Raising the Princess to Overcome Death

Chapter 140*: Engagement - The Seven Merchants*

*140. Engagement - The Seven Merchants*

"I’m sorry. I’ve thought about it a lot, but… that matter is a bit…"

The merchant, just entering his prime, bowed his head. His posture was so subservient that his hands could almost touch the ground between his legs, but the noble in front of him, with his protruding belly, did not hide his displeasure.

His proposal had been rejected.

"Didn’t you understand even after I explained it to you? Disappointing."

The merchant said nothing. The noble frowned at his stubbornness.

"It’s not dangerous at all. I’ve already talked with Baron Sauer and Count Oscar. You just need to bring the goods for the exchange... Foolish. Fine. Do as you please."

"I’m sorry. Is there anything else I can do for you? I’m about to return to Barnaul, so if you have any letters..."

"Forget it. I thought you’d be of help since my father sent you, but tsk."

The young noble waved his hand dismissively. As if swatting a fly, the merchant retreated.Then he ran. After leaving the lord's castle, he hurriedly gathered his companions.

The six merchants, busy running stalls with their seven wagons, paused their work at their leader's call.

An older merchant asked,

"Did you refuse? What did he say?"

"He didn’t like it. I think we should get out of here quickly."

"Is it that serious? Maybe we should just pay some money as taxes and leave peacefully?"

A merchant with a greasy apron muttered, wiping his hands with a towel, as if he had just come from work.

"We’ve given out a lot of goods on credit... Maybe you’re worrying too much."

In their trade, it was common to give out goods on credit.

Most people didn’t have cash, so bartering was the norm, but even then, many promised to bring payment the next day or have someone else pay in their name.

"I wish it were that simple, but... I don’t know if they’ll leave us alone. We shouldn’t have accepted their sponsorship in the first place. Now that we’ve heard their demands... I’m sorry for dragging you into this. It’s all my fault."

The seven merchants sighed in unison.

They weren’t originally part of a large trading company. They were small shop owners in Barnaul, the capital of the Kingdom of Astin, who were lured by a tempting proposal.

Vernon, the relatively young leader of the group, had suggested forming a trading company and embarking on a trading journey.

At first, they were skeptical. Vernon didn’t have the resources to form a trading company again.

But it turned out he had received seven wagons as sponsorship in return for fulfilling a favor for Baron Brina.

They didn’t know what the favor was at the time. They were told they’d find out once they reached the Barony of Brina, and they set out, buying extra horses and hiring drivers, hoping to make a big profit.

Traveling with a trading company was lucrative.

But it wasn’t just about the money.

It was also about the nostalgia for the good old days.

The oldest merchant rallied the group.

"It’s not your fault, Vernon. Let’s leave quickly just in case. Life is more precious than money."

Though they sighed, no one blamed Vernon. They all saw him as a son or nephew.

The seven merchants quickly packed up their stalls. They urged the drivers to hitch the horses to the wagons and left the Barony of Brina, abandoning the goods given on credit.

"Not this way. Let’s go that way."

"But that’s a mountain path. It’s a long detour, and with the snow, the wagons might get stuck."

The older merchant lied to the driver.

"I’m curious if there’s a village to sell goods. Remember last time? We found Avril Castle when you followed my directions."

"Alright. But if the wagons get stuck, it’s not our fault."

He declared he wouldn’t take responsibility but did his job. After discussing with the other drivers, they rearranged the horses, putting three weaker horses on some wagons and two stronger horses on others.

- Clatter.

The seven wagons, with every spare horse hitched, struggled up the mountain path.

The drivers complained about the persistent snow, but the merchants hoped for more snow to cover their tracks.

However, pursuit caught up with them. They had been reassured by the lack of pursuers for over a week when they were suddenly overtaken.

"...Thank you all. Meeting people like you has been the luckiest thing in my life."

The merchants resigned themselves immediately. Though only two horses pursued them, they exchanged heartfelt confessions that had been too awkward to express before.

A squire and a knight bearing the Brina Baronial emblem approached quickly. The merchants, apologizing to the bewildered drivers, got off the wagons.

Two horses arrived quickly.

A squire in leather armor dismounted swiftly. He clasped his hands to form a step, and the knight in light armor stepped on his hands to dismount.

"Trying to be clever. You’ll all die miserably."

"W-what do you want? What business do you have with us?"

Vernon tried to make excuses, clutching at straws, but his voice trembled, and the six merchants behind him shrank back like criminals.

The merchants outnumbered the opposition.

Including the drivers and two hired mercenaries, there were sixteen of them.

If they all attacked the squire, they might be able to overpower him somehow, through luck or his negligence, but they would need something more. An individual always has a vulnerable spot.

But the knight was different.

An expert. A superhuman with a body filled with mana.

Though there were differences among knights, they could easily break a person’s neck with their bare hands and leap from three-story buildings without a care.

Moreover, they possessed weapon skills that ordinary civilians could never hope to matChapter Unless everyone present was a trained soldier, they had no chance against a knight.

"Shut up. How dare you lie. The young lord has ordered all of you to be executed."

The knight pointed a finger with a cold expression, and Vernon spoke desperately.

"Why? We are all free citizens. We have documents to prove it. If we have done anything wrong, please allow us a trial. That is the law."

"Hah! You know one thing but not the other. Anyone who insults a noble is executed on the spot. And that judgment is made by the noble and his knight. I’ll add the crime of flapping your mouth to a knight."

"That’s…"

Despair filled Vernon’s eyes.

Realizing that no excuse would work with this knight, he knelt down. He prostrated himself on the snowy ground, marked with wagon tracks, and begged.

"We did not insult the young lord. Truly. If we did... please only kill me. The others have never even met him."

"Insolent. Who are you to decide who dies? I’ll kill all of you…"

"Hey! Over here! They’re over here! Leo, you were right. This really is a shortcut, isn’t it?"

Just then, a small cart approached from the opposite direction. The horses of the cart neighed, and the two horses pulling it neighed back in response.

"Uncles! We did it! Remember the beast we saw? We caught it! Look at this!"

Ran Avicker stood up on the cart and waved her hand, but Vernon did not acknowledge her.

"...Are they with you?"

"No. We don’t know them."

"How touching."

The knight’s lips twisted in a sneer. He watched the situation with amusement.

"Uncle Vernon! Grandpa Ron! Why aren’t you answering? What are you doing there?"

"Sis. Stay still."

The cart arrived.

Ran and Anne got off the cart and were about to greet the merchants when the trembling driver shouted.

"Spare me! I don’t know anything!"

It wasn’t clear if he was talking to the sisters, but the driver prostrated himself towards the knight. The other drivers and the two hired mercenaries also cried out.

"We are mercenaries. You may know, we’re from the ‘Dexter Mercenary Group’ in Barnaul. We only contracted to guard the caravan. Spare us."

"What’s going on? What is all this?"

Lena, who had been sitting on the cart, asked.

Leo, who was driving the cart, shrugged as if to say he didn’t know, then dismounted the horses.

The knight of Baron Brina nodded with satisfaction. At his gesture to step aside, the drivers and mercenaries sighed in relief and moved, but...

"I will interrogate you separately, so stay put."

The knight’s words drained the color from their faces.

Interrogation in this world was not a polite affair.

"What’s happening? Why is a knight here?"

Ran’s expression hardened. She couldn’t reach Vernon, who was prostrated, so she asked the older merchant, Ron.

Without answering her, he spoke up.

"Sir Knight. These children know nothing. We parted ways at Avril Castle and just met up again. Please show mercy. I’ll give my life if you wish. Just don’t hold them responsible..."

"Enough. This isn’t even funny anymore."

The knight cut off the older man, who was old enough to be his father.

"Do you think your lives mean anything? Berun, strike."

"Yes, sir!"

"Hey! What are you doing? What did they do wrong?"

The squire named Berun drew his sword. As he was about to strike Vernon’s back, Ran spread her arms to block him.

Berun glanced back at the knight, asking what to do, and the knight gestured with his chin.

"Sister!"

- Clang!

Anne barely deflected the sword aimed at Ran’s neck. But the squire quickly recovered his sword and swung it down.

"Anne!"

Ran pushed her sister away.

Anne, holding an axe, fell, and the sword missed its target, slicing through the air.

Berun glanced at the knight’s expression. Seeing his disdainful look, he gritted his teeth and swung his sword again.

A brief clash ensued.

Though the sisters were skilled, the squire could not quickly take their lives, and Lena, unable to bear it, joined in, deflecting Berun’s sword and shouting.

"Stop! Whatever they did wrong, this is too much!"

"...Berun, step back."

The knight, recognizing Lena’s skill, intervened. He decided it was better to handle it himself rather than let Berun waste time.

Leo Dexter, who had been watching, realized he could no longer stand by.

There was no reason or justification for him to intervene, except for his slight acquaintance with Ran and Anne.

‘Is this also an event? But why? There’s nothing to gain from fighting a knight from a noble family...’

Wondering what Minseo would have thought of this situation, he shook his head to clear his doubts.

He could easily guess what this damned game was trying to do.

It was trying to drag them into another pit.

‘That won’t happen.’

Determined, Leo stepped forward.

The slightly melted snow stuck to his feet, but his resolute steps quickly shook it off.