Chapter 73

This is a secret that has been passed down in the dwarf kingdom.

The birth of every divine craftsman is a blessing from the Earth Goddess to the dwarf kingdom. The importance placed on rune dwarves is evident; almost every rune dwarf is treated like a child of the gods.

Especially for ordinary dwarf families, if a rune dwarf is born, the family will be provided with an endless supply of fine wine by the dwarf king—what more could a dwarf want?

For a dwarf who loves alcohol, the greatest pleasure of intimacy is like a lottery, where one can always draw a ticket for an endless supply of fine wine.

If you ask why Tang En knows about the rune dwarves, do you really need to ask?

The so-called rune dwarves are the compromise made by the official side in response to player protests about the lack of a mage class for the dwarf race!

Thus, the officials, without any sense of propriety, waved their hands and bestowed the blessing of the Earth Goddess, resulting in the rare appearance of rune dwarves among the dwarf race.

A full ninety percent of rune dwarves are actually dwarf mage players...

Bryan, of course, had no idea what Tang En was thinking at the moment. He was stroking his warhammer, considering whether to strike Tang En and silence him...

After much deliberation, he gave up.

Because he felt he couldn't beat Tang En.

After Tang En figured it out, he was delighted: "So that's why dwarves are better craftsmen than humans!"

The quality of dwarf-made items is better than that of human-made items, and the key reason is—dwarf forges have a higher temperature than human forges!

Because of the higher temperature, iron ore is smelted more thoroughly, with fewer impurities, making it more durable.

To be honest, the skill gap between the two sides isn't that significant.

"Come, let's go out for a bit."

Tang En patted Bryan's head: "Let's try to smelt a batch of steel."

"Don't touch my head!!!"

Bryan was furious, but as soon as he heard what Tang En said, he immediately turned from anger to joy: "Now?"

"Let's manually make a batch to test it out; I'm not sure if it will succeed."

Bryan didn't care about that and shouted at Edgar: "Keep an eye on those guys, don't let them slack off!"

"Relax, I will!"

Edgar secretly grumbled that if Bryan didn't always drink and slack off in front of them, they wouldn't slack off either!

Tang En led Bryan out of the blacksmith's shop. Not far from the exit, they saw a group of people queuing outside a shop. Upon closer inspection, Tang En was surprised: "They're selling... soap and mint candies?"

"Yep."

Bryan shrugged: "Fiona said you weren't making money, and she was worried. Then her people came, and after some discussion, they opened this shop to sell soap and mint candies."

"Her name is Fiona... Are you doing this on purpose?"

Bryan chuckled: "Caught me?"

"Indeed..." Tang En rolled his eyes; even the most stupid person wouldn't forget a name for so long, "It seems quite popular?"

"Yes, somehow the effectiveness of the soap spread, and people started asking where they could buy it. Fiona took the opportunity to start selling it."

Tang En shrugged, not too concerned about it. There's no such thing as a completely secret matter. Not to mention that Tina and the others aren't good at keeping secrets, the people working in the workshop would inadvertently spread some news, and it's normal for others to find out.

At this moment, Tang En suddenly saw Locke and his subordinates, so he went over to greet them: "Hey, Locke."

"Mr. Tang En... Oh? A dwarf?"

Locke was surprised to see a dwarf next to Tang En. He bowed to Bryan: "The earth is always beneath our feet, my friend, may your beard be as lush as the Tree of Life."

He actually noticed me!

At this moment, Bryan felt like crying. He was often ignored when with Tang En and had almost gotten used to it. Hearing Locke's greeting, Bryan was very happy and patted his shoulder: "The earth is always beneath our feet, may your journey be as passionate as a hammer and anvil!"

Tang En smiled: "What are you doing here? Do you also want to buy some souvenirs?"

"No, I was just curious because there are so many people queuing here."

Locke smiled: "Although your territory is a bit... quiet, I didn't expect so many people to gather here. What are they buying?"

"Mint candies, soap, um..."

Tang En glanced and was surprised to see that mint essence was also on sale: "And mint essence."

Locke asked curiously: "What are these things?"

Tang En's eyes twinkled, and he immediately enthusiastically pulled Locke toward the shop: "Dude, have you heard of Amway... ah, I mean, have you heard of mint candies?"

"Mint candies? What are those?"

"Lord!"

The employees in the shop hurriedly bowed to Tang En. Tang En nodded, indicating for them to continue working, then took a handful of mint candies and handed them to Locke: "These are mint candies, they taste pretty good, try them."

Locke hesitated for a moment, then shared them with the people around him and ate them.

Immediately, they froze, the impact of the mint candies on their mouths was something they couldn't imagine, as if opening a new world.

"This, this is—"

Locke's lips trembled: "What kind of magic is this!"

"It's not magic, just mint candies."

Tang En ate one himself and smiled: "How does it taste?"

"Hard to describe, but..."

Locke closed his eyes, savoring the fresh and sweet taste of the mint candies as they rolled in his mouth. After a moment, he sighed: "Wonderful, incredible, like a blessing from the gods, making one unable to stop."

"Like it? If you like it, take some?"

Tang En enthusiastically promoted the mint candies: "Ten for a silver coin, very cheap."

"Ten for a silver coin!?"

Locke was shocked: "This is cheap!?"

In Plandar, a bag of imperial standard flour, about 40 pounds, costs one gold coin, enough to feed a family for a month.

Ten silver coins are enough for a hearty lunch with wine and meat at a decent tavern, but here, ten silver coins can only buy a hundred of these candies!?

"Expensive? No, not at all. Where else can you buy this besides from me?"

Tang En still smiled: "Even if you buy them and don't eat them yourself, you can resell them in other cities and make a profit."

Locke, who was initially hesitant, suddenly had a bright idea after hearing Tang En's words.

At this moment, a female team member frowned: "Locke, don't forget we're not a trading caravan..."

"I know, but it doesn't hurt to make a little profit, right?"

Locke was tempted.

Tang En chuckled and continued: "See this? This is soap."

"What's it for?"

"To clean things."

"Is that all?"

Locke was disappointed.

"Is that not enough?"

Tang En smiled and clapped his hands: "Oh, right, I forgot to mention, this soap has strong cleaning power, much better than Kanay. The most important thing is, after using soap, 'there is no smell at all.'"

Tang En emphasized "no smell at all."

Locke's eyes lit up: "Really!?"

"Of course, if you want a scented one, you can choose this mint soap, but it's a bit more expensive."

Tang En just said it offhand, knowing that Locke would only buy regular soap.

Mercenaries who frequently enter forests often encounter dangerous monsters, and the most fatal factor is the smell of humans. Sweat and body odor can become fatal factors at any time.

If soap can completely remove the smell from clothes and bodies, their safety during missions would be greatly improved.

"How much is a bar of soap?"

Tang En smiled: "Not expensive, ten silver coins per bar, it lasts a long time."

"Ten silver coins per bar..."

Locke said: "We'll talk about the mint candies later, but for the soap, I'll take ten bars!"

"Sure, that will be one gold coin."

Tang En smiled and took a gold coin, then handed him ten wrapped bars of soap: "Take care, by the way, a friendly tip: when taking a bath, it's best to bathe alone. If several people bathe together, don't bend down to pick up the soap."

Locke was confused but nodded solemnly: "I'll remember that."

After packing the soap, Locke looked at the small bottles of essence and asked eagerly: "What's this? What special use does it have?"

"This is mint essence."

Tang En shrugged: "It's not very useful for men, it's specifically for women. After bathing, they can apply it to their skin to make it whiter and smoother, and it has a mint scent, making them look younger and more beautiful."

Locke was disappointed: "Is that it? It doesn't seem very useful..."

"Locke..."

What Locke didn't expect was that the female team member who had just stopped him was now staring at the mint essence with shining eyes.

"Oh my, Greta, you wouldn't..."

Greta glared at Locke: "What, can't I! I'm a mercenary, but I'm also a woman!"

Locke, flustered, said: "Fine, fine! I'll buy, I'll buy!"

Tang En smiled brightly: "Ten silver coins per bottle."

"By the gods, Lord, you must be a demon! Just a small bottle of water, and it costs ten silver coins!"

"Buy it if you want, don't if you don't..."

"I'll buy it! I'll buy it!"

Locke, under Greta's stare, dared not say no and had to buy a bottle of essence, which made Greta very happy.

After watching Locke and his team leave, Bryan chuckled: "Bro, I bet that Locke and Greta have something going on."

"Of course, even mercenaries need to satisfy their physiological needs."

Tang En rolled his eyes: "This is the first time Ellington's products are being sold externally, a cause for celebration, a cause for celebration... Damn, almost forgot the main thing, let's go, to smelt steel!"