*Day 32*

“Is that ‘you’, Joram?”

He turned around to see Myra looking at him, brows furrowed as she squinted at him. He sighed.

“I am Joram,” he said, shaking his head. “Just as the ‘other’ Joram is still me. If I die, he becomes the only Joram. Likewise, if he dies, I become the only Joram. We’re the same beings, after all,” he explained for what felt like the twentieth time.

“Yeah, but are you the one who was created by Joram number one?” she asked dubiously.

“Yes,” he sighed, then noticed her perk up a bit.

“Anyways,” she said, pushing her hair back over her shoulder. “I figured that you should know that another caravan arrived a little while ago.”

Joram looked towards Kirkwall sharply then relaxed a bit.

“I take it that you’re telling me this because they’ve brought more slaves, huh?”

“They have,” Myra said, watching him like a hawk.

“…”

Myra continued watching him, following along just slightly behind him as he thought about that. If they had brought as many children as last time, he supposed that he might need to build another apartment building. Or perhaps add onto the current one. It was certainly sturdy enough to allow for another dozen floors… at least. That said, he’d have to get the ladies to start working on meals again.

J1: Yeah, I’ll send someone to do that.

J2: Thanks. I’ll head over and get to buying, then.

J1: Make sure to buy any other books that you can.

J2: Oh, we should probably arrange for a few wagons, then.

J1: Just use the ones we bought last time.

J2: I could probably just make some passenger busses or something.

J1: Oh, good thought. Can you- er, we, make some constructs that just do the same thing? It’d save trying to get a couple of drivers.

J2: Can’t we just drive? Or Avi?

J1: Yeah, get Avi. I’m a bit busy trying to make sure that the storage ring won’t explode….

Joram nodded to himself before asking Avi to meet him at the gates as Myra continued watching him. A couple of minutes later, Avi arrived, followed closely by Asami. It was still hard to look at either of them directly for long, and with the two of them together more often than not these days, it made for a difficult day. Even with [Clear Mind] running.

He idly wondered if [Clear Mind] wasn’t the cure-all he’d been using it as, then shook his head.

“Lets go,” he said as he changed his mind and instead used [Summon: All], concentrating on a 52 passenger bus that would be sturdy enough to go cross-country while retaining perfect passenger comfort.

A second later, his mana pool drained… fractionally. He looked, then just smiled.

MP: 1,029 / 1,030

Then he thought about it a moment and checked his Core stock in his Inventory and found that a single Grade A Core had vanished. He looked back at the larger-than-normal passenger bus and saw that it wasn’t really something that you’d find on Earth. Or, well, in the early 21st century, anyways.

It looked slightly… futuristic while having a bit of a post-apocalyptic vibe to it. Its tires were closer to ones you’d find on a military vehicle while its body was sleek. A bit like you’d see depicted in the Silver-age cartoons depicting futuristic trains; silver, sleek, and a bit bullet-like.

Anyways, at least it wasn’t some tacky colour, just a deep charcoal grey that seemed to have a slight… glimmer to it. Almost like those paintjobs that had the “diamond” look to them.

“What’s that?” Myra asked, looking more interested than worried.

“That would be a ‘bus’,” Avi said, shaking her head. “You could have just used [Astral Construct] to make one, you know.”

“I was curious,” he said, slightly embarrassed. “I’ll just have a quick look…” he said as he made his way into the bus, only having to go up a single step.

It seemed that it wasn’t a typical passenger bus that used the space under the seating to store luggage. In fact, the only place to store luggage was the overhead compartments. Which, while spacious-looking, didn’t look like they’d be able to accommodate much.

Shrugging, he sat in the driver’s seat and had a quick look before calling Myra, Asami, and Avi to come it.

After a quick tutorial on seat belts, he started up the bus and made his way out of the gates and to Kirkwall, grinning all the while.

* * *

“Be sure that they’re all ready to show,” Matun said as he rubbed his hands together, anticipating the feel of Crystal Cores in his hands.

“They were washed last night,” Huwar, his second, said with a sigh. “If that kid is as much of a bleeding heart as you say, I’m sure that he’ll buy them all without complaining about some messy hair.”

“You weren’t here last time,” Matun said, now rubbing his palms on his thighs trying to dry them a bit. “The locals call him a [Hero]. I’ve done some asking around, but as far as I could find, there haven’t been any [Hero] [Summon]’ings these past few decades. Which means that he’s either a secret [Hero] [Summon]’d by the Queen, or he’s strong enough to have done what they’d claimed without being a damn [Hero],” he said, shaking his head.

“Bah. I’m sure that his reputation has been exaggerated,” Huwar said, shaking his head. “This lot should earn us even more than the last one, especially considering ‘how scarce’ the merchandise is these days.”

It was Matun’s turn to shake his head, silently praying that his vice-president didn’t do anything stupid.

He was about to warn him again when he heard the guards outside making a racket.

“What’d going on?” he asked one of the guards inside the tent, who then stuck his head out for a look.

“It’s that guy,” he said after leaning back again, quickly stepping away from the tent flaps.

Now even more nervous, he quickly turned to give Huwar a warning look before turning back to the opening tent flaps with his best smile.

“Ah, young master! It’s good to see you again?” he said as warmly as he could before noticing that he’d once again brought the two foxkin women with him.

Then he paused when a third woman entered, nearly flooring him. She was as tall as that Joram kid, and looked to be the same age as well. But given her figure, let alone her face, he was sure that she would fetch a price that started in the Platinum range.

“Indeed,” Joram said, nodding at him cooly, reminding him once more of just how hard the man was to read. “I see that you’ve… stocked up again,” he said as he took his time looking around the show tent.

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

“That we have,” he said as he felt sweat tricking down his back for some reason. “I assure you, they’re all top quality and ready to serve!” he finished with an extravagant wave as Huwar joined in with the theatrics by also flourishing in the other direction.

Joram lightly grunted as the white-haired foxkin glared at him, her nine tails slowly swaying back and forth. He idly wondered if the woman blamed him for bringing more slaves for Joram to buy, possibly limiting her bedding time with him. Then the new woman with the crazy-coloured hair began to glare as well, causing him to unconsciously shuffle back a step as Joram began walking from cage to cage.

“As you can see, we treat our slaves well,” Huwar said, following along beside Joram as he spoke. “They’ve also been checked to make sure they’re both clean and virgins. After all, there’s no need to take unnecessary risks, hey,” he said conspiratorially, grinning like a fool.

Matun was about to step in when Joram stopped and fixed his vice-president with a look that caused the man’s legs to collapse underneath him. He quickly checked one of his rings and nearly sighed in relief: there hadn’t been any magic involved. But then he nearly panicked because Joram then turned to regard him.

“I trust that the same prices will apply here,” Joram said coolly.

“Ah, the prices are a bit higher due to scarcity,” he said, suppressing the urge to swallow hard.

Joram regarded him for another few moments before finally speaking.

“I’ll buy them all for one part in ten above last time’s purchase,” he finally said, still as stone-faced as last time.

“See here,” Huwar said with a slight shake in this voice as he unsteadily got to his feet. “We’ve had to not only purchase the new slaves, but we’ve also had to feed, clothe, and bathe them all this time. Not only that, but due to scarcity, the prices have gone up, just as Master Matun has said,” he finished, obviously steeling himself for Joram’s response.

Joram hadn’t turned away from him the entire time Huwar had spoken, causing the man’s face to redden in anger. For his part, Matun nearly swooned under Joram’s intense stare, bordering on a glare. It nearly made him forget the- now three- women who were glaring at him.

“In terms of ranking. How would you rate your standing amongst the various slave merchants?” Joram suddenly asked, nearly knocking him over with such a random question.

“Ah…. I would say that Myriad Wonders would be somewhere in the middle of the rankings,” he said, wondering just what he was getting at.

“Then there are many more slave merchants with larger operations, then?”

“Well, I wouldn’t say many, but there are certainly about ten or so who have larger operations than I have,” he said, now feeling attacked for some reason, which then got his back up.

“What would you say the net worth of your Myriad Wonders is?”

“Pardon?” he asked, now getting offended by such a question.

“Let me rephrase, as Common isn’t my first language,” Joram said, shaking his head slightly, shocking him with his admission. “If someone wanted to purchase your company, how much would it go for?”

Matun nearly gaped at the rich kid in front of him, then got thinking.

Well. If I take into account my various buildings, stock, and such, then I suppose that I could get at least thirty-six Platinum Coins…. But if he’s asking how much for everything, then making a profit above and beyond all that should be easy enough.

But, can the kid really afford it? He just paid five and a half gold bars last month, so can he really afford it?

Deciding to just throw a number out there, he finally spoke.

“Well, considering the market and such, I’d say that an all-in buy-out of Myriad Wonders would cost a person fifty Platinum Coins,” he said, keeping the smirk he felt bubbling up suppressed.

Joram glanced at his women then looked back at him, his expression as unreadable as ever.

“I’ll give you thirty,” he said flatly.

“Young master, believe me when I say that fifty isn’t a terrible price. But since you’ve been such an amazing customer, and that you’re here to once again buy out our stock, I can let Myriad Wonders go for a mere forty-five Platinum Coins,” he said, using his best closing smile.

“Then I’ll give you forty. Take it or leave it,” Joram said, now folding his arms across his respectable chest.

Huwar was looking between him an Joram like a fish out of water, not seeming to understand what was going on. He supposed that it would be fair that the man was taken off guard. If Joram truly bought Myriad Wonders from him, then he might be out of a job.

“Now, young master, forty-five is a steal-,”

“Thirty-nine,” Joram said flatly.

“You see-,” he started, but was cut off again, making him swallow hard.

“Thirty-eight.”

“Now, forty sounds like a perfectly reasonable price,” he said, panicking as his profits began vanishing from before his eyes.

Joram was quiet for another minute before he finally spoke.

“That’s good. Then I’ll meet you at the bank in an hour. In the meantime, make sure that everyone is ready to go for when we finish up there,” Joram said before turning and leaving the tent, his three women closely following him out to leave them alone again.

Huwar’s mouth continued to work silently for another minute or two before he finally found his voice.

“What was that?!” he demanded, his face suddenly going very, very red.

“That would be me retiring,” he said, shaking his head as he slowly, and very carefully, made his way over to a stool by the exit, and sat down hard. “I told you to be careful.”

“What’re you talking about? I’ll not be intimidated by some whelp’s [Skill]s! I’ll contact the authorities and make sure that he’s taken care of!” Huwar said, practically ranting now that Joram was gone, and thus safe.

“He didn’t use any magic, or [Skill]s,” he said, shaking his head as he held up his hand to show the man his rings, and to remind him what they were there for.

Huwar didn’t seem to understand at first, but when the door guard let out a long breath, also looking shaky, he seemed to sober up a bit.

“Surely he isn’t really a [Hero],” Huwar said, now looking more than a little bit nervous.

Matun very much understood the man’s fears. [Heroes] weren’t something normal people could deal with. They were beings [Summon]’d to Iria for the express purpose of helping humanity fight against the demons, especially the Demon Lord. They were somehow granted abilities and [Skill]s that far outstripped those of any Irian, putting them at the top of the world’s power structure.

And, depending on the country, empire, or kingdom that [Summon]’d them, were granted an extraordinary level of autonomy and authority to act in the “best interests” of said entities. Not only that, but any [Hero] that accumulated enough meritorious deeds could, and would, be recognized by other countries, and would thus gain the same rights and privileges in those countries as well.

Now, based off how young Joram looked, and the last confirmed use of [Summon: Hero], he doubted that Joram- a human- could be a [Hero] from the last round of [Summon]’ings. That, and he hadn’t detected any [Illusion]s, nor any [Skill]s that could alter a person’s appearance.

The man still read as a [Crafter], even having gained 3 Levels since they’d last met. But was he using a [Skill] to obfuscate is actual Path and Level? He’d been assured that his [Ring of Identify] was rated up to a [Skill] total of 60! Even some nobles didn’t have an obfuscation [Skill] that high! Combined with how young he was, he was reasonably sure that Joram was indeed a generic [Crafter]….

But why did his gut tell him to avoid making Joran angry…?

“Get things ready,” he said, finally standing up again. “We’ll be off once the paperwork is finished. Leave everything except our gear and horses,” he said, then left the tent, now wondering if he could buy a small estate just outside of the capitol, Myrmeze.

* * *

“I’ll go buy-out the book vendor,” Avi said, waving as she split off from them as they left the slaver’s compound.

Joram nodded, continuing on to Kirkwall with Myra and Asami at his sides.

“Are you really serious about buying a whole… slaving business?” Myra asked, faltering at the end, probably because she didn’t quite know what to call something like that. He sure didn’t.

Calling it a “company” just felt… wrong.

“Yes. I’ll be setting up a few things, going forward. I… intend to see what I can do to change a few things in this country,” he said, frowning.

“Kingdom,” Myra corrected absently.

“Kingdom,” he said, nodding. “I’ll also have to see what I can learn about the politics of this kingdom if I stand a chance of changing anything,” he said, shaking his head.

“That’ll be tough,” Asami said from his other side. “Humans are incredibly stubborn in their ways, after all.”

“True…” he said thoughtfully, knowing full-well just how entrenched humans could be in their views and ways of thinking.

They didn’t say anything after that, each one of them deep in thought as they entered the bank. Joram looked up again to see Franny look up from her desk and smile briefly before putting up a brave face.

“Joram, it’s good to see you again,” she said, smiling in a way that made him wonder just what she actually thought of him.

“Oh, it’s fine,” Asami muttered quietly before he could say anything.

“Ah, well, I’ll need to make another deposit, if that’s possible? Is Zerava in?” he asked, giving her his second-best smile.

“Ah, yes, please follow me!” Franny said, hopping to her feet quickly before scurrying towards the hallway leading to Zerava’s office.

They followed along quickly and were also let into Zerava’s office just as fast before Franny beat a hasty retreat.

“Wow, you’re even more popular than before,” Zerava said as though commenting on the weather, though Asami snickered at her words.

“Ah, well, anyways,” he said, changing the subject. “I’ve got another deposit I need to make, but I kind of need a bit of… discretion,” he said, then placed a full one hundred Grade A Cores on her desk, causing her eyes to nearly bug out in shock.

“What the hell?!” Zerava demanded a moment after inspecting a few of the Cores. “How are they all High-Grade Cores?”

“Can you deposit them?” he asked, handily avoiding the question.

“There’ll be questions asked,” Zerava said, shaking her head. “This many Grade A- and High-Grade- Cores showing up in the boonies like this always raises more than a few flags,” she said, giving him a pointed look.

“Well, I might have been playing around in a dungeon these past few weeks,” he said, scratching the back of his head as he looked up at the ceiling.

Zerava turned and pinned Asami with a questioning look that seemed to roll off like water off a duck’s back. She then turned to Myra who promptly began studying the view out the window. Another minute passed before she gave up with an explosive sigh.

“Just so long as you’re paying your taxes,” she said, shaking her head as she began counting the Cores by sliding them into a bag that she’d gotten from somewhere, two at a time.

“Do you pay taxes on dungeons outside of a settlement’s area of influence…?” he asked, now worried about tax evasion and just how ridiculously tenacious tax collectors could be… and vicious.

Zerava looked up once she finished counting and frowned at him.

“You mean, you found a Grade A Wild Dungeon?”

“Yes..?”

“…”

“…”

“Go talk to Celys,” she said, shaking her head before bowing it and pinching the bridge of her nose.