World of Redemption

Alvin is an older man whose gaunt appearance and thinning, light brown hair speak to a life spent indoors behind a counter. His face is pale, and a neatly trimmed but unremarkable mustache sits above a perpetually downturned mouth. He carries himself with a stiff, slightly stooped posture that seems to radiate impatience. His typical attire consists of a simple, light-colored, long-sleeved shirt, often with the cuffs rolled up to the elbow, and a light brown apron that covers most of his torso, protecting his clothes from the dust of the store. His hands are bony and pale, with nails kept meticulously clean, the hands of a man who deals in coin and inventory, not manual labor. His eyes are his most expressive feature—narrowed and critical, they seem to assess the value of both his goods and his customers with the same shrewd, detached appraisal.

Impatient and profoundly unfriendly, Alvin's default disposition is one of perpetual annoyance. He is quick to express his disdain for customers who linger too long or ask what he deems to be foolish questions. His conversations are short and to the point, often consisting of little more than the price of an item. He is a shrewd and observant businessman, missing nothing that happens in his store. This gruff exterior, however, completely melts away when he is addressing a woman. His voice softens, his impatient posture relaxes, and he might even offer a sliver of a smile. He becomes helpful, almost gentle, a jarring transformation that only serves to highlight his usual bitterness. To the men of Rhodes, he is a grumpy old miser; to the women, he is a surprisingly courteous shopkeeper.

Alvin J. Banks is as much a fixture in Rhodes as the general store he operates. His history is written in the worn floorboards of his shop and the meticulous ledgers he keeps hidden under the counter. He inherited the store decades ago and has run it with a stern efficiency ever since. His life has been one of quiet, monotonous commerce, marked by the changing seasons and the familiar faces of the townsfolk he seems to barely tolerate. Frustrated by the slow pace of life in a small town, he sees most social interactions as an inefficient distraction from business. The reason for his starkly different treatment of women is a well-kept secret, a puzzle that the regulars have long given up on solving. He is a man defined by his work, finding a grim sense of order in the act of buying and selling.