Two days later, Myjack and Gemmy returned with a large group of packhorses.
The horses were loaded to the brim with goods. They bought 20 barrels of rye wine alone.
The happiest among them was Mazik. He opened a barrel of rye wine and drank it to his heart's content.
By the time Claude went downstairs, Mazik had already downed three mugs of rye wine and couldn't even speak properly.
"We only bought 20 barrels of rye wine?"
Claude felt that it wasn't enough. The rainy season lasted for more than 20 days. A barrel of rye wine a day for 60 men would only amount to half a mug per person. They wouldn't be able to last until the end of the rainy season.
It was common sense to get some wine for the soldiers to drink on a rainy and humid day. That was also Claude's way of buying people's loyalty.
"Sir, we bought 24 barrels in total. But when we passed by Blackrock Village, Sir Moriad forced us to keep four barrels of rye wine," Myjack reported.
Oh, I forgot there's still that bastard over there.
But there was nothing he could do about it. That bastard Moriad was his lackey and it was a habit for him to take advantage of his boss.
Everyone knew that Claude was rich, so it would be a waste not to take advantage of him.
"Men, lock this bastard up in his own room. Don't let him out without my order.
He's not allowed to drink a single mug for the next three days. Whoever gives him a mug will have their portion deducted, "Claude said as he kicked the already drunk Mazik. He's still addicted to alcohol with that level of tolerance?
Two soldiers dragged Makci up from the floor and carried him to his room, locking the door from the outside as they came out.
"Gemmy, go find some wooden planks and seal up the windows of his room. That way, he won't be able to sneak out to drink," Claude ordered.
"Yes, Sir." Gemmy went to look for wooden planks, hammers and nails.
"Have the men move the rye wine into the storeroom. Everyone can have a mug today.
Myjack, make sure to register them. You'll be in charge of the distribution in the future. "
"Yes, Sir."
Myjack then reported, "Sir, we also bought fifteen cases of gran wine. Each case has twelve bottles."
Oh, this is good. This kind of strong alcohol is the most suitable for dispelling the cold and dehumidifying the body. Everyone only needs a small glass a day.
Although the quality of the liquor was low, the soldiers loved it. Most importantly, it wasn't expensive. A box of it was only twice the price of a barrel of black ale.
"Alright. Move the wine to your room. You and Gum will keep it safe. We'll distribute it later in the rainy season," Claude said, "What else did you buy?"
"Quite a lot. I've hired three of them just for the pack horses."
Myjack reported, "There's a rumor going around in town that Rimodra's army will confiscate the merchants' goods due to the shortage of supplies. That's why most of the merchants are selling their goods at very cheap prices. I bought whatever I could find useful and spent all the seven crowns you gave me. I haven't even paid the transport fee yet."
"Got it. There's a money pouch in my office drawer. Here's the key. Take the money in the pouch and pay for the transport fee."
Claude tossed a bunch of keys to Myjack and ordered the soldiers to unload the supplies from the packhorses. He also had to separate the supplies he bought from the ones given by the battalion and place them in the warehouse.
Early the next morning, Claude was woken up by Mazik's ruckus. The bastard was loudly threatening the two signalmen in the storeroom on the first floor to open the door. At the same time, he was banging on the door and making a lot of noise.
"Mazik, you bastard! You'll be grounded for another day if you make any more noise," Claude said as he went downstairs.
"How dare you say you're addicted to alcohol when you can't even hold your liquor? Three glasses of black ale and you're already passed out.
You only know how to drink when you're not doing your job properly. Do you still have the bearing of a sergeant?
There were so many soldiers watching, yet you got yourself drunk first. Are you unhappy about being grounded for three days?
That's my order! Why are you getting mad at them?! "
Mazik immediately became well-behaved. He understood that Claude was the one who paid for the black ale. Now that he was penniless, he could only suck up to Claude if he wanted to drink. "Sir, it's my fault. Since it's your order, I'll obey it.
Three days it is. I won't go out. "
Claude went to the kitchen to make himself something to eat when a soldier came in. "Sir, the village head of Squirrel Village is here. He said you asked him to come."
The old man had already seen the large group of packhorses arrive last night, so he eagerly came over early in the morning to trade for something.
"Let him in," said Claude, before shouting for Myjack to come down.
He handed over the matter of exchanging mountain goods with the village elder and the villagers to Myjack and told him to handle it.
It just so happened that he had just returned from the town and bought a large amount of goods. He knew the price of mountain goods very well and wouldn't lose out if he handled it.
He used the flour he bought yesterday to cook a large pot of flour and beat a few eggs into it. He scooped up two bowls, one for himself and one for the imprisoned Mazik. The remaining half of the pot was left to Gum and Myjack.
With Gum around, he didn't have to worry about having leftovers.
"Sir, the food you cook is still the best. Even the paste tastes so good."
Mazik took a big gulp of the paste and said, "But I don't understand. Why are you using your own money to exchange for mountain goods with the villagers?
They only have dried mushrooms and medicinal herbs. What's the use of that? "
Claude rolled his eyes disdainfully. "Do you think my money falls from the sky?
I don't deduct their pay or embezzle their resources. I'm just making use of my current position to earn some extra income.
These mountain goods might not be worth much to you, but that's only because they're here. If they were to be shipped to the big cities, the price would be two or three times higher.
When the rainy season is over, I'll ship them to town and I'll be able to sell them for at least twice the price. That means all the resources I bought will be for free, understand?
This is called the art of business. "
Mazik was a little confused. "S-art of business?
You're saying these mountain goods are worth a lot of money?
But … but why don't the villagers sell them in town? "
"You wouldn't understand even if I told you. The villagers don't have a lot of mountain goods for themselves. It's not worth it for them to walk for two or three days to sell them in town.
If they don't have a lot of them, they won't be able to sell them for a good price. They can only buy them from the small grocery stores. They'll buy them at a low price and sell them to the bigger merchants to make a profit.
Right now, I'm using resources to trade for mountain goods. That's what the small grocery stores do.
"For the villagers, it's a good deal for them to trade with me. They don't have to spend a few days on the road. Not to mention, the price I offer is about the same as the small grocery stores. They can just trade for resources and they don't have to worry about being skinned by the stores.
"As for me, I'm not losing out at all. Even though a villager doesn't have a lot of mountain goods, it's not a small amount for all the households in the village.
"Also, once the news spreads, the villagers from Blackrock Village will come to trade for resources as well.
When the rainy season is over, I'll have a huge amount of mountain goods on hand. It'll be enough to cover the cost of these resources and I might even be able to make a profit. "
There was no need for him to hide his intentions. Even if he told them, they wouldn't have the funds to do such a thing. Not to mention, he had already bought so many resources.
When the paste was finished, Makci, who had been meditating on this business, locked himself up again in his room.
He decided to go up the mountain to see the magus and bring some useful resources for her.
But when he entered the storage room, he suddenly realized that he had too many things to bring. Thinking back to the shabby shack, he looked around and felt that she might be able to use some of them and needed some of them.
After struggling for a long time, he remembered that the rainy season was about to arrive. He decided to bring her some things that would be useful during the rainy season and leave the rest for later.
With a huge bag of things on his back, he left the camp and headed up the mountain.
Most of the villagers of Squirrel Village were clustered around the camp's warehouse, using their mountain products to bargain with Myjack for the items they needed.
It was much faster to go up the mountain from the back of Squirrel Village. Claude only took two hours to reach the forest where the magus was.
After using Appraisal Eye to avoid the traps covered in magic imprints, he easily entered the depths of the forest and arrived at the clearing.
The familiar howl of the big black wolf rang out. However, it had learned its lesson and knew that it wasn't Claude's match. Even though it was howling, it hid behind the magus and didn't pounce on him.
The magus was still wearing her clothes made of various furs. Seeing Claude approach, she didn't run away or say a word. She only glared at him coldly, her eyes filled with hostility and wariness.
Claude noticed that she no longer had her spear in her hand. Instead, she clutched the chipped spearhead tightly. There was also a small squirrel with its stomach cut open on the ground. She probably hunted it that morning. It was already noon. It should be time for lunch.
"Hey, I'm here again," Claude greeted her. She ignored him.
"You're eating this for lunch? Didn't I give you a lot of food a few days ago?
Did you throw it away? "
The magus didn't reply and only pointed at her shack.
He put down his backpack and went to open the wooden door of the shack, only to see the food he left behind on the table.
Why aren't you eating it?
Just as he was about to ask, he remembered that the rainy season was coming. It was obvious that the magus kept the food as a reserve. She wouldn't be able to go out to look for food during the downpour.
He returned to his bag and opened it. "Thank goodness I came in time. I'll make something good for lunch."
"This is a bag of flour. It should be enough for you to eat during the rainy season. You can make dough with water. You can bake bread or wheat cakes after it's fermented."
"This is table salt. This can be used for half a year.
This is a spice. It'll taste better if you spread it on meat. This is butter. It can be used for frying.
Oh, I also brought you a frying pan and a stew pot. You can use it to cook food or make soup.
These are cutlery. I didn't see you last time, so I brought some for you. These are a cup and a spoon. It's best if you drink boiled water. Don't drink raw water. You'll get a stomachache if you drink too much raw water.
"Oh, these are the clothes I brought for you. These underwear are made of fine linen and are very comfortable to wear.
But I'm sorry, they're all men's. These are the smallest sizes. If you think they're too big, you can make them smaller.
Here's a comb for combing your hair. This is soap. You can apply it to your body when you bathe at the pool. It'll make you clean.
This is soap for washing. Even though it can be used for bathing, it's rough and it'll make your skin uncomfortable.
This is toothpaste and a toothbrush for brushing your teeth. "
Claude gestured as if he was brushing his teeth. Unfortunately, the magus only looked at him coldly and didn't say a word.
Seeing that he was being ignored, Claude took out the last few things in his bag. "This is honey bread. My men brought it back from town yesterday. There are also raisins in it. It's really delicious. Try it.
You have to eat this as soon as possible. It can only be kept for five days at most. Otherwise, it'll rot.
And this, buddy, I brought this for you. It's a fresh goat's hoof. Eat it. "
Claude tossed the hoof to the big black wolf, but the wolf lowered its head and sniffed it. It didn't eat it.
The young mage picked up the goat's hoof, brought the brazier over, and placed the goat's hoof on it to roast.
"Hey, I brought this for the big black wolf to eat," Claude said.
The magus turned to glare at Claude and finally spoke in a clear voice, "Blackwind never eats raw!"
"So, so you're not a mute …" Claude was stunned and tongue-tied.
"You're the mute one!" The magus turned around and ignored Claude again.
"Oh, oh, this big black wolf is called Blackwind? That's … that's a good name …" Claude stuttered incoherently. The young magus finally spoke. It was fine as long as she could talk to him. That way, they would be able to have a proper conversation.
It wasn't easy to meet a magus younger than him in the army. Claude was really curious about how she lived alone in the forest.