The night market was underground. A door in an alleyway that had stairs leading down to a tunnel. That tunnel opened into a huge cave-like space that seemed to go on endlessly. The only light came from each individual stall, some of them opting for something like mood lighting, and the lampposts between each stall. But none of it reached the ceiling, so it looked fathomless.

As expected, it was really busy. There were definitely more elves, dwarves, various halflings, and those with demon blood here than in the market district during the day. There were also way more people wearing robes and hoods despite the heat, looking over their shoulder or tightening their hold of their purchases.

The apothecary I found had an old man with white hair and a long beard. He wore a brown robe with a wide belt holding up a sheath full of knives. He looked like he could handle them, so I'd found the right place.

"Hey, kid. What do you want?" he asked, sizing me up and seeming unimpressed.

Generally, that worked to my advantage.

"Balsamon," I said.

"Sure, but what are you making?"

I didn't know any other potions off the top of my head that needed Balsamon, so I said nothing. He squinted, grabbing a piece of jerky from his pocket and tearing off a bit with his teeth.

As he chewed, he said, "So a love potion? Aren't you a little young to need that?"

"Obviously, it's not for me." I didn't need something like that.

He cracked a grin. "Then who is it for?"

"Do you ask questions of all your patrons?"

He laughed. "Only the ones that annoy me. Just giving you a hard time, kid. It'll be 20 silvers."

Expensive. Annoyingly expensive. I gave him the money though. He turned to a table behind the stall with a bunch of crates and started pulling out a bunch of small hand-labeled tins one by one until he found the Balsamon. He tossed it to me and wished me good luck. I thanked him and then left more annoyed than I'd come.

Without a proper cauldron, I wouldn't be able to finish the potion. Buying one here wouldn't be a bad idea, but it seemed like a waste of money when I'd probably have free access at Caemor. Granted that I got in, but I was pretty sure what little I knew had been enough to admit me initially.

Although Rolf and Alis hadn't mentioned it, I remembered hearing that the first year could be quite brutal; over half of the students dropped out. That meant the real exam was that first semester, and if I wanted to concentrate on advancing as quickly as possible, then I needed to get the ball rolling on my legal and illegal ventures or otherwise abandon them.

Was I ambitious? Yes. Had I been ambitious in my last lives? No. That was why I had to be now. What other option did I have?

As I weaved through the night market to get an idea of all that was there, I got the impression I was being watched at some point. I kept my head down as I walked, trying to ignore it.

Eventually, I spotted a woman watching me from a distance. She was beautiful, with long pastel pink hair and pale skin. Her clothes were expensive, and she carried herself with confidence. She noticed me looking her way and gestured me to follow her.

Could be a trap, but I'd been itching to kill someone for a while now, so that seemed fun.

Could also be the System throwing another opportunity my way, which it probably wouldn't let me refuse in the end.

I followed her to a courtyard where there were tables set up and quite a number of people chatting, eating, and drinking. There was a musician with a guitar at one end, and they had a crowd tossing them coins. The woman took a seat close enough for the ambiance but far enough away that we could talk quietly.

"Hello, handsome," she said as I sat across from her. Her eyes were a deep red, and I could see now that her ears indicated she might've had some fairy or elf blood. "Can I help you find something?"

When they were this obvious about their intention, that usually meant they were hiding another. "I've just been browsing."

"Really? You're not here for the women?"

"Excuse me?"

She laughed. "Don't worry about it. You seem like a nice guy. I'm sure you'll find someone. Or you're interested in men?"

"I'm just not sure what gave you the impression I was here for anyone. I'm just here to look around." I ran my fingers through my hair. Why would the System throw this at me? Trap then. "If that's all--"

"--Oh, I can tell you're just here to look around," she said and laughed again. She was a year or so older than me, probably, and she reminded me a bit of my second oldest brother. "I rarely see someone so focused when there are so many distractions here is all. I'm Rose. I saw you come out of the apothecary and I was just curious since you look so young. Are you attending Caemor? I have one more year until I graduate."

Not a trap. Just someone like my older brother who liked to make an impression by making a ridiculous assertion as if observation. That didn't mean she couldn't be useful. I eased up. "I'm waiting on my test results, but I thought I'd try making some potions since I'm not well practiced."

"What potions?"

Well, I'd walked into that one. Sometimes the truth doesn't pay off as well as a lie. "I'd rather not say."

"Love potion then. And you said you weren't browsing!" She laughed, leaning back in her chair to let it all loose.

"That's right. Laugh." I rolled my eyes. Being in a 17-year-old's body definitely had its detractions. "I can leave."

"No, no," she said, wiping some moisture from her eyes. "Don't go. Maybe you were actually browsing for a woman... to help you study potions?" She smiled.

I wasn't going to say no to that. "If you're willing."

[Notice]

Congratulations! You have completed your Quest [Find Someone to Help You Make Potions]. Mastery of the [Lucky Number 7] Skill has increased by .05%.

And very clearly, this had been the System's intent the entire time. Did Systems usually have intent? Maybe I needed to reread those books on the System or see if I couldn't find any better resources. Perhaps Caemor would have more books on the subject.