In the early morning, a young man worked enthusiastically in the fields, accompanied by seven small skeletons assisting him.
It had been four days since Clayton transmigrated into this world of swords and sorcery. Though he still felt awkward from time to time, he was gradually getting used to it—almost as if he were beginning to find his place.
Now, the three-hectare plot of land under Clayton's care no longer resembled the neglected patch it once was. Instead, it looked like a proper wheat farm, just like any veteran farmer's field.
Fortunately, Clayton had access to several useful Entries, and the timing of his efforts couldn't have been better for crop mitigation. Without them, who knows if he would have made it safely to harvest?
Even though his field now appeared ordinary, it still stood out among the neighboring dry and barren plots.
As Clayton grew more familiar with farming, the work became considerably lighter—especially with the help of his mini skeletons. Thanks to them, he finally had the rare luxury of taking it easy after so much recent stress.
Whether due to exhaustion or the calm morning air, Clayton eventually dozed off without meaning to.
He only awoke to the distant sound of dogs barking. It was already midday. With a groan, Clayton stood and prepared to perform his usual summoning ritual.
To his surprise, nothing happened. No light, no vibrations, no skeletons—nothing at all.
He tried channeling his mana again, but still, there was no reaction. A sense of unease crept over him. He had assumed he could summon an unlimited number of skeletal soldiers—but it turned out he had been wrong.
After several failed attempts, he gave up. It seemed he had reached his summoning limit.
Clayton shifted his attention to his crops. While inspecting the plants, his dingo suddenly barked louder than usual.
Curious, Clayton approached and saw the yellow dog proudly holding a large rat in its jaws.
Seeing his master, the dingo trotted over with its head high, as if expecting praise. Clayton smiled and gently patted its fur.
"Hehe, good boy!"
He wasn't particularly surprised by the rat's size—he had seen one the night before. Including the one in the dingo's mouth, he now had three similar rat corpses.
These rats were plump and clean—a common pest that appeared near the end of wheat season. In his memories, Clayton recalled eating this type before. They carried traces of magic and were ranked similarly to demon grasshoppers, making them a decent source of nutrients for a fake mage like him.
Still, despite being non-toxic and technically more valuable than demon grasshoppers, Clayton couldn't stomach the taste. He had no intention of eating them again—not out of disgust, but because they left a strange, lingering taste he couldn't forget. That said, he didn't judge anyone who did. To him, it all came down to personal preference.
He loaded the rats into his cart, along with the other two and a pile of miscellaneous weeds. Though the weeds weren't especially valuable, they had absorbed trace amounts of magical energy—making them more useful than ordinary plants.
Taking one skeleton with him, Clayton left the others to guard the field. On the road to the town market, he looked around with growing curiosity.
Even though he remembered what this world was supposed to look like, experiencing it firsthand was something else entirely.
The magical farmland district lay on the outskirts of the outer city ring, while the market was located further inside. The trip took a few dozen minutes.
Upon reaching the densely populated area, Clayton's spirits lifted. The medieval-style stone buildings were a treat for the eyes, and the occasional strange sight on the street made him pause and wonder—was this still real?
After soaking in the scenery, he approached a shop that looked more formal than the roadside stalls.
"Good afternoon, sir. How may I help you?" a polite young woman at the counter greeted him.
Without hesitation, Clayton asked, "Do you accept star-0 earth rats and some magical weeds?"
"Yes, of course. Let me inspect them first," she replied.
The woman followed him to the cart and examined the rats and weeds thoroughly.
"Well, miss? What's the price?"
"For star-0 earth rats, 8 magic sand crystals per kilogram. For the weeds, half a sand crystal per kilo."
Hearing this, Clayton immediately started to think. The monetary system in this world was divided into magic sand crystals, low-grade magic crystals, mid-grade magic crystals, high-grade magic crystals, and so on.
On paper, each denomination followed a 1:100 ratio—for example, 100 low-grade crystals equaled 1 mid-grade crystal, and 100 mid-grade crystals equaled 1 high-grade crystal.
However, in practice, a single mid-grade crystal often traded for 110 low-grade ones—or even more.
This discrepancy existed because the higher the quality of the crystal, the more effective it was for training.
Clayton quickly did the math. He had about 40 kg of weeds and 3.4 kg of rats. That came out to around 47 sand crystals—almost equivalent to half a low-grade magic crystal.
Though he wasn't familiar with current market prices—his father used to handle that side of things—Clayton felt the offer was too low.
"You know, Miss… I just realized you're actually quite beautiful. Think maybe you could raise the price a bit?" he said awkwardly.
The woman paused, then chuckled softly.
Clayton blushed but kept pressing the negotiation. Eventually, they agreed: 10 sand crystals per kilo of rats and 0.8 per kilo of weeds. In total, Clayton received 66 sand crystals.
"Will that be all, sir?" she asked after packing everything.
"One kilo of low-grade star-1 wheat flour, please."
"Certainly. One moment."
As the woman stepped away, Clayton looked around. Nothing particularly caught his eye—until he spotted a container of colorful seeds by the counter.
"What kind of seeds are these? Why are their shapes and colors all different?"
"They're assorted plant seeds. Even though they've been processed, none of them have successfully sprouted. They likely require special conditions or environments to grow," she explained.
Clayton nodded thoughtfully.
"Interested, sir? Who knows, one might grow into a mid-grade or even high-grade star-1 plant. That would be quite a profit! You seem like someone with good luck," she added with a teasing smile.
Clayton scoffed internally. Maybe a naïve kid would fall for that, but he was a modern man who'd lived two lives—he wasn't so easily swayed.
"How much?"
"Just 1 magic crystal. Very cheap!"
Clayton chuckled and began packing his things. He'd rather buy more flour than waste a magic crystal on mystery seeds.
The woman looked a bit disappointed but tried once more.
"How about a discount?"
"I'll take them for 10 sand crystals," Clayton said casually.
The woman blinked. A 90% discount? But she also knew the seeds were deteriorating. If left unsold, they wouldn't even be suitable for animal feed.
After a bit of back-and-forth, they agreed on 20 sand crystals.
With his shopping done, Clayton didn't head straight home. Instead, he wandered until he reached a particular building. Pulling out a plaque, he activated a magic array that responded and dissolved a protective barrier.
As he stepped inside, warm and fresh air greeted him. His pores relaxed as if he were soaking in a hot spring.
"No wonder so many people wanted to get their hands on Father's house," he muttered.
The house sat atop a mid-grade star-1 magic vein, ideal for an intermediate apprentice mage. For a fake mage like him, it was a huge advantage.
Thankfully, the house was equipped with a defensive array and a magic-gathering array. The energy from the vein didn't dissipate even when unused.
But just as Clayton was about to enter—
Crack!
A sharp sound rang out behind him. He turned to find one of his mini skeletons shattered on the ground.
Clayton's expression hardened immediately.