In the depths of Lake Tiber, a curious scene was taking place. Dozens of colorful fish of all kinds had gathered around a strange intruder that swam with four limbs and looked terribly inefficient while doing so. They moved alongside the girl and when she stopped in front of a large rock, they spread out, their bodies floating in anticipation as her fist shot out, the bands on her arms glowing red. The rock shattered into pieces, and a shockwave reverberated across the water.

The fish gleefully allowed the ripple to take them, spinning across the lake and enjoying the ride, just as they had done dozens of times before.

Mitsy glanced up at the fish, her lips curling into a smile as they gathered around her again.

“Sorry little guys, I’m done breaking things,” she said, her voice not reaching them through the water.

With a sweep of her hand, she gathered the rocks together, placing them inside her choker. She kept one eye on her surroundings as she did so, watching for any stray shadows. Seeing nothing, she nodded her head and kicked off against the lakebed, returning to the dome in only three leaps.

Once she broke through to the other side, she walked up to a pile of shattered stone that reached up to her waist and was as wide as a bed. There was also a smaller pile of shining green rocks beside it. Glossrock, though each piece was miniscule.

Dollar was sitting next to it.

They had both moved outside, and he had dropped the bronze golem’s remains on the ground, and then conjured another item into his hands. His dagger, Agni. And she could see him focusing intently on the bronze material, his surroundings nothing more than background noise.

A wicked smile crossed her lips as she stepped up to him, her footfalls silenced by the sand. “Problem?”

Dollar glanced over his shoulder and came face-to-face with a mischievous smile and a mop of wet blonde hair. Mitsy gazed at him expectantly, looking for a reaction to her sudden appearance.

“Hey,” Dollar greeted Mitsy casually.

“Aw, you didn’t get scared,” Mitsy pouted. “How did you know I was coming?”

“I’m psychic,” Dollar said dryly.

“You liar. Also, you said I’d only have to do one thing.” Mitsy dropped the new rock fragments onto the pile. “Double liar.”

“We’re starting a new business. Which means we need to do the work of three people each,” Dollar replied. “Luckily for us, I can do the work of five.”

A roaring fire splashed light across the sand as Dollar activated Agni’s fire array, and a thin sheen of protective film showed him the protection arrays were working as well. The symbol arrays powering the Zendrian steel dagger sang to Dollar as they felt their newfound freedom. They also protested at being kept inside the storage ring for so long.

Hello there, my greatest invention. Dollar greeted the weapon fondly. Let’s get to work.

He brought Agni down to cut the surface of the golem’s bronze skin and a deep scratch appeared. Then he tried it without the flames and saw a similar cut appear. The heat made no difference.

“Not hot enough to melt bronze,” Dollar noted. “Or maybe I just need to leave your flames on it for longer.”

Dollar kept the flames turned off, deeming it safer. He did, however, keep the protection array activated, so that the dagger wouldn’t get scratched. With that worked out, he brought his notebook and paintbrush, crafting a dozen protection symbols. Then a dozen more. Then he moved them onto himself.

A symbol flared to life, and a thin layer of armor appeared across his body.

“Are you expecting a fight?” Mitsy asked.

She had taken a seat next to the golem’s remains, looking at them curiously, and then glancing at the pile of sea rocks he had asked her to make.

“Only with myself,” Dollar said. “I have no armor or protection.”

I didn’t survive Christoff’s assault just to lose an eye to a stray metal shaving. Dollar clasped Agni tight in his hand.

Dollar’s hands swayed as though turning in a delicate dance, putting his 183 dexterity to full use as Agni and the bronze were engaged in an ethereal tango, guided like puppets by his fingers. Normally he only saw the benefit of his increased dexterity when crafting symbols, but seeing his stat in action brought a thrill he couldn’t describe.

A cut to the left. More pressure down the middle. Subtle shifts to the right.

In these moments, I see the difference The System makes.

Sweat dripped down his forehead, pooling at the edge of his nose and chin as he worked, but soon, he had an entire castle of bronze blocks stacked as high as his chest. It required more strength and stamina than he’d imagined, but his body could take a lot of punishment. And nobody could beat his determination and willpower.

“This should be enough.”

All the blocks together made up about a third of the original golem, with a fair few bronze shavings on the ground. Dollar collected them too, unwilling to waste even a single material.

Almost two hours had passed by in an instant.

“What about the red crystals?” Mitsy asked.

Dollar jolted in surprise, turning to find Mitsy sitting in the same spot as before. Did she stay there the entire time?

Mitsy fixated on the crystals that had once embedded the golem’s featureless face. Dollar had also pried out several more from inside the golem, though most of them had broken when he’d stabbed it with Agni during their fight, which had also destroyed the symbol arrays inside it.

“Those red crystals are the golem’s core material.” Dollar shook his head. “I can’t use these. If I do, it’ll be obvious to everyone that I chopped up a golem and used its parts.”

“Huh, sounds like something I should know about as a future business owner.” Mitsy tilted her head, her eyes sparkling with an impish twinkle. “As my future employee, I demand you tell me all about it.”

Dollar rolled his eyes, putting Agni away and picking up a bronze block.

“This is what my dad called ‘casing material’. The bronze can contain the power of a symbol array and manifest its effects,” Dollar said, snatching up a red crystal in his other hand and raising it toward Mitsy. “This is a ‘core material’. They act as a conduit for our mana and [skills] to connect with and activate any symbol arrays etched into them. My dagger, Agni, has a Zendrian steel as its casing material, and the green glossrock in its rain guard is its core material.”

“Hmm, yes, this makes sense,” Mitsy tapped her chin, imitating the expression of a wise person. “I understand everything perfectly.”

“Do you?”

“No,” she said. “Make it simpler. Also, you still haven’t told me how I’m going to start a business. I need answers, not mysteries.”

“You’re impatient,” Dollar shook his head, hiding a smile as he did so.

He wouldn’t tell her, but he enjoyed her candor. It was refreshing compared to the people he’d surrounded himself with back on Earth. All of them had simply been yes-men or pretended they knew more than they did so that they wouldn’t look bad. Mitsy didn’t care about that. She just wanted facts.

She’ll improve rapidly because that’s all she’s trying to do.

Dollar stored the bronze blocks, then moved to the sea stone pile, pulling it into his ring.

How much money do I need to make for my next level up? Dollar wondered. The necklaces didn’t give me one, but maybe that’s because The System doesn’t consider me their owner yet. I think the last level I got was from the bronze golem itself, which is worth more than a few gold coins because of the crystals.

He’d need several gold coins to reach his next level.

“Okay, come on, we’ll get this stuff inside first, then we’ll talk,” Dollar said.

****

Dollar sat in the middle of Bill’s bedroom, next to a pile of rocks and bronze, as Mitsy rested against the mattress across from him. In his hand, Dollar held the business pamphlet, its pages sparkling and free of dust now that he’d gone through it thoroughly. In Tiber City, the minimum age for establishing a business was eighteen years old.

Except there was a loophole.

“If you’re a silver-ranked guild member, you automatically qualify as an adult in the eyes of the empire. That’s why adventurers can go on dangerous missions, and symbologists can learn symbols that could melt their brains,” Dollar said.

“And you can’t register because a seven-year-old silver-ranked symbologist starting a business would raise a lot of eyebrows,” Mitsy said, seeing through his intentions immediately. “That’s smart. But we still need something to sell.”

Dollar could tell she wanted to ask what artifacts he could make. She had her emotions written on her face. She was also twitching like crazy, her fingers tapping against her knees in curiosity, but she kept her lips shut tight.

She won’t ask me about my [skills], even if she wants to know. Dollar thought.

Ioa was a strange world, but the strangest part for Dollar was its customs. His parents had drilled social manners into him at an early age and they were downright alien compared to those of Earth, mostly because of the existence of The System. Not asking people about their [skills] and other abilities was the only major social custom that everyone in Ioa followed.

Wars had started because people had broken this rule in the past.

“Yeah, so, about that. If we’re going to find a suitable product, you need to know some of what I can do.” Dollar broached the subject carefully and kept his tone steady. “So, I’m going to send you a summary of some of my abilities.”

“No, that’s insane,” Mitsy shot him down immediately.

“Really?” Dollar couldn’t hide his surprise. “This is where you draw the line? Not at the battle on a sky ship, or being kidnapped by a giant underwater monster?”

“All regular and normal occurrences.” Mitsy waved her hand dismissively. “Okay, maybe not so regular, but this is different.”

I don’t get some of these customs. Dollar resisted the urge to sigh.

“I’ll cut to the chase. You need the full picture if we’re going to help Bill,” Dollar said. “That’s what this is all about.”

Mitsy glanced at the still form of Bill beside her, the grec’s breathing shallow but stable.

She sighed, acceptance settling in.

“You’re a hard person to read, Dollar Tiberius,” her emerald eyes rested on him, her eyebrows furrowed as though she were staring at a hard puzzle.

She clicked her fingers and a blue box popped up in Dollar’s vision.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

[Contract Warning: Mitsy wishes to establish a non-disclosure agreement with you. View terms? Y/N.]

Mitsy giggled at his surprise. “It’s not common for adventurers to share information, but it’s needed for trips where hiding information means death. Like going into dungeons or Dethrakil ruins. Even then, some still choose not to share.”

Huh. That makes sense. Dollar thought.

He opened up the contract, scrutinizing it. The writing was much more thorough than he’d expected from Mitsy. It guaranteed silence and anonymity in certain cases where silence wasn’t possible. The System also oversaw the contract, meaning it was inviolable.

Then he saw the stamp of the adventurer’s guild on the contract, and the intricate details made sense.

A few minutes later, Mitsy perked up as she received a notification of acceptance. Then her eyes widened as she saw the extra message that Dollar had tacked on.

My Symbols:

Others: Connection Symbols (four).

Low ranked: Darkness, wood, sound, water, haste, protection, and fire.

Mid-ranked: Sustenance.

Darkness symbol: Shrouds the area in shadows. It can be dark enough to hide me if there are obstacles around.

Water symbol: It gives me water. Approximately a quarter of a cup’s worth.

Wood symbol: It turns my clothes and skin into armor. Very handy.

Silence symbol: sounds become muted. It doesn’t eliminate all sounds, but it makes it easier to sneak around.

Haste symbol: Duration: 30 seconds. Effect: 20% increase in movement speed. 25.20% increase when enhanced by [omitted]. Effect 2: The speed at which my mental commands are sent to my limbs is increased at least enough to match my physical speed increase. There is a slight shift in how quickly my eyes process information.

Protection Symbol: Creates a sheen of armor around parts of my body. Sometimes my full body, depending on where it’s placed. It can withstand a sword strike, though that depends on the quality of the sword and the strength of the person using the sword. I need to do more testing.

Fire symbol: Conjures a flame that is approximately the size of a palm, but it quickly increases if it consumes nearby flammable materials. It can destroy the symbol used to create it if the drawing material is susceptible to damage from flames.

Mitsy fell back onto the bed, her arms flailing in surprise and accidentally smacking against Bill. Her eyes also grew wide, and for a moment, he was worried they’d pop out of her head. He’d sent her his personal notes, and they were extensive.

“These–these are–”

“They’re all the symbols I know, not my [skills],” Dollar said.

Well, not all the symbols. Dollar thought. He’d left out the reincarnation symbol for obvious reasons. He had also left out the sustenance symbol notes since he didn’t have any materials capable of containing its power.

For a moment, Mitsy seemed to overcome her shock. Then it returned twofold.

“I’ve never seen half of these spells! Dollar, this is insane.” Mitsy turned her gaze toward Dollar. “Okay, I’m getting excited.”

They’re not spells- Wait, never mind.

“Good. How much do you know about artifact creation?”

“I know absolutely nothing.” Mitsy’s chest puffed up with pride.

“That doesn’t surprise me,” Dollar kept a straight face as he replied. “One of my symbols has to be the base effect of the artifact. So, I need to pick which one I’m going to use. Like, fire, for example.”

“Not the fire one,” Mitsy’s shot down his suggestion immediately. “People can turn around and use them on you. It’s also a really rare element. Making artifacts from it will get you locked in a dungeon to make weapons for the rest of your life. Your objections will be the least of their concerns.”

‘Knows nothing about artifacts’, my ass, Dollar thought. People don’t know what they know.

“This is exactly why I need your input. There’s every possibility that creating the wrong artifact will attract the interest of House Tiberius, and you’re going to help me avoid that,” Dollar said.

“You’re welcome.” Mitsy played with a loose strand of her hair. “I guess I finally found your weakness.”

She’s spot on. Probably more than she realizes. Dollar thought.

Dollar was confident in his crafting abilities, but his isolated upbringing meant that he didn’t know what symbols and elements were common or uncommon. Or what artifacts were unique or even valuable.

Mitsy, however, was an adventurer. One that knew what people wanted and used.

“So, we need to figure out which one of your symbols works best? Okay, I get it,” Mitsy said, nodding to herself. “The artifacts we sell have to be ones that won’t benefit House Tiberius because we’d just be strengthening your enemies. And since you’re avoiding attention, the artifacts can’t be unsafe or malicious. It also has to be something that people want to buy. Hey, this is fun!”

Dollar stared at her.

“What?” She asked, her eyes wide with innocence.

“It’s just…You’ve got a good head on your shoulders.”

“It’s mostly my pretty face and glorious hair, making everything else look good,” Mitsy beamed.

She tucked a strand of blonde hair behind her ear, her emerald eyes shining with certainty and no trickery to be seen within them, and Dollar disentangled his gaze from her. Ever since meeting her, he’d never been quite certain whether she was a fool, a genius, or purely ridiculous.

He concluded that she was just Mitsy.

“Right, you’ve got the gist of it,” Dollar said. “Let’s get to work.”

From there, Dollar drilled Mitsy for every bit of information she knew.

Which was surprisingly a lot.

Her knowledge of the inner workings of adventuring parties was impeccable, which was something he expected, but her knowledge of what city folk and rich people wanted and used was also incredibly in depth and detailed.

Water and wood artifacts were common and mostly worthless. Sound artifacts would benefit House Tiberius too much. The ability to silence certain areas was a powerful tool in the wrong hands.

Similarly, protection and fire artifacts were too valuable to sell.

“I’ve never even heard of Haste. It sounds useful. Too useful. Like, they’ll lock you up in a dungeon for the rest of your life if you make artifacts from it useful.”

Dollar quickly figured out that being locked up in a dungeon was Mitsy’s go-to warning.

Knowing symbols? Dungeon.

Showing talent? Dungeon.

Breathing in the wrong direction? Dungeon.

Reckless teenagers with talent trying to impress their crushes must be filling those poor dungeons, Dollar thought.

“I don’t think we quite agree on the possibility of that happening,” Dollar said.

“It happens. Most people have never seen a single symbol in their life,” Mitsy reminded Dollar. “Owning artifacts is rare too.”

There’s only one choice. Dollar decided.

“Which leaves us with one option,” Mitsy spoke, mirroring his thoughts.

Dollar stood up, turning toward the crafting materials on the floor with a glint in his eye.

“All I need is a few hours. Max.”

“No, you need to sleep.” Mitsy gently rested her hand on his shoulder, stopping him from leaving. “It’s late, and it’s been a tough day.”

Dollar wanted to object, but as he opened his mouth, a wave of exhaustion hit him and cut off his thoughts.

“What about the shadow that followed us?” Dollar asked. “It’s still out there.”

“Relax, I’ll take the first watch.” Mitsy smiled. “Maybe I’ll even get to see it up close.”

I probably won’t be able to sleep with everything that’s happened today. I’ll just wait for Mitsy to come and ‘wake me up’. Dollar thought. Yeah. That sounds like a plan.

Giving Bill a last pat on the back, they split off. Mitsy walking outside, and Dollar going into the free bedroom.

His snores hit the air the moment his head hit the pillow.

****

Mitsy watched over the calm waters of Lake Tiberius with a solemn expression. The cheer and bluster had simmered down as she thought over the events of the day. Several fish had gathered to gaze at her, their little fins shifting and swaying with the currents as they wondered if she would break more rocks.

Running a business. Geez, Dad would be proud, Mitsy chuckled, startling the fish. Then she paused. I’ll have to make up for him now. Be a little more serious.

Her knowledge about running a business was zero, but she would learn. Adapting had been her primary means of survival, and she hadn’t always been an adventurer. For now, she had her specialties, and she needed to focus on the obstacles at hand.

Her eyes glimmered as she watched the water, and the fish fled, their instincts sensing a predator watching them. A thousand factions and monsters appeared in her mind like pages in a book, each one labeled and described, from weaknesses to strengths.

This was her [Compendium of Prey].

The predator they encountered flickered through her mind, and she went through the pages containing monsters with similar natures and abilities. She flipped through the pages at the speed of thought, dozens of creatures with invisibility and ripple-like tentacles crossing her mind.

Finally, her mind settled on a single entry.

[Umbreligus: War steeds of the Seagod’s army.]

“Unusual,” she murmured.

The fish didn’t respond.

A god wasn’t an existence to mess with lightly. Nor would they bother with the lives of ordinary people.

But I already know that Dollar is extraordinary, Mitsy thought.

A child with a bloodline, and abilities that would make a grown man cry about unfairness. Anyone else in her position would have captured him the moment he was alone and then sold him to the highest bidder. Or they would have run for the hills. Mitsy could have left him alone the moment they reached the city of Tiber. She should have. But she could see his future, just as she’d once lived it. It looked bad. The powers of the world were already noticing him, and she knew it would take more than power to deter them.

If only I had more time. To train. To fight. To relax. Mitsy sighed. Any sort of break would allow us to build up our defenses. Not to mention…well, I doubt they’d find me here. Not yet, at least.

The compendium flipped through its pages once again, going through dozens of threats and their descriptions. In moments, she had memorized the information she needed. After all, that was how she’d gotten it into the book. Soon, she knew everything there was to know about their potential enemy. And if they showed their face, they would meet her fist.

As for the war steed, well, she couldn’t be sure of what it was, but she had seen enough to know it could kill Dollar if she wasn’t careful.

I could use some light exercise. Mitsy pushed herself off the ground, a smile rising on her lips. If I find it during my walk…well, I’ll just call it fate.

Excitement coursed through her at the thought of an invisible creature lurking within the surrounding waters.

It was time for a hunt.

If Dollar Tiberius was going to reveal his hand to the world, then she would make sure that nobody bit him.

****

Dollar basked in the sight of thousands of different sea creatures as he sat outside of the house. Mitsy had fallen asleep instantly after waking him up, and for his watch, he had positioned himself in a place where he could look out across the dome and beyond, ensuring that nothing could sneak up on him, invisible or not.

He used Agni to carve small symbols into a glowing green rock that Mitsy had gathered from the lakebed.

It was a glossrock.

Mitsy had gathered two resources to work with, both materials pointed out by the guidebook Dollar had bought from the fisherman’s guild. The first was glossrock, which he would use as the core materials of his artifacts, and the second was the sea stones, which would act as the casing materials. Together, they could hold the power of a minor symbol array.

For that purpose, he had carved most of the stones into even blocks, with a few exceptions.

“The book didn’t say they’d be this small,” Dollar grumbled.

The materials guide had listed them as a common material in the lakebed, though common was relative. Most people didn’t dare dive into the depths, let alone live there. But each one was far smaller than the one his father had put into Agni.

Dollar pressed the glossrock into a block of sea stone and they connected.

It was now an artifact.

“[Activate],” Dollar sent his will into the new artifact.

Tendrils of darkness exploded from its surface, the shadows expanding until they were the size of a small desk drawer.

“Good,” Dollar nodded.

He added the artifact to the pile beside him. The mass of minor artifacts he had created had formed a small hill that came up to his chest, and he smiled. This pile was the foundation of his business.

The reward for creating it was worth the effort.

[Symbol Crafting has reached level 16.]

[Symbol Crafting has reached level 17.]

[You have reached level 47.]

[You have gained a level: +10 free stat points.]

When I hit level 50, I’ll get two core points and be able to upgrade two of my [skills] from rank 1 to rank 2. Dollar eyed the notifications greedily. Mum said each one I upgraded would give added effects. So I have to choose wisely.

A sound disrupted his thoughts, and Dollar looked to the side to see the house trembling. Half the fish in the dome had run away at the sound, thinking that a monster was coming for them. The other half had frozen in fear, some even fainting.

Panic and the belief of an imminent earthquake were probably spreading among people in the City of Tiber.

The cause was a snore.

Mitsy has a serious sinus problem. Dollar thought. Poor Grisham. He must have gone deaf years ago.

When the rumbling stopped, he knew that Mitsy had woken up.

Sure enough, the girl walked over to him, her eyes drowsy as they glanced at the pile of artifacts he’d created. She ran her hand through her hair, tying it up with a band as she fought to suppress a yawn.

“Did you know that you snore?” Mitsy stopped beside him. “I heard it right before I woke you up.”

Dollar stared at her, and she shrugged.

“I just thought you’d like to know,” Mitsy said.

“Are you serious? You’re not one to talk,” Dollar shot back immediately.

“What do you mean?” She batted her eyes.

Maybe dealing with her is why Grisham went bald. Dollar thought.

“Hey, I can tell you’re thinking something behind my back,” Mitsy said, her stare piercing him like a dagger. “Don’t think I can’t read your mind.”

How does she keep doing that? Dollar kept his poker face on.

Mitsy lowered herself onto the ground, examining the artifacts carefully. Unlike Agni, the new artifacts weren’t complex. Each glossrock had a single darkness symbol and a connection symbol on it. Technically, the world had categorized them as minor artifacts, but they were barely even that.

These were what his father created to earn money while trapped in the forest.

Except Dad used ordinary stone. Well, as long as people who aren’t symbologists can activate it, it’s fine. Dollar reasoned.

Shadows burst forth as Mitsy activated the stone block.

“An invisible projectile?” She asked. “They’re only invisible when it’s dark. They’re also fragile. I can’t imagine surviving more than a single throw. I guess that’s why you made so many.”

He’d made about a thousand of the small blocks. Mitsy estimated that each would be worth about one or two bronze, even if they were artifacts. So, if they sold the entire pile, they could afford the information to help Bill.

And it had taken Dollar less than a day to put it all together.

“Symbologists are terrifying,” Mitsy muttered.

“They can also hide things from sight,” Dollar ignored her dark whispers. “Put it next to valuables and shove them into a hole, and they’ll be unseen by intruders. What matters more is that they’re artifacts.”

“That makes no sense,” Mitsy said. “Artifacts are useful for what they do. Not for what they are. And what about these on the side? They look way better.”

She reached out for a smaller pile that Dollar had squirreled away. Just like the bigger pile, it contained minor artifacts, but these artifacts had a different shape. Dollar had shaped them into an '8' and attached a colored string to them.

Mitsy recognized the strings as the ones she’d found in the kitchen drawer.

“This is new.” Mitsy examined the object. “What does it do?”

Her examination was interrupted as something fell into her lap.

It was a bronze block.

“That’s the key to my entire strategy,” Dollar replied. “There’s just one last thing we have to do. Then we’ll go to the city and open our business.”

“Wait, already?” Mitsy asked.

Dollar’s lips curved into a smile, and Mitsy glimpsed confidence beyond that of a child.

“Yeah. Just do what I say with that, and we’re golden.”

Dollar gestured at the bronze block.

“It’s time to wake up Bill.”