Master Of None

"I'm very glad to see that the trading is going well. It's impressive to see how many people are waiting around to try something new. Have you four been very busy?" Walker did have some concern for the four elves to overwork themselves. He knew how busy the market could get and how tough the work was dealing with customers. 

"It's been very busy. We love it!" The elf that had greeted them was very energetic. "In the market back home it can be very dull. That's why we focused on helping certain areas. The mages need materials we would find a way to get them. But here, we can sell what we want and how we want. We have more freedom."

"That sounds perfect for you then. Once the adventurers' guild goes in to full effect jobs like chasing certain materials or ingredients will fall on them. Every merchant should have more ability to sell what they want. That's more or less how it works here." The reaction was a smile that Walker had not expected to get wider. The elves looked as if they had just been greeted by an angel.

"Well, on that note, shall we return to our business? We have the time to assist you." It was clear what the elves sold but before Walker could begin to look with Alice, he wanted to make sure he wasn't being rude. 

"Please, I only need one of you to help me. I can't force all of you to help and ignore your other business. Many people are coming through the market." The other three elves returned to their side of their stall with a nod. They respected that Walker was not going to demand their full attention because of who he was. 

"Alice brought me to check your wares out because I want to buy something special for my family dinner tonight. She heard about your stall and here we are. Do you have anything that would go well with slow cooked rabbit stew? Something a little lighter maybe?" This was what he knew they would end up having for dinner. It was a nice meal to have that welcomed people home when the weather began turning colder. It was also a good way to make use of the bones in the kitchen. They would be boiled to make a very rich soup stock or beef stew stock. 

"I have just the thing. I have plenty of cotton grapes grown wild and picked by elves. They usually only produce fruit this year but their flowers give off fluffy cotton like pollen. That's where the name comes from. But they are also a perfectly white grape with a sweet but sour flavor. They are very good for cutting through rich foods and can be made in to juices if the skills are available." The elf held up a bunch of white round grapes. The pollen he spoke of was still attached to some of the stems where the flowers had once been. 

"Do they pass the test?" Walker deferred to Alice. He wanted her to get something to try as well and did not want to take over the entire hunt for something good. She nodded looking very interested but then also pointed to a giant blueberry. 

"Ah, sharp eyes. That is actually a monster material believe it or not. We have many monstrous vine species and one of them grows blueberries. The monster normally uses them to attract prey but once the elves tamed them they became a producer of food. That single blueberry can make four pies. It is also at the pique of ripeness."  It was a very interesting fun fact that neither Walker or Alice knew. 

"I spent time in the city and I never saw them. I can't believe I was able to miss a blueberry the size of my face. I have to take one." Walker used his adventurer plaque to pay the elf and stored away the food. "I will stop by again sometime. Hopefully, you can set up a bigger stall in the future." The four elves waved to Walker as he and Alice left the stall. "That was a great idea. I can't believe the blueberries are harvested from a monster." 

Alice was equally awed by this and nodded slowly. However, Walker caught her looking at him a little too much and realized that neither of them had tried the grapes at all. "I figure we can try a few of the cotton grapes first, right?" He had barely said any before Alice had taken one and held it in front of his lips. There was no way Walker could resist and ate it. 

The pair continued this way for their entire walk back to the mansion. Neither could explain to the other how they had eaten half of the cluster of grapes before they had gotten there. Luckily, Walker had bought a decent amount for everyone and no one would go with it being able to have one. "Are you staying here until dinner? Or do you want to go back to the cathedral?" The pair had been too caught up to walk near the cathedral. 

"No, I can stay." Alice didn't feel like rushing away now. She actually had better ideas. She pulled Walker toward the library where she found the forging section. She didn't know much about weapons but she did know that Walker owned books about them. 

After procuring some large books about various weapons, Alice made Walker move the couch and table out of the center of the room. She flipped to a page and displayed the hand drawn image of morning star. "Show me." Her voice was still cute but demanding. Walker caught on to exactly what she was thinking. 

"You are going to help me train? I guess Fleur and I can't say no." Walker used a finger to pat Fleur on the head who was still hiding in his hair after going out. She had been holding back since there were so many people. Now she could finally relax. Walker knew it would take time for Fleur to branch out, but it was good to start small with just Alice than go out a lot. 

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