Night arrived. The stars shimmered above, the cool breeze brushed against their faces, and the distant lantern-lit village looked warm and peaceful.
...
Toka exhaled with relief "Finally… A village"
But the moment they reached the village entrance—
"STOP RIGHT THERE!"
Two guards raised their spears, eyes wide with panic "You—! Why did you bring a berserk bull !? Are you planning to declare war on our village!?"
Toka blinked "…Berserk what?"
He looked at Jojo, who was calmly munching grass behind him "This is JOJO. My pet." Then he turned to Jojo. "Say hello to them."
Jojo nodded proudly and went, "MRRRRRMHHHH."
The guards flinched… then stared at each other "…It… greeted us?"
With that, their fear turned into professionalism "Ahem. I-I see. Well then, may we check your IDs?"
Toka handed them his metal identity plates "You're adventurers? Where is your requester? Request letter?"
Toka froze. He had absolutely no idea what those things even were.
So he chose the safest strategy:
He lied to them. Smoothly, Boldly, Shamelessly.
"Oh yes, uh… about that." He sighed sadly and placed a tragic hand on his chest. "My mother suffers from a heart disease… and my one and only sister—has a mental condition. She can't even speak properly. You may check her condition."
The guards turned to look.
THEN Ansu poked her head out and innocently asked: "Anna, what are you doing? I'm hungry… and sleepy… let's gooo…"
The guards nodded sympathetically "A-ah… we understood."
Toka continued, milking it completely: "To protect her, I even bought a slime with 2 gold. But the adventurer escort cost me 50 gold. I couldn't even afford registration at merchant guild. So I registered at the adventurer's guild instead to get them safely here"
The guards almost cried "Such a devoted brother…Haa!!"
But suddenly one guard narrowed his eyes "Show us your adventurer badges."
Toka's smile froze "What…Badges?"
The guards shocked "Don't tell us—you lost them? If so, we must collect an entry fee of 2 silver for each."
Toka immediately took out the badges he received when exchanging for their clothes.
The guards nodded and stepped aside "You may enter."
Toka exhaled in relief as he hopped back onto the cart and asked "Uh, where can I find a smithy or any weapon shops?"
One of the guards pointed down the road "Go straight from here. You'll see a statue of Gregar's Great Sword. Right beside it, there's a signboard showing all shops directions."
Toka: "Ahh, got it. Thanks!"
Toka leaned forward from the cart and again asked "What is the name of your Village?"
"Oh, this is Prime Village," one guard said.
The guard frowned. "How did you not know the village name…?"
Toka replied casually, "Ah yes, of course. I mean… we came only to sell materials to pay for my mother's and sister's treatment. What is the use of knowing village name for that ?"
Toka quickly looked away and slapped the reins "Okay BYEEE THANK YOU!!"
As the cart rolled in, after some distance every villager turned to stare .
At Jojo, whose bone armor seemed like it was made from a boss monster drop.
Toka sweat-dropped from forehead "…Jojo, you're going to give those people heart attacks."
So he hurriedly removed the armor and stuffed it into the cart, leaving only the saddle for Ansu and Neelu.
Eventually, they reached a crossroad with a Great Sword Statue .Below it was a signboard pointing toward various shops.
Toka spotted one direction: [MAGIC ARTIFACT SHOP]
And another: [WEAPON & BLACKSMITH SHOPS]
He originally planned to find an inn...but his wallet contained exactly zero balance...To say the truth he didn't even have a wallet.
So he declared "Alright! Let's sell our loot first!"
And with that, he turned the cart toward the weapon shop, determined to finally earn some money.
...
As Toka approached the blacksmith district, he noticed an argument happening right in front the shop that he wanted to visit.
An old man with a long braided beard stood at the entrance, yelling at another man "I told you already that I have orders due TOMORROW!! Three days late? Are you trying to kill my business, you useless sh*t!?"
Toka paused. The old man's aura was… very intense. Like a dwarf-grandpa who just found out that someone damaged his favorite hammer.
The moment the old man noticed Toka and Ansu, he scowled "Oi, brat! I'm not in the mood to make you weapons today! Get lost!"
Toka blinked "…What did I even do?"
Then he stepped forward politely, bowing slightly.
"Sorry, sir, you misunderstood. I just wanted to know who you are and why you're angry"
The old man slapped his chest proudly "I'm Haro, the smith here! This idiot—my supplier here—is saying my steel shipment will be delayed by three whole days. But I have weapon orders due tomorrow! How the hell am I supposed to fulfill them without steel!?"
Toka's eyes sparkled. "A blacksmith in crisis = MONEY OPPORTUNITY."
A golden cow had appeared before him, mooing softly.
He leaned in with a grin "Mr.Haro…May I know how many steel ingots do you need?"
Haro answered irritably "Six"
Toka's grin widened like a villain discovering a loophole in the system "Well, lucky for you Mr.Haro. I actually have six ingots. No—seven. I'll throw in one extra as a first-transaction gift. Name your price."
Haro's eyes sharpened "Let me see the quality first."
Toka casually pulled out a steel ingot from his cart.
The moment Haro held it—
CLANG!His eyes sparkled "This—this is HIGH-GRADE carbon steel! Perfect carbon ratio, flawless finish… boy, where did you get this!?"
Toka smiled innocently "It's a secret".
Haro grabbed Toka's arm "COME INSIDE! NOW!"
Toka pulled Ansu along while leaving Jojo, Neelu, and the horse outside.
Inside, Haro slammed a pouch on the counter.
JINGLE
"One ingot is worth 1 gold and 40 silver.For six ingots: 8 gold, 40 silver.And since I said I'd pay double… that's 16 gold, 80 silver."
Haro counted more coins. "And because it's our first transaction— an extra 20 silver. Total: 17 gold."
Toka's soul ascended "My Money! Beautiful, shiny, heavenly fu*king money!"
He pocketed it with shaky hands.
...
Meanwhile, outside
The supplier who had argued with Haro glanced at Toka's horse… and froze.
"Huh…? That flower mark on its front toe… That's the young master's horse!"
The horse looked at him with a sad expression. The man stuttered dramatically "YOUNG MAAASTER…WH..WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU!?"
He ran away crying, completely misunderstanding the situation.
...
Back inside the smithy
Toka finished counting his gold and looked at Haro.
"Old man Haro, Sell me all your defective, broken, or failed weapons and tools and the Price is… 50 silver."
Haro stared "…Why do you want my trash, brat?"
Toka rubbed his nose "It's a secret."
Haro: "Fine. But don't blame me if something bad happens"
Toka collected all the scrap weapons, paid the price, and stepped out with seven ingots sold and 16 gold, 50 silver after expenses.
He pushed open the smithy door—
"Brat! What is your name?" Haro asked.
Toka grinned "My name is Toka!!"
Ansu: "Bye BEARD UNCLE!!"
Haro was confused by Ansu's Encrypted language.
When he went out through smithy door—
A massive shadow fell over him. A giant hand dropped onto his shoulder.
A deep voice rumbled behind him "Okay!! Mr.Toka We have some business with you."
Toka froze. Slowly… painfully… he turned his head.
"W-who are youuuuuuu.??... peo...ple…?"