The duo entered the shop, with Kurose taking a moment to look around. There wasn't anything super interesting inside of the store. Just several shelves lined up against the walls, each with several jars containing various things inside of them. Kurose stepped forward, intent on examining one, only to be interrupted by a voice.
"Hello there" A voice spoke. Kurose turned to look around, noticing the man standing behind a desk, an almost bored look on his face. "Welcome to my store. If you are looking for weapons or something, I'm afraid we don't sell them here. You are better off going to Bartholomew's shops back down the road."
Kurose was confused. Did they really look like they came here for weapons? Then again, Eorna hadn't exactly told him what they had come into the store for, so he was left in the dark as to what the true purpose of this visit was. All Eorna had said was that it was something he would want.
"We aren't here for weapons!" Eorna spoke with a smile.
"Then what are you here for?" The man questioned her.
"Well, this is a monster egg shop, right? I don't really see many monster eggs here though…" Eorna spoke slowly.
The man simply sighed, nodding his head. "This is a monster egg shop, yes. As for the egg situation, I have plenty in stock. They are out back. Stops people from trying to interfere with them. Anything specific you are looking for?"
Kurose looked towards Eorna, who simply smiled back at him. "Yup! A Vindr Glaedr egg please!"
The man simply looked between the two of them before shaking his head. "Fine. Nothing too big I guess. Any particular breed of Vindr Glaedr you want?"
Eorna blinked in confusion, as did Kurose. There were different types of Vindr Glaedr? The man seemed to pick up on their confusion, seeming to sigh in frustration.
"Right. Of course, you don't know about the different breeds. I'm assuming that you were only looking specifically for a pet. If so, just a regular Vindr Glaedr will do. They grow to a decent size, enough to carry a singular person, maybe two. But other than that, there's nothing special about them, they are generalists. There are Vindr Glaedrs bred for combat. They have more agility and attack, though I have heard of some being bred specifically to take hits. A bit tasteless for me, but they can do what they want I suppose."
"Wait. So the Vindr Glaedrs bred for combat, what can they do that the regular ones can't?"
"A good question I suppose. Sure, they are more focused on attacking, but they are usually a bit more wild. They don't listen to orders as well as other Vindr Glaedrs. Also can't carry people with them, making them bad for transporting people."
"I see." So combat Vindr Glaedrs could be a good choice, but did he want something that might not listen to his orders when it came down to it?"
"There are the elemental Vindr Glaedrs. Not really sure what sort of thing happened to get elemental Vindr Glaedrs, but they exist."
"What's so different about them?" Eorna asked. "I'll admit, I only ever saw what I assume to be a regular Vindr Glaedr in my village."
"Well, an elemental Vindr Glaedr is for most intents and purposes, literally just a regular Vindr Glaedr most of the time. The only time it changes is when a storm or something comes in. Doesn't even have to be a Storm. Could be a blizzard, heat wave, anything to do with the weather really. Like any other Vindr Glaedr, their feathers will change color, but they gain some sort of power from the weather. They will still primarily use wind, but they gain the ability to combine elements with their wind whilst the weather stays like that. Really is just a bizarre thing, and I wouldn't have believed it myself if I hadn't seen it."
Kurose blinked at that. That… sounded pretty cool actually. All Vindr Glaedrs sounded pretty good, but the elemental Vindr Glaedr seemed like the best one there! There had to be a catch somewhere, right?
"Do… Do you have an elemental Vindr Glaedr egg?" Kurose asked.
"I do. A couple even. Why, do you want to buy it?" He asked, going back to resting his head on the desk before him.
"We do." Eorna confirmed.
"Right then. Do you have any sort of identification on you? Any documents to prove you can actually own an elemental Vindr Glaedr?"
"Documents?" Kurose and Eorna both asked at the same time.
"Yeah. Anything to show you are a certified monster trainer, anything like that? Because I'm afraid I can't sell it to you otherwise. Could get the shop shut down and me thrown in prison."
"Alright, how do we get these documents?" Kurose asked. He was willing to jump through whatever hurdle he had to in order to have an elemental Vindr Glaedr.
Sure, he had only known about their existence for about a minute, but now it was his life goal to have one as a pet!
"I'm afraid it's not just as easy as getting the documents." The man spoke simply. "Takes years of training monsters before you can even be considered to have an elemental Vindr Glaedr. Hell, I'm not even allowed to own one. The most I can do is sell them to people who qualify to own one."
Kurose looked down in disappointment, and Eorna let out a sigh.
"What about just a normal Vindr Glaedr?" The dagger hero asked.
"Lot less issues giving you one of those. But still need to do a few checks prior to anything."
Kurose didn't raise his head, seemingly intent on staring at the floor. The man behind the desk noticed this and sighed.
"Look. I'm sorry that you can't get an elemental Vindr Glaedr like you wanted, but you have to understand that it's careless to just give one away like that. Only people I would even consider giving them to freely without concern are the heroes. But his majesty doesn't seem like the type of guy to own pets, and the Dagger and Accessory are in Ortensca."
Kurose paused his moment of sulking. It would be so easy. He could just reveal his identity as the Accessory hero right now. He could walk out of here with an elemental Vindr Glaedr egg just like that. It wouldn't even take a moment to prove he was a hero.
His hand clenched for a minute, thinking it over. Would it be worth it? It was peaceful for him now, only because no one except the people in the castle knew they were here, but once the wave came, it would probably be like Matthias said. It wouldn't be as peaceful, and he would have people trying to get his attention to solve any issues they may have.
Kurose looked up and found Eorna staring at him. Would she do anything to stop him? Would she follow his lead? He didn't know.
With a sigh, he unclenched his hand. A normal Vindr Glaedr egg would be fine for now. He wouldn't abuse his position as a hero for something as simple as that.
Even if it did sound really cool to have one as a pet. He could always wait. Plus, it could be counted as a sort of test in his own mind.
Yeah, that's it. Kurose thought to himself. It was just a simple test. One to see whether he would abuse his authority as a hero.
"A normal Vindr Glaedr egg would be fine then." Kurose finally spoke.
"Great, let me just get my checklist. Should be under here somewhere…"
The man ducked under the desk before pulling out something, looking at it before clearing his throat.
"Right. Let's see… right, first question. Why do you want a Vindr Glaedr?"
"We are adventurers, and we think it would be easier to have something like a Vindr Glaedr with us," Eorna spoke. "It could help warn us when bad weather's coming, it can help carry anything we might wish to sell, and most important of all…" Eorna paused for a moment for added effect.
"They are cute!" She spoke with a wide smile Kurose had to agree with her.
The man behind the desk didn't seem impressed but nodded his head. "Alright, another question. Since you're adventurers, why not choose a combat Vindr Glaedr instead? Surely it would be better for your lifestyle. Plus, it can still carry stuff for you. It just won't be able to carry you specifically."
Kurose spoke up this time. "That is true, but what you said about them not listening to orders kind of rubbed me the wrong way. I mean, sure it might listen to orders ninety percent of the time, but if it doesn't when we are fighting for our lives, it's not going to mean much, is it?"
He simply nodded at that. "A valid point. Despite having recently been told, you seem to have considered that when deciding…"
Kurose wasn't going to admit he was lying through his teeth. Not when this was his best chance at getting a Vindr Glaedr.
"Right. Well, I do this for every customer I sell to, but once a couple of weeks have passed, I'd like to do a check-up. Make sure the hatched monster is fine and that the environment it's living in is actually… well liveable."
"That's fair," Kurose spoke simply. "What information do you need us to give?"
"Just where you live. Actually… no, you're adventurers so you'll be taking the egg with you. Hmm…" the man seemed to think on it some more. "Right. Once a couple of weeks have passed, just come back here and I'll perform a checkup on it here. Make sure it's doing fine and all that. That sounds good?"
"That's perfectly acceptable," Kurose answered with a small nod. Eorna must have felt the same, as she didn't interrupt at any point.
"But what if we just... don't come back?" Eorna questioned.
"Well, not really much I can do about that." The man spoke. "But in the end, it doesn't really matter to me. I usually just do the check-up to ensure the monster that hatched is healthy and all that."
Eorna accepted that, nodding her head, and the man continued.
"Right. Well, I'll bring through the Vindr Glaedr eggs I've got in stock, and let you choose which one you want. Once you've done that, we will get onto the Charme imprinting part of it all. Back in a minute."
The man walked through to the back, muttering to himself as he left. Once he was fully out of eyesight, Eorna spoke up.
"You really wanted one of those elemental Vindr Glaedrs, didn't you?"
"I did," Kurose spoke simply.
"I'll admit… when he mentioned he'd probably give one to a hero without any questions asked, I thought you might reveal yourself."
Kurose opened his mouth for a moment before speaking. "I… I was tempted. I'll be honest. But I realized that it… it probably wouldn't be for the best. I enjoy it as it is right now, and I want to make the most of it before everything goes down. Before we are revealed to the public. Plus… I don't exactly want to abuse my authority as a hero, you know?" He spoke with a small smile.
Eorna beamed back at him, and it made it feel like holding back was worth it, just for the smile alone.
Before anything else could be said between the two, the store owner came back, putting five incubators down on the desk.
"Right. Here are the five Vindr Glaedr eggs I've got in stock. Choose whichever one you feel like. I'll get the other stuff we need sorted out."
Kurose stared at the five eggs as the man walked off again, looking for who knows what.
"Huh, this feels like choosing your first starter Pokémon…" Kurose thought out loud.
"Starter…Pokémon?" Eorna asked. "What's that?"
"Ah, I said that out loud. Well, it's something from a game back in my world. Usually, you get three choices at the start, and they usually stay with you for the rest of your journey."
"But there's five here?" Eorna spoke, confused.
"It's fine. Just making a little reference to myself. Now, let's see…"
Kurose hummed as he looked at each of the eggs. He wasn't exactly sure what he was looking for. He couldn't exactly tell any sort of difference between them.
"Any preference for which egg we get?" Kurose asked Eorna, wanting her input.
"Hmm… nope! I can't tell if there's any sort of difference between them, can you?"
"Not at all. Let's just choose…" he held his finger up before pointing towards the central egg. "This one! I'm sure we will get along just fine with it once it hatches!" He spoke with a smile.
"I'm sure we will," Eorna spoke just as excitedly.
"Made your decision?" The man asked, placing a wooden disk on the desk.
"We have. The central one." Kurose affirmed.
"Got it. Let me take the others back through and I'll help you sort everything else out."
He quickly scooped up the remaining eggs, putting them into the back before coming back through.
"Right. So who's going to be the owner?" He asked with a smile.
"Can't we both be the owner?" Kurose asked.
"Ah, sorry. I meant who's going to be the one to use the Charme on the egg? Can't pair the both of you to it, unfortunately. So one of you needs to be the primary owner. If the other person is around it long enough and helps take care of it, should listen to them easily as well."
Eorna nodded her head. "Then you can do it Kurose."
"Eh? But don't you want to own it as well?"
"I mean yeah, but nothing is stopping us from getting another Vindr Glaedr in the future, is there?"
"That's true…" Kurose spoke slowly, nodding his head. "Alright, what do I have to do?" he asked the man.
"It's simple. You have to push your mana into the Charme and press against the egg."
Alright. That's easy enough. Kurose thought. The man offered him the Charme, and Kurose took it.
He closed his eyes, taking calm, collected breaths. He slowly began to push his mana into the Charme. He wasn't sure how much he needed to put in there, so he simply continued until he felt like it was enough.
That point came when he had depleted half of his mana bar. He opened his eyes, looking at the Charme.
"Right. Now that it's got some mana in it, just press it against the egg. It'll do the rest for you, so don't worry."
Again, Kurose did as he asked, pressing the Charme against the egg. He could feel the Charme heat up slightly, yet before it became uncomfortable, it cooled down almost immediately.
He moved his hand away, the Charme with it, and the man looked at the egg. It had a small mark on it from where he pressed the Charme.
"That's good! Now once it hatches, it should immediately be in your party. I'd like to you keep in mind that this was only a basic Charmes. You might need to replace it at some point with a stronger Charme seal, but that shouldn't be for a while."
Kurose nodded his head, and Eorna spoke up. "What do Vindr Glaedrs eat?"
"Just what I was about to get to!" The man spoke with a smile, a contrast to his previous look of boredom.
"They primarily eat fruits. Anything hanging from bushes or trees, such as apples. They can also eat meat, though I would recommend giving it to them as a treat, or some sort of reward. It can help reinforce good behaviour." he spoke.
Now that he was hearing about it, it seemed like Vindr Glaedrs were sort of like dogs in this world. Wait, did they even have dogs here? He hadn't seen one in the city or Horteni, but then again, he hadn't exactly been looking for one. Questions for later he supposed.
Now that he thought about it, his stockpile of questions for later seemed to only be going up. he hadn't actually asked any of them. Was that just how it was going to be? He elected to ignore it for the time, asking another question.
"I see. Do you happen to sell food for newly hatched monsters?" Kurose asked.
"I do. It's usually given with the egg for free. It's roughly a week's worth of food, though that can depend on how fast you level it up."
"What does leveling have to do with it?" Kurose asked.
"Monsters grow as they level.." Eorna supplied quickly.
"That's correct. They all grow as they level. Though it wont make them giants or anything if you drag them to like, level 60 or so. But they will be pretty strong for their species at that point. Vindr Glaedrs usually finish growing at about level thirty, give or take. Some finish growing earlier and later. There is no real rhyme or reason for it, but by about level fifteen, they are usually fine to go hunting for food on their own. Though seeing as you two are adventurers, it shouldn't be hard to keep everything under control. Let me just go get the food for you!"
With that, the man moved over to the shelves, quickly looking through them before pulling down a small package. He looked it over a couple of times, nodding to himself before coming back over.
"Right. That should be everything. You've marked the egg with the Charme, plus you have got your food for it. Now that it's all sorted, I believe it's time to pay." He spoke.
"Of course. How much is it for everything?" Kurose asked.
"For the egg and the food, 1 Sika coin." He spoke simply.
Kurose nodded, placing down the Sika coin. The man took hold of it, inspecting it for a moment before smiling. "Thank you for shopping here. Just take this sheet. Where did I put it…" He looked around for a moment before reaching under his desk, and pulling out a sheet with yet more writing Kurose couldn't understand.
"This should have all the info you need to raise the Vindr Glaedr on it, but if there's something you can't understand, or aren't sure about, please feel free to come back here." He spoke politely.
"At least it would give me something to do…" The man spoke under his breath. Kurose felt as if he shouldn't have heard that, so wisely decided not to comment on it.
"Thank you again for this," Kurose spoke, bowing slightly. Eorna did the same, but the man shook it off.
"It's fine. Nothing that needs to be thanked. I'm simply doing my job." The man spoke with a shrug. "The egg should hatch either tonight or early tomorrow, just so you know. So be prepared for that."
"We will keep an eye on it. Thank you again. We will see you in a couple of weeks for the check-up."
"Sounds good. I'll see you then." He spoke, waving them out of the door.
Once both Kurose and Eorna were out of the door, Eorna spoke up. "So… I'm feeling like we should probably go back to the castle? It's not super late, but we have been out for a while…."
"Yeah, that's fine to me." Kurose agreed easily.
"Let's go then!" Eorna spoke with a smile.
With that said, the duo began their walk back to the castle.
Whilst Eorna and Kurose were making their way back towards the castle, Matthias was speaking to the Wydern who had been assigned to them.
Upon realizing that the pair were coming back, he had moved ahead to let the Jewelry tools hero know of what they had done during their time out.
"I see. So they didn't get into any trouble?" Matthias asked.
"They did not, your majesty. The only strange occurrence was when the Dagger hero dragged the Accessory hero into Bartholomew's weapons and accessories. It was much more difficult to keep an eye on them in there, but I witnessed both heroes touching different Accessories and Daggers. For what purpose, I'm unsure."
Matthias nodded his head at that. "Something exclusive to us heroes. You don't need to worry about it. Is there anything else I need to know about?"
The Wydern paused for a moment before nodding his head. "Their last stop before beginning to make their way back here…"
"What was it?"
"It was a monster hatchery, your majesty."
Matthias stopped for a moment. "So, did they absorb some monster parts they had on hand, or…"
"I'm afraid not your majesty. They… the pair bought an egg. A Vindr Glaedr egg specifically."
Matthias blinked for a moment. "They did what?" He asked again.
"They bought a Vindr Glaedr egg. The Accessory hero is the primary owner of it." The Wydern repeated.
…
…
"...Why would he do that?" Matthias spoke after a pause. "What compelled him to buy a monster egg?"
"If I may add my input?"
"Go on."
"The Accessory hero and Dagger hero both rode a Vindr Glaedr in Odrezzers show. They both seemed to enjoy it well enough. That may have been a leading factor in their choice."
"I see. But still… he could have gotten so many other useful monster companions…"
Matthias simply shook his head. "This is fine. At the very least, they will have something to transport them to and from places once it's leveled. How much longer would you say they'll be?"
"I believe it will likely take them another ten minutes before they arrive. May I ask how your attempts to contact Queen Lamarea have gone?"
Matthias let out a sigh. "It's been… going I suppose. Haven't got any response, but then again, she's probably got her hands full with the churches and preparation for the waves. She'll respond to me eventually. Either that or Arissa will pass my message along. Especially once she sees what it's about."
The Wydern nodded at that. "I see. I hope that you get your response soon. If you need me again, you know to call out for me, your majesty."
Kurose and Eorna eventually got back to the castle just as the sun started to dip below the horizon. Kurose took in the sight for a moment before stepping back into the castle grounds. No one moved to stop the duo, and so they continued.
They made their way to Kurose's room, with Eorna slumping down on his bed, whilst Kurose let the egg and its incubator sit on the drawer he hadn't used at all. He took in his room once again, noting everything before pausing. He had put his armour on the chair the night he had gotten here, but now it was gone.
Did someone steal it? That didn't seem likely. The shoulder had been torn open by the Harpies from the wave, plus they were in the castle, arguably one of the most guarded places. It was more likely one of the servants notified Matthias or something about it, and it was just getting repaired. Still, he would have to ask about it when he next saw the elder hero or even just another person in the castle.
"So…" Kurose spoke, breaking the silence that had filled the room. "Did you have a good day?" He asked.
"Yeah. It was fun, especially riding that Vindr Glaedr. I can't wait for ours to hatch." She spoke with a small smile, slowly pulling herself up. "What about you? Did you have a good day?"
Kurose nodded his head. "Yeah. It was pretty good. I enjoyed just exploring the city. It felt like I was back home." He left out the part where he didn't really go out much. That wasn't exactly relevant information right now.
Eorna didn't speak for a minute. But once she did, she spoke in a quiet voice. "...Do you miss your world?" she asked.
Kurose nodded. "I do." He admitted. "Most people here have been nice to me. They have helped me out, and I have seen things I didn't think I would see…" Like giant horses that could breathe fire or cracks in the sky.
"But I do miss my world. Back there, it was a lot simpler. I didn't have to worry about the pressure of saving the world, of fighting for my life. There, I could just relax. Do my job and my hobby. Plus, I kind of left my friend in a bad way. I don't know how she is doing, but she was the last person I saw."
"Who was she to you?" Eorna asked.
"She was just a friend. A close one at that." Kurose admitted. "We knew each other for ages. Our parents were friends, so naturally we were friends. The last time she saw me, well, I was being crushed by a car, so she's probably all torn up and that." Kurose took a breath before speaking again.
"What about you? I know this is your world and all that, but do you miss your home? Your family?"
Eorna fidgeted with her hands before speaking. "Kind of? I miss some of my family, but I don't think I'm ready to face them all yet. I don't think I'm ready to face anyone at the village currently. I still need some more time to sort everything out and come to terms with just… stuff. But I do miss my village. It was… nice. It was peaceful. I think you would like it." She spoke softly.
"Well, when you are ready, I would be happy to go there with you, if it would help you."
Eorna smiled at Kurose. "Thanks. I appreciate it."
She stood up, stretching her arms before starting to move to the door. "I'm going to go to my room for a bit before we get called for dinner and all that. I'll see you in a bit, I guess?"
Kurose shifted, standing up. "Sure, but… can you wait a moment?" He asked.
Eorna stood by the door, nodding her head. Kurose slowly took out the bag that held the hairpin, smiling nervously.
"I uh… I bought a gift for you." Kurose spoke slowly.
"Huh?" Eorna responded, tilting her head. "When did you do that?"
"Well, it was when you ran ahead. You were excited, and I didn't want to drag you back because you were having fun looking at everything."
"Ah, I'm sorry for running off!"
"It's fine!" Kurose spoke quickly. "It gave me time to buy this for you anyway. Here you go…"
Kurose held out the small bag to Eorna, who gently took it into her hands. She slowly opened up the bag, letting out a small gasp as she pulled the hairpin out. She rotated it in her hands, smiling as she looked at it.
"It… It looks good." She finally managed to get out. "I don't know what else to say. Thank you." She spoke, her smile still on her face.
She held it in her hands for a moment more before moving her hands, and by extension, the hairpin behind her head. After a few moments of movement, Eorna turned her head, smiling lightly as she spoke.
"So… how does it look?"
Kurose looked at her. Her hair was tied up in a bun. With the hairpin managing to keep it in place. The rose was pointing out the top, and Kurose couldn't help but smile.
"It really does match…" Kurose spoke. He coughed before speaking again. "I mean, it looks fantastic!" He spoke with a smile.
Eorna let out a small noise at that, turning her head away from Kurose before speaking.
"T-thanks. I… I'll see you at dinner." She spoke quickly, fleeing from the room.
Kurose stared at the spot she had occupied for a moment more before blinking. Had he said something wrong? He let out a small sigh, but moved forward, closing the door before sitting on his bed again.
He slowly moved his hand to the coin pouch, thinking for a moment. He had spent 1 Sika coin, and 51 Serena coins. He had a decent amount of funds left. Matthias had said they could use them on whatever they wanted, so…
He took a single Serena coin from the pouch, dropping it into the gem of his weapon. No weapon form unlocked, but a jingling sound played, along with a simple 100G appearing in his field of view.
"Huh. So Serena coins are 100G, but… what about a Sika coin?"
Kurose hesitantly put one of his Sika coins into the gem, and his eyes widened at the number. Instead of the 100G from before, it was now 10100G
"That's… that's a ridiculous amount." Kurose shook his head for a moment, taking it in.
"I guess it's time to open up the shop. I haven't actually done that yet, have I?" Kurose tried to recall if he had opened it up before, but he couldn't think of any time.
With a shrug, he opened up the menu, looking at what was in it.
Shop [Reset (1000g) ]
+3 attack (300g)
+2 magic attack (200g)
+4 defense (400g)
+1 SP (100g)
+3 SP (300g)
+2 agility (200g)
New Slot in 0/10000G
Automatic Shop Reset [08:32:21]
Kurose looked over the menu before making a decision. He clicked on the +1 SP, and like it had when he deposited the money, the same jingling noise played, and 100G was taken from his total.
Shop [Reset (1000g) ]
+3 attack (300g)
+2 magic attack (200g)
+4 defense (400g)
+1 SP (Purchased)
+3 SP (300g)
+2 agility (200g)
New Slot in 100/10000G
Automatic Shop Reset [08:32:12]
Kurose waited a moment before buying everything else in the shop. He had enough spare money after all.
After purchasing all of them, he was sitting at 1500/10000G, and the only option left to him was to reset the shop. He chose to reset it, and the screen went blank for a moment before coming back.
Shop [Reset (2000g) ]
+2 strength (200g)
+3 agility (300g)
+1 magic defense (100g)
+2 Mana (200g)
+3 Mana (300g)
+2 Magic Attack (200g)
New Slot in 2500/10000G
Automatic Shop Reset [08:31:59]
Once again, Kurose bought all the options. He wasn't going to pass this up. Plus, when Matthias did eventually get them sorted at the adventurers' guild, he would have a decent amount of income to use on this method. It was pretty strong, and it made him regret not using it earlier.
Not that he could of, due to having no money.
The new slot counter was now sitting at 3800/10000G, meaning he was over a third of the way over. It also meant he was left with 6300G in total, and by the looks of it, resetting the shop increased its price each time.
It was only 8 hours until the shop reset on its own. He would just buy the new upgrades in the morning. It's not like he was slacking off in other ways of getting stronger. He was unlocking more weapon forms and leveling up. The only methods he had to consciously use were Gem Equip and the shop. Gem equip would have to wait for a time, until he managed to get a good supply of gems, whilst the shop method would have to wait until it reset.
Kurose closed the menu, leaning back onto his bed. Who would have thought there would be a pay-to-win method to make the user stronger?
He shook his head at that, simply laying back on his bed, his eyes closing slowly as he relaxed. He was just going to shut his eyes for a bit...
Not much happening. Just Kurose and Eorna getting a monster companion, and Kurose giving her the hairpin her purchased.
Oh and also Kurose actually using his last method now that he has funds. Pretty neat.