Chapter 6: Merchants

The sun gleamed on the horizon as lights illuminated the forest. The leaves in the forest slowly fell to the ground. 

The ground made a small shake as a merchant's caravan traveled the bumpy road. This caravan was a mortal's caravan; it held people of all ages traveling to the city of Meryl to trade with other mortals. 

Two horses were in the lead in the front; the hoses held two people as they conversed. 

"I must be getting old; kids these days are so strong, becoming a Path Master so young! I thought we were done for when the caravan tipped over, but then you suddenly showed up and easily flipped it back on route." 

The old man next to him praised the kid heartily as he laughed. 

"Ha-ha, it wasn't anything special; we were just simply traveling on the same route. After all, helping others is what a person should do." 

The boy replied with a smile, showing a virtuous face expression. The old man felt a connection to this young boy. The young boy truly represented what a righteous person should do after all! 

"If you don't mind me asking, why are you traveling by yourself out here? A kid like you shouldn't be wandering the roads like this." 

The old man looked at the young boy with curious eyes. 

The young boy sighed with a sad expression on his face, his eyes showing great sorrow. 

"I was traveling with my master to Meryl just the other day. When everything was going well, a beast suddenly attacked us. My master had no other choice, as he told me to run off, as he held the beast back." 

The old man's eyebrows went up; he chided himself for asking such a stupid question. 

"I must apologize; I didn't know such a thing happened." 

The young boy looked up from the ground with a faint smile, showing a hopeful expression. 

"It's alright, you didn't know what happened. But there's the chance my master could still be alive; there's no way he could die to those beasts. Before I left, he told me to get to Meryl and make sure that I was safe. It was only a coincidence that I found you guys after all. 

The old man felt a pang of sympathy for the young boy. After all, he was just a little kid who had left behind his master without knowing if he survived. 

"Please, if there's anything you would like, I will make sure I do my best to help you!" 

The old man said with a vitreous tone; his eyes shinned as he promised himself that he would repay this favor. 

"But..." 

"Don't be so reluctant; after all, we have to repay you back. Without you, who knows how long we would've been stuck before help arrived?" 

The old man replied without hesitation, his eyes showing a deep sense of trust as he replied. 

"Well, in that case, do you think you could help me get into the city? After all, without my master, I am just a kid that would seem suspicious to the guards. After all, I'm a Ranked-one Path Master without a mentor or guardian." 

The old man suddenly realized this and immediately agreed. Without a person watching over him, this kind young boy would be seen as suspicious and evil, such a kind person like him couldn't possibly be one! 

'How could I forget such an important detail? I'm really becoming senile, aren't I?' 

The man sighed deeply in his head. 

Time trickled by before the young boy asked the old man another question, 

"If you don't mind, do you think I could get a spare set of clothes? This journey has been extremely rough on my clothes; it would be an embarrassment to enter the city looking like this." 

The old man agreed and quickly walked back to the caravan, finding spare clothes that would fit the young boy. After finding some, he quickly gave it to him. 

The young boy thanked him in response, he headed off the road into the forest before changing into the new clothes. 

Time passed on a bit further before the old man came to realization and asked the boy. 

"If you don't mind me asking, what name do you go by, young man?" 

The young boy smiled as he looked up, giving a response. 

"Lorian, Lorian Vale." 

Lorian took a deep breath after replying; he once again showed a smile, swaying over the old man's heart. 

Afterwards, they started to ride in silence. Lorian looked ahead as thoughts swirled within his mind. 

Everything was going according to Lorian's plan. Lorian had to get inside the city without attracting too much attention. Back when he was a mortal, nobody really cared if he were to leave or enter. 

But now he was a Path Master. Even though he was Rank one, guards and people on patrol would definitely catch him sneaking in. Especially since Lorian had no skills for sneaking in and seemed extremely suspicious to others. 

Everything about this encounter was carefully planned by Lorian from start to finish. Lorian had purposely tipped the caravan over, creating a mess. When it seemed like all hope was lost, he suddenly came out of nowhere, helping them and becoming their Savior. 

From there, he used his acting skills that he accumulated over tens of regressions; his acting was nearly perfect. He could easily deceive a mortal like him and manipulate him into doing what he wanted. 

He had purposely gone further away from Meryl in order to find her caravan; after he gave his name away, his reputation among the mortals would become slightly better, allowing whatever happened in the future to become easier. 

Lorian slowly rode the horse as they traveled a bit further ahead; the city of Meryl was now barely visible. As they rode further and further ahead, eventually they got into a line, waiting for their turn to enter the city. 

Eventually it got to Lorian's group. The 2 city guards looked at the caravan before looking back at Lorian with a suspicious gaze. 

"Where did you guys travel from?" The guard on the right asked with an authoritative tone. 

"We came from the neighboring village, Cindal. We had hired two Path Masters to guard us on the way here. Replied the old man. 

"Two? I only see one; where's the other one?" The guard on the left asked imposingly. 

"Unfortunately, the other one is gone right; he was the Master of this young boy right here, but we were attacked, and he had to hold them off until we could leave. Until now, we still have not heard any news from him," the old man said with a solemn expression. 

The two city guards looked over at Lorian. Lorian's face was filled with deep emotions; just from one glance, they could feel the pain he was in. 

The city guard's doubts immediately got resolved, and they let them in. 

After all, Lorian was such a pitiful child; he had lost his master and was in a state of grieving. 

The city guards understood this; after all, this wasn't so uncommon. Events like this would happen quite frequently, and the city guards had seen nothing wrong about them. 

Finally, the merchants were let in; they had finally arrived at Meryl after so long! 

The old man looked towards Lorian and stuck out his stand. 

"Lorian, it was truly a pleasure meeting you; you have truly saved us from a disaster. ha-ha, I seem to have forgotten, but my name is Harlan." 

Lorian shook his hand before Harlan passed Lorian a pouch filled with copper coins inside. 

"I know this isn't much, but it should get you a place to sleep in for a couple of days. I truly hope the best for you and your master." 

Harlan said with a smile that he felt a great sense of dept towards Lorian. Without Lorian, they would've been stranded in the wild and might've had to leave the goods behind. Who knew what could happen to them before they got people to help? 

Harlan was only a mortal; trading was the only way for him and his family and friends to survive. If they had lost the caravan, they would've most likely been in deep trouble and ended up dead. 

Lorian waved goodbye as Harlan took off, smiling before turning around and gaining his own direction as well. 

Lorian quickly counted the copper coins inside the bag; there were around 30 copper coins in total. 

Adding in food and other costs, this could last him for around 4 days at a good inn. Lorian looked around the city before glancing up at the sky. The was already starting to set; the recruitment held by the viscount would most likely end by now. 

He would most likely have to wait until the next day until he could apply. Thinking about this, Lorian decided to head to the market. Lorian had barely anything in his hand's rights now, he was in a very bad state. 

Lorian needed some basic supplies for his plans. As he thought about this, he quickly headed down the streets towards the market.