Caravan

Caravan

Poverty—this word almost encompassed William's entire life right now.

Even though William had once scraped by in Border Town, he had no idea whether there was a gold mine here. After all, he was a player; he could pay attention to rare mineral veins, but gold mines?

What was the point of paying attention to them?

Could he rob one? Or dig one himself? No chance...

But the possibility of a gold mine should exist. After all, Blackleaf Forest's super-rich mineral veins were no mere rumor.

As long as they could truly discover a gold mine and completely control it, they could refine gold and mint gold coins themselves from then on. As long as the gold content reached 90%, they would be accepted throughout the entire Legendary Continent.

It had to be said that Border Town was fortunate.

The natural barrier over eighty meters high was key to preventing incursions from the other Human Duchies. The only way up from below was through several winding, steep cliff paths. For a small army to climb up here would be no different from delivering their heads from a thousand miles away.

Yet climbing the mountain was difficult, and descending it was just as exhausting. Aside from using ziplines, manually operated hanging ladders, or mountain paths, there was only the Leap of Faith...

After all, Rainbow River Falls had existed for a long time.

The waterfall formed by its plunge had tremendous impact. The pool below was extremely deep, though not wide enough, and solid rocks stood beside it.

As long as one had the courage.

A single Leap of Faith could easily take one down the mountain...

As for whether one lived or died, that depended entirely on one's posture. William had jumped several times himself and... hadn't died Ｏ(≧▽≦)Ｏ.

But it was precisely the issue of the cliffs that limited trade between Border Town and the Human Duchies. Apart from the officially organized trade held once a month, they could only rely on wandering caravans.

But wandering merchants were all profit-seeking sorts. They sought gain along the borders of human nations and ventured through forests and grasslands as well.

Most importantly, they were not merely merchants. Every now and then, they would indulge in a little roleplay and act as bandits.

Kuri was the leader of a caravan. As a level 41 Warrior who had just entered the intermediate tier, he led over thirty men up the winding, steep path. At the cost of one horse, they finally arrived at Border Town.

Having reached the top of the cliff, Kuri gazed out across the northern plains, his heart opening wide. He wanted to recite a lewd poem, but after smacking his lips a few times, he failed to utter even a single proper line.

"Boss, I heard a group of Elves has arrived in Border Town. They should be pretty rich, right?" As soon as he spoke, the man gave a lecherous grin.

"Since you know they're Elves, are you still getting ideas? Even if they weren't Elves, haven't you heard what happened to the caravans that came to Border Town before?" Kuri curled his lip. The lecherous-looking man beside him sighed upon hearing that.

If their group could be both merchants and part-time bandits,

then Border Town was a gathering place for high-level criminals!

Other than the few ordinary folk—decent citizens who did not commit crimes often...

That was right. In Border Town, someone who did not commit crimes often could be called a decent citizen...

All the other commoners were vicious-looking professionals...

How many caravans had risked danger to come here for business? Nothing happened while they were in town, naturally, because there was a powerful mayor who could suppress any unrest.

But getting stopped and robbed the moment they left town—wasn't that a bit excessive?

Many caravans that dared to resist and refused to hand over their goods and money now had grave grass over three meters tall...

Of course.

All of this had a tiny little something to do with the caravans cheating the local commoners during the town's early days. As a result, fewer and fewer merchants came to Border Town.

Kuri dared to come because he had heard through unofficial channels that Border Town had changed mayors. An Elf mayor had taken over, accompanied here by a large number of Pure-Blood Elves.

"The Pure-Blood Elves of Blackleaf Forest are here. With them keeping the town in check, public security should improve greatly. Our main goal this time is to build good relations. We can't ask for prices that are too high. If we can establish regular trade, we'll definitely make a fortune.

All of you, stay behind me. Don't look around, and don't speak carelessly. Otherwise, no one will be able to save your lives." After saying a few words to the brothers behind him, Kuri led them toward the town.

William stood atop a tree, watching the caravan. Scouts had spotted them as early as when they began climbing the mountain. He had long since stationed people to monitor every mountain path that could be used to ascend.

"Should we have Odom and the others hide?" Lotner asked from beside him.

"We're a neutral town. What does it matter if Dwarves are here?" William shook his head, then turned to Nock. "Just don't let them enter the town itself. Bring them to see me!"

"Yes, my lord!"

Kuri swept his gaze across the Elven Warriors who had stopped them and could not help swallowing. Putting everything else aside, as someone who had rarely seen Elves, this was truly an eye-opener.

Never mind how excellent these Elves' weapons and equipment were—they just looked damn cool...

So beautiful...

He wanted them...

Of course, those were merely thoughts in his heart.

Kuri and the others did not dare reveal them. They could only steal glances at the Elves.

The Elves' strength especially made Kuri wary. Just this Elf guard named Nock standing before him made Kuri feel that he had no absolute confidence in defeating him.

As for the other ten handsome Elves, their eyes were equally bright, carrying an innate confidence. Kuri even had the feeling that these Elves alone could wipe out his entire caravan.

But all his tension vanished with the arrival of a young man.

William wore a fitted purple robe. His long, glossy black hair fell over his shoulders, his pointed ears visible beyond it. His eyes shone like the moon. He wore no unnecessary ornaments, yet he gave off the feeling of a spring breeze, making people's favor toward him soar...

"Hello. I am the lord of Border Town, William Blackleaf!" William held a small bear in his arms. There was little ceremony in his tone; he did not particularly care about the favor of these ordinary merchants...

Yet Kuri and the others did not dare put on airs. Upon hearing William's greeting, they all pressed their right hands to their chests and bent slightly. "Greetings, Lord. May you live eternal life!"

"May the gods be with you," William replied with a faint smile.

Kuri did not care about William's response, because the moment he heard William's name, his mind nearly crashed.

Coupled with the many Elf guards he had just seen, he hurriedly organized his words and said respectfully, "My lord, my name is Kuri, a merchant of Blackrock Duchy. My surname is far too lowly, so I will not speak it and soil your ears.

I came to do some business with Border Town. Salt, cloth, sauces, even rare materials—whatever you desire, my lord, I will do my utmost to purchase it specifically for you in the future."

The other caravan members could not help glancing at their captain upon hearing this, seemingly wondering whether he had gone bent.

Did he have to suck up this hard?

Didn't he know that bootlickers ended up with nothing?

William gave nothing away. He had been observing Kuri's favorability toward him and was even somewhat puzzled. He had done nothing, yet Kuri's favorability had already risen to 500 points. What the hell was this guy trying to do?

Why did it feel like he had encountered a pervert...

But when William considered Kuri's respectful manner,

he seemed to understand. This fellow must have learned somewhere what his surname represented...

Vote tickets, please.