Chapter 7 – First Day Amongst People

Sprout floated slowly from the second story, gazing down at the small village before it.

The place was crowded with humans of every sort imaginable, making Maximus oddly uncomfortable, as though he had wandered deep behind enemy lines.

Back on Veridiyum, elves were not the friendliest with other races, and the second strongest were the humans, who often fought against elven armies for resource-rich lands under the Mother’s protection.

I’ve never seen so many different humans in one place. Didn’t even know they could look like this. He observed.

Then he focused on the buildings: simple, flat-roofed stone structures, obviously ancient, carefully restored to be livable once again.

On the streets, stands and shops were tucked tightly against the stone walls, leaving barely enough room for people to pass in two thin lines.

Oh, that looks interesting. I’d like to try to buy a few things. Make some potions. He noted down the location of the stands selling plants.

Just then, Sprout floated onto the ground and began wandering through the streets, avoiding people’s footsteps so it wouldn’t be squished. Then it noticed the old man Edgar walking toward one of the larger buildings and followed him. Good thinking! Maximus whispered.

Sprout rustled its two leaves joyfully before squeezing under the heavy wooden doors.

Can you hear me? Rustle your leaves again if you can. Maximus asked inwardly, and as he did, Sprout, just as it passed under the doors, rustled its leaves in confirmation.

Oh, this is excellent. So, the link works in both directions. Good, this is what will be of use as we move forward! Maximus smiled, satisfied, as he still tried to see what was going on in the wide room Sprout had found itself in.

In the center of the room was a round wooden table at which four people sat.

“So, how did it go?” a white-haired older woman asked, her dark skin showing the gentle marks of time.

“Eh, he wants to do it the hard way. Pity, I got a sense that he is someone we could count on,” Edgar said regretfully.

“There is still time for him to realize just what this world is. Once he experiences the Monster Horde, he’ll come around,” Jax the healer said.

“As I said when I recommended him, he is very odd, but he has a lot of potential.” The last person sitting at the northernmost part of the table was Tom.

Tom? I knew he was hiding something. What in the nine hells is he doing there? Maximus frowned.

“Listen, boy, you are not your brother. Don’t think that you have any say in this!” Edgar raised his voice.

“I never said that, I just said that the druid could be useful in the long run. Fine, whatever. Don’t say that I didn’t try to help.” Tom rose and left the room, shutting the doors behind him.

“He thinks he is all that just because of his brother. Let’s see if he can even clear the Planes,” the woman said, clearly upset.

“Look, we shouldn’t focus on the outside world for the time being, but we should also be mindful of who can help us if we survive this ordeal. Joining his brother’s guild is very important,” Jax said. “God knows the military is not what it was.” He sighed.

“Nothing is as it was,” Edgar sighed as well. “I’ll watch over the Dalton boy, and regarding the redhead, I won’t push it. He seems like a decent one. Let him recover and help us for the time being,” Edgar added.

“I agree, no need to push it. We have other candidates that can owe us,” the woman said, and they rose, leaving the room.

So, they wanted me to become the leader of this place and owe them later? So being a leader has some perks, it seems. He shook his head. Doesn’t matter, I have my goals, and Aurelius never creates debts. He muttered and summoned Sprout back.

With a soft swish of green energy, the seedling vanished and appeared before Maximus.

“Good job, buddy. Go rest.” He canceled the summoning, letting Sprout return to the spirit realm to recover.

***

Over the next two days, Maximus received a couple of visits from Jax, who healed him back to full health, but was astonished that he had recovered that fast for a low-level person.
What Jax didn’t know was that Maximus had been eating seedlings like a goat, chewing through the sour plants with a mad fervor.

Even Sarah and Tom visited him once, telling him that Pete was getting better and that they had decided to stay in the village until the trial was over, leaving Maximus a bit disappointed.

Finally, on the third day, it was time for him to leave and explore the village by himself. But before that, he opened the Store and spent 10 Battle Tokens on a fresh white button-down shirt. He rolled up his sleeves and left.

As he walked, he checked his skills; the only one that had improved lately was Seedling, which he kept spamming as much as he could; some he ate, the others he stored aside.

—-

Seedling (F) Level 10 – Create a small seedling that you can ingest as food or use to heal yourself or others. The skill restores 6.5% of your overall health over the next 9 minutes. Uses almost no spirit to cast.

—-

Good, it’s getting better, slowly. He walked up to the stand he had seen on his first day here, a place where a tall man in loose silk clothing sat, selling plants.

“Hey there, young man, how can I help you?” the man asked.

“Good morning, do you maybe have Mendleaf, Glowpetal, and Heartroot?” Maximus asked.

“Don’t you sound like someone who knows what he’s talking about?” the man chuckled. “But I’m sorry, never heard of them. You can browse what I’ve got and see if anything else fits your needs.” The man pointed to the samples spread across the table.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Maximus nodded and scanned the plants, his Appraisal ability making things much easier. Hmm, I could use some of these… And together with the Seedling? It could work… Potentially. He nodded to himself.

“How much for ten stalks of Faintglow Weed, Dawn Lily, and a bag of Redmother’s Root?” Maximus asked.

“Let me see if I even have that much.” The man ducked down and started checking his boxes. “Alright, I’ve got five of each and half a bag of the roots. I’ll sell them for 500 Tokens.” The man said simply.

Maximus frowned. “Do you buy plants as well?”

“Sure, what’ve you got?” the man asked curiously.

Maximus opened his bag and summoned a bunch of seedlings, taking them out as if he had them stored. “These are seedlings of a Vitality Bean. You can plant them and sell the beans,” Maximus explained.

The man cracked a smile. “Look, kid, I’m trying to run a business here. I’m not going to buy some magical beans.” He even made air quotes at the last part.

“Come back when you’ve got some real money, then we can talk.” He shooed him away.

Damn fool. He could’ve earned so much more if he just planted the seedlings… Fine, I’ll come back, old man. He muttered inwardly and headed toward the place he had seen selling monster and beast parts.

There, a large shop was connected to an armory. It looked like they brought in parts, crafted armor from the best pieces, and sold the leftovers, making it the perfect place for Maximus.

“Good morning. I’d like to sell a corpse of a Sandwalker Lizard. It’s only missing its head. I can even sell the core,” Maximus said as he walked into the store.

Behind the counter, a thick woman sat chewing on a sandwich. “Oy, morning, lad. You said you’re selling a lizard? Where is it then?” she spoke through bites.

“I’ve got it in my storage. It’s quite big, so if you have some open space, I’ll take it out,” he said honestly.

“Ooooh, a high-level one, are you, lad? Fine, walk with me, and don’t mind the mess.” The large woman led him into a big, empty room in the back filled with scattered monster parts.