Ria descended the stairs uncertainly, nerves twisting in her gut. This was her first official trip to interact with the people of Audrilandre. The trip outside the village didn't count, after all, she hadn't interacted with anyone except for the hiba, and she was most certainly not counting that experience!

Ward was waiting for her by the front door and he smiled when he saw her. "You look nice. Ready to go?"

She was dressed in a pretty red floral skirt and a simple white blouse with a sweetheart neckline. Lynne had insisted on using combs to pull her hair away from her face but had left the length hanging free down her back. Instead of her comfortable boots, Lynne had given her a pair of light sandals to wear, citing that she wouldn't want to clomp around the village all day. Making sure that Lynne was not within hearing distance, she asked quietly, "Are you sure that I look all right? Lynne insisted that it was perfect for market day but your sister tends to be, very enthusiastic, about things sometimes so I thought that I would double-check."

He chuckled at that, hooking her arm through his and grabbing a basket before leading her out the door. "I admire your caution, many an unwitting victim has been caught by her innocent enthusiasm to their later regret. However, in this case, she was correct and you'll blend right in. As a matter of fact, I'm surprised that she didn't invite herself on our excursion."

Ria laughed. "She wanted to, she really did. However, she had some sort of commission to deliver across the village and a customer that she needed to meet with today, so she had to pass for today. Still, she made me promise to share all about it tonight at dinner."

He led her through an alleyway toward where she could hear a growing noise. "Ah, that sounds like her. I've teased her in the past about becoming an official investigator, she is quite thorough in her questioning. I hope that you've prepared yourself."

She shrugged, "Worse comes to worst, I'll pretend like I can't understand what she's saying. Which, to be honest, with how fast she talks is not entirely untrue." Steeling her nerves, she asked, "Is there anything I should be aware of before we reach the market? Any taboo behaviors that I need to be careful of?"

He shook his head. "No, people are pretty laid back here. Follow the basic rules of politeness, which I know that you and Mother discussed, and you'll be just fine. We do exchange on a haggling system, so if you wish to buy something, feel free to bargain. However, most shopkeepers are lenient on new star travelers and you're with me, so you shouldn't be badly cheated."

She had to swallow a smile at that, she'd always wanted to haggle and barter but had never had an opportunity to try it. But first, she needed to know the money system. "Can you explain the monetary system to me, please?"

He teased, "Always so polite. Sure, no problem." Releasing her arm, he pulled out a pouch and fished out a few coins. "Here on Audrilandre, we use a monetary system revolving around three types of coins. Although the barter of goods and/or services is acceptable as well. To start with, the smallest coin is a ratica."

He passed her a copper coin stamped with a flower and she took it, ignoring her flush from his teasing about her word choices. She examined it carefully, weighing it in her hand and flipping it over a few times but it was only stamped on one side. "Can you give me a general idea of what it's worth? For example, one ratica is worth....?"

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He thought it over for a moment, "Um, a flower or maybe a couple of eggs? Five ratica is usually worth a loaf of quality bread." He passed her another coin, this one made of a silvery material. "This is a yuple. One yuple is worth ten ratica. On average, a basic laborer will earn anywhere from four to seven yuple for a day's worth of work. A bolt of sturdy cloth is usually around three yuples or a meal at an inn is somewhere between one or two yuples."

She examined it carefully. It was slightly larger than the ratica and it had a star stamped upon one side instead of a flower like the ratica had. Still, it weighed about as much as the copper coin did and they were both lighter than the coins that she was used to from Earth. "So what is the third coin?"

He handed her a gold coin, roughly a third larger than the first two coins. "This is a qualt. It's worth twenty yuples or two hundred raticas. That's usually a basic laborer's pay for a week and most small families can live decently on the sum if they are wise. A good horse is usually about fifteen qualts or to stay at an inn for a month is about 2 qualts. Unless you're in the capital, then it will cost more towards 5 qualts. The capital is an expensive place to live, as is true for most capitals or so I have heard."

She rubbed her thumb absently over the sun on the qualt, marveling at the details of the stamping before handing the coins back. "As a star traveler, what is my stipend? Is it a set amount or a monthly amount?"

"It's a monthly stipend that you receive for the first six months after your arrival here in Audrilandre. After that, it's assumed that you have found a position and settled in. However, if you are still struggling, you can petition the council for additional funds until you find an occupation. If they find your case acceptable, you'll get either a small stipend to see you through or the offer of a position that they know is vacant. If you reject both of those, you are usually advised to try a different town or village or given over into the custody of a guardian to decide your fate."

She grimaced at that. "Yeah, some people are lazy no matter where they are. They're always chasing the next best thing that will be a guaranteed win for them. But they are never really willing to put in the work to succeed at it."

"Exactly! Anyway, back to the stipend. As a star traveler, you will receive ten qualts, twenty yuples, and a hundred ratica. In addition to that, those who house and/or feed you will receive a chit that they can turn in at the council for a daily upkeep sum, in keeping with the costs in the region. That way, the influx of star travelers will not strain the local economy and the star travelers are not fleeced of their funds by unscrupulous people padding their costs."

She quickly calculated the rough amount in her head, her eyes widening as she broke it down given the rough estimates he had used. Where she lived, a good horse cost between two to three thousand dollars. So if a good horse here cost about fifteen qualts, then a qualt was worth between one hundred and fifty to two hundred dollars. So if she was receiving eleven qualts a month, she was receiving roughly two thousand dollars to live on a month. Since a meal was only a couple of yuples and you could rent a room for a month for two qualts, then she should be able to live more than comfortably if she was frugal with her funds. Since she'd never been a fan of an extravagant lifestyle, most of her funds could go toward figuring out a way home.

Suddenly realizing that she had stopped walking while she'd been busy calculating, she shot Ward a sheepish smile. "Sorry. That is quite a generous stipend, I hadn't realized. So, Faye is receiving a chit for letting me stay there?" He nodded. "That's a relief. I've been so focused on acclimating here that it quite slipped my mind. I know you told me about the stipend that first day but I didn't fully absorb everything, I was so overwhelmed. My apologies."

He shook his head, "There is nothing to apologize for. Mother would've thrown a fit if I tried to take you anywhere else and we've all been happy to have you. Focusing on learning is the best course that you could've taken and we've all enjoyed your company. So just relax and let's enjoy market day, okay?"

She went to reply when she spotted the bustling, colorful square behind him. She'd never seen such a beautiful sight.