After stopping a random citizen and having them point me to where Atlajir’s Temple was, I was back on track running towards my destination. I arrived upon a small building that was ivory with gold accents the size of a single room. Standing in front of the building was a middle aged priest sweeping outside, he was tan with a shaved head and a trimmed black goatee with soft hazel eyes that shone as bright as the gold accenting his white robe.

“Hello my child, welcome to the Temple of Altajir, are you here to make a trade with our goddess or are you here to leave an offering?”

“I would like to make a trade with Altajir.”

“Very well my child, but I have to forewarn you, that to make an exchange with Goddess Altajir, you must offer something of equivalent or greater value to receive what you desire, if Goddess Altajir deems your offer as lesser, Goddess Altajir may smite you, Goddess Altajir is not limited to items, you may trade anything with Goddess Altajir, you may trade your strength for knowledge, your hearing for wealth, your life span for a friend, Goddess Altajir will accept any trade as long as Goddess Altajir deems it fair.”

“Great, that’s exactly why I’m here, do I just go in or do I need to wash up first?”

“Head inside and closed the door behind you, then crouch down at the altar of Goddess Altajir and pray to Goddess Altajir what you wish to exchange, Goddess Altajir will then answer your prayer if Goddess Atlajir wishes to.”

“Okay, I’m going in, thanks man.”

The priest slightly bowed to me as I opened the dark oak door to the temple and shut it behind me. In the temple there were a few offerings of currency and food that somehow had not spoiled sitting on the altar. I then knelt at the altar, closed my eyes, and began to pray what I wished to exchange Altajir for, I had already decided I need to get strong enough to become the hero to meet the demon king, but the issue was I only had less than one year to do it, so I need to get stronger faster than anyone else.

“Please Goddess Altajir, I wish to trade with your graciousness.”

‘I really hope this is how I’m supposed to do it.’

“I would like to trade my left eye in exchange for increased growth through training and experience.”

As I waited, with my eyes shut, I felt no different, it didn’t feel like my eye was missing and I didn’t feel like I had received anything.

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“Shit did I do it wron-” but when I opened my eyes, I was in a pale yellow void of endless outstretch, standing on nothing, but standing nonetheless. The void looked like it was slowly moving, drifting around like a cloud, never to reach a destination.

“What an interesting trade you have proposed,” said an enchanting woman’s voice.

Spinning around, I laid my eyes upon an ethereal beauty gracefully floating off the ground, a woman with cascading red hair, some flowing free and some braided neatly, she had turquoise eyes that you could get lost in, and she was wearing a maroon pant suit with a white collared shirt.

“So you wish to trade your left eye for increased growth through training and experience, did I hear that correctly?”

“Um, uh, yes, that is what I wish to trade,” I said while flustered.

“Well it’s a strange trade, the trades I usually get are people wanting tangible results instantly, you’re definitely not the first to offer an eye, but usually they would want a certain amount of wealth or they would want to double their strength or some other aspect of their being, but you want to grow faster from training?

“And experience,” I said quickly.

“Yes, yes, they are one in the same, well lucky for you I don’t hate the idea of your trade, I find it commendable that you wish your hard work to be rewarded, but I hate the perimeters of your trade, there is no quantitative value that your training and experience would be increased by, if I take your eye and I deem it’s value as only worth giving you an increase of 1.1x then you have just lost an eye and only made a tiny gain, and I know you want a better increase than that, but how much larger, two times, three times, ten times, when doing trade you can not leave loose interpretations of your desires, so what do you believe the price for your left eye is, but be warned, don’t take my clarification as kindness, I just hate such an open ended trade, so what is your price?”

exhale “Goddess Altajir, I would like to trade my left eye for four times increased growth through training and experience?”

“Well done dear, but too high.”

“Three times,” I blurted out.

“Hmmm, well I have taken a liking to you and I am interested in what you’ll do in the future with such a trade, so deal.”

Altajir gave a simple flick of her wrist and then I suddenly couldn’t see out of my left eye.

“This was quite an enjoyable trade dear, I will be keeping my eye on you,” She giggled to herself.

“And do come back to me another time dear, I’d love to trade with you again, I’m always happy to accept a good trade.”

She clasped her hands together and the pale yellow world faded until I was back in front of the altar, now missing half my vision.