Chapter 29: Chapter 29, Pig-headed Human l
Translator: 549690339
This is a troupe of pig-headed humans.
They pant heavily from the recent battle, their eyes are crimson as they glare at the surrounding skeleton soldiers.
They are a merchant group from a village.
They were on their way to exchange and sell the goods from their village at the ‘Manim Orc Market’.
On their way here, they noticed this territory and the bulk of supplies corralled by wooden fences beyond it.
The greedy pig-headed humans concocted a devious plan to steal some goods and sell them at a generous price in the market.
Unbeknownst to them, they were discovered by the patrolling skeleton soldiers while pilfering the resources.
The battle ensued.
The intense combat attracted the other nearby skeleton soldiers.
By the time the pig-headed humans were able to react, they were already surrounded by an alarming number of skeletons.
Regardless of how much they retaliated, they could not break the encirclement.
During the ongoing battle, their ranks suffered heavy casualties, and their troop of a hundred had shrunk to just over twenty.
Just as they resigned to their fate, prepared to surrender and die.
The skeletons stopped their attack and stood rigidly in place, forming a circle around them.
The pig-headed humans look at each other, bewildered.
Just as they began to consider breaking free, the skeleton soldiers in front abruptly parted, opening up a path for someone to pass through.
The next second, shock appeared in the eyes of the pig-men.
A young human male walked through the crowd of skeletons, ultimately standing in front of them, curiously inspecting them.
“Why are you here?” Fang Hao asked solemnly.
The pig-headed humans, despite their appearances, were not stupid.
Seeing how the undead soldiers treated this human, they immediately realized that he might be their chance at survival.
After carefully choosing his words, one spoke, “Respected sir, my name is Parker. We are a merchant group passing through here and have unfortunately had a misunderstanding with your, ahem, soldiers.”
This pig-man named Parker had beady eyes that kept shifting, scrutinising Fang Hao and the skeleton soldiers.
He was also wondering why a human could command so many undead soldiers.
“Oh, really?” Fang Hao gave a slight smile, his gaze falling onto their carriages.
There were five carriages in total with the pig-men. Four were covered by oilcloths to protect from the sun, while the last was loosely holding some miscellaneous items.
There were furs, leather armours, bathtubs, and a big pile of tools.
Obviously, the cause of the battle was not as simple as Parker had stated.
The pig-men had stolen goods from the territory and were subsequently ambushed by the patrolling skeletons, leading to the fight.
Parker noticed Fang Hao’s gaze and realized that he couldn’t continue lying. He quickly explained, “Sir, we did not know these goods belonged to you. We made a wrong decision and we are willing to compensate.”
Fearing any unnecessary triggers, Parker directly offered compensation.
Orcs are greedy and warlike.
Many tribes don’t bother with farming or mining, instead relying on plundering for growth and expansion.
Thus, most orcs believe in one universal law.
That is brute force.
If someone is more powerful than you, you endure their beatings.
If they are weaker, you ravage, kill, and loot without mercy.
“Let’s talk somewhere else,” Fang Hao suggested.
Corpses of the pig-headed humans littered the ground.
Blood turned the soil a dark red, and the scent of blood saturated the air.
Fang Hao turned around and walked towards his territory.
Parker and the others followed, flanked and watched by many skeleton soldiers.
When they arrived at an open area in front of the territory, Fang Hao sat on a rock.
Parker and the others respectfully stood on the side, their gigantic pig heads stealing occasional glances at Fang Hao’s territory.
“You’re a merchant group?” Fang Hao curiously asked.
“Yes, sir,” Parker replied.
“Where do you come from?”
“That, that… a small village up north,” Parker eventually answered.
“The goods on the carriage are yours? Where are you taking them?” Fang Hao continued.
He still didn’t know enough about this world.
Communicating with the locals as much as possible would help him gather more information.
“We plan to take the goods to Manim Market and exchange them for other goods,” Parker answered diligently.
“Manim Market?” Fang Hao was slightly taken aback.
He seemed to remember the name, having seen it on an acquired map that was found in a Gnoll camp. The map was actually of the Manim Market.
As he looked at the Book of Lords, sure enough, the location of Manim Market had been marked on the map page.
“Yes, a peaceful trade market established by the orcs.”
Orcs live to fight, and they have a fondness for looting and combat.
While tribes did interact with each other, they would also attack each other.
Thus, the Manim Orc Market was established, with its own set of rules.
It forbade fighting and looting within the market, and all transactions had to be voluntary and mutual.
Orcs followed these rules, bringing their tribes’ surplus goods to the market for exchange, either for other goods or currency.
“Can anyone go to this market?” Fang Hao asked, intrigued by the orc market.
Parker glanced at Fang Hao and the crowd of undead skeletons around them, nervously replying, “This… might be difficult.”
Fang Hao nodded in understanding and said,
“Alright, let’s talk about compensation. You stole my property and killed so many of my soldiers. I can’t let you leave without some repercussions.”
Fang Hao’s voice grew stern.
Parker glanced at the surrounding skeletons again.
His heart thumped loudly in his chest as he boldly declared, “Sir, we are willing to leave one carriage of goods as compensation.”
Ha!
Fang Hao couldn’t help but laugh.
“If I kill you all, all the goods are mine. What makes you think I would spare you for a single carriage of goods?”
This…
The faces of the pig-men began to perspire profusely.
Fang Hao’s words silenced their arguments.
The most valuable part of their group was the contents of the carriages.
If these goods were not enough to serve as compensation, what else could they offer to convince him to spare their lives?
“Sir, you see, our goods…”, Parker attempted to say something.
Fang Hao cut him off, not permitting him to continue.
“I’ll give you one final minute. If you can’t provide what I want, you won’t need to leave.” After saying this, Fang closed his mouth.
All of the pig-men fell silent.
Sweat poured from their foreheads like raindrops as they felt the intense fear of death, their minds blank.
Soon, one minute had passed.
“Alright, time’s up. Kill them,” Fang Hao ordered straightforwardly.
“Wait, sir, Warfire Coins, we can give you Warfire Coins…”, Parker let out a howl in desperation.
Fang Hao’s expression hardened, “Cease the attack.”
The skeleton soldiers, ready to strike, returned their weapons to their previous positions.
“Continue,” Fang Hao ordered.
Wiping the droplet of sweat falling into his eye, Parker hurriedly said, “Sir, Warfire Coins are the universal currency here. If you’re willing, we can give you Warfire Coins to earn your forgiveness..”
