Chapter 86 : Travel plans

Chapter 86: Chapter 86 : Travel plans

The weeks that followed settled into a routine.

Every morning began with training.

Folami and Tolu would meet in the courtyard before the city became fully awake, weapons in hand. What had once been an overwhelming difference in skill had slowly begun to narrow—not enough for Tolu to win, but enough that Folami could no longer treat their spars as completely one-sided.

Tolu’s hammer became more natural in his hands with every passing day.

His footwork improved.

His strikes became cleaner.

He learned when to commit his weight and, more importantly, when not to.

Folami still beat him every time.

But Tolu no longer left their fights wondering what had happened.

He knew exactly why he had lost.

And that made every defeat useful.

After training came the dungeon.

Sometimes Tolu entered alone.

Other times Folami accompanied him.

The dungeon was changing.

The six Level Two creatures each had their own territory now. The four hyenas occupied different sections of the dungeon, while the two wolves had settled into quieter regions farther from the noisy hunting grounds.

The creatures were no longer simply kept in separate chambers.

Tolu had begun connecting the territories with tunnels.

Some were narrow enough for smaller creatures to move through comfortably. Others were wide and tall, allowing the larger beasts to travel between regions.

The tunnels also gave Tolu another option.

If an enemy ever pushed too far into the dungeon, sections of those passages could be collapsed.

He had no intention of using that casually.

But knowing the option existed gave him some comfort.

Beyond the Level Two territories, the rest of the dungeon continued to develop.

Level One creatures moved through the outer regions.

Plants grew in patches throughout the suitable areas.

The farm had expanded.

The ore reserve had grown.

The Dungeon Heart remained at the center of it all.

The dungeon was still small compared to the great dungeons Tolu had heard stories about.

But it was no longer empty.

It was becoming alive.

Then came the wars.

The Heart allowed them to initiate another war after the cooldown passed, and Tolu took advantage of every opportunity.

The difference between his current strength and the Level Two creatures he faced was obvious.

He no longer needed hours to fight through an enemy dungeon.

Sometimes the battle was over before the enemy had properly understood what was happening.

Folami joined several of those wars.

When he did, Tolu quickly remembered how enormous the gap between them still was.

Folami could enter a battlefield and dismantle creatures that Tolu had to take seriously.

Yet Folami never stole the victories from him.

He watched.

He intervened only when necessary.

And Tolu continued growing.

The victories brought more dungeon energy.

More territory.

More resources.

More creatures.

And more materials for the shop.

The business grew alongside it.

At first, Tolu had been surprised whenever customers came.

Eventually, he stopped being surprised.

The shop began receiving regular buyers.

Then bulk orders.

Then merchants who came specifically to discuss future supplies.

What had started as a small three-story shop was becoming something Tolu could no longer dismiss as a simple source of pocket money.

It was becoming a business.

And for the first time in his life, he was watching something grow that belonged to him.

Still, the money wasn’t growing fast enough.

One evening, Tolu and Folami sat inside the shop after closing.

Several ledgers were spread across the table.

Folami was going through the latest figures while Tolu leaned back in his chair.

"We’re making more than before."

"Much more. At least four hundred gold a month."

Tolu smiled.

"Then why do you look like we aren’t?"

"Because making more money and having a lot of money are different things."

Tolu glanced at the figures.

He knew what Folami meant.

They were doing well.

Very well compared to where he had started.

But the amount required for truly valuable materials was on another level.

Tolu closed the ledger.

"I’ve been thinking about something."

Folami looked up.

"What?"

"I want to start traveling."

Folami was quiet for a moment.

"I expected that."

Tolu raised an eyebrow.

"You did?"

"You asked me where you could get rare resources. I figured it has something to do with the dungeons growth."

Tolu smiled faintly.

"Fair."

Folami returned his attention to the ledger.

"You’ll have to eventually."

Tolu leaned forward.

"Actually, I wanted to ask you something."

"Hm?"

"When should I leave?"

Folami stopped turning the pages.

"Now."

Tolu blinked.

"Now?"

"There are rumors of an auction happening in the capital. A few months from now at most."

Tolu’s expression changed.

"What kind of auction?"

"One involving rare materials."

That immediately caught his attention.

"How rare?"

"I don’t know."

Folami closed the ledger.

"The rumors aren’t specific. But the prices being discussed are."

Tolu waited.

"Tens of thousands of gold."

His eyes widened slightly.

"Gold?"

Folami nodded.

"And some of the materials are expected to reach the hundreds of thousands."

Tolu leaned back.

Hundreds of thousands.

That was a completely different world from the one he had known.

"When is it?"

" They are still circulating the news but I suspect after a month the date will be announced.."

"Then we have time."

"No."

Folami shook his head.

"The capital is several weeks away."

Tolu stared at him.

Folami continued.

"If you want to arrive before the auction and have enough time to find accommodation, learn the market, speak with merchants and decide what you’re actually interested in, you need to leave as soon as possible."

Tolu considered that.

Then another thought occurred to him.

"How much would I need?"

"That depends on what you’re trying to buy."

"Let’s say I want a real chance at something valuable."

Folami looked at him for a moment.

"At least a hundred thousand gold."

Tolu went silent.

A hundred thousand.

He looked around the shop.

The shelves.

The goods.

The ledgers.

Everything he had built so far. He has savings above a thousand gold. Something he never thought he’ll achieve so soon.

But It suddenly seemed much smaller.

"We don’t have that much."

"No we don’t."

Tolu frowned.

"Then I’ll have to make it."

Folami’s expression remained calm.

"Before you reach the capital."

Tolu looked at him.

"How?"

Folami leaned back in his chair.

"That’s your problem."

Tolu stared at him for several seconds before slowly smiling.

He looked toward the darkened street outside.

The capital was weeks away.

The auction would contain rare materials.

And somehow, before he reached it, he had to turn what he already possessed into at least one hundred thousand gold.

Tolu stood.

"Then I should start planning."

Folami nodded.

"Now you’re thinking."

Tolu remained standing beside the table.

"There’s something else."

Folami looked at him.

"When I leave, what happens to the shop?"

"Nothing."

Tolu frowned.

"Nothing?"

"We already have customers."

Folami tapped the ledger.

"Most of your regular buyers aren’t coming because of you personally. They’re coming because of the quality and the prices. As long as the goods continue reaching the shop, they’ll keep buying."

Tolu nodded slowly.

"But I won’t be here to supply them."

"You don’t need to be."

Folami pointed toward the ledger.

"I’ll handle the buying and selling while you’re gone. I’ll purchase whatever goods we need from other merchants and raise the prices when necessary. We already have enough clients that keeping the shop running won’t be difficult."

Tolu thought about it.

"So we’ll be making money from trading instead of the dungeon."

"Partly."

Folami shrugged.

"That is what businesses do when their usual supply isn’t available."

Tolu smiled.

"We could give discounts occasionally?"

Folami gave him a brief look.

"Reasonable discounts."

"Of course."

"A discount every now and then can keep customers loyal. It can also encourage larger purchases. Just don’t make a habit of selling below what something is worth."

Tolu nodded.

"I understand."

He glanced at the ledger again.

Then his expression changed.

"What about the others?"

"Your friends?"

Tolu nodded.

"Will I see them before I leave?"

Folami shook his head.

"You won’t have time."

Tolu remained quiet.

"Temi and Ore are still in training. Akin is as well. If you wait for all three of them to return, you risk missing the auction."

Tolu sighed.

He had hoped to at least say goodbye properly.

But he understood.

"When will they be back?"

"I don’t know."

Tolu nodded.

"Then I’ll leave without seeing them."

Folami didn’t say anything.

There was nothing else to say.

Tolu turned and walked toward the stairs.

"I’ll start preparing tonight."

"Good."

---

Tolu’s preparations began immediately.

He returned to his room and pulled out everything he owned.

There wasn’t much.

A few sets of clothes.

Some older garments he had kept despite barely wearing them.

His newer clothes.

A pair of boots.

A few personal items.

He packed what he needed and left the rest behind.

There was no reason to carry his entire life on his back.

His weapon was already taken care of.

His hammer was cleaned, maintained and secured properly before he packed it.

Then came the part he hadn’t expected to be so expensive.

The map.