Chapter Three: The Black Alley

Chapter Three: Black Street

If there was a place in Wildfire Town that was the most bustling, lively, and chaotic, it would undoubtedly be the so-called "Black Street."

Black Street was never an official name. In fact, neither the Byzantine Empire nor the Odin Empire, both of which had briefly occupied Wildfire Town, stayed long enough to register all the town’s streets and buildings. The Odins, in their ignorance, hadn’t even bothered counting the population.

Thus, "Black Street" became a colloquial term for the street on the western edge of Wildfire Town, closest to the outskirts. It was originally quite wide, the broadest street in town, wide enough for two carriages to pass side by side. Such a road was a luxury not only in this remote backwater but even in the more developed cities of the Byzantine Empire.

But that was “originally”—if not for all the vendors occupying the road.

Here, all manner of strange and curious things from every corner of the continent could be found. Anything imaginable, and even the unimaginable, could be discovered here.

Of course, if you wanted to buy something, no matter how rare or bizarre, you only needed to hang a sign on Black Street announcing your desire. In less than half a day, a few shabbily dressed, shifty-eyed figures would slink over to ask how much you were willing to pay.

These people were not swindlers or beggars. They were liaisons for various mercenary clans.

Across the Wildfire Plains, there were many tribes—some with over a thousand members, others with only a hundred or so. Some worked as mercenaries, but more were bandit gangs.

It was hard to distinguish whether these tribes were mercenaries or thieves—it all depended on their mood.

The Byzantines had a saying: the difference between a mercenary company and a bandit gang is this—if you hire mercenaries as bodyguards, you simply pay them afterward. But if they happen to be in a bad mood, they’ll not only take your money but rob you as well. At that point, they’re bandits.

Naturally, this saying was fiercely refuted by the Royal Trade Guild, which insisted that only registered mercenary groups were legitimate and lawful. These official groups followed the rules. The others, who blurred the line between mercenary and thief, were illegal black-market gangs.

Yet, it was these black-market gangs that were often most helpful. They would take any job, no matter how dangerous or unsavory.

If you paid enough, they'd even take on suicidal tasks. For example, capturing dwarf slaves—something official mercenary groups would never do. The black-market gangs, though… well, how much are you willing to pay?

Despite the harsh environment, the Wildfire Plains were brimming with business opportunities! They served as the buffer zone between the Byzantine and Odin Empires, the only trade route linking the two. Merchants from both sides, if they wished to do business in the other’s territory, had no choice but to pass through here.

The vast, perilous Wildfire Plains were fraught with danger. Directly north of Wildfire Town lay the Blue Basin—a domain of the violent and solitary dwarves. If you were a human merchant, it was best to stay clear, lest your skull end up lacquered and displayed on a shop shelf back on Black Street.

Only a rare few merchant guilds, those who had earned the dwarves’ trust, could approach their land and conduct trade.

If the dwarves could be considered law-abiding (as long as you didn’t encroach on their territory, they generally left you alone), then the goblins were truly a nightmare. Like moles, they thrived in burrows in the northern plains, proliferating in colonies. These were the real bandits—they stole everything: food, clothes, tools. They ate everything as well.

If you were unfortunate enough to be captured by them—congratulations.

Your flesh would be dried into jerky, your bones ground into soup, your hair woven into goblin blankets. In short, goblins possessed a virtue sorely lacking in humans: absolute frugality.

Trade across the Wildfire Plains was perilous, but also immensely profitable!

The Byzantine Empire exported finely crafted armor and weapons, horses, cattle, sheep, minerals, and works of art…

The northern Odin Empire supplied the finest furs, various crystals, and sculptures—a bitter irony! The Odin people were synonymous with brutality and ignorance, yet their nation boasted the world's most exquisite carving techniques, a fact that left Byzantine sculptors forever humbled. To mask their envy, the Byzantines would explain: "The Odins divide their time into three equal parts—one for fighting, one for copulating, one for carving idols and praying."

But such lucrative trade could only be undertaken by the mightiest merchant guilds.

Smaller parties, if they wished to try their luck, had to risk their necks.

Still, the enormous profits lured many who were willing to gamble their lives. At least half of those who came to Wildfire Town were dreamers hoping to strike it rich.

Every so often, one or two such dreamers would manage, by the skin of their teeth, to cross the Wildfire Plains, trade successfully, and become wealthy overnight. This only encouraged more to flock here, chasing after their own dreams of fortune.

There was a saying on the Wildfire Plains: if you take a shovel outside the town and dig anywhere in the wild, you’ll turn up the bones of some adventurer.

...

When Shaya Thunderstride entered Black Street, his back was straight—mainly because his belly was full, thanks to a gullible outsider swindler.

Black Street was much as usual, except that the bandit gang that had recently occupied the town had been ousted. Now, soldiers from a mercenary company patrolled the streets. The locals were used to such changes. Besides, the newly arrived mercenaries were disciplined and hadn’t increased the taxes.

Incidentally, the tax system in Wildfire Town was simple: there was only one tax—the entrance tax! Regardless of who you were, upon entering the town, you had to pay one copper coin per person.

There were no other commercial taxes or levies.

Earlier today, Shaya Thunderstride had handed his last copper coin to the gate guard as he entered.

If he failed to find a job and earn some money today, he would truly be forced to join the ranks of beggars…

Black Street was crowded. Shouts and quarrels rose from the shops and stalls on either side. The local temperament was fierce—anyone daring enough to come here was hardly a mild character. There were no “good people” in Wildfire Town. Even bargaining here sounded like a string of insults.

Occasionally, some drunkard would be tossed out of a tavern and dumped in the garbage pile by the wall.

Shady-looking characters slinked through the crowd, practicing the art of “golden fingers”—pickpockets.

Fortunately, no pickpocket paid Shaya Thunderstride any attention—he looked even worse off than a beggar.

Shaya Thunderstride moved with the flow, eyes roving, searching for a way to make some money. His plan was simple: earn some cash, no matter what. He intended to take on a demon hunter’s job.

Demon hunters and hunters were two different professions. Their work was similar, but their prey differed. Hunters focused on rabbits, foxes, pheasants, or wild coyotes—basic skills like archery and setting traps sufficed.

But demon hunters sought only one thing: magical beasts.

When the old man was alive, he forbade Shaya Thunderstride from hunting magical beasts. But Shaya had no intention of spending his life as some backwater hunter holed up in the mountains. The life of a demon hunter was full of adventure and excitement—and it paid well. That was what a young man yearned for.

So, he’d secretly taken on such work a few times, even successfully hunting a few magical beasts. Unfortunately, he never saved much; most of his earnings turned into alcohol for the two drunkards at home.

At last, Shaya Thunderstride spotted a target.

At the far end of Black Street, a small shop had a sign hanging at its entrance.

"Wanted: Magical Beast Cubs—High Prices Paid..."

(The next chapter will be updated before nine o’clock tonight!)