Lor, a twelve-year-old boy about 1.5 meters tall, carrying an iron sword just slightly shorter than himself, was undoubtedly quite conspicuous walking down the street.
However, no one said anything because everyone knew that Lor was the only one left in his family.
A little guy feeling insecure and having an iron sword for protection is quite normal; they were just surprised by his strength.
They walked in silence.
The two rented three horse-drawn carts from the carriage shop and set out again, heading to a small fishing village 16 kilometers away from the town.
Since they weren't carrying goods, everyone sat on the carts, so the trip was quick, taking just over an hour.
Nothing unexpected happened on the way, and they smoothly arrived outside Durall Village.
Some villagers saw the convoy and hurried back to notify the village elder.
"Let's wait here for now."
Lor got off the cart with Chris, noticing the villagers running towards the village. He did not enter the village immediately but waited quietly outside.
"Alright," Chris nodded.
Soon, an elder with two young men came out of the village, smiling warmly as they approached.
Lor glanced beyond the white-haired elder towards the village behind him.
He vaguely noticed a few figures holding fish spears lingering in the distance.
This was normal; after all, his parents had never visited the village for supplies before, so some vigilance was expected.
If they hadn't come with so few people, the reception might have been different.
Soon, the white-haired elder stopped about five meters from Lor and smiled as he asked,
"Friends from afar, may I ask the purpose of your visit?"
"I am Lor Rox, a merchant from Radef Town. I heard there is a fishing village here and came to buy some fish," Lor replied with a smile.
"My name is Mikhail Kadas. Welcome to our village."
Seeing that it was the boy beside the young man who answered, Mikhail was somewhat surprised but didn't mind.
Having confirmed the visitors' purpose, he relaxed and his smile became more genuine as he asked,
"How much fish would Mr. Lor like to buy?"
"I want to buy about 3,000 pounds, but on one condition, I get to pick them myself."
Lor began to negotiate terms, "As for the price, how about 1 Silver Coin and 5 Copper Coins for 100 pounds?"
This small village was different from Roraya Village, which was very close to Radef Town.
If they caught too much fish and couldn't fit it all in the pond, they could organize villagers to transport it to Radef Town to sell.
However, this village was a bit far from town, so they usually relied on merchant caravans to sell their goods, which was rather troublesome.
Therefore, the purchasing price in this village could certainly be pushed down a bit.
"Of course."
Mikhail nodded readily, "Please follow me, I'll take you to pick the fish."
Lor raised an eyebrow. Well, he had set the price a bit high.
But it didn't matter, 1 Silver Coin and 5 Copper Coins for 100 pounds of fish was enough for him to break even.
This meant he could gain energy points in this small village for free.
Soon, Mikhail led Lor and his group to the village pond and instructed the two young men beside him,
"Kron, Bertia, go and net some fish for our guests to choose from."
"Yes."
The two young men responded and went to the pond's edge, grabbed a net, and with a strong pull, brought up a pile of fish into some wooden barrels by the pond.
Lor followed them, picked up an empty wooden barrel, and started sorting through the fish.
After selecting fish containing trace elements, he informed the two.
They would then pour the other fish back into the pond and net a new batch into the barrel.
In the meantime, Lor took the opportunity to knock each chosen fish dead, and Chris, along with the three carters, loaded them into the carts.
[Absorbed trace elements, energy point +0.3%]
[Absorbed trace elements, energy point +0.4%]
...
Listening to the sound of energy points accumulating, Lor was extremely pleased.
On the other side of the pond, Cadis never left, just watching everyone work.
Meanwhile, the figures that were holding fish spears at a distance had disappeared.
Times of fruitful harvesting always seem to pass quickly.
Unknowingly, the sun was almost directly overhead.
Lor glanced at the energy tab on his panel.
[Energy points: 2, 57.3%]
"Not bad, I've earned 2.5 energy points this morning. If I gather a bit more in the afternoon, I might not even have to spend the night here."
Not having to stay out overnight was best, not just because of the danger, but mainly because the fish wouldn't last long once dead.
Waiting until tomorrow to marinate them could result in a lot going bad,
which might end up costing more than buying at twice the price in Roraya Village.
"Everyone, take a break for half an hour, and we'll continue after lunch."
Lor called for a halt, returned to the cart, and distributed food he had brought in the morning to everyone, even including the two fishermen and Cadis.
However, they didn't take Lor's food, only smilingly saying they'd eat back at their place, clearly still harboring some precautions.
Lor didn't mind either, putting the food away, and started eating on his own.
Half an hour quickly passed, and Cadis returned with the two fishermen after having lunch.
Everyone resumed work under the blazing sun.
In just over an hour, the three carts Lor brought were filled to capacity.
[Energy points: 3, 11.2%]
Glancing at the panel, Lor took out a money pouch with only six Gold Coins, ten Silver Coins, and some Copper Coins from his pocket, counted out four Gold Coins and five Silver Coins, handed them to Cadis, and said,
"God of Wealth above us, it was a pleasure collaborating with you."
"The pleasure was mine," Mikhail nodded, taking the money and smiling as he asked,
"Do you need to stay overnight in the village? It's getting late, and you might not make it back to town before dark."
Lor looked at the sky and estimated it was only around two in the afternoon, immediately shaking his head,
"No need, it's still early, we should make it back to town before dark."
"Alright then, you're welcome to visit again next time."
Unable to earn extra from a lodging fee, Cadis felt a bit disappointed, but didn't insist on persuading them to stay, and directly escorted Lor and his group to the village entrance.
"We will definitely be back," Lor nodded with a smile.
After parting with Mikhail and the others, he took out the money pouch again and handed three Copper Coins to Chris, while the rest of the carters each received one Copper Coin, saying,
"Everyone has worked hard today."
Since he wasn't very familiar with Mikhail's side, he naturally couldn't show wealth and attract trouble.
That was why he specifically waited until they had left before discreetly giving out the extra reward to his people.
"It's our duty, thank you, Lord Lor," the three carters happily accepted the Copper Coins.
Two of the unfamiliar carters kept glancing at the other somewhat familiar one.
And that familiar-looking carter puffed up his chest with pride.
Lor took in this scene, his lips curling but said nothing.
As for Chris, he casually accepted the Copper Coins this time, thinking that he could help out more in the evening.