Chapter 5: as broke as a cactus
"There might have been something I hadn’t considered when making my calculations..." Astra muttered, her gaze fixed on the marketplace price board above.
Towering buildings of patched iron loomed around her, their jagged edges silhouetted against the sky. Stalls made from ancient intergalactic cargo boxes lined the street, bustling with life.
"12 Trian ₮ / 20 Solari..." she sighed, shoulders slumping. "I don’t have either of those."
"Oi!" a pudgy woman behind a stall barked, her grease-streaked apron amplifying her scowl. "If you’re not buying, move aside!"
"R-right, sorry!" Astra stammered, shuffling away as someone else took her place.
Wandering into the middle of the road, Astra folded her arms and tapped her forearm, her eyes barely registering the flickering road sign above.
[Notice!]
[You can farm for silicon out in the fields.]
The idea of working under the blazing sun soured her mood further. She pressed her thumb to her lips, lost in thought, until a sharp buzz from the road sign jolted her back.
"What the hell..." she muttered as the crowd scattered to the sides.
[Notice!]