Ben returned to the mine as the evening shroud almost enveloped the land. The trek back from the pasture wasn’t as bad as getting there, as it was mostly downhill. It would have been much easier without the small cart of supplies he had been gifted. Luckily, he had some help.

  Before leaving, Hauxwell had ordered one of the farmhands to help Ben push and pull the cart over the tedious terrain.

  The farmhand, Jochim, parked the cart near the mine entrance. He glanced at the sky and shook his head. “Right, that should be fine over there, Sir.”

  Ben nodded and gave Joachim a thumbs up. “I appreciate the help, mate. I don't think I would have been able to get it down those cliffs if on my own.”

  “Ah, you’re welcome, Sir. I’m glad to have been useful to you.” Joachim said with a smile. He turned slightly before facing the way back to the pasture. “It’ll get dark soon, so I should set off.”

  “Hey Joachim, hang on a moment. I don’t want you taking any risks when night falls. You’re welcome to stay here at the miner's camp we’ve made till the morn.” Ben explained, pointing at the tents.

  “I appreciate the gesture, Sir, but there’s much work to get done at the pasture. I must be getting back now.” Joachim said before glancing at the lit torches by the mouth of the mine. “Will it be alright if I take one of those torches for my journey back?”

  Ben walked up to the entrance and removed one before passing it over. “Of course. Look, if you ever need anything from here, just come and take it. I’ll not give you a hard time for something as simple as taking a torch. Just be careful out there, mate.”

  Joachim nodded and put his hand on his chest. “You have my thanks, Sir. Don’t worry. The trail isn’t too bad once you have a bit of light. Till we meet again.” With a smile, he turned and started his journey back.

  Ben made his way towards the camp, where the flames of a campfire danced. Har sat there with the other village folk, looking like they were having a good time.

  Har raised his tankard the moment he set his eyes upon Ben. “Ah, Ben, you’ve returned. You’re back in one piece, so I assume nothing bad happened at the pasture.”

  Ben waved his hand. “It’s good to see you too, Har. I see you’re all having a great time here. There was no cause for a concert over there. Just Hauxwell and Alfred having a knightly melee. An interesting battle, if I must say so.”

  Har raised his eyebrows. “A melee? How’s he doing that with one arm?”

  “It seems Hauxwell has taught him how to make an arm out of mana so he can swing his sword. Still, he needs a little more practice, but he’ll return to his duties soon enough. Speaking of duties, I hope all of you take it easy with that ale. You’ve got an early morning if I remember quite rightly.” Ben stated while glancing at the tankards.

  “Ah, it’s just one to put us to sleep. Besides, did you get a chance to ask about the food?” Har enquired.

  “I’ve negotiated for regular food supplies as long as I allow them to use the valley north of here to farm wheat and crops. Speaking of supplies, Hauxwell sent some goods. Milk, cheese, beef, and animal feed for the horses.” Ben explained, pointing at the cart. “You should ask someone to take care of that.”

  Har asked the village folk to move it in with the rest of the food. Then, turning back to Ben, he said, “We’ve got an early start. I think we’ll be calling it a night now.”

  “Ah, before I leave you, Hauxwell asked for some chickens when you go out next. They’re looking to start farming poultry products soon. I don't know about you, but it’s been some time since I’ve had a nice omelet.”

  Har gave Ben a funny look as if he was confused. “A what now?” He shrugged, then added, “Anyway, the chickens won't be an issue. Almost all villages have some for sale.”

  “Just try to buy enough so they can get set up without worrying about things. I’ll see you in the morning and help you load those carts. You all have a good night.” Ben finished before waving.

  Ben stumbled his sore legs back to the van and opened the side door. He cleaned up from the day's work and wore comfortable clothing before falling face-first on the mattress. The tiredness of the day pushed him into a deep sleep.

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  ***

  Ben awoke just as the dark blue light of the morning flowed through the spaces around his curtains. Grogilly, he got out of bed and readied himself for another day at the mine. Making his way towards the camp, he noticed the fire was being lit, and a few people were preparing breakfast.

  As more sunlight peered over the horizon, they finished eating and lined up the carts near the entrance. Ben spent the next half-hour pushing wheelbarrows until the carts were full of ore.

  Har sat at the forefront of the caravan and turned to face Ben as he approached. “Hopefully, we can make you some coin with this run. Keep the ore coming. I’ll return for the next Feruswich run in a few days.”

  Ben patted one of the horses. “Good luck out there. I will return to the third level to mine more Mirium. I’m certain the Alchemy Guild will want more of it. We’ll need that extra money to get this village done.”

  “Oh, Aye! Take care of yourself while I’m gone.” Har finished with a wave before getting a move on.

  After watching them ride out, Ben returned to the van to grab his flashlight off charge. He entered the mine and reached the cave on the third level. Taking out his Omnitool, he opened the menu and hit the upgrade option.

  [Omnitool has been upgraded to Mk.3.]

  [-50 Gold Pounds.]

  ***

  New Features:

  Spatial Inventory: Using advanced Architect technology, users may store items in the Omnitool as tokens. The user currently has 5M3 storage space split into five blocks of 1M3. Only one type of token can be stored in each block simultaneously, and the tokens will stack until the block space is used up. Please note that different types of tokens have different stack limits. The user may also extract resources directly into the Omnitool as tokens. Tokens can be removed from the spatial inventory at the user's discretion.

  Buy/Sell (Architect’s Marketplace): Allows the user to access the marketplace, where they can buy and sell tokens stored in the Omnitool. Please note that the marketplace’s buy/sell prices are based on the cosmic economy, and the user will have to pay using their local currency. Only currencies based on precious metals are accepted. All transactions are final, and the marketplace accepts no refunds.

  Upgrade tool to Mk.4: 100 Gold Pounds. Increase Spatial inventory to 10M^3.

  ***

  “No way!” Ben exclaimed while staring at the description. He probably was never going to figure out how those tokens worked, but the way they integrated with that marketplace seemed like they could be useful when he needed to get rid of items and resources he didn't need.

  Before perusing the marketplace, Ben thought it would be better to start mining first. He pointed the Omnitool at the Mirum ore node, and using his thoughts, he could tell the tool that he wanted to store the ore in the spatial inventory.

  The tool did its magic a few times before a small screen appeared beside it, displaying the five blocks and the Mirum token being added to one of them. The more Ben mined, the higher the number increased. It took almost an hour of working the vein till the stack filled.

  [Mirium Ore: 200]

  Ben's next business order was to open the marketplace. When he selected this option, a notification appeared.

  [Architect’s Marketplace is now scanning your system.]

  [Your primary currency has been detected and approved for use within the marketplace. You may now buy and sell tokens.]

  “Alright. Let’s see how it works.” Ben muttered, selecting the sell option.

  A screen appeared showing the spatial inventory blocks. When he hovered over the Mirium ore tokens, a small box appeared.

  [Mirium Ore: 0.5 Gold Pound/Token.]

  Ben shook his head. “What the heck? Are you trying to scam me?”

  The amount the marketplace offered would only give Ben a hundred gold pounds for a full stack of Mirium. He knew the amount he had mined was enough to make him over two hundred gold pounds if he were to sell it to the Alchemy Guild. He figured the price difference was most likely due to the resource being scarce in the Hollow Lands.

  After backing out of the menu, Ben selected the Buy option when a search menu appeared. He could explore various items with seemingly endless options, each with its pricing scheme. The marketplace was daunting due to the vast number of items for sale, each featuring distinct pricing. Realizing that browsing aimlessly would waste his time, he closed the menu. He could search for items if the need arose.

  Ben returned to the main chamber and entered the store room. He was curious about what the marketplace would offer him for the iron and his ample coal supply. Pointing the Omnitool at the piles, he saw an option to collect and store the respective resources as tokens. He collected a stack of each.

  [Iron Ore: 200.]

  [Coal: 200.]

  [Iron Ore: 0.2 Gold Pound/Token.]

  [Coal: 0.1 Gold Pound/Token.]

  Ben figured his stack of iron was equal to approximately one cart full. After a quick calculation, his price was around the same as what he could get, selling it to the marketplace traders in Feruswich.

  A good deal for when we’re having trouble selling our iron.

  Ben didn't know the price of coal, so he wasn't sure if the marketplace was giving him a good deal. Because there was no demand for the resource, Ben decided to sell some and make more space for the iron. He knew he could sell all of it, as the bloomeries would surely need it to refine the ore into ingots.

  Ben selected the coal tokens and sold them.

  [+20 Gold Pounds.]

  The transaction occurred instantly, and the gold was added to Ben’s account. “Awesome,” He muttered. He decided it would be better to speak with Finn before selling more stock and left the ore store.

  Standing in the main chamber, Ben opened the Omnitool menu. He was certain the research for the Tier 1 Workbench had been completed, and he was itching to see what the crafting feature was capable of.