The Great Bazaar. Though uninspired, that’s how Windermere's biggest market was called. The merchants crossing Windemere brought goods from the north and west, sold them here, bought our specialties, and then left to peddle elsewhere, stock up, and return. It had the reputation of offering everything under the sun for sale. Except for slaves.

Slavery in Windemere was taboo and we enforced that on our borders. Every porter, every servant was offered the choice of quitting their employment and asked if they were coerced into servitude with some collateral like their families held hostage.

The punishment for slavery was death. Windemere had no jail except for a few cases where the attention of a judge was necessary. Keeping powerful people incarcerated was expensive and Windemere used [Assassins] as police. A lot of crimes in Windermere ended in death after using magic to discern the truth.

The stalls were adapted for all kinds of people, both short and tall. Instead of a counter, they used a slanted board with pegs where boxes with goods could rest on. That allowed all customers to see what they had for sale as well as eliminating a blind spot for thieves.

A theft wasn’t punishable by death but a heavy fine. Thieves that couldn’t pay the fine were branded with magic and unceremoniously exiled. No dismemberment as some cultures on Earth. Debt servitude was also off the table. It was a slippery slope that led back to slavery.

The pouch of coins I earned was digging a hole in my belt. The jingling coins begged to be spent. I spent some time watching the people and what was for sale. I wanted to know what was trending among the people. Windemerians were all well-dressed. We had an entire species made out of cloth and the fabrics and clothes made here were worn by nobility all over the continent and beyond.

“Hey, fox-kin sister! Come here! I have these new ear ornaments that are the latest fashion in the Uroko gulf!”

Curious, I approached. He had bronze clasps with decorative chain loops that would dangle from the ear after attached. He also had piercings and rings you could fit at the base of the ear. But I didn’t see the kin women wearing them. I gave him some excuse and moved on.

I bought some basic necessities, bedding, sheets, and a down pillow. I had the bulky purchases delivered to the smithy for a small fee. I had more than enough for an army in my item box but I found the challenge enticing. Live without relying too much on my spoils of wars past. Using the {Living Threads} Perk to make silk was also out of question. The silk-folk always wished to figure out the secret of its creation and how to weave living silk.

The merchants actively engaged with their customers. I dodged a few pickpockets and had to trip one returning customer before the urchin gave up. I was dressed in commoner clothes but I suspected too many rogues were homing in my bag of coin. My shopping trip wouldn't be anything to write home about if not by a fateful meeting.

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“Hey, young lady!” A fat cat-kin waving his paw called me. He wore several overlaid fine silk robes. His face had a stubby muzzle and was covered in orange fur with white cheeks. “The finest dresses in all of Windemere! Come take a look! We can adjust them for you on the fly!” He was a curious fellow and his grin reminded me of the Cheshire cat minus the invisibility.

> Contested Charisma test won.

He probably had a Perk or Ability to gauge the purchasing power of their customers. He probably decided I would be an easy mark. I decided to skin the cat-man.

I chuckled and locked my gaze on him. “You seem like a shrewd merchant, mister. Show me your wares.”

His lips twitched for only a moment. His fangy grin was back in all its splendor right away. “Of course, this way. Step into my tent!”

His tent was the standard market stall but he disguised the fact it extended into the house behind it. The walls were all covered in colorful cloth and magical lamps lit the way.

“You are very beautiful, miss. I’m Fat Felix, at your service! What glamorous clothes are you buying today? Forgive my indiscretion, are you a half-eleon? No, too tall. Half-dwarf? You are lean and your skin is too smooth. You’re a mysterious lady!” He flattered.

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“You have keen eyes, Fat Felix,” I returned the grin. But I beg you to remember that the keen eyes that stare at the sun for too long become blind.” I let just a bit of my {Eldritch Presence} affect him. He deserved it.

> Contested Charisma test won.

He held his breath for a moment but was back at his usual honeyed voice. “Are you a student at the academy, milady?”

“Yes, I’m enrolling tomorrow.”

“A mighty [Wizard] you’ll once be, I’m sure of it. Oh, what a delightful day, to have such an esteemed and promising spellcaster in my humble tent. Please, please, come this way.”

He served me tea and some pastries. His helpers, a rat-kin girl with pristine white fur and large round ears, and a tall half-orc-human lady came.

“We need your measurements, my lady,” Fat Felix explained. “Would you let Shudra here do the honors?”

I raised a hand to stop them. “Before you ruin your merchandise, show me the dresses you have. I’ll need everyday clothes too.”

“Yes, yes. Shudra, bring her dresses that can bring out the vivid and gorgeous orange of our fox-kin customer. Miss?” He fished for my name.

“Haru. No last name.”

Catching my lie, his nose twitched and he narrowed his pupils. “No last name. Of course,” he mumbled.

Shudra brought several dresses but one dark green with a pleated skirt caught my interest. Fat Felix unveiled a mirror and I put the dresses in front of me to see how they’d look.

“You must’ve traveled a long distance to come here, miss. What’s our impression of fair Windemere so far?” He probed for information.

Ignoring his inquiry, I said as an afterthought, “I would love to see your other wares too, Fat Felix, sir. The intangible ones.”

“Fat Felix deals in fabric only, my lady,” he deadpanned.

Shudra went back to fetch more dresses. I ran my hand through the fabrics hiding the building walls, “Oh, but I want to purchase the fabric of reality. Some call it the truth, some call it by other names. None can touch it but we all are its weavers, willingly or unwittingly.”

I couldn’t pierce this guy {Status Forgery}. Just trying while we talked already gave me two points in {Appraiser}. He couldn’t pierce mine either but he knew I could resist his social interactions. I had ten platinum coins that said this guy was an information broker. Nothing freaked out people obsessed with information than an unknown, a mystery they couldn’t pierce. There was no other explanation why this obviously rich merchant had any interest in a girl dressed like a peasant walking down the market. I didn’t wear a single piece of jewelry.

That gave me an idea of where I should spend two of my Perk vouchers.

> * Sealed Storage (very rare): Third parties need to defeat your Willpower plus Magic to read the contents or steal from your dimensional storage.

> * Familiar Masking (ultra-rare): If your familiars are within SQRT(Magic) of you, any attempts to appraise them are compared against your protections.

“Wishing for the world is a prerogative of the youth. But I’m afraid what the miss wants is too steep for her.”

I cupped my empty hands and turned them around so he could see I had no rings on me. Then I shook them to show the space between them was empty. Extending them, I dropped coins from the upper hand, letting them clink against one another. Then I lifted it. Then shiny platinum coins from all over the world appeared. “Master Fat Felix, hold this as a deposit against my purchases. I must have the green dress and many, many others. I’m sorry, what were you saying?”

I glared at him.

The cat-kin didn’t take the coins. He bowed sixty degrees and straightened himself, contrite. “It seems I offended the lady. I’ll offer you one thread from the fabric of the world for free. The fabric of the world. Would you mind if I used this?”

“Not at all. Consider it a fair trade for two questions then,” I said and he nodded. “Who do you think will become the next Ruler of Windemere?”

He chortled. Fat Felix had an impressive tummy underneath all those silk robes. He clapped his paws and made a discrete signal for his helpers to stay back. “A lady after my own heart! How delightful. I don’t know, miss. But I’ll tell you won’t be any of the fools currently vying for the destroyed throne.”

Fat Felix was baiting me to burn the second question on a follow-up and I almost fell for it. Instead, I let the droning sounds of the market outside drown the silence and then asked my second question. “Where is the Tabard?”

He gasped with genuine surprise and then grinned. “Straight for the throat. Like the [Matriarch] of legend. A ferocious black jaguar, she was! Did you know no other cat-kin or were-cat ever had fur so black as her?”

I grinned too. “Oh, a third question. Fine. Yes, I know. No cat-kin or were-cat can have black fur. And the [Matriarch] is neither. She is moon-bound. A human that fused with a living black jaguar through ancient elven magic.”

Fat Felix hacked like a cat choking on a hairball. “How do you know that?”

I tapped his arm. “That makes four. But this last one costs your life, Fat Felix. You’re now under a {Royal Geas}. Speak of it to nobody.”

> Contested Charisma check won.

Staring into his eyes, I commanded “I’ll visit you every ten days. I want information on Torgo’s movements. I want to know the Tabard’s whereabouts.”

Cloaking the room with an illusion of us talking and making sure we didn’t have anyone spying on us, I shifted. It’s been so long. I couldn’t use my {Moonbound Transformation} if my base form wasn’t humanoid. Lakerta, Arista, and Snowdrop weren’t. I also changed my base shape to increase my height until I towered over Fat Felix by half a head.

I, the [Matriarch], smiled at him, “Greetings, child of mine.”

That day, Fat Felix became a few pounds lighter but several platinum richer.