Ch 4: Buying Slaves, Arriving At The Mountains
After bidding farewell to Lady Ellie, Martin went out of his way to visit Captain Vali at the military camp. A short while later, he left the camp alone and rejoined Betan and his party who were waiting outside.
Immediately afterwards, escorted by a small squad of military camp soldiers, the group proceeded towards the Luoqiu Mountain Range in a large procession.
Along the way, they passed through villages and crossed fields. Commoners and serfs, upon seeing this team of knights and soldiers, respectfully bowed.
Thanks to the horses’ speed, they arrived near the Luoqiu Mountain Range in just half an hour.
This place was originally just a small village, but as the number of people coming and going increased, it gradually expanded into a small town.
This expansion in scale was also approved by the Earl. Most of those who came here were free mercenaries, and some others who were hoping to get rich overnight.
The gathering of personnel naturally gave rise to various transactions, among which, the slave trade was particularly booming.
The Town Mayor, having learned in advance of Martin’s impending visit, was waiting at the town entrance.
When Martin, riding his horse, led the group closer, the Town Mayor hastily stepped forward, his face beaming with smiles, respectfully bowing.
Looking at the fawning Town Mayor, Martin asked, “Town Mayor, I’m new to Luoqiu Town. I hear that the slave trade here is very prosperous, so I’d like to visit the slave market and select some slaves.”
The Town Mayor quickly bowed and replied, “Rest assured, Master Martin! I wouldn’t dare guarantee anything else, but I’m very familiar with the slave trade. I’ll take you to the largest and best slave market in town.”
Walking into the town, the sounds of merchants hawking their wares rose and fell, and the sounds of children laughing and playing were incessant.
Mercenaries and townspeople, seeing the Town Mayor leading a group of people with a fawning expression, consciously moved aside, fearing that they might inadvertently displease the Noble Lord and be cut down with a sword.
Former commoners from the villages also bowed to the Town Mayor and Martin’s party.
In a short while, they arrived at the trading market.
Seeing this spectacle, the slave owners rushed out to watch the excitement. “Which Noble Lord is this? Such a grand display!” a slave owner curiously asked.
A person nearby glanced at him and whispered, “You don’t even recognize him? This is the Earl’s son, Martin White, I believe. He’s the Earl’s fifth child.”
“In the Earl’s Territory, you may not recognize all the other Nobles, but you must know the Earl and his offspring, otherwise, if you offend them someday, you won’t even know how you died.”
Another mercenary listened and said disdainfully, “You think you can offend him? You probably won’t even get close to him, you wouldn’t even have the opportunity to offend him!”
The mercenaries and slave owners whispered amongst themselves. In this continent with its strict class system, if a noble disliked someone, they could take their life at will, and that person would have nowhere to appeal.
The Town Mayor summoned the manager of the slave market—the Tax Official. The Tax Official was specifically responsible for overseeing the slave trade and collecting taxes, and was intimately familiar with the situation in the market.
Martin explained his requirements to the Tax Official, who immediately scurried between the various slave owners’ stalls. In a short while, he brought various slave owners and slaves who met the requirements to Martin.
Martin examined each slave individually. After a round of selection, he found that only 26 Half-Orcs and 60 Orcs met the standard.
He carefully selected again, only barely managing to gather 100 people. After paying, the group continued towards the Luoqiu Mountain Range.
Martin knew that cultivating talent was not a matter of a day or two, so he did not intend to invest too many resources in these slaves.
There were many Foreign Races and slaves in the Luoqiu Mountain Range. Even if these Orcs were used and discarded, he wouldn’t feel heartache, provided they achieved his goals and his gold coins weren’t wasted.
Because the group was carrying 100 slaves, their speed was much slower. It wasn’t until around 5 pm that they finally reached the Luoqiu Mountain Range pass.
Betan looked at the sky and said, “Young Master, it seems there’s no time to go in today. Shall we rest for a night and enter the mountain tomorrow?”
But Martin shook his head and said firmly, “No, we must go in at night; only then will we have a chance to capture those monsters. Only live monsters can fetch a good price.
Now, everyone, rest in place.” He then called a Knight Attendant and had him ride back to inform the Butler that they would not be returning to the castle that night.
Translator’s Blog
Blog
- Quitting Your Waifus Cold Turkey: Can You ACTUALLY Choose Adulting Over 2D?
- Scrolling Through Reddit: “My dog got into the Chinese take-out before I did”
- Anime With Good Plot, But One Thing Makes It Unwatchable: My ‘Black Clover’ Criticism
- Why You Can Read Light Novels But Can’t Speak English: A Guide to Unlocking Your Inner Voice
- My Classmate’s Waifu Obsession: Is it Cringe or Just…Weird?
Leave a Reply