Is it wrong to fleece adventurers at the item shop?

I still can't quite believe what transpired last night. I can't believe I did that and I have a hard time believing someone saw either, but apparently someone did. And for worse or better, I have no clue who. I blush as I swing my feet out of bed. I don't get up yet though. Instead I pause to pet Sour Cream for a little bit.

She only opens one eye, as I run my fingers through her fur, but doesn't stir otherwise. She starts to purr though, which is quite calming. I linger a little longer to enjoy the soothing sound as well as the soothing feeling of her fur under my fingers.

In the end I have to get up though. It is no use to make up excuses. I still have a shop to run after all. And it is no use to worry about spilled milk either. Speaking of spilled milk, I pour my feline companion some of her favorite treat as well before getting dressed for the day.

I don't head to the bath today, as I just visited it last night. Instead I just freshen up a little at the creek behind the house. There is one more difference in my daily routine in addition to that. I get a fire started before opening the shop, to brew myself some nice, calming tea.

Nothing like a potion, just some herbal tea, although some people would argue that herbal teas are some of the most basic potions. That is mostly nonsense though, unless you make a herbal mix with various alchemically active herbs with matching properties.

For this very reason laypeople should never just mix and match herbs for their tea. The result can be perfectly harmless tea, but it can just as easily be a dangerous poison or a potion with downright unpredictable properties. We had a whole class at the academy dedicated to the most common accidents that can happen that way. It is a little troubling how often those still happen although people should really know better. Well, it is a good thing that I know what I'm doing.

Once I have a nice big cup of steaming hot tea that is about as soothing as it tastes terrible, I see about opening the shop. I'm still a little early, thus I have time to sip some of it while enjoying the morning sun out front.

The first group that heads out for the day is the one with Tamara and Odolan, now together with Danuta and as of today, apparently, with Szmuel, the catfolk adventurer as well.

They stop by my place briefly for Danuta to stock up on mana potions. She is the only one who heads inside together with me, while the other three wait outside, talking animatedly about some ruin they want to explore. Especially Szmuel seems really excited.

It is enough to put a smile on my face as I slip behind the counter while the witch examines the new potions.

“Exploring a ruin, huh?”

She nods as she puts one of the potions that match grandma's back on the shelf.

“It's where the real money is. Most quests are a nice bonus, but, if you want to make it big, you have to do some dungeon delving or explore the old ruins. If you happen to find any old relics the guild will buy them for a pretty good price.”

She stops abruptly as she examines one of the better potions, only to let out an excited squee.

“Eeeee! You did it! You really did it! You made better mana potions! Oh gods and goddesses, thank you!”

I laugh out loud in response to her excited exclamations.

“Is it really that much of a difference? I mean you could just drink two regular mana potions instead of one greater potion, right?”

She clears her throat and takes a moment to compose herself, as Tamara and Szmuel peek inside to see what the commotion is about.

She takes two of the potions after checking the price tags and brings them to the counter.

“Please, don't be offended, but have you ever drunk any of those? It is kind of like cough syrup, a cold rub and a sparkly, fizzy drink rolled all into one. It really isn't a pleasant experience. It makes a world of a difference, if I can drink just one instead of two!”

I snort as I try to hold in my laughter. Never mind that I know no cold rub that should be ingested in any way. Those are rubs for a reason!

“That bad?”

She nods earnestly as she pays up.

“That bad!”

“Oh my! I'm sorry, but I don't think I know of any mana potions that are better in that regard. Not by much at least. All the recipes I know use stone oil as the basic ingredient and I suspect that is responsible for much of the taste, except possibly for the sparkly, fizzy part. That is probably due to the enchanting dust.”

She nods at my explanation.

“Well, I don't mind the fizzy part as much as the rest. It actually can be kind of nice once you get used to it. The rest though…”

She shakes her head as she trails off.

I understand. I doubt I can help her though. Mana potions aren't exactly a new invention after all. If it were easy to come up with an affordable recipe that avoids these issues, someone would have done so by now. I shrug apologetically.

“I'd promise to look into the issue, but unless you have a steady supply of dragon blood I doubt I could do anything. And I'm not quite sure if drinking dragon blood based potions is any more pleasant than drinking stone oil based ones.”

She grimaces a little at the mention of dragon blood.

“Yuck! I doubt anyone but vampires would go for that alternative.”

We both laugh and shake our heads.

Then she waves and turns to leave.

I wave as she heads back out to join her companions.

“Take care while dungeon delving!”

Szmuel returns my wave, the tip of his tail mirroring the movement. Then they are off.

A little later Elzbieta and her paladin companion Zofia drop by as well. Their male companion waits outside. They get the last of the stamina potions I still have in stock. Or rather, Elzbieta gets those. Zofia has a different inquiry.

“My friend Elzbieta has told me about something new you experimented with recently. Something called Coffee. I was wondering if I could try it some time.”

I have to fight the urge to grin. Nice! The word is spreading already. I'm not quite ready to serve any coffee yet though. There is still some more experimenting to be done. Although …

“What I shared with Elzbieta was a hot drink. Freshly brewed. I don't have any of that right now. I have another little coffee based experiment going right now though. If you could help me with it, you could give it a try.”

She raises an eyebrow and tilts her head slightly.

“An experiment? Nothing dangerous I presume?”

I shake my head as I get the single enchanted potion bottle with iced coffee I have right now.

“No. No danger.”

I hand it to Zofia.

“The bottle is enchanted to keep the contents cold without freezing them. I was wondering if coffee is palatable like that as well and if it retains its properties. If it is and if it does, I might make more iced coffee during summer. I might still have to experiment with the recipe though. More or less sugar. Maybe some milk or whipped cream. Things like that. Maybe I'll offer the recipe to Krystina's parents instead so they can sell it at the inn as a dessert of sorts?”

She nods along and taps her chin thoughtfully.

“And you want me to give it a try? I wonder about the enchanted potion bottle though. Won't that be a little too costly?”

I bite my lip but nod anyway. She isn't exactly wrong after all.

“It is. That is why I'm pondering selling the recipe instead so it can be served at the inn. Do you want to give it a try? You can have this one vial. Just promise you will return it. Drink it while you are out adventuring when you need a refreshment. And tell me about the experience afterwards. Yes?”

At this point Elzibieta pipes in.

“Oh? Iced coffee at the inn? If you do go that way, you might want to include something like waffles! Maybe even with some maple syrup!”

Zofia and I both look at her and than at each other as our stomachs grumble in unison as if on cue. We both break into laughter after that. Finally she nods.

“Fine. I'll give it a try.”

We shake hands to seal the deal and she pays for Elzbieta's purchase. Then they too are off.

I note my sales down in the ledger and dump most of the coin into the strong chest, keeping only enough to have a nice lunch and place some more quests with our local guild official.