The fact the Dungeon was after Mana absolutely was important, I had no doubt, and I was going to have to have a long think on the implications. Still, it wasn’t really immediately relevant. So I carefully tucked away the gold nugget of information I’d just gotten and returned to the business at hand.

There was still shopping to do.

I was about to thank Dinkum and get down to having a proper rummage when the door bells jangled again as Gig sauntered in. Hair combed and, tamed as much as it was possible, into a ponytail on the side of her head over one ear. Wearing a leather jerkin, knee high thick heeled boots, and canvas trues. All nicer than anything she’d worn for her tunnel clearing expedition. She looked quite the little adventurer already.

“Hey, Dinks. Hey, Boss.” She chirped.

“Boss, eh?” Dinkum said, and eyed me with an amused look, then gave an expansive sniff. “Paid in points too, no less. A real contract then.” he added, his amusement edging into surprise.

“Yupp! Boss wanted me to show him around and watch his back while he’s in town.” Gig stated proudly, puffing up a bit.

“Well you just make sure to hold true to any deal you made, a [Welcher] drawback could stymie that fancy little perk of yours before you even get your feet under you.” The shopkeep said in the tone of a much repeated lecture. The impression reinforced by the fact Gig’s entire response was a roll of the eyes and a huff.

“Well, considering the first thing Gig did was bring me here, I’d say she’s been worth every copper so far.” I cut in, hoping of head off any more discussion of the topic.

Dinkum snorted at my balant flattery and went back to his book, adding “Let me know if you need anything else.”

I knew a dismissal when I saw one so I turned to Gig. “Hey, How about helping sort through all this, and I'll tell you a thing or two about proper gear. Maybe pick out a couple useful bits of kit for you, well we’re at it?”

Eh, I was pretty flush after all, and an under equipped party member does nobody any favours.

The suggestion was met with a huge grin, eager nod, and extended an arm in silent offer of a shoulder ride, which I happily took her up on.

~~~~~

Everything was loosely organised with similar items grouped together. Some sparse details were haphazardly chalked onto rough hunks of shale serving as signage. Prices listed in weights, which made sense considering the array of mix matched coinage I’d seen already, the majority of values were set in silver and gold with only a few of the simplest most basic items costing coppers.

However some of the more intriguing items had prices in Dungeon Points written under the weights, and a few truly interesting things were marked points only. It seems there were things that gold just couldn’t buy.

Curious, I shot Dinkum a question about it, from my perch across Gig’s shoulders.

He answered without even looking up from his book.

“Gold’s only good as long there's enough points floating around abouts to back it. Past a certain point I’d just be having to haul the coin to a bigger market for the exchange. Not worth the effort way out here.” He turned a page before adding “Flip’s true too, only so much coin in the strong box if you're on the selling end of things.”

Which was fair enough, It’s not like I’d really expected the shopkeeper to be able to produce a chest of gold on the spot if I’d decided to turn all my points to coin for whatever reason.

Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

I’d decided to take care of my necessities before getting caught up in the possibilities of the fancy magic stuff. Pointing out items for Gig to grab for me while explaining their utility as we went.

For starters, as fond as I was of the little canvas pouch I’d been using as my rucksack to that point, it was time for an upgrade. I selected a coin purse I suspected was made of some variety of monster leather or another. It was an ordinary enough shade of brown but the texture was a bit too odd to be cowhide, still it felt it would be extremely durable and it was just the right size for my needs. The inside even had a few clever partitions and pockets that were going to make stowing away gear a much more organised endeavour. I planned on keeping the old pouch as a spare aswell. Never know when you might need an extra bag.

Then I help Gig pick a pack for herself, we settle on something small but tough. Designed to sit at the small of the back. Not a huge amount of storage but a lot better than none, and it wouldn’t do much to impede her movement. It had likely been intended for a gnome or slight halfling so fitted the goblin girl well enough.

Out of a basket of assorted bottles and glasswares I was able to dig up several Guild, standard issue, armoured potion vials. They were each about the size of a man’s thumb. With the tightly fitted caps in place they could be mistaken for a stubby length of rough metal bar. Aside from the narrow slits that ran down each side just wide enough to see the contents of the padded glass vessel snuged inside. Afterall the last thing you want to find is the potion you desperately need shattered in your pack after a touch of rough treatment. The Gods only know how many lives the armoured vials have saved since being introduced. Not that they cared, being assholes and all.

In any case it made them perfect for my purposes. Especially considering the amount I’d been knocked around lately. I set aside three for myself. One for water, as It’s always important to stay hydrated. One for lamp oil, because fire is an adventurer’s friend, plus being able to grease something up in a pinch is nice. Finally a spare to scoop up anything useful along the way. The Dungeon is full of all kinds of interesting goo.

We picked out a waterskin, oil flask, and solid looking bottle for Gig, too. After some prodding on my companion‘s part Dinkum was convinced to part with some of the supply of lamp oil he used to light the shop, saving us a trip to find some elsewhere.

Gig also remembered to replace the lantern she’d lost at the start of our rapid ride. As you expect there was no shortage of them on the shelves. It was a foolish party indeed that didn’t go into a dungeon with at least one lantern between them, even if only as a backup option. It was easy to see why Dinkum chose to use them in the close quarters of the shop over the beacon beetles and their less then pleasant “fuel source”. The [Dung Eater] perk wasn’t just for show.

Next, I replaced my makeshift climbing line with a fishing hook and tackle. I also set aside a small reel of sturdy woven twine, some leather thongs and a fresh loop of wire. Anyone who claims there is such a thing as too much cordage are filthy liars who should be driven from society. Gig, of course, got a bundle rope as well. She will not walk the heretic’s path well I’m around.

I was delighted when we uncovered an entire chest just full of all style of “Thieves’ Friends”. Despite the name the ingenious little implement’s popularity had extended well beyond just the sneaky classes. You’d find them in the belt pouch of most any Adventurer almost as often as a pen knife.

Thieves' Friends were a pair of pliers designed to conveniently collapse in on themselves, but the utility didn’t stop there. Cleverly tucked away in the handles were an assortment of other useful widgets that could be folded out. Everything from blades to corkscrews depending on the Thieves’ Friend in question. A full tool kit in a single item. Just the thing for disarming traps, doing some seat of the pants crafting, or peeling an apple. I’d been missing mine dearly and it would be good to have one at the ready again, at least for a little while.

I chose the slimmest of the lot I could find that still had the tools I considered essential. The one I found had fetching black walnut grips that fit comfortably enough in my paws. It sported pliers with the all important snippers at the base, knife blade, awl, a combination rasp saw, and even a little latch catcher hook. Which I didn’t actually consider an essential, but was a nice bonus all the same. Gig picked out one with a few more doodads than mine and a rather dashing mother of pearl inlay handles. The girl had good taste.

I considered a corner peaking mirror but decided against it. Useful as they could be I doubted the small piece of silvered glass would survive long among my kit. We added it to Gigs’ pile though. Because why not. The thing wasn’t the size of a dinner plate for her.

Then on a whim I added a large, somewhat faded, black silk handkerchief to my pile. Because, well, it wouldn’t take up much space once folded up. Being for all intents and purposes the size of a tarpaulin to me, I could see any number of uses for it from bedroll to trap component.

Finally I added a somewhat slightly used candle. Light, fire, wax, timer, a candle was just a handy thing to have. I’d like to have more than one honestly but I’d reached the limit of what I could comfortably justify carrying for basic utility gear.

Had to leave some room for weapons and specialty items after all.