The person who’d made the flyer had been thoughtful enough to make a map on the back. Maps seemed to work the same way here as they did back home, and I easily found the river, the city wall and gates, the palace and the bridge. The shop seemed to be close by, just a few streets back up the hill.

I felt better now, for some reason. It was perhaps silly, but it felt good to be recognized as an adventurer, to have a place in this world. I had friends too, of a sort, in the party. They had been very friendly to me - well, most of them. Some.

Sure, Caveria had been downright hostile in the beginning, and Thord didn’t say much, but Serah and Arndrir had been helpful and friendly. And Tiriel had been friendly, hadn’t she?

I wasn’t sure, when I thought about it. She was certainly happy and cheerful, and very clearly believed in me, but she wasn’t really friendly. She hadn’t shown much interest in me, hadn’t asked questions or tried to get to know me. It was more like she took me for granted.

Right then I turned a corner, and found the shop. It looked just like it did on the flyer, and from this angle too. It seemed to be open, so I went in. A small bell chimed as I closed the door.

“Welcome, adventurer!” I didn’t see who was talking, behind the jumble of stuff filling the shop, but a woman stepped out from behind a suit of armor and smiled warmly at me.

“Hello,” I said, and banged my head on a sword hanging from the ceiling. Sheathed, or it would have nicked my ear.

The woman chuckled. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I have been looking for a larger place for my shop for a long time, but it isn’t so easy to find. Come here, there’s more space here.”

I made my way past shelves with boots, knives, drinking horns, helmets, folded tunics, and other things. It looked like an equipment store for adventurers.

The woman was standing beside a counter, in the center of the largest open space in the shop. She smiled at me and looked at me with the same curious, intelligent expression as the flyer girl’s.

“I was told to say Devih sent me,” I said.

The woman nodded. “So she said. Devih!”

“Hello, mister!” The girl popped out through a doorway behind the counter and waved at me, before popping back in.

“Wait -” the woman began, but then shook her head with a soft laugh.

“She won’t be still for long, that one,” she told me. “So. I am miss Morcala. Welcome to my Adventurous Shoppe! What do you need?”

I almost told her I didn’t need anything, but as I opened my mouth I had another idea, and that came out instead.

“What do you have that can be useful when hunting dragons?”

She raised her eyebrows and cocked her head, but her expression was neutral.

“Dragons,” she said. “Those are not easy to hunt. It is more often the other way around. Have you hunted dragons before?”

“No,” I admitted, “but there are members of my party who have.”

She raised her eyebrows again and looked at me with round eyes. “I had heard that Caveria Dragonbane and Arndrir Hellagrimsòn are in town,” she said. “Are you in their party?”

“Well, yes,” I said with a small laugh. “Are they that famous?”

“Famous! They are legendary.” She looked at me in confusion. “You must have heard the songs...?”

“I’m... I’m not from around here. I come from far away.”

“Ah,” she said, but didn’t look convinced. “Ah. Well, in that case it may perhaps work out, then. So. Dragon hunting.”

“Dragon hunting?!” I jumped as the girl popped up behind the counter. “Are you a dragon hunter, mister?”

“No, no,” I said, “I’m not.”

“He’s traveling with Caveria,” miss Morcala said.

“Wow!” The girl looked extremely impressed. “She’s my hero!”

“I see,” I said. So Caveria was that famous? “She’s cool, isn’t she?”

“Yeah!” Devih nodded vigorously. “She’s the best battle mage in the world! And she’s helped so many people!”

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The girl began singing a song I’d never heard, with a strange, lilting melody. “In the wild mountain country where the dragons roam free, came a young hero striding and a wonder was she.”

“Devih!” miss Morcala said. “Our customer isn’t here to hear you sing!”

“No, it’s fine,” I said, but Devih stuck out her tongue at miss Morcala and ducked back through the doorway. “What was the song?” I asked.

“The Ballad of Caveria Dragonbane. One of the most famous songs about her deeds.” She shook her head. “You really aren’t from around here, or anywhere nearby. And you haven’t spent much time with young girls either. Caveria is a hero to a lot of them.”

“Ah,” I said.

“I’ll admit I’m a bit awed myself,” she said ruefully. “Traveling with Caveria Dragonbane! And Arndrir Hellagrimsòn.” She chuckled.

I revised my understanding of Caveria’s fame even further upwards, and decided not to tell miss Morcala - or Devih - that I’d found the legendary battle mage grouchy and rather difficult to deal with. It wasn’t my place to mess with their hero worship.

“Well, back to your request,” miss Morcala said. “I don’t have anything specifically for dragon hunting, but I do have some magical amulets that might be helpful. If you come this way.”

I followed her into an even more overloaded corner of the store, to a shelf with stones and crystals mostly set in rings, necklaces and bracelets.

“Most of my stock is ordinary adventurer’s supplies,” she explained and gestured around the shop. “I can equip healers, archers, swordsmen - like yourself, craftsmen, and everything else you need. Except for mages.”

“Why not?” I said.

“The mage’s guild keeps a strict monopoly on that,” she replied. “I can sell amulets and potions, of course, but not magical weapons or materials. Or instruction materials.”

“Forgive me the stupid question, but... what are instruction materials?”

She looked back at me quizzically. “Why, books and other items used in magical training.”

“Why would you sell that?”

She laughed. “Oh, those would be very much in demand! So many people would like to learn magic!”

I blinked. I hadn’t considered that at all. “You can learn magic? It’s not something you’re born with?”

“Well, I am not a mage, and I do not play one in the bardic plays, but yes, the mage’s guild themselves say anyone can learn it. Or, rather - everyone is born with it, and can shape and strengthen their talent. With the help of the guild, of course, and for a fee. A hefty fee.”

“I see,” I said. That - changed things. Actually, I wasn’t sure it did, but it felt like it should. It would explain, perhaps, why they didn’t have so much technology here, if everyone had magic. Except they didn’t, as far as I could tell. Alright, I decided, this was a question for later.

“You mentioned magical amulets,” I said. “These here?”

“Yes,” she said. “I was thinking especially about these.” She picked up a red polished stone hanging on a braided leather string. “This one protects from fire magic. I thought it can be useful if you are traveling with battle mages, and maybe even against dragons.” She handed it to me.

It felt like - a stone. Like any polished gem. I couldn’t sense anything special with it. “Do you need to do anything to use it?”

She shook her head. “No. All you need to do is wear it, preferably near your heart. You can adapt the string. The other one I was thinking of is this.” She picked a green one. “This helps with healing. It won’t stop you from getting injured but it helps the mind and body heal if wounded.” She handed it to me as well. “It should be worn by your stomach. Inside the belt is good.”

I held it up. It sparkled with light, even in the dimly lit shop.

“I think they would be the most useful,” miss Morcala said, leaning in to inspect the others. “The rest are more generally useful - finding fresh water, moving silently through the forest, that kind of thing. Not that they wouldn’t be useful for you as well, but they say you shouldn’t wear too many, or the magic might become disrupted.”

“That doesn’t sound good. I think these are good. What is the price?”

She named it.

“Oh,” I said. I only had about half of that. “That’s... more than I have.” I thought briefly about going back to ask Tiriel if I could have more money, but

I really didn’t feel like that. It felt too much like going to my mother and ask for money. Not that Tiriel was anything like my mother, but still.

Miss Morcala considered me with a slight smile. “I don’t know why, but I trust you,” she said. “You are not a typical adventurer, but your tale is too fantastical to be made up. Perhaps we can find another arrangement. I may consider adjusting the price, in exchange for a small... service.” She glanced over her shoulder and lowered her voice.

“Devih looks up to Caveria, as you’ve heard. Do you think... it could be possible to arrange a meeting? It would mean a lot to her. And to me,” she added with a small laugh.

“I don’t know,” I said truthfully. I had no idea how Caveria regarded her status. She hadn’t mentioned it, as far as I could remember. “I could try, but I cannot guarantee it.”

She nodded. “It is still better than this morning, when there was no chance.” She sighed. “The girl is so energetic. She needs something to strive for, or I fear she will end up in trouble.”

“Is she, um, your daughter?” I wasn’t sure if this was an acceptable thing to ask, but she didn’t seem to take offense.

“No. She’s my niece. Her parents were killed a few years ago, by one of those accursed caves.” She grimaced.

Like Caveria’s parents, I didn’t say. I didn’t know if that was common knowledge. It would make the meeting even more meaningful, though, and would maybe make Caveria more inclined to agree.

“I will do everything I can to ensure Devih can meet her hero,” I told miss Morcala. “In fact, I will try to get the whole party to come here. We could, uh, sign books or something.”

She stared at me, eyes wide. “Do you have a party deck?”

“A what?

“A card deck, with your likenesses on the cards. It’s common,” she explained. “People collect them.”

“I don’t think we do, but maybe we could. I’ll ask.”

She pressed fingers to her lips and stared at me, eyes twinkling. “That would be truly fantastic. It would mean a lot for my shop!”

“I will do my best,” I said again.

I paid her - all the money I had - and got the amulets. She showed me how to wear them. I should get a small pouch sewn into the back of my belt, for the healing stone.

I said goodbye and headed back down to the river, rather than trying to find my way through the maze of streets and alleys.