In the seventy-seventh year of the Roland calendar, the Roland Empire, Linfeng City.

In Uptown, a middle-aged man came to the door of a shop.

There is a plaque hanging in the shop, which reads "Russ Refining Gold Workshop".

Sitting in front of the counter was a black-haired young man in a black robe, the middle-aged man reached out and knocked in front of the counter, and called to the black-robed young man: "Tell Russ to bring it up, I have a business to discuss with him." ”

The owner of Russ's gold refining workshop is called Rasti, a veteran alchemist who is well-known in the upper part of Peak City.

The black-haired young man who was looking at the shop at the counter was probably an alchemy apprentice from Rasti.

The middle-aged man visited this alchemy workshop for the first time, and he was waiting for the alchemy apprentice to call his teacher out, but unexpectedly, the black-haired young man raised his eyes and smiled:

"I'm Rasti, whatever you need to say."

"You're Rasti?" The middle-aged man was stunned for a moment and frowned, "I heard that Rasti is a fat man." ”

"Yes." The black-haired youth nodded, "I was still very fat back then. ”

“…… I've heard that Rasti has a mustache. ”

"I shaved."

“…… I also heard that Rasti is fifty years old this year. ”

"Do I look young?"

"What about you playing with me!?" The middle-aged man slapped the counter hard, attracting sideways glances from passers-by, "You're not Rasti at all!" Who are you! ”

The black-haired young man still had a leisurely and leisurely expression with a little smile, and this time he finally replied seriously: "I am Rasti's alchemy apprentice, Noren Vises. ”

The middle-aged man gasped for breath, remembering that he still had something to do, so he pressed the annoyance rising in his chest back into his stomach, and said in a deep voice:

"Listen, I'm busy, I don't have time to mess around with you. Now, call your teacher Rasti out at once, and I can ignore the nasty joke you just played with me. ”

"I can't call it." Nolan waved his hands, "Rasti is dead, just two days ago. ”

"Dead!?" The middle-aged man was stunned, "You're lying to me again......"

"Your news is really ill-informed, you can just ask the people on the street for this kind of big thing, how can I deceive you?"

The middle-aged man glared at Nolan for a few seconds, confirmed that his eyes did not seem to be fake, and couldn't help but scratch his hair in annoyance, and walked out scolding.

It seems that this time it was a trip for nothing.

"Hey, uncle."

Noren stopped him with a loud voice, "Aren't you going to talk to me about business, don't talk about it?" ”

"Talk a fart!" The middle-aged man turned around and sprayed him with a spit, "Since the alchemist Rasti is dead, who else here can help me refine the potion?" With you, an alchemy apprentice who hasn't even grown his hair? ”

"Why not?" Noren silently wiped the droplets from his face, "My skills are stronger than Rasti's, even if Rasti dies, I can guarantee that the quality of the alchemy potion delivered to you will not deteriorate." ”

"How dare you say such a thing, the level of the apprentice can be higher than that of the teacher?"

"Why not?"

Nolan said in a surprising voice, "To be honest, Rasti is a waste that only makes people, I have been under his disciple for ten years, and most of the alchemical potions produced by the alchemy workshop in the past ten years have been refined by me, and he is just a name.

"Even if he's still alive, the order you place with him will be done by me in the end - nothing will change that."

His expression was extremely serious, and the middle-aged man stopped and began to look at him carefully, and only after a while did he say, "Fifty bottles of primary recovery elixir, you will need it in three days." ”

"No problem." Nolan readily agreed, "Tell me the address, and I'll deliver the goods on time." ”

"No. 97 Square Street, the consignee is the "old wolf", this is the deposit."

The middle-aged man pushed the money bag to him and emphasized, "We will inspect the goods and confirm that the quality of this batch of goods is up to standard, and then we will allocate the balance to you." If you dare to be shoddy, I promise that you will not see the sun tomorrow. ”

"It makes sense." Nolan bowed.

The deal went very smoothly, and the middle-aged man turned around to leave, but when he reached the door, he stopped again, and couldn't help asking, "How did Rasti die?" ”

Nolan sighed, "He seems to have provoked a mage, who came to seek revenge at night, and he was blown to pieces beyond recognition by the "Burst Fireball", and died in his laboratory, along with two other apprentices.

"I'm the only one left in the workshop today...... Really, in order to make fifty bottles of primary recovery potions in three days, it looks like we have to work overtime tonight. ”

Compared with the death of his teacher Rasti and two colleagues, it seems that the order in front of him worries him more.

Nolan's flirtatious tone made the middle-aged man a little uncomfortable, and he wanted to question why the young man didn't respect his teacher, didn't he feel sad about his teacher's death?

But before he could say it, he swallowed it back, shook his head and smiled, and left the alchemy workshop.

What do you care so much for? As long as the quality of the goods I received is qualified, what does it matter if the pharmaceutical person is "Rasti" or "Nolen"?

……

"There's business coming early in the morning, Nolan!"

After the middle-aged man left, a girl in a long white dress came to the door of the store and greeted him with a smile.

"Good morning, Aisha."

Nolan nodded kindly to his neighbor.

To the right hand side of Russ's goldsmithing workshop is a doll shop that sells everything from small and delicate rag dolls to lifelike dolls.

Aisha is the daughter of the manager of the puppet shop, and usually helps her father in the store.

Ten years ago, Noren came to the Russ Refining Workshop as an apprentice, and he also met Aisha ten years ago, and he was a childhood sweetheart.

Her face is not powdered, retaining the most beautiful innocence and vigor of a seventeen-year-old girl, and the friendly temperament of the sister next door makes it easy to have a good impression of her.

"It's tiring to complete this kind of big order alone, right?" Aisha had apparently heard his conversation with the middle-aged man.

"yes." Nolan stretched, "This kind of unchallenged, repetitive work is torture for me, the key is that the profit is still low, and oh my God, I'm starting to regret taking this order." ”

"Why don't you hire some more people? Just like Mr. Rasti before, recruit a few apprentices to give yourself a hand! Aisha had an idea.

Noren shook his head: "Unlike Lazhuang Ding, even alchemy apprentices are required to be able to read and write, understand the most basic alchemy theory and pharmacy knowledge, and don't recruit the right person so quickly."

"What's more, I'm really short on money right now, and I might as well force myself to do more work at the thought of having to pay my apprentices."

"Ah, don't worry if it's a salary."

Ai Xia threw out important information, "Last night, a large number of homeless people fled outside our city, as long as we pay a security deposit for them and provide them with jobs and accommodation in the city, even if they don't need a salary, I believe there are many people who are willing to sign up!" ”

"Outcasts? Is there another place where there is a war? ”

"Well, the steppe people looted a nearby village yesterday, causing a lot of panic, and the residents of the surrounding villages have come to take refuge in the city."

"This world is not peaceful." Nolan sighed, "Thanks for the reminder, I'll go out of the city and see what I've learned." Well, by no means for unpaid labor, just don't want to bury those talented intellectuals. ”

"Ahaha......"

……

After closing the shop, Noren called a carriage and headed out of Peak City.

Seventeen years after being reborn in this world, he has a preliminary understanding of the civilization of this Eden continent, although there are extraordinary people such as "mages" and "knights" in humans, but general education has not been popularized.

There are still many people in the city who cannot read and write, let alone those backward villages, and it is not easy to find intellectuals who are qualified to become alchemical apprentices among those displaced people.

If you really can't recruit an apprentice, it's good to hire a few maids to help with the hygiene, and the cost of hiring a maid in Uptown is not cheap, especially if it's young and beautiful.

Well, it's not for unpaid labor, it's just for those poor girls in the countryside to find a home.

With the idea of picking up the leak, Nolan came to the outside of Linfeng City.

As Ai Xia said, at this time, a large number of displaced people who fled from the city gathered outside the city, and surrounded the outer city gate one after another.

Their expressions were either numb or panicked, most of them were ordinary civilians, and the rich squires and merchants had happily paid their money and taken refuge in the city the previous night.

There were several rows of repulsors at the gates of the city, and the soldiers guarding the city were armed with spears to prevent the outcasts from rushing in.

The resources in the city are limited, and they will not let all the displaced people into the city, which will cause more serious negative effects.

Noren jumped out of the carriage and accosted the prefect guarding the city, "I'm going to hire some servants outside, do I need to go through any formalities?" ”

The chief had obviously been questioned by countless people, and replied quickly and skillfully: "Each of you pays a deposit of 5 silver coins, and then signs your name and address, and you can release them." ”

In Uptown, an alchemy apprentice earns about 5 silver coins a month, and a young maid earns 3 silver coins.

Although the price is about the same as the monthly salary, considering that it only takes one month to pay back, the deposit of 5 silver per person is still very cost-effective.

Noren looked at the hundreds of displaced people outside the city, and asked, "Where will the rest of the people who didn't enter the city go?" ”

"Will be forcibly removed, as for where they go...... Who knows? Anyway, it's not going to be any more comfortable than in the city. The city is the safest place, and if you are outside the city, you will be robbed by the steppe people. ”

A few more questions were asked, and Nolan ended the conversation before the chief's tone became impatient.

He walked out of the city, and when the outcasts saw the well-dressed cityman, they made a louder noise.

"Take me into the city, sir! I have a lot of strength, as long as I am given food, I can do the work of three people by myself! ”

"Take me in, sir! As long as I am given one meal a day, I don't pick anything! ”

"My lord, I am trained, I can use a sword! I can be your bodyguard! ”

“……”

The homeless people spontaneously started the "bidding", and Nolan glanced over and walked up to the strongest-looking person: "Are you literate?" ”

"Uh......" the man suddenly made a bitter face, "My lord, I'm just a farmer ......"

"Who can read and write?" Nolan asked aloud, and the noise of the people around him suddenly subsided.

After a while, a thin monkey-like man squeezed out of the crowd and replied in a trembling voice, "My lord, I can write a little." ”

Nolan immediately took out a note and a quill from his bosom and handed it over: "I said you write: the foundation of alchemy theory originates from the doctrine of the four elements, and its four elements are earth, water, fire, wind, and ......."

He had spoken as slowly as he could, and had even repeated it twice, and the thin man had been lying on the ground trembling for a long time and had only written a few words, still a typo of great ugliness.

"You'll have a hammer!"

Nolan kicked him over, snatching back the note and quill.

Seeing that it was impossible to exploit the loopholes, everyone obediently closed their mouths, no culture is no culture, this kind of thing cannot be forced.

It is indeed unrealistic to recruit alchemy apprentices among the homeless...... Nolan quickly abandoned this plan and focused on recruiting maids.

Sensing his quietly changing gaze, the women outside the city secretly puffed up their chests and raised their faces, hoping that the young adult would favor them and lead them into the safe haven of Peak City.

Nolan was soon disappointed again, perhaps because his vision was too high, or perhaps the good-looking ones had been picked out, and none of the women left outside the city could get into his eyes.

Come on, sure enough, this kind of thing is not suitable for me, so let's go back to Uptown to recruit people.

Even if you spend a little more money and time, at least you can recruit someone who is satisfied, and you feel comfortable, he is not a person who likes to compromise.

With his plans in mind, Nolan walked back, then suddenly stopped as he passed a wooden cart.

The cart was not carrying any goods, but a young girl.

The girl lowered her head, her pale blonde sideburns half-covering most of her face as if hugging the lute, but she could still see from her delicate chin and bare white skin that she was a beautiful and young woman.

However, this is not the main reason why Nolan stopped.

The girl's upper body was stained red with blood, and a badge on her left chest was very prominent.

It is a coat of arms with red edges on a white background, and two red swords with the tips pointing downwards and crossing each other are depicted on it.

This is issued by the Roland Imperial Knight Alliance, and the girl's proof of being a "knight".

In the Roland Empire, the meaning of the word "knight" is clearly different from that of cavalry, which is a class of troops, while the former is a symbol of "transcendental".

There are only two kinds of people in this world who can be called transcendental, one is a "mage" and the other is a "knight", who can sense, absorb and manipulate magic power, and have a higher status than alchemists.

But why did such a promising young knight fall to the point of desolation where no one brought her into the city?

With doubts, Nolan looked at her carefully, and as his gaze moved down, he was startled, and quickly found the answer.

It was a terrible and bloody wound of great wounds, and the young, beautiful, promising young knight, her legs, which were below the middle of her thighs—

It was cut off whole, neatly.