Damn it.
It would appear that I can not be understood by humies.
When I introduced my name, he just looked vacantly at me.
Also—
+====================================+
// NEW SKILL UNLOCKED! // → Frighten (D+)
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|- When activated, can inflict 'fear' on the target. If they already have the status effect 'fear', then increases the degree and duration of it.
Why am I suddenly getting this skill?!
Don't tell me I look that scary to them…
Whatever, the matter at hand here, is that I need to communicate somehow with this guy.
…Hmm…
Ah!
*Shing!*
"Hieek!"
Oi, stop it with the—
Wow, he's quivering a lot.
Why is that?
I'm just picking up my axe to write something on the ground.
Shrugging my shoulders at the sight of the poor fellow shaking like a branch on a windy day, I started off by writing my name again.
The man watched attentively, albeit with sweat practically flooding down.
"G…rul?"
Yes, it looks like he can understand it.
I write an arrow originating from the word and pointing at me.
"…You?"
I nodded, looking passively at him until he gets the message.
"You're—You're Grul?"
I nod once more.
There's a moment of silence as the man looked down.
His chest heaved, as a deep sigh escaped him.
"You…You understand my words?"
Somehow, yes.
I try to speak and confirm it, but the words that came out from my voice weren't exactly comprehensible by the humie.
"Zug-zug."
"I…could—could I take that as a yes?"
"Zug."
"Okay, alright."
After I talked a bit with him, it seems he's regained a bit of calmness.
"After we were handled by you, instead of killing us, you kept us alive. Why?"
I drew again; this time depicting all of them dead on one side, and on the other alive.
On the dead side, I drew an 'X' over it.
On the living side, I drew a '✔'.
"Keeping us alive is good for you."
"Zug."
"Why…I don't know what a beast could get from keeping—no, my apologies. You aren't a 'beast', you're…someone who stands equal to us."
The man had an expression as if reaching a conclusion all by himself.
I don't know why, but I feel like an entire story arc just started and ended without me.
"Then, since I'm talking with you as an equal…at least, as a species. First, let me introduce myself to you, I am Silver Vane, I work as a merchant."
"Grul."
"And you are Grul, the…person of the forest. Yes?"
"Zug."
"I am…pleased…to meet you, Grul."
"Zug."
"…Now that the introductions are out of the way, I'd like to ask: what do you want from us?"
Well, I'm very glad you asked.
What I want is very simple:
A transactional relationship.
I get assurance that my home won't be destroyed because of their endeavors, as well as goodies that I request (within their capability).
They get assurance that I won't harass them anymore, as well as protecting them from the animals of the forest by marking the land they're taking resources from as mine.
Basically, what the mafia do to local businesses; a protection racket.
It took a while for me to get my point across, but eventually, I did.
After understanding what I wanted, Silver started thinking deeply, as if considering every option he had from my offer.
Despite me having the upper hand in this negotiation—if you could call it that—it's actually me that's in a disadvantage.
I am just one orc; an orc that has neither backing, power, status, nor wealth.
I live in a forest all by myself, struggling to even survive every day.
They, the humans, on the other hand, have all of those.
Although they're all restrained by me, I can't actually do anything to them, because if I did, someone from the outside would definitely raise their eyebrows at the sudden disappearance of so many people here in the forest.
And once they've been alerted, they'll send all kinds of powerful humies that I can't handle.
So, in short, I'm screwed.
If this deal falls through, then I'll be in a precarious situation.
I'll have kidnapped several men who serve as ticking time bombs for me until the day I get hunted down.
The only choice that'd be even possible is going into the inner depths of this forest, which is even more likely to get me dead.
If the risks are that much, then why did I even bother with all of this, you may ask?
Well, it's because…
I really want to feel the luxuries of life again, damn it.
Do you know how hard it is to live like this?
I don't even know how other people back on Earth in the past were able to live like this for the rest of their short lives.
I can't stand dealing with getting barely any rest because I have to be alert at all times and dealing with the cold, windy night.
I can't stand the mosquitos and venomous bugs and snakes that seem to be endless.
I can't stand eating rough, bony, leathery meat every day.
I can't stand any of it when there's the promise of luxury so close to me.
That's why I'm taking this risk.
Now, I wait for the response of the man in front of me; my judge, jury, and executioner.
"It can be accepted…"
Yes!
"…under one condition."
What?
"If you have something to request from us, you'll have to meet me, personally, to request it."
Just that?
Okay.
A bit more walking won't be problematic.
"Zug."
"Alright. Since we can't arrange the deal in written form right now, the deal itself won't be official. But, as a gesture of good will, I'll yield this—"
Suddenly, he lowered his head.
…Nothing happened.
Then, he shook his head.
…Still, nothing happened.
After a while of awkward silence, he spoke in a hushed tone.
"…Grul, could you kindly, um, take my necklace?"
Feeling like he might reject the deal if I didn't, I obliged his request.
"Thank you. As I was saying, I will yield that to you."
Whaddya want me to do with this?
I looked at him with a questioning gaze as I held the necklace beside me.
"That necklace…it's my 'Merchant Token'. If it is lost and hasn't been retrieved yet in a single year, I'll be basically blacklisted from trading in all major cities in Yarlto, Serana, and even the Empire."
I have no clue what those mean, but it seems pretty heavy.
"Usually, merchants would purchase a scroll of invisibility and binding to ensure it's never taken away from them, even if their life was lost. But I'll give it to you until I can procure an official contract. Is that alright with you?"
Uhm, sure.
"Zug."
"Then it's settled. From this day on, I, Silver Vane, and my camp, will stick to the boundary of the forest we have agreed on. In return, Grul will protect the extraction site from the animals of the forest. Furthermore, at any given time, Grul can request whatever he wishes, so long as we, Silver Vane and the camp, are capable of obtaining it without major expenditure, specifically, limited to 30% of current earnings at the time the request is made, and that Grul personally meets Silver Vane beforehand."
Seems good to me.
The term 'major expenditure' is a bit vague to me, but I'll accept it.
With a tone of finality, I nod and say one last word:
"Zug."