I Became A Married Man in Another World
Chapter 57
057 Joining the Merchant Caravan
Standing on the crest of a hill, the merchant caravan came into view in the distance. The carriages snaked along the path like a long, winding serpent, looking much like a line of ants.
However, they didn’t move as a single, unified unit. It didn’t seem as though they were being led by a central command like an army.
Upon closer inspection, the merchants’ carriages were clustered together in groups of two, or perhaps five or six. Several wagons followed behind each carriage.
Some were humble with few goods, like those of Red Sword, while other wagons were piled high with large sacks. The heavily laden wagons likely carried food and supplies necessary for the journey.
Men moved alongside the wagons and carriages at varying paces. Though some were on horseback, most were on foot. They appeared to be adventurers; though their attire varied, they all shared a similar aura.
As Juhwan’s party descended the hill, the men guarding the procession watched them warily.
One man broke away from the moving line and approached Juhwan’s carriage. He called out a question.
“What is your business here?”
The question was directed at Juhwan, not the members of Red Sword out front. Even here, gender discrimination was evident. Juhwan gave a bitter smile and spoke.
“We’re from the Adventurer’s Guild. We’re looking for the Miller Merchant Company.”
“Ah.”
The man looked Juhwan up and down.
“I’ve heard about you. Are you the Magician who uses healing magic?”
“Yes.”
“You look like an ordinary adventurer. First, show me your guild necklace. I can’t let you near the procession without it.”
Juhwan pulled the necklace from his clothes and showed it to him. The man peered at the number ‘3’ engraved on it. Then, he pointed toward the front of the line.
“Keep going that way and you’ll see the largest group. That’s the Miller Merchant Company.”
“Thank you.”
The man glanced at the axe resting on the footboard of the driver’s seat before speaking again.
“The guards in this caravan work only for their respective employers, but I heard the healer was contracted to provide magic for everyone. Is that correct?”
“Ah, yes. That is my understanding. I’m to receive a separate fee for each case.”
The man let out a breath, looking relieved.
“I see. That’s good to hear.”
“Is something wrong?”
When Juhwan asked, the man’s face clouded over.
“The information isn’t confirmed yet, but it seems bandits might be trailing us. There are many merchants carrying expensive goods in this caravan.”
A man from the group signaled to him. The man nodded in that direction and then looked back at Juhwan.
“It should be fine. It’s just a rumor for now. The owner of the Miller Merchant Company is participating in person, so I think they called for a healer just to be safe. The other merchants are just piggybacking on that.”
With those words, the man returned to his post.
Jessie of Red Sword, who had been listening quietly, muttered, “So there was a reason they called for a Magician halfway through.”
Karin, the leader of Red Sword, spoke up suddenly from her seat on the wagon.
“If the guild didn’t mention it, there’s a good chance it’s just a rumor. If there was solid information, the guild would have been notified and they certainly would have told us.”
Karin looked at Juhwan.
“We are here as guards, so we must fight if bandits attack. But remember, you are a Magician. You shouldn’t fight unless it’s to protect yourself. Save your mana so you can react immediately if someone gets hurt.”
“Understood.”
At Juhwan’s reply, Karin shook the reins to move the horses.
“Then let’s go.”
The women of Red Sword all looked tense. The atmosphere was slightly different from before they reached the caravan.
The tension that seemed to have left their shoulders during the journey had returned, making them stiff once more. They sat up straight to make themselves look larger, and their voices turned curt. Their brows were arched as if they were slightly angry. It was as if they were cladding themselves in invisible armor.
Perhaps the mood was contagious, as Lij also seemed nervous inside the carriage. She stayed close to the opening behind the driver’s seat, quietly watching the merchant caravan.
Juhwan drove the carriage forward, moving alongside the procession.
Every time Red Sword’s wagon passed, whistles rang out from among the merchants and the guards.
Occasionally, crude remarks were tossed at Red Sword. Even without knowing the exact words, Juhwan could guess their meaning. They seemed to be comments regarding the relationship between women and men.
Red Sword kept their heads fixed forward, acting as if they couldn’t hear a thing.
‘Ah…’
Juhwan murmured to himself. They had been living like this all along. He suddenly understood why the women of the Red Sword party had reacted so harshly toward him. Anyone would become like that after living this way for a year, two years, or many more.
He looked around at the men nearby. Whether it was because they knew he was a Magician or because the dynamic between men was different, several of them smiled and raised a hand in greeting.
A person who is kind to me might be someone another person wants to beat to death. A man who is a scoundrel to women might be a good-natured colleague among men.
Juhwan raised his hand slightly to return the greetings. His heart felt a bit heavy when he thought of Lij and Dorothy inside the carriage.
It was easy to tell where the Miller Merchant Company was as they drew closer.
While other merchants had groups of three or four carriages, this group had nearly ten. The number of wagons following them was also significant.
The posture and aura of the people guarding these carriages were far superior to those elsewhere.
Beside the line of carriages, a man sat on horseback. His presence was distinct from those around him.
Juhwan turned his gaze toward him.
The man wore high-quality clothing. Both the fabric of his clothes and his boots looked different from the common sort.
He appeared to be at least over fifty. He was certainly older, yet he didn’t look frail. He had the build of a robust man, only with an aged face.
Though their clothes, appearance, and age were different, he somehow reminded Juhwan of Gus. It was a strange feeling.
Noticing Juhwan, the man on horseback turned his mount and approached.
“Are you the Magician?”
His accent sounded refined. Juhwan repeated the man’s pronunciation in his head as he bowed his head slightly.
“I am. My name is Juhwan. My party members, my wife and daughter, are in the carriage.”
“Yes, I’ve heard. I am the owner of the Miller Merchant Company. You may call me Leonard.”
Leonard quietly observed Juhwan’s face and body.
“You look more like a mercenary summoned to a battlefield than a Magician.”
Leonard gave a smirk and glanced at the Red Sword party. Without addressing them specifically, he spoke as if to everyone.
“I hope your skills are worthy of the pay you’re receiving. It happens to be break time now. Why don’t you introduce yourselves to our group?”
A middle-aged man who had been watching from a distance approached once he judged the conversation was over.
“I’m Gordon. I’m the head of security for this escort, so if any problems arise, talk to me.”
Being the head of security didn’t mean he was in charge of the entire caravan.
Gordon only commanded the Miller Merchant Company.
He explained that most merchant caravans worked this way. Merchants with similar schedules or destinations shared information and planned their routes together.
Even if most of the journey was the same, their destinations and circumstances varied.
Therefore, each merchant participated with an appropriate number of guards and left the caravan once they reached their intended point.
New merchants would also join at certain points. When a few large merchant companies formed such a caravan, smaller shops would piggyback on it. This was because they could travel with fewer guards than they would need if they were alone.
As the group grew larger, the probability of being attacked by bandits or beasts dropped drastically. Thus, what started as a small group would rapidly swell into a giant line of ants.
Knowing Juhwan was a novice adventurer, Gordon explained this and assigned them a position. When they weren’t working, Juhwan was told he could stay in his carriage. His carriage was placed between the main carriages and the wagons.
Red Sword’s wagon was placed at the very end of the Miller Merchant Company’s section.
The long blast of a horn sounded from somewhere near the front of the procession. Following that, horns echoed from various places. It seemed to be a signal.
The carriages of the long caravan began to stop. As it was mealtime, people who appeared to be servants of the merchant company began preparing to light campfires.
Normally, they would have eaten breakfast earlier, but they said the schedule had been made irregular. Although the reason wasn’t stated, it was likely due to the rumors of bandits. If one follows a set routine at set times, it becomes easy for attackers to predict and strike. He figured they were trying to prevent that.
One guard circled the perimeter a short distance away to keep watch, while the others sat around the fire.
Lij and Dorothy also stepped out of the carriage. As always, Oz was perched atop Dorothy’s head.
Sitting in a circle, the guards gave brief introductions. At most, they shared their names, their roles, and their adventurer ranks.
Not all the guards were adventurers. There was a mix of guards belonging to the Miller Merchant Company and hired adventurers.
Excluding Red Sword, the ranks of the adventurers here seemed generally high.
Juhwan was a 3rd Grade with the treatment of a 2nd Grade, and there was another 3rd Grade party consisting of two magicians. The rest were 4rd Grade, but they seemed experienced.
The magician party consisted of two men. They said they used wind and fire respectively. The wind user was a 3rd Grade adventurer, and the fire magician was 4th Grade.
Since Juhwan also used fire magic, he felt a spark of interest.
The two from the magician party didn’t look weak, but they were far from the burly type. Rather, they were slender and handsome.
However, the magicians didn’t seem to have very good personalities. They appeared to have a tendency to look down on others.
“…”
Juhwan looked at the women of the Red Sword party, who hadn’t said a word for a while.
Marie, usually the most talkative and cheerful, was pale. There was no color in her face. The other women weren’t quite as bad, but their complexions were noticeably poor.
“Is something wrong?”
Juhwan asked, but they only replied that it was nothing.
The contents of the pot on the campfire seemed to have warmed up. A servant of the company gave a bowl of stew to each person sitting around the fire.
Another servant brought bread and meat in a container from a wagon.
“There aren’t many varieties, but the taste is quite good. You may eat your fill.”
Leonard, the owner of the Miller Merchant Company, came over and sat next to Juhwan.
He took a bowl of stew himself and smiled as he took a bite. People began to eat while engaging in small talk.
Dorothy, sitting between Lij and Juhwan, took a spoonful of stew and her eyes sparkled.
“It’s delicious.”
A moment later, she was hungrily tearing into the meat, occasionally raising her hand above her head. Each time, Oz would munch on the meat he received on top of her hat.
A small laugh escaped Juhwan as he watched her act so conspicuously while thinking no one would notice.
Lij must have thought the same, for she gave a bright smile when their eyes met.
Leonard was originally a Magical Beast hunter. Those who knew him only superficially were unaware, but he could use a bit of wind magic.
He wasn’t skilled enough in magic to be ranked. His ability was only enough to imbue an arrow with a bit of wind to slightly increase its speed.
However, for hunting Magical Beasts, that was enough. As long as one could aim accurately at the vital spots, the rest depended on one’s skill as a hunter, not magic.
Wind magic had made him a Magical Beast hunter, but magic alone couldn’t make one a hunter. Magic was merely one of many hunter’s techniques.
The reason he, a hunter, became the owner of the Miller Merchant Company was that his wife was the only daughter of the previous owner.
The Miller Merchant Company dealt in furs. Originally, they dealt in animal pelts—marten, wolf, fox, and rabbit. However, his father-in-law, the former owner, wanted to get involved in the furs of Magical Beasts. That was why Leonard had caught his eye.
Then as now, the best way to bring someone to your side was through marriage.
The father-in-law immediately married his daughter to Leonard.
His father-in-law’s eye had been accurate. Leonard, who inherited the company, rapidly expanded the business by dealing in both animal and Magical Beast furs.
Now, he had several branches across the country and exported high-quality furs abroad.
Recently, the import of high-quality furs had decreased, causing the price of almost all furs to skyrocket. Because of that, he had been focusing more on the domestic market for the past few years.
This journey was for the regular transport of high-quality furs.
The furs contained in just one specially modified carriage were of immense value. Naturally, the rank of the guards had also increased.
Rumors of attacks were a common occurrence. They occasionally encountered bandits, but they had always managed to get through. However, because the rumors were more ominous this time, they had even brought along a healer.
It had been somewhat unexpected when the master of the Bern Adventurer’s Guild asked him to identify a Magical Beast.
But that was the guild master’s doing. He wouldn’t send a fraud. While he might have hesitated if it were a guard, a healer only needed to be certain in their magical skill. So, he had readily agreed.
‘But this is…’
Leonard saw the horned rabbit sitting quietly on the child’s head, and for a moment, he couldn’t believe his eyes.
