Jade was rescued from having to form a reply by Naomi.

"Wait." Naomi said, breaking into the conversation. "What do you mean by 'more humans'. Did others come here?"

"Ya, we've been gettin' more of you lot over the past few days." Skraag said, abandoning his rictus of a smile. "Just the other day I had two of ya in here pawning off all sorts of low tier gear."

Jade felt a jolt go through her spine.

"These people, can you describe them?"

Skraag shrugged, reeling off a description that matched up quite well with what Jade had in mind. She shared a dark look with her companions. Now they knew why Michael and Amy and been attacking other wayfarers for their equipment.

"No wonder we found so many coin pouches hidden in their bags…" Jade muttered.

Before moving off to peruse what the shop had to offer, Jade took a moment to examine Skraag with the interface.

* Skraag

* Level: 20

* Race: Kobold

* Class: None

* Origin: Labyrinth-born

So, he was Labyrinth-born too. That made Skraag like Damos, although he wasn't a 'Labyrinth elemental' like the sanctuary attendant was. According to Siora, Labyrinth-born creatures were created from entities called 'Labyrinth spirits' that could take on a variety of forms. Those spirits were what created most of the monsters that roamed the Astral Labyrinth, and creatures like Skraag and Damos that saw to its administrative necessities.

Jade felt that there was something wrong with the fact that the Labyrinth could just form intelligent creatures out of its spirits. Did the Labyrinth use intelligent creatures like it did monsters? As enemies they would have to cut down? She would have to ask Siora that soon, although she expected that she wouldn't like the answer.

The store itself had a lot to get excited about, and their group split up to examine its contents while Skraag lounged at the counter. Jade was immediately drawn to the section that contained magical bags, practically shoving Erik out of the way to get to them faster. She read the system description, then looked at her party members.

"We're getting this." she declared. "I don't care how much it costs."

After she explained what the item could do, no one even tried to argue. The 'Dimensional Pouch' looked quite similar to her 'Bag of Mystery’ but could store up to two hundred and fifty pounds of material. There were some size restrictions, but they were generous enough that she didn't anticipate any problems.

"This is going to make things so much easier." She sighed, handing over a rather large pile of coins to Skraag. The kobold grumbled while counting them up, reminding Jade of any number of unenthusiastic retail workers she had encountered in her old life. It was oddly comforting to find that some things were simply a constant in the wider universe.

With their pockets considerably lighter, both figuratively and literally, they resumed browsing what the store had on display. There was a great deal of miscellaneous equipment like basic tools, camping gear, and rope, and they stocked up on some inexpensive essentials. Much to Luis's disappointment, however, the inventory did not include a ten-foot pole.

Both Jade and Naomi had been hoping to acquire some extra changes of clothes, but they found little in the way of apparel. Siora consoled them by promising that there would be plenty of outfits available to them upon reaching Lysara. They were all running out of things to wear at this point and were mostly making do with their armor.

On the subject of armor, the shop had a supply of several varieties of enchanted defensive equipment. Warded armor, Skraag explained tersely, was enhanced with magical protections that could shield the wearer and absorb damage. To Jade, it sounded like a type of arcane force field like Luis's 'Shield Burst' spell. Anything that would make combat safer for them was a top priority, and they pooled the remainder of their money to buy enchanted versions of the armor they were currently wearing. Even better, warded armor was imbued with a limited ability to repair itself after being damaged.

"What do you think?" Jade asked, inspecting her newly equipped D-rank arcane leather armor.

"Very heroic." Naomi commented, pausing as she pulled on her own gear. "It looks a lot better without all the scrapes and gashes."

Unfortunately, they couldn't afford to equip Siora with enchanted armor as well, it was just too expensive for the moment. Since Jade, Luis, and Naomi were usually the ones in danger from monsters, they had elected to upgrade their defenses first. Since the elf was now wearing Naomi's old light armor herself, though, they had all received a substantial upgrade.

Skraag explained to them that the D-rank enchantments would likely only be able to stop a single solid hit from a monster before needing to recharge, a process that took long enough that it wasn't likely to be useful multiple times in the same fight. Even that was an enormous boon, though, giving Jade and Luis especially a margin for error that they had lacked in their previous battles.

Fortunately, the system was able to modify Jade's armor to accommodate her demon form's wings. The armor set she was provided with possessed the same slits that her original class-given equipment did. Overall, their new gear wasn't very visually different, but the increase in capabilities would be a game changer.

Basic enchanted weapons were available for purchase as well, but they turned out to cost even more than the armor. The group decided to prioritize their defenses first, and to begin saving up to acquire superior weapons at the earliest opportunity.

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For her part, Siora spent most of their time in the store perusing the spellbooks. Jade had heard her mention them before, but this was her first time seeing them.

"I wish I'd had my spellbook on me when I fell down to this floor." Siora sighed, wistfully looking through the display case at the selection of tomes. Most of them were far outside of their price range. "It has a couple of useful spells for adventuring."

"You have one of these?" Jade asked.

"Oh yes, many people at least have an F or D level spellbook. It's the easiest way for low level people to add a couple of spells we normally wouldn't have room for." Siora explained. "Tome spells don't count against your spell limit, just like talent tattoos don't count against your talent limit." Siora pointed at another display case, this one filled with various tattoo designs.

"How do they work?" Jade curiously looked at one of the thick tomes. Its cover was illustrated with a depiction of swirling wind.

"You know how the spells we get from the Labyrinth are 'soul imprinted'?"

"Yes, I've heard that."

"That means the magical pathways are carved into your soul. So, you can cast the spell by channeling mana through yourself."

"That makes sense." Jade was still coming to terms with the definitive existence of a soul, but the explanation was simple enough.

"I just have a basic understanding." Siora continued. "But spellbooks give us 'soul-bonded' spells. When you use one, you channel the magic through runes inscribed in the book rather than your own soul."

"That sounds convenient. I imagine that something stops you from just carrying around a bunch of spellbooks so you have access to dozens of spells?"

"Yes." Siora laughed. "That's why it's called 'bonded'. You can only link your soul to one tome at a time. You can change it, so some people do have more than one, but it's a pretty slow process."

"It really would be great to have some more options." Jade said, looking longingly at the pile of books. Unfortunately, after all the purchases they'd just made, she was completely broke.

"They are very helpful." Siora agreed. "Someone like you can use a spellbook to gain some utility spells that you wouldn't normally have room for, since you're a combat class. And an alchemist like me could pick up a combat tome that gives me some options for emergencies."

"Are you going to get one?" Jade asked. The elf was inspecting one of the less expensive options, a D-rank tome that contained some sort of ice magic.

"Yes." She nodded. "It's much more expensive than the one I bought in Estelhelm, and very inefficient since it only has one spell, but I'm tired of hiding in the back while my friends fight for me."

Siora waved Skraag over, pointing to the book in question.

"I've never been good at fighting, or liked it. But for the rest of the time I'm with you, I'm going to help."

----------------------------------------

Harish's group ended up only purchasing a handful of potions, they couldn't afford much else yet. Having access to the shop would be quite a boon to their advancement, however, seeing as they could turn their quest rewards and monster loot into whatever upgrades they needed on demand. Jade and her companions also took the opportunity to redeem their 'bronze compensation tokens', which Skraag exchanged for one 'minor experience boost' potion each. The potions would moderately increase their experience gain for one hour after consuming it. Jade wasn't sure when the best time to use them would be, but there wasn't a rush. It's not like they expired.

Before long, everyone had wrapped up their last purchases. Jade was rather impressed to see that Naomi had already transferred all the colorful tassels over to her new armor, giving her appearance a little flair. It still seemed a little silly to Jade to worry about fashion while they were fighting for their lives, but if it made it easier for Naomi to deal with their situation then she wouldn't comment.

"Before ya go." Skraag said, stopping them by the door. "I have a few personal, non-Labyrinth-generated items I've been workin' on. Are any of ya interested in buyin' some of my throwable bombs?"

"No, we're ok." Naomi said with a conciliatory smile.

"Yes!" Luis interrupted.

"It depends." Jade said, talking over them both.

Marie laughed.

"You three are quite the group."

"What kind of bombs are we talking about?" Jade asked, ignoring the comment.

"No! We don't need any bombs, Jade." Naomi said before Skraag could reply.

"We can't know that until we hear what they do." She pointed out, and Luis nodded in agreement.

"Well, they're still in the experimental stage, so I'm willin' to part with 'em for a discount if ya bring me back some feedback."

Luis opened his mouth to reply, but Naomi clamped a hand over it before he could. She gave the kobold shopkeeper a strained smile.

"We don't need any prototype explosives, thanks."

Jade actually thought that it wouldn't be a bad idea to have some explosives to use in a pinch, but decided to give Naomi this one. Someone needed to think about safety.

"Bye Skraag." Siora said with a wave. "Tell Kreshka that Siora says hello whenever you see her!"

The seven of them exited the shop with their purchases, leaving behind a slightly disappointed looking kobold and emerging back in the jungle.

"Who's Kreshka?" Luis asked.

"Oh, just the shopkeeper that I usually run into when I visit the Labyrinth Store. You usually get the same one, no matter which entrance you use. I think it depends on who opens the door, though."

"There are multiple shopkeepers?" Naomi asked.

Siora blinked at her.

"There's a whole clan of them. Entire cities of people live in the Labyrinth. It'd get pretty crowded if there was only one version of the store."

"Magic…" Naomi said, shaking her head.

The group walked the short distance back to the river and then stopped, turning to face each other.

"Well, I think we're going to head out now." Jade said. The sun was still high in the sky, and they had plenty of daylight left.

"You intend on trying to reach the second floor?" Harish asked.

"Yes, we already have a floor key. Someone has to get started breaking those Core things before they start mining Earth, or whatever it is they do."

"You're a lot braver than me." Marie said quietly. She was wearing armor and carrying a staff now. The look rather suited the woman. Jade thought that she looked a little more determined, now. Maybe she could face the ordeals of the trial, at least enough to complete it and get home.

"Once we get stronger, we'll try and follow." Erik said, holding out his hand.

They all shook hands, taking some time to bid farewell. They hadn't known each other long, but friendships were forged quickly in the fires of conflict.

"If you run into trouble, follow the river to the waterfall. There's a giant tree in the valley below where a Dryad lives. She can help you if you need it." Naomi said.

"She's very friendly." Siora agreed. "But watch out for the giant spiders."

"Thanks for the tip." Erik nodded. Adjusting or not, their group looked a little alarmed at the idea of giant spiders. Jade still didn't understand why they were such a big deal.

"Next time, we'll be the ones helping you." He finished.

"Lookin' forward to it." Luis grinned.

The three of them set off back downriver, finally ready to explore the quadrant in earnest. Jade hoped it would work out for them. None of the monsters here were too dangerous. If they were careful, they'd be able to gain levels and strength.

"Alright." Jade said, tapping her wayfarer mark to activate the 'Pathfinder' spell. The illusory arrow shimmered to life above her hand, pointing into the depths of the jungle.

"Let's get you home, Siora."