"Do you have any vacancies?"
"How many in your group, laddy?"

It has been some time since I have been in this continent but I still can't get a grasp on the age thing. There are people that are young but have beards, there are people who look similar to them but are actually old. It's hard to match a face with an age group here.

I guess it's partly because I don't ask people about it. However, I did find out one thing. The hair can be very telling of their age. The more silver the hair, the older they are. Of course there are exceptions to that rule but it applies to most, and it's the only way I have right now except asking straight out.

"I'm alone but I have a wagon with some cargo outside. Do you have a secure storehouse?"
"We do have a stable out back but there isn't any kind of protection. You'll have to protect your cargo yourselves. That's okay with you?"
"That would be a problem for me. I'm only by myself after all. Can you recommend any other inn that could help me?"
"The heck are you thinking? You think an inn would recommend another inn to someone else? What kind of business do you think I run here? Anyway, you probably won't be staying here. Go and take your deal breaker to some other inn. Don't stay within this part of the town, all the inn here are the same. You want to head somewhere close to the market, all the inn there have secure stables for merchants. Security is a bit of a problem there, so all the inns there have better security."
"I see, thanks."

This is pretty common too. They say some harsh words but they still help, most of the time. I got comfortable with hearing insults and spite for conversations ever since I lived in this continent.

I'm pretty sure that is how most of the people here converse. They aren't really angry but they have the need to express themselves in every sentence. It's how they talk.

Anyway, I'm heading to the market later, so this is convenient for me.

However, the inn around the market upgraded security. This means that security was a problem before. I have to watch out for pickpockets. I have my most important items hidden in my storage skill but I still have some things in my storage equipment in case it was ever checked.

I'm confident in my skills but I can't really match a professional pickpocket when it comes to being stealthy. I can fend off hidden assassins but pickpockets are tricky, since they aren't really after your life and their target are inanimate objects. You pay less attention to your things since it can't physically harm you.

"Welcome, welcome! For one? Yes, we have room. The inn here is quite far from the entrance, so you must have a wagon that has cargo you intend to sell. We have a path going to the barn behind, so please move your wagon there. You can use your own lock or use our locks. We will pay you 50% of the total value of things stolen if it was due to our lacking security, so you don't have to worry about us stealing your items. Ah, of course if by some chance an event that destroyed our barns, or buildings take place, we have no control over what will happen, so we won't pay you if that were to happen. This is the standard deal when it comes to 'disasters', so we hope that you please understand. We have two different rates for staying in the inn. There is one with no meals and one with meals. Ah, renting the secure barn behind is a separate rate, so please keep that in mind."
"The one without the meal please."
"I see, for how many days will you be staying here? Do you have any other companions with you? How many rooms do you want to rent? What kind of bed would you need? Ah, all of our rooms are soundproof, so guests can bring a temporary ‘guest’ with them. However, they can't stay overnight at the inn for more than 3 nights in a row unless we are notified. Otherwise, the guest needs to pay for each successive night that temporary guest stayed."

This old lady is really talkative. I don't know if she is only the receptionist or the owner of the inn but she can really talk.

"I won't be bringing anyone else. I only need a single bed. I'm not sure how long I'll be staying here, so let me book the room for three days for now. I'll be borrowing a lock from you. Do I pay upfront?"
"Payments need to be given in advance. I can see that you have your mind somewhere else. Let me just give you your key, have someone show you your room, and I can set you off on your way. Please present me your I.D. and pay the fee and we can finish these troublesome procedures."
"Here."
"Thank you. *Ring* Please follow one of our staff to your assigned room."

This inn isn't cheap at all. Their rate is 10 silver per night! 5 silver without food. I don't even know what kind of thing they bring as food to actually make it cost 5 silver coins! Well, it's the first one I found and I really don't want to wander the streets right now looking for an inn. This will have to do.

I'll look for a better inn some other time.

"Here you are, sir. If you need anything else, please don't hesitate to call upon us. There are usually a few of us stationed near the stairs. If that is all please enjoy your stay."
"Here is a little something for you."
"Thank you very much, sir."

*Creak* *Door shuts*

Yeah, yeah, thank me all you want but your hand was already halfway raised the moment you opened the door to my room. I know what that means, don't bother acting coy with it.

Now then, I found an inn, I stored my wagon at their secure barn at the back, and I know where to sell my goods. The only thing left is to register myself at the booth at the market. I doubt I will get a good spot this late but I don't really need the prime time slot. Only tourists visit those spots.

The true connoisseur visits the back alley to find those hidden gems. They already know the usual things found on the main spots and have those reserved, so they spend the after hours hunting for the diamond in the rough. Those are the kind of people that have money, time and connections. Those are the kind of people that I want to buy from me.

Of course, I could also find some cheapskate bargain divers and poor souls that can't afford the prices of stores around the main spots. Oh well, I guess they work too. If they somehow got famous through my wares, then they would be extra grateful to me for bringing them the opportunity to raise themselves to that level.

Let's visit that commerce booth first and see if they have any spots left before I drag my wagon. It's not that it is heavy since once the wheels get moving, everything becomes easy, but navigating with such a bulky thing is annoying. I have to watch out for a lot of things.

"Excuse me, Is this the place that issues permits to set up a stall in the market?"
"Yes, it is. We need a sample of your product, an inventory of what you are selling, the range of your prices, I.D. and the fee."

That's a lot. That is also very troubling. They need the price range of everyone who sets up their stall which means that they have the information of everyone here. Buyers with this information could easily know the bargains and how to make us, the seller, sell our products at our lowest allowable price.

"You must be thinking about why we need all this information. It can't be helped though. We need this to keep the market here fair for all. If you priced something too high then we need you to show us why it's at that price or we would ask you to not sell that product at all."
"I understand, I'll come back later to show you my wares and I will give you my inventory then. Does the price differ depending on the location of the stall?"
"Yes it is. The market is divided by the average foot traffic percentages during the first year our city market was established. The 100%-80% foot traffic areas are already reserved by large merchant guilds, and it will stay that way until they choose to stop doing so. The 79-40% have also been occupied by merchant guilds too. However, medium merchant groups are the most numerous occupants in this bracket. The 39-20% can be acquired using a first come first served system but they are usually acquired by travelling small merchant groups. The 19-1% spots are usually used by residents and solo traders. Unfortunately, it is late in the day, so I only have spots for the 19-1% spots. Would you like to pay for a spot or would you rather wait tomorrow for a better spot to open up?"
"I'll take the spot now."
"Very well, please come back once you have all the documents ready. In the meantime, I will save a spot for you."
"Can I ask which is the most popular merchant guild renting a spot here?"
"Normally, we don't give information about other sellers but the answer to your question is already public knowledge. Hence, I don't need to be careful of such an information leak. The answer is the orange shield merchant guild. As for their products, even if it is common knowledge, I ask that you find out by visiting their store."
"Thank you.

That is a familiar name. It looks like they have a hold on to this market.

Normally, I don't care about what other merchants do since I am selling what I am making. I don't need to deal with a in between but knowing who your competitors are is always useful.

I'll try setting up the stall for now and sell until sleep time. It would just be to get to know the market but who knows what kind of fish might bite.