Thomas has left for the day, and there's some additional work I'd like to get done. However, something which happened earlier has give me some thoughts that I wish to act on sooner rather than later. While I'm taking care of that, I can take care of a couple of other things as well.

I take out some paper and sketch out a few designs, then store them in my bracelet before teleporting into town. After topping up on mana, I make my way to the forge Ash works at.

He's speaking with a customer when I enter, a well-dressed lady who looks to be in her mid-thirties, and the feel of her mind suggests that as well. I'm not fooled, though, as I can feel her mana pool. Based on that size, she may be at least fifty years in age – the reason her mind feels as young as her body looks is because that's a constant. No matter how long we live or how slowly we age, our mind keeps to our bodies.

So if someone looks thirty and is actually sixty, then her mind is still thirty. It's probably a good thing that even for people who gain an immense amount of mana as children, the slowdown for their aging doesn't begin until around nineteen to twenty-one years of age. Being stuck as a fourteen-year-old for years would have been really aggravating.

With how powerful I was before Zolbiatz reset it, I would probably have taken decades to go from thirteen to sixteen in physical and mental age, and that's just a three year period. Puberty wouldn't have been over by that point. The next two aging years would have taken me even longer.

I send up a thanks to the gods for allowing the slowdown to wait until adulthood as I look at the other customer.

She's dressed in dark grey leather armor over a green tunic and brown pants, her boots, gloves, and belt made of the same leather as her armor. Cave troll leather, from a higher breed of them and treated well. That's about as good as what I can make using materials from the fifth floor in the mines.

I'll have to see if there's a beast whose leather I can use there.

A fire spirit relaxes on the hilt of the sword on the lady's hip, and she looks over at me while the lady speaks, her head tilting curiously. I give her a small dip of my head and a smile, and she smiles back and gives me a wave.

Based on the lady's accent, she hails from the Mistgorge Region, another Mistland within the Silveroak Kingdom. It's further north of here, and also on the western side, forming part of the border before the nation's territory widens significantly. Their population is higher – they have two small towns and several villages, with a population of around five thousand in total.

I've been in one of the towns there and in the Mistgorge itself, which encompasses both the gorge and the area directly around it. Her accent is from the other town in the region, based on my experiences there.

"Unfortunately, we do not," Ash tells her, apology in both his tone and mind. "The only place to source the materials for that around here would be the mines down in Mistwood, and no one hunts in those. The locals are content with the lives they have, and outsiders don't go down there too often."

He's noticed my presence, but isn't commenting on how I've been in the mines. I'm sure he's figured it out due to the metals I asked him to work with, but this shop might value the privacy of customers, to a degree. Unless I volunteer that I can go into the mines, he won't tell the customer he's working with that another one can go into them.

"I've heard about that," the lady tells him. "Did some research before visiting you and found that outsiders usually only visit them for some of their festivals or to perform mercenary work down there, maybe to trade. They never seem to go into the Mistwood itself, nor into the Mistwood Mines. Do you know the cause behind that?"

That would be the same barrier which prevents outsiders from staying longer than three months unless they've been approved of by the local magi. It also prevents non-residents from entering the Mistwood or their Labyrinth. My best guess as to the reason for it is to reduce the odds of someone attempting to exploit them.

Not that it's really necessary for the Labyrinth.

It actually is possible to enter the mines for an outsider, but they need a local to escort them in, if my understanding of the barrier is correct. That's part of why I wanted Thomas to come with me, since I wasn't entirely sure if I could enter on my own yet or not.

Though having a porter definitely made things easier.

"No," Ash shakes his head. "I visit them for many of their festivals, but we don't talk about stuff like that. You'd probably be better off asking one of them."

"What is it you're looking for?" I ask, and the lady looks over to me. "I happen to have some rare resources, myself."

If my estimation of where she lives and her age is correct, then she's appraised me just as quickly as I appraised her. While my outfit is fairly simple, my eyes are fully green and I know I carry myself a little differently. My accent is also of a higher tier, something she's no doubt notice.

In other words, she can probably tell that I might be able to help her out.

Curiosity forms in Ash's mind when he looks at me, but it feels unrelated to the commission request and my interruption.

"Materials with spatial energy," she answers. "I wish to commission a storage bracelet for my granddaughter. Finding a place to commission it has been difficult, though. I came here in the hopes that there might be some. It seems I'll need to travel further, or visit Mistwood and see if any of the residents can help me."

Time to see how she reacts to something. That will determine whether or not I give her assistance… though I probably will. The fact that a spirit is hanging out on her sword already speaks to her character.

"They would likely direct you to Thomas," I tell her. "Their primary hunter. That said, I do have spatial mithril, myself. It contains spatial magics Tier 4 in quality."

"You do?" Hope fills her mind. "Would you be willing to sell some to me? Just enough to commission a bracelet."

There's only that hope within her response, no desperation, no ill intent of any sort. She'll accept if I decline, moving on to the next location to search for what she wants.

"We can smith the bracelet," Ash tells her. "But we don't know how to set the spatial storage enchantment. You'll need to find someone else for that.""

"It's something I'm capable of doing as well," I show her my own bracelet. "Ash here is the one who shaped this, but I'm the one who enchanted it."

She examines the bracelet, her eyes widening a little and more hope filling her mind as she sees it.

"You're an enchanter?" She asks. "If you can enchant it for me, then I'll pay you well. Would you be willing to accept 10 platinum for enough of your spatial mithril to have the bracelet forged, and another 3 platinum to have it enchanted to a space three feet on each side? If so, where should I go to pick it up once it's completed?"

Those are both fair prices for the quality tier I gave, indicating she's done her research on what each step of the process costs. She was willing to pay for each step separately as well, if necessary.

"I'm not from here," I tell her. "I'm merely visiting as this smithy is able to handle mithril and Ash did an excellent job when forging my current bracelet. I'll only be in town for today. If Ash is willing to expedite the commission and you're willing to pay the fee for that, then I'll agree to it."

"That is no issue," Ash answers. "The cost for having it forged will be 5 plat, and the expedite fee for having it done today is 2 plat. We'll need both fees up-front."

"I wanted to have another bracelet commissioned as well," I tell him as I pull a paper from my bracelet. "To these specifications. Will that be possible?"

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He examines the papers, then nods.

"I can do that," he says. "Would it better for the other designed to this?"

While the bracelet I want commissioned won't be for storage, I can use one of the same design to create a spatial pocket bracelet. If she's fine with the simple design, then there won't be a reason to sketch out a new blueprint. Otherwise, I'll need to sketch out a new design for Ash.

"That depends," I look at the lady. "Is there a specific design for the bracelet you want? Since you offered 10 plat for the metal itself, I'm assuming you don't want a cuff but a bracelet similar to mine?"

A full cuff-style bracelet would take quite a bit more metal than what would cost 10 platinum ciirvrios.

"Correct," she says. "It doesn't need to be anything fancy, as long as it's functional."

Practicality over pride, then.

"Alright," I say. "Two with that design, please."

"I can have them ready in three hours," Ash tells me. "Same rates for you as well."

"Understood," I pull the clump of spatial mithril out of my bracelet. "The pay will come after you slice off the pieces you need."

"Will do," he says. "Please wait."

He disappears into the back, and the other customer looks at me again.

"My name is Lily Kenzoltan," she introduces herself. "I just realized I never introduced myself."

Kenzoltan is one of the baronies around River Oak, the town in Mistgorge Region that I haven't visited. Lily Kenzoltan is the baroness who governs it and if I remember correctly, she has two daughters and a son in addition to multiple grandchildren from each.

It actually would have been faster for her to go to another location for the bracelet, but I'm going to assume she already tried that and they were unable to help her. Even Mistlands don't guarantee one will find what they're searching for within, so heading into her local one herself or hiring someone stronger to do so wouldn't necessarily reward her with the material she needed.

Especially since it generally requires being able to take on monsters with around 100 Strength or Constitution at a minimum to find said materials. That's not something most people would be willing to do by themselves, and finding a team at that strength level isn't easy since most people never reach it.

"Rowan Zovanzik," I introduce myself.

"Thank you for the assistance," she says. "The Mistgorge does have spatial materials, but they're within the gorge itself, and acquiring them from within is no easy feat. Not if one wishes to exit it alive. It would be easier if we had a Labyrinth there, but it's on the other side of the Mistland, and trading with them can be difficult."

The other side of Mistgorge is a different country, and also requires traveling around the Mistland itself unless one wishes to deal with the dangers within.

It isn't just that, though. There are two different ways to create an enchantment, and she would no doubt prefer the stronger method of it for something like this. The enchantment is more stable and will last longer, but not many enchanters can set one in that manner. Not for a spatial enchantment, at least.

"Happy to be of assistance," I tell her.

"It's not every day I meet a magus as young as yourself," she comments, then chuckles. "Then again, meeting a full-grown magus is rare enough to start with."

Something I don't remember if I've told Thomas or Dylan is that if someone's eyes is a vivid green – like mine – that they're a magus. It's an easy way to identify us by sight, as a normal mage's eyes never reach the vibrancy of ours. That's how she can tell what I am without a word of it from me.

"I've always had more interest in my own thing than others," I tell her.

"What sort of things interest you?" She asks. "Aside from studying magic, that is."

"Food," I answer. "New items and mechanisms. I've studied in various kingdoms, learning their languages, foods, and devices. It's something I would recommend to anyone looking to expand their knowledge of the world. You never know what you might encounter."

"I'll keep that in mind," she smiles gently. "Though I prefer keeping to my territory and the Mistgorge. There's land to manage and I wish to keep things running smoothly. Extended journeys are not something which I can do casually."

"I'm sure," I tell her.

Most of our discussion after that is about her territory and some of the things she has to deal with while running it, including how the war has affected it. I'm not interested in the topics, but I have enough experience to not show it while directing the conversation to keep it away from myself without being obvious.

That's one of the few useful skills I acquired before leaving my adoptive family when I was thirteen, and one I had plenty of experience practicing over the last seven years. Dealing with nobles was a common occurrence for me during my travels.

"Here you go," Ash hands me the spatial mithril after he returns with it, and I give him the payment for my bracelet, and Lily does the same for hers. "I can have both ready in about three hours from now."

"Meet me in Grandmarket, by the fountain, in five hours," I tell Lily. "And I'll have your bracelet ready. However, I'd like the payment for the enchanting up-front."

Lily pays me and thanks me for the work, then leaves. I watch as she exits, then look at Ash.

"There's something else I want commissioned as well," I pull out two more papers. "Or rather, two more things. These ones can be made of steel, and here are the blueprints for them."

Ash examines the papers, a slight frown on his lips as curiosity fills his mind.

"I've never seen objects like these before," he tells me. "Though the plans are detailed enough we can make them. What are they?"

"One of them is a meat grinder," I reach over and touch a part of one page. "You push meat into here, and it feeds through into here, becoming ground up. It's a device I learned about in the Bluemaple Kingdom."

Mincing or grinding meat isn't really done around here, it's usually cut into steaks or cubes, or maybe strips. The meatballs and the hash I've been making differ from regular cuisine within the Silveroak Kingdom due to this.

"Though this part here is an attachment for the front," I add. "I can swap it out with these for different sizes or other purposes," I touch the other page. "And this one is an oil press. It's a more effective way to acquire oil from things like beans and seeds, allowing for larger quantities to be processed in a shorter time. Also something I learned about in another kingdom. Both need enchantments to work, which I'll set when I return home."

Using those will save me some time, and I have the funds to have them commissioned. The grinder will also let me make sausages, while the oil press will open up deep frying foods as an option. At least, as long as I can source the stuff needed to fry. I know we have sunflowers and rapeseed in the Mistwood region, and I also saw some nut trees including a peanut one within the forests.

If the breeds of the first two are viable for making frying oil with, then I can do that with those. If not, then I'll deal with getting a peanut tree in my yard.

Though in all honesty, I was probably going to do that already. Peanuts are pretty useful for other things as well and I do like peanut butter for dipping a few things in.

"Okay," he says. "I'll be the one doing the bracelets, but someone else can handle these. We can have them ready by the time you come to pick up the bracelets."

"That's fine, thanks," I say. "How much for it? I know it's a specialty request requiring shaping things in a new way."

Which honestly surprises me that they can have it done that soon. I feel only confidence in his mind, and not the arrogant kind. He genuinely believes in the skill level of whoever the task will be assigned to.

"Since you only need them made out of steel," he says. "And judging by the alloys requested… we can do 17 silver ciirvrios for the two of them."

After how much I spent on my stasis bracelet, 17 silver isn't really much at all. I hand over the coins.

"Got a question for you," curiosity fills Ash's mind.

"Go ahead."

"You've already been there for three months?" He asks.

Where did that come from?

"Hm?"

"The necklace," he says. "That's from the requirement, right? On the day of your third month, you have to hunt a grand stoneseeker wolf if you wish to live there longer than that. Though yours says 'royal' rather than 'grand'."

I glance down at my necklace, which almost matches the one the other men of Mistwood wear. It has two fangs hanging from it rather than one, spaced apart with three wooden beads, a blue crystal bead between each. The fangs point toward each other as they hang down, and there's an additional wooden, crystal, wooden bead pattern to either side of them.

[Mistwood Emblem] An emblem worn by male residents of the Mistwood Region over the age of 13 years, a proof of acceptance by the land and its spirits. Formed from the leather of a royal stoneseeker wolf and fangs from two, this is a badge of pride for the one who wears it, the hunter of said beasts.

Thomas was surprised I could tan the hide so quickly using magic, and I left out the part where a little bit of time magic was involved. He could see the water magic at work, and that was more than enough for him.

What surprised me about the necklace was that it actually had a name and wasn't a generic item with an informational window which simply described the materials making it up. The necklaces aren't just part of a rite-of-passage, they're an actual emblem for the boys and men within Mistwood.

One which also confirms that the spirits help with the hunt. That little detail is easily missed in the description, but it stating that it's proof the spirits accepted them means that the spirits definitely helped out, either by making sure the attacks hit and did decent damage if the hunter was too weak or unskilled, or by allowing the attacks to hit if the hunter was strong enough to do so on his own.

I double-checked the description on Thomas's, and on Chief's after he arrived to return home with Thomas. They both have the same description, except with a slight difference to account for their hunts being grand stoneseeker wolves and a single fang.

"It doesn't have to be on the three-month mark," I inform Ash. "That's simply the latest you're allowed to do it. The beasts attacked Thomas, Chief, and me. While it wasn't intended as the hunt, it still counted."

That makes him contemplative about something, and he doesn't seem interested in asking further questions.

"I should be going now," I tell him. "May the gods and spirits guide your paths."

"May the gods and spirits guide your paths."