Reeve stepped forward, his fists clenched. "Back off, Aaros," he growled. "Janks has nothing to do with your business."

Aaros chuckled, his eyes narrowed. "Oh, I think Janks has everything to do with my business."

Janks gulped, his heart racing. He had heard stories about Aaros and his men, and he knew that he couldn't take them on alone. Reeve stepped in front of him, his fists crackling with purple lightning.

Aaros chuckled, his smile never wavering. "I'm not afraid of you, Reeve. You may be strong, but you're no match for all of my men. And I'm not afraid to use them to get what I want."

Reeve chuckled as several men jumped out from the shadows to stand beside him and Janks. "Looks like you're underestimating the captain," Reeve said, his eyes fixed on Aaros. "He knew this was going to happen and sent some backup to make sure Janks was protected."

Aaros chuckled, unperturbed by Reeve's threats. "Oh, calm down, Reeve," he said. "I just want to get to know Janks a little better. And it's not like he's the only person I can kill here."

Reeve's laughter filled the air as he stood face to face with Aaros. "You seem to have forgotten who I am," he said, his fists crackling with purple lightning. "Do you really think I care about the people around us? My only concern is protecting Janks. But even if you do decide to kill them, it won't matter. The people of Pallan won't stand for a massacre, and you'll just be digging your own grave."

Aaros chuckled in response to Reeve's words, but he knew he had no choice. He might be a leader of ruthless men, but even he knew not to mess with people of Pallan.

"Fine, I ll just follow along" Aaros said with a shrug. He pulled a small bag of pips from his pocket and offered it to Janks. "Consider this as an apology for the trouble. No hard feelings, right?" His smile was unsettling as he looked at Janks with a sly expression.

As Aaros held out the bag of pips, Janks snatched it from him without hesitation. Reeve's eyes widened in surprise as he watched Janks grab the money so quickly.

"What?!" Janks said looking embarassed, holding up the bag. "Do you think It's that easy to get this much money."

Reeve chuckled and shook his head. "I can see that," he said with a grin. "I guess it pays to be a talented tinker like you."

Janks shrugged and pocketed the pips, still looking a little shocked at his own boldness. "I guess so," he said with a chuckle. "But I can't let an opportunity like this slip by. You never know when you'll need a little extra pips."

As they walked towards the portal, Aaros turned to Janks and asked, "So, kid, have you ever been to Wall of Pallan before?"

Reeve snorted and crossed his arms over his chest. "You do realize you're talking to a kid, right? unless he has the money to pay the high price for entrance to Wall of Pallan" he said, looking at Aaros with a mixture of annoyance and amusement.

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Aaros chuckled and patted Janks on the back. "Oh, I wasn't talking to you, Reeve," he said with a grin. "I was talking to the kid here"

"Yes" Janks replied, "I've been there once with Gibson. We were looking for some books and materials."

Aaros looked at Reeve with an embarrassed expression. "Oops, I guess I was wrong about you not being able to go there," he said sheepishly. Reeve laughed and patted Aaros on the back. "Don't worry about it. We all make mistakes."

As they approached the window, a woman sitting behind it looked up at them with a smile. "Welcome to the Sebastian Portal Services," she said, looking up at them with a friendly smile. "Where will you be traveling to today?"

"Hey there, beautiful," Aaros said, flashing her a charming smile. "I'm Aaros, and these are my friends Janks and Reeve. We're looking to be transported to Wall of Pallan."

The woman raised an eyebrow at Aaros, clearly unimpressed by his charms. "Wall of Pallan is available to anyone, as long as they have the pips to pay for it," she replied coolly. "Do you have the pips to pay for your transport?"

Aaros chuckled and reached into his pocket, pulling out the small bag filled with pips that he had shown to Janks earlier. "I think this should cover it," he said, sliding the bag across the counter towards the woman.

"Do you have a specific store in mind?" she asked, smiling politely. "If not, I can suggest some stores that might have what you're looking for."

Aaros grinned and leaned on the window, trying to flirt with the woman. "How about you just take us to wherever you are going, sweetheart?"

The woman raised an eyebrow at him, unimpressed. "I'm sorry, sir, but I can't do that. Do you have a specific store in mind, or would you like some suggestions?"

Janks stepped forward, trying to be polite. "We're actually just looking for some books related to runes and ether, and some other supplies in creating ether. Do you have any stores that specialize in those sorts of things?"

The woman behind the window smiled at them and show them a list " Well I have a list of popular stores here, like Sebastian Rigg's, Fable Maxwell, and Ivy Vergel. Just let me know which one you'd like to visit, and I can transport you there." She held up a book with a list of stores, and pointed to the top few names.

As Janks looked at the list of stores, his eyes widened at the prices. "1000 pips just to go to Sebastian Rigg's store?" he exclaimed. "That's way too expensive. I'll have to cross that one off the list."

He moved on to the next option, Fable Maxwell's store. "800 pips?" he said, shaking his head. "No way."

Finally, he came to the third option, Ivy Vergel's store. The price was a more reasonable 500 pips, but Janks wasn't sure if it was worth it. "Can you tell me more about this store?"

The woman smiled and explained, "Ivy's store is specialized in ether and has a collection of books on the subject. It's the best place to go if you're looking for anything related to ether. However, it's not very popular because not many people know how to create runes."

"Why is it still so pricey compared to other stores if it's not that popular?" Janks asked, frowning as he looked at the woman.

The woman chuckled and explained, "Well, the reason it costs so much to go to Ivy Vergel's store is because it's the best place to go if you're looking for anything related to ether."

As Janks handed the 500 pips over to the woman at the window, Reeve chuckled and patted Aaros on the back. "Looks like your flirting didn't work this time," he teased.

Aaros rolled his eyes and shrugged. "Well, can't win them all," he said with a grin. "Besides, I'm just here for the shopping."

The woman smiled and took the pips from all three of them, punching a few keys on her keyboard. "Alright, you'll be transported to Ivy Vergel's store in just a moment," she said, gesturing towards the portal. "Have a great time shopping."

Janks couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement, He had been to Wall of Pallan before, but this time felt different. He had a purpose, a goal in mind. He was determined to find the information he needed to improve his tinkering skills, as they stepped through the portal, Janks couldn't wait to see what secrets the store had in store for him.