Half an hour later, the honest municipal official presented a rough estimate.
"My lord, Greenland is your domain. Establishing supply shops and taverns would incur minimal costs for buildings and land—simply conscript your subjects to construct them, and this expense becomes negligible. However, procurement costs are substantial. I've done a rough calculation—just the most basic items: adventurers' armor, weapons, food, low-grade magic crystals, plus the tavern's wine and food. At minimum, it will require one hundred and twenty gold coins."
"One hundred and twenty gold coins!" Old Anderson sucked in a sharp breath. The municipal official added honestly, "This is the bare minimum. The supply shop would only offer the most basic consumables, and the tavern would only serve the cheapest ale and homemade whiskey."
Gaia stroked his chin once more. "Very well. Send word to Modo first. I'll find a way to secure the gold coins."
"As you command." After the magistrate withdrew, Anderson grew anxious. "Young Master, we only have fifty gold coins left. We're still seventy short. Where do you intend to find them?"
Gaia replied confidently, "Have you forgotten about those two magic-enhanced skeleton soldiers?"
The two servants of Hoganberg—the magic-enhanced skeleton soldiers—had been painstakingly transported all the way to Greenland Town by Gaia and Old Anderson. They were now hidden in the basement of the "Lord's Manor." The reason for the quotation marks around "Lord's Manor" was that, despite being the finest dwelling in all Greenland Town, it consisted of nothing more than three wooden huts plus a cellar—the kind Greenlanders favored for storing winter provisions.
Gaia's cellar was considerably larger than those of other residents, thus qualifying as a basement. The two magic-enhanced skeleton soldiers stood silently flanking the basement entrance, like sentinels.
Old Anderson had moved one skeleton soldier to the center of the basement, awaiting Gaia's instructions.
Hoggenberg's servants were clearly extraordinary. Though Gaia knew nothing of magic, he could tell these two magic-enhanced skeleton soldiers were crafted from the finest magical materials—each worth a fortune. Even the armor they wore was far from ordinary.
Gaia sighed. "These two magic-enhanced skeleton soldiers might prove invaluable someday. We certainly can't just sell them off like this." He began unfastening the armor from the skeleton soldier, removing the breastplate and examining it with some reluctance. "Armor this fine won't fetch its true worth if we sell it, but what else can we do?"
He handed the breastplate to Old Anderson: "Find something to wrap it in. We'll take it to Modo to sell. Seventy gold coins should be no problem."
Old Anderson searched for wrapping materials nearby. Gaia casually noticed a hidden compartment on the skeleton soldier's chest.
Typically, skeleton soldiers were mere skeletal frames, but these two magic-enhanced skeleton soldiers were different—their entire bodies were encased in steel. No wonder Old Anderson had found them so heavy when he hoisted them onto the cart earlier. Right on the chest of the skeleton soldier's seamless steel body was a hidden compartment about the size of a bowl.
A tiny screw fastened the compartment. Gaia turned it a few times, and with a click, the compartment opened!
Curiosity piqued, Gaia slid the compartment open. A shower of crystalline starlight spilled out from within.
Despite its bowl-sized exterior, the interior space was surprisingly spacious. a pool of dark red, unidentified liquid lay below, with a single orchid floating on its surface. The beautiful starlight emanated from the petals of that orchid.
How beautiful! Gaia couldn't resist leaning closer. Just as his head neared the compartment, disaster struck. The orchid's leaves suddenly stretched infinitely long, like a vicious green snake, coiling around Gaia's neck!
"Ah!" Gaia screamed, struggling to pull away. But his strength was no match for the orchid. Its seemingly fragile leaves proved incredibly resilient, dragging his body inch by inch toward the hidden compartment.
Old Anderson turned and saw the horrifying sight. His face drained of color. He started to rush forward, but then noticed the faint starlight glinting on the orchid's leaves. He halted immediately, drawing his waist blade without hesitation. Biting his tongue until it bled, he spat a mouthful of blood, infused with faint silver-hued fighting energy, onto the blade's edge.
"Hah!" Old Anderson summoned his last reserves of strength. His aged body seemed to suddenly burst with renewed vitality. A brilliant silver light radiated from his entire being as the fighting spirit of an early-stage Silver Warrior surged forth. Gripping his dagger tightly with both hands, he roared and swung it down at the terrifying orchid leaf.
The silver light whistled through the air, striking the orchid leaf entangling Gaia with a clang. A flash of golden starlight flickered across the leaf. Old Anderson's strike, unleashed with every ounce of his strength, only managed to cut halfway through the orchid leaf before grinding to a halt!
The orchid leaf seemed utterly indifferent to this wound, continuing to drag Gaia back toward it.
Gaia had no time to think. Battle Qi erupted from her body, a flash of golden light erupting as she clenched her fist and slammed it hard against the blade's back.
"Boom!" The battle qi exploded violently, sending air currents surging wildly. Objects in the basement clattered and rolled everywhere.
The waist blade snapped cleanly through the orchid leaf, clattering to the floor. But it too had been shattered—a thumb-sized gash split open, cracks spreading across its surface. It was definitely ruined.
Old Anderson rushed forward, swiftly closing the hidden compartment and tightening the screws with force.
Gaia advanced, channeling his fighting energy. A violent surge coursed through his body, that knife-like stabbing sensation returning. Blood trickled from his nostrils as he collapsed onto the floor, pale-faced—half from fright, half because the orchid leaf was choking his neck, robbing him of breath.
Still shaken, he muttered, "Seems I really shouldn't push my fighting spirit beyond my body's limits. One more time like that, and I'd be done for..."
Old Anderson collapsed onto the ground, nearly drained of all strength, gasping for breath.
Death's scythe had once again brushed past Gaia's nose.
The severed half of the orchid leaf, now lifeless, twitched twice on the ground before stilling, though it continued to emit that alluring starlight.
"What is this thing?" Gaia asked, her voice still trembling.
"A Bloodthirsty Nightmare Orchid," Old Anderson replied. "Fortunately, it was still in its juvenile stage and hadn't matured. Otherwise, neither of us would have escaped today."
No explanation was needed. The Bloodthirsty Nightmare Orchid's terror was legendary throughout the Abyss. Gaia shuddered. "That dark red liquid... is human blood?" Old Anderson nodded. A mature Bloodthirsty Nightmare Orchid possessed combat strength equivalent to a mid-tier seventh-grade demon beast. The Abyss's demon beast classification system also used seven grades, each divided into three tiers. The most formidable beasts reached the high-tier seventh rank. As for the even more powerful divine beasts and sacred beasts, they existed only in legend. Beyond the tales of wandering minstrels, those who had truly encountered them in the Abyss could be counted on one hand.
This Bloodthirsty Nightmare Orchid hadn't even reached maturity, yet it had pushed Old Anderson—a low-tier Silver Warrior—to his absolute limit, unable to sever even a single leaf. One could only imagine how terrifying this plant truly was.
"We're both incredibly lucky today," Gaia remarked. "It hasn't fully matured yet, and clearly the magic-enhanced skeleton soldier is restricting its power—it can only shoot out one leaf at a time. Otherwise..." Neither dared to imagine the consequences.
The secret compartment was too small; the Bloodthirsty Nightmare Orchid couldn't fire two leaves simultaneously.
Gaia glanced at the other magic-armored skeleton soldier, wondering: This one contained a Bloodthirsty Nightmare Orchid. What was inside the other? Though curiosity burned, he wouldn't dare open the chest of the second skeleton soldier now, even if it killed him.
"Let's go, young master. The steel in these skeleton soldiers restrains the Bloodthirsty Nightmare Orchid—it can't escape." Old Anderson paused to regain his strength, then pulled Gaia toward the exit. As Gaia climbed the stairs, a sudden impulse made him glance back at the fallen leaf of the Bloodthirsty Nightmare Orchid.
"Young master..."
Gaia ran back and tucked the leaf into his coat....
"Lord, this is Modo Town." The guide, a youth named Roy, was about Gaia's age but far more robust. The harsh environment of the Frozen Wastes forged sturdy young men.
Gaia had initially intended to send anyone to Modo to deliver the message, but the honest municipal official, Strong, had assigned Roy—who knew the route well. However, since Gaia intended to sell armor, he naturally had to make the trip to Modo himself, and thus Roy became his guide.
"Is this really just a small town?" Gaia could scarcely believe his eyes. Though both towns lay in the northern reaches of Martinique Province, both beyond the Frozen Wastes, and separated by a mere two hundred miles, they were worlds apart. Modo boasted a five-meter-high stone wall, and its massive gate bustled with constant traffic.
Stepping into Modo revealed the true magnitude of this disparity: shops lined the streets, including not only numerous adventurer supply stores but also auction houses, taverns, blacksmiths, restaurants, inns, brothels, and a whole array of other facilities.
Gaia had been confident that his new tax reduction policy would naturally draw Mordo's adventurers to his domain. Witnessing this scene, he realized the gap between Greenland and Mordo was far greater than a few shops or an adventurer's office could bridge. Competing with Mordo for business would be a long and arduous journey.
"My lord, though Modo's camp rivals a small town in prosperity, within the administrative structure of the Shenglong Dynasty, it remains classified as a village," Roy answered Gaia's unspoken question with unwavering loyalty. To him, Gaia was already the highest-ranking noble he'd ever encountered in his life.
Gaia's baggage was also carried by Roy, containing the breastplate he'd stripped from the skeleton soldier.
Passing by the adventurers' tavern and the pawnshop, Gaia did not pause. While openly selling the armor at the tavern would surely fetch a good price, it would also attract unwanted attention. Gaia lacked the strength to protect himself yet, and he did not want this breastplate to bring trouble to Greenland.
Therefore, he chose another place: the auction house.
"My lord, why are you covering your face?" For a boy raised in the frontier, Roy's thoughts were far simpler. He couldn't fathom why Gaia would deliberately slip into an alleyway and conceal his features. Seeing Roy's bewildered expression, Gaia sighed inwardly, abandoning the urge to involve him in his charade. He would have to manage everything alone.
Gaia gave him instructions, and Roy nodded repeatedly. With everything arranged, Gaia slipped off his warm coat to reveal the only silk robe he owned beneath.