Kingdom Era

Chapter 7 Elven Sisters

Keywell had heard about the three princes of the empire and knew that the third prince right before him was the least favored and most incompetent one among the three. With his two brothers sent to two prosperous cities, the chances of Alan’s success were close to none.

But what if he made it?

As an insignificant merchant, Keywell would never have the chance to encounter big shots like the first and second prince. Therefore, even if Alan only had a one-in-a-millionth chance of success, it was still worth a shot for Keywell.

If merchants were gamblers, then those who dared to make a living at the northern borders like Keywell were the craziest of the lot – They had no lack of courage that flowed through their blood and were willing to risk everything they had!

Every of them were madmen!

Keywell accepted the gold coins and left in a hurry, while Daun took his leave as well to deal with the accounts.

“Derya, how much money do we have left?” Taking a sip of water, Alan looked at Derya next to him. Up till now, he did not have a clear idea of the assets he currently possessed.

“Your Highness, we have 3,372 gold coins, 6 silver coins, and 22 copper coins left.” Derya rubbed his mustache before he provided the prince with specific numbers, a woeful look on his face.

In the empire, one gold coin could be exchanged for 10 silver coins, and one silver coin for 100 copper coins.

In less than two months of their journey from the capital to Blackstone City, Alan had squandered more than half of his assets, and that was under Derya’s earnest, repeated advice not to spend so much. If it weren’t for him, Alan would probably have spent all the money even before they reached Blackstone City.

Alan couldn’t help but smile bitterly. The 3,000 gold coins seemed like a big fortune, but he didn’t think that it would last long in governing a city well.

“You didn’t stash some away, did you?” Alan glanced at Derya suspiciously. The man was banished to this city because of corruption, although his behavior throughout the trip had been acceptable thus far. 

“The heavens know that I didn’t take so much as a copper coin away, Your Highness!” Derya cried out in defense, but with his sleazy and crafty countenance, his words didn’t sound very convincing.

Alan simply waved his hands as he didn’t have much energy to think about it. The priority right now was to stabilize the current situation.

A quick look at the accounts that Daun left behind made Alan’s head pound. Dealing with these were not his strengths, which was why he left them to Derya.

These documents were recorded back when Gert was in charge of the city. Although there had been changes to the situation, they could still serve as reference.

After going through them for a while, Derya frowned and said, “Your Highness, according to these records, there are a stone quarry, an iron mine, and three workshops in Blackstone City...”

Alan’s brows furrowed deeper as he listened to Derya’s report. Blackstone City was poorer than he expected. Stone quarries themselves weren’t valuable to begin with. If it weren’t for the fact that Blackstone City was close to the borders and stones were needed to repair the fortress walls, it was highly likely that no one would visit Blackstone City for its stone quarry.

The iron mine in Blackstone City was good, but it was located right outside Misty Forest, the vast forest behind Blackstone City. The forest was almost as large as half of the Athenian Empire, in the deep of which was the territory of the monsters. Ordinary people would hardly survive in there.

Although the iron mine was outside the Misty Forest, it was still lurking with dangers. Small monsters, savages who lived in the forest, and ogres often haunted the place. As such, a powerful troop was needed to guard the mine in order to ensure that production could go on. This was the reason that the mine was never able to expand in scale.

Fortunately, iron was in high demand at the borders and always sold out quickly, make it one of the main sources of income for Blackstone City.

After Gert left, no one was left to guard the iron mine and all mining work had ceased. Alan would have to dispatch a troop strong enough to resume production, which was something that he couldn’t achieve at the moment.

As for the other workshops, they were mainly for fur manufacturing which did not bring in much profit. Shops scattered around the city sold fur, medicine and some were blacksmiths. Apart from these, other shops were few to none. However, the only tavern in the city was always full of customers. 

Now Alan finally understood how Gert earned money in Blackstone City. Firstly, he earned through various cumbersome taxes. The second source of income was from iron mining and fur trades, whereas the third income source was from reselling grain and running the tavern. He bought grain from the Red Maple Caravan and sold it at a higher price, which made for a sound business. This tactic applied to the tavern as well. As a member of the Nachmann family, he always had a way of securing wine. After all, wine was an extremely lucrative product, even more so than iron.

How could he make money within a short period of time?

Alan began to worry. The money he had couldn’t last him for long at all.

Just then, two guards came in with two girls in sackcloth, one taller and the other shorter.

Bruce, one of the guards, informed Alan respectfully, “Your Highness, Keywell said that these two girls are a gift for you.”

The moment Alan caught sight of them, he was unable to tear his eyes away. The girls looked rather thin and frail, with their hair the color of dark jade hanging down over their shoulders like a waterfall. They had oval faces and slim eyebrows which framed large, vivid eyes that shone like pairs of emerald gems. With their straight, delicate noses and petite red lips, they looked like angels!

Both girls looked young; one looked sixteen or seventeen of age, whereas the other was around twelve or thirteen of age. The older girl’s body had begun to ripen, and her curves were evident even under the sackcloth. Her fair skin was attractive despite her what she was wearing. 

She was a young girl capable of making hearts throb.

Her two delicate pointed ears revealed her identity – an elf!

The Misty Forest was not only the territory of the monsters but also home to various races, and the elven was one of them. However, the elven inhabited the deepest parts of the forest and were blessed by the god of nature. Female elves possess natural magic abilities from birth, while male elves were born archers. As a result, one had to pay a heavy price if they wanted to catch an elf.

The two elven girls appeared more beautiful than the one Alan had seen at the auction back in the capital. Their hands were bound by a special chain. One of them furrowed her eyebrows slightly and looked at Alan through alarmed and hostile eyes, while the other looked at him with fear and curiosity.

It was clear that although they were captives, they weren’t tortured or ill-treated, probably so that they could be sold at a good price. 

Seeing how anxious and nervous they were, coupled with their piteously knitted brows, Alan’s heart ached slightly for them amidst his amazement.

“What’s your name?” Alan looked at the two elven girls as he flashed them a friendly smile.

“Get away, you dirty humans!” The older elven girl seemed to harbor extreme hostility toward him. She crouched over the younger girl while growling menacingly back at Alan.