"I don't understand what you are talking about," Bodin said. "Let's get back to business. You said you can give me a weapon called a pistol. May I see the product?"
"I can't give it to you yet. What I wanted to offer is my service to craft you a pistol, but the material needed to make one is provided by you. Are you okay with that?"
"Like I said we norms are not very good at weapons, but can you describe to me what a pistol is?"
"A pistol is a small firearm incorporating a metal tube from which projectiles are propelled by explosive force."
Bodin looked confused. "My friend, you talk like a magician. I don't understand any word you said."
"My weapon is similar to a crossbow. You put the bullet, which is the arrow of the pistol, and then pull the trigger to release it."
"Similar to a crossbow?" Bodin held his chin. "Almost every norm I know can make a bow."
"This one is different and much more powerful. Come on, give me a chance, and I am sure you will ask for more."
Bodin smiled. "Alright, we fellow norm should help each other in hardship. The world is harsh enough for us, giving you a chance is not a problem for me. Come. Get inside the carriage. We'll discuss our business inside."
Hax nodded and climbed the steps of the carriage. The carriage did not seem big from the outside, but there was a lot of stuff inside it. Boxes, guitars, swords, hammers, anvil. There were so many things inside that Hax had to squeeze in to find a seat.
"Sorry for the lack of space." Bodin entered with difficulty just like him. "This carriage is never meant to accommodate a guest. I don't mind the lack of space though, because it's just my cat and daughter that use this carriage."
"Your daughter?" Hax looked left and right but didn't see any human being other than the man in front of him.
Bodin pulled a handle on the floor and revealed a little girl sleeping while hugging a cat. "She's asleep now. Please try not to be loud."
Hax nodded. "I will try."
"Let's continue our discussion then. Except selling your pants and making a pistol for me, do you have anything else to offer?"
"Currently I can not offer you anything else. But I plan to make more kinds of weapons so look forward to it."
Bodin sighed. "As I said, my friend. We, norms, don't really need weapons. Most weapons didn't sell very well because people can just strap a knife to a stick to make their weapons."
"That's not a good weapon."
"I know. But it's enough to hunt for food."
"What about weapons for self-defense?"
"Norms typically hates fighting. Not only do we have no time to train, but doing so is useless because magicians can use their magic to defeat us."
Hax pushed a few stuff to make more room for himself. "So these magicians can bully any norms they want?"
"I heard that's what happens in other kingdoms, but that rarely happened around here. Of course, Others might disagree with me on this.
"I see."
So this was a world with magic and these magicians or cultivators had a much higher status than the norm. So much so that they could bully the commoner openly.
"What if I say that this pistol can defeat the magician?"
Bodin didn't seem to believe him. "That's impossible. These magicians can block ordinary arrows and spears with their bodies or spells. There are no weapons that can defeat them except magic weapons, but only magicians can use and make them."
"What if it's real?"
"Leaving out the possibility of killing magician, we, norms, might use that weapon to hunt magic beasts. They have tasty meat and are quite expensive."
"That means you can sell this weapon at a high price."
Bodin nodded. "If what you said is true then yes I can sell this weapon with a high-profit margin."
"Perfect. I would like to make the pistol right away."
"Sure. What material do you need? I might have some right now."
Hax was about to list out the items he needed to assemble the pistol but refrained himself. There was no way a magic world would have a recoil spring, trigger, metal tube, and other parts that were necessary to make a pistol.
"I need steel or iron."
"Don't worry about that. I have lots of those back at my warehouse."
"Do you have a forge?"
Bodin raised an eyebrow. "Yes, I do."
Hax laughed. "Good. Good. Then, let's go to your warehouse. I can't wait to show you my weapon."
Bodin shrugged and slapped his bulls to move. The carriage set off without any problem except for some occasional bump. Though It wasn't a problem, the constant shaking and the hard seat made his bottom itch, which was very uncomfortable.
The carriage wasn't that fast at first. But then it sped up so much that the view from the window looked blurred. Surprisingly, the shakiness disappeared when the carriage reached top speed.
A few hours passed and Hax finally glimpsed a structure from the carriage. It was a wall made out of crude rocks with two guards defending the gate. Not only that, on top of the walls were fully armored soldiers with bows in their hands. The walls and the guardsmen looked impressive, but they are primitive. A single rocket launcher could blast that gate and there would be nothing the soldier could do to prevent it from happening.
"We are here," Bodin said.
The carriage slowed down when it neared the gate.
"Hello, fellas," Bodin greeted the guards before throwing a small package at the two of them. "The weather is kinda hot today, right. Consider that as a gift."
One of the guards smiled. "As expected from Bodin, the humble merchant. You are as generous as people say you are."
"It's Great Merchant," Bodin said.
"Humble and great are interchangeable."
"No, they are not. Anyway, you can inspect my carriage."
"That won't be needed. Everyone in Barmwich knows you are the only merchant here."
"Haha, this is my home after all. No matter what fortunes await me in other towns, I will always return to my town."
"Nothing is stopping you from moving from this place. I heard you already set up stalls and stores in some cities. Well, I'm not going to lecture you on what to do. Open the gate, boys."
The bull pulled the carriage and passed the gate. Unlike Bodin who had 'great' in his title, the town was humble in structures. The houses and buildings around here never reached more than two floors.
The town seemed clean and organized. The road might not be wide but it was clean and smooth. Stalls and people flanked the street with a subtle bustle and hustle. It was not crowded relative to the small space they had, but there sure was some lively activity happening down there.
"What do you think of the town?" Bodin asked.
"My first impression of the town is peaceful and comfortable."
"Why is it comfortable?"
"Because it's peaceful, I feel comfortable."
Bodin chuckled. "I know, right. I like that part of the town too. The other towns and cities are too crowded and noisy for me. It's only when I'm at home can I rest in peace."
The last three words didn't sound right, but Hax didn't want to talk about it.
At this time, the wooden door on the floor of the carriage popped open and a little girl appeared with sleepy eyes. She rubbed her eyes and grabbed her cat. "Are we home yet?"
"Hello, good morning," Hax greeted.
The little girl looked at him listlessly. "Who are you."
"I'm your dad's friend."
"Dad, is that true?"
"That's true, darling. He's a fellow norm and he needs our help."
"But why is he naked?"
"Uh... I think you should ask him that."
The little girl turned her big eyes towards him. Her gaze and body language made Hax twitch. He didn't know what to say. Should he tell her that he suddenly appeared out of nowhere? That might work since this world had magic, but he didn't feel like lying.
"I don't know," Hax said. "When I woke up, I realize I was in a plain with nothing but my underwear."
"Underwear?" The girl tilted her head.
"I mean pants."
Hax was quite confused about the girl's confusion. But he just shrugged it off since he thought underwear was non-existent in this world.
The girl approaches him with a cat in her arms. She plopped down beside him and gave him a candy. The candy was wrapped in red and fit perfectly in her tiny hand.
"Thank you." Hax received the candy. "My name is Hax. Can you tell me your name?"
"Ratha," The girl said, tightening her arms around the cat.
"That's a beautiful name. What do you do for fun, Ratha?"
"Sleep."
"Sleep?"
"Sleep is fun. And hugging my cat is fun too."
"Is there anything else?"
The girl contemplated for a moment before shaking her head.
Hax was taken aback by her. He didn't think that sleep was fun, especially for a young girl. Normally, little kids loved to run around or play with toys, how come she preferred to sleep instead.
"Well, would you like to sleep again?"
The girl nodded and walked to her little bed again. She waved at him and closed the trapdoor.
Left alone in his little space, Hax leaned on the pile of stuff and looked out of the window. The crowd seemed to be livelier around here as the stalls and stores got bigger. It was also more organized with stalls that sold food gathered at one section while the other gathered with their respective categories.
A few minutes later, the carriage stopped in front of a warehouse. The building was bigger than the ones around it and it had a lot more space. Hax suspected that the space was used to park carriages to deliver supplies.
Hax exited the carriage. He walked alongside Bodin as they entered the warehouse.
"Where is the forge?"
"This way."
Bodin led the way to another room where the walls and door were made out of stone. At a corner of the room was a furnace accompanied by an anvil, and a hammer. Pile of ores stacked on each other, nearby.
"Here it is. You got your forge and materials. So you need anything else?"
"Do you have gunpowder?"
"I have a lot of that too. People, especially magicians, love to celebrate special events with fireworks. And a lot of special events happen every day. You can take as much as you want in that box over there."
Hax nodded. "Thank you. That is all I need."
Bodin held his shoulder and looked at him. "No need to thank me. If you need anything just tell me. If you want to, I can let you work in one of my stores. There is accommodation, food, and other necessities."
"I will let my product do the talking, Bodin. I know you don't have high hope for me, but I will prove it to you."
Bodin smiled. "Very well, my friend." He tapped hax's shoulder and left the room.
After watching Bodin leave, he looked at the forge and popped his knuckle. "Time to get to work."