Heavenly Shae

The sect market was fairly similar to any market square, save that it was impeccably clean. Shae felt slightly unnerved until she realised that was why. Every surface looked to have been washed and polished that day, even though it was just an outdoor market.

The styles of stalls and shops varied a bit more than the usual market square. Most notably they included some kind of tea service. Even simply having a tea set present, if not ready to serve tea.

She was reminded of the upper market in Gatewash, where tea service seemed to be part of the checkout process. Perhaps even a customary part of the negotiation ritual.

Shae frowned then flattened her expression to ask Shu, "Are customers really that interested in tea every time they buy something?"

Shu smirked. "Heh, good eye that you noticed that. It's technically part of the legal code. Any agreement to exchange more than a set of crowns must be made over a cup of tea, so that both parties are calm and level headed," she recited. "Rumor is that it started as a treaty law, and was drawn into mercantile agreements by someone trying to escape a debt."

"Just a rumor? There aren't any history books about it?"

Shu wobbled her hand. "It started thousands of years ago. Merchants were doing it anyway, for their more lucrative exchanges. The empire's legal code is really slow to change though, so it's only the past... Thousand years? -maybe? -since people have started to realize it's silly to apply the law to cultivators."

Shae gaped, her jaw working silently. A full breath later, she shook her head. "That's obscene."

"Heh. Technically, sect's don't have to follow it with exchanges of their own sect comp. Yet, we still act out some of it here because this market is more public and someone could pay with crowns. Though, why an outsider would be shopping here instead of Dragon's Circle is anyone's guess."

"Uhh, that's the market in the mortal town below the mountain?"

"Corect, and the town is Tail's Wake, if you hadn't heard. However, calling it a mortal town is a bit of a stretch. And they do sell a lot of the same stuff as here."

"Hmm, because it's too close to the mountains for anyone to remain mortal?"

Shu wobbled her hand. "Pretty much, yeah."

They walked a bit further until Shu pointed to a large shop with a set of scales above the door. "Ah, here we are: a money trader. That symbol means they can transfer comp off your token. This one means they'll put it back on." She pointed out two symbols that looked similar, a seven sided shape beside a square with writing on it. An arrow was drawn between the two, with the direction indicating the transfer type.

Shu continued, "The seven sided circle is the commonly used representation for sect coins. Since a seven point denomination coin is uncommon outside of sects."

"And so the square is the sect token? Mine looks quite different." Shae frowned.

"Yeah, most of the newer ones look different and are smaller. That old tablet style is much larger than the one you got, be thankful. Even if it's a little fragile."

Shae shrugged, unsure of how to feel. "It sure felt like it was meant as a punishment."

"Heh, can't argue with that. Anyway, I'm going to get some coins, feel free to get a few yourself." She hiked a thumb into the building and led the way.

A thin curtain blocked the doorway, and Shae felt the air change when she walked in. A slight qi pressure to the area. She tilted her head and wondered why, then saw a 'no loitering, business only' sign, which she guessed clarified the reason. Most new recruits wouldn't want to hang out in the qi pressure for long.

She nodded and walked forward to where a bored younger woman was directing people towards other doorways. The only door she could see through showed a small office that looked more comfortable than she expected; cushioned chairs and potted plants crowded the office.

The waiting attendant asked Shu why she was here, then she was directed to one of the doors. She waited a breath for her to reach the correct door, then asked Shae the same.

"Small change withdrawal, err, sect coins, not crowns. Sorry, it's my first time here." She said nervously.

The woman stared briefly, then shrugged, "Thought we had a little longer before the new kids arrived. No offense."

"Heh. None taken. I got mine early, Elder Fengi was pretty angry about it."

"Snk. Not surprising. They don't have a lot of spare tokens this time of year. Stuck waiting for the new batch."

"Ooh! That makes sense."

The bored woman smirked. "You loosened up quickly. Why did you start so nervous?"

"Uhh," Shae felt her neck heat up as she looked at the woman expecting an easy answer. "It's uh, sorry, Senior. Your eyes are very pretty." She squirmed and looked at the floor.

"Snrk, heh heh." She chuckled into her sleeve. "Thanks. I paid good coin for them, they had better look nice."

"What!" Shae looked back up to find the woman had leaned into her personal space.

She whispered, "My last bedfellow said he could still see some sickly yellow underneath and was rather upset about it. What do you think?"

"Uh- your wha-?" she felt hot as the desert sun now, and knew she was clearly blushing.

"Ha-ha-ho ho ho!" The woman leaned back in an uproar of laughter. "I'm teasing- ha ha ho-ho-ho!" She managed to say between uncontrolled howls.

The reassurance didn't stop Shae's blushing and she looked around to see who else saw. The lobby area was blissfully empty, and no one was leaving out of their office at the disturbance.

The woman calmed her laughter before Shae felt she had complete control of her own blushing. "What's your name, little fairy?"

Shae blinked at the title, but didn't feel any animosity from the woman over it, the opposite, if anything. "I am Wise Shae, Senior."

"Ooh! I had heard we got a new monk, yet I thought it was a boy. From which monastery?"

Shae shook her head. "That'd be junior Kensu, you'll recognize his bright underrobes if you see him. I'm not from a monastery. I just got my title recently, from the Golden Orchard monks visiting Minlin city."

"Oh? Down there? I had heard quite the gossip from that region. Perhaps I'll have to drag it out of you over tea. Ah, but let's get your business handled first." She turned and glanced at the various doors. "Hmm, Attendant Korin shouldn't give you much trouble."

Shae's eyes went wide at the name. "Does he also work as an administrator? I might have met him already."

"Ahh, yes, I believe he does night shifts sometimes. Though he's gotten some flak over showing up exhausted." She pouted. "I hope he's in a good mood for you." She led Shae over to a door and knocked on the wall then stuck her head in. "A newbie for you, Korin, be nice I've already hazed her."

The reminder made Shae's neck hot again, and she quickly rubbed at it and fluffed her robes to get some airflow. Then a hand was pushing her into the room before she was fully ready.

"You!" The surprised man exclaimed.

"Uh, hello, Senior." She waved at the shocked attendant.

Once he had calmed down the process went fairly smoothly. Shae was presented with a tall obelisk-like device that had two flaps on the front. She placed her sect token at the top and the whole thing hummed to life.

Opening the two flaps she found a list of information displayed in glowing gold text.

"This is the standard information that is private viewable by yourself," he explained. "The public section is viewable by attendants with a device like this." He pointed to it and flipped open his side, waving at her to lean over and look at it. Sure enough, only the top section was there.

"Keep an eye on whoever is using this to ensure they don't flip it around." He nodded at her and tapped his nose.

"Mhm!" She hummed and nodded back. "I guess this is why we're not supposed to hand over our tokens."

"Correct. There is supposedly some hidden information on them. Only accessible by elders that have been properly trained to find it."

She looked back at her own display and saw the last line. "Mhmm. I guess that's what this bit at the bottom is?"

"Huh?" Korin stood and leaned over to see it, but Shae quickly closed her side. "Ah. Apologies, I shouldn't have... ah, you're just teasing me, aren't you?"

Shae paused, then shrugged. "Sure."

He sighed loudly. "Usually it's us that are supposed to haze you."

Shae smirked, and threw a thumb towards the door. "She did a pretty good job already. Didn't you hear her laugh?"

Attendant Korin shook his head. "Silencing formation, for your privacy but it works both ways. Now, what can I help you with? A deposit?"

"A withdrawal, actually." She looked at the readout again. "Hmm, how about seven square of sect comp?"

"Hwuh?" His jaw dropped, then he shook his head, "Hah hah. Good one. The low authorization wouldn't let you withdraw that much anyhow."

"Heh, just six is fine. I don't really know what I'll be spending it on anyway. How much does low auth allow?"

"Low gets you about three to six sets before we call in an Elder to check it properly. You are allowed to go into debt a bit- ah, don't spread that info around. Not a lot worth buying anyhow. Most don't even have comp at this point." He fiddled with the obelisk from his side, then withdrew a half filled form and began entering her information from the spiritual tool's readout. "As more direct advice, you shouldn't bother spending anything until classes start and you've had a few cultivation classes. The school has advisors on staff to tell you what you actually need and can make efficient use of. Many spoiled br-" he stopped and coughed into his sleeve. "Many wealthy noble children believe anything a merchant tells them."

"Heh heh, that sounds like excellent advice. I have a friendly Senior showing me around today. So it shouldn't be a problem."

"Good." He flipped the page around and pointed out some of the blanks. "Check this over and sign it at the bottom, with your cultivator name, if that's different. Exchanges usually carry a fee, but since it's your first transaction, that's waived."

"Oh? Neat. What's the fee?" She asked as she read.

"One in a set, minimum one gold crown. Then it falls off to one per square set with larger transactions that we have advanced notice of."

"Hmm, so no reason to deposit my imperial coins- do you even do that?"

"We do, for larger sums. It's best to keep small change on hand for market snacks and haggling. We can also combine or break coins freely if it's part of another transaction."

"Oh!" Shae looked up. Then pulled out her coin purse and crashed it onto the table. It had gained weight since Mistress Ping had over-paid her in Gatewash.

Attendant Korin sighed heavily.

Shu's first stop was checking on the price of qi stones. The pair walked into an unassuming warehouse with a crystalline-leaf logo above the door. Shae looked around slightly confused until Shu pointed up to a signboard mounted behind a row of desks.

Qi Stone Market Prices

Lesser +.01 | 1.02

Low -.4 | 11.3

Medium -.9 | 5A.0

High +- | 100.3

Shu sighed, swayed left and right slightly, then stepped up and bought a low grade stone.

"Is that a good price?" Shae asked.

"Eh," Shu grunted and shrugged. "People say anything less than parity is a good deal, but I dunno, you'd be waiting for a while to get low grade stones for less than a set. They're at a sweet spot where they move quickly, I've not seen it too much lower. The passage south being difficult should have shifted the prices, but if they move too much an independent just makes the trip and balances it out."

"Uhh? Parity? And what's the A in the medium price?"

"A means two less than a set, B is one less, ten and eleven, if you're familiar with that system."

"Ah." She nodded. "Back in my village we used X for ten and a double crossed X for eleven."

Shu nodded back. "That is the more common usage further south. Wherever they can get away with it, at least. Parity is based on the value of the sect comp. One lesser stone should be one comp exactly. That was the initial idea according to the history books. But qi mine quality varies, as does how they cut the stones and larger crystals, and most importantly, supply and demand."

Shae nodded again. "Right. So, I'm guessing they're all close? Round to the nearest dozen for the rest?"

"Correct. Which is why I bought a low grade. A drop of a third point is significant. It'll probably jump back up tomorrow."

"Hmm. Should I be buying one? Err, I guess I probably can't use a low grade." She shook her head.

Shu shrugged. "Might just paint a target on yourself. Thieving isn't common, yet the new recruits always tend to try it until someone gets publicly punished."

"Huh, right, the others are here too. Won't the lesser crystals jump in price when they get access to their money?"

"Eh," Shu wobbled a hand. "Maybe. Some nobles just source their own crystals. Most get told not to buy any until classes actually start and they're taught how to use them properly. Even then, the price is pretty stable. Though, lessers do move around the most."

"Hmm. Right. Attendant Korin mentioned not to buy cultivation stuff."

"Heh, good advice." Shu nodded to the door and they left the building. Right away, she pointed out their next destination. "Weaponry is next. Because I like to browse." She smirked. "You know what weapon you're using? Gotta pick something other than a bow."

"Hmm? Really? You make it sound like a requirement."

"Well... Yeah kinda. You can ignore weapons and focus on techniques, but unless you're a prodigy it doesn't usually pay off. And even then, you would have missed how many years of practice? Not to mention nobles start on weapon training early, so you and Nalin are already behind."

"Huh... But, I don't have to fight anyone, do I?" Shae furrowed her brow.

"Snrk." Shu shook her head. "Funny."

"Uh? That wasn't a joke."

"Seriously? I thought the peace-bound sword was just for show? You did fight in the Gatewash battle, didn't you?"

Shae tapped her sword absentmindedly. "Yeah, it is, but that was just against spirit beasts. I don't want to fight people with real weapons if I don't have to."

Shu looked over at her with a confused expression. "Have you literally heard or read nothing about cultivators? They fight each other all the bloody time!" She shook her head. "Not to the death or anything. And it isn't required in the first year, yet there are combat rankings within your own year and stage. Basically a quarterly tournament, though they structure it differently year to year."

Shae frowned and remained silent.

"And then there's duels." Shu said after a breath. "And spirit beasts, they might be mostly stupid, yet they still need a bit of finesse sometimes." She waved a hand and sighed. "Listen. You don't have to be a bloodthirsty murderer. Just think about how you want to protect yourself. Best defense- and all that. Ugh, and do I need to convince you to drop the bow?"

Shae tilted her head and frowned. "No, I've been told that already. More importantly, I don't think you're all bloodthirsty just because you know how to fight."

"Heh, so because we are murderers?" She smirked.

"I can't throw stones there. I've already killed someone in self defence." She lowered her eyes to the ground.

"Oh." Shu took a few careful breaths while picking her next words. "Did they deserve it?"

Shae frowned again. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well if they attacked you, then they were a bad person, right?"

Shae sighed. "Yeah. I guess they were."

"Okay, good- well, no. Not good. I mean, you're past the first hurdle. It won't be so bad next time. Never let it feel good, but learn to move on, that's what I was told."

The younger woman inhaled deeply and sighed again. "Thanks for trying to help. Can we go inside now?" She pointed at the doors they had been loitering outside of.

Shu smiled warmly. "Of course!"