Chapter 32: Being a Merchant is Hard

Chapter 32: Being a Merchant is Hard

After leaving a spy in the village of the swordsmiths, Huitzi went to the meeting point, a yadoya, in the same city where Kokushibo had completed his mission.

Upon arriving, Huitzi saw Kokushibo already waiting.

"I see the mission was a success, wasn't it?"

"Yes, Lord Nosferatu, I did as you ordered."

"Great, let's see what we have here. Hmm, seems a bit malnourished, but we can fix that. Let's go inside."

Huitzi, Kokushibo, and Soloctis entered the yadoya. Huitzi went to get food for the baby while Kokushibo arranged a room.

The tavern had little lighting, but the atmosphere was festive. Everyone was drinking heavily, and the smell of food and drink filled the air.

Huitzi ordered dinner for Soloctis, consisting of donburi and grilled vegetables like sweet potato, carrot, and broccoli.

'The plan to develop this baby to the point of learning the Sun Breathing is simple: nutrition and training. There are many nutrients a baby needs to develop the brain and body. Fortunately, I know exactly which ones to use. Combined with my knowledge of bodybuilding and martial arts, I could take him to the pinnacle of human physique. I just need to do this for about 11 years, and then threaten Yoruichi with the swordsmith village to teach the baby the Sun Breathing. I'm even excited for that day.'

"Lord Nosferatu, I have already reserved the room."

"Great, but Kokushibo, what is this child's name?"

"It's Soloctis. I gave him that name since I didn't ask for the original one. Do you like it? If not, we can change it."

"Soloctis, no, I like that name."

Huitzi was finishing feeding Soloctis when the person in charge of the food bill arrived.

"Hello, sirs, the bill for—" He was interrupted mid-sentence.

Kokushibo secretly shot a flesh sprout at the attendant, controlling him to avoid being charged, as they had no money.

After the interruption, Huitzi continued feeding Soloctis. Once the meal was finished, the three of them went to the room, which smelled of mold and seemed old.

Huitzi placed Soloctis on the futon and sat at the table to talk with Kokushibo.

"Kokushibo, we need to travel. My plans will not be realized here."

"And where are we going?"

"To Egypt. We'll travel by boat to China, then by carriage to India, take another ship to Ethiopia, walk to Sudan, and finally ascend the Nile River to Egypt."

"I don't know half of these places, but your wish is my command."

"That's the spirit. Now let's think of a way to befriend some major merchants to travel with them and also earn some money."

"Yes, sir."

"One more thing, no using the flesh sprout. We need to learn to trade and command a country, as my plan is to dominate Egypt."

"Yes, sir, I won't use the flesh sprout."

Huitzi then left the room to make friends with some merchants.

Researching the region, Huitzi discovered that the most sold items were Washi paper, silk, ceramics, swords, etc.

'Hmm, swords wouldn't be a good choice. It's not time to become a weapons lord. Speaking of which, I can make a firearm in the future, but it's not time for that. Ceramics, a good one, but how can I sell that? I don't know enough marketing strategies to do it. Paper..., yes, that's it. Newspaper, using an archaic method, I can create a printing machine. With the printing machine, I can create a movable type press. I think it already exists in China and Korea, but it's not used in Japan. So, that's it, let's create the newspaper,' Huitzi thought as he walked through the streets back to the yadoya before dawn.

When dawn broke, Huitzi cut down a tree using a sharp bone to create several small wooden pieces. These pieces were square-shaped, with one side carved with a letter. He made 100 of each letter, then created a rectangle that fit 40 pieces perfectly side by side, so they locked in place when set this way.

Looking at his masterpiece, a thought came to his mind, 'Wait, do the poor know how to read? Ah, damn it, this doesn't work if most people can't read. So I'll have to contact a noble or a samurai; they are the ones who can read at this time. But how to do that without seeming suspicious?'

'Well, I can find the family of the fraud who claimed to have an Aja Stone. He knew how to read; I saw it in his memories. So his children and relatives must know too, right? Sigh, who said becoming a famous merchant capable of traveling between continents would be easy?'

Huitzi then went to the bath area, took off his clothes, and entered the ofuro, cleaning his body and cooling his head.

"Sigh, today will be a complicated day, but if I use my time well, I can do everything, or almost everything."

Author's Note:

Hello dear readers, the first volume is about to end. It will conclude when the protagonist goes to Egypt.

The second volume will focus more on politics, so the protagonist will be a politician who governs the world. Don't expect many individual fights; they will be more battles between armies. I am really excited about this.

I also wanted to say that the flesh sprout ability is very overpowered when there are no Hamon users. It's been challenging to create a power balance so the protagonist doesn't dominate the world with just this ability.

End of chapter