Foreign Trade

After following the stream upstream for about five or six li, Penny, who was leading the way, suddenly turned left. They crossed a tree-covered hill and came upon another valley, its entrance blocked by dense shrubs. A path had been hacked through it with a short knife.

After following the valley for several more li, they came upon another mountain stream. From here, they could clearly see the small iron mine Penny had found: a small, exposed deposit that was easy to miss.

All in all, Li Wei had no idea how he would have found this iron deposit himself.

Only someone as tenacious as Penny, with the boost from her profession card, could have found it. But the price she'd paid to do so—good grief!

"This is the iron mine. It's not hard to extract the ore. Just knock it loose with a pickaxe, break it up, and carry it away. The hard part is hauling it back."

"You'll also need to watch out for wild animals in these woods. A few days ago, I heard wolves howling again. And don't provoke the wild boars. So far, I haven't seen any larger beasts, like bears or tigers."

Penny spoke quickly. Near the open-air vein, Li Wei also saw a crude stone shelter. The scenery all around them was beautiful, with dense forest everywhere. Some leaves had already begun to turn yellow, but most of the trees were still lush and green.

This was the finest season of the year, and the season of harvest.

After setting down their baskets, Li Wei, Penny, and Mixi each took a pickaxe. They placed their iron spears within easy reach and began their usual mining.

The Small Blast Furnace Penny had made needed around a hundred pounds of iron ore every day on average, and it didn't produce much steel. By every measure, it was an outdated piece of equipment, but in their current circumstances, it was surprisingly advanced.

In three to five days, Penny and Mixi would focus on smelting iron and making steel tools and weapons. Li Wei would be solely responsible for mining. A hundred pounds of iron ore counted as one unit, and he would need to work for ten days straight to finish this month's Main Quest.

This was going to be tough!

After a spell of autumn rain, the air turned chilly. The lush greenery that had run wild since midsummer finally gave way, and the hills were blanketed in red.

It was now the twenty-fifth day of the month. Over the past twelve days, Li Wei had mined a total of twelve units of iron ore, earning 120 mining experience and two Family Contribution Points.

Ten units of iron ore were required for the monthly Main Quest. The other two could either be donated to the family or counted toward the Main Quest. Either way, each unit earned one Family Contribution Point, so it made no difference.

But today was an important day. Penny planned to lead the group on their first trade expedition, which was undoubtedly one of the most important events for their family.

So Phila had started preparing a few days ago. She had made jerky, ground the new wheat into flour and baked it into gray, lumpy bread, and packed a variety of dried fruits that were ready to eat. It all filled a large bundle.

That was their food.

As for the weapons and armor they would take, Penny had finally made a Recurve Bow, though she wasn't sure whether it was any good. Still, it had far more draw weight than the Hunting Bow.

She had also forged five steel Broadhead Arrows for Li Wei, so at this point, he had no real weaknesses in his equipment.

However, Li Wei brought his Hunting Bow along as well as the Recurve Bow. The Recurve Bow was too delicate, while the Hunting Bow was rugged and reliable, making it a good choice for hunting.

Over the past few days, Mixi had also shown off her skills. She had actually managed to make a small Chainmail vest. Well, it had taken so little time that it fit her perfectly, and with a Wolf Skin cloak over it, she looked rather like a tank charging into battle.

Mixi had prepared a small mace for herself, along with a wooden shield made of oak.

Judging by the way she could swing a hammer at the forge, was she planning to become a warrior?

In any case, she'd used the excuse of completing the monthly Main Quest to arm herself. She was quite the schemer.

As for Penny, she had prepared only an iron spear, a short knife, and a large basket. Inside were the goods they planned to sell or trade this time.

There wasn't much, really: two finely made, razor-sharp steel daggers that Li Wei considered excellent, and one smallish object wrapped in cloth.

Yes, just those three things. They were what the family had managed to accumulate over the past month. He wasn't sure whether that was meager, but the success rate at the forge had been nowhere near as high as he'd imagined.

Those two steel daggers alone had been reforged who knew how many times.

But Li Wei had a hunch that the main attraction of Penny's trade expedition was the mysterious object wrapped in cloth.

Could it be a crossbow?

A ripple passed through his heart. It was probably, maybe, more or less that thing.

Why all the secrecy? Was this world really set in a medieval European-like setting, where crossbows were forbidden? Was that what made them more profitable?

Without wasting any more time, Li Wei, Penny, and Mixi set off in silence in the faint light of dawn.

Penny was still leading the way, since she was the only one who knew the route.

They headed south along a small stream. The water babbled, and the surrounding area was peaceful, but the dew was heavy. As the morning light grew brighter, the mist thickened until they could no longer see the distant mountains.

Then, as if by magic, the mist gradually disappeared, and golden sunlight poured down. Li Wei felt almost dazed.

At around eight in the morning, the three of them had already covered more than twenty li. The mountain range that had been running alongside them gradually lowered, and ahead lay a broad mountain pass. After going around it and crossing several low hills, the view opened up before them. They could see dozens of li into the distance.

Across that vast landscape, they could make out a river, a plain, and a forest. Far off, they could even just barely see a fortress with low walls. Was that Kahe Castle?

Li Wei was excited, and Mixi was too. Penny, however, led them in another direction without a change in expression. This wasn't a flat plain but a rugged trail, and the slopes grew steeper. The only good news was that the path looked well traveled.

Li Wei didn't understand why, but he didn't ask. Penny wouldn't put him or Mixi in danger; that was one of the core rules of the game. Still, they had to guard against unforeseen incidents.

As he kept glancing around, he took the bowstring from inside his clothes, then took out the similarly wrapped Recurve Bow. He had kept them wrapped to protect them from moisture. The morning dew was heavy, and it could badly damage the bow and string.

Precision and stability were what he valued most, so he couldn't afford to be careless about the details. Even a tiny flaw could cause an error—and that might be the difference between life and death.

But the area around them was actually quiet. Even in spots that looked perfect for an ambush, there was no sign of danger.

They continued onward, crossing ridge after ridge. By the time noon arrived, Li Wei estimated that they had covered thirty or forty li of mountain trails since turning off earlier. He was just about to suggest that they take a break and eat when he suddenly spotted a thin wisp of smoke rising from a hollow ahead.

A home?

There was a village in a place so remote even rabbits wouldn't shit there?

Or—bandits?

No way!

Li Wei was stunned. Even Mixi's expression turned uncertain, but Penny remained as calm as ever.

"Penny, we need to know what your plan is," Mixi couldn't help asking. She was an experienced player who had already cleared the game once, but even she couldn't figure out what Penny was up to. They were ignoring the castle market and heading into the mountains to look for bandits? Was she kidding?