The time passed with the days turning into months and then years, and I finally turned seven last month. This was a major event for me because now I would now be allowed to walk around town on my own, as long as I stay away from certain areas and don't wander off with strangers. A few other things have changed for me as well, like I now have a small herb garden in the backyard, a fair distance away from the house. There are a lot of medicinal plants that only grow in certain areas and can't be cultivated outside of the areas they are naturally found in, but there is still enough here for me to practice alchemy and compounding.

I've also gotten good enough with magic that I am now able to create and use my very own spells. I was finally able to create a mirror-like surface utilizing water magic, so I am finally able to see in detail what I look like. I have 3-tone brown hair, mainly comprised of a shade of dark brown that looks like rich, moist soil, with a red-brown, and forest dirt shade of medium-dark brown mixed in. I have green eyes with flecks of silver mixed in, reminding me of a galaxy of stars. I have very lightly tanned, smooth skin, characteristic of Elves, along with short pointy ears, a small nose, and thin lips. Overall, I'd say I have above-average looks, in large part due to my Elven heritage.

I also got good at using barrier magic, my barriers can now last about 12 hours if they aren't destroyed. Mom was particularly pleased that I was able to use temperature barriers, I also created one that blocked out harsh sunlight, which to combat the hottest days of the summer. It ended up becoming one of my chores, to put up a temperature barrier around the food cellar every morning and night: A cold warding barrier around the house at night during the winter, and sunlight (UV) reducing barrier during the hottest days of summer. This, however, did help me raise my barrier magic to level 4, so there were no complaints from me.

Today I woke up, completed my morning routine (with the added barrier magic chore), and ate breakfast faster than normal. I was quite excited to be going out into town by myself for the first time. I hadn't done so over the past month or so because I was busy with my garden and finalizing some new magic I was working on. Quickly getting ready after breakfast, I said goodbye to my mom, Kaede, and her children who had grown up and probably only come back to the house for the food that I make for them, then ran out of the house heading for town.

One of the times that I was spending the day at the guild, I found a detailed map of the town, that listed emergency routes and such, so I had a good understanding of the layout. I haven't received much money from my parents, a bit more than a hundred Lorn. Lorn is broken down into 9 different coins, each coin worth 10 of the ones before it:

Iron bit – 1 Lorn
Small copper – 10 Lorn
Large copper – 100 Lorn
Small silver – 1,000 Lorn
Large silver – 10,000 Lorn
Small gold – 100,000 Lorn
Large gold – 1,000,000 Lorn
Small mithril – 10,000,000 Lorn
Large mithril – 100,000,000 Lorn

Gold and mithril coins are rarely used by commoners, and mostly used by wealthy merchants who have as much or more money than lesser nobles. While it doesn't yet apply to me, I've heard that guilds use a magic tool for their guild cards, that have a bank-like function, so its members don't have to carry around all of their funds, they can simply withdraw or transfer them in a town or city at, or near, where they are making the transaction. I however only have a few Iron bits and copper coins to my name, and even if I did have more, I could just keep my coins in my item box.

Knowing the general location of where different things would be in town, but not knowing what to do or where to go, I walk around the main streets aimlessly. I tried talking to other kids my age and tried playing with them as well, but I couldn't get interested in what they were doing, and they couldn't understand the games I tried to explain to them. It would be easier if there were physical games and other things made that could be played with, but sadly, mostly what was available were sticks, stones, dirt, and imagination. So I ended up wandering on my own, not wanting to get involved with games that didn't interest me.

Walking for a bit, I saw a general goods store and decided to walk in. It was a 3 story building with the product on the first and second floors according to the employee that welcomed me. The employees must be well trained since they didn't treat me, a seven-year-old kid, any differently than other customers. I walked around the store looking at what they had available, the more expensive stuff only had a display out, while the product for sale was kept somewhere else, and I avoided the clothes and other things that I wouldn't be having to buy for myself until I was older.

Once I had completed almost an entire circuit through the store, an employee walked up to me, having noticed that I wasn't finding what I was looking for. "Is there anything I can help you find? There are some things we don't keep out on display, and if there is anything we don't have that you need, we can usually get it." He acted like the perfect salesman, someone who really knows their job.

"Oh, I was just looking around, but I didn't see any base materials. Do you sell materials such as leather, fabric, monster, and plant materials?" I asked the clerk.

"We do carry some thread and fabrics, mostly for mending clothes. If you're looking for something specific, we can take your order and let you know when it comes in. Otherwise, you would have to try a store that specializes in selling materials. May I ask what you need it for?" He said, keeping up his business smile the whole while.

"Hmm… It depends on what kind of materials I can find. I guess I will have to go to a store that sells materials and take a look around. Oh! Do you by chance buy potions here?" I responded, remembering I have potions I made inside my item box, hoping I would be able to sell them.

"It would depend on the type of potion and its quality. Do you have any potions you are wanting to sell?" He asked while looking at me a little dubiously for obvious reasons, I was just a kid, with nowhere on me to store potions, even if I had them.

"I keep them in my item box of course. I was hoping to sell enough to afford any materials I might find, as well as any tools I may need to work on them. I have low-grade healing potions, low-grade mana potions, anti-paralysis potions, and antidote potions." I responded with a business smile, which probably looked odd considering my age. I had already noticed them for sale in the store and used Detailed Appraisal to check their quality, so I had a good idea of what I could get for mine.

His eyes slightly widened at either the long list of potions or the fact that I could use Item Box at my age, I wasn't sure which. "Please come with me, so that I can assess their value." He said before leading me to a private room.

"So, you are the one in charge of assessing potion quality?" I asked as we reached the door to the private room.

After entering, he responded "my apologies for the late introduction. I am Jay Montgomery, and I am the owner of this trading company."

"Mr. Montgomery…"

"Oh no, just Jay is fine, I prefer to keep my business partners on equal footing." He corrected me, apparently not liking me being too polite.

"Well then… Jay. My name is Cero, and I look forward to doing business with you." It felt weird calling an elder by their first name, but I was able to complete my introduction this time regardless. He then had me sit down on a sofa with a coffee table in front of it, and another couch opposite it, before offering me a cup of tea, which I accepted.

Jay then had an employee bring us some tea before he sat down on the other couch. "Forgive me for asking, but are you perhaps not as young as you appear?" He asked while waiting for the tea to arrive.

"It's no problem. I am as I appear, I recently turned 7 years old and was allowed to wander around town on my own. Why do you ask?" I responded politely.

"Since you could use Item Box, and were looking to sell potions, I thought you might be a dwarf or other race of short stature. Being that young and so well-spoken, are you perhaps from an influential family?" He seems to have thought I might be older, or from a rich family due to my actions so far.

"Ah, my education comes from my mother who is an elf, books, and employees at the adventurers guild where my dad works as a trainer. I am not from any influential family or anything like that, though I understand your confusion." As I finished speaking, there was a knock on the door, and after entering, the employee poured us each a cup of tea before taking their leave.

Sipping on our tea, Jay looked at me and said "alright, let's get down to business then. You can place your potions on the table and I will assess them each individually."

Doing as he said, I set my tea down and started pulling my potions out of my item box. I lined them up on the table by type, setting out 10 of each type and explaining which was which as I did so. "Sorry, I didn't have any potion containers, so I made some with earth magic, washed them, and made a cap with plant magic."

He seemed surprised by what I said but quickly responded nonetheless. "While they may not be the usual containers, they appear to be well made and easy to use. More important is the quality, so I will assess that now."

I continued sipping on my tea, which was either a lightly brewed black tea, or a red tea, judging by my knowledge, while watching his reactions. He noticed by the 3rd one, that they were of a consistent quality, and then randomly checked 3 of each type. I could tell that he was surprised by the quality, which made me feel a bit proud. I had grown the ingredients for these potions myself and had made them after my alchemy reached level 4.

"These are all of excellent quality, I can offer you 100L for each of the health potions, 250L each for the mana potions, and 150L for each of the anti-paralysis and antidote potions. That comes to a total of 6,500L. What do you think?"

I was honestly a bit shocked, he honestly appraised my potions as excellent quality, and he offered me a fair price for each. "You have yourself a deal," I said while standing up and holding my hand out to him. "If I bring more in the future, will you purchase them?"

He grasped my offered hand while replying. "Of course, for potions of this quality, we can purchase at least twice this amount each month, and if you have any higher-grade potions we will gladly purchase those as well."

"Glad to hear it, I can't yet make higher-grade potions, but when I can, I'll be sure to bring them here." While my alchemy skill was high enough level to make mid-grade potions, I did not have the ingredients for them, and even if I did, I wouldn't be able to guarantee their quality until I had practiced enough times.

"I will inform my employees to purchase from you any time you bring these by if I am not here. If you need anything, don't hesitate to let me know." That was all he said before calling for an employee to bring in the money and take away the potions that were on the table.

After receiving the money, I said goodbye to Jay, and left his store, having stored my money in my item box. I walked in the direction told to me, and eventually arrived at a store that looked more like a warehouse than an actual store. It was located off the main street near where the craftsman shops were. Walking in, I saw materials of all kinds, filling the building.

While looking around in every which direction, I was approached by a well-built middle-aged man. He sized me up before saying, "If you're here to play around, you can get out now. If you are here to buy something, you can tell me what you are looking for, and I can help you find it. If you don't have enough money, don't bother asking for a discount." He was rather blunt, but I didn't have a problem with what he was saying, nor the attitude he use, I don't think he was treating me any different than he would anyone else.

"I'm Cero, I'm looking for a leather or similar material that is soft but durable enough not to get scraped up too easily, some leather cord that can be used as stitching, and a lightweight material that has a bit of give but is quite springy and is about this big," I said, using my hands to show the spherical size and shape of a football.

"I'm John, follow me." Was all he said before turning and walking away. He seems to be a man of few words, that says all that he has to and nothing more. "This is Swamp Lizard skin, it should match what you're looking for." After getting enough of that, he led me to cord material where I selected a skein of leather cord that would suit my needs. "As for your last request, this is all I can think of. This is wood from a Rebound tree, and is known for bouncing back physical attacks that hit it, making it difficult to procure unless you are a mage."

The material he showed me was perfect for what I wanted, so I picked up a few chunks of various sizes so that I could try making other things as well. I then asked him for a tough leather that can handle a beating but isn't too thick. After thinking for a moment, he brought me to a light-gray leather material.

"This is Naga leather, it should meet your requirements." He said, showing me the thickness of the leather. It seemed nearly perfect for my planned usage, so I got a section of that as well. Afterward, I picked up some hardwood, before paying my bill, totaling 4,100L. I was very glad I was able to sell those potions for so much before coming here.

I threw everything into my item box, before leaving the store, heading back towards the Montgomery trading company, stopping to get a chicken skewer on my way as it was around lunchtime. Then after arriving at the store, I was quickly spotted and led to Jay.

"You didn't have to see me personally, I just came back to get some tools to work with the materials I purchased," I said to Jay as soon as we were alone in the private room again.

"Nonsense, think nothing of it. Treating our valued clients otherwise would be disrespectful to them. Besides, I'm not so busy that I can't meet with customers myself." He said as if this was the obvious way to treat me. "What kind of materials did you get, and what kind of tools do you need?"

Since he was insistent on helping me to the end, I pulled out the Naga leather, and cord, explaining that I needed something that could cut the leather into a detailed pattern, something that could puncture holes in it, and a needle that I could use with the cord. I also explained that I wanted a knife that could be used to carve wood, as well as a hammer and chisel set.

"We should have everything you are looking for. Just a moment please." He said before heading to the door and saying something to an employee before coming back. "I'm having the items collected, but what are you planning to do with all of that?" Having guessed I was making something that could earn money.

"I'll show you if I manage to create what I'm thinking of," I replied vaguely, not wanting to, or sure how to, explain football and baseball, nor the other games I was thinking about.

"Please do." Was all he replied with, still smiling. After waiting for a bit more and talking about various things, the items I had requested were brought to the private room. He then lined up the items on the coffee table to show them to me. "These scissors are made of a mithril alloy, so they should have no problem cutting even wyvern leather, but because of that, they are a bit more expensive than normal ones. The rest of the items are common items, so they are fairly cheap. Altogether, this will cost you 1,650L."

Seeing no problem with the price, I handed him the money and stored away the tools. I then promised to visit him sometime after I finished making the things I had thought of, even though they are just knock-offs of items from another world, and left the store. I walked around exploring a bit before heading home, not wanting to stay out too late and cause my mom to worry.

"I'm back~," I said, walking through the front door.

"Welcome home, did you have fun today?" My mom asked from the kitchen, already preparing the soup for dinner.

"Yeah, I played a bit and explored the main streets. I even explored the craftsman district." I responded while headed towards the living room to take a rest.

"That sounds nice, did you make any friends?" Mom asked, not looking up from what she was doing.

"Not really, the other kids wanted to pretend to be knights or adventurers, but they haven't trained at all. If I used more than I tiny bit of strength, or swordsmanship techniques, I would end up hurting them, and then having to use healing magic. That's why I went exploring instead." I responded languidly while laying on the couch, my feet dangling off the edge.

"I'm sorry to hear that, but I'm glad you didn't force it and severely injure anyone. I'm sure you will find some friends you can play with if you keep trying." She said with obvious concern in her voice.

"I'm having fun anyway, so it's fine. Maybe I'll try a different area next time, like closer to the adventurers guild, or guard station. I might be able to find kids who have trained in one of those areas." Even though I said that I had no intention of doing it, I just didn't want my mom to worry about me.

"That sounds like a good idea, just make sure to stay out of dangerous areas." Said my mom, ending the discussion.

The rest of the day passed by quickly, having a very similar conversation with my dad after he got home. I went to bed that night about 700L richer than I woke up with, not bad considering I hadn't spent a single Lorn to make it, plus I'm still only 7 years old.