Alaric was now heading away from the main merchant area.
Looking around, prime commerce was in session. Truly many things were being sold.
From expensive perfumes made from rare slimes, to swords imbued with lightning, many things were being sold.
But this area was too expensive. This was the market where the elite merchants and rich warriors would go to purchase goods.
Unlike some of the previous areas in the city however, this wasn't a place for scammers.
Truly, with the amount of powerful people brute strength wise present, if one delivered a faulty product, there would be consequences. One had to be prepared for danger in a world of superhumans.
Many stalls had guards to protect them.
Seven foot tall muscular giants of men stood beside pudgy merchants that were selling some kind of luxury good or another.
This marketplace would be a valued resource in the future. Having access to worldwide goods and connections would be crucial later on.
But for now, Alaric was somewhat broke.
He now reached the end of the city touching the ocean.
Looking out, he could see many ships leaving and entering the city.
Out in the distance, the outer walls of the city could be seen with their tall gates that either allowed or denied entry to the merchant ships.
Looking to the left, Alaric saw the Grand Fortress Arena.
Despite the time period, gladiators were still as popular as they had been a while ago. Many mages that didn't find successful careers in guilds flocked to arenas, desperate to get some value out of their expensive magic education.
Alaric was vaguely interested in the arena. It was always interesting to see what people in desperation will do to save their lives, and many of the matches were intense.
In rare instances, mages and standard warriors were able to prove their worth in the arena and then transition to a guild. There were sometimes scouts in the crowd for the high tier matches.
Alaric continued to the right. If there was to be a place that ships were sold, it would have to be along the ocean.
He walked along the coast, rat on shoulder. The rat provided slight comfort in its company, but it was ultimately useless. The only "company" Alaric truly desired was the company of powerful fish.
Alaric grinned widely, and began walking at a faster pace. He wanted to get started as soon as possible, so buying a boat and fishing gear would need to be done as fast as possible.
After all, Esoteric Fishing was a slow process that required patience and time. Thus, the factors that can be controlled before and after the fishing are where time saves are important.
"Time is the most finite resource in the world. I need time to fish." Alaric thought."
After walking along for a while, the area started to become less hyper capitalist. Of course, hyper capitalism would need to later be employed, but Alaric needed to refrain from spending excessive money.
He was aside a railing that trailed along the coast. There were some stores along the side, things primarily for locals such as furniture and groceries. He was nearing the right area.
After walking for a steaming hot second, it was about midday when he found what he was looking for.
"Matilda's shipyard". It looked like a humble shop. It had a tall wooden fence around it and he couldn't see inside. There was a gate, so Alaric tired opening it.
Locked!!!!
Then below the sign telling the name of the shop, there was another sign.
"Ring the bell for service."
"That's what I like, an organized and exclusive service." Alaric said out loud to himself.
He would have to be on the good side of the seller, as he didn't have a ton of money. If his memory served him correctly, he had 966 charred left. 300 of this would have to go to fishing gear, and another 300 would have to be left for basic life supplies.
So in reality, he had 366 charred left to go to a boat. This wasn't much.
He rung the bell, and put on his game face. He would have to match the energy of the seller in order to get a good deal. For negotiations, interpreting the other party was something crucial for both sides in order to yield the optimal result.
Ding ding ding
Alaric ringed the bell a tactical three times. This set a precedent for reason. If the bell was rung too little times it displayed overconfidence in ones ability, which would be dangerous. But if it was rung too many times, it would be worse. It showed that one was insecure and was unable to operate within a realm of reason.
"I'm here." The gate opened to who Alaric thought would be Matilda.
She was a middle aged woman, maybe in her early forties. She was strong looking, having moderate muscles. Her hair was tied behind her head and she was wearing a simple set of pants and a blouse. She had a medium sized corn cob pipe in her mouth.
"I'm here to buy a ship. I'm interested in seeing what you have." Alaric assumed a serious tone. He couldn't be overly casual or overly pretentious. From a quick glance, she would be about standard business without excessive formalities. After all, this wasn't a first rate shipyard, it was a reasonable local one.
"Yeah that's what I assumed you would be buying. What kind of ship are you looking for?" She opened the gate and welcomed him into the shipyard.
There was no one else in it, it seemed to be something that was experienced one on one with Matilda.
"I'm looking for something for fishing. I just need a one person vessel, and I would prefer for it to be small and sturdy." Alaric throught about what he was looking for. He wouldn't need a ton of space for his goal.
"Come with me." Matilda said.
"We've got some leftover ships." She said finally.
He would now head over to scope out his future vessel.
A ship was a fisherman's kidney. It would support them, and it would be better if water was present. He now would have to buy a kidney (ship) to support himself.