Spirit Taming

Chapter 696: Merchants or Not?

With their knowledge sharing done for the moment, Clark began to think of what else he could do. They were moving at a good pace. Therefore, they would not need to waste the time when it came to resting. Plus, it was a short distance to the place that they needed to be picked up.

The small camp that was set up for the Nighthawk family was well enough mapped out. There were clear trails and clear signage to allow people to better get there. The group even saw a few people from the family patrolling the pathways who gave nods to the group.

This was not an uncommon sight. Especially since it was a family that controlled the small area here for their business. Many of the families that operated businesses like this had their own members or paid guards to handle these sports of things. The battle in a nearby city would just make them a little on edge.

This wasn't all that the group managed to find though. There were plenty of different things along the pathways made by the Nighthawk family. Their business appeared to have halted slightly which left a great deal of small merchants camped out. Especially those that had fled from Nova when it was getting worse.

They had tried to flee but found that they did not have the ability to do so since there were a limited number of beasts that could carry all their goods. Not to mention the fact that the ability to suddenly transport their goods all at the same time over a large distance was expensive.

Noticing this, everyone realized that they would be taking a little longer to get to their meeting place with their own transportation. Simply because Isa was already making moves to speak to many of the merchants.

She could share information with them to see which ones would return to the city now that it had changed name to Aphelion. Besides this, there was also the fact that she wanted to spend some gold to make a profit later. These goods could be something that the group could use later.

Clark also felt that this might be a good chance to relax and a little more. Like a vacation. Not that he felt it was odd to browse merchant goods. They had done so in every single city that they had gone to. It was all a part of using their strengths to create a business that could support their group properly.

"Look, they even have some ice energy crystals. It seems like the merchants that pulled out from Nova were not that stingy after all." Grace had thought that the merchants leaving would have hidden their goods even here. But they were ready to make sales and get the money that they needed.

"Get what you need. It will be advantageous for our group to be prepared when we are in the other race's territories. They may not have what we are after." Ella's thoughts were on what they might face when it came to the materials that they needed on a regular basis.

The other territories that were not human occupied might be a little tough. While they did trade with the humans, the elves might not offer the same deals. Some goods might not be traded whatsoever with the humans because they were humans.

When it came to dwarves, there was a high chance that the dwarves would not even allow for trading when it came to their more valuable forged goods. They were secretive with the techniques. It was often said that those who made the trip to the dwarven city were left under the constant gaze of their guards. Just to ensure that their valuable knowledge was not stolen.

This could mean that the materials or even the energy crystals that the group would need could not be bought. But mostly, it meant that they might struggle to do business at all. This would limit the impressions that the group would make.

Not that they doubted Clark at all. It was already in the back of their minds that Clark would have plans for these events. That he would be ready to pull out some hidden beast pan or show off some random secret from a seemingly normal looking item. That was just how he operated.

'Flash quest: not a merchant at all

Requirement: find the merchant that is hiding his true colors.

Reward: three random gacha tickets.'

While the quest was not what Clark expected, he was actually very interested in what the merchant would be.

The trail they were on had a decent line of camps. They were all waiting for a chance to escape the area or to generally go off to another city where they could do business.

Some of the merchants had larger carriages while some had clearly sold off the carriages to just have their goods at the ready to be carried off by the transport that they hired. It was a good way for them to be ready, but also showed their desperation.

Using the analysis would be a good idea, but Clark had no guarantee to say that he could find the person he was looking for like this. Instead, he decided on another approach. "What is this here?" Clark knew well that most merchants would have an idea of what their goods were. So, he began to walk the line of waiting merchants and ask questions.

If the merchant failed to have proper knowledge of the item in question, then Clark could use that. There might be a chance that they are the hidden individual here. "That's a water crest seed. It can grow nutritional food for a water type beast. Even some water type birds eat it." that was exactly what the random seed was. Various others were on the impromptu table.

All easily identified by the merchant.

The next was holding a variation of metals and other random items such as candles sticks or door handles. It seemed that this had been a man selling what he received form a blacksmith. He had to get somewhere that he could sell these. Unfortunately, he did not realize the chance that he was missing now.

"You know that Nova City was saved and renamed Aphelion City. it needs plenty of items like these right now." the man stood up in clear shock. He must have been here a little too long. It would explain why he did not know about the changes in the city. He had given up and believed the city to be lost. Just a corrupt shell.

"Kid, thanks a ton, you're that student right? If you lied to me the whole city would be a mess." Clark felt that the man had moved a little too swiftly. But judging from the looks toward the others, it was clear that the merchant had picked out the rest of the group and drawn a conclusion from other rumors. A famous group shouldn't be able to lie or have to lie too much.

These quick questions brought Clark through a few other stalls. One where a merchant was selling her dried and salted meats. A nice sale since it was clear that the merchant was working with a hunter who was gathering these things. Their teamwork a wise decision since plenty of people nearby would want to purchase these goods. But still, a merchant was a merchant.

One or two others also fit right in. They had general store goods that they had taken and left with. Now they were close to being able to fly to a new village or city. But when Clark spotted a long length of scaled leather, he wondered what it could go to.

'Spotted serpent scales- uncommon

The spotted serpent lives within the forests. It gains spots due to its light and earth affinities. It can both hid in the first with its brown scales but also mimic the light falling through the trees due to the spots on its scales.

While it is not particularly venomous, it is daily strong. This is why it is able to easily bind and break the bones of its prey. From there it will consume them then return to hiding in plain sight. But this does not always work to its advantage.

Sitting still causes it to become stiff and sometimes too slow due to the cold. Therefore, it is easily hunted in the early moving. Its scales a valuable material for making certain artistic clothing options…'

"What's this scaled skin all about. It looks nice."

"It's just the skin of a horned rock lizard. It had an illness so it was not really the best. I Can sell it for cheap." The older man was the only one at this small table. He was also wrong. Clark knew that he could not judge instantly. He would ask a little more than just that.

"The pattern seems nice though. It could sell well. This snake skin is pretty. I bet boots would be great. Or gloves.

"Well, as far as snake skin goes, it is pretty. Good eyes, young man." the merchant had agreed regardless of the error he had made.