Chapter 85: Travelling Merchant

Jaxir stood there for several seconds without knowing what he was supposed to do.

Luxy kept driving her forehead against the floor, tears spilling down her wrinkled cheeks while words tumbled out between broken breaths. "She’s returned... the Light has returned. After all these years, Her Light has finally blessed us again."

Jaxir shifted his staff to one hand and looked down at the sobbing old woman. He had expected a quest notification, maybe another cryptic speech about the three villages, but this was a little beyond anything he’d prepared for.

Before he could figure out how to respond, a notification unfolded across his vision.

―

[The Secrets of the Trifecta has been completed.]

[You have uncovered the truth behind the fall of the Goddess of Light and inherited her unfinished legacy.] 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

[Quest Reward Acquired: Travelling Merchant Badge]

―

Name: Travelling Merchant Badge

Grade: Ultra

Type: Merchant Relic

―

Jaxir’s mouth twisted.

"A merchant badge?"

Of course it was.

The last time one of these quests rewarded him, it had essentially given him the privilege of doing another quest, and now the game had apparently decided his reward for uncovering the downfall of a would-be Minor God was a career change. Jaxir had no intention of becoming a merchant, especially when he already had enough problems without standing behind a counter and arguing with people over copper.

He almost closed the description before noticing that it continued.

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[Establish a remote connection with the bound Merchant from any location.]

[Items purchased through the Travelling Merchant Badge may be transferred directly into a compatible Inventory.]

[Transfer speed is determined by the Grade and Level of the receiving Inventory, as well as the Grade, Level and nature of the purchased item.]

[Eligible items may transfer instantaneously. Higher-grade or restricted items may require a delivery period.]

Bound Merchant: Luxy Lux

―

Jaxir’s eyes narrowed. So this wasn’t a token to become a merchant, it was a token to connect with a merchant form anywhere, any time, and conveniently as well. That might actually be useful.

There would be no returning to a village or city every time he needed equipment, cards or supplies, and depending on his Enhanced Inventory and what he bought, the item could simply appear inside his ring.

Jaxir read through the description again before his eyes settled on one line he had overlooked the first time.

Bound Merchant: Luxy Lux.

His excitement immediately lost some steam.

Luxy ran a shop in a Tutorial Village.

Being able to access her from anywhere was nice, but if her inventory remained filled with the same low-level equipment he’d browsed before, then the badge would eventually become little more than an easy way to replace cheap supplies. Jaxir had already reached the point where Rare items weren’t particularly impressive, and that problem would only get worse as his Level increased.

This time, however, he stopped himself before complaining.

Luxy was still kneeling in front of him crying over the Goddess of Light, which wasn’t exactly normal behavior for some random tutorial merchant. Gravity had gone to ridiculous lengths to bury what had happened between the four sisters, yet Luxy had known enough to send Jaxir searching for the truth in the first place.

Jaxir crouched and caught Luxy beneath the arms, eventually managing to coax her back onto her feet despite her continued attempts to bow. By the time she steadied herself against the counter, her eyes were red and her cheeks were soaked, but at least she had stopped trying to put a hole in the floor with her forehead.

"Praise the lucky stars." Luxy wiped at her face with both hands before another trembling smile appeared. "To think I would live long enough to see Her successor stand before me."

"Alright, now I’m confused." Jaxir leaned against the counter and studied her. "I know what happened to the Goddess of Light now, but how do you still have followers? She never actually became a Minor God."

Luxy took a slow breath and gathered herself before answering. "Minor Gods are not the only beings who gather faith, child. Many Demi-Gods have followers of their own, and such devotion can begin long before they ever claim a true Divinity."

She folded her hands against her chest. "Sometimes their following grows until their faith and authority become enough to challenge an established Divinity, while others deepen their own comprehension until they can force that challenge themselves. Our Goddess was already loved long before the day she attempted to ascend."

Jaxir thought back to the murals and the three sisters who had betrayed her at the final moment. If the Goddess of Light had already gathered followers before attempting to take the Minor God of Gravity’s eventual seat, then those people wouldn’t have simply vanished when she failed. Though... Gravity boy seemed like the type to not leave such loose ends untied.

"My family served Her then," Luxy continued, her voice steadier now. "Generation after generation, even after Her temples disappeared and Her name became dangerous to speak, some of us remained. There are not many left, but those who remain have not forgotten.

Luxy wiped the last of her tears away before straightening as much as her bent back allowed. "Which means it is now my duty to support you with everything I am able to give, but it is also my duty to ensure that the successor of the Goddess of Light is worthy of establishing the Divinity She never could."

Jaxir groaned inwardly. That probably meant he wasn’t going to get free stuff. What a tragedy.

Luxy’s lips twitched, and the amusement in her eyes made Jaxir suspicious that his disappointment had been much easier to read than he intended. "I cannot simply hand you every treasure in my possession, but discounts are another matter, and there are services I can provide that no ordinary merchant could offer."

Jaxir straightened slightly. "I’m listening."

"I am an Ultra Grade Merchant."

Jaxir’s eyes narrowed.

Luxy smiled and rested both hands on the counter. "There are very few merchants of my Grade, and reaching it comes with certain privileges. My stores are not limited to this village, nor are my goods restricted to the Level of the region in which I happen to stand."

The Travelling Merchant Badge suddenly looked much better.

"I have access to Epic merchandise, Ultra merchandise and items intended for players far beyond Level 10." Luxy’s smile widened when she saw his expression change. "Provided, of course, that you can afford them and meet whatever conditions the item requires."

Jaxir barely cared about the last part.

The previous time he’d visited, Luxy’s visible stock had topped out around the Rare Grade, which meant the woman had apparently been hiding the overwhelming majority of what she could actually sell. Now that the quest was completed and he stood in front of her as the Goddess of Light’s successor, that restriction was gone.

His eyes lit up as one particular possibility came to mind. He still had an Epic Vestigem Card Template sitting inside his Enhanced Inventory.

If Luxy could sell items all the way up to Ultra Grade, and her stock wasn’t restricted by this Tutorial Village at all, then there was no reason her Vestigem Cards had to be limited to the same mediocre selection he’d seen before.

Jaxir slowly grinned.

Maybe finding the perfect Card for that Template wasn’t going to be a nightmare after all.