Chapter 7: The Blacksmith and the Mysterious Hunter, Dealing with Wolf Fang, The Hunting Party...
The village has a small population, and even the smallest things that happen in each household can spread throughout the entire village in less than an hour.
Lai soon learned that the "mysterious man" was named Timur and was a blacksmith.
His house is easy to find; it's a simple stone house by the river, without any decorations and rather low.
Hearing the clanging sound of blacksmithing, Lai knew he had come to the right place.
"Who are you looking for? What's the matter?"
The straw curtain blocked most of Ray's view; he could only hear sounds.
"I need you to take care of two wolf fangs."
The sound of hammering stopped, followed by rustling sounds. A hand covered in calluses parted the straw curtain, and Temuqi stepped out.
He was dressed in coarse linen clothes, had a thick beard around his face, dark skin, and was short but very strong.
Lei is currently about 1.75 meters tall, while Temuji is more than a head shorter than him.
Where is the stuff?
Temuqi didn't even look at Laiyi, and directly took the thing Laiyi handed him.
He weighed the wolf fang in his hand, touched it, and muttered to himself as he examined it.
"Seventh tier, the quality is a bit poor, but it's still usable."
What do you want to achieve?
He asked.
"Would a scimitar work?"
"Can."
Temuji still ignored Lei, clearly finding the material more appealing.
"A total of six silver coins, five for labor costs, one for material costs, and two coins as a deposit first."
"Can elemental stones be embedded in the dagger?"
"You have elemental stones?"
Lei's words successfully attracted Timur's attention.
He looked up at Lai, their eyes met, and then he immediately looked down, refusing to look at Lai's face.
Laiyi began to understand why Lamb and the others called Timur the "mysterious man."
This guy is clearly a socially awkward person who's afraid to meet people.
"No, I'm just curious."
Temuji was clearly disappointed, but he still explained the situation to Laiyi.
"Yes, the bones of magical beasts are special materials. By using alchemy techniques to establish a link with elemental stones, we can unleash some of the magic power of the elemental stones."
"Enchantment?"
"That's one way to put it, but it's not entirely accurate."
"Can you do that here?"
"Um."
Temuji's answer was unexpected by Lei.
"Is there anything else?"
Temu asked a strange question.
Do you offer custom-made items?
Lei's words made Timothy stop in his tracks.
"What kind of thing?"
Ray took out several folded parchment sheets from his pocket, unfolded them, and handed them to Timur.
The image above clearly shows a modern steamer and an iron pot drawn with charcoal.
This was the result of several days of research by Lai, and he was starting to miss the fragrant and soft steamed buns.
Having them would obviously make cooking much more convenient.
“This,” Temuqi said, holding the blueprint for the iron pot, “there are similar ones over there, you can modify them and use them.”
Following Temuqi's finger, Lai looked into the room and sure enough, there was an iron pot in the corner, which was different in size and workmanship.
"Could you explain this to me?"
Temuqi took out the blueprints for the steamer, clearly showing great interest in it.
Ray wasn't sure if aluminum existed in this era, so he simply described the metallic properties of aluminum.
After thinking for a moment, Temujin found a similar metal to what he had described, and it was even cheaper.
However, people disliked its lack of durability, so they preferred to use iron pots made of cast iron.
Lei then explained the structure and working principle of the steamer, and Temuji nodded frequently after listening, becoming even more accommodating to Lei.
Finally, Lei ordered a cast iron pot, two steamers, and four steamer baskets.
He paid a deposit of one silver coin and agreed to pick it up in ten days.
"elder brother!"
Neil ran home happily.
Back in the classroom, Neil finally cheered up a bit.
"Brother, my niece Luna told me that Uncle Hagrid invited us to his house for dinner."
"knew."
Neil put down his things and followed Rye to carry stones; Rye planned to raise the wall even higher.
As dinnertime approached, Rae carried a small bowl of aspic and some berries to Hagrid's house with Neil.
The hide of the Gulu Beast brought back from the market was washed many times by Lai. Following the recipe for aspic from his memory, he added some minced meat and made a magical continent version of aspic.
Because there were plenty of seasonings added, it tasted pretty good.
Hagrid's family was all present; they arrived before they had even started eating.
Lai handed the aspic to Linda and taught her how to eat it.
The transparent aspic aroused everyone's curiosity when it was served.
Only after Hagrid tentatively took a bite did the others dare to move. They quickly finished the food.
After dinner, Linda made a large pot of honey water for everyone to drink.
Linda asked Ray what the aspic was made of, and Ray's answer surprised everyone.
Everyone accepted it well, and some even wanted Linda to learn to do some of it too, except for Kelly, whose expression was a little strange.
After saying goodbye, Lamb took his two younger relatives and Neil out to play.
Hagrid, along with his eldest son Brian, second son Reese, and Rye, came to the living room alone.
"Lay, the elders have organized a hunting party. You should go with the eldest and second eldest brothers the day after tomorrow. They will take care of you."
"Dad, don't worry, we'll take good care of Lai."
The speaker was Rhys, a skilled hunter in the village and a more outgoing person.
Brian nodded in agreement.
When Ray and Brian worked together, Ray discovered that he was the kind of person who was hardworking but didn't talk much.
"This hunt is mainly to patrol the nearby mountains and also to hunt some low-level magical beasts."
Hagrid continued.
"There are many people going, and it's relatively safe. You can go with them and gain some experience."
"Yes, I will obediently follow my two cousins."
"Rice, help Ray prepare his things for the trip into the mountains these next couple of days."
"good."
Hagrid gave the three a few more instructions and then let them leave.
Brian went to cut grass to feed the cows.
Rhys taught Ray a few simple self-defense moves, agreed to continue practicing the next day, and then let him go.
The day to head into the mountains arrived quickly, and Lai and his group of twelve set off in the village's only three mule carts.
The mule here has a very long name, which Ray simply ignored.
To Lei's surprise, Temuji also came along, carrying a deflated leather bag and two sharp giant axes on his back.
Ray nodded to him in greeting.
Their village doesn't have a specific name; outsiders usually call it "Little Mountain Village."
A small river runs through the village, which is next to a dense forest. If you continue walking along the forest, you will encounter two high mountains, with a cliff on the other side of the mountains.
After crossing this mountain and walking a little further, you will reach the territory of the Great Forest of Eton.
It can be said that these two mountains protected the small village and the entire Rosen Town, blocking most of the monsters from attacking the Eaton Great Forest.
Mules are fast and well-suited to walking on mountain paths.
They set off at dawn, traveling without stopping, and arrived at the foot of the mountain when the sun was high in the sky.
They pitched a few tents at the foot of the mountain and the twelve of them had their first meal.
After a short rest, eight more people from other villages arrived.
Leaving behind four people and a truckload of supplies, Lai continued into the mountains with the remaining fifteen people.
After Rhys explained, Ray realized that there was also a patrol mission involved in this hunt.
Last year, a monster crossed the cliff and attacked the village. The mayor of Rosen Town reported it to the lord of Eaton City, who eventually dispatched knights and mages to deal with it.
Victor and his wife died at the hands of this monster.
Therefore, every few months, the villages will jointly organize inspections.
The mountain road was difficult to travel, but at first, following the previously established mountain path went relatively smoothly.
Gradually, the wildly growing branches blocked the road, and everyone took turns clearing the way with machetes.
The forest was deep and dark, and night fell quickly in the mountains. The group remained vigilant and hurried on their way, finally reaching their first rest stop as darkness fell.
This is a wooden hut measuring about 30 square meters, built many years ago by the villagers working together. It is mainly used by villagers and bounty hunters passing by to rest.
It was built a long time ago and is already somewhat decayed.
Everyone worked in an orderly manner to light a campfire and set up traps outside the wooden house.
"Ray, give me the cup."
Ray handed the cup to Brian, who then ladled him a cup of hot water.
Reese has gone to patrol the area, while Ray and the other six people stayed behind to prepare dinner.
Two pots were placed over the fire, and Lai helped cook soup, while the others repaired and maintained the cabin with tools they had brought from the foot of the mountain.
"Is this your first time here? I've never seen you before."
A man from another village, who was cooking soup, asked Lai Yi.
"yes."
"Who are Brian and Reese to you? They've been taking care of you the whole way."
"They are my cousins."
The people from the other village were taken aback for a moment, then asked tentatively.
"Are you Mr. Victor?"
"Yes."
By the firelight, he carefully examined Lai's face and muttered to himself.
"They do look very alike."
"I heard you were seriously injured."
"It's all better now."
Ray pointed to the scar on his forehead, and the stranger looked at his forehead.
May God protect you.
May God protect you.
The sound of a branch breaking came from the air. The two people stopped talking, and everyone stopped moving. The only sound was the crackling of the burning branch.
A moment later, voices could be heard.
"It's us."
The group led by Ries, who had been patrolling the left side of the cabin, returned with two long-toothed beasts that they had already dealt with. The group quickly put the long-toothed beasts over a fire to roast.
The other two groups also returned one after another before the long-toothed beasts were cooked, carrying fresh water and processed prey.
After dinner, the sixteen people were divided into four groups to keep watch and ensure the campfire never went out, while the rest rested inside the house.
Lai and Reese were assigned to defend the last wave, and also to prepare breakfast for the next day.
The night passed peacefully, and Lei made two pots of soup using the red wild bird he had caught the night before and the mushrooms he had brought.
The birdsong gradually grew louder, the sun rose, and two crescent moons hung in the distance on the horizon, becoming somewhat transparent.
The scattered starlight was no longer visible; only a bluish hue remained beside the crescent moon as dawn approached.
People gradually woke up and went to deal with their bodily waste together. Rye followed Reese and the others to take care of it as well.
After breakfast, it was already bright daylight. They extinguished the campfire with mud and then redeployed the sixteen-person team.
Reese, Ray, and the other four remained in the cabin to await orders.
Brian, Timur, and eight others continued up the mountain for a brief inspection.
They agreed to meet at the cabin two days later.
Rhys took Ray on a tour of the surrounding area, including a hunting trip.
He taught Ray how to distinguish animal footprints from their sounds and how to set traps.
The forest is deep and rarely visited by people, and every time I go out, I always find something.
Ray tried to combine wood magic with archery, but failed several times.
Fortunately, it was quite effective in his senses; he found many berries and even two hundred-year-old ginseng trees.
Brian and his group returned at noon on the third day.
They brought back two sixth-tier magical beasts and one seventh-tier magical beast.
He was covered in wounds and his face was full of exhaustion.
After speaking with them, Reese arranged for them to rest, and Ray prepared soup for them—his culinary skills had successfully won over the rest of the people who stayed behind to wait for orders.
After lunch, and having sorted through their haul of the past few days, the sixteen men descended the mountain while hunting as much as they could.
"What's the situation up the mountain?"
Ray asked Brian in secret.
"There's nothing seriously wrong, but some parts of the vegetation are badly damaged, probably from the monster battles."
Lei felt relieved.
“Ray, if there’s a problem, we won’t be hunting our way down the mountain.”
"Bull interjected."
He was a neighbor from the village that Lai had met in the past few days. He was about the same age as Lai and was quite outgoing.
"Better safe than sorry," isn't it?
"Ray, stop saying things I don't understand."
Lei shrugged.
Because they were carrying prey, their descent from the mountain was slow. By the time they reached the campsite at the foot of the mountain, the remaining personnel had already finished dinner and were resting.
After they arrived, the four of them quickly boiled water and set up the tent.
Nothing happened that night, and everyone slept well, waiting to return to the village at dawn.
A note from the author:
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