Chapter 6: Merchant

A week passed and I slowly got used to living here in Mujyara.

Lessons on Magic by Mary and on Ancient Letters (a.k.a. cursive English) by me was the daily routine. Nina would sometimes join but most of the time, she's out of the house doing other things.

During my lessons, I was once again surprised at how easily Mary learned how to read and write Ancient Letters. She must be smarter than what she claimed. Although she always acted humble and compared herself to her master.

It didn't even take 4 days for her to memorize the whole 26 cursive lowercase alphabets. I disregarded the uppercase as it wasn't used on any magic circles but I believe that she could easily master those too.

During breaks, we mostly talk about random things. As I was being treated as someone who lost his memories, they were being considerate and didn't ask much questions.

During one of our conversations, a certain topic came.

"The merchant is coming?"

While I was reading with a cup of milk, Mary told me.

"Yes. The merchant from the capital comes once every 10 days. And today is the day he will arrive on our village. He'll arrive around noon I suppose?"

"Hnnnn… What sort of wares is he selling?"

"There's a lot of variety. From metal tools to porcelain goods. From cheap leather goods up to expensive silk clothes. From simple jewelry up to expensive accessories. It's better for you to see for yourself."

Rather than a lone merchant, it feels more like a caravan. All those goods couldn't possibly be carried by a lone merchant's carriage.

"Oh! So that's why everyone seems busy since yesterday." I mused.

"Fufu. As expected from you. Everyone in the village is preparing their products that is to be sold and the ones to be offered as taxes to the king. As an apprentice, I've yet to be included as a working adult so I'm still exempted from taxes."

"Are taxes collected every time the merchant comes?"

"Unnn. It is collected about twice a year. One is in the middle of spring and one in the middle of fall."

She shook her head in denial. It seems that taxes are a bit lax. I don't know about other kingdoms though.

"How about Nina?"

"She's still underage so she's exempted."

"I see… Can I visit the merchant later too?"

"Of course. That's why I told you about it in the first place."

I've been freeloading on Mary's and Nina's home for a week now. I should repay them somehow later.

"… However… I don't have money…"

When I first came here, I thought that the concept of money didn't exist yet. However, it seems that I was mistaken. Trading was only done within the range of villagers while they use money when trading with the merchants.

Money was represented in four basic denominations. Stones, copper, silver and gold. The most basic unit was stones, which was basically made of crude iron turned into square coins.

There were variations to sizes and colors too, marking the change in value. The one with the largest value was the white gold.

In conversion: 1 White Gold > 10 Large Gold > 100 Gold > 1,000 Large Silver > 10,000 Silver > 100,000 Large Copper > 1,000,000 Copper > 10,000,000 Stones.

The coins that was most in circulation were silvers, coppers and stones. That was because 2 large coppers were more than enough to last a day's worth of expenses.

Gold coins mostly circulate around the capital and among the nobles. It wasn't forbidden for commoners to have gold coins, but it was extremely rare.

I didn't have plans on leaving the village yet but I am still in need of money. That was because the quantity of the stack of papers were slowly decreasing.

If a piece of paper costs 2 stones, then I basically spent over 3 silvers worth of it. That amount is enough to feed me for a month. I felt really bad when Nina explained the concept of money to me.

A little later, I heard the faint sound similar to a church bell.

"What's that?"

"You mean that sound? It's the merchant."

Mary nonchalantly answered while she practice writing. I was puzzled a little.

"The merchant? What's that bell sound for then?"

"It has various purposes. One is to call the attention of people. Another is to drive away small animals off the road. And lastly is to prevent them from getting attacked."

How crafty. That's like hitting 4-5 birds with one stone.

"To think even bandits exists…"

Well, logically thinking, completely governing such a large piece of land was impossible. Having one or two groups of bandits wasn't strange. Especially on villages off the border like this one.

"Well, there are bandits, yes. Also, demons."

Was bandits even considered as demons for them? Poor soul.

When the sound of the bell became louder, Mary and Nina brought me outside to the village's center.

There are a lot of residents standing idly around it. Some have large crates on their sides, probably containing the goods that will be sold.

After about half an hour of wait, the long caravan of the merchant came into sight.

Rather than a caravan, it looked more like a long train made of wood. Also, it wasn't being pulled by horses rather it moved using magic.

Really, magic seems so handy in this world.

When 2 minutes more passed, the over 200 meter long caravan stopped after forming a semicircle around the plaza. I'm amazed to see over a dozen carriages linked with each other.

I couldn't help but imagine how they would manage when turning on sharp corners. Probably, they would rather choose a route without those though.

Soon, a rather fat man with a lot of luxurious looking accessories around his body came up front and spoke. He was undoubtedly the merchant in lead of this parade.

"Under the king's orders, we have come to do our bid. The products to be collected as taxes, pile them in front of the last carriage. To those who are selling their wares, pile them near the front most carriage."

He spoke in a very commanding tone. The flab under his chin moves accordingly for every word he said.

After the merchant's speech, the sides of the other carriages opened, revealing a wide variety of goods.

"We will be staying here for the whole afternoon. Until then, you are free to buy goods from us."

The fat man said before turning around and walking back to the first carriage.

"Let's split up here then. I'll go and check for papers. How about Nina?"

"Me? Maybe I'll go and check the jewelries. I heard that a new skilled craftsman is presenting his works."

Mary seems to prioritize the acquisition of paper while Nina intends to go window shopping. What should I do?

"That sounds good. How about Nazo? What will you do?"

"Hmm… Maybe I'll go around and check everything. Don't mind me."

"Are you buying anything? If you are, I can lend you some money."

"It's okay, I only plan to look around."

I can't possibly ask for more as I am already in debt. After discussing for a short while, the two headed off to different directions. Walking back and forth was inefficient so I decided to start from the first carriage.

"Welcome~!"

A young female attendant greeted me with a wide smile. I felt slightly embarrassed as I won't be buying anything.

The wares on the first carriage seems to be clothes. They have all assortments for different sizes and colors.

They even have boots, gloves, mantles and hats. The prices of each are ranging from 3 Large Silver to 1 Gold. A bit expensive in my opinion.

Ignoring the smile of the attendant, I walked away and to the next carriage. Similarly, another young female attendant was standing there and greeted me with a smile.

Are all carriages here being attended by such employees? I am starting to feel pressured to buy something out of guilt. What a frightening sales technique.

The second carriage seems to showcase weapons. Staves, scythes, hammers, lances, javelins, swords and shields. Each and every one of it looks strong. However, the price seems to be ranging from 1 Large Gold to 10 White Gold. There's no way I can buy such things.

While browsing, one of the swords caught my attention. It was a gaudy sword with a large piece of ruby inlaid on the hand guard of the sword. However, what gathered my attention was not that but the magic circles drawn on the bottom of the blade.

"Excuse me. Can I ask what these are for?"

Since the drawn magic circles weren't that familiar to me, I asked the attendant. She answered with a smile without wasting a second.

"Those are magic circles to enhance the blade. The topmost is for providing extreme sharpness, the middle one is to prevent the blade from chipping and the last is to make the sword feel lighter. They are all inscribed by the best magic artisan within the capital so the level of workmanship is high."

So there are other jobs that is related to magic circles? Mary didn't tell me about that. Also, the magic circles used here are fundamentally different.

"… Are there books being sold pertaining these sort of magic circles?"

Due to my curiosity I couldn't help but ask. The attendant still answered despite my words indicating my intention of not buying anything.

"Of course. Books and papers are sold on the third to the last carriage. I believe that there are books on magic circles there."

I quickly bowed and gave my thanks then left the carriage. I ran towards the said carriage and hoped that Mary was still there.

Luckily, she was.

After hearing my words, she helped me look for such a book.

My debt increased tenfold in an instant. I convinced myself to pay her back in the not so far off future.