"We are close to finishing the prototype of the carts, Sir," Benjamin said as he stashed the dangerous items his friends were going to love to take apart and look for any weaknesses. "A few more days and they will be ready. Master Viridian and Abigail personally involved themselves in the project and they seemed to be having fun."

  "I must ask if they will be easy to seal in case of a sand storm?" Arthur asked, slightly embarrassed. "I... Wasn't aware that something like that occurred in these parts."

  "Don't worry about it." Benjamin waved his hand dismissively and laughed. "It was actually the first thing we thought you wanted them for, so they will be perfect as storm shelters. I can guarantee you that."

  "Excellent!" Arthur brightened, but as he stood up, he looked as if he remembered something. He quickly approached Benjamin and whispered something to his ear and then he said normally. "I will also need five big barrels of oil, a roll of the cheapest fabric, two hundred glass bottles, ten kilograms of meltable wax, and a kettle."

  "A kettle?" Benjamin blinked while Arthur grinned.

  "This big." He showed the diameter with his hands.

  "No problem. Tom?" Benjamin looked at his head clerk.

  "I'm on it, Sir!" The man left the room just as the previous helper returned.

  The man had a pouch on his belt from which he procured simple arrows packed in bundles of a hundred which were each tied with a string. There were at least ten bundles of arrows in front of Arthur and five hip quivers, at the sight of which Silfa gasped. The helper also took out ten simple-looking bows and placed them in front of the Inquisitor.

  "I see that you are excited about the quivers, Silfa." Arthur picked one and investigated it.

  "They are a dream of any archer, my Lord!" She was standing perfectly still, but her eyes were glued to the quivers. "The simplest of those allows for storing at least one hundred arrows and they still weigh nothing compared to normal quivers. But the most advanced can not only hold many more arrows, but also multiple types of them!"

  "I see... They are very specialised items of holding." Arthur looked at the flat quiver that snugly held five arrows, neatly and conveniently spaced, and as he drew one, it was immediately replaced by another stored inside. He even turned it upside down and tried to shake out the arrows, but they were firmly in their places. "This one is yours, Silfa. Why hadn’t you given one to her the last time?"

  He tossed the quiver to Silfa who snatched it with a cheerful smile as he turned to Benjamin. The girl inspected the quiver briefly and instantly replaced her mundane one with it. She was so occupied and happy that she paid no attention to anything else.

  "As embarrassing as it is, we overlooked it, Sir Arthur." Benjamin scratched his cheek, slightly red with embarrassment.

  Arthur laughed and shook his head. "Happens even to the best. How much do I owe you?"

  "Rather the other way around..." Benjamin grinned and tapped his pocket. "The next time you visit, Sir Arthur, we will have the money prepared for the things you brought us today. I would even prefer it if we could do business like that if you don't mind. It's far easier for both of us."

  "I'm happy to hear it." Arthur nodded.

  In fact, that might be even more beneficial than paying for everything up front. The amount of money he spent last time must have impressed the merchant enough to trust that Arthur could afford basically anything he needed. Leaving the hunted monsters to Benjamin will also bring him better profits than selling them through the association. If he could have forgotten for a moment that he desperately needed to find a way home with the woman he loved, the current arrangements weren't that bad. He snapped his fingers.

  "One more thing! I will need reasonably inconspicuous bags of holding for Silfa and Ben. Something spacious enough for their supplies, travel equipment, and personal belongings but not as flashy as Catherine's ring." Arthur ordered nearly from the doors.

  "I believe you want something that wouldn't be too bulky for them to carry... Hmmm." Benjamin rubbed his chin. "I might have a thing..."

  He personally left this time, and returned a few minutes later carrying a pair of fairly small bags with an integrated belt.

  "Those are the hip bags you carry on your back, Sir Arthur. They can easily carry the number of items that would fit into a box four metres long by two metres wide and one metre tall. They are sturdy enough to be a part of the equipment that is frequently carried in battles, as well as light and not cumbersome for simple shopping." Benjamin entered Pure Blood Merchant Mode, which amused Arthur.

  "That's exactly what I wanted. How much do you want for those?"

  "I can give them to you for ninety silver, Sir Arthur."

  "Add them to my bill then" Arthur nodded and gave them to Silfa and Ben.

  By the time the siblings put them on and stored their backpacks, Tom had returned with the additional items. Arthur ordered the siblings to store everything, mostly for them to get a better feeling for how to properly use the storage items. They, then, left the shop and headed straight towards the main gate. Arthur wasn't in any real hurry, and spent the time observing people as they walked by. The first thing he confirmed, only now, was the fact that, on average, most people were shorter than Arcadians. Even tending to be the shortest than most people on Aderon, excluding the short races. His two metres of height allowed him to observe most people from above, which was weird, he was a blonde mountain in the river of people. They left the city, skipping the usual procedures, a mix of the Noble privileges in this country and the fact that, in this particular case, they were already expected.

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  "Ben?" Arthur looked at the warrior who trailed behind him with an expression suggesting he was still happy about the bag of holding he received. "Would you mind getting your sister and going back to Benjamin and buying the same cart we had for the lion hunt? I'm going to keep it as a spare. Tell him to add it to my bill..."

  "As you wish, my Lord!" The siblings took a curious glance at the carts waiting for them and turned around with laughter.

  The company was waiting in the shadow cast by the three wagons covered with a thick, grey tarp. The remaining two carts were completely open but they were full of barrels and crates. The wagons were big, but not exactly big enough to take everyone, and Arthur wondered what the reason was. Not in the mood for a guessing game, he fished out Captain Amos with his gaze and moved straight at him to get to the bottom of it.

  "You are earlier than we expected you, Lord Ives." The man welcomed him with an almost correct Arcadian knightly salute. "We still wait for the remaining two wagons and Miss Ashfallen."

  "You weren't supposed to go for her?" Arthur asked the man since the carriage situation explained itself.

  "She..." The man hesitated, then shrugged. "She told me that she doesn't need an escort to find her way to the city gates and told me to go."

  Arthur looked at the man and blinked a few times in absolute disbelief. If Emperor Theon gave Arthur the order to guard someone, no amount of bickering by that person would be enough to change it. It was a mind-boggling cultural difference, and he was sure as hell going to explain to Ben and Silfa what he expected of them when giving an order. He rubbed his eyes, uncertain if his standards were spoiled by the Arcadian iron discipline, or if the local standards were tragic. With a sigh, he settled for something in between.

  "Do you think that Lord Howthorns would be happy with the way you handled his order?" He asked with a sliver of disappointment in his voice. Depending on how Amos replies, will tell Arthur everything he needs to know...

  "I... I don't know, Lord Ives." The Captain was honestly surprised by his question, which almost made Arthur groan aloud.

  He raised his eyes towards the heavens and wondered if he should be happy or sad. Happy, because if Emperor Theon decided to invade, the local forces wouldn't be able to do much. Or perhaps sad, since they were, supposedly, going to protect him and Cate. However, since he wasn't really counting on the help of any substantial fighting force if things went south for him, he decided to just be silently compassionate toward Sion. Not his circus, not his Kobolds.

  Cate was standing in the shadows and, despite that, was already hot from the scorching sun. He took out a flask of water with so much ice inside that it was actually ice with water. She gladly accepted it and started slowly sipping, enjoying the cold emanating from the flask she hugged. At least the siblings were somehow up to his standards when they arrived just twenty minutes later. They even managed to score the points lost by Amos when he noticed Val'narii riding in the wagon. The Dark Elf woman, clearly oblivious to Arthur's current mental state, was happily waving her hand. After they exchanged a few words, Arthur looked at the siblings.

  "Thank you." He simply said as he helped Catherine inside.

  Since he wasn't currently in the mood to elaborate, he gave the siblings and Val'narii water with a few pieces of ice and laid down at the rear of the cart. He observed the sparse clouds in the blue sky and contemplated their situation.

  "What is wrong, Lord Ives?" Val'narii sat nearby despite Catherine's flat stare.

  "I'm just curious how many of those boys will underestimate the monsters we are about to hunt." He stated it blandly, but supposed it could have been mistaken for a question.

  "Some of them will die..." The Dark Elf woman said quietly. "That's how it always is... Even soldiers like them think that Gnolls are easy to kill. I've seen it too many times."

  Arthur was silent for a moment, then rubbed at his face. "We shall see..."

  Something like that was unthinkable in the Arcadian military. The entire training system of the recruits started from teaching them how to perfectly execute orders. It wouldn't matter for the Arcadians if they were ordered to exterminate a Goblin den or wage war against another country. The soldiers would put their everything into following their orders. However, Arthur had no comparison, because he hadn’t been a soldier before he enlisted as a Guardsman...

  "It looks like the remaining carts arrived, Sir." Catherine softly informed him.

  He raised his head and saw the two remaining carriages leaving the city gate's shadow. Arthur stood up and glanced at Amos who started issuing orders.

  "I can't decide if you are amused or baffled, Lord Ives," Val'narii said after a moment.

  "That's probably because I can't decide for myself..." He sighed and shook his head. "How far is that Gnoll nest?"

  "Normally, I would say that about one day away. However, we will be travelling in a caravan so it will probably take two days to reach the Gnoll territory. The location of their dwellings isn't known, so we will spend some time looking for it..." Val'narii gave him a flat stare. "I expected more from you, Lord Ives..."

  "This morning is when I learnt that monsters like that even existed." He shrugged. "I could spend a few days in a library studying the existing knowledge, but this isn't my mission. I'm here to support them."

  He pointed at the soldiers.

  "Still..." She seemed unconvinced.

  "For me and my companions, this is a training trip." He said with a far more sardonic voice. "I'm going to assess their skills and drill them into a more acceptable shape, if necessary."

  Silfa and Ben looked at him with mixed feelings but stayed quiet. Catherine, on the other hand, was staring at him with her magnificent blue eyes. He approached her with a big smile and lowered his face to perfectly level with hers .

  "Even you, my sweet Maid, will learn a trick or two." He promised.

  "I'm dying of anticipation, my Lord." She smiled and withstood his gaze.

  Her eyes were sparkling and the corners of her lips twitched in a smile.

  Thank you all for reading.

  I wish you all a great day and as always I wait for your comments.

  A big thanks to and who edited the chapter!