The night passes without incident, which is a good thing, as I really need the sleep. It is the best night of sleep I have had in a long while, probably thanks to Elzbieta in no small part. I almost wish it could stay like that forever, except, the circumstances are sure to change one way or another sometime soon. Probably.

In the morning Elzbieta helps me relieve the pressure of my breasts after a quick trip to the bathhouse. Afterwards I take care of the milk. I store it in enchanted potion bottles again after heat treating it. That way it will keep a while. Not forever though. I really need to figure out a use for it.

Well, if I can't come up with anything else, I can still sell it to the academy in Barter Town. Eventually. When Agnieszka makes her next trip to the city. Honestly, how can this be such a hassle? Shouldn't having a valuable and rather rare resource available be a good thing? No, never mind. Worrying like that doesn't help.

Instead we make a quick trip down to the inn, to take care of the usual quest and to grab a little something to eat. That mana mill quest is quickly taken care off and our morning meal, just a bowl of hearty porridge today, doesn't take up much of our time either. Before long we are back at the shop.

As usual Elzbieta starts work with the mana mill, once I help her set up by the fireside. I on the other hand decide to put some of the enchanting dust I have stored up by now to good use.

After opening the shop I start work on some new enchanter's chalks. I don't cut any corners on these. I want some good chalks for the enchantments I intend to put on the wreath. And Krystina mentioned that someone is likely to put my skills to the test in the days to come. I'll need good chalks for that occasion even more. I really don't want to screw that up after all.

Sour Cream on the other hand is a little late today. I'm getting a little worried even, as I hear her meow from the direction of the door.

The mixture for the chalks is in the small cauldron I suspend in the hot water I filled the big one with. Nothing can burn like that, thus I take a moment to check on her.

“Oh my!”

The surprise at the sight that greets me is clear in my voice.

Sour Cream's fur is ruffled and not just a little. I don't have to guess at the reason either. She is sitting there, next to the door, with a dead rodent of unusual size. Only as she hears my exclamation does she drop it, only to put a paw on it, claws out, right away.

Is she bragging? Or is she just making sure it doesn't play dead and get away? I wouldn't be surprised if the rodent had tried that at least once.

“Meow!”

Drawn out by my own exclamation of surprise, and Sour Cream's second much more audible exclamation, Elzbieta joins us too.

“Oh my indeed! A water rat! That is a rare catch.”

She bends down to scratch the cat behind the ears and Sour Cream leans into her palm in turn, enjoying the attention to the fullest.

I inspect the feline's catch a little in the meantime. That is a water rat? I have to admit I have never seen a specimen, not in whole. Their tails I know though. Those are prized among alchemists, or rather the fat that can be extracted from them is.

What does Sour Cream want with one though? It is entirely too large to be eaten whole and as sharp as her claws may be, she will have trouble getting through the thick fur. That she managed to kill it at all is already a surprise.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

Once Elzbieta gets back up, not entirely without trouble, and with a little help from me in the end, I take over for her. It is now my turn to praise and pet Sour Cream.

Elzbieta chuckles, as she watches us.

“Want me to take care of it? You only need the tail, right? At least that is the only thing your grandmother wanted from these. That and the meat for our brave little huntress, yes?”

It is as if Sour Cream understands her. Or maybe this is a spiel she is familiar with?

“Meow!”

I just nod. Protesting wouldn't be of any use anyway.

“Sure. What is in it for you though?”

The pregnant huntswoman shrugs, before she answers.

“I can sell the fur. There is no market for it here in Clear Brook, but rich city folk seem to like it.”

She shrugs again and adds another little tidbit of information.

“If you ask me beaver is much better, but water rats are a little more abundant. As a matter of fact we might want to mention this to the elder. If Sour Cream got one around here, there might be a whole colony dug somewhere into the riverbank, making it unstable in the process.”

I can only nod in agreement. The elder will know what to do. We'll let him know.

“Lets talk with him during our lunch break, yes? Do you … do you need help with that water rat?”

Elzbieta shakes her head.

“Nah, I can manage. You go and take care of the store. Maybe pour our little hunter some cream? She certainly deserves a reward.”

Sour Cream perks up at the mention. Her tail is standing at attention, only the very tip waving about excitedly. I suspects she understands well enough what we are talking about.

I pet her a little more before I head inside with her. I barely manage to pour her her treat without spilling any, as she keeps weaving in between and around my legs.

Eventually I get around to actually opening the shop, while Elzbieta takes care of Sour Cream's catch out back. I leave the door connecting the shop out front with the workshop in the back open and finish my new batch of chalks. Once I'm done I set them out to cool and harden.

Just as I settle in at the counter with my notebook, after updating my ledger with the expenditure for today's mana mill quest, to finalize the design for the enchantments that will go on the wreath, a customer I haven't seen in a while knocks on the door frame.

It's Nuutti of the Iivari.

“Nuutti of the Iivari family. Welcome to my shop. What can I do for you?”

He bows, ever so slightly, as he sees that he has my attention.

“Valeria. I would like to inquire. Could you make a potent stamina potion for me? Something that will allow me to keep fighting in a berserk rage longer?”

I blink in surprise at first, then I point at the appropriate shelf.

“I have some more potent stamina potions in stock. Have a look. If you need something stronger still, I can come up with something for you too. I just hope you don't need it right away.”

He walks over to the shelf I indicated. Along the way he shakes his head.

“No. I'm not in a hurry. When facing troublesome foes, preparations need to be taken seriously. They take time and shouldn't be rushed.”

He scrutinizes the potions closely, probably using a skill in the process.

“These look good. Could you still make another for me? The most potent you can brew? Just to make sure.”

I nod and add up the two stamina potions he brings to the counter.

“These will be two silver Crowns. Will tomorrow be soon enough?”

He pays without haggling and nods in turn.

“Yes, tomorrow will be fine.”

He bows his head again. Then without any further delay he leaves.

I bite my lip as he leaves and make a few quick notes. His request should be easy enough to fulfill. It shouldn't take too much time either. I settle on a recipe almost in the blink of the eye.

Coffee will serve as the base. I'll settle for normal coffee this time around, instead of the mana spiked variety. Sugar and some birch sap will add sweetness. They match the stamina recovery properties of the coffee too. A little virgin milk will round off the flavor and maybe some spice like clove or cinnamon will add an additional kick. Yes, that will do nicely. I'll use one of my enchanted potion bottles to make sure it'll keep.

I nod to myself. That is decided then. I'll get to it later. I need to focus on the enchantment now first and foremost. After taking one more deep breath I start taking note and crunching numbers in earnest.