Sotis, Kaelis couldn't quite understand what level of technological advancent this world actually had.
Walking down the street, Kaelis looked to both sides.
Although the sun had only just set, the streets were already dim.
The pale moonlight spilled onto the gravel road, giving those black cobblestones an extra touch of elegance.
Yet visibility around remained severely inadequate.
However, her destination in the distance still shone brightly.
What surprised Kaelis wasn't rely that it was lit up, but rather because the light... actually ca from light bulbs!
As far as Kaelis rembered, light bulbs should only appear after the Second Industrial Revolution.
Yet the living standard of this world was still around the ti of the First Industrial Revolution... Though during dayti, Kaelis had also seen automobiles existing...
Different worlds, different progress rates...
Kaelis shook her head, then tightened her grip on the longsword wrapped in ragged cloth held against her chest.
After starving at ho for a while, Kaelis finally decided to go out and sell this sword.
She knew that grabbing it during dayti and selling it at night seed overly hasty, but... she had no choice. Her funds were truly running out.
If she didn't get so food soon, Kaelis doubted whether she'd even be able to get up tomorrow.
Therefore, despite knowing the risks involved, she still had to give it a try.
The familiar road took her over two hours this ti. Kaelis dragged her weary body and finally arrived at the marketplace she'd visited earlier in the day.
During dayti, this was a market; but at night... it transford into sothing completely different.
Still bustling, but this ti it wasn't street stalls making the noise, it was the shops with their doors open on both sides, emitting warm yellow light that illuminated every passerby's face. Drunkards, gentlen, nobles, here, distinctions between them gradually faded.
This was the city's only night market, and its greatest zone of chaos.
The guard at the entrance was still that old veteran wearing coarse cloth garnts.
He looked sowhat tired, yet still stood rigidly at his post.
When he saw Kaelis appear, he froze montarily. After his eyes flickered several tis, he waved her over to the side.
“What are you doing here so late?”
The veteran seed quite gentle. Seeing Kaelis, a girl, coming here late at night, he frowned with concern as he asked.
Wasn't she afraid of danger?
“...Uh... selling sothing.”
Kaelis hugged the sword tighter, her expression showing slight tension.
When the veteran saw her like this, then glanced at her thin clothing and the face barely visible through her eyes, after a brief daze, his gaze turned sorrowful.
“You... sigh...”
He wanted to persuade Kaelis, but after hesitating a few tis, he found himself unable to say anything.
He'd long passed the age of reckless righteousness. Everyone had their own hardships, others could at most help temporarily, never for a lifeti.
Still... seeing that Kaelis was only about fourteen or fifteen years old yet had to do such things, he couldn't help but feel moved.
anwhile, Kaelis felt helpless.
Although her mories from the past were fragnted, her age couldn't possibly be below eighteen or nineteen.
Besides, she definitely wouldn't resort to disreputable professions.
Her upbringing and self-respect wouldn't allow it.
After a pause, seeing no one nearby paying attention, Kaelis looked back at the old man.
Though even now she didn't quite know his na, this elder had indeed helped her a lot during the ti she first started peddling goods. Plus, he was more familiar with this place than she was. So after pondering briefly, she took the risk and cautiously lifted a corner of the ragged cloth.
“It's not that kind of thing. I want to sell this.”
“This?”
The veteran was taken aback, then looked at what Kaelis had revealed.
But at just one glance, he suddenly reached out and pressed down on Kaelis's hand.
“Enough... that's enough.”
His expression beca extrely tense. Only now did Kaelis notice that the elder's left hand hadn't moved properly from the beginning...
Seed like a prosthetic.
There were also a few small holes in the sleeve that hadn't been nded.
Noticing Kaelis's gaze, the elder froze, then awkwardly pulled his hand back.
“This thing... is valuable. It could fetch quite a sum.”
The elder changed the subject, seemingly unwilling for others to see his pitiful living conditions.
On his dry arm, the skin was very thin, clinging tightly to the bones.
Kaelis wasn't so clueless fool ignorant of human nature. She didn't say more, rely continued speaking along the elder's line.
“Really valuable?”
“...Very valuable. These patterns can only be forged from black steel uniquely produced in the Kingdom of Gallon. So of the better specins are even specially supplied to the royal family of the Dias Empire...” The elder nodded, but seeing Kaelis's excited expression, he hesitated several tis before shaking his head. “But you'd better not sell this thing... it could bring trouble.”
“Trouble?” Kaelis was baffled, thinking the elder had sohow recognized the sword's origin.
But the elder shook his head.
“No... it's just that things like this aren't ant for people like us to possess...”
An ordinary man is blaless, yet disaster cos from possessing treasure. For commoners like them, rely coming into contact with such an item was extrely dangerous. Even if they actually managed to sell it for money, they likely wouldn't live long enough to enjoy it.
“...But I have to sell it.”
Kaelis understood the elder's aning, but at this point she really had no other choice.
Without selling it, she'd struggle to survive. Selling it might instead beco a turning point. Therefore, even if it was dangerous, she absolutely had to sell it.
And her reason for showing the item wasn't rely to talk with the elder, she had other intentions too.
“I really have no experience with this kind of thing, Grandpa. Can you help ?”
Kaelis spoke, her voice carrying a hint of pleading.
Seeing Kaelis like this, the veteran fell silent.
“Must it absolutely be sold?”
“Yes.”
“Can't survive otherwise?”
“...Yes.”
“...I see.” The elder sighed deeply, yet didn't continue. Instead, he seriously began thinking about how to help Kaelis.
After all, since Kaelis had asked, if he could help, there was no reason not to.
“Sothing like this definitely can't be sold openly like your street stalls. The best approach would be finding a rchant...”
“But they'll slash prices severely. Little one, rember this, this item absolutely cannot go below three silver coins at the very least. But don't be too greedy either. Given those people's characters, if business really falls through, they might resort to dangerous actions...”
As the elder spoke, he simultaneously sifted through possibilities in his mind.
Though it was a valuable item, rchants capable of handling such things here weren't actually nurous.
Perhaps the noble district might have more options, but patrols there were stricter. Kaelis probably wouldn't even reach the shops before getting driven away.
In worse cases, if caught, she might get into serious trouble.
Therefore, the only place this one-handed sword could be sold was right here.
And among places here capable of buying such a sword...
“There's only one shop that could handle it...”
“Huh?”
“However... It's not easy to deal with…”
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