Hi Alone
An old member of VL, right?
You should try to get the Steam version of Atulos as updates will only be available there. The premier version on Steam is a DLC; you should request a Product Key by PM to Steve. That way you can activate it.
I have no clue about your issue with not being able to enter Merc while being able to complete quests - unless there is something very strange happening. I would recomend you to get the steam premier version first - if the issue persists, you may want to get in contact again with Steve, he LOVES to deal with bugs XD
Kindest Regards
Aerith