Shadow Covenant

Chapter 206 "Task"

Yellowstone Town got its name and was even born because there was a large open-pit quartz mine behind the town.

As early as before River Valley City was built, the mines behind Huangshi Town produced more than 80.00% of the building stones that River Valley City needed. Only then was River Valley City able to stand tall here at less than two-thirds of the cost of other cities. On the west coast, of course, the reason why the Kamuter family chose to be there in the first place was because of the mines behind Huangshi Town...

Now the quartz mine has not dried up after supplying the stone needed by a large city. If you stand on a high place, you can still see the large yellow-brown area behind the town, which is like a pothole on the surface of the moon. However, due to the blockade of trade and the shrinking of the market, the means of livelihood of the residents of Huangshi Town have changed from mining to fishing, forestry and agriculture.

They began to rely on the surrounding mountains and rivers instead of relying on the mines behind the towns.

Therefore, when Woody walked on the streets of Huangshi Town, most of what he saw were fishing nets hanging outside, as well as some distinctive climbing tools and agricultural supplies. Of course, they were also thrown in the corners with spiders Net mine drafts and some mining tools.

Woody carefully identified the signs hanging on the gates of houses in the surrounding towns. According to the information he learned in his previous life, the hidden mission here should come from a blacksmith shop, that is, the hermit old man who often listened to stories in Tesia's mouth. At that time, Woody only remembered that there was such a mission when he heard this. Otherwise, no one reminded him, and after such a long time, how could he remember a hidden mission that he had never done at all.

Because Woody swaggered down from that luxury carriage, most residents of Yellowstone Town were afraid of him like snakes and scorpions. When they saw him, they would avoid him from a distance, so that Woody walked all the way to the center of the town, and there was no one. I saw half a figure on the road.

Although it is early in the morning, at this time in the past, there has been a small market for mutual trade transactions here. It is worth mentioning that the goods in circulation here are not the common gold, silver and copper coins, but the most basic material Barter, the most valuable in circulation is salt, and a small jar can be exchanged for several pounds of meat.

This is why Tesia's money can only be obtained from the temporary camp in Maple Leaf Bay.

However, the town center was empty at this time, Woody felt the sense of spying in the dark, and looked at the stalls in the center open space that had not been cleaned up in the future. Obviously, it was not that there was no one, but someone had already reported his movements at any time. , Reminder, vigilance, the aborigines in Huangshi Town probably thought he was coming for them, so before Woody arrived, they turned into birds and beasts and dispersed.

Seeing this, Woody could only shake his head helplessly, he couldn't yell at them, he didn't mean anything to them, let them return to normal order.

Not to mention that even if they say it, Woody's words will most likely be taken as a trap by them, so they are even more worried.

So, all Woody could do was to pull up the hood attached to the robe, and hide his hair and face under the crow feather-colored robe, like a traveler in the dust, looking straight at the little girl. to the other side of town.

He has only one purpose, the blacksmith shop that is still open in the north of Huangshi Town after the mine was deserted.

Usually there are few patrons there, and the stove may not be turned on a few times throughout the day.

It was the group of children who were not yet old enough to climb up and down the town all day long.

The blacksmith shop was very conspicuous. After walking for less than 5 minutes, Woody saw the obvious, more spacious and undisguised door than the tightly closed doors of other residents.

There is also a stone wall at the entrance of the shop. The outer wall of the stone wall is no different from other houses, but the inside is yellowed and blackened by smoke. Several agricultural hoes and shovels are hung on the wall. There are a sickle, a scimitar and various iron objects used in daily life inside, and no swords can be seen.

Unlike Palermo, which is in full swing, the blacksmith shop here is more like a quiet forest of whispers in the afternoon. If the stove, tables and chairs are not dusty, it may be easily misunderstood as if it has not been patronized for a long time.

Because the stone wall at the entrance of the store blocked the sunlight, and the stove was not lit, most of the space inside was still hidden in darkness, but Woody's eyes still saw the man leaning on a wooden recliner. On, the old man who closed his eyes and rested leisurely.

His hair was gray, his eyes were closed, and his wrinkled right fingers were tapping on the wooden handrail lightly, making a slight muffled sound, which meant that he was not sleeping now, but was thinking about something.

Woody glanced left and right, and saw a string of wind chimes at the entrance of the store to notify the people inside. He stepped forward and pulled it slightly, and there was a crisp and pleasant bell sound from inside. Voice.

The lying old man stood up.

With his hands behind his back, wearing a thin linen shirt that doesn't match the dress of the cold winter moon, he walked to the bright place, raised his head slightly, and looked at this foreign traveler who didn't seem to be in the town with his eyes that were not cloudy, but he didn't Instead of being afraid and afraid like everyone else, he said in a neutral tone.

"There's nothing you're looking for here, traveler."

"The weapon has not been fired for a long time."

He obviously regarded Woody as a foreign guest who wanted to come to the smithy to replace or repair weapons, and he was not curious about why Woody could enter Yellowstone Town. As far as people are concerned, there is nothing that can grab their attention.

Woody put down his hood, looked at the grizzled old man who was staggering back with his hands behind his back, and said directly.

"I didn't come to buy your things. I heard from them that you are also an outsider."

The exploration and curiosity in Woody's words were undoubtedly revealed, but the old man still couldn't make the old man look at Woody, but his back froze slightly, but he said in the same tone.

"Outsider? I've lived here longer than most."

"There is no other request, just leave here, don't disturb the residents here, they are all good boys."

The old man's voice was flat, like a puddle of water after a heavy rain, very ordinary and elongated.

"Well."

Seeing the old man's reaction, Woody knew that it seemed wrong to use this foreigner as the trigger, so he immediately asked again.

"But I hear you need some help here, Mr. Kafferman."

Looking at his attitude, Woody knew that if he continued to test, he might drive people away, so he immediately released the big move that was brewing, and said these words. He didn't believe that the old man in front of him could still maintain his indifferent appearance.

And this sentence is naturally not made up, but there are traces to follow.

The hidden mission that Woody remembers, the previous summary is also the background of the story. It is said that the old man issued a high-priced commission in the Adventure Guild of River Valley City 50 years ago.

——"Looking for the missing wife."

——"Mission Requirement: The wife of Kafferman, a young blacksmith in Huangshi Town, disappeared in the Jingsong Forest. The terrain in the Jingsong Forest is complex and changeable. He hopes that some experienced mercenaries can help him find his wife. As a mission reward, he is willing to pay a family treasure (magic sword), as long as you can bring Ruiya back safely, if you only bring back the relic, he is willing to buy it at a price of 50 gold coins for each piece, and 500 gold coins for the corpse."

……

It was a very generous reward. Although it is not clear why no one took up the task at the time, it is enough to see that the young blacksmith Kaverman did not care about the cost to his wife.

It's just that decades have passed, and the task is still not completed, and it was removed from the release list because the deposit was exhausted more than ten years ago. You can only find it by rummaging in the warehouse of the Adventure Guild. To that ancient commission that has long been cast aside.

Of course, Woody knew why no one picked up later.

Because according to the gossip later, it’s not that no one tried to take this task, but they found that after accepting the commission, the master who issued the commission, that is, blacksmith Kaverman, disappeared in Huangshi Town. It is said that the person who saw him last, It was found that he was the direction to Jingsong Forest.

At that time, most people were still lamenting that he might never return, just like his wife.

And this entrustment naturally turned cold in an instant, and the follow-up payment could not be paid. Naturally, no one was willing to take the risk to go to the Jingsong Forest full of all kinds of weirdness.

Sure enough, when Mr. Woody's Mr. Kafferman said it, the old blacksmith in front of him was struck by lightning, and his thin shoulders, which were slightly hunchbacked, trembled, his body straightened up, and the wrinkles on his face began to tighten. Stretched up, like an old lion waking up in an instant, he asked in a completely different tone from before.

"Where did you hear my name, young adventurer?"

"The Adventure Guild of River Valley City, I found it in the warehouse, sir."

Facing the gaze projected by the old man, Woody's expression remained unchanged, and he replied calmly.

He was not afraid of the people in front of him looking for evidence, after all, the entrustment was indeed in a dusty corner of the warehouse.

"The adventure guild in River Valley City?"

Kafferman chanted the familiar name with a look of reminiscence, as if he was looking for its trace in the long river of time he had spent.

Yes, Adventure Guild.

River Valley City, he has been there, the only city-state in the Golden River Valley.

Although he was old and only wanted to spend his life in Huangshi Town, he still did not forget that his dream when he was a child was to be a knight who could ride a war horse on the river beach full of barren rocks. At that time, the only knight The only way for him to do so was to enter River Valley City and participate in the recruitment of the Viscount's apprentice, but this often required a large sum of money. Although his family was well-off at the time, his father did not want his only son to become a so-called knight. , he was more likely to have Kaverman succeed him as a well-respected blacksmith than a secretly cursed pawn of the aristocracy.

"Are you Mr. Kaverman from the entrustment?"

Seeing the old man lost in thought, Woody reminded softly, he saw the sadness in the eyes of the old man in front of him, so naturally he couldn't bear him to stay in the past.

The second call made the blacksmith wake up a bit. He had forgotten why he didn't stick to his dream of becoming a knight. He only knew that his dead memory was attacking him again.

Bitterness filled his heart, he thought he was used to it, and thought he had let go.

It's just that he didn't expect that when he saw the sincerity on the face of the black-haired young man in the hood, his heart couldn't help beating uncontrollably, and his emotions flickered like fireflies.

"I'm Kafferman, what help are you talking about?"

He found that his voice was trembling a little. On a certain day a few years ago, when he was old and aging, he returned to the small mountain village where he was raised with a whole body of stories. His mood was never so excited.

Most of the people who lived in the same era as him at that time had already died, not to mention that his story only played a tragic role in the many legends of the Golden River Valley, and most of them were replaced by the title of a man name.

His name has not been forgotten.

After being mentioned repeatedly, he finally realized that the young man in front of him was calling him, and it was about the mission he had done before, and his thirst for knowledge began to revive.

Looking at the expression of the old man in front of him, Woody knew that the mission had been triggered, and he was secretly relieved. Fortunately, he didn't ask for any tokens or certificates, but he couldn't open it even if the Adventure Guild opened it now. The commission column of the Adventure Guild was taken off the shelf, and there was no official letter to be issued at all, but the old man in front of him obviously didn't care about it.

Woody continued to speak in a calm and professional manner.

"It's like this. I discovered this commission decades ago by accident. The request on the list is to help you find your missing wife. I don't know if that task is still needed. I just happened to go to A trip to the Song Forest."

After Woody said this, he directly observed the expression of the other party. Facing Woody's gaze, the old man obviously hesitated, but finally shook his head and said.

"I've already been there, and there are no traces there. For this reason, I also invited a professional prophet."

"The task is no longer needed."

His tone was full of bleakness. Obviously, his excited mood had gradually calmed down, and he began to look at the problem rationally, but his attitude towards Woody was much better. At least he was no longer in a hurry to return to his reclining chair. There was a smile on his face when he met an old friend.

But when Woody shook his head and answered, the indifference on his face could no longer be maintained.

"But, what if your wife is not in this plane?"

"Can you find it too?"

(End of this chapter)