Chapter 733: The Tardy Bounty Business and 'Reliable' Mr. Scott

Jier's thoughts raced, and combining them with the various intelligence he had gathered since arriving in this other world, he suddenly realized one thing.

A Noble can only be killed by another Noble.

He, a Knight—or rather, someone who did not even hold the status of a true Knight—had defeated and killed the last descendant of a Noble family that had originally held the title of Baron; in the context of the local social power structure, this was highly improper.

Upon thinking of this, the corners of Jier's mouth curled up, and he pretended to have made a joke: "Haha, you misunderstood. I drank a bit too much just now and said some bragging words. Haha."

The smile had already vanished from his face as Mr. 'Shriveled Aolier' said solemnly: "Young Knight, this had better be a joke. You are a man from the North and may not understand local affairs well enough. Let me reveal some information to you: the person behind the ridiculous title of 'King of the White Wall' has actually always received implicit support from certain big figures on our side."

Jier took a deep breath, his hand subconsciously tightening around the hilt of the Long Sword at his waist.

"Calm down, calm down."

Mr. Deripari, who also felt that something was amiss, snuck a glance at the young man's hand position and felt a chill spread through his body; although the warm spring breeze was blowing all around him, he still felt a coldness from the bottom of his heart.

Experience told him that he was currently in mortal danger.

The danger, of course, came from the young man sitting before him who had been smiling just a minute ago.

Mr. 'Shriveled Aolier' carefully weighed his words, then tried to shift the atmosphere in the stiff silence: "I am a reliable person, Knight Jier. Besides, tonight, both you and I have had quite a bit to drink; surely it is quite normal to say some nonsense after drinking, right?"

Jier's mouth twitched: "Yes, once one has been drinking, one naturally says nonsense. Things like burying people in the ground are all just the delusions of a drunkard."

After saying this, he slowly loosened his left hand, while simultaneously flipping and folding a Magic Ring pendant on his belt without a trace, tucking it into the inner side of his belt to hide it.

This item had been seized from the 'King of the White Wall'; although it no longer had any Magic Power and was not working at the moment, it would still be bad if someone recognized it.

Jier inwardly cried out in relief; he had not worn the two Magic Ring items also seized from the 'King of the White Wall' on his hands to put on a show earlier, precisely because he was afraid someone would ask him to demonstrate them on the spot. Since he did not have the secret command to activate the Magic Rings, he had not used their abilities and had not worn these two rings to show off at this banquet.

Thinking about it now, the rings would certainly have been more eye-catching than the pendant on his belt; it was a good thing he hadn't worn them.

"So, Mr. Deripari, let us continue talking about the matter of Shanlang Bani, shall we? I am quite greedy for those bounties."

Mr. 'Shriveled Aolier' was also intent on changing the subject, so he nodded: "Of course, let us talk about things that make everyone happy. So, do you have the head of Shanlang Bani? Or, after defeating him, did you obtain any important items that could prove his identity?"

Jier was stunned, and only then did he regretfully remember this matter: "Damn, the corpse was already burned by me, along with the other Bandits killed at the time."

"What about a token? Is there any item that can prove the identity of Shanlang Bani?"

Facing the question from Mr. 'Shriveled Aolier', Jier looked troubled: "That guy was as poor as a ghost, and I hadn't found his true lair yet; I just snapped his neck at a Bandit forward base near the Shanglu. There weren't many personal items on him, just some ordinary goods."

The middle-aged Merchant looked troubled: "Is that so? What a pity, Knight Jier. If that is the case, you simply cannot collect the large bounty for Shanlang Bani here in Duoen Town. Although I personally believe you accomplished this, it is a pity that it won't work if others do not believe it."

Jier looked desperate; after all, the hundreds of shiny, beautiful Gold Coins that were right before his eyes and within his reach—so much money—were about to part ways with him.

He desperately racked his brains, trying to find a way: "Uh, would it work to rely on witnesses to prove it?"

The middle-aged Merchant opposite him was also a seasoned fellow; hearing this half-sentence, he knew what the young Knight wanted to say. He shook his head and said: "If you are talking about the Refugee youths in your group, they do not count. After all, they are all relying on your leadership at this moment."

"What about others? The Merchants I rescued?"

"You have done them a favor, so that does not count either."

"Let me think, the rescued civilians?"

"Ha, I could take out a copper coin and make any random civilian outside the banquet hall cheer for me; that does not count. Knight Jier, if you want witnesses, it is not impossible, but they must be people with guaranteed status and position. They must use their social standing to provide a guarantee, and after a long period of confirmation—that is, the time after you claimed to have killed Shanlang Bani, the other party never appeared to commit evil again—only then can most people believe that you indeed killed that cunning fox, and that you simply failed to leave his head behind due to a moment of carelessness."

Jier thought carefully about whether there were any such people who could provide proof.

He kept a stiff face and drank the ale in his hand in silence.

Mr. 'Shriveled Aolier' breathed a sigh of relief; with this distraction, they had finally skipped over the previous matter regarding the 'King of the White Wall'.

He himself did not want to get involved in such Noble affairs, especially since he was only in his thirties. In the next ten or twenty years, he might still be able to climb higher; if he had the support of a Noble backer later on, he might even become the president of the Merchant Guild, or perhaps even the president of the entire Merchant Union of Duoen Town.

He had climbed up from being a small Merchant, and not many people knew the hardship and bitterness involved.

Rashly getting involved in the killing of a fallen Noble might bring him some fame and make it easier for him to do business for a while, but the opportunity to climb higher would certainly be gone. If Nobles had a choice, no one would pay attention to someone who had meddled in the killing of a Noble.

Even if it had nothing to do with him personally.

But the young Knight in front of him was not a local; the other party could just pat his butt and roll back to the Northwest Province, but he still had to live here.

"So, Knight Jier, I am very sorry."

"I have it!"

The middle-aged Merchant had just wanted to comfort the capable but unlucky young Knight when the Knight opposite him said excitedly: "I have it, I have it! I have a witness who can prove I killed Shanlang Bani."

"Oh? Who is it?"

Jier explained: "After defeating the Bandits who launched a night raid a few days ago, both our side and the Bandits lost many people, about two hundred or so."

"Losses?"

"I mean they died, killed each other. Of course, I killed a small half of them myself."

"Uh."

"After it got light that day, when we decided to burn the corpses, a group of Church Priests of the God of the Dead from the White Stone City Wall Guanka followed the scent and came over."

"Ahem, that is not how you describe it, Knight Jier; that was the mysterious sensing of the Priests."

"Yes, yes, mysterious sensing. Anyway, they came at that time, quite a few of them, and there was a lead Priest who looked very powerful; surely his status is not low. They can certainly prove that I led my men to kill Shanlang Bani at that time!"

"About that."

Mr. 'Shriveled Aolier' hesitated: "If it is those few Priests of the God of the Dead, their status is sufficient. But after all, they are from the White Stone City Wall Guanka, not the Church of the God of the Dead here in Duoen Town. I do not know if they would be willing to testify after going back and forth. And besides, Knight Jier, even in normal times, such cross-regional verification matters would drag on for a long time. You know, now that we are west of the town, there are only a few large Merchant Guilds, mainly the 'Burning Furnace' Merchant Guild that is still sending armed Caravans back and forth."

"Ten percent!"

"What?"

"Of the final total bounty, how about I give you ten percent?"

Looking at the young Knight who was huffing and puffing with puffed-out cheeks, Mr. Deripari smiled: "Alright, Knight Jier, this is not a matter of money. It is just that you are not a local. The back-and-forth verification of this matter, as well as the months of time needed to prove that Shanlang Bani is dead, will drag on for a long time. How will you collect this money then? I assume you will already be on the battlefield in the South by then, right?"

"I will entrust the matter to you. I don't care how long it takes, but the money can be deposited directly into the town's treasury for safekeeping, that will work, right?"

The middle-aged Merchant thought about it; if Shanlang Bani was indeed killed by Knight Jier, this was not something that couldn't be done. The bounty was over five hundred Gold Coins, so ten percent would be at least fifty Gold Coins; it wasn't as if it wasn't worth the trouble.

"Alright, Knight Jier, leave this matter to me. I will help you handle the settlement of the bounty for the crusade against the Bandit Shanlang Bani. But I need you to provide a document of proof so that I can handle this on your behalf when you leave this place for the campaign, as well as communicate with the Priests of the Church of the God of the Dead at the White Stone City Wall Guanka to testify."

"Alright, at least it won't be a wasted effort."

Jier let out a heavy breath, feeling that the cooked duck had been retrieved by him, even if it was retrieved in the future.

Afterwards, Mr. Deripari called over a banquet hall waiter who was serving them and asked him to bring a set of formal writing tools. As the main place for Merchants to discuss business, the banquet hall naturally had a full set of commercial contract documentation materials.

Right on this terrace, neither of them moved their feet; attendants brought over a small square table, along with an oil lamp for illumination, high-specification scroll-type writing materials for commercial documents, fine non-fading ink, and an exquisite gold-inlaid quill.

Mr. Deripari was a veteran merchant who had clearly handled similar matters before, so he wrote out the document Jier had entrusted him with in just a few moments.

He signed his name at the end and used sealing wax to imprint a seal from his ring representing himself, as well as a seal representing the Senior Steward of the "Wealth Fruit" Merchant Guild he stood behind.

Jier's side was much easier; he still used his hand as a pen, "easily" writing with his finger using his glowing Life Energy.

"You are indeed a Knight; a name left in this way is far more reliable than a signature or a seal."

The middle-aged merchant wore an envious expression; over these years, he had naturally witnessed such methods used by Knights, and he felt envious of their convenience and uniqueness.

When doing business, for contracts involving larger sums, they merchants had even more complex and cumbersome methods, but what they achieved was far inferior to such simple methods of the Knights.

He lightly touched the name left by Knight Jier with his finger; following a wave of numbness at his fingertip, he could feel the distinct presence of Knight Jier.

Shaking his hand, he nodded: "This is done. Let us have a drink, Knight Jier. May your martial fortune be long, and may the great God of Wealth bless you."

Jier felt much more relaxed; he picked up the fine ale that was no longer icy cold and clinked glasses with the middle-aged merchant: "I also hope the God of Wealth blesses you, my friend."

"The gods certainly bless me. You might not know, but when I was small, my father was just a Steward for a shop selling linen clothing. The shop was even something he started in partnership with others. But he, as well as I and my family, were all devout believers of the God of Wealth."

"We chase wealth, but we don't just chase wealth itself. More so, I believe the Priest lords of the Church far more than my father. Ha, his abilities were actually quite limited, but he let me know who I should trust. In my youth, because of my whole family's Faith, I helped some young Priests of the Church of the God of Wealth with tasks, and from them, I learned many skills. Including the precious business experience passed down from father to son among those small and medium-sized Merchant Guilds, as well as broader and higher-reaching insights."

Mr. Deripari wore a smile on his face; clearly, that period was a very happy and satisfying time in his youth.

"Of course, the Divine Art cast personally by the Priests I was familiar with before every long business trip was even more important. Because of those powerful and useful Divine Arts, I avoided illness and food poisoning more than once. And the ability to be eloquent, cast upon me several times, allowed me to persuade one ferocious Bandit after another."

Jier chuckled: "Perhaps your own ability was the key?"

"That is a reason, but confidence, do you understand? Confidence, self-confidence! When everyone else was terrified, I, having been blessed by Divine Art, had the confidence to take a brave step and use words to persuade Bandits and enemies. It was those Divine Arts that gave me confidence."

"Confidence is far more important than other things. With it, a person can take that brave step. Even though many people see that step, only a few truly dare to walk it and have the ability to walk it through. Hmph, I am that kind of person."

Jier raised his glass, toasting to the such domineering statement from Mr. "Shriveled Aolier".

The atmosphere was so good that it made them almost forget the dangerous and tense moments from before.

At this time, the most enthusiastic rose music had already ended, and Mr. Deripari's young daughter had also fulfilled her wish to finish a wonderful dance with the popular Bard.

She excitedly covered her face and trotted over to the terrace.

"Woo, hee hee."

The little girl happily snuggled up to her father's side, whispering to the two people on the terrace to show off the dance just now, as well as the light kiss the Bard had placed on her cheek after it ended.

"That bastard!" Clearly, Mr. "Shriveled Aolier" did not think so: "I will make him pay. Next time, hmph, next time he gets his face taken a fancy to and is dragged away again, don't think about having me redeem him!"

Mr. Scott walked over at this moment: "Haha, if that's the case, our Duoen Town will lose an excellent talent, and those ladies tortured by loneliness every night will definitely blame you."

Rolling his eyes, Mr. "Shriveled Aolier" retorted: "Without this Casanova, those bitter women will find new toys. Little Konina, you must stay away from that Bard. You are to marry someone from a Noble family in the future. People of that status, it's not that you can't know or contact them, but!"

The little girl pitifully used her fingers to tug at her ears: "I know, I know, everything must wait until after marriage! Father, I understand."

Jier sighed; it seemed this seemingly innocent and naive young girl was also clearly aware of her own significance and purpose. He didn't know whether it was sad or lamentable.

Mr. "Shriveled Aolier" bid Jier a temporary farewell, then took his little daughter, who was satisfied from dancing, and walked away downstairs to arrange for someone to send her home.

Meanwhile, Mr. Scott walked over holding his wine glass: "Ah, Knight Jier, I saw from afar just now that you two seemed to have reached more than one deal? Both of you seem very satisfied?"

Jier raised his glass to clink with him: "Of course, you should know that when I led people through the western Shanglu earlier, we were attacked by a group of Bandits. In the battle, I killed the leader of the Bandit Group, Shanlang Bani!"

"Oh! This is a matter worth celebrating! This annoying fellow, we could never catch him; I didn't expect he would actually die at the hands of a Knight like you. It seems those so-called bounty hunters are just fellows with only empty names; the truly reliable ones still have to be powerful Knights like you."

Jier smiled; no one dislikes being flattered, and he was no exception.

The two clinked glasses and drank again, discussing—mostly Mr. Scott doing the talking—the scene of the dance just now.

"Haha, you definitely didn't see the expressions and eyes of the women at the banquet when little Konina was dancing with our Bard. Everyone wished they could replace little Konina's position. Young girls envied her status—stemming from little Konina having a father with considerable power. And the middle-aged ladies were especially envious of little Konina's youth and beauty. If, I mean if, they could have a bottle of magical Magic Potion to swap bodies with others, I believe those people would use it without hesitation."

Jier laughed: "Very interesting. Your perspective."

Mr. Scott raised his wine glass; he was using a specialized gold wine glass. Although it was not inlaid with Gems, it was engraved by a Craftsman with a prayer of devotion to the God of Wealth, which still made this glass very popular among Merchants.

At this moment, he raised his glass and said to the young Knight: "Then, young Knight, after reaching a mutually satisfying cooperation with that shriveled fellow Deripari, do you have any opportunities here to share with me? Believe me, as a newly met friend, I am very reliable."

"Business cooperation, regardless of size, is fine; the main thing is to make a friend!"

Jier smiled. This time he was more cautious and dared not reveal the matter regarding the "King of the White Wall" to a third person. After considering it, he raised his glass to lightly clink against the other's: "Then, I do indeed have some private matters that require a reliable friend to assist with. Especially a new local friend."

Mr. Scott smiled and patted his chest, guaranteeing: "Believe me, I am the most reliable kind of new local friend. Tell me, what is troubling you."

Jier swallowed the icy ale the attendant had just added and said: "A few things. First, I hope to add a sturdy set of Leather Armor for my warhorse. You know, I am a Kendall from the North. Like the Baron from a few days ago, after I settle those young Refugees, I will catch up and participate in the Southern border war. It is a good horse and needs some reliable protection."

"Oh, this is something I can help with. Leave it to me. However, if you want to complete the armor protection for a warhorse in just the two days your team is staying, this will require several Craftsmen and more apprentices to work together. The price will have to be higher."

"It is only right." Jier nodded; as long as the matter could be handled, the price didn't matter as long as it wasn't too outrageous.

"Then the second thing, you know, I am currently managing and leading hundreds of people who have nothing. Although they obtained some material supplies today by selling the spoils of war from before, it is not enough! I need more: donkeys to pull carts, more Handcarts, second-hand cargo wagons, Rope, farm tools, Linen Cloth, and so on and so forth. The key is that it must be cheap. They are not my subjects, so even if I help them, I am unwilling to spend too much of my own property."

Mr. Scott said with a smile: "I understand what you mean. I happen to know a place where there are many things and the prices are cheap."

"Oh, could you elaborate?"

"You know, Duoen Town is a town where Merchants conduct trade. Most, the vast majority of goods are goods that can circulate normally on the surface, but there are still some things that cannot be traded openly and are prone to causing trouble."

"So?"

"So it requires a safe, reliable—of course, that's what is said to those coming and going—place. In reality, that place is quite lawless; the goods are not very formal, and the people coming and going are not very formal either, and they can only trade secretly in the dark. This place, we have always called it—the Underground Black Market."

"Interested? Knight Jier, if you are willing to cover your face and bring money, you can get many things cheaply in a certain place in town—things that can be used but cannot be sold normally."

Jier winked: "Of course, when?"

"How about tomorrow during the day? You come to the 'Burning Furnace' Merchant Guild to find me, and I will arrange the matter of your horses at the same time."

"Very good. The last thing. You must keep this matter secret."

As Jier spoke, his right hand casually toyed with the necklace and the black Wooden Carving on his chest.

"I am a reliable person; believe me, no one in this town is more reliable than me."

"Is that so? Then, I need people to help me carve a batch of Wooden Carvings, and a few who are literate to help me write some words onto paper."

Mr. Scott narrowed his eyes: "This is very dangerous, Knight. The Priests in town will not like it."

"I am not a local, Mr. Scott, and the matter will not involve the people of Duoen Town. How about it? Can the most reliable person in Duoen Town handle this?"

"Hmph, it's easy, as simple as earning every coin in their pockets from the farmers," Mr. Scott said with a huff.