Chapter 7

Merchant Lajin led He Boqiang to the entrance of a canvas tent and lifted the flap. Inside, it was a massive warehouse.

Large wooden crates were stacked together, with many of them labeled in different languages.

At the entrance, an uncovered wooden crate was placed. He Boqiang glanced inside and saw a large leg bone lying at the bottom, covered in black magic patterns. These patterns seemed to have a life of their own, slowly wriggling on the bone. He Boqiang felt dizzy just from one look.

"This is a temporary warehouse for low-grade magical materials. I'll have someone put a wooden bed in here for you," Lajin said to He Boqiang.

"You'll be living here from now on, temporarily guarding this warehouse. Your daily task will be to count the incoming supplies, and from time to time, carriages will transport these supplies to Handanar County."

He Boqiang nodded.

The interior of the tent was much larger than it appeared from the outside, and it had a faint smell of grease. He Boqiang walked past the stacked wooden crates to the end of the tent, where he found a pile of swords and shields. These were almost all standard military weapons, and he was surprised to find so many military supplies in such a small caravan.

He Boqiang couldn't resist picking up a knight's shield from the weapon rack, holding it in front of his chest and swinging it, producing a series of dull sounds.

On the weapon rack, there were several heavy Roman swords with ancient bronze handles adorned with simple patterns. However, these patterns were purely decorative, and He Boqiang didn't feel the dizziness he experienced from the black magic patterns on the leg bone. The Roman sword blades were less than three feet long but were exceptionally heavy.

He Boqiang reached out and gripped the heavy Roman sword, lifting it from the weapon rack. He felt his movements were incredibly smooth, and the moment he held the hilt, it felt like a long-lost sensation. He skillfully swung the sword and effortlessly returned it to the rack.

"Do you like these weapons?" Lajin asked, his eyes brightening as if he had discovered a treasure.

He Boqiang nodded.

Then his gaze fell on the other weapon racks. In addition to the row of Roman swords, there were a few dark-bladed daggers with brown leather handles that would be very comfortable to grip. Near the main support pole in the center of the tent, there were about a dozen Pagliu long spears, fully metal and used only by heavily armored infantry.

Lajin seemed to trust Suldak and wasn't worried about He Boqiang living in a tent filled with weapons and magical materials.

Lajin continued, "Do you know how to maintain these weapons? You need to take them out regularly, clean them, and apply some animal fat to the blades."

As he spoke, he took out a greasy cloth and vigorously wiped a Roman sword, demonstrating for He Boqiang.

He Boqiang took the greasy cloth but didn't wipe the Roman sword like Lajin. Instead, he picked up a bar of whetstone from the weapon rack, skillfully sharpened the blade, and then carefully wiped it with the oil cloth.

Lajin gave He Boqiang a satisfied look and patted his shoulder, saying, "Very good. From now on, you'll be responsible for maintaining the weapons."

The warehouse was filled with the musty smell of decaying bones, and Lajin didn't want to stay inside for too long. He led He Boqiang out of the tent and said at the entrance:

"Oh, by the way, we have two meals a day. You can choose to bring your food back here or eat with everyone else. As for your pay, we'll start with fifteen silver coins per week. If you perform well, I'll give you a raise. If you want to try it, go ahead."

Clearly, Lajin was giving He Boqiang a chance because of Suldak and wasn't being overly harsh.

Fifteen silver coins per week was a decent salary for the middle to upper class of the civilian population in the Green Empire, but for a war zone like Handanar County, it was on the low side. This was likely He Boqiang's trial period salary, with the possibility of a small raise later.

After giving these instructions, Lajin joined the crowd on the commercial street and chatted familiarly with two warriors in chainmail.

He Boqiang squatted at the tent entrance, watching the bustling market, his mind filled with uncertainty about the future.

...

At the campsite, a knight's light shield, two daggers, three Roman swords, and a Pagliu long spear were displayed on a stall. Gabi squatted behind the stall, yawning out of boredom, and kept tossing two copper coins up and down. Even as soldiers passed by, Gabi didn't try to sell them anything, waiting for someone to stop on their own.

The standard military weapons and equipment were the property of Count Munde Goss. Even if some weapons were damaged in battle, the soldiers could replace them from the logistics department, provided they had a valid reason.

However, there was a difference between standard military weapons and these high-quality ones. If the standard military knives were too light, the club-like Roman swords were a good alternative. After watching for a while, no one came to ask about the prices, and Lajin didn't seem to care much about the stall's business. Gabi, who was guarding the stall, also seemed indifferent.

He Boqiang felt that Lajin didn't expect the stall to make much money.

The muscular Ulysses, who had been humbled by He Boqiang, was now very quiet and silently went to sleep in the tent.

Gabi, the curly-haired boy, turned and waved to He Boqiang. He Boqiang walked to the stall and squatted behind it, mimicking Gabi's posture. On the stall, in addition to the weapons, there were some whetstones and other items. Near Gabi, there were two small black-patterned skins and a few dark, egg-shaped stones.

He Boqiang picked up one of the egg-sized black stones.

"These are magic cores," Gabi said, pointing to his head and smiling strangely. "They are dug out from the brains of demons. However, these are a bit small, and people don't believe they contain magic crystals. Only those with magic crystals are valuable. Buying magic cores is like gambling. If you get a magic crystal, you win; otherwise, you end up with a worthless piece of rock."

Gabi scratched his curly hair, which looked like hay, and pointed to a pile of smaller magic cores, saying, "These cost fifty silver coins each."

He then pointed to another pile of fist-sized magic cores, saying, "These are more expensive, about one gold coin each. Many people in the camp like to gamble on these."

Hearing this, He Boqiang thought buying magic cores was similar to gambling on jade.

Gabi magically produced a piece of beef jerky and handed it to He Boqiang, then threw another piece into his own mouth. He said to He Boqiang, "I hope you don't mind what happened earlier. Ulysses doesn't have bad intentions; he just likes to wrestle with people."

He sat down behind the stall and introduced himself to He Boqiang, "Actually, our daily work is quite simple. I watch the stall, and Ulysses guards at night. We only get busy after a victory, but there hasn't been much fighting recently."

Gabi had a few brown freckles on his cheeks and a high nose, but he was a bit thin. Like Lajin, once he started talking, he couldn't stop: "I don't think you're from Benar, are you...?"