The old woman and I stared at one another for a long time once I had finished speaking. She had a strange expression, as if a grimace, a smirk and a thin line combined. She then smirked at me. “Us old folk should be allowed our secrets shouldn’t we hmm?” She said with that damn mischievous smirk of hers.

I sighed a little and reached out with my hand towards her. “I’m Vlad von Carstein.” I introduced myself as I at least wanted to know who was showing me such favour. Was it just me or where the old people in this world the nicest ones… or the weirdest? Nah maybe they’re just the most peculiar ones since they’ve lived long enough to grow rather eccentric.

The old woman seemed surprised at my introduction. “Well, that is a rather peculiar name. Where is it from?” She asked me before she almost flinched and reached out with her rough and calloused hand to grip mine. “I’m Lintu Seerta.” She then said with a slight yet soft smile.

“It’s Sylvanian.” I answered with what I hoped was a mysterious smile on my lips. Lintu seemed to mull my answer over in her mind, narrowing her eyes at me.

“What is all this darn RACKET!!!” A gruff and old voice suddenly bellowed from right behind me. Without realizing it I had turned and almost fully activated my carapace with only my hands and head left uncovered.

There was nothing behind me. Just the store itself and a gnarled old wooden staff leaned against one of the islands in the stores middle. Had it been there before?

“I knew it.” Lintu said from behind me and I turned to look at her. I must have looked rather wary of her as she simply smiled at me with that kindly smile of hers. “Don’t worry, he’s an old friend.

“What’s with you kid? Is that how you treat your elders?” The voice from before came from behind me and I spun around again. I felt rather annoyed at being toyed with like this. I looked around and placed one hand on the hilt of my short sword.

“Who’s there?” I growled as I looked around. The staff suddenly began to move! A twig person sort of popped out of the staff and placed it’s hands-on its hips. The face was sort of strange, it was like someone had tried to roughly carve an ents face into the top of the staff, while it had a dwarfs face carved previously.

“Me! I’m here. Now are you going to put those knives away or what?” It asked me and I was just speechless. My carapace slowly receded underneath my clothes and so did I slide my short sword fully back into its sheath. I just stared at the stick man.

“What are you?” I asked finally, as tactful as ever.

The stickman seemed to puff up with pride and stuck out its meagre chest. “I am the great Wildleg! Guardian of the thundering woods and archdruid of the wilds.” He said with such confidence and pride in himself that I stared for a long few moments at him. I’m going with him as his voice was rather similar to Chernabog, that is if he went through the whole Groot thing from a certain movie with galaxy in its name. Well, that and if you gave baby Groot a good lungful of Sulphur Hexafluoride.

Then I began laughing. I laughed so hard I actually felt weak legged and had to lean against the counter to keep standing. Wildleg didn’t seem all that pleased with my reaction. He stamped his foot like a ten-year-old would in anger and just glared at me. Then he crossed his arms and hmpf’d with such flair I only laughed more.

“You are rather comical looking like that, Mr Wildleg.” Lintu said behind me and I could tell she was holding back her laughter as well. The stick man deflated. Which yes, it is as freakishly weird as it sounds.

“You bags of flesh are all the same. No bark in your back.” Wildleg said as he humphed at me again and walked over to jump and sit on the counter. I had a slight image of the stick man with a top hat for some reason, as he turned and jumped to stand next to Lintu.

I scratched at my neck as I watched him for a few moments more before looking over at Lintu. “Familiar?” I asked hoping that Wildleg was some sort of contracted fairy or familiar of some sort. The old woman simply grew that mischievous smile of hers.

“I wonder?” She said mysteriously while she looked over at Wildleg. The stick man simply walked over to a nook behind the counter and took out a shawl and draped himself with it. He looked a little like he was wearing a toga with how he wore the shawl.

“I’ll have you know I am a nature spirit of quite the renown.” He said turning his nose at me and Lintu. “You should really be honoured I’m speaking to you at all.” He continued looking at what passed for fingernails on his wooden fingers, he looked bored and entirely uninterested in Lintu and mine’s reaction.

“Prankster or Presumptuous?” I asked Lintu bluntly and she simply chuckled at me. Fine then you old bat, keep your secrets and mystiriouuusness. “I’ll take it as a mix of the two then.” I said sighing before leaning a little on the counter towards Lintu. “But really, Why are you giving me such a great deal? And… What made you decide to test my magic as well?” I then asked her with a serious expression.

She seemed to chew a little on the insides of her lips before she answered. “A whim really… I know that isn’t all that convincing for you but that’s it. Well, there is something about you that reminds me of someone. Your demeanour or some aspect of your bearing feels familiar somehow.” She said and she seemed to grow a very far away look to her eyes. She then shook her head a little and tapped the counter in front of me. “Now are you taking the deal or not?”

Her tone was suddenly rather testy and impatient. I wondered if she might be demented. If so should I really be dealing with her? Isn’t that like… maybe picking on or taking advantage of her?

“Ok…” I answered like a god damned coward. “But I want to pay 43 gold and you’ll throw in a book if you have one on how skills, levels and the rest of the world's system works.” I said with a smile, though I felt bad if I was taking advantage of her. Then again considering my goal I had to take any advantage I could get my hands on.

I almost couldn’t look her in the eyes when I paid her and took the items. Putting the books into the satchel and tied the scroll case to my lower back. I was reaching for the rings when Lintu looked at me. “I’d wait to activate those rings until you manage to control your mana. When you do, make sure no other spatial storages are around you. If you put any other spatial storage into the ring, since you only need one, it’ll devour the storage item and everything inside it, expanding the storage space that way.” She said and I thought of how I might use that to my advantage.

“If I have a spatial storage filled with let's say gravel would it increase the storage space available because it devoured that?” I asked and Lintu seemed a little surprised as she looked at me. “What?” I asked almost hesitantly, something about that look made me feel like I had been looked at like I was surprisingly smarter than she gave me credit for.

“You actually have a brain between those ears of yours.” Wildleg suddenly pipped up as he stared at me as well. Though his almost rough-hewn wooden face was one of smugness. I had half a mind trying to figure out how to create a magical wood chipper.

“Why yes.” Lintu said quickly as if to try and stop either of us from verbally striking one another. “The more filled with matter, of any kind, the spatial storage devoured has will result in a bigger gain in storage space you’ll gain.” She said before she continued to look at me like before.

“You know only those that actually think a bit imaginatively usually ask that question. I can see your brain in overdrive already.” She then said chuckling almost happily.

“You’ll be rather interesting if left to grow properly.” She said with a wide smile and I could swear she was looking forward to watching that. Somehow I didn’t really like the idea of that, just the thought of being spied on. Brrr.

“Uhh… You’re not going to be scrying on me or something?” I asked and I saw how she seemed to grow annoyed with me. Or amused, I really couldn’t tell any more. “I don’t want to think that you have so little to do as to scry on some youngster with nothing to his name.” I then said in a manner as to suggest she must have much, much, MUCH better things to do than to scry on me.

She simply nodded and tied up the rings into a bag and then asked me to get out my bottomless coin purse and dropped them into it. “I’d suggest trying to fill up this purse with as much copper as you can manage and then have one of the rings devour it. If the spatial storage device is specialized, like the purse is over items considered currency in some way, it’ll open an exclusive part of itself for that type of space. Makes it much easier to catalogue what you have.” She said with a wink and then suddenly leaned over the counter, put the purse into my hand and turned me around.

“Now off with you! I’m very busy and I’m sure you have stuff to do. I’m closing anyway for the night so go, go, go.” She said and pushed me towards the door.

I looked over my shoulder as I walked out, giving her a confused and almost frustrated look. I didn’t want to do anything to cause her to scream or some such. It was still a busy market day outside and I really couldn't be bothered by such trouble. But I still wanted to continue to ask her about the items as well as her intentions. I felt like when you try to deny your grandparents gift to you, like a small bill of money or something like that. You never really want to take it but they pressure you to take it and one doesn’t want to bother one’s grandparents. Especially when they had mastered guilt trip fu to a frightening degree.

I felt almost cheated or as if a joke had been played on me as I left the store and put my purse away into my storage ring. I didn’t understand my actual feelings towards this old woman. She was like a prankster grandma, though neither of mine had been the type… mostly.

Yet something about her reminded me of them as if she was simply the different version of either of them in this world. It was unnerving and confusing, I hope this mental state I sometimes fall into is caused by some corruption I can cure. Getting such bouts of emotions at any time of day can be rather disheartening. Not to mention I feel like it might get me proper killed.

Once I had shopped around for potions and other gear I might need. Selling the stuff I clearly didn’t need, such as the useless books I had flipped through and bought introductory books on anything magical type and crafting related.

Turns out that Lintu hadn’t actually taken any money from me. I had paid a few silver for a piece of rope and found I still had all my gold. I had returned to her store only to find a grate over the door with a clear. “We are closed!” Sign.

I separated what I owed her and continued to shop, half grumbling the entire day. Yeah, Yeah! I get it, I’m a bad guy, sorta. I shouldn’t feel bad for getting such a freaking heaven's send for free! I should use it and make my revenge much sweeter that much sooner.

I get that so shush! I just feel bad about it, OK! I can be as eccentric and hypocritical as I wish! Then again I’m trying to justify myself… to myself as if it’s another person…. I might be staying too much around the undead. I’m clearly losing it.

With that cheery thought going I went right back to the inn and began to go through everything I had managed to get camping gear, woodcutters axe, Tindertwigs (Matches apparently), some preprepared torches, long time rations and the like.

I got books on alchemy, blacksmithing, artifice, enchanting, easy to learn magic, basic wizard type spells, golem making and forging. That last one is a book on how to use magic while getting material ready, increasing quality or even bestowing properties to the soon to be forged item.

I also grew even more guilty about Lintu when I opened the scroll case and pulled out four skill scrolls! Two of which were for a necromancer. That made me pause and I began to suspect maybe Campbell might have stopped by here before going on to Veta. Maybe he already paid for everything? The first was the skill, Basic Bone crafting. A skill that would allow me to modify bones and even combine them as if they were all clay for me to use. It already sparked quite a few ideas.

The second was Soul crafter, pretty much the same as bone crafting just was about souls and the like. That too made me think of a few rather interesting ideas I’d love to try out. The next scroll was a skill called Status management. It would allow me to rearrange my character sheet a little more easily and it would open up a spellbook tab once I learned any spells.

I was rather happy at getting this one as I could fix up my status a little and make it easier to find stuff. The last one was strange though.

N/A

That is pretty much all I get in my head when I try to analyse this skill scroll. I know it’s a skill scroll as it looks just like the others and even gives off the same feeling. The fact I can’t analyse it at all might mean it’s a very, very rare skill that I just don’t have a high enough skill to see. The other end of that coin is that this is some sort of trap scroll or something that might grant me a skill that would kill me outright. Because of that, I decided to put it away for another time. It wouldn’t hurt to keep until my analyse was either highly levelled enough to see it. If not I’d just throw the thing away.

I put everything away but the magic book I had gotten from Lintu. I studied it hard and tried throughout the night almost until I could manage to gain the mana manipulation skill. According to the book, it shouldn’t take a person with mana more than an hour or two to learn.

It took me six. Six hours! This was supposedly a very, very easy to learn and hard to master type of skill. I felt rather… deflated really. I decided to continue to manipulate my mana for another hour to try and get a better feel for it. After that, I went to sleep.

Abohrash sitting in the corner looking through the book as well as the martial book. Both open on his lap.

The next four days were spent very well. During the morning I got breakfast and bought lunch to go. Then I went into the forest to let out my minions to run around and do what they wanted to… stretch I guess. After that, I and Abhorash began to duel. I practising my martial arts and weapon styles while Abhorash was trying out the martial arts and weapon styles he had narrowed down for himself.

Once we had found the styles he wanted we continued. We ended up breaking my iron longsword, a steel longsword and a steel spear. After which we decided to simply send the wolf pack and horses out to hunt. I wouldn’t continue until we had a very good supply of bones I could simply turn into the weapons to practice with. We spent the day there until the sun was beginning to turn to setting. The horses that hadn’t had turned to bone horses during this day and Abhorash and I had improved quite a bit. I had begun to slip in skills and the like as well as trained my hand to hand and skills while we waited for more corpses to get the bones from.

I managed to get a few more spectres, though they were all very low levelled and I simply raised them for reconnaissance. All were ravens and I was figuring the world wanted a theme for me and my forces or something. I simply took them and while I enjoyed a good dinner at the inn, they were out searching through the city.

During the night I spent it to reinforce this dread Necroshade story I had heard. Why not use it right? I had my spectres search out for low levelled gangs and criminal groups that had as minor a connection to the black market as possible. Preferably those that had to contact the market through a proxy or something like that.

They found a few targets, two in the slum or low district of the city, one in the middle district using a tavern as a front and another as a sort of pawnbroker in the market district. I decided to take the pawnbroker, the group was only three men and I wouldn’t be the one acting tonight.

Dawning the Necroshade outfit I went ahead and summoned my minions inside the pawnshop. I let Abhorash almost go wild with a bone great sword which lasted usually about five or six strikes. The guy didn’t really know how to hold back.

The skeleton rogue went a little nuts, almost decorating the place with his guy’s guts like party streamers or something. I ordered it to stand down and took it into storage almost right away.

The day after that myself and Abhorash continued to train against one another, my goal was to get all my death squire abilities up to the top before I levelled it up those last four levels I needed to reach the threshold. Turns out you can actually earn skill points for feats of skill, managing in an almost unattainable situation and the like. The system seemed very merit-based like it rewarded hard work and dedication. Even gives out higher rewards when what one has done shapes the world from one action. Of course, as a result, those that wish to actually advance in any real measure have a hard time ahead. There’s nothing like boosting done in this world.

Reason being that class exp is only divvied up by those that actually took part and how much they did. Which would make the guy that only struck once to get some exp would most likely get the least out of it all.

I was glad about that. It means those that are strong got there the right way. It also meant the strong were just that for a reason. Abhorash and I practised almost all of our skills that we could. I had to allow Abhorash to beat the hell out of me to practice Ethereal armour and that wasn’t all that fun. I even managed to practice my death sense by playing catch with the wolf pack.

So I spent most of the day’s, the first and second nights were used to allow my minions to use their skills and learn without my interference. Abhorash showed he could become a good leader, though he needed much, much more practice in strategy.

The third night I joined in when we took on one of the gangs in the low district. Those two were very well manned and I felt I could go ahead and use only death squire skills while dealing with them to maximize the gain for the class.

The next night I also joined them on the hunt for the fourth and last gang. Despite that, I still didn’t reach level fifteen! I stopped at fourteen and it is oh so frustrating to be this damn close but not have enough time to go on a little spree to level. I did however manage to finally get the ethereal armour skill to level 9. With that done I can now be safe when I get the threshold. If I remember correctly that would mean I’ll be getting around ten at least. I had managed to get two advanced skills to level nine.

It was rather hard to not use the last skill point for wraith step right now and just spend my time in the woods teleporting until I drop. However, I had to smile at the gains we had managed to gain from all of this. I could feel that the skeletal minions I had were close to reaching up a rank. They had actually come together under Abhorash’s leadership.

Both I and him went to training the skeletal warriors and rogue in different styles with the help of the martial paths in the book. I could swear the thing ought to be huge given how much is crammed into it, but it just seems to always somehow have everything in a neat package. Maybe it’s a spatial type book? I mean I could think of dumber things for a bored spacial mage to do and what researcher wouldn’t want a book with as many pages as he’d need?

The Archer was instead taught movement techniques as well as a martial art, myself and Abhorash debated including the bow in. It ended as a rather leaping and mobile fighting style that gives both long and short-range attacks. It was rather impressive how Abhorash’s gut feeling towards combat paid off. It's kinda scary as he said he was still only learning. Maybe since I named him after Abhorash from that fictional world he’s somehow capable of taking on some of his many martial traits?

I wouldn’t deny having such a minion at my command! Not at all! I’ll just have to remember the best, most talented, ingenious and the like people in fictions I’ve read, watched or played! This might all be something about traits being gained from my own mental image of the holder of the name. If so I’d better take advantage of it.

Oh right I think I forgot to mention! We decided to take all the bones from the criminals we killed. Why not use materials already there? It helped out when we found a sort of animal burial ground. Seemed like the stable in the city brought the skeletons of its horses here to bury when they have grown too old or injured to keep. I think. I raised one and had it hunt with vigour until it caught up with the other horses in rank.

After that, I used all the bones to make training weapons since I’d have to add in some bones if the weapons were too broken. Seems some parts can’t be reused once a bone weapon breaks.

I also ended up experimenting on the two Trolling skeletons. Adding in bones that seemed like sabertoothed tiger fangs to their fingers for claws. A tail ending in a stinger, a maw filled with sharp teeth and springy claws upon their legs for added jumping power. For the toes I tried to mimic those prosthetics you can see professional amputee sports people use, I didn’t manage to make it as springy but it worked a little like it… in theory.

I also ended up using the left over bones in filling out both Abhorash’s and the spear skeleton’s armours, just filling up their bone’s girth. For some reason that actually translated into stat points for Abhorash! He gained a bit of strength, vitality and endurance. I hoped the same could be said about the warrior but I didn’t see much of a change to his status.

Though I got a little proud when I noticed Abhorash had decided to choose the Blackstone Guard and Deaths Aegis as his martial styles, though he also chose something named The Gravestone Guard. Seemed to be a sword style in the spirit of the Blackstone Guard, just seemed to focus on improving honour guards of high ranking undead and their masters. I had to admit I was impressed by his decision and his mastery actually surpassed mine with Death’s Aegis by the end of the fourth day.

Now I will admit most of the names pertaining to more uh… nefarious oriented styles in the book, are rather try hard or edge lordy. For Christ's sake a style centred around whips is actually called Soulfire Flow. SOULFIRE FLOW! I guess I’ll have to have Abhorash develop his own styles that won’t be named like that.

It also turned out the Wraiths Revenge and Blackstone Guard styles are now a staple among the humanoid undead under my command. Abhorash appears to have found a liking to them it seems. He also told me that once I reach level 9 in a martial style I have to reach ten and then beyond that to novitiate rank. I was happy when I found out it wasn’t a requirement to use a skill point to advance in the martial styles. Seems their ranks are simply your mastery of it. I take it that advanced and higher will be rather hard to get past in the future. Abhorash managed to get Death’s Ageis to novitiate rank and to level two while I was stuck at introductory level eight.

Is it wrong to feel jealous of a minion you created? You know what, I don’t really care, I can be jealous if I so darn well please! Fucker’ll probably be some unrivalled martial genius or some shit… and all because of a name? I’ll have to find out.

I had managed to get one of those devourer rings on my finger. I ended up filling my spatial ring with as much dirt, leaves and sticks as I could and managed to almost increase the size from that one ring by a third. It wasn’t like it would double but there was a clear gain to be had. I put everything into the soul space opened up now and even let it devour the scroll case. I did take out the mysterious scroll before. Though I didn’t have any scroll substitutes I guessed I’d not hold onto all that many anyway.

The satchel I left alone, deciding to use it as a decoy if the black market has any spatial detection and the like. I dressed up in the ogrewolf cloak I got from Deepguard, along with a sort of hooded kaftan with a thick belt around it. I added some worn boots, tight leather arm guards as well as a leather armour over my chest. I made myself look as similar to some old hedge necromancer from the wild as possible. Even managed to get my hands on some white wig hair and long white fake beard. It was perfect! I crafted a staff out of some of the leftover bones that had a skull at the top with one of the sapphires embedded in the forehead of it. I also added in four horns that came to hold the emerald above the skull with the haft looking as close to ashy wood as I could.

I had found something out from one of my many self-experiments when I had any time for myself. I could vaguely manipulate my carapace’s look. As such I had it take on as much necromancy like aspects as possible. An opening for the long white hair and beard to fall from at the head area while keeping an almost Darksiders Death like mask. Though mine was a little less thick and seemed more um… cleaner designed I guess?

The carapace took on an almost blackened bone armour feel to it. I liked it so much I took the sleeves of the Kaftan away to make it look even better. I practised walking hunched over and the like, as well as practising a new voice.

Abhorash judged me and he was…. Rather brutal in his judgement. And a little mean too! I need some old woman I can sick on him or something of the like. He’s growing too much of a drill sergeant from hell merged with an honourable knight of old type of personality.

I got ready to leave and was just stepping into the catacombs under the city when I saw my Lycan spectres come almost howling at me from within the ruins. What in the world could have scared them so?

One of your minions, Wolfman spectre, has been destroyed!

That answers that. Something down here actually can destroy spectres? I searched out in my awareness for the other wolfman and was relieved to find that the one I had looking in on the black market was still there.

I summoned Abhorash to my side and placed a steel great sword into his hands. “You’ll be my bodyguard during this time.” I commanded and he nodded to me and went silent as he walked a step behind and to the left of me. His hand on the great swords hilt as it was strapped to his waist, the picture of an unassailable tower.

I was damn proud of him. I now just had to hope I could sell off the loot I had gotten from the last four nights. And well hopefully get some good stuff and info as well. I’d need some strong corpses and spirits as I wanted to try and expand my spectral skeleton undead retinue. Heck, I wanted more minions! A boney tide at my fingertips!

Ok, Ok, there Vlad. Calm the fuck down and don’t go on an ego fuelled power trip. Calm down and breathe.

Remember the disguise you choose. Who are you? What is your motivation for coming to the black market? Focus on those aspects, those goals ahead of you.

I breathed in deeply right as I was about to turn the corner to the corridor that leads to the entrance to the black market. All righty then! Let’s get this over and done with, shall we?