Chapter 217: [217] Issues
Eliron arrived at the merchants guild to find it in a strange state. Although the guild had always been busy, it was never like this.
Carriages filled up with goods were speeding through the gates while new carriages were being filled up, merchants were rushing in and out of the guild in a haste, and there were even a number of knights around.
"It looks like something came up." Ash was standing in front of Eliron, watching the scene with a calm gaze.
"I wonder what it is." Eliron glanced at Ariel. "Is there a festival or something happening soon?"
She had been here far longer than then so she would likely know if there was anything like that.
Ariel shook her head. "None that I know of."
’Then it must be because of that...’ Eliron mused.
One of the merchants was hurtling past him when Eliron grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled him back.
"Ehhh?? Can’t you see I’m busy—" his words died on his tongue when he saw Ash glaring down at him. "Ahahaha, how can I help you, gentlemen and lady..."
"What is going on?" Eliron asked bluntly. "The guild wasn’t like this last time I was here."
The man’s facial expression immediately shifted, becoming more nervous, as a drop of sweat slid down his face.
"We lost Ceaspil..."
"What??"
Those three words bore more weight than most could ever imagine. Ceaspil was one of the four defensive regions in the south.
Eliron had read the novel so of course he knew it would fall, but it was not meant to be this early in the story.
’They are moving faster than normal in this time line.’
Eliron did not know the reasons for the disparities in the timelines, but one thing was certain. This was bad.
"The merchants guild has been ordered to deliver supplies to Kasket before the enemy advances north..." the merchant continued after a short pause.
’So they are proceeding with the plan?’ It seemed the prince of Donia was riding the same part to destruction as he had done in the novel.
The merchant scratched his head, seemingly nervous.
"I wonder what sort of foe would be so strong as to take Ceaspil.... I’ve been there a few times myself y’know? That place is a fortress!" He said thoughtfully.
Eliron glanced at the knights and sighed. ’It looks like they are still being kept in the dark.’
The king was probably keeping a tight hold on the information circulating among the merchants to prevent a kingdom-wide panic...
"Now if you excuse me, I am in a bit of a rush!" The man stared at Eliron’s hand which still had his clothing held tightly.
Eliron nodded. "Thank you for your time."
Once the man was out of earshot, Ash got a little closer and asked in a low tone. "Is this the war against the dead you told us about?"
Eliron nodded. "Yeah. Let’s get our goods first, we can deal with other pressing matters after...."
The inside of the merchant’s guild was just as chaotic as it was outside, maybe even worse.
They had to stand in line for about twenty minutes before they met the woman behind the counter.
"Good morning..." she breathed out tiredly. Her eyes were puffy, and dark circles lined them, hinting at her lack of sleep.
"How can I help you?"
"We made an order three days ago. Can you look it up?" Eliron gave her the two receipts and she nodded, pulling out a large ledger from her cupboard.
"Let me see..." she muttered as she traced her finger down the list of names. "Lord Eliron right?" She paused, then her expression fell.
Eliron raised a brow. "Is there a problem?"
"Ummm, I think it would be better if my superior spoke to you instead. Please come with me, I’ll take you to a meeting room..."
She walked away from her post, something she seemed very relieved about, and led through the door by the side of the guild.
There were many doors at each side of the narrow hall, but the woman took them to the very first one and pushed the door open.
"Sorry for the wait, he will be here in a short while." She bowed. "Please help yourself to whatever you will like..."
With that, she gently closed the door and returned back to her post.
’Did something happen with the order?’
Eliron wanted to ask her but decided he would just keep all his questions until her superior arrived.
The room they were led to was pretty comfortable.
There was a map showing trade routes on the wall, a plush couch at the center, as well as a ceramic kettle likely filled with fresh tea lying on the table.
A plate of cookies was next to the tea as well, and from the moment they entered the room, Ariel’s eyes were glued to them.
Since she used to be a slave, snacks were probably a rarity, if she had ever even tried one before.
"Go on, help yourself."
Ariel immediately wiped the drool off her lips. "I-I do not need any—"
"That is an order." Eliron waved his hands dismissively at her.
She stared at him for a few seconds, her eyes moving to the cookies, then bowed before hurrying towards the table.
When she got there, she stared at the cookies for a long second, her blue eyes glinting with joy before she grabbed one and took a bite.
"Mmmmmm~!"
Eliron chuckled and turned back to the map, Ash waking beside him.
"You know we are going to be helping out this kingdom in their war right?"
Ash nodded. "I am happy you decided to. Abandoning them honestly didn’t sit well with me...’
"Yeah, yeah, I noticed."
Eliron’s eyes roamed the map until he found what he was looking for, Castle Kasket.
"This is the point they plan on using as a base." Eliron glanced at Ash. "What do you think about it?"
Ash stared at the map intently before replying, "The castle is a natural fortress. Because of the terrain around it, it is difficult to carry out a successful siege."
He paused briefly. "But because of this, retreating will also be difficult. If the castle were to fall, every single soldier would be wiped out."
Eliron nodded, he was right on point. This very issue was one of the issues Alexander faced in the novel.
Less than one third of his troops made it out of the castle alive, and so their resistance was greatly weakened.
"Is there any solution to that? Having no escape route is like fighting a suicidal battle..."
"Well..." Eliron observed the map closely. "The only viable option is to take the moat that connects to the ocean."
He traced his fingers on the map, follwoing the narrow river and ending at the ocean. "But for that we’ll need ships..."
Ash stroked his chin. "A great observation my lord. But are there any better options? I’m afraid it will take too long to evacuate so many soldiers."
Eliron shook his head. "None are as good as this... but it shouldn’t be a problem, they have us after all."
His eyes narrowed as he stared at the map, this time there would be no need to retreat, the battle was going to end at Kasket.
He would make sure of it.
Creak!
The door to the room was pushed open and the merchant that had attended to them on the first day arrived.
But the man had a depressed look on his face as he suddenly bowed low.
"Forgive me Lord Eliron. It seems I have failed you...."
<•••>
The merchant, Joseph, was sitting on the couch opposite Eliron, looking nervous as Eliron stared at him.
"Allow me to apologize once again, it seems procuring your goods at this time will be next to impossible..."
Eliron massaged the bridge of his nose as he frowned. "Why? Is there an issue with the price?"
It was not uncommon for the price of goods to be hiked during times of war. Maybe the rice had doubled in price?
Since Eliron had paid beforehand, maybe he was using this as a means to hike up the price. He wouldn’t be surprised, merchants could never be trusted.
Although Eliron had not planned to spend a penny more, purchasing the rice was crucial to Artaris’ survival.
"There is a need to use such roundabout methods. Tell me, how much will it cost to get them?"
"I’m afraid this is not an issue that can be solved with money." Joseph placed his hand into his pocket and pulled out a scroll, unfurling it on the table.
"This is a letter that came by our desk this morning..." he said, speaking as Eliron stared at the scroll.
It had the royal seal, meaning it was not forged.
"As you can see, we have been issued a royal decree. No goods, specifically food items should be traded to a foreign individual or country at this time."
"Due to the war, the royal family has chosen to purchase every single spare food item so as to not run out..."
Eliron picked up the scroll and read through the contents, confirming the facts.
’Great, what a way to put a botch in my plans..."