Dharen stalked through the Market District, a creature fully at home within the chaos of the urban jungle. He took in the surroundings with a practiced gaze, with the ease of one who has grown accustomed to picking out fine details.

He couldn’t help but fall into old habits; he found himself gravitating towards the overly wealthy, the unaware, the marks. Yet even as he did so, he understood that the nature of Contribution Points meant that there would be no rifling of pockets here. There would be no cutting purses, no relieving those overburdened with wealth of their troubles.

Still, old habits were hard to break.

With a practiced eye, he saw a select few others plying their trade; yet, with the lack of coins to repossess, they were few and far between. That did not stop him from spotting one or two dark-cloaked individuals that took the chance to slip away with an item from one of the many vendor stalls dotting the busy street. Curious, he watched unobtrusively as they stealthily made their way to an alley between two nearby shops. Each time, they knocked in a practiced pattern before entering a side-door. Dharen shook his head ruefully, lamenting the amateur nature of the thieves. Even though he knew what to look for, they had still been spotted with far too much ease. Even their choice of clothing seemed to announce that they were up to no good.

In Dharen’s experience, it was far better to hide in plain sight when working in a crowded area. Concealing clothes only served to draw suspicion. Still, it was important to know where to find some of the shadier elements of the city. It was difficult to say when such knowledge might come in handy.

In the end, he managed to pull himself away and entered the shop of a Jewel Artificer. The shop was one of the many that were run by a Golem, rather than by a human. Though he might be wrong, Dharen suspected that he was likely to receive a better baseline of various items’ worth by approaching the Golems. Whereas a human would likely be focused on maximizing profit as much as possible, the Golems were far less likely to be influenced by greed due to their artificial nature.

“Welcome to The Enchanted Jewel,” the shopkeeper called out as Dharen’s entrance drew his attention. “How can I help you, today?”

Dharen continued to the counter before replying, attempting to gauge the shopkeeper. “I admit to having little experience with artificed jewelry. Would it trouble you to tell me a little about it, and perhaps point me towards a suitable item?”

The shopkeeper, face frozen in the Golems’ ever-stoic expression, responded graciously. “Of course. Artificed jewelry is unique among seed-enchanted items, as they are created through soulseed dust rather than shards. Most equipment is large enough to allow for a small shard created from a soulseed to be fitted into the item, directly enhancing its power by instilling an effect inherent to the shard.”

“Regrettably, the shard can never instill an ability of the same strength as the whole soulseed might have for its original host. The greater an Artificer, the larger of a shard that can be inset into an object. Thus, the closer to the original power the enchantment becomes. This is not without risks, however. The closer a soulseed remains to its original form, the more that it balks against empowering something other than its original host.”

Dharen nodded, showing his understanding. The shopkeeper continued on. “Soulseed dust, on the other hand, has its own difficulties. To enchant an object of small size such as a ring or an amulet, a shard of a miniscule size could be used. Yet, the shard’s efficacy would be quite damaged by the reduction - rendering the item nothing more than ostentatious jewelry. Instead, soulseeds are ground into a fine dust. While this would normally eliminate the soulseed’s effectiveness entirely, Jewelry Artificers the highest-trained of all Artificers.”

“Rather than attempt to preserve the original structure of the Seed, proper training and knowledge allows for the customization of various abilities through forming miniature lattice structures during the forging of the jewelry - a framework onto which the ground soulseed dust can be laid before heat and pressure are applied to re-solidify the material in the intended shape. Though these enchantments tend to not be as outright powerful as an enchantment created with larger shards, they make up for it in their more customizable utility effects and portability - as well as a limited ability to imbue a piece of equipment with two different soulseed types. ”

Dharen made an appreciative noise, before requesting the shopkeeper to explain the merits of various items that were displayed. The shopkeeper reached under the glass display, removing a few choice pieces of equipment.

He displayed an amulet of silver that was speckled with a ruby red dusting. “This is a relatively simple piece, but it is that very simplicity that makes it attractive. As you may be able to ascertain, it is imbued with the dust of a Rage Seed. Yet, the manner in which the matrix has been designed has created a very different enchantment. It has been reversed, in a manner of speaking; rather than imbuing the amulet with the power of flame, as many rage enchantments might do, it serves as a minor protection against flame. While it would not provide full protection, it would be quite useful in the proper situation.”

After pausing and noting that Dharen did not seem overly interested, the Golem continued. He moved onto the next item of interest, a small bracelet. The bracelet, he explains, was imbued with a mix of two different dusts - half from a Seed of Fear, half from a Seed of Courage. The two dusts were combined in order to form an enchantment that could bolster one’s own courage by transferring fear to surrounding enemies. The main difficulty turned out that the fear was transferred from the wearer to enemies - it relied on the wearer feeling fear to a large enough degree to be effective. While Dharen could see the appeal of the bracelet as a last resort, he wasn’t enthusiastic about the idea of relying on such a niche enchantment.

Next, the shopkeeper unveiled a small ring, gold interlaced with a dusting the color of the setting sun. Dharen felt a hint of recognition. His suspicions were confirmed moments later.

“This ring is imbued with the dust of a Seed of Anticipation. Though it has some hefty restrictions, it makes up for it with a powerful effect.”

Dharen felt his interest pique, already anticipating the potential of the ring. His warhammer was similarly constrained by a Seed of Anticipation, and it had proven to be a massive improvement in his fighting strength and style. Despite his excitement, he kept his face neutral. Though he had his suspicions that the Golems would be more scrupulous traders than humans, he could hardly imagine a merchant that wouldn’t pounce upon a naive customer with the viciousness of a predator.

The shopkeeper continued with his explanation of the ring. “Once every three days, this ring can overcharge an outside enchantment, doubling its effectiveness. However, it does have to be touching the item that it is overcharging, and of course cannot overcharge itself.”

Dharen felt a small disappointment at the large waiting period for the ring’s enchantment. However, he couldn’t help but imagine the absolute strength that could come with combing the ring’s overcharge with Restraint’s boost of power. His strength was already greater than that of eleven normal men; after a successful challenge, it rose by half again. Even now, after Restraint’s final effect activated, he could use a single attack with the equivalent strength of nearly fifty men. As it stood, the ring would increase Restraint’s damage increase on the fifth hit from +200% to +400%, meaning that he would be able to strike with the power of over eighty men. Granted, that was under the most ideal conditions and only once a every few days. Still, it was an exciting thought.

Prior to making a decision, Dharen left The Enchanted Jewel in the search for other Artifice shops. Each had their own unique selection, but the general price associated with each item was typically fairly exorbitant. This was especially so among the human shopkeepers, who always seemed to claim that their family was in danger of starving should they offer prices any lower. Obviously ridiculous, considering their families - if they had any - were unlikely to be in the Tower alongside them. Still, he supposed old habits died hard, and the desire to make a profit was chief among those. Though the Golem shopkeepers tended to have fairer prices, it was still difficult to justify purchasing some of their wares. Given that he wished to keep some Contribution Points on hand in case of emergency, he couldn't justify blowing them all on a single item.

In the end, despite the three-day cooldown period, Dharen felt that the chance to increase his potential strength so greatly was worth the restrictions. He  returned to The Enchanted Jewel and set to work, haggling with the shopkeeper for the ring.

After an exhausting round of negotiation, in which Dharen attempted to lower the cost and the Golem stood firm, Dharen exited the shop with his new ring. He placed it upon his right hand, admiring its appearance and potential. Though it had cost him a hefty sum, he felt that an upgrade of that nature was worth the loss.

Satisfied, Dharen began exploring the Market District once more. His leisurely stroll was interrupted by the sounds of a heated argument. He slowly drew nearer, until he could more clearly hear.

“Trash like you don’t belong here!” a voice called out. Dharen worked his way through the growing crowd, before seeing a man and a woman in tattered armor standing before a merchant’s stall. The merchant continued to berate the two, insisting that they had no business being in the Market District. He motioned to their bedraggled equipment, the numerous scars and cuts that marred their armor. As if to demonstrate proper attire, he waved towards his own; the merchant was bedecked in finery, from opulent clothing to glittering jewelry. Dharen had little doubt that both clothes and jewelry were enchanted, judging from the small glimpses of soulseed shards and dust that he could make out. His attention was drawn in particular to a large ring on his right hand, an extravagant affair that seemed to absolutely scream expense. It glittered in the light, speckled with a light dusting of black and blue.

Seeing the situation escalate and being unable to watch any further, Dharen made a move to stand between the combative group. The man made a motion to shove the merchant back. Just as he did so, Dharen casually stepped between. As the man connected, Dharen allowed the force to knock himself into the merchant, sending both down in a heap.

Dharen made a noise of surprise and anger. He came up in a whirl, glaring and voicing his displeasure. He then turned to the merchant, offering his hand to the stunned trader. The merchant took it gratefully, clasping Dharen’s offered grip with his own.

He brought the man to his feet, dusting him off. Dharen then stepped to the side and turned toward the group, splitting his gaze between the merchant and the two warriors.

“I realise that these are difficult times. But just remember: troubling others will only lead to your own misfortune.” Shaking his head theatrically, he strolled off into the crowd once more.

Having slipped successfully into the press, Dharen flicked the fingers of his right hand and activated his Spatial Ring. In his hand appeared an opulent ring, glittering in the light and speckled with black and blue soulseed dust.

He tossed it in his hand, grinning lightly to himself.

“Old habits really are hard to break.”