Chapter 23 Magical Weapons (Starting with a reverse V) Magical weapons, small earth...
"Brother, is it that goblin from last time? Have you finished your business?"
Neil was worried about Ray and was still waiting for him to come back in the living room.
"It's him. His name is Iru. He has five little goblins at home."
"Wow, so many little goblins!"
Lei sat down in the chair opposite Neil.
"They don't have enough food to get through the winter, shall we help them?"
Ray doesn't intend to hide the fact that he's giving Iru food, and Neil, as a member of the family, has the right to know about it.
Neil frowned, looking troubled.
His brother is so kind.
"What will we do in winter?"
“We’ll only give him 150 pounds of grain. We won’t sell the harvest from this fall, since it won’t fetch much silver anyway. Brother, I promise we’ll have enough to eat this winter.”
Ray answered Neil's question seriously.
"Alright then. Brother, let them grow their own food next year, let's not do this anymore."
"Okay. Neil is so obedient and family-oriented."
Neil scratched his head, looking somewhat embarrassed.
Nothing else happened. After washing up, the two went back to their rooms to sleep.
Lai leaned against the bed, quietly looking at the earth elemental stone in his hand by candlelight. His eyes flickered slightly, as if he was thinking of something.
He rolled out of bed and found the two bone knives made by Temuqi.
He carefully examined the groove on the hilt and tentatively pressed the earth elemental stone into it.
With a "click," the elemental stone was firmly held in place by the small protrusion in the groove, and a thin beam of light flashed across the blade. The entire bone knife immediately changed.
The bone knife became increasingly light, and earth elemental magic flowed along its blade.
Lai was caught off guard by the sudden situation; his heart pounded in his chest, and an excited feeling spread through him.
He swung the bone knife at the corner of the wooden table, and to his surprise, he easily sliced off a piece of wood.
He understood that this was definitely not something an ordinary bone knife could easily do; Temuji must have modified the bone knife in some way.
If he remembered correctly, Temuji had once said that such alchemical links on weapons could harness some of the magic of the elemental stones.
In other words, the bone knife is now a magical weapon!
Confusion, surprise, and a touch of delight mingled together, keeping Lai awake all night.
He lay in bed, contemplating the pros and cons of the bone knife.
Without a doubt, this is an excellent weapon for self-defense. With it, his life is much safer in this world.
Ray still remembered his encounter in the woods by the river; there must be some secret hidden there, but his current strength did not allow him to explore it.
Fortunately, there are hardly any people around there, and I heard that nothing strange has happened in the village before, so we can put the matter of the forest aside for a while before dealing with it.
"well."
Lei sighed and sheathed the bone knife under his pillow.
Unfortunately, he now possesses magic but doesn't know how to use it better.
Perhaps the Mage Association or the church can give him a concrete answer.
The elemental stones that Iru gave him were incredibly useful.
After thinking for a moment, Lai took two red rockbirds and some hardy food to visit Iru's family the next afternoon.
He took a roundabout route, trying his best to avoid being discovered by the villagers and goblins.
There were several cabins on the desolate mountain, but Iru's house was easy to spot—only his house had several little goblins playing nearby. Rai quickly found Iru's house.
At this moment, Yilu had finished sleeping and was fetching water into a broken water vat in his house. These daily necessities were all things he picked up from the villagers who didn't want them, or things he made himself.
Ray's arrival clearly frightened the little goblins, who screamed and ran back into the house, slamming the wooden door shut.
"Humans are coming to capture us!"
"Humans are coming to capture us!"
The screams carried outside the wooden house. Upon hearing the noise, Iru dropped the bucket of water and ran home. He only stopped running when he saw Lai standing outside with a basket on his back in the distance.
Iru was a little confused, not understanding why Laiyi had come here.
The house was filled with the panicked cries and shouts of children. Iru awkwardly lowered his rolled-up sleeves and knocked on the door three times.
"It's alright, kids. They're people your dad knows. There's no danger."
Iru repeated himself several times before Nana cautiously opened the door a crack. Seeing her husband unharmed, she finally felt relieved and opened the door.
"Please come in."
Iru led Lai into the cabin.
Goblins are generally not tall. When Lai, who is 1.76 meters tall, entered the room, he barely managed to avoid bumping his head.
He put the basket on the ground and looked at the small living room.
"Have some fruit."
Nana placed a small fruit plate woven from wooden strips on the only wooden table, with a few small fruits inside.
"Thanks."
Ray thanked her politely.
Lei frowned slightly.
Iru's wife looked so thin, as if a gust of wind could blow her away.
The Yiru family was somewhat uneasy, and Lai realized that his sudden visit was a bit abrupt.
"I'm sorry for the inconvenience caused by my sudden visit."
Lai sincerely apologized, and Iru hurriedly waved his hand.
"No trouble at all, no trouble at all."
Wow! Wow!
The sound of children crying came from the bedroom, and Nana went back to the bedroom to comfort the two crying little goblins.
The other three children hid in different places, secretly watching Ray, the human who had suddenly intruded.
"I'm here today to bring you some food. I took a detour, but no one or any goblins noticed me."
Lai placed the two not-yet-fully-grown red ravens on the ground, then took out various vegetables, and finally pulled out a bag of rye flour.
"If you raise them for a while longer, they will be able to lay eggs, which can help nourish your wife and children."
Iru was clearly shocked and speechless. He wanted to refuse, but didn't know how to say it.
"Take it; what you gave me is very useful."
Lai hinted at the reason why he had come.
"I'm glad it's useful to you."
Iru finally felt relieved. He was unsure of Laiyi's intentions, so he had been facing Laiyi with trepidation from the very beginning.
"My little garden is growing very well now, and in a while I will be able to eat the things I grow myself."
Iru showed Lai Yi their vegetable garden. The soil was a little damp, probably because it had just been watered, and there wasn't a single weed in the garden.
"Well done. Let's plant more potatoes and sweet potatoes next year. They can be stored for a long time."
"good."
Iru smiled with satisfaction.
They went back inside, and the little goblin had stopped crying.
"Would you like to see my newborn baby?"
"Um."
Iru led Laiyi into the bedroom, where Nana was feeding the two children well-cooked vegetable puree.
The children were very small, like two kittens.
"Are they already eating solid food at such a young age?"
"Yes, we goblins are more adaptable and can eat all sorts of things. Actually, our mother's milk is better, but Nana's body..."
Lei nodded to indicate that he understood.
"I know a recipe that's more nutritious than porridge and suitable for baby birds that don't have teeth yet. All you need is bird eggs, a little oil, and salt."
Nana's eyes lit up.
"What recipe is it?"
Lai told her how to steam the egg cake, and instructed her on the amount of water to add and when to bring the water to a boil. Nana nodded repeatedly.
"Don't drink too much raw water. Boil the water before drinking it; it's safer that way."
"Thank you, Mr. Victor."
"You're welcome, madam."
Nana rarely showed a shy smile.
Lai stayed for a little while longer before leaving the Yiru family's house. Only then did the three children come to their father's side and gather around the two live red rockbirds.
"Dad, didn't you say you wanted to stay away from humans?"
Iru's eldest child asked in confusion.
"Some humans are also people you can come into contact with, but you need to learn to distinguish them."
"And what about Mr. Victor?"
"he......"
Iru hesitated.
"He is the exception, and also a friend."
Iru knew his identity was inappropriate, but he genuinely considered Lai his friend.
"Shh, this is a secret. Don't tell the other goblins."
The little goblin covered his mouth and nodded emphatically.
Lai walked home; the shed floor had been laid out that morning.
The stone floor is flat and dry, and it doesn't become muddy even when it rains. Even if livestock urinate in it, it can be easily cleaned up with a rinse and a quick scrub.
Lei was very satisfied.
The shed is basically complete, and the remaining eleven red rockbirds have already moved in.
Originally, there were fifteen, including the large and small ones. Later, two died of illness, and two more were given to Yilu, so now there are only eleven left.
And tomorrow I can bring that little Delraston beast home.
Lay had no experience raising them since it was his first time, so he specifically went to ask Hagrid for advice.
Delraston are herbivores, readily consuming fresh grass, hay, vegetables, beans, and the like. As long as they don't accidentally ingest poisonous plants, they can generally survive on any food they are given.
However, it's especially important not to confine them all the time; let them roam freely whenever possible, and they'll grow very well. Also, add some salt to their feed from time to time.
Ray wrote everything down and had cut a lot of alfalfa beforehand, which he then piled in the shed.
The following day, Ray and Neil arrived in town in Hagrid's oxcart.
There are designated areas in Rosen town for selling livestock; you just need to pay a management fee.
The seller arrived early, and the middleman was also there. Little Delraston was eating fresh grass from a sack on the ground with its head down.
Hagrid and the middleman greeted each other by clenching their fists and punching each other's left shoulders twice, and Ray followed suit by punching his shoulders twice as well.
“This is my nephew, Ray Victor, who is also the buyer this time.”
Hagrid introduced Rye to the two of them.
The seller pulled up the little Delraston beast, which was still munching on grass. After finishing the grass in its mouth, it snorted at the seller.
He seemed quite resentful.
"You can touch it."
The seller tightened its rope and let Ray and Neil touch its head.
Little Delraston's fur was jet black, except for a tuft of white fur in the very center of his forehead, which looked like he had a third eye.
Well, I always felt that beneath its handsome exterior lay a hint of silliness. And isn't the Delraston Beast really a mule?
Neil liked the little beast very much. He patted its head a few times and pinched its pointed ears.
"Be good, and I'll give you lots of food!"
After a while, the little animal became agitated and struggled a few times due to the rope's restraints, so the seller simply loosened the rope and ignored its movements.
Sure enough, while the seller and Lai were seriously exchanging some basic information, the little beast stood to the side and started gnawing on the seller's straw hat. Only after being gently tapped did it abandon the already ruined hat and turn its attention to the hay bag.
Hagrid circled the little beast a few times, looking it over carefully, and then nodded to Ray. Ray immediately decided to buy it, at the price Hagrid had previously agreed upon.
The small animal was tied up outside with Neil watching over it, and the four of them went into the notary office.
With the middleman and Hagrid as witnesses, Ray and the seller signed their names, exchanging money for goods. Little Delraston officially became Ray's property, and the seller even thoughtfully gave him the bag of grass as a gift.
The truck bed is not yet finished because some of the metal structures need to be custom-made.
After finishing his business, Lai didn't wander around any further. After the villagers who had come to town with him finished shopping, they all went back together.
The little animal was tied to the back of the cart and followed the oxcart without struggling at all, leisurely strolling back to the village.
Its name was really too difficult to pronounce, so Ray decided to just call it Mule from now on, and if anyone asked, he would just say it was the nickname he gave it.
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Author's Note: Elemental Stones: Natural minerals that can store magical elements. They are rare, but not uncommon. The amount of magic they contain is related to the quality of the mineral, not its size.
It can be used for setting up magic circles and casting high-level spells;
Commonly used for restoring and replenishing magic power;
It can also be used for leveling up (the risk is extremely high, and it is not recommended to try it).
—Excerpt from "The Casa Continent Encyclopedia"
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