ALL NOVEL Chapter 41
The Royal Capital’s Black Market occupies a massive open area surrounded by wide roads extending through the eastern district.
In terms of size, it’s as large as a large forest park, and the number of shops is overwhelming. People gather at the market, hoping to find hidden treasures among its many stalls.
“It’s incredibly lively, isn’t it?”
“As expected of the Royal Capital. Since all the shops are gathered in one place, it’s even noisier than the street market festival, don’t you think?”
The spot where Aina and I rented our shop wasn’t great, but it wasn’t terrible either. It wasn’t near the most visible entrances in the north, south, east, or west, nor was it in the central area where the high-profile products were sold. We were in a rather awkward middle-ground location.
We were positioned more toward the northeast. Although the market had just started, the throngs of customers that had gathered earlier hadn’t yet reached our spot, but the rumble of footsteps could be heard in the distance.
“Oh, that’s right… I just remembered why today’s Black Market is so chaotic.”
As I absentmindedly glanced at the shop across from us, waiting for customers, Aina, sitting next to me, suddenly clapped her hands as she recalled the reason behind all the commotion.
“What’s causing this fuss?”
“I heard that elves have been brought in as slaves. That’s why people are gathering.”
“Ah… I see.”
Elven slaves—how typical of a fantasy world. It seems that this Black Market had just received one of those classic tropes.
Wait, this country has a slave system…? I realized that only now.
“Are elves really that rare?”
“In this country, the slave market isn’t that large compared to other places.”
“Huh, elves, huh…”
From a Japanese perspective, elves are often seen as long-lived, beautiful, and skilled archers, but I wonder how they are regarded in this world.
“Elves are famous for being beautiful, both men and women. In countries where slave hunts are allowed, they are among the first targets.”
“Slave hunts…? Seriously?”
“…Let me just say this upfront: don’t even think about buying one of those slaves and bringing them back to the team house.”
“I’m not going to do that!”
I dismissed Aina’s sharp gaze, but, as a former Japanese, I couldn’t help but feel curious about the elves. If they hadn’t been sold yet, maybe I’d go take a look later. As I passed the time chatting idly with Aina, these thoughts drifted through my mind.
—
“Hey, this potion is the real deal, right?”
“Yes, as you can see, here’s the guild’s appraisal certificate.”
“Anyone can forge something like that. I can’t buy something so uncertain.”
Once the Black Market began, it didn’t take long for customers hunting for rare items to start trickling into the area.
Last time, when I participated in the street market festival, my first customer was none other than Ray Castiano, so this time at the Black Market felt like my first real business experience.
“How about 1.3 million?”
“That’s the price for a blue-tier potion, isn’t it? I can’t agree to that.”
Most of the customers at the Black Market try to haggle by first casting doubt on the product. Is this really a genuine purple potion? Isn’t it actually a blue potion? They grill you with questions, hoping to negotiate a price slightly above the guild’s fair market value.
“…”
“Hey, why is this guy the only one talking? What about you, huh?!”
“…You’re annoying. If you’re not buying, then move along.”
The one who kept nitpicking at the potion was a particularly stout man, most likely a merchant from the capital or a traveling trader, judging by his attire.
Even though the sun had already set, making the market quite cool, the man was sweating profusely as he raised his voice, showing no signs of backing down.
Men like him, who try to intimidate you with their appearance and attitude to lower prices, naturally provoke resistance. But even if this were a blue-tier potion, the price of 1.2 million would still be ridiculously low for the Black Market.
“You…!”
Frustrated by my refusal to budge, the man turned to Aina and glared at her, his voice rising in agitation.
As he shifted his gaze from me to Aina, the fat on his chin wobbled, sending droplets of sweat flying.
I was beginning to grow exasperated by the situation, but before I could say anything, Aina, who had been sitting next to me, finally snapped.
“Shut up! If you’re not buying, get the hell away from our stall! You’re scaring off our customers!”
Her outburst startled the neighboring shop owners, but they quickly looked away as if nothing had happened.
In a market as chaotic as this one, Aina’s reaction probably wasn’t that out of the ordinary.
“A woman dares to—!”
Rather than fear, the man seemed more offended by the fact that a young woman had yelled at him, and his face turned beet red as he leaned in even more aggressively.
(Whoa, this scene looks straight out of a *Kingdom*-like manga.)
It was clear that the man was so persistent because he knew the potion and its certificate were genuine.
Even so, trying to grab someone by the collar in anger was going too far. I grabbed the man’s arm just as he was about to reach for Aina.
“You—! “You’re going too far, sir,” I said.
I layered my words with a bit of intimidation as I spoke. Though I couldn’t hit him, I was hoping the pressure would be enough to make him leave.
“Bwah!”
Just as I leaned in to stare him down, the man’s plump face was suddenly smashed, flattened by a blow from outside my field of vision.
The impact from the punch sent ripples of fat across the man’s face, and his enormous body was flung several meters backward, landing with a heavy thud.
A rumble spread through the crowd.
Even in a noisy market like this, seeing such a large man, built like a sumo wrestler, fly through the air drew the attention of the onlookers.
As the unconscious man lay spread out in a large “X” on the ground, twitching slightly, curious customers began to gather, wondering what had happened.
“Aina?”
“Oh…”
I shifted my gaze from the twitching man on the ground to Aina, who had a sheepish expression on her face, realizing she might have overdone it.