The morning after finishing my meeting with Jay, I was passing the time by practicing swordsmanship, doing my now usual image training, only this time, I was trying to picture how a wild animal might move. Once I had worked up a sweat, I wiped myself off and decided to relax until it was time to head over to the merchants guild with Jay. While I was relaxing, I decided to look through my status for the first time in a while:

Name: Cero

Level: 1

Age: 7

Race: Half-Elf

HP: 108/108 (up 31)

MP: 251/251 (up 106)

STR: 41 (up 19)

VIT: 49 (up 25)

DEX: 51 (up 22)

AGI: 55 (up 23)

INT: 73 (up 14)

MND: 66 (up 28)

Special Skills:

Unlimited Potential (Unique), Perfect Memory (Unique), Language Comprehension, Spirit Vision, Concealment 6 (up 2), Oracle 2 (up 1)

General Skills:

Detailed Appraisal 7 (up 2), Housekeeping 6 (up 2), Etiquette 7 (up 1), Acting 8 (up 1), Calculation 7, Cooking 6 (up 2), Negotiation 2 (New)

Magic Skills:

Precise Mana Control 7 (up 2), Alchemy 4 (up 1), Barrier Magic 4 (up 2), Earth Magic 4 (up 1), Wind Magic 4 (up 1), Fire Magic 4 (up 1), Water Magic 4 (up 1), Neutral Magic 4 (up 1), Light Magic 4 (up 1), Dark Magic 3 (up 2), Plant Magic 4 (up 1), Space-time Magic 4 (up 1), Taming Magic 1, Magic Detection 6 (up 2), Enchantment Magic 2 (New)

Combat Skills:

Unarmed Combat 4 (up 1), Sword Mastery 4 (up 1), Body Control 5 (up 1), Stealth 5 (up 1), Trapping 2, Presence Detection 3 (New), Archery 1 (New)

Crafting Skills:

Drawing 4 (up 1), Architecture 6, Woodworking 3, Compounding 4 (up 1), Blacksmithing 2 (up 1), Leatherwork 2 (New), Needlework 3 (New), Sculpting 3 (New)

My stats and skills have risen nicely, and I also gained a few new skills. Although I managed to get a lot of magic skills up to level 4, I haven't been able to raise them in about a year now. I don't know if that is because of the difficulty of raising their level farther, my age, my stats, or because I am still level 1. I asked Sylphy about it, but she wasn't able to give me an answer, and I figured that if she didn't know, then no one else I have met would.

I tried appraising my Oracle skill, but it just gives me a generic description, telling me that with it, I will be able to hear the voice of god. I have not figured out how or why I obtained the skill, how its level increased, nor even how to use it. I considered asking someone at the church, but from my Earthly knowledge, religion, or rather, religious people, can be very dangerous to get involved with. Sylphy told me not to worry about it, and that I would find out when the time was right, but I don't like not knowing things that have to do with me.

Speaking of not knowing things that have to do with me, I still have no idea what these scales are by my ankles. I have tried talking to some scale-folk and dragonkin I saw in the adventure's guild, but from what I learned, you won't find anyone with silver scales among them. They are shaped oddly as well... they don't match snake, lizard, or even dragon scales from what I could tell. Since it hasn't negatively impacted my livelihood, my parents said I should just be happy since it will likely cause me to be stronger than most people when I grow up.

While thinking about this and that, the time for me to depart had arrived, so I said goodbye to my mom and left the house. I arrived at the store a little later to find Jay ready and waiting for me near the entrance. "Good morning Jay," I said as I walked in.

"Good morning Cero, are you ready to go?" He replied with his usual smile on his face.

"I'm ready to go. Lead the way." I said with a calm smile of my own.

"It's not that far, but I had the carriage prepared, it should be coming around now." Jay led me out of the store just as a carriage pulled up. An employee then opened the door and gestured for me to enter, Jay following quickly behind.

We quickly arrived at the merchants guild, and then we were led inside, where Jay spoke to the receptionist, informing her that we were there to register me and sign some contracts. The receptionist then walked away for a minute before coming back to lead us to a meeting room, coming back with tea and what looked like a cookie with fruits and nuts in it.

We drank the tea while we waited, and I tried one of the cookie-like objects. It had a slightly sweet note, but that was mostly overpowered by a nutty taste, somewhat over-cooked flour, and a bitterness characteristic of under-ripened fruit or berries. Putting it nicely, it was a different kind of confection that can be eaten as a tea snack, and putting it bluntly, it was awful. I definitely would not choose to eat those things ever again and regretted trying it this time. Jay didn't seem to mind them, though, as he ate one while drinking his tea like there was nothing wrong with it.

Without having to wait for very long, the door opened again before an elderly woman walked into the room. As Jay and I started to stand up to greet her, she gestured for us to sit back down. "Don't get up on my accord; there's no need for such formalities. I was told you're here for registration and to sign some contracts. Is this boy the one that will be registering today? Isn't he a bit young to be working for you, Jay? He's not some illegitimate son of yours or something, is he?" She didn't hold back at all with her words, but Jay didn't look bothered by it.

"Of course not, Guildmaster... how long have you known me now? Why would you even say something like that? I brought him here to register because he wants to sell me the rights to some ideas he came up with and wants to receive commissions for some others. Due to the amount, he needs to register." Jay replied like he was used to her antics.

"It's nice to meet you, mam. My name is Cero," I said to her, also not bothered by what she said. She seems to have a similar personality to Warren, the guild master of the Adventures Guild, except she is a lot quieter.

"Hmph, not phased at all... where did you find this kid? Here's the registration form for an apprentice merchant, do you need someone to write for you? As he said, I'm the guild master here, and you may call me Livia" She placed the registration form in front of me, along with a bottle of ink and what looked like a fountain pen. Though, she seemed to be a bit intrigued and annoyed at the same time by the fact that I didn't give any reaction to her teasing.

"Compared to Warren, you aren't nearly as loud or crude. I can write myself, thank you." I replied while picking up the pen, drawing from the inkwell, and filling out the form.

"Hoh, and how do you know that obnoxious brat? If you have any questions about the form, don't hesitate to ask, information is the basics for any merchant after all." It seemed that Livia was well acquainted with Warren.

"My dad works at the guild, so I got to know him by chance one time I was at the guild. Since then, he has brought me to his office a few times, probably using me as an excuse to take a break from working… um, what does it mean by type of merchant? Does it depend on what you sell?" I had filled out all the basic information and gotten a question that seemed out of place. I would understand if they asked a similar question when registering a business, but asking on the registration to join the guild seemed a bit odd.

"That is where you list the type of business you are planning to do, such as a town merchant, peddler, bard, etc… there is a list of common types on the back and you can write down more than one of course. Some types of merchants require special fees and taxes, hence the question. If you're unsure, you can leave it blank and update it in the future when you become sure. Still, if your father works at the guild, then you must be Ronan and Sera's kid. I'm a bit surprised you're not taking after them and becoming an Adventurer." Her explanation was clear, but it sounded like she knows my parents.

"You're slightly mistaken. I plan to register as an adventurer as soon as I'm old enough. I just happened to enter his store, ended up selling some potions to him, and used that money to buy materials that I ended up making some things with that Jay was very interested in. It was just a series of lucky coincidences and a certain merchant's nose for profits. How do you know my parents?" I said while writing down 'town merchant' and 'artisan' as the merchant type for now, signing my name, and handing it back to Livia.

"I've done business with your parents, especially your mom, back when I still ran my store as an alchemist/apothecary. I still sell some medicines and potions to your parents on occasion." She said as she checked over my registration form, but it sounded like there was something more she wasn't saying. "Looks like you filled this out properly, so I'll have someone make your guild card immediately. I will explain the guild card and the guild itself to you while we wait."

After she handed my registration form over to someone else, she explained to me everything I would need to know as an apprentice merchant of the guild. It seemed that I would be taxed on income, just like any other merchant, and could similarly use the guild bank function at any branch. While the guild follows most kingdom laws, the country does not control it, and it has the same rules and guidelines in every country where the guild has branches. Also, this means that all products registered through the guild are guaranteed by the guild, essentially referring to copyrights.

I do not have to pay guild fees until I am old enough to register as a full-fledged merchant. Apprenticeship is available as a system for getting used to the merchant's guild while providing families a way to earn more income. Lastly, the guild guarantees my identity as long as I am registered, which can help when crossing borders.

While Livia was finishing explaining whatI needed to know, an employee brought a tray with my guild card and a needle on it. I asked to put a drop of my blood on the card to register it to me, which activated the built-in functions of the card. I then asked why it had to be blood and was told that our blood has more of our mana in it than saliva. I also asked why they don't just have people inject their mana into it directly while pricking my finger and dripping some blood on the card.

As it turns out, being able to manipulate one's mana at will is very difficult to learn. People who possess the skill are typically known as top mages, many of whom became court mages or royal court mages. I was a bit surprised by what she said, considering my mom and dad didn't say anything when I told them I had the mana control skill.

The card faintly glowed when I dropped my blood on it, but it faded out quickly. I was informed that when someone else holds it, it will turn a dull gray and only show my name. In the past, a scholar or researcher created a machine that enchants cards to have this safety feature in addition to a few other useful functions.

Having finished with my registration, we moved on to the contracts. Jay presented the contracts to Livia first, who read through them before handing them to me to read through. Livia didn't seem very happy about the commission contract but relented when she found out the terms were negotiated to a lower price by me to have conditions added. After I finished reading through the contracts, Livia explained that the guild guarantees the contracts and each country has agreed to back the guild on them as well.

After we signed the contracts, Jay and I had to fill out and sign documents to register the products I had made. Livia was seemingly quite interested in them but was especially interested in the chess set, and I ended up getting talked into creating a custom chess set for her. I would be receiving an artisan fee for making the custom set. I then received the lump sum payment using a funds transfer device within the guild.

We then sat and talked while drinking our tea until about lunchtime. During that time, I pulled out one of each of the potions I made from my item box in addition to some regular medicine, and showed them to Livia. After appraising their quality, she told me to inform her when I am able to produce higher-grade potions. I explained that I simply didn't have the ingredients to be able to practice making mid-grade potions, and she ended up selling them to me at wholesale price, which is one of the privileges of being a guild member that is only given to certain kinds of craftspeople.

We said goodbye after the meeting and got some skewers before heading back to his store. Once we had gotten back to the store, I gave him the production methods for everything, as well as the actual mitts and helmets to be used as a reference for the artisans. He purchased all of the items I made so that not only could the artisans look at them, but he could display them for customers as well. I had to follow him to an open area to take out the table though.

Finishing up everything I had to do with Jay, I went to tell him it would take me a little bit to create the chess set for Livia before leaving. I stopped by a few different places before heading home, where I managed to find some nice dark wood and a stone that looked like marble. I decided to use that wood and marble to make the chess set and planned to make it alchemy/apothecary themed.

I thought about the design of the chess pieces on my way home and purchased some things that caught my eye randomly in the market as I passed through. By the time I got home, I had mostly figured out the rough design of the custom chess set. I was going to create small potions using marble for the base, crystal for the container, and wood as a buffer between the board and the base of the pieces. For one side, I would use a mana potion and would use a health potion for the other side. The tricky part would be making them durable enough not to break but thin enough to use as a chess piece.

The king would be shaped like a mortar, while the queen would be the pestle. Rooks would look like funnels, knights like carriages, and bishops like torches. The chessboard itself would mainly be made out of marble, but I was planning to use wood for the dark alternating squares, as well as make some feet for it so that it can be more easily picked up and moved. For the finishing touch, I planned to carve out designs of the ingredients used to make an elixir around the edge and inlay it with crystal and wood.

It took over a week to finish making the chess set. Part of the reason it took so long is that I had difficulties figuring out exactly what some of the ingredients for elixirs looked like, and then made a few attempts at drawing them in enough detail to be recognizable. Only once I had the drawing approved by Oliver to use as a reference did I even attempt to carve out the designs on the board and prepare the inlay. In my downtime, I managed to use up all of the ingredients I purchased from Livia. Fortunately, I can now consistently make top-quality mid-grade potions.

With the chess set complete, I scheduled an appointment with Jay to meet up with Livia to deliver the set. I was planning to leave all of the price negotiations to Jay, telling him the material costs beforehand, as well as how much time I spent working on the set so that he would know how much he would have to pay me. I managed to remake all of the items Jay previously bought from me during this time as well. For my personal chess set, I made an adventurer-themed one, using dagger-wielding scouts for pawns, a shield bearer as the rooks, spearmen on horses as the knights, mages for bishops, a swordsman as the queen, and an archer as the king. I also made a monster version with goblins as pawns, Minotaurs as rooks, sprint wolves as knights, harpies as bishops, a griffin as the queen, and a dragon (evil) as the king.

I ended up showing the two chess sets I made for myself to Jay as well, which made him want me to make some custom sets and deliver them occasionally. He also let me know where production stood for each of the items and apparently, he has already received orders for table ball. I was a bit surprised about how far he had gotten with preparing to sell each item. I stopped by his store again the following morning to find out when we would be going to meet with Livia.

As it turned out, we were supposed to meet with Livia that morning, so it was a good thing I decided to swing by right after breakfast. Once again, we took Jay's carriage to the merchant guild, even though it felt like a waste to me since I could get there faster on foot. We arrived a little early and had to wait a little while, but this time I wasn't fooled into trying a cookie.

When Livia joined us in the meeting room, we quickly got the pleasantries out of the way before I pulled the chess board out of my item box. "I based the design on alchemy/apothecary obviously, and these pieces that look like potions, are in fact mid-grade potions that I made for practice. By the way, I need more materials for mid-grade potions, I have completely run out. The main materials used in the chess set are crystal, marble, and midnight wood." Setting down the chess set on the table, I nodded to Jay, then sat back, sipping on my tea, making it clear that I had no intention of saying more.

While the two of them negotiated the price, I played around with appraising different things in the room. Looking over the map and documents listing buildings for sale or rent that I found in the room. There wasn't much of interest, but it was still enough to occupy my time, and the map was even more detailed than the one I found at the adventurers guild.

In the end, they decided on such a high enough price that I made a couple of small gold coins and then ended up purchasing a small gold worth of materials and proper alchemy/apothecary tools. The guild did not have all the tools for magic tool crafting though, so I had to ask Jay to get those for me. We left the guild with Jay telling me that he would be heading to Parth, the capital city of the Arrius duchy and that he would have the tools I want when he returns. He also asked me to have a custom chess set delivered before he left, saying it should be classy and elegant.