part0013

Migrating to Blackstone Town was probably the best decision Hans had made in his life. Who would have thought that a former thief like him would become the apprentice of a well-known herbalist? Although he still had uncertainties, Hans had found a lead toward his path in life.

“If you’re done shoveling the snow from the roof, come inside!” Herbalist Mores shouted from inside the timber house. “We got orders from the Central Market!”

Hans, standing on the rooftop of the herbalist’s house, looked at the houses around them. The heatstones installed around the town a year ago, which were made of cheap but readily available materials, had lost their power several months ago. Although it had stopped snowing two days ago, everything was still covered in white. With his every breath, white steam would puff out.

Hans immediately got down from the roof and entered Mores’ house. The familiar scent of dried herbs and medical concoctions assaulted his nose the moment he entered. Looking above, dozens of dried herbs hanged from the ceiling.

“More ginger ecaruits?” said Hans.

Herbalist Mores donned his cloak, scarf, boots, and gloves. “That’s right. Good thing we gathered a lot of ’em before winter arrived.”

The herbalist pointed at a large sack sitting near the entrance. “The ecaruits are already inside. Carry them for me, will you?”

“Of course, Master.”

The herbalist and his apprentice traversed the snow-covered ground and went toward the Central Market. Surprisingly, despite the freezing winter, a lot of people were inside the Central Market. Due to the abundant harvest and the fixed price policy imposed by the lord of the territory, the price of wheat was incredibly cheap—it was affordable even for poor families.

Hans had seen this scene in the Central Market several times before, but it still amazed him every time. The people of the slums in Lion City were probably struggling to survive right now, homeless, with hardly any food to eat this winter. But the residents of Blackstone Town were different. It was as though the God of Harvest smiled upon this territory this winter.

Hans sighed inwardly. If only Lord Valcres was as benevolent and as competent as the Lord of Blackstone Town, then maybe things would have been different.

Hans and his master made their way to the stall selling medicinal herbs on the second floor of the Central Market. The vendor immediately greeted them. “Ah, Mores! Just in time you’ve come! The dried ecaruits you made are flying off the shelves lately. We just sold the last bundle this morning.”

This had never happened before. During the last winter, people were so desperate to survive that all of their money was spent solely on food. No one had enough money to spare for medicinal herbs, moreover a relatively expensive one like ecaruits.

But now, things were different. After the lord regulated the prices of food and after the massive job recruitments, the residents of Blackstone Town were thriving. They even had enough money to spare for medicinal herbs and clothing.

Mores nodded at Hans. On cue, the apprentice placed the large sack in front of the vendor and opened it, revealing several bundles of ginger ecaruits inside.

“This is the last batch for this month,” said Mores. “We’ll need to wait for several more weeks before the rest of the herbs in my home fully dry.”

“Last batch, eh?” The vendor clicked his tongue. “This won’t even last a week. You remember that shorty from the mines? Arturo? He’s been spoiling his sick daughter with ecaruit soup every day ever since winter started. Damn miners and their deep pockets. I heard he’s made it big after mining a very large kalrane a few months ago.”

When Hans first came to Blackstone Town, he deliberated if he should apply for the position of a miner but eventually decided against it. Although the pay was almost comparable to that of a soldier’s, it was hard labor and he didn’t like the idea of delving deep into the cavern with nothing but a pickaxe and a small kalrane.

“The kalrane worth two gold coins,” nodded Mores, “I remember. He went drinking at the tavern every night for an entire week after receiving his pay. How could I forget?’

“W-What?” said Hans. “T-Two gold coins?”

He hadn’t heard of this. That was enough money for a person to live comfortably for a year. Hans imagined the things he could do with such a large amount of money.

“Wipe that greed off your face,” said Mores. “Gathering herbs is honest work. Arturo simply got lucky, that’s all. If you really want to become an herbalist one day, stand tall and take pride in your profession.”

“Y-Yes!” Hans straightened his back and scratched his cheek in embarrassment.

After leaving the Central Market, the herbalist and his apprentice went inside the Endless Forest to gather a certain herb which only grew during winter.

“Master, are we really going to gather herbs at this hour?” said Hans as he looked at the frozen river next to them. “We should probably wait a few days, wait for the snow to melt a little more.”

“Quiet, you damn amateur,” snapped Mores. “Just follow me quietly. You said you wanted to learn how to gather herbs and make medicine, no? Frost moonlight lilies grow only during winter. We’re lucky that it grows in the Endless Forest. It’s one of the reasons why I chose to settle down in this town.”

The herbalist led Hans deeper into the Endless Forest. After several hours of traversing the snow-covered ground, they finally arrived at a part of the forest which the herbalist called the ‘medicinal herb treasury.’

Mores crouched and carefully pulled out an ordinary-looking plant. It wasn’t beautiful like Hans had expected. “Drill this into your brain. This thing here is a frost moonlight lily. A plant that blooms only during a full moon. Make sure not to damage the roots, understood?”

“Yes, Master,” Hans half-heartedly replied. He also started digging the ground. He could not understand what was so special about this plant.

Hearing his apprentice’s uninterested response, Mores said, “A bundle is worth six silvers in Lion City. If the roots are undamaged, eight silvers.”

Hans froze. He stared at the ordinary-looking plant in his hand, at his master, then back. “Six silvers? This thing?”

Mores grinned. “Pretty lucrative, isn’t it? I heard that it’s being sold for twice the price in the capital. An important ingredient in making several medicines, you see. The fact that it grows only during winter makes it so darn expensive.”

Hans looked around him. Judging by the amount of frost moonlight lilies growing in this place, it should be possible to fill several baskets. Hans realized that his master was right in calling this a treasure trove.

“I should have brought a bigger basket,” Hans said in regret. With renewed vigor, he started to carefully gather the lilies one after another. He no longer minded the cold. If a bundle was worth six to eight silvers, then a single plant was worth at least one silver coin.

It felt as though he was plucking money from the ground. Who would have known that they could get so much money from gathering wild grass? The feeling was so exhilarating that he didn’t notice that a few hours had passed by.

“That’s enough,” said Mores. “We’re heading back.”

“But, Master, there’re still a lot of lilies growing over there. We can probably fit more of them inside our bask—”

“Come on, get going. We’re coming back here tomorrow anyway. It might be dangerous if we’re still in the forest by dusk.”

“But there are no monsters in the Endless Forest.”

“Monsters, no. Ferocious beasts, yes. I’ve encountered wolves in this part of the forest before. If you’re confident of killing an entire pack, then feel free to gather frost moonlight lilies here as much as you want.”

Hans looked around nervously. One of the reasons he left Lion City was due to the frequent monster attacks. Although he was quick on his feet, he wasn’t confident of outrunning wolves in this forest.

“R-Right, let’s go back,” said Hans.

Their baskets almost full, Mores and Hans went back toward Blackstone Town. Upon reaching the forest edge, a figure suddenly fell from the sky and landed softly on the ground. Mores and Hans were startled and terrified at first; they were ready to leave their gathered herbs behind to run for their lives. But they soon realized that it was not a monster, but a human.

“W-Who are you?” said Mores.

The figure turned around and faced the two of them. “Ah, that’s right. I’m still wearing this mask, huh?”

It was a familiar voice.

The figure took off his mask and smiled. “Herbalist Mores, correct? It’s been a while.”

Mores eyes widened. He hadn’t expected to encounter this person here, of all places. “Young Lord? I thought you went to the capital with the princess?”

Hans grabbed the arm of the herbalist and whispered, “Young Lord? Don’t tell me, this is the ruler of this territory? The Lord of Blackstone Town?”

After seeing the series of developments made in the town, Hans had been curious about what the lord was like. He’d heard various rumors regarding the lord—from demon commander, womanizer, the illegitimate son of Duke Drakus, great tactician, to cold-blooded tyrant.

But after seeing him in person, Lark Marcus did not look like a demon incarnate nor did he look like a great tactician. He was surprisingly young. He looked quite handsome, Hans had to admit, and he had this inexplainable air of authority around him.

“Stop whispering in front of the Lord,” reprimanded Mores. “Show some manners.”

Hans immediately shut his mouth.

“The princess and my men haven’t returned to Blackstone Town yet?” said Lark.

“We’ve been gone from the town for almost an entire day, My Lord,” said Mores. “But I’m pretty sure that before we left, they hadn’t yet returned.”

“I see,” mumbled Lark. “I’ve arrived earlier than them because of Blackie, huh?”

“Ah.” Lark smiled. “It’s nothing. I was just talking to myself.”

Lark noticed the baskets on their backs. “You’re gathering herbs in this weather?”

Mores glanced at the basket filled with herbs on his back and nodded. “Yes. There’s this herb called frost moonlight lily which grows only during winter, you see.”

“The herb used to make painkillers and antidotes,” said Lark. “So it grows in this region? Interesting.”

Mores realized that the Lord had vast knowledge. Although most alchemists and herbalists knew that the herb could be used to make painkillers, not everyone knew that it could also be used to make antidotes. Even he, a herbalist, only found out about it a few years ago.

“Yes, Young Lord.” Mores pointed to a particular direction in the forest. “Continue walking straight from here for two to three hours and you’ll arrive at the place where the lilies grow.”

“I see.” Lark nodded. He fell silent for a moment, pulled something out of his bag, and said, “Mores, do you have experience growing roots?”

“Roots, My Lord?”

Lark handed Mores two small, black roots. “Ever heard of mandrakes?”

Mores’ hands, holding the roots, trembled upon hearing the words of the Young Lord. Mandrakes were mythical plants—monsters—capable of assuming the form of a human. Creatures heard of only in legends.

“Although they look like roots,” said Lark. “These two are mandrake seeds. Just feed them blood every now and then and they’ll eventually grow after several weeks.”

“B-Blood?” said Mores. “My blood?”

Seeing the color drain off the herbalist’s face, Lark patiently explained. “Even the blood of animals—say, chickens—should do. I’ll tell Oliver to provide you with animal blood every day. All you have to do is to feed them with blood and make sure they’re receiving enough sunlight. Sounds easy, right?”

“But Young Lord! I-If these are really mandrake seeds, aren’t they… too dangerous?” protested Mores. “I’ve heard they hate humans. Won’t they kill me once they grow?”

“Those rumors,” said Lark, “are pertaining to dryads. Mandrakes are mindless creatures. Although they are capable of magic, it’s limited to healing spells. There’s no harm to your life at all. If mandrakes were that dangerous, I wouldn’t have asked you to take care of them. I’m not that cruel.”

Mores sighed in relief. “I see.”

“Mandrakes are quite rare,” said Lark. “So I hope Herbalist Mores can grow them properly.”

Mores stared at the black roots in his hands. “I’ll do my best, Young Lord. Please leave it to me!”

After giving the seeds to the herbalist, Lark immediately made his way back to the mansion. Along the way, he passed by the newly built Town Hall. It was larger than the mansion itself and could easily accommodate five hundred people. Although its exterior looked ordinary due to prioritizing functionality, its towering height made it a landmark in Blackstone Town. Near the Town Hall was the newly built school.

“The waterway’s almost finished,” said Lark. “The Town Hall and the school are done. Impressive. As expected of Silverclaw.”

Lark was really glad that he had competent subordinates overseeing Blackstone Town during his absence. Just the presence of the head mason alone greatly alleviated Lark’s burden

Upon arriving at the mansion, Lark was immediately greeted by Gaston. Judging by the sweat on the old man’s forehead, he must have hurriedly come here after hearing of the Young Master’s arrival.

“Young Master!” said the butler. “Welcome back!”

Although the old butler tried his best to be stoic, he failed to conceal the excitement within his voice.

“I’m back,” said Lark. “How’s Blackstone Town been during my absence?”

The butler cleared his throat.

“The number of migrants had dwindled a bit upon the arrival of winter,” said Gaston. “We still do not have enough population to qualify as a city. The Town Hall and the school were finished a few weeks ago, just before the arrival of winter. As for the temple, two priests of Nereus are currently staying here in the mansion.”

“Priest of Nereus?”

“Yes, Young Master,” said Gaston. “After you gave your approval to have a temple built in Blackstone Town, the Temple of the Water God immediately sent two of their priests. Until the temple is done, I’ve decided to let them stay here in the mansion.”

“I see,” said Lark. “Good work. You made the right decision. The Temple of the Seven Gods holds a lot of power in this kingdom. The Temples of the Water God and the Sun God are probably the most powerful among them. It would be foolish to antagonize them.”

“I agree, Young Master. The temple is a fearsome enemy and a reliable ally. And based on what I’ve heard from the priests, it seems that the high-ranking officials of the Temple of the Water God see the Young Master in a favorable light.”

Lark remembered the elderly female royal court magician he’d met in the capital. Lark was sure that she was among those who were pulling the strings. It seemed fortunate that he’d gained a reliable ally.

“I’ll greet them personally tomorrow morning,” said Lark.

“The princess and my men aren’t back yet?”

The butler looked at Lark quizzically. “No. Did you come back here on your own, Young Master?”

Lark fell silent. Although he knew that the Scylla’s speed was incomparable to a carriage’s, for some strange reason, he was bothered that the princess and his disciples hadn’t arrived in Blackstone Town yet.

Well, Anandra and Chryselle were with them, so nothing too dangerous should happen.