Chapter 116: Daughter of the Sands, Ayla (5)

"Please wait a moment."

At Orgo's command, the Sandstorm Caravan members quickly began sorting through the massive stockpile of supplies I had brought.

Given the sheer volume, even with a large number of people working, it took quite some time.

"..."

During that time, Ayla seemed… happy.

But also frustrated.

And maybe even angry.

"Sigh…"

She let out a deep breath—

"Hah… why am I even doing this…?"

Then tried to convince herself—

"No, this is an investment. My instincts are never wrong. Yes, yes, exactly."

She nodded, as if affirming her own words.

At some point, she had completely forgotten that someone was watching her.

"Just moments ago, she was acting all mysterious."

Well, Ayla was always like this.

Because of her Golden Eyes, others saw her as an otherworldly figure—someone untouchable.

But in the end, she was just as human as anyone else.

"Ugh…!"

Our gazes met for a brief second—then she snapped her head away.

["She probably hates looking at you right now."]

"What did I even do wrong?"

["Oh, come on. Like you don't already know? …Still, I have to admit, watching you one-up those money-grubbers was pretty satisfying."]

Clearly, Esther held some serious resentment toward the Sandstorm Caravan.

Even the Shadow Order had been outwitted by them before.

But unlike them, I had seen it coming.

"It's not like it's my first time dealing with them."

If we were talking about grudges, even the Shadow Order's Commander wouldn't have more than me.

And then—

"Sir Pawn."

It was Will, the caravan's ledger keeper, whom Ayla had introduced earlier.

"We have finished inspecting the goods. I will now confirm the inventory."

And then, like a rapid-fire machine, Will began listing items.

"We have confirmed 3,140 rounds in total, including standard rounds, armor-piercing rounds, tracer rounds, flechette rounds, explosive rounds, B-type shotgun shells, special net rounds, and Level 2+ tranquilizer rounds."

"We also verified 13 Ark-15 automatic conversion rifles. Some models have custom modifications and upgrades, so we can adjust the pricing accordingly."

"In addition, we have five Level 1 Ark-made protective suits, four Level 2 suits, and one Level 3 suit. However, some items have damaged power cores, so we will have to deduct an appropriate amount."

"Furthermore, we confirmed 24 Kronos-made CRN-071 automatic rifles, 36 Hesbon-made standard supply rifles, and 21 handguns. We also verified 37 Kronos-made CN-BOM-07 adhesive bombs. Pricing adjustments will be made based on damage levels."

"And finally—"

"…Are you still not done?"

"There's still a long way to go."

Just as he said, the inventory check was far from over.

His barrage of words continued.

"..."

"..."

"..."

.

.

.

"That concludes the inventory check. Does everything match your records?"

Despite listing items for several minutes straight, Will looked completely unfazed.

As expected of a seasoned merchant.

"It's accurate."

With so many items, missing a few would have been understandable.

But Will's report matched mine exactly.

No—if anything, he had been even more precise.

"Then we will proceed accordingly."

"Alright."

With that, Will left without hesitation.

From his hurried steps, it was clear he had a lot more work to do.

And then—

"Sir Pawn."

As if changing shifts, Ayla—who had been sulking in a corner—approached me.

"As you just heard, the inventory check is complete. Since you brought in ammunition, I doubt you'd want more bullets as payment… Would you prefer credits, physical goods, or… something else*?"

At first glance, it seemed like an ordinary question.

But it wasn't.

Because if I chose credits, it would be admitting that I was connected to the Ark.

Which meant the Sandstorm Caravan would gain valuable intel about my identity.

"I'll take physical goods."

For a brief moment, something flickered in Ayla's eyes.

"Understood. Would you like to pick them yourself, or shall we select for you?"

"I'll pick them myself."

"Are you sure? Given the quantity, that might be tedious for you."

I wasn't about to let them handle the exchange.

Not because I doubted them—

But because they'd likely try to offload valuable but low-demand goods onto me.

A merchant's instinct.

"I'll pick them myself."

"Alright. This way, then."

Ayla didn't seem particularly surprised.

Maybe she had expected this.

Or maybe—

Now that we were stepping into her domain, she felt more in control.

'She probably planned for this possibility, too.'

Following Ayla's lead, I headed toward the storage area.

Calling it a warehouse was a stretch—

It was just a large Ark-made tent, with goods stacked inside.

Still…

'It's sturdier than most buildings.'

The wheels installed at the tent's base were a clear design choice.

In case of emergency, the entire setup could be attached to a truck and moved immediately.

For those living outside the Ark, settling in one place was no different from suicide.

"This is it. Feel free to take your time—there are other storage areas as well."

As expected of the Sandstorm Caravan's inventory, the tent held all sorts of goods—

Many of which couldn't be found inside the Ark.

Of course, among the inventory were items crafted from the corpses or skins of monsters—a sight that was, frankly, not pleasant to look at.

"Take your time choosing. We don't have too much time, but… you should have enough."

Ayla was, of course, referring to the next Wave.

While it was possible to avoid the worst of its effects, anyone living outside the Ark knew to always be prepared for evacuation the moment a Wave was on the horizon.

It was just a way of life.

Unless one was protected by the holy relics of the Church of Morte or secured in one of the Shadow Order's bases, living outside the Ark meant living as a nomad.

This applied even to the Sandstorm Caravan—

And even to Kronos Union, one of the Ark's greatest enemies.

It was only natural that the Kronos Union sought to seize the Ark—after all, they had nowhere else left to go.

'Hmm.'

I scanned the inventory with a quick glance.

I immediately ignored the firearms.

No matter how good the Sandstorm Caravan's guns were, they couldn't compare to Ark-made weapons.

And even if they were Ark-made, buying them outside the Ark would be far less cost-effective.

"Oh my, just passing by? If you take a look at this Kronos-made anti-tank rocket, you might change your mind—"

"What would I even do with an anti-tank rocket? I'm not hunting a colossal beast."

"…That's… a good point."

Despite their destructive power, anti-tank rockets were ineffective against monsters.

This was why the Ark had developed new weapons specifically designed to combat colossal beasts—something Kronos, in its ruin, could no longer afford to do.

"Ah! Then how about these Kronos-made CN-BOM-07 adhesive bombs? You can use them as traps, or throw them directly for impact!"

"I just sold you those."

"…Oh. My apologies. There are just so many items, I got mixed up…"

Ayla, still rattled from earlier, was clearly not thinking straight.

Normally, she wouldn't have made such a careless mistake.

But with the sheer volume of supplies I'd brought in, and her already fragile state, she was completely off balance.

"I'll just look around and choose myself."

"…Ah, right! Of course, of course!"

As expected, there was nothing special among the weaponry.

To be precise, there were items better than what I currently had—

But if I had to buy them through the Sandstorm Caravan, the price wouldn't be worth it.

Why pay a markup for Ark-made gear outside the Ark?

'They probably have a few tactical nukes hidden somewhere… but that's not something I can buy right now. And pointing it out would just be a hassle.'

Despite the existence of plasma weapons and antimatter weaponry, nuclear warheads were still a threat.

They could be used during a Wave—

Or, worse, they could be fired at the Ark itself.

'Of course, detonating a nuke over the Ark isn't easy… but it's still a dangerous weapon.'

The Kronos Union did possess a few tactical nukes—

But they wouldn't dare fire them at the Ark.

The Ark's anti-air defenses would make a successful strike almost impossible,

And if they failed, the retaliation would be swift and merciless.

'Not to mention, Kronos wants to take control of the Ark, not destroy it.'

That was their goal, after all.

But that was another matter entirely.

As I continued browsing, my gaze suddenly stopped.

Unconsciously, I froze in place.

There was something… familiar here.

'This is…?'

I wasn't mistaken.

This was exactly what I thought it was.

A withered, charred black branch.

At a glance, it looked completely ordinary.

No—

It looked so worthless that it seemed more fitting to be kicked aside on the street than stored in a warehouse.

The Thunderstruck Branch.

Despite its unremarkable appearance, this branch held the power of lightning itself.

To my knowledge, it was the treasured possession of Barbaro the Thunder, a Grade-1 Named Monster—

One of the tyrants of the western front.

'Why is it here…?'

It made sense, in a way.

Normally, players wouldn't encounter the Sandstorm Caravan until midway through the game,

When they had gained enough power to venture outside the Ark.

So, it wasn't impossible that, by meeting them early, their inventory would have unexpected items.

'Still… I wasn't expecting this.'

Not that I minded.

If anything, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

'The only problem… is Ayla.'

Even though the Thunderstruck Branch looked worthless,

The fact that it was here meant that the Sandstorm Caravan had at least some awareness of its value.

If I openly showed interest in it, Ayla would instantly recognize its importance—

And they'd inflate the price as much as they could.

'In that case…'

It went without saying—

I had no intention of letting Ayla realize I wanted this item.

The first rule of trading was to never let the other party see your true intentions.

There was no reason for Ayla to know this was valuable.

"Pathetic."

"…Excuse me?"

"Everything here is worthless. Do you have anything better?"

"Ah—! W-Wait! Let's go over this way! There's plenty more to see!"

Ayla had no idea.

That hidden among these worthless items…

Was something truly priceless.