The next week seemed to go by quickly. There was still about a month left of summer, and the family business was starting to get busier.
The continent that the country of Mol was situated on was known as Vosnia. The weather throughout the year varied greatly, with freezing winters and hot summers.
Thanks to deep snow and sub-zero temperatures, trade was nearly impossible during the winter months. A flurry of supplies would be exchanged before and after winter, leading to increased workload for the Graves business.
Earl had a trip planned to go to the neighboring country of Buhein. Holen was an agricultural town, producing tons of spices and other produce, while their destination was a mining city. The plants grown here were exported all across Mol, and even to other countries.
On this particular journey, Earl would be directly trading spices for iron. Technology was rapidly advancing, with new inventions improving life being developed daily. Carriages got sturdier, cities cleaner, and weapons stronger. Iron was one of, if not the most important material driving this development, and fetched a high price on the market.
This time, Earl wouldn't be going alone. For the first time, Alice would be coming with on the trading trip. Naturally, Ash would be with as well.
A merchant needs connections, and Alice wouldn't make any by sitting home and studying.
The morning of the trip arrived, and the house seemed emptier than usual. Almost all of the servants were absent, leaving the few remaining ones with much more work.
A few minutes later, they all showed up outside. None of the servants were wearing their usual outfits, and were now armed and on horseback.
As Ash looked around, he realized why he had rarely seen the same servants working multiple days in a row.
Earl practically had his own private army!
Forty 'servants' were lined up next to the carriages, all of them armed with the best gear on the market.
This show of force was much more impressive than what any mercenary group could possibly provide, just the sight of them filled bystanders with awe.
^I wonder how much this private army costs to maintain… and they even work as servants! Looks like we were adopted by a real moneybags. I think I'm going to start calling him Moneybags Earl!^
Ash was too surprised by the guard, and didn't answer.
'I'm sure Earl wouldn't leave the house undefended either… If we count how many aren't coming with us, Earl has nearly fifty men! I wouldn't even be surprised if he could take over the whole city at this point. These dudes look way better trained than those soldiers guarding the walls.'
^Yea, and the horses too! Those things aren't cheap… What kind of business is Earl running? No matter how I think about it, there is no way just trading can bring in this kind of income. We've seen quite a few other merchants around, and none of them had these kinds of assets. Hell, look at how many carriages we have! Fifteen! That's triple the highest I've seen in all our time in this city!^
All of the carriages were loaded with spices, and the caravan was ready to roll out, but there was one minor problem.
Ash… couldn't ride a horse. All of the carriages were packed, and there was no room in any of them for an oversized wolf.
Alice was driving one of the carriages… but there was no room for a wolf there either. The carriages didn't move fast, and Ash would be able to keep up just by walking… all day long.
'Hey Roth, you feel like taking over for a week? This whole having a body thing is getting old, but I think you'll enjoy it!'
While not in control, pain would still be felt, but it was muted. Neither Ash nor Roth wanted to deal with the pain walking all day would bring.
^Your body, your problem. I actually was about to go to sleep, so enjoy the walking~^
With that, Roth's voice disappeared from Ash's head.
'This bastard… Roth! Wake up!'
Only silence responded to Ash, and he accepted his fate.
The caravan rolled out; Fifteen carriages, thirty guards on horseback, and one depressed wolf.
***
The sun shone down harshly as the caravan came rolling to a halt.
'Huuu… Finally!!! Lunch break!'
While walking Ash had come up with a good idea.
'What if I start walking, then leave my position of control in the body? Will I keep walking? I might have just solved this damn walking problem!'
Now that they had stopped, it was the perfect time to try it out!
Ash took a step forward, then abandoned control of his body.
Thump.
Ash collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut, drawing the attention of a bunch of the servants.
'Nope, I guess not. I guess the next week of my life is hell. At least we get to rest when we get to Buhein though, right? Rest and then… Come back. We have to go back to Holen after. Two weeks of walking…'
A few of the guards walked over to check on the wolf, stepping back when he began moving once more.
They had all seen Ash around the house, but none of them wanted to try their luck with the jaws of a non-human animal.
The ratios given for lunch were nothing like what other mercenaries had to eat, but it also was nothing compared to Gary's cooking. Gary was among the servants who'd stayed back to watch over the mansion, so Alice's taste buds would surely be weeping by the end of the trip.
Half an hour later, the horses were ready to travel again. Ash stood up, his already aching muscles crying out in protest.
'C'mon Ash, just a little longer. Focus on today, surely tomorrow will be easier! Yea, I will be used to walking by then… Or… hehe…'
Ash came up with a new plan for tomorrow. Roth would surely have to show himself some time tonight, at which point Ash would disappear. Roth would be left alone, forced to control the body and walk while Ash rested.
'Shouldn't have abandoned me today, bro.'
Ash continued his journey, walking endlessly with the caravan.