Mikhail had finally filled out all the crates.
However, it had taken him about an hour to manage that. And another ten minutes afterwards to fill up his leather satchel to the brim with. Both for himself and for Azalea.
He had cracked one open himself and quite enjoyed the flavor, understanding why they were Azalea's favorite.
And he had only needed to pick two of the several trees in that area clean. A testament to just how dense each branch was with juicy goodness.
So then… Why was he still here?
Why was Mikhail still here even though he had been done with his work for over three hours already?
"Sick!"
Mikhail clapped his hands together, applauding the little Sharovipteryx who had just done an aileron roll before landing in his palm. The very same one that had been sitting in his hand earlier.
"I'm glad you two are having fun, but, Mikhail… Don't you think you should be returning to the humans' territory now? It is getting very late," Merry said with a bit of a sigh.
Mikhail sighed as well.
"I know… I can't help myself though. I haven't enjoyed the company of a beast companion since my last life."
"Yes, I know. You've told me thrice already."
Mikhail revealed a helpless smile. He still couldn't believe that he had found a kindred spirit. Someone else who had lived another life before appearing here.
"Well, I'll be taking my leave now. Thank you for the company."
The two said their farewells, but the little guy he had been playing with for the past three hours was reluctant to leave his side. Very reluctant.
"Come now, you've got to go back to your mom, little guy," he said halfheartedly, not really wanting to part with the cute critter either.
However, after a bit of back and forth, Mikhail departed on his own after putting the little dude back in his mother's care.
He retraced the path he had taken to get there without incident, not coming across another strange encounter like the Shade from before.
And in no time at all, he returned to Spencer's house. He wasn't outside anymore, so Mikhail had to knock on the stone slab that acted as his door. It took a few minutes, but the slab retreated into the ground with the sound of a stomp.
"Ah, that was fast. Sorry for the delay, let's give the goods a look."
He came out of the house, leaving the door open. Mikhail watched as the man just stood there without even so much checking inside the wagon.
'Must be nice being able to check without having to do it manually… I can't wait to unlock my Spirit Sense.'
Suddenly, Spencer's expression of concentration cracked.
He let out a brief chuckle before speaking again.
"Looks like we're all good. Thanks kid, the wagon is yours for the rest of the day. Just remember to leave it in the alleyway to the left when you're done."
Mikhail was going to go over and help him move the crates, but it looked like the whole lot of them were being lifted up into the air on their own, before moving out and into Spencer's house in a single file line.
He stewed in longing for the day he'd be able to do such things too, shaking his head to himself helplessly.
However, in doing so, he noticed that there was a single crate left behind! Because of this, he turned to Spencer with a raised eyebrow.
"See it as an extra thanks for your troubles, kid. If you'll excuse me, I have some training to get back to."
He waved at Mikhail and entered his house, closing the door behind him with a stomp. The questions Mikhail wanted to ask died in his throat, leaving him with nothing but mild surprise and gratitude.
"Looks like I picked the extras for nothing…" he said to himself with a smile.
He stood there for a time before grabbing hold of the wagon's handles. And then, he got to work on the thing he wanted to do.
Thus, over the course of the next few hours, he traversed all throughout the human tribe visiting hobbyists.
Why?
Because he wanted decorations too! Simple furniture would work wonders to fill in the space, but additional decorations were needed as well!
So, after a long escapade of comparing different decorations and styles, he traded to get a few.
And afterwards, he returned to his tent to drop off those decorations, as well as his crate of Kennepas. He had also made a short detour on the way there, giving Azalea the drupes she had asked for.
And finally, after all that, he visited the Housing Hall.
It was a hall dedicated to carpenters, who provided the entire tribe with their houses, their furniture, and their amenities.
The hobbyists he had visited were actually part of this hall, but they were off duty today, free to make oddities and other trinkets that didn't comply with the Housing Hall's regulations.
But if they could make whatever they wanted off duty, what were these regulations even for?
Well… Mikhail had no clue. But, he did know about one of the main rules.
Quality tiers.
They governed how simple or how complex something could look. There are four tiers, and in order, they are: Standard, Excellent, Superb, and Custom.
And of course, the stuff you needed to exchange varied depending on the quality, with Custom needing high-brow materials or things the Hall Head wanted personally.
Thus, Mikhail traded all of his valuable materials, as well as a handful of his Kennepas, in exchange for all of the furniture he wanted.
In return, he got: a superb quality bed frame and mattress, a standard quality table, eight excellent quality chairs, a standard drawer to better organize his wardrobe, a standard quality cubby for his caligae and any additional footwear he might buy, a standard desk, and a custom quality bookshelf.
Custom Quality orders made deviations to the Hall Leader's style at the recipient's request, which could take anywhere from thirty minutes to over an hour to implement. As such, he had to wait for around forty minutes for his bookshelf.
And after everything was said and done, Mikhail managed to fit all the furniture snugly inside the wagon.
And now that he was done with that exchange, he went back to his tent, ready to turn it into a home.