Preparations

While on my way back, I thought back to the fight I had with the serpent and realised that I was being a bit too insensitive towards blood and gore. I mean I didn't even flinch when the blood splattered on my face.

This caused me to fear being a cold-blooded killer like those protagonists and antagonists in the novels I'd read in my previous life.

[I won't let you. Rest assured.]

Hearing this made a smile bloom on my face. Although I still don't trust Codex fully, it sounded assuring.

'Well I should also try my best, after all, rule number three of being reincarnated—always depend on thyself.'

Within a few minutes, I arrived at the border of the village, only to see it bustling with the usual caravans and... knights?

What?

As far as I knew, the knights were the shield and sword of any kingdom, and seeing them here, in a remote village, was a reason to feel either thankful or... fearful.

Tensing myself up and pushing down all nervousness, I made my way into the village and towards home.

With fast strides, I climbed the flight of stairs and opened the door.

"Oh. You are back home, Son," Mom's sweet voice resounded from the balcony.

—Click

"Yeah, Mom, I am back," I replied. "By the way, mom, do you perhaps know why there are knights here?" I closed the door behind my back and approached the balcony.

Upon arriving at the balcony, the sight of a beautiful lady with silver hair, leaning on the railing, entered my vision.

"You don't remember? The day of beast hunting is close by, they will be hunting the beasts before they form a wave."

A wave happened when the population of beasts increased beyond what the forest could handle, and they started coming out of the forest to find a place to live. Usually, a wave consists of thousands of beasts.

Although most of them would be considered babies in front of experienced and well-trained knights, their numbers could do a lot more harm than what people give them credit for.

So, before a wave can form and terrorize the neighboring villages, the three kingdoms—that share a border with the forest—each send a knight squadron to subjugate the wave before it forms.

However, they treated it as if it were more of a training mission for recruits, with the secondary goal of collecting mana pearls and beast orbs, than a subjugation.

"So, it's that time of the year already..." I replied.

"By the way, where were you coming from, son?" asked mom, finally looking at me directly.

"I was just taking a stroll mom." I lied, without meeting my mom's piercing gaze.

"Is that so..." mom replied, not buying it one bit.

"A-Ah! I-I forgot the main thing! Mom, I need to go fill up the bottles! Be right back!"

I made a tactical retreat. Truly nobody could hide anything from their moms.

—Click

I quickly made my way down the stairs. There I approached the trolley and brought the crate of bottles upstairs, where we had stored the bucket of potion.

"Mom, let's start filling up the bottles I bought," I said as I sat down cross legged, with a funnel and an empty glass bottle in each hand.

**

—Gup ~~Pouring~~ —Tub

'5...'

—Gup ~~Pouring~~ —Tub

'8...'

—Gup ~~Pouring~~ —Tub

'12!'

It took a bit of time to fill the bottles since they were shaped like a vial and had a small opening. Even with a funnel, it took time because every single drop mattered.

After filling all the bottles, I put them all in a wooden crate and brought them down to the Eatery that had accumulated spider webs.

There, I placed the crate on the floor and grabbed a dusting-cloth to dust the dust ridden trolley.

I planned to use the trolley as the stall in the market district. It had the sweet size I needed to put up a stall, since a trolley of this size could easily fit into the space left between two stalls, and it wouldn't seem as empty after setting all the potion bottles out in a uniform fashion.

Just as I was wiping it down to remove all the dustthat had accumulated on it, due to not using it for a long time, I heard mom's footsteps behind me.

"So, you're gonna sell them, huh?"

"Yes mum, we should make use of everything in our disposal, right?" I justified myself, without looking back.

"That is right." Mom replied, nodding in response.

"By the way mom, how is your illness? Did it act up again?" I asked, finally feeling the need to turn around.

"That... I've been taking sips of the healing potion once in a while when I think it is acting up again."

"It is good that you do that, but... you shouldn't take too much of it you know. After all, it is made from a poison, and taking anything in excess is bad for one's health," I cautioned her.

"Okay..."

It felt as if that 'Okay' was filled with many emotions, with one of them being… guilt?

Why guilt?

"Mom, everything is yours, just take it in moderation so that it doesn't make your health worse instead of working to improve it, okay?"

"Okay."

After I felt I had made my point clear, I went back to cleaning the trolley and then placed the potion crate on top of it as I prepared to go out.

"Mom, prepare some waste clothes for when I come back, okay?"

"I will do that." Mom replied with a knowing smile, to which I also smiled.

—Click —Tuk

I closed the door behind me as I exited through the back door with my hands pushing the trolley in front of me.

'So it is early evening already, huh." I sighed as I looked up at the orange shade that was starting to dominate the blue sky.

***

After an hour of preparation, I made my way to the market district, with the trolley in tow. The bottles of pinkish liquid were neatly placed in the crate, and covered by a cloth.

Since it was quite risky to bring the pearls here, I kept the pearls at home. Of course I made sure to hide them from mom, but I knew it was only a matter of how long I could keep them hidden from her.

As I was skipping to the place, I overheard some bits and pieces of what the nearby gossipers were saying.

To summarise, today the Auzle kingdom was sending ten teams from the 'Auzle Academy', each team had five students.

The Auzle Academy was the academy specially built to teach the young generation of the kingdom of Auzle, so they could become the next pillars for the kingdom.

Since it was a place of great importance to the kingdom, they put great emphasis on it, hence there is no back door entry... but we all know what the people in power do, right?

That was also the kingdom our small village, Gunhar Village, fell under the jurisdiction of. So, everything that belonged to the village belonged to the kingdom, and that made every little brat that went there, arrogant.

'Once money enters the equation, no person can say no to the temptation of more.' I sighed in my heart and swore to stay low-key for now, to avoid drawing the attention of those brats.

As for the knights, the advance party was already here, making preparations for the stay of those richie-rich brats from the capital of the Auzle kingdom.

Well, not like any of this was my business as long as they took care of the wave.

Thinking as such, I went along my way and soon arrived at the market.