When Arlhen regained consciousness he was in the middle of a space with extensive walls and whose floor was built of white bricks.

Still confused by the strange sensation he had just experienced, the boy looked back cautiously. Being the people who passed through the market the first thing that entered their field of vision, the same ones that did not even bother to return the look.

Just then Arlhen felt as if someone was watching him from behind, causing an intense nervousness to take over him. An emotion that disappeared as soon as he recognized the person in charge.

A store?

This was the first thing that appeared in the boy's mind after witnessing the trinkets stand in front of him. No, that was not entirely accurate. It was a humble store that offered from small wooden necklaces to extravagant premium liquors.

-Hey child, do you only plan to stay watching or buy something? Asked the stocky man with tanned skin who was the owner of the products.

"II do not ..." Suddenly surprised by the merchant's question, Arlhen could not help but step back cautiously. However, these actions stopped as soon as a strange article caught his attention. E-that book Can you show it to me?

-You can see what you want whenever you go to buy something.

The dark-haired young man picked up the old book while dusting it with his left hand. Shortly after finishing, he was encouraged to browse the pages of the black book to verify the content of this.

Although at first he did not expect to find anything interesting in that object, this assumption contrasted completely with the sparkle of awe in Arlhen's eyes.

-How much is this worth?

- You mean that garbage? The merchant looked at the boy with an expression full of strangeness. Child, that's a simple pile of old leaves, are you trying to bother me?

- Old sheets? -Arlhen was stupefied while listening to such a statement ... He could clearly see the large amount of information about the cities and powers of the kingdom written in these pages. What nonsense was the man saying?

- That's it.

-It does not matter What is the price? - That which in the eyes of many can be simple garbage, in the hands of another could be a great treasure. With that thought, the boy remained firm in his decision to buy the book. After all, in the worst case I would only lose a few coins.

-Well, although it does not seem very valuable. The truth is that it took me too long to get that object ... "the merchant said as he rubbed his hands. I found it inside the stomach of a sea beast during a trip with my companions ... Although that day was calm like any other, we lacked water due to our last ...

- Tell me the price. Arlhen could not help but click his tongue in annoyance. As soon as the man began to tell his tragic story, he understood that the subject had in mind to take advantage of his interest in the book.

-Well ... It will be about sixty silver coins.

-What!? This is a robbery!

-What are you talking about? My friends sacrificed for that book ... How could it be so cheap?

-That's twenty coins and I'll take it.

- That is very little! ... It would be an insult to my deceased companions.

-Okay, stay with the book. It's not worth it either. "Arlhen tossed the object at the merchant as he turned to leave.

"Wait, wait," said the merchant with the panic mixed in his tone of voice. I can reduce it to forty coins.

-That's thirty. That amount is enough, I will not offer even another currency.

-Well ... It'll be thirty.

Arlhen smiled to himself as soon as he observed the resigned expression of his opponent ... Of course he did not plan to leave the book at any time, but he had to pretend if he wanted to negotiate with the man.

After a satisfactory exchange for both parties, the boy left the place as soon as he could, he did not want to stay even for a second more. What guaranteed him that the merchant would not change his mind?

From his own evaluation, he bought with a few tens of coins something that could very probably even cost thousands of gold coins ....

....

Inside a dark alley whose walls were shrouded in rotten silence, was a small shop that gave off an unbearable smell of death. Not only that, even the surroundings were covered in mold next to a thick fog full of negativity like the miasma itself.

The subject who a little while ago attended to the boy had a pleasant smile covering his face -a smile that did not disappear since Arlhen had left-, his previous bronzed complexion radiant with vitality now looked so pale and devoid of any spark of life.

In fact, if one paid attention he could see how the merchant's skin became increasingly translucent with the passage of time. If one was even more meticulous, one would notice how the corners of his mouth with which he had once smiled, had now spread to such an extent that they had a disturbing and inhuman aspect.

The story that the man told the boy was not entirely true, but it was not wrong either. If it was true that he hunted a sea creature with his companions, but it was a lie that some survived ... None came out alive from that battle ... Neither the creature nor the man himself.

Finally the figure of the merchant became less and less visible until it disappeared without a trace. And in the same way, the various objects scattered in the store began to dissipate as an illusion.

To be precise, none of those things existed in the first place,

After that, the street darkened even more as if the shadows were trying to devour her. No, it would be better to say that from the beginning that alley was never there ... Nothing was there.

In the end, only thirty silver coins ended up watered in the middle of the commercial street ...