Chapter 44

Royal Roader on My Own – Chapter 44: You Don’t Reveal Your Hand That Easily (1)

Clang. Clang. Clang.

‘Alright, I finally found one!’

[Jewel of Luck: Luck Index 9]

The index was pretty high too.

But it is nothing boast about. Jonnan, Batoom, and Goultan all find at least one or two a day; I’m the only one who has finally found a single one.

It has been 4 days since we first found the deposit.

It is really weird. We are all Best Miners, so how come only I am having no luck? Does the Fairy of Luck prefer older men?

Who cares.

‘I don’t care who finds it, so just keep coming out.’

Clang. Clang. Clang.

While I was swinging Miru’s Pickaxe like that, I heard Jose’s voice.

“Tunnel Supervisor-nim, there is a guest from Avanguarde.”

Avanguarde?

I instantly thought of someone.

‘Humbley!’

There’s no way he came in person, is there?

I don’t think he has that much insight since he sends a gangster merchant like Parison to do important business.

He probably sent an errand boy.

Honestly, even if he did that much, we can say he has an eye for the way the world moves. The fact that he showed interest in me would indicate that he has been paying attention to the movement of the Jeppi tribe.

It happened to be lunch time. Thinking we might as well take a break, I headed out with Jonnan, Batoom and Goultan.

Jose lead us to the guest.

“These are the guests.”

I flinched for a second. There were a total of ten guests from Avanguarde. Among them, there was a middle-aged man wearing flashy clothes while giving off a spectacular aura.

Then it is one of two things.

Either Humbley didn’t send an errand boy and came himself, or this was a completely different guest.

The middle-aged man looked toward me. His appearance and his outfit made me certain he was in charge of this group.

“Are you perhaps Kang Hwi Ram-nim?”

He seemed to be around 60 years old.

At least he looked that way. He seemed too old to be called middle-aged, but too young to be called a senior.

But his tone, actions, and gaze all seemed to be sincere.

“Yes, Humbley-nim.”

Once I answered, the old-fashioned middle-aged man quickly grabbed my hand.

“I came to the right place. I am Humbley. I was in the Ameri Kingdom and just got your letter yesterday. I’m sorry I could not come see you any earlier.”

There are quite a few things hidden in Humbley’s words.

The thing that made me happiest was the fact that he headed here as soon as he saw my letter.

That meant that not only did he know the movement of the Jeppi tribe, he could predict the upcoming danger as well.

I was very disappointed because of Parison, but this was enough to turn that disappointment completely around. As long as he has the abilities, I can’t throw him away because he’s lacking a bit in morality.

‘First impression is a pass.’

“Let us head inside to speak.”

We entered the residence together.

It was a temporary residence we quickly made after chopping down the trees in the area. It looks a bit odd, but the scent of trees is so strong that just sitting here makes you feel like you are getting healed.

Maybe that was why, but I preferred this temporary residence of the Northern Mines to any house in the real world.

As soon as we sat down, he bowed his head which was full of salt and pepper hair.

“Let me first apologize about Parison. I left him alone to deal with the minerals, and did not know he was trading in that type of way.”

I can clearly tell he is lying.

The amount of minerals being traded from Titan Valley is not small. You’re telling me that someone like Humbley had no idea about what was going on? Does he think I’m an idiot?

But I do appreciate his attitude.

There is an order to doing things. Seeing as how he is apologizing first, Humbley knows the proper order.

‘Fine. Let’s try to understand where he is coming from. Although the quantity was large, in the end, merchants all seek to make a profit.’

After all, I was looking for people who will help me out and bring me the most benefits as well. In some aspects, someone like Humbley who has the street smarts might be better than an upright citizen.

Of course I need to sting him at least once. I need to show him that if he tries to stab me in the back, he’ll be turned to dust.

Just see what happens if you get caught.

“I believed that it would not be Humbley-nim’s will.”

“Of course not. I’m just sorry that I did not recognize it sooner. I will make up for all the losses in some way.”

That shouldn’t be made up to me.

It wasn’t to Batoom either. Although Batoom worked as the overseer of the mines, he actually didn’t have any ownership. [1]

Then to Donstar? That’s a definite no-no.

If anyone is to be compensated, it has to be the citizens of Titan Valley. I will teach him the method a bit later.

But Batoom’s expression is quite funny. I guess he looks like he has no idea what is going on? His eyes are open really wide and he is tilting his head in confusion, probably thinking ‘what is going on?’

Based on the conversation, it looks like Parison did something wrong, but he can’t tell what that is. He must be dying to know.

But he didn’t dare to butt in on the conversation. The other party was Humbley. Parison was difficult enough for Batoom, so how would he see Humbley?

He just sat there with his eyes wide open while listening to our conversation.

Humbley was a thorough person. If he’s going to do something, he’s going to do it very thoroughly.

“Parison is dismissed from his position as of today and demoted to a mineral transporter. In order to develop the correct mindset of a merchant, I thought he needed to experience what it was like at the bottom a little more.”

Our personalities are similar. I like the way he handled it as well.

But I don’t care about what happens to Parison. I just need to focus on my own business.

“Then who will we be dealing with from now on?”

“The mineral trade with Titan Valley will be handled by this child.”

Humbley brought forth a young lady.

If I’m being honest, her presence was very strong from earlier. It was because she was extremely beautiful. It was to the point my eyes kept going to her subconsciously.

“My name is Kaldera. Please take good care of me.”

But what is this atmosphere? It is not the type of situation to bring out a beautiful lady. Is he trying to use her beauty to shake my mind up a bit?

I also bowed my head in response, but I did not like this situation too much. Of course I didn’t let that show.

But Humbley was a very sharp person. Seeing my expression and action, he saw right through me.

“Please do not get the wrong idea. She is my granddaughter and she is very smart and seems to have a knack for business, so I plan on raising her as a merchant. I will make sure that she does not cause Hwi Ram-nim any harm.”

So he’s saying it is not her beauty but her abilities.

I will find out if it is true in the future.

“Please take good care of us.”

“I should be saying that. But I heard that you planned on selling the minerals at the auction. If I gave you a good price for it, will you still not change your mind?”

“Auctions are annoying to deal with. If I can get the proper price for it without going through the auction, I wouldn’t need to do such an annoying thing.”

“Then I will give you 8% more than what we gave the Batoom Mines. I believe that is the most fair value.”

If you consider just the value of the minerals that is about right.

But are things in the world that simple? If you add all sorts of conditions, the price of the minerals can change like a rubber band.

No, from here on, the price of the minerals isn’t actually important.

Then shall we start the deep discussions now?

It is better if less people know about this.

“We can slowly talk about the trade. But I have a blacksmith shop being built next to the waterfall, would you like to go take a look? I have something to tell you separately there as well.”

At the words ‘tell you separately’, Humbley’s eyes started to shine.

“Even without you saying that, I have heard the rumors. You actually went past the anvil worker level and became the first human blacksmith. To see that historic scene with my own eyes. It is a very large honor. Thank you.”

“Then let us go. Seniors, please keep the people here company.”

“We understand. Go ahead.”

“You don’t need to worry about us.”

With that, I got up with Humbley to leave.

Kaldera tried to come with us, but I gave a gaze to Humbley so he interjected.

“We have sinned greatly against the seniors here for a long time. Stay here and apologize to them and discuss how we can compensate for everything.”

“Yes, grandfather.”

I moved to the waterfall with Humbley. The blacksmith shop was around 50 meters away from the waterfall.

It was small, but it was still a waterfall. The closer we got, the mist hit us harder and harder.

It was also really loud. Even though I was right next to him, I needed to talk loudly to have a conversation.

This should be good enough to have a secret conversation.

“I plan on selling the Northern Mines.”

When I said that, Humbley was so shocked that his shoulders moved up and down.

“What? Why would you sell this good mine……? As time goes on and it gets larger, the price should go up.”

“It’ll do me more good to sell it now.”

“Then I will buy it from you. I will give you a great price for it.”

Humbley is one of the wealthiest men in Avanguarde and the continent. He would have no problem buying this mine.

But that is only if the seller agrees with you.

“I will not sell it to someone who will work with me for a long time. In fact, I want to sell it to someone terrible. All Humbley-nim needs to do is spread the rumor that I am looking for a new owner for the Northern Mines.”

“Does that mean the future of the Northern Mines is dark ……?”

He doesn’t seem to have completely understood the situation. By now, he should remember the letter I sent him.

“The future of the Northern Mines is very bright. However, it is the future of Titan Valley and the Batoru Kingdom that is dark. It is not just dark but pitch black.”

“……Ah!”

Humbley seems to have finally figured something out. Before I could finish speaking, he took out the letter he carefully placed in his inner pocket.

It was the letter I sent through Parison. The seal was broken.

Humbley opened the letter.

[The Jeppi tribe is planning an invasion. Only those who know when to buy and when to sell can avoid this storm and survive.]　

That was what was written in the letter.

Of course I wrote that.

“I’ve been waiting to speak to you about it. Is it connected to this message?”

“It is absolutely connected.”

“As I expected……! I know a bit about the current situation of the Jeppi tribe. The tribe used to be broken into four separate groups, but now they have unified as one and their strength has gone up significantly.

“Then you should be able to anticipate their next movement.”

“Honestly, I came here to learn from you regarding that aspect. What and how should I prepare?”

To learn.

It reminded me the story of the Three Kingdoms. Liu Bei went to find a secluded expert in a cottage to learn Zhuge Liang’s teachings.

But this was the opposite. Humbley came to serve me as his master.

Of course Humbley doesn’t have that type of thought right now, but in the end, it will move in that direction.

“The Jeppi will soon invade the continent. If they don’t have a way to waste their energy, they’ll just end up having internal conflicts again. It will be better to take care of your belongings before then. If the Jeppi tribe shows up on the continent, they will rob you of everything they lay their hands on.”

“You indeed have the same thoughts that I have. But I just can’t figure out around when that would be. Will it be next year or 10 years later?”

“Who could look into the minds of the Jeppi tribe? The attack timing will change based on the situation. There is nobody who can estimate the exact time.”

Humbley’s expression became dark. It felt like he could faintly make out the future, but he could not determine when to prepare for it.

He came all the way here to get some insights about it, but he had yet to see any useful information.

I threw a ray of light into the darkness.

“But there is a method to accurately anticipate when it will happen.”

Humbley’s eyes became extremely wide.

“What is that?”

It is a very simple method.

But it is also difficult and very dangerous.

Only Humbley and I were here, but I cautiously lowered my voice.

“We set the field to make it happen.”

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[1] It might be a mistranslation on my part in the past, but since it was called the Batoom Mines, I presumed he was the owner. Looks like he was more of an overseer than owner.

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Translator : Miraclerifle

Proofreader : Miraclerifle