Arcane Innovator

The next day, I eagerly returned to the Merchant's Guild, tightly clutching the small pouch of silver marks in my hand. I once again entered Alaric's office, and he greeted me with a wide smile.

"Ah, Darian, you're here quite early today! Are you so eager to set up your account?" He said amusingly as he stroked his beard.

I simply nodded without saying anything, not wanting to entertain his amusement, but he was right; I was very excited about this.

He chuckled a little. "Well, I don't blame you... If I were in your shoes, I would be as excited as you are. Anyway, I have all the documents ready. All you need to do is sign."

"Thank you, Master Alaric." I returned his smile as I went closer to take a look at the small pile of documents on the table.

I quickly skimmed through all of them before I grabbed the ornate pen laying on the table and signed it, as everything seemed to be in order. Not that I didn't trust Alaric specifically; he has been nothing but helpful to me so far, but I had a habit of carefully reading any contract thanks to my distrustful nature.

After making sure that everything was in order, Alaric then accompanied me to the main lobby, where there were several counters in front, each served by a pretty young lady as a clerk. We went straight to one of them while skipping the line of people waiting for their turn.

The lady smiled at us as soon as she saw Alaric. "Good day, master Alaric. What can I do for you today?"

"Nothing for me. but I want you to set up an account for this young man here. I have all the documents ready and will be serving as his guarantor." Alaric said as he handed out the stack of documents to her.

The lady clerk threw a quick glance at me before politely replied, "Certainly," and then she disappeared into the back room to process the paperwork Alaric handed her.

I watched it all unfold before me with a mix of confusion and awe. I guess I never properly understood what it meant to have high status in this city until now. I knew that the nobles held real power thanks to their control of essence. But every time I heard of commoners having a high standing before, I always thought it was just some abstract thing.

Like some courteous pretense that everyone else was doing but which didn't really mean anything. That was until now. There were many people in the lobby who were not peasants by any means. They were all merchants clad in expensive clothes who, by their looks, spent a long time waiting here, and we simply skipped them all just like that, and nobody dared to say a single word about it.

After about ten minutes, the clerk came back. I had to sign a few additional documents and finally gave her my hard-earned coins to deposit into my new account. She went to the back room once more, and after a short while, she returned with a plain-looking card, which she handed to me.

I looked at it, turning it over and over in my hands and curiously examining it. But it was just a simple metal card with the seal of the Merchant's Guild on one side and my name on the other, inscribed in neat handwriting.

Everyone in the line was throwing us looks of envy and hatred as we were walking away, but they still didn't dare say anything to us.

"This should be all. If you now excuse me, I have another meeting in a while, thus I have to leave you. But if you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask one of the clerks." Alaric said to me with a smile.

I thanked him again, and then I was left standing alone in the Guild's lobby with a new shiny metal card, signaling I now had my very own bank account.

'Great, so what do I do now?' I wondered, feeling lost, as I looked around the lobby. I didn't want to sound like some idiot asking the obvious questions, so I stood in a corner for a while, observing what everyone else was doing.

I soon found out that investing in a caravan is actually quite easy. All you need to do is go to the big bulletin by the main entrance, where all the available investment opportunities are listed. You then took the pamphlet from the board of your choosing and went with it to the counter, where you select the number of shares you want to purchase, and they simply subtract the required amount from your account.

The shares will then be linked to your account so that all future profits are automatically deposited there. The Guild guaranteed you would be paid the full amount, protecting you from any dishonest merchants who would want to try scamming you of your shares. This was also one of the reasons why such investments were widely popular among the rich residents of the city.

I picked a few shares after skimming through the board that seemed to have the best risk-to-reward ratio, in my opinion, and went to the counter to buy them. I actually don't care if all of them fail. It was all just a drop in the bucket for me. All I needed was a good cover story so that I could explain where all my wealth has come from.

'Even if my supposed profits are a little too good to be true, as long as I properly pay my taxes and have Alaric as a backer, nobody will poke around in it...' I thought excitedly as I was leaving the Guild building.

***

"Hmm, this feels kind of weird..." I mumbled under my breath as I browsed the stalls at the market. It was once again autumn, and I needed to prepare for winter.

But now that I finally had enough money to buy anything I ever wanted and more, I was just mindlessly passing between the stalls while feeling lost. I was so used to living frugally all those years that I now had no idea what to buy...

In the end, I just bought the same things as last year, except for an extra bag of dried-up meat, to feel like a rich person who can eat meat every day.

However, the one thing I didn't skimp on was my clothes. After I began to regularly visit the Merchant's Guild, I became painfully aware that my clothes were quite undignified for that place, and I stuck out like a sore thumb among all the rich merchants there.

I realized that if I want everyone to accept my newfound wealth, I need to also start looking and behaving like a wealthy person. That is why, after careful deliberation, I made the painful decision to change most of my wardrobe.

After I safely stored all my winter supplies in my landlord's cellar, I went to the center of the city and entered the most luxurious clothing store in Ereneth, where you could buy the best clothes commoners have access to. The nobles and the Count's family had, of course, their own seamstresses, as it would be unthinkable for them to wear the same clothes as everyone else does.

As soon as I stepped into the lofty parlor, I unconsciously straightened up and couldn't help but feel a slight apprehension from the everpresent grandeur. The store itself was adorned with rich fabrics and colorful tapestries. On the walls hung finely crafted garments that whispered opulence. But before I had the time to properly take a look, I was quickly approached by one of the attendants, a middle-aged woman with keen eyes.

From the dismissive look she was giving me, I guessed she didn't think too highly of me based on my current clothes, but she still acted professionally nonetheless.

"Welcome, sir," she greeted me, her voice carrying an air of elegance. "How may I assist you on this fine day?"

I wanted to avoid any misunderstandings, so I just straight up took out a pouch full of silver and asked for an outfit based on the latest fashion made out of the finest cloth they had available.

The lady briefly widened her eyes in disbelief, but in the next moment, her demeanor underwent a rapid change. She smiled brightly at me before quickly ushering me to the back, where I spent the next few hours taking measurements and trying all kinds of clothes until she was happy with the result.

I left it mostly to her, as I was not at all knowledgeable about the latest fashion trends, nor did I care about them. I only added my input occasionally, stating my preferences and such. I also bought several pairs of elegant shirts to go with it and a few other accessories to complete the "son of a rich merchant look" I was going for.

In the end, I couldn't help but smirk as I looked into the mirror. I had to admit that I underwent a quite significant transformation. My village's origins were now all but forgotten. Even my own parents would have trouble recognizing me at first glance.

Dressed in my new midnight blue doublet quilted with silver, I looked nothing like before. Combining it with my magically enhanced looks thanks to me filling my body to the brim with essence every day, I was sure many girls would steal more than a few glances my way at the very least.

After about a week, when my new clothes were ready, I eagerly put them on, and then just for fun, I went to work in them, curious what Elena would say about my new outfit. The whole morning, she was throwing strange glances my way but didn't say anything. Only shortly before noon, she apparently couldn't hold it anymore and quietly uttered, "Hmpf! Just because you finally started dressing like a human doesn't mean you can wash the smell of manure out of you!"

I smiled brightly at her, imagining the turmoil she must be experiencing right about now as all of her previous arguments based on my lack of money and low status were crumbling right before her eyes...