After reminiscing fondly about his first person he contacted in this world, Victor gave Pepi a few scratches and pats before lifting her on up.

‘’Mr.Cooper is a nice guy. Remember to behave yourself when he comes by.’’

Victor saw how energetic the puppy was as she gave a quiet bark. Chuckling to himself about how smart she was, Victor could not help but feel a slight increase in Pepi’s weight.

After lifting Pepi up and down a few times, the puppy yelped with discontent and looked at him resentfully.

‘’Sorry about that, I just felt you have grown a little. Haven't you?’’

With a bright smile on his face, Victor let Pepi on the ground and continued. ‘’How about we go on a brief walk? While it’s good to eat properly, you need the exercise as well because otherwise you will be a chonker…’’

Just as Pepi heard the first part of the sentence, she spun excitedly in a circle a few times but then came to a full stop while tilting her head at the word of chonker.

‘’Ah right, you don’t know about chonkers. Just don’t overeat or you’ll become a chonker meme…’’

Hearing this, Pepi shook violently a few times and thought to herself that chonkers and memes are something fearful. In her fluffy head she swore that from now on she would be more selective in regards to the ‘’food’’.

The usual food was good and all for the basic sustenance, but in order for her to grow Pepi needed something of higher quality.

Victor gave her an odd look and shook his head. Even if she’s smart for a puppy, there is no way she would know what I mean…

‘’Aight, let’s go! It’s still pretty early so I don’t think it’s going to be a problem closing for a bit?’’

Victor and Pepi cheerfully came downstairs in tow, and just as Victor was searching for his keys near his counter; a familiar doorbell rang clearly as the sky.

Reflexively he greeted the customer with the usual. ‘’Welcome to the Ages past antique shop, can I be of any assistance?’’

Turning his eyes towards the entrance, a familiar face came into Victor's view.

Brown hair, a petite but fit figure and clear eyes.

Freezing for a second, a smile crept up in Victor’s face before he saw the deep frown on Nicole Byron’s face.

‘’Who are you, really?’’ A cold feminine sound echoed in the shop followed by silence.

Speechless and feeling cold sweat forming on his back, Victor’s brain racked out the best answer he could muster.

‘’Victor Wartell. A humble shopkeeper in Runa, but you should already know that…’’

‘’Of course I know your name, but after searching for a long time, there is no ‘’Victor Wartell’’ in the federation.’’ With a tense expression plastered on her face, Nicole uttered out.

Victor sighed out loud and kept his silence with a shrug.

Feeling the tense atmosphere, Pepi moved in front of Victor while baring her fangs towards Nicole. ‘’Now now Pepi, that’s not how you greet customers…’’ Scooping her up in his arms, Victor soothed the puppy and paid no attention to Nicole.

‘’Fine. Then answer me this. Whose side are you on?’’ Exasperated at the lack of reaction, Nicole’s eyes quickly softened as she saw the cute puppy in Victor’s arms but soon shuddered.

Hesitating slightly, having no idea what was going on, Victor opened his mouth.

‘’I am on my side? I don’t discriminate between my customers if that is what you mean?’’

Watching carefully, Victor could see that it was obvious Nicole had been crying.

Wondering what had happened, he opened his mouth carefully. ‘’I have no idea what happened, but do you want to talk it over? Maybe over coffee? I still have some left, but it’s not too good.’’

Victor pointed towards the kitchen area where the pot of coffee had already somewhat cooled down and immediately regretted it.

Vic you stupid idiot. Sigh…Even the last customer ran away because of that coffee so why would she like it. Awkwardly scratching his neck, Victor moved to block her line of sight from the pot and blushed slightly.

Nicole was a bit dumbfounded. Why did it sound like the shopkeeper was asking her for a date?

Trying to smoothly gloss over the situation, she made the situation even worse and quickly.

‘’In my line of work, you don’t date people you meet during the work hours. Especially when we got to know each other from a brutal murder case so… I’ll have to decline.’’

Victor froze still, and did not recover for a while. Yes he might have daydreamed about asking Nicole for a coffee in the past, but he genuinely meant to ask what was wrong. And maybe sell her something appropriate afterwards.

‘’Uhm, okay then?’’ Sneakily looking at Pepi for help, he found out that the puppy was already gone.

Turning his eyes, he could see a fluffy snout peeking from behind the counter, leaving Victor speechless. Why did you abandon me in this awkward situation. ( ≖.≖)

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

Coughing into his hand a few times, Victor cleared his throat and said.

‘’So back to the topic. I don’t discriminate nor I am on anyone’s side.’’

Hearing the answer, Nicole’s frown disappeared as if a heavy load was lifted from her chest.

‘’That is sort of a relief…I came here hoping to find something that would help my paralyzed friend. Do you have anything fitting?’’ With eyes full of expectation, she had resolved to pay anything to help Erikson.

‘’Paralyzed you say?’’ Victor mumbled out and rubbed his shaved chin as if there was a beard.

Furiously trying to think of an item that would either help or comfort a paralyzed man, Victor snapped his finger as if he had a good idea but then was disappointed once again.

Shaking his head, Victor could not bear to sell old tribalistic medicine bottles in fear that someone actually would try them.

After all, as a former man of science he still had his principles. Selling an item without any proper testing and meant as a decoration would be cruel.

When people are desperate, they would choose to trust any glimmer of hope. However faint it might be, and Victor could not in good conscience sell such items.

Nicole saw the struggle in Victor’s face and when he finally shook his head, her eyes were filled with disappointment.

‘’What did you have in mind? Please tell me. I brought cash with me this time so just tell me.’’

Victor took a deep breath and knew he would have to present something to Nicole or she would pester about it the whole day.

Walking silently to the backroom, Victor opened an old wooden closet.

Picking up an intricate bottle resembling a gorilla with its hands across its chest in a cross, laced with crystalline decorations and marvelous handiwork.

Looking at the bottle with some difficulty in his eyes, Victor felt that he should not be selling something he bartered for after a long negotiation.

Fine, I’ll just show it to her just to get her to drop the idea. Why even ask me to sell something helpful to Detective Wheels / Legman? Just go to the same hospital I was and your buddy would be dancing samba tomorrow…

Carefully carrying the bottle to the counter, Victor placed it on the table.

Observing the facial expression of Nicole, he could see her eyebrows twitching.

‘’This was what I was thinking, but I don’t think it would even be useful. It ain’t gorilla glue but don’t stick it in your hair nevertheless.’’

‘’Gorilla glue? What is that?’’ Nicole, fully focused on the bottle, replied to him a bit absentmindedly.

‘’Nevermind, just a stupid joke from my old hometown…Now you know what I was thinking, so if you want to help your buddy, go to the same hospital I was in. They work miracles there.’’ With a somewhat frustrated voice, Victor was about to pick the bottle up.

‘’Wait! Wait wait wait. Where you get this?’’ Nicole quickly closed in with obvious excitement in her eyes.

Nicole seemed to know what the bottle was, but Victor felt disturbed when someone totally ignored personal space.

Taking two steps backwards to keep some breathing room, Victor looked at Nicole. ‘’I got it from a strange fella who likes to cosplay. The dude didn’t have money, so he offered me this instead. I felt I would be making a hefty profit considering the handicraft, but everybody seemed to be scared to buy it off me so it has been gathering dust in the closet.’’

Nicole's eyes went wide and she pointed towards the gorilla bottle. ‘’Cosplayer? What is that? Nonono first things first: Someone actually bartered you this bottle? What did you sell to him?’’

Seeing the shock in Nicole, Victor felt smug and just raised his nose towards the roof.

‘’Customer confidentiality, can’t tell you.’’ Hah! So the lass knows what this is, and it seems pretty expensive too… Maybe I should rip her off a little for making things so awkward.

Clearing his throat, Victor smiled brightly. ‘’It’s not impossible to sell this, but I think it’s going to be expensive…’’

Nicole turned her focus from the bottle to Victor and thought furiously. Yes, the shopkeeper was right. The sacred medicine of Titanapes was said to cure every physical wound while strengthening the body, but how she could afford it.

Every drop of the liquid inside that bottle was worth a fortune if it ever appeared on the market.

Victor observed her facial expression with keen interest. It seems that time to toss morality aside was here. Why should I care when she rejected me already. Customer is customer and I gotta feed my family.

Nicole sighed with dejection after trying to think of a way to pay and slumped her delicate shoulders.

‘’Sir, would you be willing to sell just a bit of the medicine inside? I don’t have too much money with me, but I can do…a deal.’’ Straightening her posture, she seemed to be resolved to make a deal with the devil.

‘’A deal you say. I like deals…’’ With eyes shining and a bright smile on his face, Victor rubbed his hands together like a proper capitalist.