Chapter 010: The Down-and-Out Merchant

Characters in this chapter: Manid, a down-and-out merchant, and Sooke, the tavernkeeper. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info

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The Zenda Tavern "Happy Boar" was built on the side of the road leading to and from the city gates of Zenda City, and mercenaries and bounty hunters returning from exterminating pirates from overseas would come here to rest and sometimes have a drink.

The layout of "Happy Boar" is similar to that of other taverns: it is a large straight counter with a recessed wall at the entrance, and the cabinet is prepared with bread and wine, which can be sold at any time.

The mercenaries, who disperse in the evening, spend four dirhams on some marijuana, stand outside the counter, smoke and rest, and if they are willing to spend an extra dirham, they can buy a piece of jerky or cabbage.

If you get a dozen dirhams, you can buy wine, but these customers, mostly bounty hunters, are probably not so generous. Only freelancers will be in the house, ask for a few pots of honey, and sit down and drink slowly.

Manid, a down-and-out merchant, sat sadly in a tavern and drank.

I still have five dinars of capital that I can earn back. Sitting in the tavern, he thought as he let the dinars in his hands collide with each other and make a pleasant sound.

"Sooke, another drink," Manid shouted to Suke as he leaned on the counter.

But because the folk music of the Nords made it impossible for the people behind the pile of bills to hear Manid, he stood up, tried to control his balance, and walked out into the crowd.

Although he was squeezed and dizzy several times along the way, he finally managed to stand on the edge of the counter.

"Give me some more wine. Manid patted at the pile of ledgers.

"Dear Mr. Manid," said the tavernkeeper Suke, completely immersed in the heavy ledger, without raising his head. "I suggest you don't drink anymore, you'll drink six or seven bottles of my wine in one day!"

"Damn, my father will kill me if he knows I've lost all my possessions!" Manid poured himself another glass of Sokna, which he claimed to be the only wine on the continent that didn't mix water.

As soon as it was brought to his mouth, he was stopped by Suke. "I think you're right," Suke said to Manid in a serious tone. "But as far as I know, you said your father had been dead for ten years, didn't you?"

"Did I say that?"

"I swear to God!" the tavernkeeper Suke raised his delicate hand with a serious face.

Manid looked at him in disbelief, but he couldn't see any falsehood in the other man's eyes.

"Well, it looks like that's the only thing I'm thankful for. Manid smiled helplessly, and then prepared to drink the first glass of wine of the day, but Suke stopped him again.

"Another glass of wine, all right!" Manid begged the owner behind the bar. "Old friend Suke, I really don't have the money to pay you back, you know, the goods are gone, what can I use to compensate? You won't be ruthless enough to let me sleep on the street, right?"

"Boom!" the oak table was smashed with a glass of ale.

"Of course I'm not going to let you sleep on the street," Suke's face didn't loosen at all, and he suddenly pressed his big nose close to Manid's face, who wanted to take the glass, and told Manid viciously.

"According to the rules of the city, I have the right to summon the guards to drive you out of the city! From the time you stayed at my hotel last spring until today, you have owed me five hundred dinars, five hundred dinars!"

"What?500 dinars?" Manid's face was full of shock, and his brows suddenly tightened, a little annoyed. "Damn, when did your wine become so expensive, five hundred dinars would buy a good set of knightly equipment. ”

"You've got the best wines you drink," Sooke reminded him. "And you've had no less than seven bottles today. I wonder how you got all this wine in your stomach. ”

"That's not something you profiteers should worry about. Manid cursed under his breath.

"What?"

"Oh, I mean I'll pay you back when I have the money," Manid said cheekily. "But you also know that my goods have been robbed by robbers, and all my money has been put on them. ”

The tavernkeeper looked at him in disbelief. Manid, on the other hand, kept his head down, not daring to make eye contact with him. "Oh my god! How did I come up with the idea of taking you in the first place? I only drink, drink, drink, drink every day! Where's the horse dealer I used to know? Didn't you say you were going to buy all the shops in Rhodoc? Didn't you say you were going to go through all the pretty girls in Sagoth?"

"you, go and find a way for me as soon as you're done with this drink," Suke said with a pretended threat. "I want to see your sincerity in repaying the money before dinner tonight, otherwise I will definitely let Instructor Kai's guards throw you down from the fifty-five-foot city!"

The muscles on Manid's face, who was holding the wine glass, twitched. "Suke, you're not serious, are you? I'm penniless now, what's the ......?"

"In Chanda, the best place to make money is of course the gladiatorial arena, you can go and bet, and if you bet on the fighter to win the final championship, you will win up to 30 times the prize!"

"Of course, if you win the championship there, not only will you get money, but your name will spread like the wind throughout Calradia!

Suke walked over to Manid and sat down, his right hand around his neck, and his left foot directly on the bench. Manid looked at him warily and punched or stabbed him suddenly.

"See that guy over there, even if you can't win the championship like him, just one championship is enough to win a lot of money!"

Manid followed Sooke's finger and looked back, where two gray-haired men and a somewhat sturdy-looking woman sat in the final compartment of the tavern drinking rye.

The man with his back to them had long hair, a large gray beard visible from behind, while the man on the left had a short, neatly trimmed beard, and Manid wasn't sure which one Sook was referring to.

"You mean that... An old man with a long beard?"

With a "snap", Manid's head was slapped on the head by Soke.

"If you want to find a worse ending than rolling off the walls of Chanda, run to him and say it again! He is Ducras, the spear champion who has been rampant in the arena for thirteen years! You must have heard of it if you haven't seen it, right? idiot!"

"Of course, of course I've heard ......" Manid had been organizing caravans for fifteen years, and had traveled through all the towns of Rhodok, Nord, Swadia, and most of Vigia.

Naturally, I had heard the name of "Duklas, the god of the spear," Manid said, touching his aching head. "It's just never been seen, and the last time Duklas was seen in the Zenda Gladiatorial Arena was at least ten years ago.

Suke smiled evilly and poured himself a glass of ale. "If you dare to say in front of him that he is an old man, he will definitely pull you out, and then put a sword in your hand, and then prove to you how young and strong he is!"

Manid estimated in his mind that Durax was at least fifty years old, and he couldn't help but grin. "Why didn't he stuff me with a riding gun and a hunting horse?"

Su Ke shook his head, not stinging with his ridicule: "Because you don't deserve to let him lift his spear, even if he takes a burning stick, it will be enough to beat you to crying dad and mother." ”

"Believe me, every year in the ten years since he retired, there have been a few kids as strong as cattle to verify the legend and take away the scars. Suke suddenly suggested. "Of course, you can choose to try it, and maybe it will work a miracle. ”

Manid took a large sip of ale and calmed his mind. "Champion, it's as far away as my hometown in Rhodoc, I'm ...... I haven't drawn my sword for five years. ”