Thalina squinted at the glowing screen, her heart racing. A store? A wholestore? She could have been shopping this entire time?!
She scanned the list, her fingers twitching. FirestarterPebble, Self-PurifyingFlask, All-TerrainBoots... All useful, all affordable—but something was missing.
Her eyes snapped to the bottom.
Barrier Talisman (???)
Rebirth Elixir (???)
Dragon's Breath Pistol (???)
Her brows furrowed. "What's with the question marks?"
The screen flickered.
"You do not meet the requirements to view these items."
Thalina narrowed her eyes. "What requirements?"
A pause. Then—
"You are too poor and too weak."
The room went silent.
Even Vanora froze mid-chew, a tiny piece of fruit slipping from her mouth.
Thalina's eyelid twitched. A slow, deep inhale filled her lungs, her grip on the floating screen tightening as if she could physically strangle the system.
Vanora, sensing danger, bolted behind a pillow.
