept in were themselves very strongly made and the crystal bottle often were about as costly as the content. People a long while back realized that if they were going to be taking these things out in the wild or into dungeons with them, they should be able to hold up to some degree of abuse from any fighting or damage that may occur. Getting hit by the hammer of an ogre onto the bag that was holding your potions which broke right after causing the contents to mix and leak on to your body resulting in you growing a second head or something was always considered a major Faux Pas. If the cheaply made bottles broke on a good day, it would just amount to loss of contents; on a bad day, the contents would mix, and the results could be quite interesting.

Conversely bottles that held elixirs were quite different as they were meant primarily for home use. The bottles themselves would come in all different shapes, sizes, colors, and designs. Most were very fragile and needed to be handled with extreme caution.

“How much are the various types of potions that you have?” I asked.

“The basic health potions are at the cost of only single small gold coin, My friend.” Replied Henrik.

“Single small gold coin? Do they come in different sizes or is he just a trying to be a shady salesman?” asked Jimmy through their mental connection.

I chuckled softly and whispered, “shady most likely.”

“What’s that dear friend, were you telling your humble servant, Henrik, how many you would like to purchase today?”

“Umm how much are the intermediate and the advanced health potions? What other types of potions do you have?” I asked.

“Unfortunately, our supplies are running a little short these days”, Henrik answered with an overly dramatic face looking sadder than most orphan children.

“How short?” asked Daniella who had now joined the conversation.

“Ah the lovely woman; I apologize, but currently we only have the basic health potions.” Said Henrik, “I have not been able to acquire the materials needed to develop other types of potions and none of my previous suppliers will do business with me any longer.”

With the most minimal of prodding, Henrik volunteered to us his story. He had been running a business and barely making ends meet for the longest of times until his final supplier even stopped providing him with the ingredients needed to create any types of potions. He was only able to produce the basic health potions because it required some very easily found ingredients and most of them were conveniently growing in his back yard.

Before we left, Henrik asked us if we would be interested in investing in his business where he would give us a percentage of the business, a small percentage. When we said no, he offered us membership to his shop, the benefits of which would be that we would be provided with health potions regularly once he had the adequate supply to create them. The membership of course required a substantial fee which was to be paid upfront.

“He was an interesting character,” I said after we had left the shop.

“I’ll say. I have met used car salesmen that felt less slimy,” Jimmy said in my mind.

“He takes a bit of getting used to. I have met him a handful of times now and he still cannot remember me. The suffering of his business is real though. Not just limited to him either. This whole area is suffering similarly with failing businesses, crime, poverty,” added Daniella.

“Is there someone behind it?” asked Mason.

“Not certain. It is most certainly not a single party because other businesses have been approached by different people. Mother has been inquiring into it however and I’m sure she will get to the answer in due time.”

We continued to walk through the city, passing by several shops of all types including clothes which I badly needed. I had only a small amount of coin however, which was courtesy of the men from the alley who had met their untimely but well-deserved deaths. Demira had been kind enough to leave the entire sum in the box she gave me that Daniella had recovered from their bodies.

I wasn’t sure what the prices of various things were, but I needed to be as frugal as possible given my limited funds. Even prior to my last Ascension, I had accumulated more treasure than several kingdoms combined and never even considered having to be so mindful of my spending.

I had counted Four gold, 14 Silver, and 22 bronze coins in my recent inheritance. Daniella explained that at the current time approximately 20 bronze coins equaled one silver coin; 10 silver coins equaled one gold coin. This varied slightly at times depending on the market set by the kingdom and its taxation practices. Daniella mentioned that the silver was only worth 15 bronze a few months back and two years prior 10 bronze coins.

We made a stop at a street food vendor. He had a cart set up and was grilling food on a plate which had no obvious flame under it. Daniella explained that he likely had some minor fire affinity and was able to heat the plate through his mana. He likely did not have enough propensity to be able to cast further magics and was not able to advance it much. I found this difficult to believe as I knew that even the most basic skills in magic could develop over time into something much stronger if provided appropriate encouragement whether through tutoring or repetition. Magic was clearly very closely guarded and regulated in this region.

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There were other similar individuals throughout the city Daniella explained that had different affinities but not enough intellectual and arcane prowess to advance them further. They all worked in different aspects of the city to make things work. Individuals with earth affinity were used for development of roads and residential as well as commercial architectures. Some of these individuals also helped with the mines. I expect that a lot of them also didn’t want to risk their lives adventuring and gaining experience to advance their situation any further.

Water affinity individuals found the most work throughout the city and were constantly in demand, especially from the more affluent and rich citizens. They provided the rich with access to running water for their baths and other needs. They also helped mobilize waste for the city though it was clear to me that their work was severely lacking in this part of the district.

We arrived at The Cursed Coin, a general shop that also dabbled in selling some magical items. It was located at the crossroads of the Southwest and the Southeast districts of the city. Jimmy continued to mention how much he missed the foods of his home city when seeing the various food shops and vendors during their walk. I was missing all the food too from hearing him talk. My newfound hunger was a blessing and a curse in that way I suppose. I would have loved to have had a big slice of NY pizza right about now.

The Cursed Coin, was run by a man named Theon and his wife Akimara. The couple had been adventurers in the past and had managed to collect a lot of various magical items and weapons during their time. Often from other adventurers. Theon early on had found a magical bag of holding; the bag of holding would allow him to hold large amounts of objects in it. During the adventuring days, he managed to buy weapons and items from other adventurers who were not able to hold such things on them. He managed to make huge profits by selling these items at a much larger cost than what he had bought them for.

The shop was long with one long side having a counter that went to the end and the other side holding various types of weapons and items on hooks. None of these items seemed magical or at least not significantly magical. As we walked in, a bell alerted the shop owner of customers coming in through the door.

Theon gave us a large smile. He always welcomed new people into the shop even if they only wanted to window shop as it him to talk to them about what’s going on in the outside world. Part of him missed his days of adventuring, the thrill of being out in the wild chasing and fighting monsters; sometimes barely coming out with their mind and body intact.

“What can I do for you fine folks?” asked Theon after introducing himself and his wife who walked into the back.

“Ask him if he has a magic carpet. I have always wanted to ride on a magic carpet,” said Jimmy.

“I was looking for some magic spells or scrolls with which to learn magic spells from.”

Theon clicked his tongue and shook his head, “No. we don’t carry any magic spells or scrolls. Those you can only find at the shop of the guild. The lord of this city has an agreement with them and to my sorrow, only they are allowed to buy and sell such items. I have plenty of magical weapons and other items however if you are interested.”

“I’m not sure if I have enough funds at this time that I would be able to afford a magical item. Do you buy them as well if I was to come across something?”

“Absolutely and I can promise you a fantastic deal on it.”

I noted a coin hanging from the shop owner’s neck. The coin was the size of a baby’s palm and made of silver or platinum or a similar metal. It was missing the middle part of it giving it the look of a flat ring. It hung from a thin string which seemed way too flimsy to be able to hold the weight of that coin.

Theon noticed me looking at the coin, so he held it between his fingers and smiled, “The reason for the name of the store,” he said giving me a wink.

“What’s the story behind that coin?” I asked.

Daniella went to speak about it but was interrupted by Theon, “Not much of a story I suppose. I was convinced,” he said with a slight roll of his eyes, “to take this cursed coin and since then I have been stuck with it like a bad dream.”

As Theon was holding it up, I got an even better look at the coin. There were some faintly carved out glyphs on the front and the back. The more I looked at the coin, the more I smiled internally. They were not an easy read, but I could make out what the glyphs symbolized despite my significant skill and memory deficit.

“Say, you wouldn’t be interested in having it would you?” Theon said with a slight smirk and tilt of his head jokingly.

“Having it?” I glanced up briefly at him.

Before I could say another word, Daniella interrupted, “NO. thank you, we would not be interested in the coin at all.” She was clearly trying to protect me from the curse of this coin. It was a sweet gesture even if it was not necessary.

I continued to stare at it trying to decipher the glyphs further, “If I was to take this ‘cursed’ coin off you, what would I get for my troubles?”

Theon’s eyes bulged wide as could be and a big grin came on his face as if he had not eaten for weeks and I had just offered him some juicy steak, “I will give you anything you want in here. Hell, you can have the entire store if you want.”

“Either he thinks that coin is the worst thing imaginable, or he is the worst salesman in the world,” Jimmy chimed in my mind.

Before, anything further could be said, a force of Nature more commonly known as Akimara, barged out holding a large cooking wooden spoon of some sort, “THE HELL HE WILL!” She was holding it with one hand, but I had no doubt this woman would babe ruth his head into the outfield if he said the wrong thing.

I didn’t know how she had managed to hear our conversation from all the way in the back. I also wasn’t sure if she was using the spoon to cook something in the back or just kept it in hand to keep her husband from getting out of line. Both were equally likely and plausible scenarios at this point.

“But darling, we can finally be rid of this thing!” Theon protested meekly. He quickly turned to me once it occurred to him what he had said in front of me, “I mean of course this lovely artifact coin.”

“We are not doing it by losing the shirts of our backs!!” She scolded.

“That coin is trouble. You don’t know the story behind it so I would also suggest to not take possession of this,” Daniella added as she looked at Theon, “Artifact!”

I smiled softly and held up my hand as to motion them to stop, “I would not want this entire store nor shirts of anyone’s backs. We can come upon something that you and your wife agree with as the fairest trade.”

I wasn’t trying to take advantage of them, but I knew they wanted to get rid of it badly. At least Theon did. I also knew that this coin was not just cursed. Or at least I hoped so because I had not read of it in many years.

Theon’s smile crept back up, “Well before you take possession of this coin, I’m obligated to tell you that it is in fact cursed. I feel I could not give a better explanation than the coin itself. Just hold the coin to your palm and look at the description that comes up.”

Before Daniella could protest, he added, “Just holding it to your palm will not automatically give you possession. It must be accepted willingly and knowingly.”

I nodded and held the coin still hanging off Theon’s neck to my palm.

Item: The Soul of Amalya

Type: Magic coin – Artifact

This coin carries upon it a powerful enchantment. The coin may only be given to someone who accepts it willingly and knowingly and without any coercion or compulsion.

Benefits

1 May Cast Soul Seeker once every 10th day.

2 All Stats gain +3 while the Coin is in your possession.

The possessor of this coin will be linked to Amalya, the goddess of Mana and Magic. She had given up all her earthly possessions before ascending and thus the possessor of this coin will exist in the same way until the curse of the coin is removed.

You, the possessor of this coin, may not hold any wealth, lands or property. You may not have in possession more than a handful of coins. You may not hoard anything. You may only have the clothing and items that you can carry on you without any magical assistance. At the dawn of each day, all your wealth except what you carry in earnest will disappear and be deposited at the foot of the bottomless sea.

Theon took on a sorrowful look as I finished reading the description. He had been through this in the past and though many thought the coin was interesting, no one in their right mind would ever take it. Still, he looked at me with a slight glimmer of hope.

“Why did you accept this coin Theon? It couldn’t have been the stats alone. Certainly, they are a nice boost, but they don’t come close to the drawback of the curse,” I asked curiously.

Theon snorted, “I guess you didn’t see the spell it comes with that you can cast in detail.”

I hadn’t. I brought up the description of the spell.

Soul Seeker

Cost: MP 100

Cast time: Instant

Duration: N/A

Cooldown Period: 10 days

Effect: The caster may think of a person or their image and by looking through the coin, the direction of the person’s soul they are seeking will be revealed. The spell will last until the person is found or canceled by the caster. The target’s soul can be located on any plane of existence. The target is made aware when targeted and thus can choose to hide themselves if their willpower is greater than the caster wisdom.

“You accepted the coin and its accompanying curse so you could use the spell…to find whom?” I asked.

“Whom else but the love of my life. My darling wife. Well somedays she wants to kill me so maybe she can also be called end of my life but that is what I signed up for.”

Akimara’s demeanor softened slightly at his words, and she couldn’t help but smile and blush. Daniella, however, had the reaction of an exaggerated eye roll.

Seeing his wife smile, Theon grasped her hand and continued, “She was kidnapped by this heinous villain who felt that I had wronged him financially. He got what was coming to him. Once I learned where she was, I hired a troop of mercenaries and heroes to overtake him and his army. I lost all my wealth and gained a curse in the same day, but it was worth it because I gained back my darling.”

“I didn’t know all this. He sounds like your Mr. Gatsby. Crazed for love,” Daniella said directing the comment to me.

“There is no better way to be crazed!” said Theon with a big grin on his face.

I didn’t say it, but I did enjoy meeting people like Theon that lived and lost for love. When it came to people, I always had a soft spot for Artists, musicians, and romantics. Perhaps he was a little like the Gatsby of the novel in that way. Perhaps, I was too.

“I’m willing to accept the ring once we come up with a reasonable payment for it,” I spoke. I had no desire to take advantage of the man, but I did want to get some gear to help me through this stage. I planned to return with similar or better items for him and his store in the future. But right now, I need to be able to live and get stronger.

Theon’s looked immediately changed to one of overjoy so much so that tears started coming out, “I can give you 10 items from my shop and a thousand gold.”

“One item and WE do not have a thousand gold to give, HUSBAND!” the wife countered Theon with some anger.

Theon put up three fingers and showed them to his wife, “Three items and a hundred gold!”

“I own the store and all the items and all the gold in it so I will not give away so much,” Akimara said back.

I was not surprised to learn that she owned the store. It was to get around the curse. Theon was cursed but his wife was not. He couldn’t own anything, but his wife could. Obviously, that required a lot of trust but that’s what marriage was. They had been able to do without getting rid of the coin so far, so I wonder why he wants to get rid of it so badly. I suppose it could be frustrating to not be able to carry the items. I don’t imagine the bag of holding would work allow you to get around the curse. Perhaps he wants to go back to collecting items from adventurers.

Theon pleaded with her, “Darling, we need to get rid of this cursed item. It is not much to give them to get rid of this this thing! I can get more back in the future.”

“We don’t need to get rid of it. We have been managing just fine so far. Just be honest, you want to go back to chasing after adventurers and making deals with them, don’t you?”

Theon didn’t argue with her logic because she was right. I figured he didn’t want to argue with her because then he would have been rid of the cursed coin but only because she had killed him. He also didn’t cave in though as he really wanted to get rid of the coin. She eventually agreed to a total of three items from the store with the ability to veto certain choices along with giving me a hundred gold. Theon in addition told me that he owed me a huge debt for the future which resulted in further angry stares from the wife. I was happy with the agreement. I hope the coin was what I thought it was. If not then, well I couldn’t be any more screwed than I already was with a powerful god like entity coming after me at some point in the future.

I went through the items of the store in the next few hours while Daniella waited patiently. She tried to convince me once again of this very foolish plan to take the coin. Theon in the spirit of honesty told me that the curse of the coin has not been able to be broken despite him trying various ways to do it.