CHAPTER 320: CHAPTER-320

He indicated the gem earring next. "This one glows faintly at night. It helps you find your jewelry in darkness, but also symbolizes calmness and serenity, like moonlight on still water."

Finally, he gestured to the moon-and-ocean carving. "The sun and moon—see, normally it represents lovers. The moon revolves around the earth, and the earth revolves around the sun , here sun represnt female and moon male. They cannot stay apart, for life itself depends on them. Without their cycle, nothing would continue."

Kaya blinked. She hadn’t expected them to understand such abstract ideas, much less translate them into jewelry. "Revolve...? What does that mean?"

The vendor chuckled, brushing his hand lightly. "Ah, a story passed down for generations. Long ago, a famous poet described the world: the sun is vast, and our little ball—this Earth—spins around it, while the moon revolves around us. That knowledge has traveled for centuries. Some call it miracle or just bluff, some call it story, but the meaning remains."

Kaya stared, impressed.

As time passed, Kaya kept thinking about what she had just heard. She had never expected to encounter such interesting knowledge. The concept was so... modern. Someone from another time must have passed this knowledge down. How else could it all match up so perfectly?

She considered other possibilities. Could it have been someone from this world who stumbled upon it? No, that didn’t make sense. No, it had to be someone from a modern era. After all, how else could anyone explain that everything revolved around one center so precisely?

Buying the earrings had cost her barely the equivalent of 200 grams of meat—easily covered by what she already had. On the way here, Veer and Cutie had hunted some game; Veer did the hunting while Cutie stayed on the sidelines, storing the meat carefully in a basket. It wasn’t a big deal.

Kaya continued walking through the marketplace. The ceramics, pots, and ordinary items caught her eye, but she ignored them—no point in buying things that would break or that she had no room to carry.

Then she stopped at a clothes stall, and her attention was immediately captured. She had seen cotton clothes and hide garments before, gifts from Veer, but these were different. The textures alone were intriguing. Cotton, yes. Hides, yes, with prints—dots, tiger patterns, and more. But the intricate designs stole her attention: flowers, golden patterns that shimmered, geometric boxes, all perfectly integrated into the fabric. They weren’t embroidered or stitched in—no, the designs seemed part of the material itself, polished and gleaming, radiating class and elegance.

Her eyes then landed on silk. There weren’t many, but the colors were rich—red, white, deep black, and a midnight blue that drew her in. Still, her focus remained on the clothes with intricate designs.

"Excuse me," Kaya called.

The vendor, a middle-aged woman with a serene, chaste appearance, turned to look at her, then glanced behind at the others’ clothes. She smiled warmly.

"Oh my, come, come! Dear customer, how can I help you? Some hide? Some clothes? Let me show you the patterns." She gestured at Kaya’s cotton attire. "You’re wearing cotton—nice, very nice. Made by the monkey tribe. Beautifully stitched. And your pants—also from that tribe. Stunning patterns."

Kaya blinked, astounded. How does she know all this?

Seeing her expression, the woman chuckled. "Sweetheart, mama knows everything."

Kaya froze. Mama?

The woman smiled and tapped her chest. "I’m mama, darling. See? Mama knows everything."

Kaya’s confusion melted into a nod. Ah... so that’s why she said mama.

The woman looked at Kaya and smiled warmly. "Hmm, a darker blue silk or blue cotton would look gorgeous on you. Let me show you."

She brought over two bundles, one of rich blue cotton, the other of deep blue silk. Kaya ran her fingers over the fabric, feeling the smoothness and the weight. "What is this color made from?" she asked, genuinely curious.

The woman’s smile widened. "It’s colored with a permanent dye from a plant called neel. We take it from the head of the plant to get this beautiful blue. Don’t worry—it won’t fade."

Kaya paused, her mind racing. Neel... She remembered reading about it in history books. "But... doesn’t the needle color fade after washing?" she asked, a note of skepticism in her voice.

"Oh, my! You really know a lot about this dye, huh?" the woman said with a chuckle.

Kaya nodded. "Ah, yes... just a tiny bit. Tiny bit."

The woman leaned closer. "Sweetheart, we treat the dye with a special syrup. After that, the color stays. And even if it does fade slightly, you can just soak the cloth in neel water again, and the color comes back perfectly."

Kaya’s eyes lit up. She remembered her own world—how they dyed white shirts with neel from Asia to make sky-blue clothes, reusing the dye over and over. She had even done it herself and heard stories from friends. Now she realized this method was very similar.

Then her gaze shifted to the intricate designs embroidered—or rather, integrated—into the fabrics. "What are these?" she asked, pointing.

The woman’s eyes sparkled. "Oh! Those? See, those are made from snake skin."

Kaya froze. "Snake skin...? Like actual snake skin?"

The woman nodded. "Yes! When snakes shed, their skins come off. We treat them, dye them, and craft them into these beautiful fabrics."

Kaya was dumbfounded. She had seen snakes shed their skin before, but it was always thin, transparent, and pale. She had never imagined it could be transformed into such vibrant, sturdy, and intricate materials. An animal’s skin... made into clothes? She shook her head slightly, still trying to wrap her mind around it.

The vendor noticed Kaya’s wide-eyed expression and laughed, playfully covering her mouth. "Oh my dear, I see you’re amazed! These clothes are truly high quality—and quite pricey too."

Kaya pulled back slightly, her curiosity piqued. "Why? Is there anything special about it, aside from the design?"

The vendor smiled knowingly. "Ah, yes. These garments are special. Even if it rains in spring, they won’t get wet. And when you wear them, they feel refreshingly cool on the skin. That’s why so many women come to buy them—it’s both practical and beautiful."