Chapter 17 – The Merchant’s Lesson
The five silver coins remained on the counter all night.
I picked them up.
Turned them over.
Looked for a mark.
A name.
Anything.
Nothing.
Just ordinary silver.
Yet they felt heavier than the Black Devil.
They were the first coins I had ever earned in this world.
Not stolen.
Not found.
Earned.
“…Don’t stare at them all day.”
Master Borin walked past carrying a sack of flour.
“Money disappears faster when you keep counting it.”
“I’ve never owned this much.”
“Then learn not to become its slave.”
⸻
Three days passed peacefully.
The tavern remained busy.
Travelers came and went.
Hunters celebrated successful expeditions.
Merchants argued over prices.
Life…
Simply continued.
I began recognizing regular customers.
Old Fen, the blacksmith, who always complained that iron had become too expensive.
Lina, the flower seller, who brought fresh white lilies every morning and refused to accept full payment from widows.
Captain Daren, one of the city guards, who drank exactly one cup of tea every evening before beginning his night patrol.
Ashfall City no longer felt like a place I had stumbled into.
It was slowly becoming…
Home.
⸻
“Boy.”
Master Borin tossed me a cloth bag.
“Take these herbs to Merchant Hallen.”
“Who’s that?”
“The richest miser in this district.”
“…Miser?”
“He’ll argue over a single bronze coin.”
“He sounds difficult.”
“He is.”
“Then why do you sell to him?”
Master Borin smiled.
“Because difficult customers still pay.”
⸻
Merchant Hallen’s shop stood near the eastern district.
Unlike the noisy market stalls, his store was built from polished stone.
Rows of glass bottles lined the shelves.
Dried herbs hung neatly from the ceiling.
Everything was perfectly organized.
Even the dust seemed arranged.
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An elderly man wearing expensive blue robes looked up from a ledger.
“So.”
He adjusted his spectacles.
“Borin sent the new boy.”
I bowed politely.
“These are today’s herbs.”
He inspected every bundle one by one.
Without speaking.
Minutes passed.
Then…
He sighed.
“Three leaves are damaged.”
I blinked.
“…Three?”
He separated them with astonishing precision.
“Borin usually sends better.”
“I’ll tell him.”
Merchant Hallen chuckled.
“No.”
“Tell him I noticed.”
⸻
As I prepared to leave, his voice stopped me.
“Boy.”
“Yes?”
“What would you do…”
“…if I paid you one silver coin…”
“…to tell me Borin’s herb suppliers?”
I frowned.
“I don’t know.”
“You do.”
He smiled.
“You simply haven’t admitted it.”
The room became quiet.
One silver coin.
It was enough money for weeks of food.
Master Borin would never know.
Merchant Hallen patiently waited.
Finally…
I placed the coin he had slid across the counter back onto his desk.
“I’m sorry.”
“I can’t.”
“Why?”
“Because he trusted me.”
The merchant stared at me.
Then…
He laughed.
A genuine laugh.
“Excellent.”
“What?”
“I ask every new assistant the same question.”
He closed his ledger.
“You are the first one in three years to refuse.”
⸻
Confused, I stood there.
“…It was a test?”
“Of course.”
He leaned back in his chair.
“A merchant who cannot judge character…”
“…will eventually lose everything.”
He pushed the silver coin toward me again.
“This time…”
“It isn’t a bribe.”
“It’s payment.”
“…For what?”
“For passing.”
I hesitated.
“Master Borin said money earned honestly is different.”
“It is.”
“Then I didn’t earn this.”
Merchant Hallen slowly smiled.
“No.”
“You earned my respect.”
“Take it.”
After a moment…
I accepted.
Not because of the coin.
But because refusing genuine gratitude would be just another form of pride.
⸻
When I returned to the tavern, Master Borin didn’t ask about the delivery.
Instead…
He looked at the silver coin resting in my hand.
“Hallen tested you.”
“…You knew?”
“I told you.”
“He’s a miser.”
“Not a fool.”
I placed the coin on the counter.
“He gave me this.”
Master Borin pushed it back.
“Keep it.”
“I don’t need it.”
“You will.”
“When?”
“When life becomes expensive.”
⸻
That evening…
A loud bell rang throughout Ashfall City.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Every conversation stopped.
Even the busiest merchants walked outside.
I followed them.
People looked toward the northern gate.
A long procession slowly entered the city.
At its front rode twelve armored warriors mounted on enormous black wolves.
Each rider wore dark armor engraved with a crimson dragon.
Their expressions were cold.
Emotionless.
Behind them rolled several massive wagons covered with black cloth.
No one spoke.
Not even children.
“Who are they?”
I whispered.
Master Borin’s face had become unusually serious.
“They’re from the capital.”
“The Imperial Inspection Division.”
“What do they inspect?”
“Everything.”
He lowered his voice.
“They answer directly to the White Sword Emperor.”
The wolf riders passed only a few meters from us.
One of them briefly turned his head.
His eyes scanned the crowd.
For the briefest instant…
They stopped on me.
Not on my face.
Not on my clothes.
On the Black Devil wrapped beneath the cloth on my back.
My heartbeat quickened.
Then…
The rider looked away.
The procession continued.
As if nothing had happened.
Master Borin quietly exhaled.
“…Let’s go inside.”
He spoke more quickly than usual.
“We’re closing early tonight.”
I looked back one last time.
The captain of the Imperial riders hadn’t stopped.
Hadn’t spoken.
Hadn’t even changed his expression.
Yet…
For reasons I couldn’t explain…
I felt as though a predator had just looked directly into my soul.
Far above the city…
Hidden among drifting clouds…
The mysterious traveler with golden eyes watched the procession below.
“So…”
he murmured.
“The Empire has noticed the disturbance sooner than expected.”
He smiled faintly.
“This should make things… interesting.”
The game had changed.
And for the first time…
The Black Devil was no longer the only secret quietly awakening in Ashfall City.
End of Chapter 17