Kael and his friends' eyes widened as they saw a bright light shining from the thick bushes.
It was the NoctaMarket, glowing under the light of the fifteen moons that illuminated the entire area. There was constant chitchatter, sellers making deals, and even children from different races running around while their parents sold goods.
Kael and his friends stepped onto the black structured bricks. Under the moons' light, beautiful color-shifting striped patterns formed across the walkway, reflecting off the surface of the stone.
"Wow… the ground is glowing, human!" Nibksen said as his bare feet touched the bricks.
"Y-yeah… such an amazing sight," Kael replied, while his other friends were also mesmerized by the glowing path.
"So, Kael… what do you and your friends want to find here?" CC Yeill asked.
"We want to make an Energy Drink, CC Yeill. We want to make a drink that improve my focus during training!" Kael answered excitedly.
"An energy drink, huh?" CC Yeill smiled, even though he clearly didn't understand what Kael meant.
"Well, I hope you guys find the ingredients you're looking for… We have some tasks to handle in this NoctaMarket." He glanced around the area.
"Anything happens, just inform me. And don't come back too late," he advised.
"Alright, CC Yeill."
CC Yeill and his team waved at Kael as they headed to the other side of the NoctaMarket. Kael and his friends didn't ask why, they assumed it was probably a Realm Protector duty or job.
"So, human… where can we find that thing?" Nibksen asked.
"This NoctaMarket is huge. So many things being sold here," he added.
"Yeah… and it's really bright too. I didn't know night races loved floating yellow lanterns and bright white crystal lamps," Reyvik said, squinting his wolf eyes.
"Yeah, maybe it's just to display what they sell," Kael answered.
"Oh yeah, Ren. You said your friend works here, right? Maybe you've seen this place before?" Kael asked.
Liraen added a calm nod, preparing to answer.
"Yeah, I remember," Liraen said calmly. "The NoctaMarket is split into three sections. Right now, we're in the far-right section, this is where all the used armor and equipment are sold for a lower price."
He pointed toward the long aisle of rusty weapons and dented shields.
"Then, if you follow the path where CC Yeill went, the middle line, that's the weird food section. They sell hunted creatures there, plants and animal products that are killed and prepared as raw food for night races. Day races can be eat it too, no problem… but it's definitely unusual. You might even find ingredients for that energy drink."
Liraen then pointed left.
"But for bomb ingredients, that's all the way on the left section, the crystal and ore area."
Kael nodded.
"I don't think we need to buy bomb ingredients, Ren. I'm pretty sure there's plenty of that stuff in the Kalliddora Forgehold's underground levels. Maybe tomorrow I'll go get it."
He stretched his arm slightly and winced.
"Even though my left hand still hurts… at least my right hand is starting to recover."
"Alright, it's up to you, Kael," Liraen agreed.
Reyvik scratched his cheek, looking uncomfortable as he caught sight of several creature limbs on hooks.
"But we're definitely going to the middle section first, right Kael?"
"Yeah… that's how it is," Kael replied with a disgusted look of his own. "I don't get how night and day races can eat that."
He took a breath and shrugged.
"But whatever. It's my project anyway. No point being disgusted."
"What about you, Ren?" Kael asked.
"I don't mind going," Liraen said calmly, "but… look at the others."
Kael turned and froze.
Grak'Mar, Nibksen, and Nylum had already sprinted into the weird food section.
"Eh?!" Kael's eyes widened as the trio eagerly tried the exotic food testers. If it were Grak'Mar and Nibksen, he would understand, they were Durvakian races, of course they ate strange things.
But Nylum, the water elemental, happily joining them… made Kael's worldview shake.
Nibsken lifted a tray.
"Look at this weird small animal head, Ogre! I wanna taste it!"
Grak'Mar laughed loudly.
"Yeah, goblin! Eat whatever ya want! I'm gonna eat this purple leg of some huge creature first, HAHAHAHA!"
He shoved a slimy eyeball toward Nylum.
"You eat this too, right, Water?"
Nylum's liquid form rippled with excitement.
"Yooou knooow mee well, Ogre… heheheheh!"
"Sigh… just let them be," Kael muttered as he watched the trio devour everything.
"Let's focus on what we're actually here to do." He turned to Liraen and Reyvik.
They both nodded.
While Grak'Mar, Nibksen, and Nylum continued sampling every strange food in the tester section, Kael, Liraen, and Reyvik walked toward the rows of odd ingredients they needed.
"So, Kael, what do we need for that 'energy drink'?" Liraen asked as they approached a stall filled with unusual creature parts.
"Don't worry, Ren."
Kael pulled out a folded piece of paper. "I listed all the ingredients."
"Alright… let's see."
He scanned the list with narrowed eyes.
"Hm… for the energy drink, the first ingredient in the book says we need glucose, since it's our main source of energy."
"What is glucose?" Reyvik asked bluntly, his wolf tail swaying with curiosity.
"Well… it's something sweet," Kael explained. "Have you ever eaten something sweet and then suddenly felt more refreshed?"
"I'm not into sweet things, Kael," Reyvik replied. "I'm a wolf. I only eat meat."
Liraen chimed in with a thoughtful nod.
"Hm… sweets like fruit? I used to eat berries. They're sweet, but they never really made me feel refreshed."
Kael smiled.
"Ha! That means it wasn't sweet enough."
He suddenly stopped walking.
"What I need is something really sweet… like, that!"
Kael pointed toward a brightly decorated stall owned by several Fennec Fox FaunDrakin and one massive Grizzly Bear FaunDrakin.
Liraen and Reyvik looked at each other, confused, having no idea what Kael had spotted.
They followed Kael to the stall he pointed at. The table was covered with long yellow,red and green rod-like plants and a few jars of golden liquid, glowing softly under the moonlight.
"Hey… is this honey and sugarcane?" Kael asked the seller.
"Hihihihi! Yes, you're right—"
The Fennec Fox FaunDrakin giggled, then suddenly froze.
"Uh… what are you…?"
"I'm Kael. And I'm human."
Kael introduced himself. Night races didn't usually see humans, so the reaction didn't surprise him.
The fox nodded quickly and waved him over.
"Hihihihi… choose what you want, human!"
Kael leaned closer to the sugarcane. There were four colors green, red, purple, and gold. His eyes drifted to the price tags.
"So… which one of these is the sweetest?" Kael asked.
"Hihihihihi… if you want the sweetest, it always comes with the highest price."
Kael didn't even blink.
"I'm on it."
"Hihihihihi… alright then, human."
The fox picked up a golden sugarcane rod, so long it was the same height as Kael. With a sharp knife, he split it along its natural lines and packed the pieces neatly into a crafted leaf bag.
"That's one gold coin, human."
Kael reached behind him, took out a coin, and flicked it toward the fox.
The fox caught it effortlessly.
"Hihihihi! This is pure gold! Anything else, human?"
He gestured to various crops corn, wheat, and several strange plants Kael had never seen before. But Kael's attention shifted to something else:
A bottled golden liquid on another table, owned by the huge Grizzly Bear FaunDrakin.
Kael walked over.
"Yo, is this honey?"
The giant grizzly lifted his head slowly, eyes half-open.
"Ugh… yah. I'm the one who picked that from the tree last night…" he answered, still sounding half-asleep.
"Hmm…" Kael looked around, watching countless night races pass by him. He scanned the area, trying to see if any other stall sold honey, but he couldn't find a single one.
"Alright then… how much for this bottle?"
Kael picked up the glass container filled with thick golden honey.
"Ten silver coin," the grizzly growled.
Kael handed him the coins immediately and took the honey from the table.
"Alright, first ingredient complete. Now what's next…"
Liraen and Reyvik stood beside him quietly, watching Kael handle each ingredient with full focus.
"Oh… the second one is…" Kael lifted the paper.
"Hmm? Bone, heart meat, meat and fish extract, huh…? I think I've got all that at home. I'll ask Elvareth later."
He lowered the paper again.
"So next up is… herbs, fruits, and vegetable seeds."
Kael looked around and spotted a fascinating stall, tangled with bright green vines and leaves. The stall looked alive run by a towering moss golem covered in plants.
"Ren! Let's go to that stall!" Kael pointed excitedly at the messy, vine-covered place.
"Alright," Liraen agreed.
Reyvik and Liraen followed him in.
Kael stepped inside, and the moss golem slowly turned to greet him.
"Young soul… what brings you here?" the golem asked, Itts voice deep and slow.
Kael smiled.
"Do you sell vegetable seeds? And sour fruits? Maybe some herbs?"
"Oh… you have come to the right place, young soul…"
The moss golem motioned them deeper into the stall.
"Come in."
Kael glanced at Liraen and Reyvik and gestured for them to follow.
"Here… we have all you want," the moss golem said.
The moss golem pointed toward a huge wooden container, inside it were rows of vegetable seeds. Above it, a wooden shelf held bundles of herbs, thick leaves, twisted roots, and strange glowing stems.
"Wow! There are so many… it's hard to choose!" Kael said, eyes darting across the options.
The moss golem simply watched, unmoving, as Kael examined each herb and seed.
"Hm… hey, do you know which herb is the best for making a drink?" Kael asked.
"A drink…?" the golem rumbled. "Oh, if it's for that, I recommend this."
Its large mossy hand lifted a thick yellowing root herb, placing it gently in Kael's palm.
"This, young soul, is called the Fretia Ginger. It is difficult to find in this season… but if your purpose is to create a drink, this is the top priority."
"If you say so… I'll take this one."
Kael handed it back and the golem began packing the Fretia ginger.
"Then I'll choose this huge white vegetable seed," Kael continued, pointing at a seed the size of his fist. "I don't want small seeds for this one."
He then glanced at the fruits section.
"And for the fruit, I need to taste it first to make sure it's sour… Do you guys have testers here?"
Before the moss golem could answer, another voice laughed loudly.
"HAHAHA! We don't usually hand out testers, kid!"
A Woodfolk suddenly emerged and stood up from what Kael originally thought was a wooden chair.
"Whoa! I didn't even see you there…" Kael stepped back slightly.
"No problem, people say that all the time." The Woodfolk chuckled and picked up a round red-yellowish fruit. "So this is the one you're looking for. Go on, have a bite."
"Alright!"
Kael bit into it and immediately his face squeezed tight.
"Erggh—! Yeah! That's definitely what I need." He nodded quickly. "I'll buy this one too. Three of them."
"Alright, cust," the Woodfolk grinned and began packing the fruits.
A few minutes later, the moss golem returned with a leaf-woven bag filled with everything Kael asked for.
"That will be 67 silver coins, young soul."
Kael pulled out the exact amount and paid without hesitation.
Kael grabbed the bag. "Thanks!"
"You're welcome, short elf! Hehehehe," the Woodfolk teased.
"Yeah…" Kael gave an awkward smile and walked out of the stall, followed closely by Liraen and Reyvik.
"Alright… three ingredients from one place. That's a good deal," Kael said proudly.
He checked his list again.
"Next up is… electrolytes, huh?"
Reyvik's wolf ears perked up the moment he heard the word electric.
"Electric? You wanna burn yourself, human?" Reyvik asked.
"Hmm? Hahaha, not that kind of electric, Reyv."
Kael shook his head. "It's a type of mineral. It helps your muscles recover and keeps your body hydrated."
Reyvik and Liraen both nodded slowly.
"Alright, for that we need… potassium, magnesium, or sodium." Kael continued as he scanned his paper.
"Hm… from these three, I think I'll use sodium, which is easier to find and is the main electrolyte here," Kael murmured. "But if they have something even better, I'll take it."
"It's more from the book Y (Chemistry)… but I only need a small amount anyway."
Kael looked around but couldn't spot the ingredient anywhere.
He called out to his friends,
"Ren! Reyv! Help me find the ingredient, sodium!"
"I can, Kael," Liraen replied, "but uh… can you tell me what… soiduum looks like? I still don't understand."
"Oh, right, forgot to tell you." Kael tapped his head.
"I need sea salt. That's what I mean by sodium."
"Salt? Oh! That's in the last section then," Liraen said.
"The mineral and ore selling section."
"Oh, I see…" Kael nodded.
"So we're going to the other side?" he asked.
"Yes… first we need to leave this section, then enter the Ore and Mineral section from the same entrance we first arrived at where the market divides into three sections. Remember?"
Kael nodded again. Without wasting any time, they left the weird food and creature-organ section and headed back toward the main entrance.
Even from afar, Kael could still see Nylum, Nibksen, and Grak'Mar happily enjoying the exotic testers. He just let them be and focused on the ingredients he needed.
As they walked back to the first area of the market, Liraen suddenly spoke.
"Ha! Remember my moon elf friend I told you about? He sells salt crystals and other minerals. I'm sure he has what you need, Kael."
"Oh, that's good then! Where's his stall?" Kael asked eagerly.
"Well… if I'm not mistaken…" Liraen moved forward, with Reyvik following closely, and Kael trailing behind as they entered the Ore and Mineral section from the front.
This section was mostly under Etherian control, unlike the other areas, which were dominated by Durvakian and FaunDrakin vendors. Night Etherians and Elemarits ran the stalls here, selling ores and minerals. Kael could clearly see night fairies, pixies, golems, dark elementals, and even night spirits managing the different stands.
As Kael and Reyvik walked, they admired the array of beautifully colored crystals and minerals, ranging from cheap stones to expensive gems.
Suddenly, Liraen waved at a pale blue-skinned elf behind a stall full of crystals, some crushed into fine powders and stored in glass containers.
"Lit! Hahaha! Never thought you'd come tonight!" The moon elf greeted him warmly.
Seirt was a pale blue-skinned elf, with grey eyes, dark green hair, and sharp ears just like other elves.
"Hahaha, me too, Seirt! Actually, my human friend here wanted to find some ingredients for his project." Liraen introduced Kael.
"I see…" Seirt replied simply.
Kael looked around the stall, his eyes lighting up.
"Woah! You've got some really unique crystals here!" he praised.
"Hahaha! You've got nice taste, human!" Seirt laughed.
"So… which one caught your attention?" Seirt asked.
"Actually… I'm looking for salt," Kael said, pointing at the crushed salts in various colors, all stored in huge sealed glass bottles.
"But I need three specific salts, ones you can identify from the periodic table," Kael explained to Seirt.
I just realized… Each of these salts might contain magnesium, potassium, or sodium. Each color representing a different element, Kael thought to himself
"Periodic table, huh…? I've actually never heard of that before," Seirt replied, raising an eyebrow.
Kael frowned slightly in disappointment but he didn't give up.
"In that case… give me all seven types of salt you have here."
Seirt looked a little surprised.
"All at once, huh? What do you want to cook with all this, actually?" he asked, picking up a small spoon to scoop the salts.
"How much of each?" he continued.
"Just one of these glass containers," Kael said, pointing to the smallest jar.
"Alright, human! I got you."
Seirt carefully scooped all seven variants from the huge container into the smaller glass jars.
While Kael waited, Liraen and Reyvik stayed just outside the stall.
As Seirt worked, he glanced at Kael.
"So… you're the last human Liraen was talking about?" he asked.
"Yeah… did he tell you about me?" Kael asked back.
"Hahaha… he always admires you, Kael," Seirt laughed.
"Even though you have no Might, you're still able to solve everyday problems. I bet this salt is for your project, right?"
Kael blinked.
"Wait… you know my name?"
Seirt nodded, smiling knowingly.
"Hahaha! Of course I knew it!" Seirt smiled.
"Actually… I'm also amazed by you, Kael. If I were you, maybe I'd already have isolated myself from others and tried living far from society." His eyes grew heavy as he packed Kael's salts.
"Here!" Seirt handed Kael all the salts in small glass bottles, tied together using dried, thick forest leaf veins.
"Thanks! How much?" Kael asked.
"Nah, it's on me," Seirt said, pointing to himself.
"Really?!" Kael's eyes lit up at the gesture.
"Yeah…"
"Thanks!" Kael smiled and patted his shoulder.
"No problem, Kael… but promise me something," Seirt said, his tone serious. "Don't ever give up on anything you want in life. I'm not putting a burden on you, but… if you give up, no human can accomplish your goal, Kael."
Kael nodded, meeting his gaze.
"Alright… thanks, Seirt. I promise. I'll do my best."
He waved and stepped out of Seirt's stall.
"Ren! I already got the salt!" Kael called out, waving at Liraen.
Liraen nodded.
"So… want to go back already?" he asked.
"Yap! I want to make this drink already! Ugh… where's Reyv?" Kael scanned the area.
"Hmm… I think he went to that stall earlier… Ah! There he is!" Liraen waved, spotting him.
Reyvik walked steadily toward them, carrying a bag full of blue crystals.
"Look at this, Kael! I got this for free."
"Huh? What's that?" Kael asked, peering into the bag. "Wait… isn't this… Ice Might Crystal?"
"Correct, Kael! Since you want to make a sweet drink, why not make it a cold one?" Reyvik suggested.
"Yeah, you're right, Reyv! But we're not gonna drink it tonight," Kael said with a grin.
"I think it'll take a few days and quite a few steps to make this energy drink…" Kael said, glancing at the ingredients.
They all nodded in agreement.
"Anyway, let's go back home first so I can prepare some of these ingredients," Kael continued.
"Alright… but first, where are those three?" Liraen asked, looking around.
"Maybe they're still at the food section, Ren… we need to leave this area first," Kael suggested.
"Yeah…" Liraen and Reyvik nodded, and they exited the Crystal section, heading back toward the main entrance.
To their surprise, Nylum, Grak'Mar, and Nibksen were already waiting there.
"Yo, human! Elf! Forest dog!" Nibksen waved, still holding a tester in one hand.
Kael waved back and walked towards them.
"Alright, since we're all here… and all the ingredients are gathered…" Kael said, excitement shining in his eyes.
"Let's get out of here! I'm ready to start working on this drink."
"Aight, human! We've tried all the food too," Grak'Mar said, clearly satisfied.
"Hahahahaha! I have absorbed all that into my bodyyyy!" Nylum's liquid form rippled as he spoke.
Kael glanced at them all, then started toward the exit. With the torchlight guiding the way, they followed the same black-bricked path where they first entered, eventually heading straight back to Kael's backyard.
—End of Chapter—