Chapter 38: Riversian Conflict

Three days later, the other three merchants finally arrived at Fulio’s shop, each bringing his own Plium along with him. At first glance, they almost reminded me of different versions of Pero, with their traveling clothes, packed belongings, and the experienced appearance of men who had spent much of their lives moving from settlement to settlement in search of profitable trades. Fulio immediately approached them with a welcoming smile.

"Hello, my good friends. It has been quite some time."

"Ah, Fulio! My good friend, it truly has been a while," one of the merchants replied warmly as they greeted one another, clearly familiar with each other from their previous dealings. After exchanging a few words, Fulio eventually turned toward me and gestured in my direction.

"This is the young warrior I told you about. He is the one who brought several sacks of monster materials from Decium, and his name is Retian."

I stepped forward and offered my hand as a gesture of respect. One of the merchants accepted it before looking at me with a curious expression.

"Retian... Your name sounds exactly like the name of the Chosen."

I hesitated for a moment before answering honestly. "I am the one people have been calling the Chosen."

The merchant’s eyes widened.

"You are the Chosen? The one who was supposedly shown to us through the visions of God?"

The atmosphere immediately changed. What had initially been a simple meeting between merchants suddenly became much more attentive, and the men began looking at me with a mixture of curiosity and respect. I could hear them exchanging quiet words about the Chosen, praising the fact that I had apparently been selected by God Himself. I wasn’t particularly comfortable receiving so much attention, but I understood that there was little point in denying something that had already become part of my reputation.

After the initial excitement settled down, one of the merchants looked toward the enormous collection of monster materials.

"Why are you hunting monsters, Retian?"

"I’m currently training while gathering enough funds for my journey," I answered casually.

Before I actually sold the materials, however, there was one thing I wanted to know first. I still couldn’t get the strange creature from Decium out of my mind, and before letting its body disappear into someone else’s hands, I wanted to know what exactly I had encountered. I walked toward one of the sacks and opened it, revealing the remains of the strange insect-like creature I had discovered inside the cave.

The merchants immediately gathered around to take a closer look.

"I’ve never seen this creature before..." one of them said, his expression becoming increasingly curious as he examined its unusual body.

"Me neither," another merchant admitted.

Fulio leaned closer before eventually shaking his head. "Same here. I’ve traveled to quite a few settlements during my life, but I’ve never encountered anything resembling this."

I looked at the three merchants in surprise.

None of them knew what it was?

"I shall keep an eye out for any information about it," one of the merchants finally said. "If I discover anything concerning this creature during my travels, I’ll make sure to tell you."

I nodded before carefully closing the sack again.

Strange... I thought they would have at least heard of this creature.

Still, there wasn’t much I could do about it for now. If even experienced merchants who traveled between different settlements had never encountered anything like it, then perhaps whatever I had discovered in that cave was far rarer than I initially thought.

"I’ll keep that in mind," I replied with a small smile before turning my attention back toward the other materials.

The merchant’s expression softened.

"Then I shall purchase as many of these materials as I reasonably can, and I’ll make sure to give you the best price possible. Consider it my way of supporting someone who has been chosen by God."

I smiled and nodded appreciatively. "Thank you."

The merchant then walked toward his Plium and began examining the materials more closely, while I remained nearby and listened to the conversation between the merchants and Fulio. Their voices were quiet at first, but I could still make out their words.

"Materials have been getting more expensive lately, haven’t they?"

Fulio nodded thoughtfully. "They have. I suspect it has something to do with the growing tension between the Riversian Lizardman and the Forestian Lizardman."

"Their relations are becoming that bad?"

"I’ve heard that both sides have been preparing for a confrontation. If things continue like this, they may eventually go and kill one another."

Another merchant frowned as he considered the implications. "That would explain the sudden increase in demand. If a conflict really does break out, they’ll need enormous quantities of weapons, armor, food, and other supplies."

"I also heard that the lizardmen possess the most advanced technology among all the races," another merchant added. "If two of their major settlements really are preparing for war, the consequences could be enormous."

Fulio gave a quiet laugh.

"Well, Odir is a lizardman, after all."

"Odir..." I quietly repeated the name in my mind, feeling a strange sense of familiarity. I was certain I had heard it somewhere before, although I couldn’t remember exactly where. Then I recalled what the merchants had just mentioned about the Riversian and the Forestian. The Riversian was supposedly the largest settlement anyone had spoken of throughout my entire life, yet it was now standing on the brink of war with its longtime rival, the Forestian.

I remained silent for a moment, piecing the information together.

Could this really be connected to what the Entity had told me?

The thought immediately caught my attention. If the Entity truly intended for me to spread its name, perhaps these events were not happening by coincidence. Maybe the conflict between the two great lizardman settlements would eventually create an opportunity for its name to reach people who had never heard of it before.

I lowered my voice, almost speaking only to myself.

"Spread the word."