novelraw Chapter 186
Chapter 186
Leon didn’t bother asking if they needed his help. After all, when he’d politely offered this morning, Demetrius hadn’t exactly been friendly. No point in offering warmth only to have it met with a cold shoulder.
After greeting Demetrius, Leon returned to his cabin and stored all the items on him into the chest—especially the remaining pearls. Even after trading eight of them to the traveling merchant Egger, he still had sixteen left.
“Rich indeed,” he muttered.
Tucking the pearls away, Leon couldn’t help but marvel again. Twenty-four pearls in total—based on Egger’s price, that was 84,000G. Not a small sum.
A shame Egger couldn’t take them all. Otherwise, Leon would have gladly “donated” the lot to the treasury to repair the bus to Calico Desert. If he was lucky, he might even make it in time for the Desert Festival in mid-month.
Leon had never heard of this festival before, but when he’d gotten a calendar from Abigail last time, it had been marked clearly—three days long, no less. Naturally, he was curious.
Since Egger couldn’t take them all, Leon still had two other outlets: the shipping box and Clint. He took one pearl out and tossed it into the shipping box, planning to see the price there. If the price was good, he’d sell them all that way.
As for the Void Essence he’d exchanged with Egger, Leon wasn’t sure if he should ship it out the same way. The shipping box was mysterious—he had no idea whether it could reach the City of Elements. If the buyer on the other end didn’t have a market there, he might end up taking a loss on the investment.
To get the best value for the Void Essence, he needed a merchant with access to the City of Elements.
It wasn’t as if Leon didn’t know such people—Rasmodius and Linus, for example—but neither were real merchants. They could help, but Leon felt embarrassed to ask.The only true merchant with access was Krobus. But considering the merfolk were targeting his kind, Leon worried the Shadow Person might be killed.
That thought reminded Leon of something he’d forgotten—his promise to Krobus. He’d said he’d tell him what the Starfruit tasted like after eating it. And he’d completely forgotten.
“Well, here we go again,” Leon sighed, patting his forehead.
He stepped out of his cabin and headed toward Pelican Town, aiming for the sewer entrance via the manhole cover near the cemetery.
Riding back into town, Leon went straight for the cemetery. He’d passed by enough times to remember its location. On the left side of the cemetery stood an iron fence enclosing a large manhole cover.
Using the Rusty Key, Leon unlocked the heavy padlock, lifted the manhole cover—which looked heavy but wasn’t—and found a ladder set into the wall.
Climbing down, Leon found Krobus right there by the ladder, gazing up at him.
“So, you got the key to the sewers. Looks like I won’t have to worry about anyone else barging in here with it,” Krobus said, clearly pleased.
“Even if they had the key, most wouldn’t come down without a reason,” Leon replied.
“Yes, but I’ve always worried the dwarves might get their hands on it,” Krobus explained.
“I doubt the dwarves would expect you to live here,” Leon reassured him.
Krobus nodded, then studied Leon.
“You’re back. And I can sense your life force is stronger. You’ve eaten the Starfruit, haven’t you?”
“Yeah. The taste was strange—not fruity at all. More like a recreation of the flavor I miss most from my memories,” Leon said, sharing his impression.
“Is that so? How fascinating. Then you must have awakened a new ability?” Krobus asked eagerly.
“I did. Something to do with crop cultivation,” Leon admitted. It wasn’t exactly a life-saving trump card, so he didn’t mind telling him.
“Seems you’re a born farmer,” Krobus said with the same tone Linus had once used. Then he added, “You can eat more than one Starfruit, you know. If you want, I can check the free market for any up for sale and help you buy them.”
“Thanks. But for now, you’d better not go out,” Leon said seriously.
“Why?” Krobus looked puzzled.
“A few days ago, a Shadow Assassin entered the sea, killed a merfolk, and stole the Neptune Greatsword. He fled to Pelican Town but was taken down by me, the Adventurer’s Guild, and an elder. Today, I went to the merfolk’s underwater city and learned they’re planning revenge—by buying up a lot of Void Essence in the City of Elements. You understand what that means, right?”
“I do. Void Essence mostly comes from shadow-aligned creatures like us Shadow People.” Krobus curled up, troubled. “I don’t get it. Why would my people provoke the merfolk? The Elemental War is over.”
“Wars end, but hatred doesn’t,” Leon said quietly. “Especially blood debts—only when one side is gone will it truly end.”
He spoke from experience. Even though he’d left Earth, he still resented a certain despicable island nation and regretted that he might never witness its downfall.
“Do you think I should hide somewhere for a while?” Krobus asked, trusting Leon’s judgment.
“No. You live in the sewers, and the merfolk don’t know that. This is Stardew Valley, under the protection of the Guardian. He won’t let them run wild. And you’re my friend. I have ties with the merfolk too—I won’t let them harm you. Just don’t go to the City of Elements.”
“I see. That’s good.” Krobus visibly relaxed. He believed Leon.
“It’s good to have a friend like you, Leon. Thank you.”
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