Liam spent another two hours at his stall talking to random people who had questions about his crafted items while explaining certain things to Abby. Elatrix had arrived shortly after that, giving him the paperwork he needed to fill out. After he filled everything out, he gave the paperwork, along with the requested items, to Elatrix to process.

When that was done, Liam cleaned up the stall and followed Farry and his two nieces back to the Cat’s Paw-ldron. There he spent some time with Abby and Farry, who popped in when there weren’t any customers, going over the three potions he had made.

Abby was full of questions and asked as many as she could in between Liam’s explanations. Liam could see how much she really enjoyed Alchemy during this q and a session.

“So, you’re telling me you made over twenty versions of the potions before you finally got it right?” Abby questioned.

Liam nodded. “Yeah, the very first one was way too minty while the one after you couldn’t taste it at all. I have a notebook full of all the attempts, notes, and issues I came across while making them. Would you like to see them?”

“Yes!” Abby shouted while nodding her head vigorously.

Liam let out a small laugh as he looked in his inventory for one of the many notebooks he had filled while in the Tutorial Area. Once he found the one with the three flavored potions, he pulled it out and handed it to the overeager little girl who snatched it quickly from his hands.

“Abby,” Farry lightly scolded while holding back a small smile. “You don’t grab things from someone’s hands like that.”

Abby tore her excited gaze from the notebook and gave an embarrassed smile. “Yes sir. Sorry Mr. Liam.”

Liam smiled at the young Alchemist in the making. “All good. Just make sure you don’t rip my arms off next time. Your snatching speed caught me off guard. I almost thought my arms were going to be yanked off.” Liam rubbed both his arms as he gave her a faux look of hurt.

Abby was about to apologize until she noticed the smile Liam tried to hide. She then lightly punched his left arm and said, “Liar.”

“Hey!” Liam laughed as he moved out of the way.

“Abby!” Cindy scolded as she entered the room from the door in the back of the room.

Liam found out that that door led to the supply room as well as a small greenhouse where Abby tried to grow some of the materials needed to make potions and Medicinal Creations.

As Liam spent some time with these Tabby Cat-folks, they helped educate him on some of the different types of crafts out there. When it came to crafting there were two categories. One was Production and the other was called Gathering.

Production Crafts were crafts that could be made through a production method while the Gathering crafts were a craft solely focused on methods to harvest or growing. Liam was confused when he was told that the growing part of the Gathering Category should have been in the production side and wanted to ask this, but decided he would ask someone else this question later.

Abby had also explained that both categories separated the crafts into types. For the Production Category the types were separated into Basic, Magical, and Advanced. For the Gathering Category the types were Basic and Advanced.

The Basic types of Production crafts were Alchemy, Blacksmithing, Cooking, Construction, and Tailoring. The Magical types were Enchanting and Rune Crafting. The Advanced types were Artificer and Jewel Crafting. There were more to these types, but she couldn’t remember what they were.

As for the Gathering types she could only remember a few basic ones. They were Herbalism, Lumberjack, Mining, and Skinning. She had assured him there were more gathering ones like one that was related to getting the materials needed for Rune Crafting, but she couldn’t remember how or what it was.

What had brought this topic up was when Abby had to check on the plants she was growing in the greenhouse. Liam was interested to see them and when she showed him he recognized a few plants that were used in making potions as well as poisons. Liam was confused when he saw this, especially the plants used for poisons, but Abby had explained that these plants could be used in making antidotes against poisons as well.

She then proceeded to tell him how she had to get her Herbalism to level ten in order to learn how to grow them.

With a confused expression Liam had asked what she meant, and she informed him that Herbalism was more than just identifying plants. It was a gathering craft that helped someone grow herbal and poisonous plants as well as some magical plants for other types of crafting.

This got Liam interested. His interest grew making him think that if he could grow the materials needed for his alchemy then he didn’t need to keep buying what he couldn’t find and harvest. He had asked some questions and was getting excited until he asked if he would be able to grow them in a pot and place them in his inventory and take them out periodically. However, his hopes were soon dashed as Abby informed him that he couldn’t do that because they wouldn’t be able to grow while in his inventory or bags.

He didn’t like that, but he figured when he finally settled down in a place he would try his hand out trying to grow a green thumb. Until then, the market and dungeons were his place of findings.

“We’re getting low on some of our Medicinal Creation materials,” Cindy announced as she approached the three while looking at Farry.

“Which ones?” Farry asked.

“Slime Liquid, Small and Medium Bones, Monster Fat, Hibilikus Leaves, and a few others,” Cindy answered.

Farry nodded. “When do you think your usual Gatherer contact is available to help you gather them?”

Cindy shrugged. “Don’t know. Last I heard they said they had a big job at one of the dungeons on the mainland. Could be a few days or a month depending on how fast they work.”

Farry frowned as he brought a hand to his chin and looked at the table. As he looked back at Cindy he asked, “Do we have enough to last until then?”

“Probably not,” Cindy replied. “I’ll head to the Adventurers Association tomorrow and see if I can find someone who is looking for some work.”

Curious, Liam asked, “What are you talking about?”

Cindy and Farry turned to look at Liam.

“We’re just talking about restocking our supplies,” Farry informed. “Instead of always buying our supplies from the merchants, we like to restock by getting the materials from the dungeons.”

“Ok,” Liam said agreeing with the method. “Why do you need to go to the Adventurers Association though? Do you need their permission to go into the dungeon?”

Cindy shook her head. “I go to the Adventurers Association for a couple of different reasons. One is for information on dungeons and the materials spotted in them. Another is to hire a Gathering Adventurer.”

Liam’s brows scrunched as he asked, “What’s a Gathering Adventurer?”

“It’s a specialty type of Adventurer,” Cindy started. She noticed the confused look in Liam’s eyes and continued, “When someone registers for an A.I.D. they can put down what they wish to specialize in. You can choose between Dungeon Exploration, Monster Hunting, Item Hunting, Gathering, etcetera. Placing a specialty on your A.I.D. helps not only the adventurer but the Association as well because it will determine what quests there are available related to that specialty.”

“Do you have to choose a specialty? Can you have more than one? If you pick one can you switch to a different one?” Liam asked.

“When you’re new you don’t have to pick one right off the bat unless you already know what you want to do,” Cindy explained. “When you do decide you can pick more than one, but you can only have three specialties. You can always change what your specialty is whenever you want, but you need to do it at the Adventurers Association.”

“That sounds pretty cool,” Liam said as he nodded, digesting this information.

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

“Oh, but you are required to pick a specialty when you reach D Rank,” Cindy added.

Liam raised a brow. “There are ranks?”

Cindy nodded. “Yes, your rank will determine what quest and dungeon difficulties you are allowed to do. The ranks are from weakest to strongest: F, E, D, C, B, A, and S.”

“Cindy is a D Ranked Monster Hunting and Dungeon Guide Adventurer,” Abby stated with a proud smile.

Cindy blushed a little at her little sister’s boasting.

Liam smiled as well as he watched the two sisters. After a moment had passed he then asked, “I am going to assume a Gathering Adventurer specializes in gathering materials? Why do you need a Gathering Adventurer though? Can’t you just use Harvest to collect the materials you need?”

Cindy looked at Liam and shook her head. “No. I don’t have the ability so that is why I usually have an adventurer who specializes in it.”

Liam tilted his head as he looked at the woman. “Why don’t you have it? You can easily get it from the Field of Crafts.”

Cindy gave him a smile.

Liam realized his questioned must have really shown exactly how new to all this he was.

“I never got that field because I have no passion for crafting. Since I don’t craft there is no need for me to ruin my path by adding that field just for that ability,” Cindy explained.

Liam nodded as he understood what she was saying. While he was in the Tutorial Area, Elara had explained plenty of times the importance of not getting too many fields since it could be harmful to one’s growth.

“That’s true. My bad,” Liam apologized. He then had an idea. “If you need someone with that ability then maybe I can help. I have it.”

Cindy stared at Liam. She then asked, “Have you gotten you’re A.I.D. yet?”

Liam shook his head. “Not yet. I was planning to get one soon, so this is the perfect time to get it.” A sudden thought popped into Liam’s mind as he remembered it took a day for his C.I.D. to arrive. “Wait does it take a day or two to get an A.I.D.?”

Cindy shook her head. “No, the process to get your A.I.D. is much quicker than getting a C.I.D. or a M.I.D. If you’re approved then you get it right after the paperwork and interview process.”

Liam felt a bit relieved as he heard this. “That’s good to know.”

“If you don’t mind me asking,” Cindy started, looking a bit apprehensive. “What level is your harvest ability? Some of the materials require it to be a certain level in order for them to appear.”

Liam took a moment to look at his ability. After confirming the level, he replied, “Its level twenty.”

Cindy and Farry stared at Liam with disbelief.

“What?” Liam asked, feeling a bit uncomfortable. “Is it too low?”

Cindy shook her head as Farry spoke, “On the contrary. Most of the materials require a level of fifteen in the harvest ability. We were just surprised because you have the ability so high for one who had just came out of the Tutorial Area.”

“Why is it so high? I thought it was hard to get anything so close to the cap placed in that area,” Cindy questioned.

“Ah,” Liam said as he quickly understood what those looks were. “I got it that high due to harvesting almost anything and everything I saw while taking on each floor of the Dungeon.”

Cindy and Farry was about to ask something else until Abby chimed in while giving Liam a judgmental look, “You’re weird you know that?”

“Abby!” Cindy and Farry shouted as they turned their gazes upon her.

“What? I just think it is weird that someone would harvest anything and everything they saw,” Abby stated honestly.

Liam let out a laugh as he said, “I guess it is kind of weird.”

Cindy gave Liam an apologetic look as she said, “I am sorry.”

Liam shook his head as he said, “It's all good. So, would I be able to help you? Maybe you can help me out with the Adventurer Association in exchange for me helping you?”

“Are you sure?” Cindy asked with a surprised expression. “I can pay you for harvesting the materials we need for supplies…”

Liam waved a hand to stop her. “You helping me out with getting my A.I.D. and explaining all I need to know will be enough. I don’t need the money because I feel like the potions will get me all I need to get by.”

“That’s true,” Cindy said as she thought about it. “Alright, then why don’t we meet up at the Adventurer Association tomorrow around eleven?”

“Sounds good to me,” Liam replied as he stood up.

Abby saw him stand and looked disappointed as she asked, “Are you leaving already?”

Liam nodded. “There are some things I need to do so I am going to head out now. Don’t worry though I’ll come back another time and we can craft some more potions and Medicinal Creations. I want to learn more about that and about Herbalism so maybe you can help me understand it better?”

Abby pouted for a moment before finally saying, “Fine.” She then held up the notebook Liam had handed her earlier and asked, “Can I keep this here so I can study it?”

“Sure, but make sure you don’t lose it,” Liam said as he gave her a smile.

“I won’t,” Abby grinned as she grew happy.

Liam shook his head. He then waved to everyone before saying while walking out, “Have a good night everyone. I’ll see you tomorrow Cindy.”

Abby, Cindy, and Farry all waved goodbye as Liam disappeared from their sight.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Liam appeared at the edge of the city in front of the designated crafting and harvesting area he was in the night before. He had met a Bear-folk crafter who had a similar starting class as him. It fascinated Liam that he was able to find someone who shared the same class as he did. Not only that, but the huge bear of a man was also a proficient crafter.

Liam was able to tell that by how detailed and skilled the man was when he showed Liam techniques to help him improve. The instructions worked so well that Liam was able to level certain aspects of his crafts some.

As Liam went to the Crafters Association, participated in the showcase and gained new information about different types of crafts from the Tabby Cat-folk family, he wondered if this man would be willing to teach him more.

The man did say that if Liam was willing he would help him learn more and give him pointers on his techniques. The only two restrictions were he wasn’t allowed to tell anyone about him, and he would only teach him in this area away from others.

Liam wasn’t sure why the man gave him those restrictions, but he wasn’t going to complain. Especially when there was a chance he could get the man to teach him about other crafts he was interested in learning.

Liam entered the forested area as the sun started to disappear. After walking for almost an hour, he saw a faint flicker of a campfire. As Liam slowly approached the area where he saw the light, he noticed some familiar things around him. He was in the same area he was at from the night before.

After finally reaching the campfire he saw the outline of the huge man. He was sitting on the ground with his legs crossed facing the fire. His broad back was facing Liam.

“Good evening Mr. Liam,” Naro greeted without looking behind him.

“Good evening Mr…,” Liam started as he walked to the man’s right.

“Uncle,” Naro interjected.

Liam shook his head as he grew a slight grin as he realized this man was determined to have him call him Uncle Naro no matter what. He noticed the tree log he had used last night was in the same spot, so he went to it and sat down.

“Good evening Uncle Naro,” Liam corrected himself. “How did you know it was me?”

Naro gave him a warm smile before pointing to his nose. “You have a peculiar scent. I memorized it last night.”

“That’s not creepy at all,” Liam joked.

“It’s both a blessing and a curse for us Beast-kins,” Naro laughed. After he finished laugh he stated, “It makes me happy to see you have returned tonight. Tell me…how did your showcase go today? Did anything good happen?”

Liam let out a sigh as he remembered the events that had happened. He then told Naro all that had happened. From meeting the trouble making old Squirrel-folk woman to the trouble caused by both Weasel-folks and even the three Cat-folks appearing.

Naro watch Liam and listened to everything he had to say, not interrupting him once. After Liam finished, Naro let out a deep warm chuckle while saying, “It sounds to me like you had a really fun day.”

“Some of the things I did today was fun yes, but I could do without the trouble,” Liam stated.

“Life without trouble is a life that won’t learn and grow,” Naro stated with a smile.

Liam slightly frowned as he shook his head. “I don’t know about that. Speaking of learning. I learned a lot about different types of crafts as well as some rules set for crafters. Why didn’t you tell me about them last night?”

“If I did then you wouldn’t learn on your own,” Naro replied. “There are some lessons that you must learn on your own. The rules placed by those who have been stuck in a rut is a lesson on what a crafter shouldn’t do.”

Liam let out a short chuckle. “Those rules are utter bullshit if you ask me. I mean I can understand people getting the recognition for what they have discovered, but to restrict others from learning them feels wrong. I just learned about this rule today and it makes me feel like I need to second guess my decisions before trying to explore the unknown.”

Naro studied Liam as he listened. “Are you saying you are going to stop trying new things and follow the path those made before you?”

Liam thought about it. Would he really do that? Would he really give up trying to learn new things just so he wouldn’t get into a situation like today? After thinking about it for a few moments he turned to look at Naro and said, “As much as I don’t like to deal with idiots like Morshire, I really do enjoy messing with them. So, to answer your question about if I will step in line to their rules then no. I want to keep exploring new ways and learn new things.”

Naro grinned at Liam’s answer. “Glad to hear it. Just so you know there are others who feel the same.”

Liam raised a brow as he stared at the man. “There are?”

Naro nodded. “Yes, quite a few actually. Myself included. Rules and restrictions only hamper a crafter’s growth. That’s why I like to help new crafters who want to learn and grow. My methods and techniques are out of the norm compared to traditional crafters.”

“Really?” Liam questioned. “Would you teach me those ways?”

Naro let out a loud hearty laugh as he replied, “Maybe one day. Until then let’s start with the basics.”

Liam frowned as he looked at Naro. A question formed as he thought about something. “Quick question for you. Last night you taught me some Chef Craft stuff. I was wondering if you could tell me more about what the difference in items received between using the crafter ability Harvest and the Chef Craft ability Butcher.”

Naro raised a brow. Curious, Naro asked, “What brought this up?”

Liam explained about what he was going to help Cindy with tomorrow.

“Hm, I see. That is a good sign that you are asking this. It shows you are thinking about all of your options when it comes to gathering. Yes, there are big differences on materials found between the two. However, to really see the benefits of Butcher it will require you to get it to at least level ten. If you’d like I can help you since the first ten levels are easy to fly through.”

Liam beamed with excitement after hearing Naro would be willing to help him level his Butcher ability. Before he could answer, Naro started back up again, “However, I do require payment for me teaching you.”

Liam’s excitement dimmed as he eyed the man. “What payment do you require?”

Naro smiled as he responded, “You must join me for a meal and help me make it.”

Liam let out a chuckle before replying, “That’s something I would be happy to pay.”