Chapter 1 – The Shop That Wasn't There Yesterday (Expanded)
The bell rang.
That was the first problem.
Because I didn't remember installing a bell.
I looked up from the counter.
There was a counter.
That was the second problem.
Yesterday, I had been walking home from work.
Today, I was standing inside a small wooden shop that smelled faintly of tea leaves and old paper.
Behind me were shelves.
On the shelves were items.
Above the door hung a small metal sign:
OPEN
"I don't remember opening," I muttered.
The bell rang again.
The door creaked open slowly.
A girl stepped inside.
Leather armor. Slightly torn. Sword too big for her. Expression too nervous for someone holding a weapon.
She froze when she saw me.
I froze when I saw her.
We stared at each other.
"…Are you the shopkeeper?" she asked.
"I'm starting to suspect I am."
She looked around. "This wasn't here yesterday."
"That makes two of us."
She hesitated. Then stepped fully inside.
The bell did not ring this time.
"Do you sell weapons?" she asked.
I looked down at the counter.
There were three objects sitting neatly in front of me.
I hadn't noticed them before.
A small glass bottle filled with silver liquid.
A coin with strange markings.
A folded piece of parchment tied with red string.
"No," I said. "I sell solutions."
She blinked.
"That sounds expensive."
"That depends," I replied. "How desperate are you?"
She swallowed.
"I have to clear a dungeon tomorrow. If I fail, I lose my adventurer license."
I nodded slowly, as if this were completely normal.
Inside, I was screaming.
Dungeon?
License?
Where exactly had I ended up?
She fiddled with the strap of her sword. "I'm… I'm Liora," she admitted quietly. "Liora Tann. I'm new to the guild."
"Ah," I said, noting the name. "Liora Tann. Got it. That'll help me remember who's about to panic tomorrow."
She gave a faint, nervous smile, then shifted her gaze back to the items.
I picked up the silver bottle.
The liquid shimmered slightly.
The moment my fingers touched it, information slid into my mind.
Potion of Borrowed Bravery. Effect: Removes fear for ten minutes. Side effect: Emotional recoil afterward.
Interesting.
"This," I said calmly, placing it on the counter, "will make you fearless."
Her eyes widened. "Really?"
"For ten minutes."
Her face fell slightly. "Only ten?"
"If you need more than ten minutes, you're fighting the wrong thing."
She stared at the bottle.
"How much?"
I looked down again.
The price appeared in my mind.
Five silver coins.
"I'll take three."
She frowned. "That's not what you—"
"Three," I repeated. "Limited-time generosity. I don't know why."
She slowly placed the coins on the counter.
The moment she did, the shop felt… heavier.
Like something was listening.
I glanced around. The shelves creaked slightly. The lights flickered—just enough to remind me that none of this was normal.
She grabbed the bottle.
"Drink it before you enter," I said. "Not during."
"Why?"
"Trust me."
She nodded and rushed out.
The bell rang.
Silence returned.
I looked at the coin and parchment still on the counter.
Then I looked at the door.
Something told me she would be back.
And something else told me…
The shop had not chosen me by accident.
Behind me, one of the shelves creaked.
I turned slowly.
There had not been stairs before.
Now there was a narrow wooden staircase at the back wall.
Leading up.
The sign above the door flipped on its own.
CLOSED
I stared at it.
"…I don't like that."
Upstairs, something shifted.
And for the first time since I woke up here,
I had the feeling
the shop was watching me back.
I stepped over to the counter, trying to distract myself.
My eyes scanned the items more carefully this time. The coin was engraved with a spiral symbol, faintly glowing in the dim light. The parchment, when I touched it, rustled slightly as if eager to be unfolded. I resisted. One mystery at a time.
The shop itself hummed faintly, an almost imperceptible vibration under my fingertips. How was this possible? Shops didn't hum. Shops didn't move. Shops didn't… choose people.
I pinched the bridge of my nose.
"Okay. Deep breaths," I muttered to myself. "Maybe this isn't real. Maybe I'm dreaming. Or insane. Or both."
I opened one of the drawers in the counter. Inside were dozens of tiny bottles, each labeled in a neat, almost obsessive handwriting I didn't recognize. Some smelled of smoke. Some smelled of flowers. Some… smelled like the forest after rain.
I picked one up at random. The label read:
Dewdrop of Minor Luck. Effect: Increases probability of small fortunate events for one hour. Side effect: Mildly attracts insects.
I snorted.
"At least the shop has a sense of humor," I muttered.
Then I heard footsteps outside. Not the bell, not the usual traffic of the city. Footsteps closer. Heavy. Hesitant. Measured.
I froze.
The door opened again.
No one was there.
Just a gust of wind, carrying a faint whisper.
"Find me…"
I blinked.
The bottle in my hand trembled. Or maybe that was me.
I set it down carefully.
The stairs… they called to me again. Faintly, but unmistakably.
I reached for the railing, feeling the worn wood pulse under my fingers, as if the shop itself were alive, aware.
A shadow flickered along the back wall. The shelf that had creaked earlier seemed to bow slightly, almost in recognition.
I swallowed.
The shop wasn't just a shop.
It was… something else. Something older. Something smarter. Something that knew I had no idea what I was doing.
I sat down on a nearby stool, trying to steady my thoughts. The bell above the door jingled softly again—not because someone entered, but because the shop wanted it to.
I sighed.
"Of course you do," I muttered. "Welcome to your new life. Enjoy it."
I stared at the empty counter, imagining Liora somewhere, probably screaming her lungs out in a dungeon corridor while the Potion of Borrowed Bravery worked its magic.
And I wondered: would she survive the emotional recoil afterward?
I shook my head.
I had bigger questions.
Like: what the hell was waiting upstairs?