“A surprisingly common request, right this way sir,” the attendant said, leading me inside. I wasn’t sure what to expect from the place, but I almost laughed out loud when I saw it. Inside were several aisles of wooden racks that held rows of square cardboard-like sheets. A few customers were there, flipping through the different sheets and I was struck that the place looked almost exactly like a vintage record shop.
“Over here, there should be several copies of what you are seeking, the woman said leading me to the back row of displays. She flipped through a few sheets before handing me one. As I looked at it, a system prompt appeared.
Rift Travel Containment Field.
This field attaches to a mana core, enabling the summoned being to transport any items attached to their body. Typically, clothing and minor accessories can be transported, larger items, weapons, and things with significant mass are excluded from the field.
Attunement for this field requires 1 mana prior to each summoning. This mana can be drawn directly from the summoned being’s mana core and avoids parasitic loss from the summoned being’s mana-deficient world.
Price: 15 summoning points.
“Sold! I’ll take it. This is the best thing ever,” I said, almost shouting at the attendant since I couldn’t contain my excitement.
“While I enjoy your enthusiasm, please refrain from yelling, it might startle the other customers. If you wish to purchase this item, just concentrate on it and the required summoning points will flow into it,” the attendant said. Holding the item was odd, the paper it was made from had a nice texture to it and was rather thick. I had expected cardboard, but this was more like an expensive parchment that you might find on a formal document.
I wasn’t sure how it worked, so I tried to focus on the price, and inside my head I felt something shift and flow out of me. It was the summoning points, and they flowed from my body and into the strange parchment. Once fifteen had entered the item, the flow cut off and then something bled off the page and onto my hand.
It was like when I grabbed the mana core, and I could feel the material slither up my arm and onto my chest where it melded with the core. Knowledge of how to activate the item was shoved into my head. I just needed to grant it permission to activate, and it would draw one mana point from my core to do its work.
“Finally, now I won’t have to worry about getting arrested for indecent exposure,” I said to myself.
“I’m glad you’re pleased with the purchase, is there anything else you might be interested in?” The attendant asked.
“I wish I knew what to ask for. I don’t suppose you have anything that would stop me from being summoned. Other than that, what other types of things can I buy?” I asked.
“The item you requested is available, but the cost is typically beyond what a summoned being of your tier and rank can afford. The Summoning Disruption Interface is available for the price of one million summoning points. As for things that you can afford, what might I ask, is your budget?”
“I’ve only got fourteen summoning points left,” I admitted.
“We all must operate within our budget. Let me show you to the area where items in your price range are located,” the attendant said, guiding me to a much smaller rack with perhaps a few dozen of the stiff parchment cards inside. Two other summoned beings were looking through the items, and I hoped there would be something of use for me inside.
“Thank you, I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name. I’m Rico, Rico Kline,” I said.
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
“Pleased to meet you Mr. Kline, I’m Zarana. Just let me know if you have any questions, otherwise, I’ll let you browse on your own,” Zarana said.
“I did have one question, just for my own curiosity. If this shop is for people that are tier zero, rank five, why do you have expensive items in here? You’d think this place would stock only low-cost things since none of us are going to be rich at this point,” I asked.
“There are two reasons for that. The first is that not all summoned beings are poor. It’s true the majority come from worlds without mana, but some become summoned beings through other means and may arrive with considerable wealth at their disposal.
“The second, and probably more pertinent reason, is that this store is linked with all our stores in the other tiers of the city. With a shared inventory, we stock items that run the gamut of price levels. Were there any further questions?” She asked.
“No, thank you for your time,” I replied.
“Very good, if you choose to make another purchase, place the empty item card in the proper receptacle,” Zarana said, taking the card I had just used and placing into what looked like a giant mail slot on the wall.
“Got it,” I replied before continuing my shopping.
One of the other shoppers with me at the bargain bin took an item and left. It was just me and one other person, who I hoped wasn’t buying something I’d need. As I started flipping through the cards, I could see there were two major categories. The first, which had about twenty cards, was full of furnishings and simple décor items for my personal space. The other, with only ten cards remaining, held skills and abilities.
First, I dove into the dwindling supply of skills and abilities. I saw a few different choices. There was a second cantrip card for ten summoning points, and more basic proficiency cards for both armor and weapons. I held onto one of the armor cards, it was ten summoning points, and looked through the rest.
One item was interesting, it was a card that when activated, would increase your rank by one. This was a quick way to climb the ranks, but I could see this becoming a trap. If you didn’t raise your rank through summoning, you wouldn’t be getting the rewards that go with it, missing out on coins and summoning points.
The only other card that interested me was one that granted something called a minor ability. Like the armor and weapons cards, it would grant me a choice between three random abilities. I now had two open ability slots, one from reaching rank five and one from the scroll I had found.
My decision was narrowed down between the ability card and the armor proficiency card I was also holding. Both were priced at ten summoning points, so I could only afford one. It was too bad that Minerva had skipped out on me again, I could really use her advice about now.
“Do you intend to purchase either of those?” the young man next to me asked. I could tell from his speech pattern, and the goofy-looking pantaloons he was wearing that this guy was not from Earth.
“I think so, I’m just trying to decide between them. Did you want one of these?” I replied, feeling a bit guilty about hogging them both up.
“Well hand them over, this is a business establishment, not a library where you can peruse all day without purchasing,” the guy whined.
“Which one of these did you want?” I showed him, holding up both cards. I’d let the rude guy decide which one I was going to buy.
“I believe I’ll take the ability card,” he said grabbing at the item.
“Nah, I think I’ll take it,” I said, focusing on the card and pushing ten more of my summoning points into the item. A system prompt appeared but before I could make a choice, something slapped me across the face.
“You’ve done it now, knave, you’ve incurred my wrath with your churlish behavior. I demand satisfaction. You will meet me in the ring or be known to all as a coward,” the young man demanded. Had he just slapped me across the face with his glove? What was this guy challenging me to a duel like someone from the 16th century?
“Is there even a place to duel here?” I asked.
“Of course, you coward, by the gate to the second tier of the city. Meet me there or face the consequences. Bixby Bartimus will not let your slight go unpunished!” the man demanded before turning and walking away. A new system prompt appeared, confirming that duels were actually a thing here in Somhagen.
Another summoned being, Bixby Bartimus, has activated a single use item and challenged you to a duel of honor. The parameters of the duel have not been formalized yet.
Should you refuse to participate, you will lose five summoning points. If you don’t have the required number of summoning points, you will forfeit the next ten you acquire to your challenger. This penalty is due to the effects of the consumable item used by your challenger. Once this duel is complete, this challenger will no longer be able instigate a duel against you.
While duels are typically not to the death, accidents can occur in the ring and your safety is not guaranteed. Do you wish to participate? Y/N.
Parameters of the duel will be negotiated after you have accepted the challenge.