Is it wrong to fleece adventurers at the item shop?

It's nice and quiet at home as I return to the shop. It's not silent though, which actually is a good thing. A very good thing in fact. Elzbieta is softly singing to her baby boy while she finishes her cleaning of the shelves and the things on display there, and the baby boy in question is happily babbling along.

I can't help but grin, as I watch the two for a moment. Who knows if this keeps up he might just become a bard. The world certainly won't be off worse with another cheerful mind sharing cheerful songs. Yes, there certainly are worse things that could happen.

My mind quickly shifts to the many projects I need to finish though. Well, I need to finish them one of these days anyway. For Agnieszka's lamp I'll need to wait for the finished product to be delivered by Olgierd anyway. That doesn't mean that I can't get a head start on the rune circles though.

It won't be a trivial enchantment after all. Not completely. It needs a spoken trigger. And the light has to have the right strength. If it's either to weak or too strong it won't be any good.

The words of the old wizard come back to my mind. With something like this I'm already halfway to enchanting wands. I wonder if he is really right about that. Well, I guess there is only one way to find out. I have to do it. First for this lamp. And maybe a little later for a first practice wand. A light spell should be simple enough.

Should I get a scroll with a fitting mage light spell first? It would probably speed up the process. If I manage to memorize the spell while reading it anyway. These scrolls are only good for one use after all. Afterwards the runes inscribed on them disappear. Do I have it in me to be a real and proper spell caster and not just an alchemist and enchanter? Once again I come to the same conclusion as before. There is only one way to find out.

No! I'm getting carried away again! First I need to focus on the enchantment for the lamp. I get my notebook and begin to draft a design. Not in whole yet, but some of the essential parts. It's easier to reuse those for other enchantments like that, even if it means that I'll still have to make minute adjustments before I can put them to use.

The first section is intended to deal with the spoken trigger. I use a sentence once again, as individual words can result in accidental activation. It probably won't cause any harm in the case of the lamp, but in general it's something I better avoid.

The next will fix the duration for which the enchantment will shed light. If I were to sue multiple variable triggers I could make this variable as well, but that would be beyond the scope of the project. This is supposed to be a simple lamp, not a fancy masterpiece. Well, not too fancy a masterpiece anyway. In the end I settle for two hours. That should do.

I nod to myself. Yes, two hours should be plenty of time on most days unless Agnieszka intends to work throughout the entire night, which is rather unlikely. Or isn't it? Older people supposedly can make do with less sleep. Never mind, two hours will do. I'd need a deeper understanding of this enchantment to go for more anyway. A deeper understanding that I won't achieve without doing it like this first.

How strong should the light be? That is the third important aspect. It might just be the most important aspect too. Given the shape of the carved quartz and the metal frame holding it even a magical light as bright as just a single candle might already make a noticeable difference. I think something a little brighter wouldn't hurt though. Nodding to myself I upscale it a little. Not by much though. I don't want it to become blindingly bright by accident.

In theory I could improve the effect further by including runes that direct the emission of light in only one direction, but that would complicate things too much. Thus some light might end up illuminating the rafters instead of the work space, but that's an acceptable loss.

Maybe later designs could incorporate a mirror? That might help. The question is, would it be worth it? Or would changing the enchantment be more cost effective? It's another thought for another day. Maybe I can make an experimental design that is a little plainer and cheaper. A plain polished pebble in a metal ring with a hook so it can be hung? That would do.

Humming along with Elzbieta I check over the individual parts of the enchantment again, on the lookout for any mistakes. Only afterwards do I begin to bring them together. The result is complex, but not too complex. It still has me wonder if I should cram it all into a single circle though. After crunching some numbers I'm sure that my table might just barely be able to fit a single circle of this size. It probably would be better to err on the side of safety and use the enchanting space down at the smithy though. It's either that or I'll have to streamline the enchantment a little more.

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I go over it again, but my eyes are getting a little tired and the same is true for my mind. It's getting too hard to focus properly. I take this as a clear sign that it's about time I do something else instead. Yes that probably is for the best. A little distraction to relax the mind at the very least. Now, what might that be. I can't help but wonder.

I close my notebook and watch my tow housemates for a moment, as I think about it. Finally it comes to me. Chalks! I could make some more chalks. Not fancy enchanter's chalks but plain and simple chalks for drawing. It's not that I expect fancy artists to drop by and buy their painting supplies from me anytime soon, but the very same chalks are good for children who just want to draw on rocks too. Never mind adventurers who at times use them to mark passages or traps and the likes in dungeons or ruins.

Chalks are fun and useful! Different color chalks are even more fun and useful! It's a simple fact of life. One of the cases where more is better without a doubt. And I should have all the necessary ingredients too.

But first I might just sit down and rest my eyes a little. The bench out front should be in the shade by now. No risk of making the rash worse by catching too much sun. I stop at Elzbieta's side and put an arm around her waist as I lean in close, both to her and her boy.

"Want to sit down outside for a moment or two? You have been carrying Ulryk around the whole time. How about we catch a breather? And maybe a quick nap?"

As she doesn't protest I pull her along in the direction of the bench out front. It's indeed in the shadow by now. Even better, should anyone drop by we should take note too, as they would have to walk right by us to enter the shop.

The bees are abuzz like always too. It seems they can always find another fresh blossom or something else given all the wild roses and the ivy growing all over the walls. I'm quite grateful that they seem to be a gentle breed, not aggressive at all. They barely pay us any mind at all as we sit down.

The low hum seems to be calming to Ulryk too who soon closes his eyes and falls asleep, nestled tightly against his mother's chest. I lean against her shoulder too, as I sit down with her, and she returns the sentiment leaning into me a little as well.

"Just a moment or two."

My words come out as an almost ineligible mumble and my eyes close before I can even finish speaking. A moment later I'm fast asleep. It really is only a quick nap though. As my eyes flutter open again a little later not much time has passed. Not as far as I can tell anyway. Neither the color of the sky above nor the buzz of the bees has changed noticeably. What has changed is the arm that is now resting on my hip, pulling me in a little closer.

"I'm not asleep."

I blink in surprise and look over at Elzbieta and sure enough her eyes are not closed. She doesn't look like she just woke up either. Unlike me probably, as I blink at her owlishly.

"I see. You aren't. Want to stay like this a little longer?"

"Sure. Unless you got urgent plans?"

I shake my head slowly.

"No, no urgent plans. I might make some more chalks a little later though. Not for enchanting. Just plain chalks. Various colors."

Her reply is almost immediate.

"Those can be useful. Or fun."

She pauses and lets out a soft chuckle that makes her boy stir briefly.

"I see a lot of colorful art being drawn on walls and floorboards in the near future. Not the worst way to have a little fun as a kid if you ask me."

What she has in mind probably doesn't quite line up with my own first artistic endeavors, which were silly little enchanting circles that would never have worked as I didn't write them using runes and using plain chalks instead of enchanter's chalks, but I chuckle along with her anyway. She isn't wrong after all. It was fun.