The shop was bigger than he had thaought it would be. He had expected it to like any old tool shop, small and homely with cheap but long lasting farming equipment. This was nothing like his expectations. As he stepped through aisle of hard, intimidating steel blades, he couldn't help but wonder if he should even be there. Every weapon there, from swords to spears and axes, seemed to kill, and that wasn't even the worse part.

Richard took hold of a sword that caught his eye. It seemed more welcoming than the other weapons, though not by much. Looking down, he noticed a price tag that hung on a string tied the sword's hilt. After reading it, he almost wished he hadn't.

"I don't have that kind of money!" he muttered to himself, "How does anyone pay for things like this!?"

A voice called out from nearby, "Are you going to buy something or what?"

Richard jumped. He had been so lost in his financial worries that he didn't even notice the burly, one-eyed shopkeeper with an eyepatch glaring daggers at him from the counter. The man repeated himself. "Are you gonna buy something or what? I see the way your looking at the price tag. If it's too rich for your blood, you might as well leave. I don't need your grubby paws screwing with things you know you can't have."

"Well, I was just looking..." Richard began, but he could already feel the shopkeeper's glare somehow getting worse. Luckily for him, someone else entered the shop.

"Hey kid, is this really the place you want to be?"

Richard turned to find two familiar faces, Kest and Veragwen. "Oh, good morning," he said to them. It was a relief to see a friendly face.

"Good morning, Richard." said Veragwen, "What brings you to the weapons shop? Thinking about learning to fight?"

"After seeing the both of you, in action, I felt I at least had to learn to protect myself" Richard replied.

" It certainly couldn't hurt, right? I'd be happy to give you some pointers if you'd like."

Richard's eyes lit up before remembering the price tag. "I would like that, but I need a weapon first. I don't think I can afford anything here" He looked towards to sword once more, still shocked by the price.