Not wanting to be seen as someone who wasted another person's time, Victor turned and put on his best smile. There wasn't any sort of true sincerity to it as he tried to look like he was interested in the available wares.

"Ah well I suppose I could look at one, but I'll be honest I probably won't buy anything right now."

Taking Victor by the arm, the man was more than a little bit forceful as the pair went to the cart all the way in the back.

"I keep the damaged ones in the back. I'm taking them to sell in bulk so as long as you pay at least what they pay I'll sell any of them."

"I thought you said you kind of had one," Victor said a bit angrier than he meant to.

The merchant stopped, "Right now yes. This place has good medical people so I'm having the rest who might be defective looked at and if any are found to be to flawed enough I'll add them to the last cart as well. Same deal. I'd rather lose some money bulk selling them than have to do a full refund for selling a product that isn't what I claimed it to be."

While he never had to deal with it himself, Victor was imagining something along the lines of the lemon law for cars. He wasn't even sure if it was a proper comparison because of how he got his car, but it was all he could think of.

"That being the case," the man continued, "I would gladly sell them here and now for the lower price if you want one just so we save money on feeding them or in this case him. Unless some are found to need something done to them it's just the one guy for now."

In the back, Victor saw a man. He had noticeable, but not overwhelming, muscles that could be seen under his clothes. He had a tan like one would expect from being in the sun that made some of his scars become more pronounced. Some of the scars took away what could have been an attractive face and lead him to notice one of the two things that likely made him damaged goods.

Lacking one of his eyes and two of his fingers on his right hand instantly gave Victor pause as he looked at the slave, hoping there wasn't more that marked this man as damaged.

"This man is someone who surrendered during a small war about five years ago. Back then he just had a missing eye but when he lost some fingers, let's just say that he won't be able to do as much work as most people want a set of muscles to do. As far as magic goes I would have to look at his scores but I think it's around three for each category."

From behind the bars the man looked at Victor, his one eye looking a bit soft with no real fight to it.

Clearing his throat Victor spoke up, "Like I said I've never um..... bought someone before so forgive me if this is obvious but..... tell me about that earring and what will happen to him if you bulk sell him."

The man looked at Victor like he had seen other salesmen look at customers. The look of someone annoyed at having to explain something that should either be common sense or should have been looked into before shopping in the first place.

"As I am sure you know," the man began, "Slaves have earrings sealed on their ear with a very special magical metal that completes the loop, flawlessly, so it can't just be casually removed. More than one slave has been reacquired because the way they ripped it out of their ear left a distinct look on the ear. Most aren't thinking well enough just to remove the whole ear."

"Now each earring gets engravings or bits of flair added to show what type of slave they are and if they are life long or only for a specific length of time."

Jerking his thumb at the man with one eye he continued, "This man has the markings of a prisoner of war. Someone who, for whatever reason, either couldn't be allowed to be free or chose this way himself. I don't care to ask him about it I just know the documents. His is either for life or until an owner frees him. If you look at the third marking that shows that while he is a slave he isn't one who is legally forbidden from having freedom."

"Not that many people would free their property when they can just keep working them to the grave."

The man let out an audibly cruel laugh as he continued.

"Anyway the damaged products, unless they still have a certain physical appeal, end up sold for cheap because nobody would really want them. In our case, we got a deal with a mining company farther towards the sunset that buys anything we have so long as they can pick up a shovel or pickaxe and work for them. Even if they only live for one season the company makes their money back so everyone wins."

Once again, Victor wanted to punch this man square in the jaw. The way he talked about another person’s life like it was to be discarded at the first bit of inconvenience, infuriated him. He imagined putting the man in his card and taking him away but shook it off shortly after.

Putting his smile back on, Victor took a deep breath to calm down.

"You said five small gold for a slave was your cheapest. Is that the cost for him too?"

Even though he hated the idea of owning someone, knowing this man would be going towards a mine to work until he died, Victor couldn't help but wonder if he should buy him to help him out.

"Good question," the man bellowed, "For these, they are broken beyond what people would want so I can't charge that much. He can't see too well and his grip is lackluster at best because his main hand is the one that got hurt. One small gold coin is all these would take. That said I don't accept returns and if you decide you don't want him I'll only pay two large silver for him because of the hassle."

Swallowing, Victor thought about his current funds. Because of what he sold at Orlayn Wave, he did have enough money to buy this man. The cost of one purse was seen as equal to this man’s entire life and that realization stuck with him.

"Would that be the same if you have more who turn out to be defective? How do you even decide if that's the case?" Victor asked a little quieter than he had intended.

Pointing at the carts farther up the man smirked, "Those are all products we feel confident in. There were a couple with injuries or oddities that we couldn't figure out on our own. That means we took five of them to be looked at so at most you could expect to see five additions to this discount cart. Just don't have high hopes. It might be some life ending curse or something like that. One seems to be doing mana bursts despite us letting her use magic as much as she wants. If it's not figured out she might die before we even get to the mines."

Victor was shaking just a bit as he looked from the slave to the merchant, "I might be back. I need to think about what I want to do with my money. After all, this is a big decision right?"

As he left, Victor heard the man say something. He could only make out some of what was said, but he assumed the man was mocking him a bit as he left, almost running to the guild. As of now, Victor had enough money he could afford to buy two of the slaves without it being a risk to his budget, even considering a higher food cost.

"Those people are going to die. A cave-in or..... maybe just beaten to death if they can't work hard enough." Victor spoke under his breath as he went on his way.

Getting away from the slave merchant as fast as he could, Victor ended up at the guild to look over the job posters, pretending he knew what he was looking over at the time. Regardless of his, admittedly poor, acting it wasn't long before the woman working the counter spoke up.

"Did you need a little help? There isn't really anything new since the last time you were here unless you want to act as minor security for the traveling merchants. They pay based on your rank though so I wouldn't recommend it at your rank."

With a slight sigh, Victor turned to look at the woman, "I just..... I..... was thinking about how to make some money in a faster way. I saw something at the merchant carts that I was thinking of buying. Since they are leaving in three days I was hoping to make a little money while I decide if I am going to... I don't want to say waste the money, but...... but....... Invest the money might be the best here, but that still doesn’t sound or feel right... It's just something I feel like I should do."

The woman put on her professional smile. It wasn't uncommon for some adventurer to think about buying something big for themselves. She had seen more than a couple people spend too much on a new weapon or armor with some great enchant only for them to rely on it too much and have trouble if the charge on it ran out during combat or one of many other reasons.

"I will tell you the same thing I tell everyone else when they act like this. While better tools and supplies can help anyone do better they can all break or end up being a mismatch when dealing with a problem. Work on your own talents before you try to get some bauble that makes you feel confident. Your confidence should come from your own talent. I've seen too many reds and blacks waste their money like this, feeling they need it to get ahead."

It took Victor a little longer than he cared to admit to figure out what she was insinuating. He let out a long soft exhale.

"No, nothing like that. I am not thinking of buying anything magical or whatever. I just got a new spear though. I'm thinking of getting a slave though....... I'm just debating if it's worth it when I have concerns over.... what I want to do versus what I think I can do."

A sudden smirk appeared on the woman’s face.

"Oh, so it is one of those situations. I can understand the appeal. Someone to keep you company and warm in the middle of the night, but there are brothels and night workers if you want something like that for much cheaper and you won't have to take long term care of them. I know a few ladies who many of the other guild members say are good at the job. I can ask one of them to recommend someone to you."

Victor’s face instantly went bright red at the suggestion, "Hey no no not that! I am not..... I didn't mean...... I just..."

He looked down and away and gripped his hair a little bit, "I wasn't even thinking about that! I just heard the guy....... saying and...... about....."

Unable to keep his cool for any longer he ended the conversation early and went out of the guild’s building, shutting the door louder than usual.

Having seen that sort of reaction before from people who were shy or from less populated areas, the counter worker went and got a poster that had been sitting on the counter and set it on the board. A poster that was much larger than the rest, without any of the usual markings to show what color the request was or a picture to indicate what sort of creature might be part of the request.

Muttering to himself more than he realized, Victor was lost in thought about how to make some money and what he would do if he had to choose someone to save at the cost of another's life. Before now having to make choices like this had only been abstract in games he had played. Something he could go back and undo or change later by going back a few save files. This, however, was reality and there was nothing that could be done to undo it if he made a wrong choice or regretted it later.

Thinking about some of the worst mistakes of his life before, Victor couldn’t think of anything close to a choice that would decide if someone lived or not.

Getting his cousin drunk when he thought anything in a can was pop and having to deal with his parents, breaking something he shouldn’t have due to frustration, cheating on tests, these plus many other smaller things were all that came to mind as he thought of decisions he regretted.

Injuries, annoyance, and the like were minor compared to the possibility of a person’s life ending and he knew it, but at the same time, Victor’s main concerns were his own life and safety. He needed to make sure he had the funds for different situations, the tools for anything he might come up across, and of course any knowledge he could gain from the people around him.

Not sure where to go, Victor decided to take a walk towards the farm he had been told he would always have a place at if he liked, but stopped, remembering his plans later in the day. With his schedule figured out and the mid-morning bell having rung just a little bit prior, he decided to walk around the town for a bit, looking at what people buy and sell that might be able to help.

The people going from place to place, in a way, reminded him of the older plays and shows he had watched that took place in the older times. Especially the ones based on old fairy tales. The only thing that could make it even more so, in his mind, was if someone started randomly singing or perhaps dancing.

A small smirk spread across his lips as a few words in song started to escape them in a very soft tone.

"I have concerns, but don't know what to do. Perhaps I need an......"

He stopped, realizing that someone who looked to be about sixteen had noticed him. The girl hadn't said anything, but the look on her face made him stop and leave the area behind, muttering a few mild insults to himself, but eventually an idea struck him. While he didn't think that he was anything amazing vocally he knew a fair amount of songs that nobody from this area would have known so he started towards one of the larger taverns.

On his way, he started to think of a sort of playlist he could try singing. He had no instruments to go with them, but since he didn't want to go back to the guild for the time being, and he had no clue what beasts he could hunt without much risk or what might make money, he thought he might as well try being a bard for the day.

Finding the tavern that he had heard mentioned before by some at the guild, Victor walked up to the barkeeper. A nearly middle-aged woman who, as far as he could tell, might have looked attractive before something had harmed her face. She had darker skin than many in the area and as she spoke there was something a bit calming about her voice.

"So what brings you here today boy? dinner won't be until the cook is finished cooking it, but if you want a drink I can set you up right here. Or are you here wondering if I've seen or heard something? That will cost a bit of coin depending on the question."

Lost in thought for a moment Victor cleared his throat.

"Well, I was just wondering if you had a way for me to maybe sing and such and earn some tips or pay for doing so? I know a lot of songs that I doubt anyone here has heard before so a lot of original songs that could draw people here to enjoy some food and drink while they listen to me."

The woman looks at him and rubbed her index finger and thumb over her chin. She looks him up and down appraisingly.

"Well, you aren't ugly enough to scare anyone away so that's good or good looking enough to make them stare at you instead of spending their money. You aren't a noble I recognize so I doubt I have to lie to spare your feelings. Tell you what kid. I'll let you try it for a while with a bowl at your feet. I'll clear away a table and you can sing in the space that it occupied."

"As for pay, it will be entirely based on how good you do. For every ten coins of any type you get from here I'll take six and if you do well enough I'll throw in a meal after no charge."

Even though he knew that the deal wasn't great, since he had no plans for the day, at least until evening, he figured he could try this and see how it went.

Victor sang for, as far as he could tell, four hours. In that time he sang a wide variety of songs that he knew.

While he did take a break anytime his throat felt like he needed one, he kept at it the whole time. He would swap between songs that were songs in their own right and theme songs from shows he enjoyed. He even took to making a couple up as he went just to see how the people reacted and stealing one that a friend had written for his girlfriend on their one year anniversary.

By the end, he wasn't sure how people liked his music as most of the people were too into their meal, drink, and conversation to take any real notice of him. A few did praise how unique the songs were, but others commented how they sounded a bit off and he might want to take some lessons from more seasoned songwriters to learn if he wished to make this his career. One even said while he wasn't anything special the fact he had so many songs in his head was praiseworthy.

Bringing the bowl of money to the counter, the woman started to count it out as she spoke.

“You did pretty good I suppose. Four people asked if you were a new hire so I might offer to let you sing again in the future, but that’s only a maybe and only if people ask after today. I might want to get someone to play an instrument with you and you would need to practice together. It’s a bit odd sounding if I am honest, but it seems to work for with the words that you were singing.”

As the woman counted out the money, she organized the coins into different piles to start.

One large and fifty-seven small silver coins, thirteen large, and five small copper coins, as well as a few broken copper coins.

The woman started using an abacus, sliding different colored beads from place to place as Victor just looked it over.

“If we ignore the broken copper,” he thought to himself, "that should equal six thousand eight hundred and thirty-five small copper. She gets…… wait did I really agree to only forty percent? Fuck.”

Getting sidetracked in thought, his concentration was interrupted by the woman.

“Looks like you get two large silver, four small, and I’ll round up so you get a large copper and all the broken coins as a small bonus.”

Victor took a second to think. He hadn’t figured out exactly what he was owed before he got sidetracked but he felt certain that it was more than what she was offering.

“One second,” he said as he started tapping his fingers on the counter thinking.

After about two minutes of thinking and Victor smiled and spoke very quietly so nobody would overhear him, “I think you did the math a bit off. With the coins we got, if you ignore the broken ones, I should be getting two large silver, seven small silver, three large copper, and four small copper or the equivalent. That’s more than the rounding up bonus you were offering me. And since you offered a deal where you get six coins while I get four I want you to keep to the deal we made please.”

Victor noticed the woman's eyes go a little large at his words.

“You know most people can’t figure out things like that. Are you actually a hidden noble or something or perhaps someone banished from some higher learning place?”

Victor sighed as he watched the woman start to count out the money, still keeping his voice low, “I come from a place where having basic math skills like this is the norm. I am still seen as odd for not using a cal… abacus for bigger problems, but I always excelled at math if I’m honest. And you can keep the broken coins if you want. They seem kind of annoying.”

Sliding Victor his money, she put all the broken coins with his share as she whispered, “Consider it a reward for calling me out in a way that others won’t notice. These drunks tend to not realize how much I really charge for their drinks.”

“Now,” she said louder again so the few people remaining could hear her speak. The tone once again feeling soothing, “I promised you a meal so let’s see what the cook has leftover from the dinner rush.”

Collecting his money, Victor enjoyed the rest of his time in the inn. Eating the provided meal and talking with the bartender about things casually, but a part of him wondered how badly she would have ripped him off if his ignorance had also included basic mathematics. Another thing to worry about in this world that started to chew at him from the inside as he hoped it was just his worries acting up.