The Sound Of Despair

The rags Sturm had worn were a sign of slavedom, whereas the new clothing, while without adornments and in a colorless black, gave off the impression of a neat and straightforward outfit. Sturm felt born anew, and judging by Reinhardts impressed whistling; the Guard Captain shared this sentiment.

"Look at you. You may be getting all rude towards me, but at least you look like a decent commoner who could allow himself to do that now. On a more serious note, though, you have to follow some new rules now. We will go through it quickly and then go see the boss, so make sure to understand it well."

Even though the talk was meant to be quick, it ended up taking more than an hour. The topic was Sturm's slave status and the risks that came with it. Due to the danger of getting killed by a commoner, Edgar had prepared the following countermeasures in the form of four rules.

You will be officially known as the Thunder Merchant's future gladiator. Edgar will deal emphasize your talent and make it known that you are not easily replaceable.

Do not mention your slave status unless directly asked about it. When asked, tell the truth.

Stay close to either Reinhardt or Edgar at all times when inside the town.

If you get into trouble, do not do anything and wait for either of us to arrive.

The reason for the second rule was the identification of slaves. It was not reliable to give a person suspected of being a slave a strength test, as first or second-step commoners were often not that much stronger. Stripping a commoner or noble to check for slave marks was even more unreasonable, so a magic device had been developed that would identify slaves based on the fact their bodies have not evolved via celestial steps. A slave trying to pass as a commoner would not meet a good end.

When Reinhardt was confident that Sturm had understood these rules and would take them seriously, they went on their way to the house of herbs. The guard captain put on dark blue leather armor since today marked a new beginning for the Thunder Merchants. The sight they gave off was no longer that of a wild mercenary and a lousy slave but that of a veteran soldier and his disciple. They were sure to impress Edgar.

...

Inside the House of Herbs, the merchant had already woken up. His arms were covered in thick bandages, and Healer Kuran kept asking him questions about the incident. It just made no sense. How come Edgar had only burned his arms? The electricity should have spread through the whole body, leaving burn marks everywhere. As to reinforce that, a coma should have only been induced when the brain got overcharged, but there were no signs of the brain receiving any damage at all.

Only a priest would be able to make sense of this case, so Kuran just let it be and prescribed his benefactor a few herbs for daily application and plenty of rest.

"Kuran, how much do I owe you for this service? I know you are a busy man, and I took so much of your time," Edgar asked.

"Mr. Stormsong! How could you say that? This facility is only possible because of your donations. I will certainly not ask for any payment." The healer firmly denied.

"No, you took good care of me, and you will get paid for it. If you cannot accept it as payment for my treatment, then maybe you can do so for a favor for me instead?"

"Of course, whatever it may be. If it is in my power, I will comply."

Edgar smirked. <<Hehe, got him.>>

"Thank you so much! You can rest assured that there will be plenty more donations in the near future. So please, take care of my slave Sturm should he ever require your help. You know I do not easily trust people, and I am raising him to be my assistant. Can I trust you?"

Kuran was surprised. It was not a favor he had expected at all. He thought Edgar would ask him for some medicine to sell.

"A slave? Well… I guess I can do that if it is for you, Sir." The healer did not seem too excited by that request, but Edgar was his biggest benefactor.

<<That is why I tried to tell you to marry. Instead of raising a son, you are raising a slave now. Slaves have no future, and you know that. >>

*Knocking*

"That must be them. Let me formally introduce you to the new Thunder Merchant. You probably know about Reinhardt, the former Rampage Bear, but Sturm is not just a normal slave; you will see in time," introduced Edgar with a proud expression.

He did not want to give Healer Kuran a chance to change his opinion, so he quickly furthered the conversation. It made it a lot more uncomfortable and difficult to back out of a statement when the other party has already accepted it and would not stop talking about it enthusiastically.

After the quick introduction, Edgar looked like a proud father when presenting his future assistant. With a new outfit, haircut, and a clean body, Sturm looked very presentable, making the merchant even more proud. The healer truly felt something different about the boy. It was hard to pin it down, but the aura Edgars protégé gave off did not feel like a weak, stepless slave.

In the end, he just attributed it to the clothing and once again assured assistance in case it was ever needed. Losing the biggest donator over one insignificant slave was definitely not worth it.

The three members of the Thunder Merchants bowed one last time and said goodbye. The Guard Captain was tasked with carrying bags full of medicine that the merchant would have to apply over the following weeks. It was the drawback to being big and strong. If you wanted or not, you would be a human pack mule for everyone else.

On their way back, Edgar had to assure Sturm and Reinhardt that he was going to rest. Only when he made an oath not to overwork himself until he was healed did their nagging stop.

<<I still do not trust Reinhardt too much, but he genuinely seems concerned about me. Maybe it is time to reevaluate him.>>

After calming down the concerned duo, it was time for business. They laid out the general outlines of their future, and even Reinhardt heard about some of them for the first time. He thought the boss had only established the four rules in preparation and would take Sturm along when he was on his usual business, but that was not it at all. The Thunder Merchants were about to experience a complete reshuffle. They would open a new business and work towards developing and expanding it.

Sturm grinned while they arrived at their new home. <<Our own store, I like it.>>

A while later.

Three figures were sitting around a round table in a dark room. Only dim candlelight provided some kind of help against the dark while simultaneously throwing nefarious-looking shades at the wall. One of the figures cleared its throat and leaned towards the others. With a deep, ominous voice, it formulated a single question.

"So, I told you to bring something to light up the room. Which one of you two brought these tiny candles? You two told me to rest, and now I have to go get the oil lamps by myself?"

An awkward silence ensued. Finally, one of the shades, giant beyond belief, bowed its head in shame.

"It was me, boss. I thought it would provide a more mysterious atmosphere. I'll immediately go get the lamps."

<<Of course, it was Reinhardt. My smart little assistant would never be so stupid.>>

Hurried steps quickly left the room and soon after came back again. Soon, two bright oil lamps started properly illuminating the room. Edgar held his head between his hands, and Sturm held back his laughter. Seeing the giant, intimidating man rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment was a sight that just did not fit with the famous Rampage Bear of the Pirate Seas.

"Thank you, Reinhardt. Please just directly bring the lamp next time. Anyways, as I told you on the way here, I plan to open a new business. I was the only merchant who made his way to the slave camp to sell my goods to the guards and slavers there. Most merchants did not think it was worth the effort, as those guards and slavers usually use most of their money when they visit the city anyway. But with the crisis and their free time heavily reduced, word got around how I started making above-average profits by providing them goods from the town."

Edgar had purposely complained about his scarce profits every time he talked to someone in Dagger's Rock Town, manipulating the other merchants into thinking his business was barely holding on. Like that, the information had not spread for years. That most guards and slavers were only interested in drinking and visiting the House of Lust, combined with the fact they rarely visited the town, had been the most significant factor in maintaining that farce.

A few months ago, an incident put an end to the merchant's scheme. The Siren Song Merchants, which provided the slave camp with all of its food and tools, had heard guards talk about how popular Edgar had been recently. Even though the Thunder Merchants profit was but a grain of sand in front of the thousands of kilos of food and tools that the Siren Song Merchants provided the slave camp every month, it was in the nature of any successful Merchant Company to not even miss the tiniest possible increase in revenue.

They started sending their own merchants to sell the guards and slavers' goods. They slowly pushed out Edgar in order to establish and maintain a monopoly. With the business on a decline, he had no choice but to withdraw from the slave camp.

In the end, he had made a good profit over the last seven years, and as Sturm's release was also drawing near, Edgar decided to pack up and open a new business in Dagger's Rock Town with the accumulated funds. The initial preparations had been done for a long time already.

"So, in conclusion, we have enough resources to open up a shop. Originally I was going to continue doing business in the slave camp for a few weeks until we established our presence here in town, but now that the road is getting more and more dangerous… let those Siren Bastards deal with it. Our end goal is to drive them completely out of Dagger's Rock Island.. They will take my business? Ha! They shall watch as we take theirs."