《Re: Soldier》Chapter 12: Hua city, part 1
Advertisement
As Ran was about to get on a horse, Era joined him and insisted on coming with him. She knew the area and would certainly be very useful once in town so he had no reason to refuse.
They rode for several hours along the Jura forest where Ran appeared the first time, talking about everything and nothing. Era didn't seem to want to go back over what had happened the day before and Ran didn't want to rush her. The trip was relaxing, no monsters to kill, no villagers in distress, Ran was able to take advantage of the ride to put his thoughts in order.
To survive in this world, he had to keep getting stronger, even if he didn’t have a village to protect the threats were numerous and varied, monsters, bandits, corrupted nobles, he would not be surprised if demons were to pop up one day.
So he had no choice, to raise his power he had to kill monsters...or men, emotions had no place here, this world was cruel and dangerous, levels and magic were irrational and added an unknown variable that could lead him to his doom if he didn’t adapt.
On top of that there was the question of money, one could not develop a village with good feelings and he himself would need a source of income to survive.
But Era provided him with the information he needed, in this world, there was the profession of adventurer, it was just the official term for mercenaries supervising the extermination of monsters and taking requests of all kinds, but the guild that managed them ensured an efficient organization and their rules prevented excesses.
It was a quick and efficient way to increase one's level while earning money.
Ran also thought of joining them because they were not affiliated with any particular country and he could sell his prey more easily at a trade counter affiliated with the guild than at any other shop.
Advertisement
Era also told him about the local economy, gold, silver and copper coins were this world's currency, 10 copper coins were worth 1 silver coin and 10 silver coins were worth 1 gold coin, a medium quality loaf of bread was worth 1 copper coin, at least the monetary system was not too complex.
Ran had recorded all this information and thought of all the things he would need to buy once he got to town, he would probably have to hunt much more if he wanted to have the funds he needed, or he had to find yet another way.
While he was thinking, Era shook him because they had arrived near Hua, the largest trading city in the Kingdom. Anything could be found there as long as you had the money to pay for it.
The city was surrounded by a high stone wall, and merchants' carts came and went through the wide gateway with a portcullis overhead, soldiers strolled here and there playing cards or drinking alcohol. No one checked them as they passed through the entrance, and Ran despaired at the low level of security; what good was the wall if anyone could walk in and out at will?
But it made his job easier, he would have been in trouble if he had been refused entry or asked for identification. Once inside, Era explained to him the division of the city. The southern district where they had arrived was a commercial zone where merchants came to negotiate, the eastern and western districts were made up of houses and to the north was the city's underbelly, where all sorts of illegal activities took place, day and night, and it was better not to venture there.
The city was very lively, the stalls lining the streets were full of food, supplies and weapons. Passersby were bargaining, weighing, analyzing each item. Street musicians also added to the festive atmosphere.
Advertisement
But among the crowd Ran could see people wearing large iron collars and a shadow passed before his eyes, poorly dressed, often serving as porters, pulling heavy carts through the crowded streets, there was no doubt about their nature.
The concept of slavery was apparently an integral part of human history, no matter the world.
"Era, is this city always this busy?"
"No, today is special, one of the king's daughters is coming to visit the city tomorrow so obviously it causes a stir, many merchants are counting on her presence to do business."
"I understand, so what do we do now? "
"Hmm, I think it's better to go and register as an adventurer before selling your spoils, it'll avoid the scams, not many merchants would dare cheat an adventurer."
"Well, I count on you."
He smiled at her and she slightly blushed, tturning her head away.
"L...Let's go!"
Advertisement
- In Serial31 Chapters
The Whispering Light
As a child Redmun Briandry had an ancient evil forced into his heart, something far worse than the monsters that roam the desolate land his people have been stranded in. Now a young man, it has whispered in his ear ever since, promising that it only wants to help, despite the pain and suffering it has caused.At the behest of his abusive mother, he has been sent to track down his father's corpse and put an end to the legendary rampage the thing within it has unleashed. Yet the closer he gets, and the more he understands, the more terrified Redmun becomes that the Whispering Light inside of him is getting exactly what it wants.
8 169 - In Serial23 Chapters
Grimoire: Breath of Life
The boy lived in a world where people who had no background nor talent would be abandoned. They who had nothing would be exploited. The boy held hatred inside of his heart, he loathed the people who abused him and his friends. The boy was trying his hardest to change his life, but nothing's changed until... He found a mysterious item! Follow his journey on finding the meaning of his life. #Adventure #MaleLead #Fantasy #MagicAndSword #Action PS: Cover not mine.
8 153 - In Serial6 Chapters
Diamonds of Tesmaro
Diamonds of Tesmaro is an epic novel about a young Kuro man, Comotos Wellshur, who has ten years of Bounty Hunting training under his belt. He wakes from a frightmare of his past. He experiences the dream every year the night before his birthday but this year is different. That morning he meets a beautiful barmaid, Drusilla, and saves her from a wanted criminal with the highest known bounty on his head, dead or alive! He beheads the criminal, almost losing his life in the process, but the girl he saves is special. She reveals to him a hidden weapon that he carries with him at all times and he uses it to defeat the criminal, it even talks to him! They eventually fall for each other. They travel together, get to know each other, and help each other. Comotos takes Drusilla with him to meet his mentor, Mark and they end up fighting a gang of hoodlums that are literally hanging out at the Bounty Hunter Organization. Mark gives Comotos the bounty money for the criminal after he pickpockets all of the thugs they knocked out. The trio travel to the Ashlar Kingdom to tell the King and his advisor about the completed bounty and all three are rewarded with a free meal and boarding for the night, they meet the King's sorcerer and they are treated to a magic show but something doesn't smell right. After dinner Comotos talks a walk outside and finds the magician talking to someone about them on its wand, he confronts it and learns that someone across the ocean wants to meet him for a special mission. The next morning Comotos and Drusilla and the magician go into the marketplace and shop. Afterward, they take a walk to the docks where Comotos gets robbed! He chases down the culprit only to find out it is a hybrid woman, he helps her up but she spits in his eyes and calls for the guards. He is taken to jail, not before tossing his bag of money to Drusilla, telling her to keep it safe. Drusilla, unfortunately, loses the bag of money to the woman, as she is a more skilling fighter. Both the magician and Drusilla are knocked out and they wake up in darkness, tied to a thick piece of wood. The light shines in on them and the woman approaches, saying that she is sorry if she hurt them, she only wanted the money. Drusilla spittles in the woman's face and she becomes very angry and punches her in the face, which instead of hurting her, breaks her hand. The captain of the ship there comes into the room and tells the woman to get her hand looked after. He tells Drusilla that is his wife and he has to tell her often not to steal from people on the beach. They eventually go to bail Comotos out of jail, not before he meets Lance, another prisoner. He is there because he practically destroyed the very place he was meant to protect. A fellow soldier broke his glasses right after he was knighted and Lance lost his temper and ended up in jail. Comotos' weapon tells him that this guy could be an asset to him and he bails him out when Drusilla finally shows up. There is so much more that happens but I don't want to spoil anything. :3
8 83 - In Serial9 Chapters
NEVER SPLIT THE PARTY: The Adventures of The Creeping Bam (BOOK TWO: One Cold Trail)
After their fateful misadventure in the mountainous Norther Reaches of RUNDAO, a dark new threat to all of RUNDAO has been revealed to the mercenary band of THE CREEPING BAM and their newest member, half-orc bandit SHAYLINE SWIFT-KILL. Returning their hard-won cargo to THE SILVER ORDER in their city stronghold in BAVAT, they find their well-deserved rest will have to rest – half-elf wizard GAEL FOXTAIL’s father has disappeared while performing an investigation in the coastal city of UNTERMER, and it’s up to our motley crew to find him. As a son of Untermer, wily bakaneko thief ART OF SHADOWS is the perfect choice to lead the way, but he has ghosts of his own to face as their investigation brings them into the orbit of the THIEVES GUILD. But there are daker forces at work here, and as they uncover a dark conspiracy and form an uneasy alliance with a trio of tough sellswords with their own stake in the game, led by dwarven warrior THELGAEWYNN FROSTFORGE, the Creeping Bam begin to suspect this may be connected to that unfinished business they started back up north … This is a love letter and homage to the high-fantasy worlds of the tabletop RPGs like Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder and Warhammer and the sword & sorcery cinema and literature I fell in love with as a kid growing up in the 80s, from Robert E. Howard’s Conan the Barbarian (and the awesome Schwarzenegger movie, STILL my favourite fantasy film EVER), The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit and Ron Howard and George Lucas’ Willow, to the more grown-up and edgy worlds of grimdark masters George RR Martin and (my all-time favourite) Joe Abercrombie, as well as a BIG DOLLOP of Terry Pratchett’s immortal Discworld series. IMPORTANT: This story contains material which some readers may consider to be mature, such as battle violence, some strong language and occasional mild sexual scenes. If this is not your kind of thing, this story is not for you. I am also serializing this story on Tumblr, Wattpad, Quotev and Sweek.
8 135 - In Serial56 Chapters
Mystery Contests & Writing Prompts
There are always new mysteries to solve, so what're you waiting for? Challenge yourself with our latest contests and prompts. Winners will have a chance to be featured in Chills & Thrills!
8 159 - In Serial12 Chapters
Hello, I'm Candace, but you can call me Kandake. I'm a literature and non-fiction writer who has a passion and belief that art imitates life. A Sound Mind is meant to represent the existence of such in the eeriest of ways. From spirituality to crime to cults to history and sex. There are pictures in it too to back up the factual yet shocking details of said story. I'll say it's up to the reader if they deem my chapters worth a read and I sure hope it is. I hope you enjoy A Sound Mind as much as I enjoy writing it.
8 72
Prev Chap
Next Chap
Chap List
Boy
Girl
