Vandar responded to Nick’s nod and a new screen materialized along one side of the room displaying scrolling market listings in real-time. Nick noticed it was oddly similar to the auction sites from Earth and even included filtering and search options to specify criteria to limit the results. Despite the familiar filtering, the number of vendors and items being sold was still overwhelming.
“Vandar, how does anyone find what they are looking for with the volume of trading happening?” Nick inquired
“It is common for buyers to shop within their local region to eliminate or reduce the station taxes paid for delivery. This will limit the market results displayed significantly. Clothing is a common good and will most likely be more affordable locally due to the station tax waiver.”
The idea of taxes levied by the stations raised a lot of questions about currency circulation. Nick decided it was a thought to explore more later.
“That helps I suppose. How many stations are controlled by…? What kingdom are we in again?” The amount of information had been a bit overwhelming and the name had already slipped his mind.
“We are located in the Kingdom of Repstrom. The kingdom currently controls 43 stations.” Vandar added helpfully.
“Thanks Vandar. Let’s see what is available locally. I don’t need anything fancy, in fact, the more in line with the fashions of Frellon the better.”
The screen flickered and the list of items scrolling by immediately slowed to a crawl. Vandar took the liberty of filtering down to only clothing options by sellers within the kingdom and even further filtered it by the most basic types of fabric. By that time, Frederick had returned from cleaning up the dishes from breakfast and had settled in to advise Nick on his purchases.
Frederick let out a low whistle and said, “I have to admit a station avatar is quite handy. I know the nobles and local mayors have access to them but I wasn’t aware how helpful they could be for sorting the market and insight into broader geopolitics.”
Vandar responded to the statement with quite the bombshell, “Station avatars’ capabilities are dependent on several factors but primarily influenced by user skills. Leadership classes may have skills to increase avatar capabilities. I have the maximum sophistication available to station avatars as a result of Nick’s unique station skill and you will find I have better insights to provide as a result.”
Frederick laughed at Vandar’s explanation and slapped Nick on the shoulder with his thick hand.
“Hez has blessed you more than I first believed. Don’t take this gift lightly Nick. The station avatars are controlled by those with wealth and influence to consolidate power among the elite. This is a boon on top of a boon.”
Nick rubbed his shoulder gently at the sudden impact. He noted Frederick had to me much stronger than he looked based on the strength he displayed so casually with a slap on the shoulder. A skill perhaps. The more Nick learned, the more questions arose and it was hard to stay on track.
Nick took a deep breath and got refocused.
“I will have to learn more about your capabilities soon Vandar, but for now clothing is in order. I don’t know anything to base the worth of coins on at the moment and it is difficult to shop without some context. Is there a baseline coin to goods ratio you can describe? Like a loaf of bread or some common staples.”
“Market conditions will affect the cost of any goods but generally a copper coin can buy you a day’s worth of food. A silver coin can buy a reliable dagger. A gold coin can purchase a set of well trained horses and a platinum coin can buy luxury items or real estate inside cities.” Vandar outlined in his calm yet exacting voice.
Vandar’s wise scholar look was becoming more cemented in Nick’s mind by the second. He had a feeling he would be listening to many more explanations in the future from him.
“Excellent, so some reliable clothing should only run me a handful of copper coins. At least based on the types of effort I’d imagine going into procuring and manufacturing the examples you described.”
Nick glanced back to the screen that showed the market listings and seemed to find his assumption to be aligned with the prices presented. There were simple descriptions for each listing and even what appeared to be an icon to examine the goods visually. Then the name of the seller or vendor in the case of a shop and the price of the item.
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“Aye, the prices are a bit higher this time of year with the winter setting in but you should be able to reliably find a full set of clothes for less than 10 copper.” Frederick added.
Nick took a moment to direct Vandar on the displayed results and within minutes they had identified a couple sets of winter appropriate outfits as well as a warm pair of fur lined boots for a combined 24 copper coins. The boots ended up being the most expensive at 9 copper coins but it seemed worth it based on Nick’s expedition to the outhouse earlier that morning.
With his purchases picked out, Nick slipped a silver coin from his pocket. He realized he had quite a tidy sum after Vandar’s explanation of value. It would be foolish to spend it carelessly since he knew bodyguards would not come cheap and it was going to take some money to carry out any venture he could come up with. The initial beginnings of a plan were already turning the gears in his head but he knew it would take time to come up with something actionable.
The goods Nick purchased arrived in bundled packages with a stack of copper coins in place of his single silver coin he’d placed on the table. Vandar seemed to have control over where items could appear from the station but it was restricted to a small area around Nick’s person.
Nick slipped on the surprisingly comfortable clothing in place of his earth threads and was already thankful for the added warmth. He even got 3 copper coins for his old clothes from the station. Like his phone, Nick felt it was smart to simply take whatever the station offered for his old possessions.
With their first chore of the day completed, Nick looked to Frederick for direction.
“Do you need to get going? I assume you don’t sit around your cottage all day even in the winter?”
“Aye, I have a workshop in the town square. As you know, I am a carpenter and it is a year-round job as there is always something to be built or repaired. I generally have less orders this time of year but try to stay on top of things for when the spring planting comes and orders pick up. You can give me a hand and I can answer any other questions you may have as we work.”
—
Frederick’s workshop mirrored the simple style of his cottage. It was well built and tidy but didn’t have any luxuries. Nick discovered it also served as a storefront for his customers to place and pick up orders. Frederick was the only true [Carpenter] in the town and his skills made anything he made far more sturdy and reliable than normal. It was an interesting thing to watch for Nick as Frederick was able to easily mimic power tools with simple hand tools that would have taken others hours longer.
As Nick watched Frederick work and chipped in where he could, he asked plenty of questions about the world. It was clear there was a lot Frederick didn’t know but his life experience gave him insights most others lacked. He was more well traveled than his humble shop in a small farming community made him appear.
He explained he was a well respected craftsman in the capital of the kingdom before he relocated almost ten years ago. He explained he lost his wife to a tragic accident and wanted a fresh start somewhere new. Nick didn’t push for more details but he gave another short mental thank you to Hez for pushing fate to bring them together because he certainly knew more than Nick would expect for a simple carpenter.
Nick learned more about the state of the kingdom and the various noble houses and families that controlled it. Frederick was not up to date on all the latest court drama but he indicated the noble family was well respected and had been in power for many generations. The ability to maintain a never-ending conflict on two fronts was no-doubt part of the appeal. Nick couldn’t imagine managing a war with the multitude of skills involved for the different types of warrior classes and professions.
Frederick explained war was a natural part of the world as stations were only too willing to reward achievements in combat to not only the soldiers and warriors but all those involved in the war effort. This included the farmers and craftsmen that supplied materials and foodstuffs to the military. It was unbelievable to Nick that a victory on a battlefield hundreds of kilometers away would somehow give experience to a farmer sowing wheat but it gave a small but measurable increase to experience gain if the food was being provided to active participants in conflict.
Frederick explained the same benefits applied to merchants. The trades conducted in support of conflict would give more experience and help those involved level up more quickly. The desire to do anything possible to acquire new skills was simply an accepted reality. There were numerous stories of a poor soldier or craftsman stumbling onto a powerful skill that turned them into a strategic resource for their kingdom overnight. It brought wealth and power as well as the ability to lift their family and friends up with them. It made it easy for Nick to see the appeal.
It was another layer of strangeness to add to Nick’s future plans and he would have to find a way to accept the violent nature of his new world. He wasn’t necessarily squeamish but his years on Earth had not prepared him for a life on the front lines of battles with swords and magic.
The day fell into a more quiet affair after Nick realized he needed to spend some time processing everything he’d learned that morning and it was actually a good distraction from his racing thoughts to help Frederick in his workshop. Nick was undoubtedly nothing more than a gopher to move things around or help hand Frederick tools but it seemed to speed up his progress which was enough for him to feel useful.
Towards the end of the day, they decided to skip the tavern and head back to the cottage. Nick was still a bit wary of making an appearance again and Frederick agreed with his idea to lay low for some time before introducing himself to the other town’s residents more formally. They saw a few folks in passing as they went between the workshop and Frederick’s home but it was nothing more than a friendly wave and curious looks.The new clothing gave Nick some relief in his ability to look like the locals. The dull colored clothing of spun wool and furs was aligned with local fashion and bundled up with a hood made it hard to pick Nick out from the locals with only a passing glance.