“Instead of selling the Blood Crystal through us or to the Central Exchange I suggest going directly to a buyer,” Stella said. “In this case, that means someone who is able to perform the Blood Empowerment Ritual. They will always have a use for Blood Crystal, as they can easily sell the ritual for a high price. Once you sell the Blood Crystal and get an empowerment ritual for yourself you can return here and we can discuss what you should spend the rest of your money on.”

“Do you have any suggestions for a buyer?” Tormacc asked.

“Let me search our database.”

While Stella quickly tapped her hands over her grouping of buttons Tormacc reflected on just how glad he was to have found Curtain. Perhaps he could have found a lot of the information he needed by himself, but the time saved was incredibly valuable. Even if he could get all the information and services cheaper, it wasn’t worth it if he couldn’t do it in eight days. With limited time in the First City each minute was valuable. He only had an inkling of just how large the city was, but even that made him realize that if he had to scurry all over it he would never accomplish his goals in a timely manner.

“I would suggest going to see Kaz Ehen,” Stella said after finishing her search. “Not only is he one of the premier people able to perform the Blood Empowerment Ritual, but he likely has the capital needed to buy your excess Blood Crystals, something not necessarily true for the rest.”

After a few more questions Tormacc took his leave. Right now he still had three more days until the portals changed, so as long as he went about things quickly he should be able to sell off his loot, get the ritual done, and still have time to come back and plan ahead with Stella in case he wanted to go through one of the current portals. He had been talking with Stella for hours though, and since he had arrived at First City in the early afternoon it was already dusk, so instead of trying to get anything done he made his way to a nearby inn Stella recommended to get some food and bed down for the night.

First City used a currency called Coin, and Stella had loaned him a small amount until he could sell off his loot. There were hostels that offered a free bed to those without money, but he would much prefer having his own room and getting some quality food. He had grown used to cooking his own meals in the starting zone, but why settle for slightly burnt meat when you could have a proper meal?

After a good night’s rest and the best food he had eaten in months Tormacc set off about his business, with his first stop the Central Exchange. While it was common to barter directly with others, the majority of business was conducted through the Central Exchange, which acted as both a bank and an auction house, all run by the city itself. Anyone could register an account, and once you had an account you could exchange currency with others by transferring it directly through your accounts, not needing to have the actual Coin on hand.

You were also able to sell weapons, armor, and other valuable materials directly to the Exchange for a set amount of Coin or put them up for auction. There was a commission though, so people generally traded directly with others if they could, especially for really valuable materials. It would also be a waste to sell anything truly valuable for just coin, as even if you got billions of Coin, if no one else was selling anything worth buying, your money was left to rot. It was much better to trade directly, exchanging one super rare item for another.

The Central Exchange was large enough that it had its own portal connection, so once Tormacc reached the portal station nearest his inn he was able to reach the Central Exchange directly. Stepping out of the portal, he was stunned by the cacophony of sounds from what had to be thousands of different races intermingling. He had seen people when he was walking around the city before, but it was only a handful, and not more than ten or twenty at a time. Now, seeing all the different races together, he truly understood how vast The Tower was. While Humens and Humen-like sapiens made up the majority, there were many people with outlandish features or limbs, the variance on display ranging from metallic skin to animal features and beyond.

Trying not to stare, he made his way to an open terminal. Seeing such a wide range of races made him feel like he was sightseeing in some exotic location. Except everyone around him was an enemy. Perhaps not directly, but they were all competitors, each one trying to gain the largest advantage for their own race and dimension. It was a sobering thought, realizing just how vast his competition was. But it wouldn’t affect his resolve. He didn’t come here to lose.

Setting up an account with the Central Exchange was quick and painless, although he did lose some time browsing the items listed in the auction house. It wasn’t completely worthless, as he got a rough idea of how much Coin was worth, but he probably shouldn’t have continued browsing after the twentieth page.

Account set up, his next stop was Kaz Ehen. Stella had given him some directions, but as he moved around the city he realized he should have taken her up on her offer of a magical compass. The numbers on the houses and shops were organized, but only if you knew the system. Which he did not. And why did they even need those decimal things in the first place? If you wanted more numbers just add more numbers, don’t complicate things with some dot that suddenly made the number smaller.

After over two hours of wandering off in the wrong direction and backtracking Tormacc finally found Kaz Ehen. He must have walked past the entrance multiple times, which wasn’t surprising now that he found it. The entrance was a small door, barely wedged in between the buildings next to it. The door was a faded green with Kaz Ehen written on it in a color barely distinguishable from the door itself. Knocking didn’t produce any response, so after a few minutes of waiting he tried the door, and seeing it was open, walked inside.

The door opened to a short hallway, ending in a small room with a counter. The room was barely furnished, with nothing on the walls and little light except for a glowing stone held in a sconce on the wall. Walking over to the counter, Tormacc looked inside the glass case under it, taking note of the ten or so materials listed for sale. Most of them were covered in dust, and he had a feeling the case hadn’t been opened in years.

Tormacc snapped his head up as he heard a slam from farther in the building. A few seconds later and a great bear of a man walked out from the door behind the counter. He was large and hairy, his body bursting with muscle. Looking closer at the mane on his head, Tormacc though he could see ears sticking out. Scratch that, he wasn’t a bear of a man, he was a literal bear-man. Not unsurprising having seen many animal-humen hybrids in the Central Exchange, but when Tormacc pictured who would be doing the Blood Empowerment Ritual a bear wasn’t first on the list. Or on it at all if he was being honest.

“Well, what’ll it be, then?” Kaz Ehen said in a deep gravelly voice. “Ye must have a reason for searchin’ me out?”

“I do. I heard that you’re a specialist in the Blood Empowerment Ritual,” Tormacc said.

“Course I am, didn’t ye read the sign?” Kaz Ehen jabbed his hand at an empty spot on the wall. Evidently not feeling what he thought was there, he turned, contemplating the empty wall before turning back. “There used to be a sign. Business has been slow of late. Ever since those crackpot imposters’ve popped up no one wants an actual ritual done anymore. Stupid newbies, don’t know what they’re missing.”

“Well if it’s not too much trouble I was hoping you could do a ritual for me.”

“I’d be happy to, Mr…?”

“Tormacc.”

“Mr. Tormacc. But as I said, business has been slow. Been nigh on three years now without a Blood Crystal mine being discovered, so I’m afraid I can’t help ye.”

Tormacc slipped his pack off his back, plopping it on the floor before opening it up and revealing its contents. “I didn’t come empty handed. Now do you think you could help me?”

Kaz Ehen broke into large, goofy grin. “Well, well, now yer talkin’. Follow me into the back room and we can get down to business.”

The large bear-man lead the way through a few doors and into a cozy sitting area before getting some tea so they could talk business “like civilized people”.

“So what brings ye to my humble shop?” Kaz Ehen said once they were settled down with their tea.

“Curtain suggested that not only were you a premier practitioner of the Blood Empowerment Ritual, but also that you would have the capital to buy my excess Blood Crystals.” Tormacc said.

“Curtain, eh? Shoulda suspected they wouldn’t forget about me. They’re right. None of these other crackpots out there could buy yer crystals, and it’s doubtful some of them can even draw a proper pentagram, let alone a full ritual circle. So I take it ye want the works, eh?”

“Yes? I don’t know much about the process.”

“There’s a few different ways to do the ritual,” Kaz Ehen said, launching into an explanation. “Blood Crystals are the only real rare ingredient, so it’s mostly how much ye can cram into one ritual. And ye only get one. Second one don’t work for some reason. We usually separate the ritual into three tiers, the first that uses the bare minimum Blood Crystal as a catalyst, the second, which is a decent power boost but needs at least a handful of crystal, or the third, where it depends on the ritualist how much they can pack in. ‘Course, there’s the fourth tier too, but that requires a Blood Gem.”

“Just a second,” Tormacc said as he rummaged around in his pack. “Is this a Blood Gem?”

In his hand was the glowing red gem that the mole dropped, its cleanly cut surfaces shining brightly in the lamplight.

“Oh-ho! Well I’ll be, looks like yer one lucky lad. Give it here and let ol’ daddy Kaz take a look.”

The bear-man gently held the gem, examining it from every angle, completely enamored with its beauty.

“It’s a Blood Gem alright. First one I’ve seen in years. Not many people who would waste it on a Blood Empowerment Ritual.”

“Waste it?” Tormacc was confused, should he be saving it for something else? Stella had seemed certain the Blood Empowerment Ritual would be a great boon, but maybe that was only with the Blood Crystals.

“Don’t worry lad, it’s not a waste for ye. I was talking about those folks who have no use for a Blood Empowerment Ritual. Ye see, Blood Gems are rare. Very rare. So most of the time the people who find them have better things to do with them, as unlike Blood Crystals, Blood Gems are useful for anything and everything. It’s just rare to see a newbie like yerself get the chance to use it for a ritual is all. Ye must have gotten lucky with yer starting zone.”

“I guess I did,” Tormacc said.

“Course ye did! Come on then, follow me into the ritual chamber and we can talk more while I get everything prepared. If yer using a Blood Gem I need to gather me some other ingredients.”