“Cassian,” The gaunt man rolled the name in his mouth, like he was savoring a sweet candy. “I can do with that name; it’s quite debonair, if I may say so.”

  “The character that is your namesake is definitely that.” The goblin said with a laugh, “I have also read that upon cementing a deal it is customary to perform a handshake.”

  “Of course!” the newly ordained Cassian smiled ear to ear. “I haven’t done this for a long time.” He outstretched his hand to the goblin. Armand did his best to mimic the human. The goblin reached out and closed his hand as Cassian did. It was like a dance and the merchant was leading and he was following.

  He matched the grip, firm but not crushing. When he felt Cassian relax his grip, he did so in turn. “Not bad, sir.” The merchant replied.

  “Was it?” The goblin asked, a little excited that he did it right.

  “Indeed, excellent control, grip strength, and cooperation.” The merchant replied with a smile.

  “Then I am glad.” Armand replied that he was thrilled that he got it right the first time around but wasn’t going to admit that it was his first. The merchant saw through that and knew how to keep his client happy.

  The conversation died, but a new distraction arose as someone entered through the dungeon doors that lead to the royal library. The watcher stationed at the gate saw the familiar face of a certain elf. “Exactly on time,” the goblin whispered to himself; the grin had returned to his face.

  The elf had grown quite familiar with the dungeon and quickly made his way to the hall. “You are still fond of adopting random new friends, I see.” The elf glanced at the gaunt man seated at the large table.

  “True friends are a wealth that cannot be bought or sold, only stumbled upon by fate.” Armand replied. “Besides, you two should become acquainted.”

  “Then allow me to begin the introductions.” The ex-prisoner excitedly stood up, “Cassian Woe, at your service.” He took a deep bow to the elf across from him.

  “Theoden Oaken,” The elf replied and returned the bow. The merchant’s eyes lit up in sudden revelation.

  “Curious last name… Oaken, as in the keepers of the Ancient Oak Mage Tower?” Cassian inquired.

  “The very same; my father took up the mantle and it will be one day my own duty.” Thoeden replied, curious that a human was aware of his heritage. Armand sat by the side, soaking up the conversation like a dry sponge tossed into a pond.

  “It is a pleasure to meet a man destined for greatness.” The merchant smiled.

  “If you are bumping elbows with Armand, you most likely will be on a similar path.” The elf replied as he cast a side glance at the goblin, who was trying to look like he was reading but was clearly engaged in the conversation.

  “He has been a very hospitable host, and he will be a fantastic business partner.” Cassian laid on some honey, making the goblin blush internally at the compliment. After a deep breath, Armand collected himself, and his voice regained its steadiness.

  “Let’s get back to the matter at hand.” The goblin looked to the elf. “After installing the doorway, I need you to lead Cassian out of it and get him set up with the appropriate documents.”

  Theoden nodded. “We can get the appropriate documents made with your help, of course.” The elf placed some parchment down before the goblin. “This is a citizenship document.” He then placed another, “Merchantile License,” and a final third paper, “Finally, this is a diploma from a local school.”

  “And what am I to do?” The goblin looked over the papers; they all had different names and he did not see how this would help the merchant out.

  “Use your magic to recreate the documents and replace the names with Cassian’s.” Theoden clarified.

  “That is extremely illegal.” The merchant shuddered.

  “In the kingdom forgery is under penalty of incarceration,” Theoden concurred with the merchant. “Luckily we are not in the kingdom.” The merchant seemed to get the idea but still shuddered a little.

  Armand shrugged and got to the task, creating stacks of the documents but they ended up copying the original names. Causing him to frown. “Can’t use the dungeon’s copy ability directly,” he whispered to himself.

  He then imagined the paper before him but excluding the name, and a blank document appeared before him. Theoden reached out and picked up one of the documents. “Revealing lights illuminate the secrets within.” A blue flame sprouted from the finger that he held up to the document. Across the document remained unchanged.

  “Why are you doing that?” The goblin asked.

  “It is the way we prevent counterfeiting.” The elf grabbed one of the original documents and held the blue flame to it. Several lines appeared across the paper, forming a shield with a tree on it. “See, this is the crest of the kingdom.” He then raised the exact copy that the dungeon created, holding the blue flame to it; the same crest appeared.

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  “That’s amazing,” Armand couldn’t help but exclaim. The dungeon copies were truly exact copies of the original documents. Theoden, knowing about the nature of the dungeon, couldn’t help but nod in agreement with the goblin. Cassian looked confused but sat back and watched.

  “Perhaps an explanation is due,” the elf started, “that there is a hidden amount of mana within the parchment formed into the national crest.” That was more than enough, as the goblin channeled mana into his fingertip and traced the crest into the documents he created.

  “Done.” The goblin smiled in satisfaction as the flabbergasted Theoden lifted the parchment, and the exact recreation of the crest was illuminated under the blue light. The elf turned to the merchant.

  “Please do not use him for illegal efforts,” Theoden begged of Cassian.

  “I didn’t even feel comfortable watching him commit forgery.” The merchant replied with a shudder.

  “Your ethics is one to praise with all the temptation.” The elf applauded the man’s sense of integrity. The merchant smiled and nodded at the praise. “Now sign the documents and we will need to get you educated about elven culture.”

  The rest of the day was devoted to getting Cassian’s background, knowledge, and goals cemented. At the end of which the elf took his dungeon door and headed out. “I should make it home rather quickly; elves have developed a way to travel between the great trees through root structures.”

  “Most curious,” the goblin said with a smile, “Any books on the knowledge?” The grin quickly turned from curiosity to greed.

  “The knowledge is carved onto the World Tree, but no one is allowed to get a copy but maybe I can negotiate it as part of our deal.” The elf replied as he stood at the exit. Theodeon’s sentinel passed through the doorway and took the dimensional door from one of the goblin’s sentinels; they were too heavy for a normal person to carry after all.

  “How easy has it been to control your soul clone outside of the dungeon?” The goblin asked; he was curious how being in different dimensions affected the bond between them.

  “It feels like trying to talk to someone underwater—murky, but with enough effort, possible.” Replied the elf.

  “Thank you for sharing.” The goblin nodded. “How long till the door is installed?” The elf thought for a moment.

  “Two days to get there, one day to share the deal with elders, then who knows how long the negotiations will take.” Estimated the elf. With that, they parted.

  “So what till then?” Cassian asked, who had been quietly standing in the background giving the two some privacy.

  “Simple, we prepare your wares and a method for you to collect them,” the goblin replied with a smile. And so the next following days passed; he had to break his mithril into tiny ingots. Apparently the massive bars he had been making would have broken the economy of many kingdoms. The alchemical gold also had to be sold in extremely small quantities, more so than even mithril.

  Sunstones were also in hot demand in dwarven kingdoms. “What about my collection of grimoires?” The goblin asked the merchant one day.

  “They are extremely valuable, but we can’t sell whole books!” The man was binging on food and his pale, gaunt appearance was slowly becoming healthier. “Most magic is held in high regards by kingdoms, academies, and mage societies. The spreading of which is frowned upon because of how much it could change the balance of power.”

  “So fear of the loss of control.” The goblin understood what was being implied; after all, he had created a restricted section of his library for magics or knowledge to dangerous for the average person.

  “Exactly, the fear of the uncontrollable is the foundation of any society.” The merchant philosophically quipped. “We can do a slow release of simpler, less life-altering spells through single spell scrolls.”

  “That seems a lot safer.” The goblin nodded in agreement.

  “If the kingdom’s academies and societies grow curious, we could sell them a doorway to your library.” The merchant was already grinning at the possibilities and Armand, seeing said grin, knew he made the right choice. “Out of curiosity, do you have to leave through the same door you entered?” The merchant suddenly asked the gobin.

  “I do not know,” replied Armand. “The extra doors are more of a recent addition.” He looked over at the merchant. “You will be the first person to test out entering through one and exiting another.”

  “I’m thrilled,” the merchant said in a tone that showed he was clearly not excited to be a test subject once more. “How are we going to handle the transport of goods.”

  “That is something that needs testing,” the goblin replied, and he pulled out a circular ring and handed it to the merchant. “Can you move mana at all?”

  “A little…” the merchant replied. “I considered being a magician but lacked the skill in mana control so I turned to the under occupation requiring excellent memory.” Cassian flashed a smile as he complimented himself. He went to mobilize the mana but Armand stopped him.

  “I have not tested its use within the dungeon yet; this is just a prototype.” The goblin explained, “But perhaps you would like to assist me.”

  “Of course I will,” the merchant replied; his curiosity in magic was still there. Said assistance was more of a watching role rather than a participant. The goblin gestured to an alcove with a golden ring above it.

  “The ring there is connected to the ring in your hand; please hand it to the reader.” The goblin asked the merchant, who had no clue what a Reader was but assumed it was probably the floating iron eyeball before him. He felt an invisible hand take the ring and he in turn released it as he watched the construct float over to a pedestal, setting the ring upon it. “Now we activate the ring.”

  The Reader began to pump mana into it and the center of the circle distorted. The reader then dropped a bar of mithril through the circle and it plopped through to the other circle. The goblin smiled. Success. Now to test the other part of the creation.

  The construct infused in a bit more mana and the ring shut off and the disortiont disappeared. “Success!” The goblin exclaimed.

  “I see you’re excited, but I am curious: what is the revelation here?” The merchant inquired.

  “I have created a spell circle that allows for a connection to the dungeon but then can be canceled. The previous doorways could not be closed.”

  “I see.” Said Cassian, “That would be a serious security risk.” The goblin nodded in agreement.

  “It also allows me to create a portable doorway for you.” The goblin replied. “Now for the next phase.” He had a sentinel approach as the reader activated the golden ring. The sentinel reached his hand through the portal, and quite comically it appeared through the other ring in the alcove. It successfully retrieved the mithril bar and pulled it out.

  “This is revolutionary!” The merchant exclaimed at the development, “But I have a concern.” The goblin looked at him quizzically. “What happens if the portal closes with your hand through it?”

  “One way to find out…” The circle was activated again and the Sentinel stuck its hand through it. He then cut off the connection and the warp took hold and cleanly severed the Sentinel’s arm. The goblin looked to the horrified merchant. “There’s your answer; don’t do that.”