The road to Barrel of Big Village Dudun was peaceful itself. In the first place, there were almost no bandits operating between mountain villages and big villages. Because if someone heading to the big village disappeared, naturally the low-population mountain village would easily notice, and big villages didn't go to mountain villages.
There was a reason peddler Yove had received Rowan's leniency.
Merchants coming to mountain villages were so rare that they'd show him moderate mercy hoping he'd come back.
Bandits couldn't help but struggle to make a living. If they farmed slash-and-burn fields, their location was bound to be discovered. It was better to live in a big village and steal rather than be a robber.
Even Big Village Dudun's Barrel only had 30 regular soldiers. There wasn't even one mountain stronghold nearby, to the point those soldiers were there because of monsters and beasts.
At most, it was just travelers suddenly turning into robbers.
"Halt!"
They could meet the patrol of ten men from the Thirty Lions who patrolled around Dudun's Barrel. At a glance, they wore expensive-looking heavy equipment. Well-maintained halberds with small axe parts were held by five of them, while the other five were armed with shields and one-handed maces.
Every soldier had a crossbow slung on their back, so their combat power was maintained even in ranged combat.
'Wow.'
Rowan, seeing regular soldiers for the first time, let his eyes sparkle. They wore helmets that completely covered their heads, with lots of very small holes throughout. Since they operated outside, it seemed meant to let head heat escape quickly.
The helmets were elongated, and naturally the top of the head area was hollow so air could circulate well. Since only their eyes showed, you couldn't tell who was who.
Below the neck was wrapped in leather, and chain sounds came out whenever they moved.
"We came from Black Mountain Village."
"Hmm. Selling goods? It hasn't even been two years, yet you're coming. Something special must've happened."
The patrol captain had no insignia whatsoever. And after scanning the party, he immediately called over Shield-bulk Keireon with his hand.
"You there, big guy."
"It's Keireon. I belong to the Skull Mercenary Group."
"Got it, come closer. Is there a mercenary captain?"
"That's me. Name's Yuval."
They thoroughly questioned their movements. They were even more impressive veteran soldiers than expected. Yuval, also seeing patrol people here for the first time, asked.
"You're quite the veteran. Did you transfer here after serving somewhere else?"
"Served 10 years in the north and got demoted. Hehe."
The patrol captain readily spoke to Yuval who'd recognized his experience, and laughed heartily. That was it. The inspection was merely formal, and there was no need to take everything out of the carts.
Because even including the mercenary group, there were few people.
Like that, in less than half a day, they arrived at the big village called Dudun's Barrel. At the village entrance, barrels were neatly placed to look quite proper, and the signboard's picture also showed liquor, grapes, and wheat.
At the village entrance, two guards sat there. Whether Rowan's party came or not, they were busy gambling while holding cards.
"Um... can we enter?"
"Where you coming from?"
"Black Mountain Village."
"Ah~."
The two soldiers just nodded like that. The discipline itself was different from the patrol soldiers they'd met on the way. Rowan could feel reassured instead.
'Yeah. This is it.'
Entering without obstruction, they skillfully headed to the inn where they stayed every time. Because whenever Black Mountain Village's resources overflowed considerably, they sold them here, so there was bound to be an inn they knew.
"Spring Breeze Inn."
Rowan read the letters. Because it was a sign written by a man of letters, the font was quite soft and hard to read. You could tell it was full of style. Besides the letters, a picture representing an inn was carved like a sculpture.
Creak.
As they entered, the floor resonated. Rowan could immediately tell it was an old building. Because it was before sunset, it was full of sunlight. As they entered inside, darkness spread completely, then subsided as their eyes adjusted.
'Pretty clean.'
Unlike the musty feeling upon entering, it was neat and the smell wasn't bad either.
"Welcome."
A young woman nodded her head.
"Somi? You've grown."
A middle-aged man from the youth association said.
"It's Remi. You're from Black Mountain Village, right? You came quite fast this time. It's not even autumn yet."
"You only come in autumn?"
"Often you don't come at all."
Eldest daughter Remi chatted while offering them seats anywhere. Seeing how she guessed everything right at a glance, she seemed like she'd make it big if she lived as a merchant.
"This place is run by three women, mother and daughters. Clean, right? It's been decades."
"Oh, really? For that, you don't seem very welcoming..."
At Rowan's words, the youth association chuckled at the table.
"She's originally a bit blunt. But she recognized you right away, didn't she?"
The Skull Mercenary Group and youth association sat separately. Because there was no table for ten people, and they weren't close enough to bother combining tables. Only the mercenary group had some relationship with Rowan.
While setting up water, she skillfully brought out fruit wine. There was no brand label, and the barrel was just poured generously into a large bowl.
"So this is how the liquor comes."
At Rowan's muttering, eldest daughter Remi immediately explained.
"We have barrels in the basement. It's liquor we make ourselves, so I don't know if it'll suit your taste. People who don't like it say it's a bit bland. People who do like it come often because it's not too strong and not too sweet either."
Eldest daughter Remi's service was definite. Even though she didn't see them often, she set up for the youth association regulars first, then the mercenary group next. Of course, she pulled a trick there too.
She skillfully brought liquor to the youth association first.
"Mm. Not bad."
"There's a bit of tartness too. Really whets the appetite."
Hearing that, Remi approached the mercenary group and said.
"Should I just serve water? While you decide on the menu."
"No. We'll also have that homemade liquor and water together, please."
Merein spoke skillfully. Liquor tasted completely different depending on who made it, and she fell for the words that there were regulars who quite sought out this liquor. Also, lemons were floating in the bowl, making her want to drink it even more.
"How much in copper?"
Consensus Yuval asked the price.
"One bowl isn't even 2 copper coins. Even though it's cheap, the fruit aroma is strong. We use wild strawberries. Oh, but from the second one it's 3 coins. Because lots of people order recklessly because it's cheap and then waste it."
Because they made it themselves, they reacted sensitively to leftovers or waste.
"Ooh."
His interest naturally grew. Liquor as big as a person's head in a large bowl for 2 coins.
'They must've spent quite a bit of money making even a basement... It's cheap.'
"Isn't that too cheap?"
"This inn alone is 200 years old. We just keep the same price from back then. It's stubbornness."
Remi said that and disappeared quickly.
Rowan poured a separate cup and offered it to the mercenary group.
"Try at least one sip first. It's good."
"Ah, thank you."
Except for Rear-picker Bedum, it was liquor everyone would like. The alcohol content was less than 10 degrees so enjoyable even during the day, and good to drink just like a beverage.
They quickly finished one meal and relieved their travel fatigue right away. Everyone fell fast asleep just like that. Rowan was no exception.
The next morning they asked for and received lunch boxes. Seasoned meat wrapped tightly in thick leaves used as umbrellas and three separate fruits were the lunch boxes.
"Selling cloth! Selling leather! Selling animal oil cheap too!"
They secured a suitable spot in the market. The market street was spacious, so securing a spot was never difficult. Also, there wasn't a single person out since dawn, and even in the morning they were leisurely preparing for business. Compared to them, Rowan's party was extremely fast.
The five mercenaries equally provided escort. They had to make up for the value of buying the bear hide cheap. Of course, among them, Keireon remained at the inn to guard the bear hide and didn't come to the market. For guarding, bear-like Keireon was the best.
His instincts were more impressive than even Yuval's. He was just a wild beast himself. With bushy fur too, Keireon's nickname was Brown Bear.
"How much is this?"
"5 copper coins."
"That's too expensive."
The villagers didn't sell very much. Sometimes they even quoted prices from about two years ago. Rowan had learned only bad things from online games, pushing with a preemptive price, then presenting a realistic price afterward.
'If it doesn't sell, it's a loss. If it sells, it's profit.'
In this world where currency circulation itself was difficult, money had higher value than goods. Because of scarcity. Rather than carrying heavy leather to exchange for wheat, jingling and carrying it to exchange was best.
It was no different from stealing the big village's currency.
"Goodness. Here animal oil costs 5 copper coins and they only give a handful at most, you know? Mine is 4 coins. Yes yes. I'll give you a fistful. Gave a bit less. Take a bit more please."
"Thank you."
If they made eye contact, a sale was possible.
The memory of working part-time on Earth while being played by the shitty saying "the customer is king" was vivid. Modern service industry was selling your pride.
Rowan truly offered dazzling service here. Giving one appropriately, then giving a bit more while giving twice to make them feel pleased.
'Word will spread.'
Even with just two days of business, they could sell everything. That expectation was brutally shattered. It didn't even take a day.
'Sold out!'
They sold all the leather and animal oil. All the leather Rowan brought sold out, and the animal oil also sold well thanks to his hard work since profits from village property would come to him.
"Right next door they're selling for 4 copper coins. Why is it 6 here?"
"Because it came from far away."
Rowan butted into the bickering. They were leather shoes worked on quite diligently. If you touched them, the inside was soft from being rubbed with woven rough, tough dried grass, and the outside was hard. Rowan immediately touched the leather shoes while explaining their advantages.
"12 hours. Touch the inside here. And the ends. Soft, right?"
"Mmm. It is."
When Rowan, who had a young face but bulk, pushed in, the village person from the youth association was pushed aside. The big village's villager nodded.
"So it's bound to be quite pricey. How long does it take to break in leather? If you run even a bit roughly, it hurts, right? I'll only take 5 coins. You absolutely won't regret it."
"Hmm..."
"You're good-looking, so I'll give one more leather strap too. Okay?"
"Then give me one more pair of leather shoes. A sturdy leather strap. My kid moves around so roughly there's nothing left intact at home."
When the youth association made bitter sounds, Rowan rushed in and made good sounds. While poking sides, sometimes making them respond. Bad cop, good cop, lifting and dropping customers.
Bowing his head was also natural. Sometimes he said thank you loudly.
"Cheap! Cheap! Here, I'll cut 1 more copper coin!"
"Really? Wow!"
Sometimes he suddenly gave discounts out of nowhere. Thanks to that, the atmosphere jumped so much that there were impulse-buying customers. Buying at full price even when they didn't need to.
There was no need to stay two days.
With Rowan's great performance, they sold everything at somewhat cheap prices with great success. The leather pouch was full of copper coins.
Returning to the village, the youth association people didn't come out. Everyone was busy counting money. That was the same for Rowan too. When it came to money greed, his was higher than anyone's. Because once his height fully grew, he'd fit heavy armor, so he had to save hard.
One... two... three...
He had to count copper coins until his neck got stiff. Because Rowan had hunted all sorts of things from the deep forest quite differently. The know-how learned from hunter Geric played a big role, so he unconditionally caught at least one per day.
'Not that much. Should I have sold at market price?'
For having sold quite a lot, it was only 490 copper coins. About 0.5 silver coins. You could say it was pathetically little, but it was a satisfying level. Silver coins were harder to see than expected.
Eating dinner quite luxuriously was natural. Of course, Rowan changed tables saying he had something to discuss with the mercenary group to escape that overspending.
"What do you want to discuss?"
"What discussion? I want to accompany you to Torch Fortress. Is that okay?"
"Accompany? Goodwill missions are separate. You have to pay separately."
At those words, Rowan readily nodded. The Skull Mercenary Group were trustworthy mercenaries. Of course, that didn't mean he planned to take the money earned this time. He planned to entrust it all to the youth association. If he gave them appropriate payment, they wouldn't try to gobble it all up.
"Yes. To know market prices for various goods, Torch Fortress is perfect, and only there is a place that gives mercenary badges."
"You're going to register as a mercenary already?"
Yuval questioned it. Because it was Rowan who considered it premature.
"Yes. The reason I came out of the village was danger, but now is the safest. I want to go there in one go."
Like a homebody, Rowan was trying to squeeze every drop when going out once. Because the villagers were trustworthy, he planned to give them all the money. His influence was considerable even just because of animal oil profits, so even if money problems arose, the youth association would take his side.
"Nothing difficult about it, but then you'll have to give us 50 copper coins."
"Nothing difficult."
It was Rowan who'd already received payment for the bear hide. In his secret vault, there were already 27 silver coins alone. Also, the 50 copper coins Yuval mentioned was a very cheap price.