As the sun dipped below the horizon, the market came alive, bustling with energy and excitement. Nikos and Liriel sat at their stall, waiting for the next customer. However, after an hour or two, it became clear that no more customers would come that evening.
"Since there are no more customers for today, let's pack up," Nikos suggested.
"Yes, sir," Liriel agreed. Together, they tidied up the stall and ended their day. They began their walk back through the market streets.
Evening turned to night, and in this small town, the market didn't quiet down; it only grew more vibrant. Instead of becoming deserted and be empty at night, the market thrived with activity as the townspeople emerged to enjoy the cool night air.
Vendors called out to passersby, offering them delicious meats, while some merchants only start to opened their shops after dark. The lanterns cast a cozy, warm glow, creating a comforting atmosphere.
Children played with their friends, giggling and running past Nikos and Liriel. The town itself surprisingly had a good living standard for a medieval times, with few homeless people or beggars and also an excellent security.
During the day, everyone worked hard at their jobs, but at night, they allowed themselves to relax and enjoy time with their loved ones.
This little town was indeed charming and lively at night.
The night air was filled with a symphony of scents—meats, soups, breads, and pastries blending into a harmonious aroma along the market street, making people's stomachs that walk through rumbling with hunger.
As the pair walked through the market street, Nikos subtly noticed the low growl of Liriel's stomach as they passed a stall selling bread and pastries. He stopped, prompting Liriel to turn to him, "Is something wrong, sir?"
"I'm in the mood for some breads and pastries. Let's buy some for dinner," Nikos suggested, heading towards the bread stall, with Liriel following closely behind.
A small smile played at the corner of Liriel's lips before she quickly hid it again. She was happy at his suggestion, as it was exactly what she had been hoping for. The sweet smell of bread and pastries had tempted her. Is he doing this on purpose, because he had noticed her glancing at the stall earlier?
At the bread stall, they were warmly greeted by the seller. Nikos picked out some bread and pastries, then turned to Liriel, "Go ahead, choose what you like."
Liriel nodded, shyly hiding a smile as she picked out a few treats she had been eyeing. They all looked incredibly delicious.
"Sir, I'm done choosing," she informed him.
"How much?" Nikos asked the seller.
"The total is 1 gold, sir."
One gold was quite a reasonable price for all the delightful bread and pastries they had chosen. Nikos handed over the gold coin and took their purchases, holding the bag of bread as they continued their walk.
Soon, they arrived back at the inn. Since the first floor was a tavern, Nikos decided they should have their dinner there. After enjoying their meal, they headed upstairs to their room on the second floor.
Once they inside the room, Nikos took a seat by the window and poured the day's earnings onto the table. "Liriel, go call the innkeeper to prepare a bath," he instructed, while begins to count the coins.
She nodded and left the room to fetch the innkeeper.
Nikos focused on counting their profits. Sales of magic accessories and weapons had brought in 7 gold coins—3 gold for magic accessories and 4 gold for weapons.
As for potions, two adventurers had bought two each earlier, and the 'Lunar Vanguard' party had purchased a total of 27 potions.
Before long, Liriel returned with the innkeeper, who carried a wooden bathtub.
She set it down on the floor and began filling it with warm water. Occasionally, the innkeeper stole glances at Nikos, whose focused expression looked particularly striking under the moonlight.
But Nikos remained unaware, his mind occupied with counting the day's sales.
He calculated: Two adventurers + Lunar Vanguard party x Potion Price = Total
4 + 27 x 6 Silver = 186 Silver (9 Gold 6 Silver)
Since 1 gold equaled 20 silver, the total sales of potions amounted to 9 gold 6 silver. Adding the 7 gold from other products, the total earnings for the day came to 16 gold 6 silver.
Earning 16 gold and 6 silver in a single day as a small seller was quite impressive, this income was even higher than some intermediate quest rewards.
After preparing the bath, the innkeeper politely bid them farewell and quietly left the room.
"Sir, the bath is ready," Liriel informed him.
"Understood. You take it first," Nikos said nonchalantly, still focused on the money.
Liriel try to open her mouth in protest, but it's hard to formed any word.
Hearing Nikos respond, Liriel's hands immediately moved to cover her clothed body. I knew it, he didn't buy the bread just to be nice; he must have a hidden motive. I shouldn't trust him so easily. She's annoyed at herself. You're so stupid Liriel.
She tried to voice her protest, but the words wouldn't come out. He owned her at least for three years before she could buy her freedom back, so sadly she need to obey him now.
Reluctantly, she began to remove her leather armor and then undressed her clothes, placing it gently on the bed. With trembling hands, she took a wet towel and started to wipe her body with the warm water, all the while casting nervous glances at Nikos, her heartbeat quickening.
Meanwhile Nikos on his seat checking the inventory system, seeing how many potions he had left.
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| > Inventory < |
v Consumables: (291)
- Health Potion x61
- Mana Potion x68
….
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There's still 129 basic potions, but that wouldn't be enough for his future plans. He needed to stock up more.
His attention was solely on selling the basic potions for now; he would begin selling the other types once the business was more established. Considering this was their first day, the sales were already promising. A slight smile formed on Nikos' lips at the thought.
Seeing his smile, Liriel, despite being under the warm water from the towel, shuddered involuntarily.
She slowly force herself to finished her bath and dress herself back.
"Sir…" Liriel called out weakly.
Nikos closed the system and turned to her, "You finished?" he asked which she's answer with a weak nod.
"Then go to bed now," he instructed, as he put the day's earnings into the magic inventory bag.
What's he going to do now? Liriel's mind raced with anxiety. She wasn't ready for this; at 67 years old, she was still considered young for a dark elf and never had any experience being together with a man.
Sadly, as his slave, she had no power to resist. Nervously, she lay on her bed and closed her eyes.
Nikos' footsteps echoed as he walked towards the bathtub, the sound of his steps drowned out by the pounding of Liriel's heart as both synchronize. As she squeezed her eyes shut, an image of Nikos bathing suddenly formed in her mind, making her cheeks flush red.
As time pass the anxiety and the sound of heartbeat slowly slowly filled her mind, eventually tiring her out until she drifted off to sleep.
Morning arrived with the sun casting a warm glow over the world. Nikos woke up, got out of bed, and started preparing himself. He glanced at Liriel, who was still sleeping peacefully on her bed.
"Wake up, Liriel. We need to gather more ingredients to stock up on potions," he called out.
Gently, Liriel opened her eyes to find it was already morning. She turned to look at Nikos, who was preparing himself, then she touched her body in confusion. I'm still dressed, not naked.
"Did we not... do it last night?" Liriel asked Nikos hesitantly.
"Do what?" Nikos tilted his head in confusion.
She shook her head, embarrassed. "No.. nothing, sir."
"Then go get ready. We need to visit the adventurer's guild."
Liriel nodded and quickly prepared herself. After finishing their preparations, they headed to the adventurer's guild in the morning to take on another beginner quest. Just like last time, they gathered herbs for creating basic potions while completing the quest.
They finished the quest early and returned to the adventurer's guild to collect their rewards. While waiting, some adventurers glanced at them and whispered among themselves.
Nikos noticed but chose to ignore it. After collecting their quest rewards, with plenty of daylight still left, they returned to the inn. Nikos then proceed to produced more potions, both to sell and to stock up for future plans.
As the sun goes down and night arrived, the pair left the inn and went to the market to set up their stall for the night.
The cozy atmosphere of the night market surrounded them as they walked towards their stall. Then from a distance, they could see a crowd of adventurers gathered around their stall.
"What's happening there?" Liriel asked, turning to Nikos for answers.
Nikos shrugged. "I don't know either. Let's go check it out," he said as they walked closer.
As soon as the adventurers saw Nikos and Liriel, they quickly swarmed the pair.
"Hey, you!" one of the adventurers shouted.