The market wasn’t anything fancy. It had been started by a bunch of traveling merchants who’d decided to settle and make their living in the city—they all used to travel regularly to peddle their wares, but some decided to stay in town and open shops along the road, thus giving birth to a new market district. This district wasn’t officially acknowledged by the city since the merchants had moved there of their own accord, but the shopkeepers still paid taxes since they were living and doing business on the land.
In our case, as long as we came as travelers and we didn’t go past the actual city walls, we’d be able to keep the cost of our visit low and avoid paying any tolls.
One downside to not paying taxes was that we were technically outside the protection of the city lord. Citizens suffered the most from unsafe neighborhoods, and people who felt unsafe and dissatisfied with the government tended to pay fewer taxes. Because of this, the city guards were vigilant about cracking down on all crimes they saw. It was, of course, in the best interest of the lord to maintain law and order, regardless of whether the unfortunate victim of a crook was a taxpayer or not. That said, if we had a dispute with a townsman, undoubtedly, the soldiers would dispose of us first.
As we approached the fence, I saw that several guards were standing at attention along the road. They were only there to stop troublemakers, so as long as travelers came with good intentions, the city would welcome them with open arms.
We were just about to enter the market district when a young soldier called out to us. “Do you have a minute?”
He was wearing steel armor, but the metal had dulled and was full of dents and scratches accumulated from years of long use. Despite his age and frumpy appearance, he did seem capable. The way he carried his spear suggested that he would skewer me without mercy if I tried to jump him.
I put on a cheerful face and brightly responded, “Of course! What can I do for you?” In my periphery, I could see Samya choking back laughter. I’ll get her back for that later.
“I haven’t seen you two around before,” he said. “What’s the purpose of your visit?”
“To sell my goods at the Open Market,” I explained. “I’ve got a few sickles and knives with me, as well as an ax and a hoe.”
“Is that all?”
“All for today. Do you need to check?”
“Yeah, thanks,” he said. “You catch on fast.”
Back on Earth, I’d gotten stopped by security more than once or twice because of my looks alone. And in my experience, it was in my best interest to cooperate with the authorities.
After all, I didn’t want to risk being suspected of carrying illegal goods.
“All right. You’re good to go,” the guard said after rooting through our bags.
He seemed satisfied, though he’d been thrown off momentarily when he’d found Samya’s knife. He let that go without mentioning it, so he probably thought it was just the same as the knives I’d brought to sell. He also hadn’t said anything about Samya herself, so apparently it was true that beastfolk and humans were treated the same in the city. I’d assumed that discrimination would be prevalent in a feudal world like this one...but you know what they say about assumptions.
“Make sure you don’t cause any trouble,” said the guard before he let us go.
“We won’t.”
Finally, we stepped onto the sunlit streets of the city, and I was excited all over again.
I was hoping to set up shop in an area called the Open Market. As its name implied, it was open to all vendors for a small fee and was the only place that people like me could do business. I’d made sure that I knew all the rules here. In order to live a slow life, it would be vital for me to sell in this market.
The Open Market was close to the entrance. When we arrived, we paid the fee, and in exchange, received a wooden tag that signified permission to sell. We also got a table to use as a countertop so we could display our wares.
Next, we had to find somewhere to set up shop. The merchants who’d arrived early, or who already had workshops in the city, had already sniped the best places, so we settled for second-best. We set up the table and arranged the knives and sickles on the surface. I placed the hoe and ax upright on the ground and leaned them against the side of the counter.
Now, our preparations were complete.
I turned to Samya, who was filling the essential role of my bodyguard. “Thanks for coming and helping out today.”
“No problem,” she said, shrugging. “I’m just standing around.” I knew though, anything could happen.
Two hours passed—there were no issues, but no moments of triumph either.
I had yet to sell a single thing. I’d tried calling out to passersby, but no one had been interested. To showcase the sharpness of my knives, I’d even borrowed a couple of straw bundles from nearby vendors; straw was usually used to cushion goods, but I’d sliced through it with my knives instead. My demonstration, however, had been to no avail. The number of customers stayed at zero.
My current theory was that knives usually lasted a long time, so there weren’t many people that needed to buy a replacement. Folks that needed new knives also wouldn’t go out of their way to buy from somewhere they were unfamiliar with, even if the quality was better. What else could I make though? I had no choice but to persevere. Someone would buy my knives eventually, but in the meantime, the money I had on hand would slowly dwindle.
I stood back from the foot traffic, waiting for a customer to come, but I was getting impatient. I could tell that my grim expression was unnerving Samya too. But then, a familiar face appeared in front of us—it was the guard that had searched us at the entrance.