“I can see why you were so excited,” Arthur said, unable to stop the grin spreading across his face as he pushed his way out of the store.

Gastho walked out behind him, pausing as he held the door open for a pretty dragoness, who smiled as she moved inside. In the brief time the entrance remained open, the smell that permeated the store filled the air once again. A mixture of meats, herbs, and spices that caused Arthur’s mouth to water.

His eyes wandered over to the display in the shop’s window, still amazed at the sight of the two griffon carcasses displayed on hooks. The shop’s proprietor, a small green dragon, hadn’t shied away from telling his adventures about killing both beasts. Arthur wasn’t sure he believed him, not that it stopped him from offering him a trade network slot.

Nor had the bragging done much to prevent him from spending well over eight hundred Golden Pennies on purchases for the knights’ feast and his own store. It pained him to spend so much of his hoard in one spot, but he did his best to convince himself it was an investment. Which he knew it was.

If he could get the knights to return to questing for him, he’d almost double the amount of coins that The Orchard produced. That wasn’t including the sales he’d get if he could convince Cyrus to buy raw materials for weapons and armor from him. While he could sell the weapons directly, Hulvin already hated him, and he didn’t need to make it worse by showing him up.

“So, where to next?” Gastho asked as he moved them away from the small crowd that was trying to get through the door. “And I hope that wasn’t your last network slot. You’re what, level twenty-one?”

“Twenty-two,” Arthur corrected, which earned him a grunt.

“Sure. Don’t waste them. I know it seems nice that you get them on every level now, but those levels are going to slow down considerably soon.”

He couldn’t help but look over at his guide, who stood fiddling with menus that floated in the air. A question popped into his head, and he asked it before he lost the nerve.

“What level did you get to?”

“Me?” Gastho looked at him, his expression not holding the irritation Arthur had expected. “Low twenty’s. Most of us do. It’s really only the overachievers or those who get amazing starts that go above, say, thirty. My run wasn’t so good.”

From the tone in his voice, he didn’t want to talk about it, so Arthur changed the topic, his curiosity pulling him to a fresh line of thought.

“How many levels are there?”

Gastho shrugged. “Technically? Infinite. In reality? About fifty. After that, it becomes next to impossible to accumulate enough experience. Most people stay in their high twenties or low thirties. By that point, most of the people using it are pretty set financially. It’s only the really high achievers who push harder.”

“So less of a must-have and more of a motivational tool by the end, then?” Arthur phrased it as a question, but he didn’t really need the answer.

He already knew that it made sense. Give someone something to strive for, and they will work harder for you. As he thought more about the system, he realized how irrelevant a lot of it was.

Yes, his stock loop powers and the others were useful. However, with access to The Multiverse Mall and enough money, he could easily replicate some of those abilities. Anyone who came from a high-tech or high-magic world might even do those things without needing store powers.

All of this was a carrot designed to be chased, with the threat of The Goddess sitting behind them as a stick. His first instinct was irritation, but a small part of him couldn’t help being impressed at the sheer design of it.

When he turned to look at Gastho, the dragon simply nodded and smiled at him. “It seems like you understand it.”

“I do. Though I’m still curious about the why of it all.” His only response was a raised eyebrow, so Arthur did his best to continue. “Like, why does she do all this? What’s the point? Is it purely for money or something else?”

“She is the goddess of dragons and trade. What more reason could there be?” Gastho shrugged again as he started walking past the different stores. Arthur hurried to catch up, his cane clinking against the ground as he did so.

“Right, but in some books I’ve read, the gods need to be worshiped or something similar. Is getting us to do this some kind of worship for her? Or does she need a certain amount of money flowing to remain a goddess?”

“I,” Gastho started before his breath hitched.

He stood tall, looking around the flow of bodies, before he stepped towards a dark store with a name that sounded vaguely space-themed. From inside, Arthur could hear soft explosions, and he shivered and did his best not to stand too close.

“I don’t know,” Gastho said as he continued to look around. “And you know what? It’s weird that I’ve never asked. But no one around me does either. It’s just not talked about.”

Arthur nodded. “Pydes says the same thing, but that still seems weird to me.”

“Well, unless you plan on asking her directly, I wouldn’t worry about it, and considering her meeting, good luck with that. Now, where do you need to go next?”

“Liquor store and then Sellers Alley.”

“Got it.”

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Arthur could hear the distraction in Gastho’s tone and the way his hand hesitated as he moved to pull up the transfer window. A frown fell over his draconic muzzle as he once more whisked them away.

***

“Done.”

The gnome that sat beneath the small sign that bore the words ‘Professor Parties Celebratorium’ sweated and nodded as he pushed across a large chest full of various party supplies.

Arthur was happy to pay the asking price of one-hundred gold, as he tapped the chest and watched it vanish into smoke, much to the delight of the onlookers. With a nod to the gnome, he moved off, ready to set up some trade networks.

He walked alone through Seller’s Alley, as Gastho had made his excuses to leave after the liquor store. A less than subtle reminder about getting Indigo’s job done accompanied his goodbye handshake.

It was hardly necessary, in Arthur’s opinion. He hadn’t forgotten the job; instead, he’d simply outsourced the start of it. Provided, at least, that the cultists could summon Rathnil.

If they couldn’t, then he’d need to prepare to brave the depths of The Pit.

That thought made him shudder. He really didn’t want to go down, at least not until he’d had the chance to talk to Kourtney. That, and get more magical gear to make the trip easier. As nice as his suit was, it wasn’t something he wanted to go exploring dangerous radiation-filled areas in.

Arthur continued thinking about it even as he reached the stall that Indigo had mentioned. He made a quick trade network with the robot that manned it, and he couldn’t help but smile.

“Well, if nothing else, at least I can keep Nyssa well supplied.”

Once he’d set up the required network, Arthur moved on. He knew he should wake up and get going to prepare for the party, but another part of him didn’t want to leave yet. His questions to Gastho earlier about the system made him think about the others that surrounded them.

“I should try to see what other people are doing to level up. If Gastho is right and it’s about to slow down, it might be worth seeing what people are trying.”

With that thought in mind, he did his best to approach as many people as possible. At first, he stopped at places he wanted to network with. A snake woman who traded clothes, a teddy bear selling entertainment options, a human with teeth like his own, and a sporadic mess of scales that offered music.

He bought from all three and asked how they managed their stores. The first two simply gave him a filthy look, and he moved on. The human, Marcus, however, seemed more than happy to talk about it.

After a sign, Marcus leaned on the counter and twirled a small screwdriver around in his fingers. The small selection of music boxes sat to the side, where he wouldn’t bump into them.

“To tell you the truth, I’m not sure if I have much of a plan,” he said with a shrug. “I’ve focused on my single store and building up. There are few other options when you’re in the Cadence Mountains. Honestly, that seems to be what everyone does.”

“Oh?” Arthur asked curiously as he tapped his finger against his recently purchased music box.

“Yeah. I mean, why not, right? I’m not sure about you, but after being shoved into managing, this one store is enough for me.”

Arthur nodded. “Have you heard of anyone doing multiple? I’m hoping I’m not the only one who fell into it.”

“Sounds like a story.” Marcus said.

“It is,” Arthur confirmed. “Though I got lucky in my ability to get help.”

That earned him a snort. “Must be nice. I had to figure out how to sing a song of summoning. Do you know how hard music magic is when you’re tone-deaf? This place sucks.”

“I can imagine.”

Marcus nodded and reached over to tap one of the music boxes, which turned from metal to stone with a soft chime.

“Anyway, to answer your question, yes. I’ve heard rumors. Apparently someone did it forever ago—like, for a long, long time. They got big.”

“How big?” Arthur asked.

“No idea. I just know they did it. Anyway, I should get back to work. Anything else?”

“Not unless you can load up more songs on this one.”

Another snort. “Is two hundred not good enough for you? Get going; nice to meet you.”

“Yeah,” Arthur said with a smile as the music box in his hand vanished. “See you, Marcus.”

***

His thoughts raced as he sat in the back of the rickshaw with Augustus as Theobold pulled them back to the knight’s compound.

He’d filled the rest of his trade network slots with stores outside Seller’s Alley for the first time. While far more expensive, no one else could sell him the raw materials that he required. Now he had access to construction materials as well as things he hoped Cyrus and Hulvin could use.

Still, Arthur couldn’t help but focus on the information that he’d received. Most of the other store owners he’d talked to had given him the same version of the story Marcus had told him. People stuck with growing their single store, as it meant they didn’t have to split their focus over too much.

Those who hired others to run things found it too expensive after a while. In fact, Arthur promised himself that he would keep his mind, not that he intended to expand too much. Between Apocalypse Assortments, Diaboli Theatrum, whatever construction company Davey ended up with, and The Greenhouse, he didn’t need any more.

Though even as he thought that, his eyes wandered to the skyscraper in the distance. He was getting quite a collection of books that he’d need to store somewhere. With a shake of his head, he moved his attention back to the closer streets, and he was happy that he’d done so.

Another group of Dogclops watched them approach, but this time they were joined by something else. Above them hovered a collection of birds—not pigeons, but chubby-looking beaked monstrosities. Their feathers were a blend of yellow and purple, and each had a fragment of a radiation crystal pulsing in its chest.

One of them shrieked, and Arthur winced as his ears rang. In response, the Dogclops howled and started forward. Theobold, who hadn’t stopped, pedaled faster. The rickshaw rocked as it hurtled around a corner, and Arthur did his best to peer back.

Behind him, the mass of creatures swarmed. The birds flew overhead while the dogs bounded along the ground, growling and screeching. Arthur’s hand tightened on his cane, and he jabbed forward as a bird tried to dive-bomb them.

As one, the birds screeched once again. Beside him, he heard Augustus grunt in pain.

“Theobold!” Arthur called out as he smacked away another diving bird. “We need to head away from the compound. We can’t drag this lot to them.”

“Done,” Theobold grunted as he took another turn at a ridiculous speed.

As they traveled, Arthur watched as a few more beasts joined the pack. Despair started as he heard flapping. His eyes rose to the sky, and he couldn’t help but smile. A flock of pigeons flew overhead. They circled once before they flew away. It didn’t take a genius to figure out the message.

With another look behind him, he leaned forward as he yelled at Theobold.

“Follow the pigeons.”

Another grunt was all he received, and so he went back to smacking the few birds that dive bombed them away the best he could. As he did, he really hoped The Assembly knew what they were doing.