"That's a little cold, isn't it? I swear nobody ever gets my jokes," the dwarf said, picking up on Ryan's pissed expression.

Instantly, Ryan's anger left.

"It's okay, I was just pulling your legs with the act," Ryan said with a fake smile.

The dwarf seemed to buy it and reciprocated the reaction, collecting his items and giving Ryan his coin.

Ryan slumped into his stool as soon as the dwarf left with that weird smile expression—one that made Ryan's skin crawl, but he wouldn't hold it against the adventurer. Some people were just like that.

Ryan carried on setting up his shop in preparation for more customers. The last teleportation stone sat on its shelf, staring at him with a promise of getting him out of debt.

The day went by swiftly, with Ryan ending up making over twenty-six gold coins and selling out the last of his and Gerhalt's teleportation stones.

Which meant it was time to pay the piper.

The walk to central town was casual. Ryan didn't have a care in the world, and the world didn't have any care for him.

He began to walk up to the iron bender's shop before stopping himself at the door, the forge's oppressive heat reminding him that he was supposed to go into the adjacent shop.

Walking into the weapons store, he nodded at the attendant behind the counter.

"Good evening, Mr. Lionheart, how can I help you?" the attendant asked.

Ryan was a little caught off guard by the question; wasn't it obvious what or whom he'd come for?

Was he dressed anything like an adventurer, or was the attendant just daft? Maybe the attendant had forgotten about him entirely and only retained his name and nothing more.

Ryan prepared himself to make a scene but knew within that it wasn't worth it, so he calmed himself down. After all, it was a reasonable question in a fashion, just one that Ryan didn't understand.

"I'm here to see Mr. Gerhalt," Ryan said politely.

"Okay, I'll inform him you're here. Please have a seat," the attendant said, pointing to a couple of chairs at the edge of the store, far away from valuable merchandise.

As soon as Ryan took his seat, the attendant turned and walked into the back room. Ryan heard a knock and a muffled sound.

A door closed, and he assumed they were in the middle of a conversation.

Ryan began to use his eyes to rake through the items arranged on the walls and in showcases.

Ryan wasn't a weapons master, a blacksmith, or an adventurer by any stretch, but even he could attest to the quality of the weapons casually hung on the walls like decorations; various artifacts sat on plush velvet cushions in showcases.

The entire scene screamed wealth, a whole lot of it.

Maybe he should consider going into the weapons trade; weapons definitely cost good money, a lot more than he could afford at any rate for sure. However, he was content to calmly wait until he had enough gold to add more stock to his portfolio.

Ryan sighed at his predicament; at this rate, it'd take a long, long time for him to become the greatest merchant in the Realm.

A snort brought him back to the present.

Looking up from his seated position for who did it, he was unsurprised to see the face of the attendant, looking irritatedly at him.

Ryan didn't know if the attendant hated the fact that he caught Ryan eyeing the goods with obvious hunger in his eyes; maybe the static just hated the sight of Ryan. Which was pretty understandable at this point. I mean, who wouldn't?

"Mr. Gerhalt will see you now," the attendant said before turning to go around the store, probably checking for missing items. An act that made Ryan a little angry but in the grand scheme of things, wasn't worth it.

Walking past the attendant and behind the counter, he rapped on the heavy oak door three times.

"Come in," a muffled version of Gerhalt's voice echoed from the other side of the door.

"Mr. Lionheart, I'm pleased to see you here," Gerhalt said with a smile.

Ryan couldn't quite tell if the smile was genuine or not.

"Well, pleased to be back here," Ryan said with a smile of his own. Truth be told, Ryan was really happy to be back here.

Seeing what the blacksmith had achieved in the place had made Ryan's heart skip and his ambition grow with every visit, even though this was just the second time.

"Please, have a seat and let's get to business then," Gerhalt said from the other side of the table, offering Ryan a chance to occupy one of the empty chairs, which Ryan promptly did.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

As soon as Ryan sat on the chair, he swiftly pulled out a prepared gold pouch that contained the twenty gold coins that he owed Mr. Gerhalt. Originally seventeen gold and five hundred silvers, it now included the lateness fee of two gold and eight hundred silvers.

"Here's your money for the teleportation stones; it's all in there. Complete," Ryan said as he slid the pouch across the table.

"I'm sure you would not be offended if I were to count the coins here, Mr. Lionheart?" Gerhalt said.

After receiving a nod from Ryan, he proceeded to untie the pouch, letting its contents fall to the table. The gold reflecting off his eyes as a smile spread across his face, one that certainly reached his eyes.

He began counting the coins in earnest, finally getting to the end in short order.

Ryan could smell the greed emanating from the man in waves and swore to himself that this would be the last time he'd borrow from someone like this.

It was a very foolish thought but one that Ryan was going to stick with regardless.

Anyone who looked at gold like that would be willing to do anything, and Ryan honestly didn't want to be indebted to someone like that. Heck, Ryan hated owing anyone at all; he always tried to stay within his means. Alas, no successful merchant ever got far without taking risks.

So he'd gotten out of his comfort zone, and he'd begun to make strides in the merchanting world, even as small as they seemed to the odd observer. For Ryan, he was in a way better place than he'd been in the previous years.

"It's all complete, Mr. Lionheart. I take it that you're interested in loaning more tablets?" Gerhalt asked, his entire frame seeming to quake in anticipation.

The normal person wouldn't have noticed such behavior as it was a very subtle thing, but Ryan himself was definitely not getting in bed, metaphorically of course, with anyone like that.

"Actually, no. I'll not be loaning any more items from you. However, I'd love to continue doing business with you," Ryan said.

Gerhalt visibly shrunk as the words left Ryan's mouth.

The eagerness in his eyes seemed to morph into contemplation.

"Wait, do you wish to renegotiate terms? I'm willing to cut down the lateness fee by twenty-five percent if you'll continue," Gerhalt said hastily.

Ryan couldn't believe the man; he'd sat in this same office and watched the man increase the lateness fee because he'd probably heard that Ryan was in dire straits. Now he wanted to reduce it and expected Ryan to sign on happily like a dog.

"No thank you, I appreciate the thought though," Ryan said calmly, the power of the negotiation tilting his way.

"Mr. Lionheart, I see that you've become a savvy businessman. Tell you what, I'll cut the lateness fee down in half. What do you say, partners?" Mr. Gerhalt said, forcing out the words as though they were nails pouring out his throat.

"Again, I'll politely decline," Ryan said, unwilling to budge. Now he'd become highly curious about how low the man would be willing to go.

"Mr. Lionheart, I'm offering you a deal that I don't even offer my oldest associates, and you're refusing in a heartbeat. Please take a minute to think it over," Gerhalt said pleadingly.

Ryan couldn't even imagine what must have been going through the blacksmith's head at this point; did he think that Ryan was simply trying to gain a negotiating advantage?

He could feign thinking about it; at least it'd be less offensive than hastily rejecting another offer.

So that was what Ryan did—he hit a thoughtful pose with a hand on his chin while he rubbed his stubble, aiming to look serious and lost in thought.

From the corner of his eyes, he could see the hint of a smile form on the edges of Gerhalt's lips, and Ryan couldn't help the snort that left his lips. A snort which he quickly disguised by letting out a fake cough.

"My bad, I'm a terrible host. Please have a cup of water," Gerhalt said as he passed Ryan a cup of water.

Having to keep up with the deception, Ryan took small sips from the cup, which was refreshing albeit a little off.

When he felt like sufficient time had passed for his ruse to seem real, he dropped the cup on the table and wiped the corners of his mouth with his elbow.

"Well, Mr. Gerhalt, I must say that your new terms are very exciting," Ryan paused, allowing the smile to stretch across Gerhalt's expectant face. "But, I still won't be continuing that part of our agreement."

The look of shock that passed across Gerhalt's face was enough to make the entire time he spent conducting the ruse worth it.

Ryan began to brace himself for the next proposal, and sure enough:

"Mr. Ryan, I haven't done this with any other static, but would you change your mind if I take off seventy-five percent of the lateness tax?" Gerhalt asked as he rubbed his fingers together in anticipation.

A smile rippled across Ryan's face, and Gerhalt's followed too, the man having a smile of his own, albeit a pained one. Probably because of all the profit that he had to shear off from the deal.

"As I've said earlier, I won't be continuing with that part of the deal. My mind has fully been made up, and there's nothing you can do about it," Ryan said, careful not to sound as smug as he'd felt.

Business relationships and all that.

Gerhalt fell back into his chair, his face beaten and his expression grim.

Something seemed to flash across the man's eyes, but Ryan couldn't put a finger on what it was.

"Well then, Mr. Ryan, I suppose that concludes that part of our business. I believe you'll be paying upfront for all your purchases now?"

"I most certainly will."

"Well, no bridges burned; that's business after all. What would you be purchasing today?" Gerhalt asked with a tight smile.

Ryan mentally prepared himself for the words he was supposed to utter.

"Unfortunately, I won't be purchasing anything today," Ryan said.

"Surely not, Mr. Lionheart!" Gerhalt said with a shocked tone.

"They've gotten you too, haven't they? Damned franchise," Gerhalt said as he slapped a palm on the table.

Ryan was unfazed at the mini violence showcased by the man. After all, no one liked to lose a cash cow, and Ryan wouldn't be anyone's cash cow, at least not for long.

"They haven't gotten me, Mr. Gerhalt. It's a personal decision as I have other things I have to pay for," Ryan said.

"Well then, I look forward to you returning," Gerhalt said resignedly, standing up to offer Ryan a hand.

Ryan quickly stood up and shook the offered hand as the move signaled the end of that side of their partnership.

Gerhalt sat back in his chair and began parsing documents on his table without bothering to talk or even look up at Ryan.

Pfft, sore loser.

Ryan couldn't help but chuckle inwardly as he left the office, making sure to close the door on his way out.

As Ryan went by the attendant, he made sure to give him his best smile, as he knew that he was certainly going to be on the receiving end of the bad mood that Ryan had just given his boss.

The exit into the street signaled the snapping off of a chain that Ryan didn't know held him. The knowledge of settling one of his debts comforting.

He couldn't wait to clear them all.

The central district was just a couple of minutes away from the upper district by foot, much faster by carriage.

Ryan had never ridden one, and to be honest, he didn't really fancy going into any of those as they seemed stuffy and were expensive. But it was definitely because they seemed stuffy.

Plus, Ryan liked the way the wind felt on his skin, and he got to enjoy the scenery that he hoped to raise his children around someday.

Ryan marveled at the architecture of the upper district as he usually did.

The path to the Siren's Call was littered with the best architectural works that he'd ever seen, although he'd never left their town.