"...and even with those skills, you weren't able to tell there were bandits in the area…?"
"There weren't any in the area when I was surveilling it."
The green-haired woman asked, making the platinum-haired man frown as he responded.
"They must have either arrived after I moved on to another area or were already… following… those three…"
The platinum-haired man grumbled grumpily defending himself only to start blinking repeatedly as he began to piece together the events that could have occurred.
"By any chance, do you want to come with us? You could keep an eye out for the tracks of the bandits, just in case. Not to mention, we would gladly buy monster parts from you, mister…?"
The green-haired woman smiled, reaching out her hand for a handshake.
"..."
For a moment, the platinum-haired man stared at her hand, then at her partially obstructed face, and then lowered his gaze at the graves as if deep in thought.
"You can call me Norn."
He finally said, grabbing and firmly shaking the offered hand.
"Norn, alright. Despite the unfortunate circumstances, it's nice to meet you, Mister Norn. I'm Doyen Adonis."
"ADONIS?! THE ADONIS?!"
"Pffft…!"
The green-haired woman's smile widened as she introduced herself, and the baffled reaction of the platinum-haired man caused some of the merchants to snort and even burst out into laughter.
Especially when Norn began staring at Doyen's particularly colored hair as if noticing it only then and there despite it being her most distinctive feature.
"Do you have a camp somewhere nearby? I hope you either know how to store monster parts or at least gathered the ones that don't expire."
Doyen smirked while continuing to shake Norn's hand.
"It's better than you expect, lady Adonis. There's nothing of worth back in my camp. I can travel and hunt freely because, back in the day, my parents happened to stumble upon the Pocket Storage skillbook and use it on me. One Scourge Wolf fang."
Norn once again spoke without any pride before calling out to the side.
The next moment, an item he named appeared in his free hand…
"...!"
While the bodyguards let out gasps of amazement, the members of Doyen's caravan exchanged wary glances while the green-haired woman herself straightened her back, and just for a second, one of her eyes filled with suspicion could be seen.
"That's definitely something. Since it would be disrespectful to make a transaction right in front of fresh graves, how about we do that in the evening after setting up the camp for the day? I'm assuming you're willing to travel with us, Mister Norn."
"That would be the most proper thing to do."
Whatever feelings Doyen had about the platinum-haired man, she didn't express anything except for friendliness and understanding, making Norn react just as amicably.
"Let's go then."
Doyen finally let go of Norn's hand and beckoned him to follow her back to the caravan and her wagon especially.
As she moved, she discreetly made eye contact with one of the bodyguards and motioned at the driver's seat.
"I apologize for the inconvenience."
"I've been camping out in the wilds for a few weeks. This isn't any worse than that."
With the other merchant stepping down, Doyen climbed back on the seat, taking the reins. A bodyguard she motioned at sat beside her. She then offered a helping hand to Norn, who accepted, taking place at the farthest side.
The three people sitting in the driver's seat certainly weren't too comfortable, as the spot was designed for two at most, but it was still acceptable.
"Well, what brought you to these parts, anyway, Mister Norn?"
The bodyguard in the middle shifted after a stealthy nudge from Doyen and struck up a conversation.
"A journey of self-discovery."
Norn leaned back in the seat and answered, staring at the branches of the trees and the sky they obstructed.
"...huh…"
Needless to say, the bodyguard didn't quite buy that answer, and neither did anyone within the hearing range.
"By that, I mean I got kicked out of the house for speaking up to my father, and I am not going to crawl back on my knees apologizing and begging to be taken back."
"Ooohhh!"
With his head still up, Norn smirked and explained, this time earning himself a much more understanding reaction.
Some of the bodyguards and at least one or two merchants even trusted his words, either sharing or at least understanding the circumstances.
After that, the small talk continued as the caravan moved through the wilds.
As the evening came, so did the time to set up a camp.
Norn was surprised to discover that all the wagons, which seemed particularly bulky to him, were actually equipped with built-in retractable tents that could be easily set up within minutes, shortening the usually mundane task to a mere trifle.
Although most tents were the same, with enough space for three or four people to sleep comfortably, the tent that the last wagon transformed into was a sight to behold.
In comparison to the others, this one was a true palace of a tent, being set up from all sides of the wagon, with the exception of the side where the four-eyed goats were pulling it.
"Hey, is this lady Adonis's tent?"
"Wha…? Uphhh…"
Taken over by curiosity, Norn tapped the shoulder of the passing bodyguard and asked, raising his brows at the troubled reaction it caused.
"The service wagon?! Hoh! Good thing you didn't ask the lady boss about it. She doesn't hate that stuff but is very uncomfortable with them. You understand?"
"Sure…? She doesn't like getting served food and drinks…?"
The bodyguard breathed out in bewilderment before shaking his head and reaching out to pat Norn's shoulder, confusing the lad to no end.
There was another surprise waiting in stock for Norn besides the tents. As the camp was set up and the campfires were lit, the platinum-haired man noticed more people he hadn't seen before, all of them women between twenty and thirty years old.
Those girls were going around the camp in light attire, striking conversations with the merchants and bodyguards alike, offering and joining them for food and drinks - all preserved rations - clearly feeling at home.
"Ah! There you are, Norn! Come over, I'm Severyn. I'm in charge of monster parts! Showcase your goods!"
As he was about to go check the service wagon for himself, Norn got called out by one of the merchants who beckoned him while introducing himself.
With his attention diverted, the platinum-haired man walked over and entered the brightly lit tent Severyn kept open for him.
The inside was set up as a bare minimum of a shop, with the counter definitely set up solely for Norn's sake.
"You have the Pocket Storage skill, right? I've heard it keeps the items fresh. Open it up!"
Severyn straightened his back proudly behind the counter and called out with a jovial smile.
The next hour or so passed for Norn and Severyn to examine the parts and haggle about the prices.
"You know your stuff, lad! Say, aren't you actually an heir of some rival merchant company by any chance?"
After dealing with the stock and shaking it on Norn, keeping the perishable parts in Pocket Storage until the next settlement, Severyn exclaimed while parting with a sum of money outside of his initial expectations.
"No, but my family had connections to a big company in the Capital of Dimondium Kingdom, and one of their merchants taught me about market prices and practices."
"Hooohooo~!"
Norn shook his head and revealed, making Severyn let out a gasp of amazement.
"By any chance, do you have someone dealing with weapons? I made a few crude ones with the monster materials, and I believe that would be outside your expertise?"
"..."
As he was about to leave Severyn's tent, the platinum-haired man asked the merchant, causing the man to lean back with a concerned expression.
"Of course, if I did a terrible job, it would make more sense to attempt to salvage the materials and sell them to you, but I wish to have them looked at beforehand."
Expecting the reaction to be caused by the lack of faith in his craft, Norn added hurriedly in a reassuring voice.
"...sure… In that case, you want to see Wits. I'll talk to him, although I can't promise you get to sell anything to him today. The old man's grumpy before bed."
In the end, Severyn shrugged his shoulders and said, leading Norn outside.
The old man Wits was, in fact, grumpy about being bothered right as he was preparing to go to sleep.
He did, though, agree to have a look at the platinum-haired man's handmade weapons, not even trying to hide his expectations of said weapons being a waste of materials.
"One Bone Knife. Here."
Norn called out an item from the Pocket Storage and offered it to a gray-haired man with a face so wrinkly that it resembled a dried plum.
"Hmph! Let's see that piece of…"
Wits scoffed and grumbled, dismissively grabbing the bone-white weapon with a handle tied with a dry monster tendon…
"...oh…"
…and the moment he held the knife, his expression changed drastically from one of annoyance to one of shock.
"...oho… hoo…?"
For a moment, it seemed that the old man exchanged his tongue for an owl's because he continued hooting as he weighed the weapon in his hand, balanced it on his finger, and raised it close to his eyes, carefully examining the line of the blade.
"Boy, you have an artisan-type crafting ability?"
"!"
Wits finally lowered the knife and asked in a completely different tone than a few moments earlier.
"Can't say I do. Crafting was more of a pastime in between getting tutored. My father didn't see a reason for me to bother with it since he could hire artisans with royal-type crafting abilities to create weapons."
The platinum-haired man lowered his head almost apologetically.
'Your father is a strange man. This is a damn good knife! Looks aside, as a weapon, it is at least a medium-quality one! Selling more affordable stuff can earn a pretty penny, too! Did you make more? I'll buy them in bulk!"
"R-really? Thank you~!"
Norn fidgeted, for the first time showing a bit of a reaction to being praised by anyone from the caravan.
"..."
Severyn, watching from the side, furrowed his brows at the interaction, appearing to be quite troubled about something. After seemingly making up his mind, he stepped away from Wits's tent and silently beckoned one of the bodyguards, giving him some instructions in a hushed voice, careful not to get Norn's attention.
After the bodyguard nodded and left, Severyn returned to his observation spot…
"...be fed mana? Boy,' you're not going to tell me all those knives can work as mana conduits!"
Just in time to witness old man Wits shout in bewilderment.
"No, no. Of course not! But since I've used a special method of drying them, the marrow pathways aren't clogged, and the user can feed it mana to strengthen the knife. Nothing crazy, though. It can get slightly more durable, but it's not like it pushes it that much over its limits."
The platinum-haired man hurriedly shook his head and corrected the misunderstanding hastily.
"Boy, I don't know what kind of geniuses you were surrounded by, but this is amazing! I… I'm not even going to haggle with you! Name your price!"
The old merchant scoffed, shaking his head with a bright smile while spreading his arms over a dozen Bone Knives laid on the ground under the light of a mana lamp.
"Within reason, that is. Don't get ahead of yourself, those still are Middle grade weapons."
However, the next moment, Wits slouched and added, going back to his grumpy self.
"Hey, hey. Norn, you wouldn't have more of those, would you? I happen to be looking for a replacement for one or two of my throwing knives."
"You wouldn't have to if you weren't an idiot trying to hunt Clay-fur Rabbit with a throwing knife!"
Unexpectedly, a pair of passing bodyguards noticed the weapons and one of them leaned down, resting his weight on the unexpecting platinum-haired man and asked, while the other one laughed.
"Now, hold on a second! I'm the caravan weapon dealer!"
"And I always preferred to directly support the artisans without any middlemen!"
Old man Wits perked up and called out angrily, and the bodyguard by Norn's side snickered cheekily.
After finishing the transaction, Norn was whisked away by the two bodyguards, given food, and then continued the conversation until it was high time to sleep. Even then, he was offered a spot by their campfire, which the platinum-haired man eagerly accepted.
He enjoyed the relaxing rest without the need to stay on guard through the whole night.
"He actually just went to sleep."
The guard who bought a few Bone Knives from Norn sat up, stopping pretending to be a sleep and pointed out while breathing out in relief.
"Hold your goats. He might be trying to lay low for a couple of nights and then strike when we least expect it."
His comrade stopped clenching his sword so close to his body and rebutted him.
"Lady boss did say she had a good feeling about him, though. Maybe he really met us by coincidence and isn't a bandit or some thief?"
"Too many coincidences, in my opinion. Everything about him feels conflicting. He appears to overshare a lot about himself but still keeps the most important facts to himself. Of course, I don't believe half of what he said. I'd say the chance he's plotting something is pretty high."
The two bodyguards exchanged opinions before looking back at the innocently sleeping platinum-haired man.
;3
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