I Became A Married Man in Another World
Chapter 31
031 That’s Our Daddy
“Sigh, this is truly difficult. Furs like these have been popping up everywhere lately. The price has dropped significantly. I don’t know. I should buy it, but I’m bound to take a loss.”
The middle-aged peddler sighed repeatedly.
The woman looked at him, at a loss for what to do, then turned her gaze back to the goods on the wagon. She didn’t look at the giant standing behind her. It seemed she felt too guilty to face him. Up to this point, they looked no different from an ordinary couple.
In this world, a woman’s standing was incredibly narrow. It was even worse in small villages like this than in the cities. Often, women did all the work but held no actual power.
It wasn’t simply that there were many husbands who were violent toward their wives; it was the overall atmosphere. In most cases, the man made all the decisions and the woman followed.
However, the middle-aged peddler noticed that this couple’s relationship was a bit different from the norm. The woman felt very sorry toward the man, but she didn’t seem afraid or intimidated.
Seeing how the man had stayed silent without saying a word for a while now, the peddler wondered if he might be a complete fool despite his decent appearance. Perhaps that was why the woman held the power, or maybe he was so infatuated with her that he lived under her thumb.
‘Hmm.’
That might actually be the case. The woman looked haggard and gaunt, but upon closer inspection, her features were delicate. If she gained a bit of weight or groomed herself just a little, she would be quite beautiful.
‘At that level, she might even fetch a good price from a low-ranking noble.’
Peddlers wandering through remote villages ended up taking on all sorts of tasks. The middle-aged peddler had been asked by a slave trader with noble connections to bring any woman of decent appearance, promising to buy her for a good price.
But even if there were women to spare, pretty ones were rare when you actually looked for them. The numbers dwindled even further when considering the types nobles enjoyed.
For ignorant commoners struggling to survive, a strong woman who worked well was best. Because of that, women with pretty features often failed to grow properly due to malnutrition from a young age, making it very difficult to recognize the seeds of beauty. Unless it was a truly exceptional beauty, no woman looked pretty when her skin was stuck to her bones.
If one didn’t have a good eye for judging merchandise, it was very difficult to stay in this business for long.
The middle-aged peddler was born with a decent eye, but lately, the types favored by commoners and those preferred by nobles seemed to be heading in completely opposite directions.
Even to the peddler, who prided himself on his discernment, a suitable woman rarely caught his eye.
‘A bit of a waste that she’s already taken.’
Still, one never knew what next year might bring. In villages like this, when life got hard, people often put their children or even their wives up for sale.
“Sigh.”
The middle-aged peddler let out a deliberate, deep sigh, pretending to check for flaws or pulling at the rabbit skins from both sides. They were good. The fat had been meticulously removed, and the fur had a smooth luster. The density was tight, and there was little shedding. They were excellent.
‘The more I look at them, the better they are.’
Even as he thought this, the middle-aged peddler pointed out flaws in the rabbit fur between snatches of conversation or frowned, gradually chipping away at the woman’s confidence.
She didn’t seem to know the difference between summer and winter fur, and her voice grew smaller and smaller every time he found a fault. She didn’t seem stupid, but she appeared to have a gentle and docile personality.
‘What a shame.’
This was exactly the type the slave trader wanted. Golden hair, fair skin, a personality that wasn’t too foolish but was gentle, and a slender body that looked like it might blow away in the wind. A real waste.
While talking to the woman, the middle-aged peddler kept stealing glances at the giant. But it seemed there was no need for that anymore.
The giant simply watched the woman in silence.
“Fine, everyone is having a hard time these days, and since we’ll be seeing each other in the future, it weighs on my heart to be too stingy.”
The middle-aged peddler set aside the more valuable items the woman wanted and brought out mostly cheaper goods.
With a subtle wink to his son, the third son—who had been standing by watching the situation—quickly rummaged through the items in the corner. Bringing out several old items that had lost their marketability, the son placed them before the woman and spoke.
“Still, it’s a bit cold-hearted to go strictly by the price, Father. Why don’t we give her a little more than this?”
“Sigh, you really… How do you expect to do business like that? We’re not digging up dirt to sell; you’re just too kind-hearted.”
Having followed him on peddling trips for a long time, the son had finally become useful. The middle-aged peddler sighed and gave a smirk as if he had no choice.
“We’ll take a bit of a loss, but there seems to be a young child too. Fine, let’s take the hit. Sigh, I really shouldn’t do this, but well, it can’t be helped.”
“….”
The peddler smirked and reached for the rabbit fur and the bundle of golden hair.
At that moment, the giant, who had been watching silently, stepped forward and grabbed his wrist.
‘Gasp! W-what?’
He had only grabbed it lightly, yet the peddler couldn’t move. Not only that, it was incredibly painful. It felt like his bones were going to break.
The middle-aged peddler turned pale, unable to even scream because of the intense pain.
The giant stared blankly into his eyes. He wasn’t even glaring. He was just looking. Yet, it was terrifying. This man was quietly angry without appearing to be so.
Furthermore, he wasn’t a fool. He might be much smarter than expected. Intelligence resided in the face of the man staring quietly into his pupils.
Why hadn’t he noticed? Perhaps he had been mistaken because of the intimidating face and massive frame. Since there were many fools among large men who only had strength, he must have looked at him carelessly without realizing it. He hadn’t thought there would be someone smart in such a remote village.
His son asked from beside him what was wrong, but he couldn’t even turn his head.
Sweating profusely, the middle-aged peddler cast his gaze downward as best he could, like a mouse standing before a cat.
Lij’s hand tightened, crumpling the rabbit fur she held. She quickly opened her hand for fear of damaging the fur, but she couldn’t undo her disappointment. With every word from the merchant, her shoulders slumped further and her body shrank.
She thought she might be able to buy at least some of what she wanted, even if not everything. But it seemed this wouldn’t be nearly enough. According to the merchant, prices had risen significantly.
The merchant said it was because of the war. Salt, clothes, shoes, iron pots—everything had become expensive, so selling rabbit fur and hair wouldn’t even cover half of what she wanted.
It couldn’t be helped. At least it was a relief that the young man beside him was offering a few more things.
“….”
Lij held out the rabbit fur to the merchant with lingering regret.
But just as the merchant was about to grab the fur, Juhwan stepped forward and blocked him.
‘Juhwan?’
When she looked up, Juhwan gave her a bright smile.
“Lij, no merchant. Eyes tell lies. Go to ## Village. One merchant doesn’t fight, so it’s expensive. Many merchants are good. They fight each other. Prices of goods are cheap.”
“Uh.”
T-to say such things. Lij looked at the merchant in a panic. But for some reason, the merchant was clutching his wrist and groaning, half-crouched on the ground.
It was where Juhwan had lightly grabbed him earlier; was his hand injured or sore? If so, they had done something a bit regrettable.
No, that wasn’t it. To say so openly that he didn’t trust the merchants—what if they got angry? Lij’s heart hammered in her chest.
However, the merchant seemed too preoccupied with his pain, and the other merchants seemed so flustered asking what was wrong that they didn’t seem to have heard Juhwan’s words.
What should she do? What if they asked them to pay for medical treatment? They might find fault and say it happened because Juhwan touched him. She suddenly became worried.
‘We don’t have any money.’
Even the rabbit skins weren’t worth much, so what should they do?
“Lij.”
Juhwan called her. When Lij looked up, Juhwan patted the back of her hand as if to say it was okay.
Ah, that’s right. This person uses healing magic. She felt a little relieved. Even if the merchant blamed them for getting hurt, it would be fine.
Only then did Lij recall what Juhwan had said earlier.
‘Maybe Juhwan intended to buy things from another shop instead of this peddler from the beginning…’
Before coming down to the village, Juhwan had asked various questions. Whether there were other places with shops, if only one peddler came, and if she had ever been to other villages.
The peddler who had brought Lij here was different from the current one. The size of the wagon and the number of goods for sale were smaller.
That peddler had stopped at another village before arriving at this one with Lij. According to her memory, it was a distance that could be reached within a day. There were regular wagons and several shops there.
Because of the language barrier, some parts hadn’t been conveyed properly, but Lij told Juhwan as much as she could remember.
She also told him that going to that village wasn’t very easy. The meaning must have gotten across, but could Juhwan really be thinking of going there? Because there were several shops and things would be cheaper?
Lij tried to recall the way to that village in a panic.
“But Juhwan, it’s far to get there. We can’t go and come back in a day.”
Someone unfamiliar with the path could get lost. She had heard that wild animals appeared sometimes, and on rare occasions, magical beasts were spotted. If they had many goods, it would also be difficult to carry them all back.
Honestly, she wasn’t even sure if she could find the place herself. If they got lost and ended up wandering…
Juhwan gently stroked her hair as if to reassure her.
“Good, good, it’s okay. I’m here, Lij.”
“….”
She was a little uneasy. But seeing Juhwan smile at her, she somehow felt like it would be okay. If they could get even a few more items, maybe it would be better to do as Juhwan said.
As she gave a small nod, the middle-aged peddler, who had been groaning in pain until a moment ago, spoke up urgently.
“W-wait a minute. You’re not actually thinking of going to another village to sell those, are you? Don’t you know the whole country is in turmoil these days because of the war! If you go wandering around with goods like that…”
The peddler clutched his painful wrist and stole a glance at Juhwan. Then he forced a smile toward Lij and spoke.
“Fine, I’ll take a bit of a loss. I’ll give you a little more salt with the items I promised, and right, you wanted a large water bucket earlier, didn’t you? I’ll give you that too.”
“Oh.”
Really? Lij’s eyes went wide. With the water bucket and salt, it seemed like a good deal.
“Then…”
Just as Lij opened her mouth, Juhwan lightly pulled her hand again.
“Lij, no.”
“Juhwan.”
Lij’s heart grew a bit anxious. What if the merchant got offended because of Juhwan and said he wouldn’t do it? When she glanced at the merchant, he forced another smile.
“It seems your husband is confident in his strength. But right now, because of the war’s aftermath, the number of bandits has increased significantly. When people who struggle to survive flee their estates, that’s all they have left to do.”
The peddler’s gaze shifted toward the rabbit skins. Then it moved to the hair that was neatly tied together. The merchant sighed, clutching his wrist, and stepped closer.
“It’s not right to just watch young people die because they don’t know the world. Fine, I’ll give you a set of men’s clothes too. You must know that clothes are very expensive, ma’am. Please speak well to your husband.”
The merchant kept checking Juhwan’s reaction. But Juhwan remained steadfast. He didn’t seem to have any intention of selling the goods to the merchant.
The merchant stepped forward again, offering even more goods.
By that point, even Lij could tell. The merchant had been lying. She didn’t know much, but it seemed the rabbit skins and hair were worth quite a bit.
The rabbit skins that had been the price for Lij’s life were terrible items even to her eyes, despite her knowing nothing about fur. There were bald patches here and there, and they had no luster. There was mold on the inside of the leather.
They were completely different from what Lij had now.
Perhaps even for the same rabbit fur, the price varied wildly depending on the quality.
In the end, the merchant brought out a massive amount of goods while practically crying. It seemed to be several times more than what Lij had first thought.
Taking advantage of a moment when Juhwan wasn’t listening, the merchant grumbled to himself about how they were highwaymen and how he’d run into a bunch of thieves.
She could faintly hear the older peddler speaking to the young man who seemed to be his son as he carried the rabbit fur to the front of the wagon.
“Do you see? The most difficult customer to deal with isn’t a picky one, nor is it a smart one. It’s someone who has no intention of haggling at all. The person who never compromises if it doesn’t meet the standard they’ve set is the hardest. I mean, there’s no opening to poke through.”
“….”
Juhwan called the merchant over, having found some poor-quality product. It was already the fourth time. The merchant ran over with a stiff face. Looking at the item Juhwan held out, he laughed awkwardly, asking how such a thing could be there, and swapped it for another.
For the merchant, Juhwan must have been like a bolt from the blue. Lij laughed softly as she watched Juhwan inspecting the goods.
After that, they exchanged the rabbit meat, which had been brought in small pieces, for items like oat rice, pickled vegetables, straw shoes, and bundles of straw sold by the villagers. They were able to exchange these for a fairly good amount as well.
Amidst the buzzing of the villagers watching, Juhwan began to stack the goods neatly on the jige. Smaller items went into the large wooden bucket.
After tying it meticulously with rope so it wouldn’t collapse, the whole village marveled when Juhwan stood up with the jige on his back. A few children were even clapping.
She knew Juhwan was a strong person. But she hadn’t known he was this strong. Lij stared blankly at Juhwan, who was carrying a load stacked as high as a mountain on the jige, and only snapped out of it after he reached out his hand.
Dorothy had mixed in with the other children at some point and was bragging. Holding her head high, she kept saying, “That’s my daddy, hey!”
Dorothy, what if you strain your neck and can’t look down?
A laugh escaped her despite herself.
The way back home was a bit tiring, but she was happy.
Dorothy seemed quite tired too. Her steps slowed down as they got closer to home.
Lij tried to carry her on her back, but Juhwan tucked the child inside his clothes and held her.
Really, she wondered if such a thing was possible no matter how strong one was. After putting the child inside his clothes, Juhwan supported her bottom with one arm.
Was such a thing truly possible while carrying a jige with his back hunched? Was this man truly human?
As soon as Dorothy was inside Juhwan’s clothes, she fell fast asleep.
Was it okay to be this happy? She became a little afraid.
