"Hehehe," Norn grinned as he looked at his full little money chest, happily counting his earnings from yesterday. After deducting the share he gave to Padrick and the money he used to shut William up, he was left with a hefty sum: 150 gold nomismata, 1,000 silver dinars, and an entire chest full of copper fenies.
(1 gold nomisma = 20 silver dinars = 200 copper fenies)
Recalling the moment when he slapped his betting ticket down at the payout counter, and the clerk's face went from disbelief to utter dejection, Norn felt as giddy as a fox who had just stolen a chicken.
The casino, seeing that Norn and his companions were clearly well-born and that the unexpected upset had brought them a windfall, reluctantly paid out in full after some delay.
Norn locked the chest and hid it under his bed, daydreaming about using this money to buy several estates once they returned from the Holy Land. He envisioned a life of opulence, where he could wear silk once and throw it away, drink honey and pour it out, living the decadent life of a wealthy noble.
When Norn snapped out of his reverie, he contentedly sighed,
"Greed is humanity's original sin, isn't it?"
"Right, I still haven't restocked on spices. I'll use this money to improve our meals on the road," Norn said as he got up and found Demor, begging to be taken out for supplies. But Demor, who was busy counting and maintaining supplies, couldn't spare the time, so he asked Padrick, who happened to be passing by, to take Norn to the commercial district.
An hour later, Norn curiously observed the commercial district outside the carriage. It was evident that the area had been planned to some extent, with relatively straight streets and a variety of shops tightly lined on both sides. If he listened carefully, he could even hear the hustle and bustle of workshops in the backyards.
At that moment, Norn noticed a weapons shop called "The Bear's Hammer" on the left. Seeing Padrick's dashing appearance, he felt he should have a sword of his own. So, he called out to Padrick, jumped off the carriage, and walked into the shop.
Pushing open the iron-clad wooden door, Norn saw the walls lined with all sorts of weapons. The shopkeeper hurried over, "Welcome, sir."
Ignoring the shopkeeper's flattery, Norn looked around and pointed to a sheathless shortsword, asking, "How much for this?"
The shopkeeper got up, took down the shortsword, and handed it to Norn, "This is a masterpiece from our shop's master blacksmith—sharp and sturdy."
Norn struggled to take the sword, estimating it to be about four fingers wide, with a blade length of 70 centimeters. It had a thick spine and a wide edge, perfect for slashing, a typical northern-style shortsword.
Norn tried to swing it but almost got carried away by the heavy blade.
Sensing Norn's lack of interest, the shopkeeper sized him up and said, "Perhaps this 'Needle' would suit you better, sir." He turned and took out another sheathed dagger from behind the counter, handing it to Norn.
Norn took the dagger with its ornate sheath, drew the blade, and estimated it to be about two fingers wide, with a blade length of 40 centimeters. He swung it a couple of times. The leather-wrapped guard provided good grip, and the light blade hummed as it cut through the air.
"This sword was forged by a master from Nuremberg. Its slender blade can easily pierce through mail links. It's lightweight but very resilient," the shopkeeper continued, seeing Norn's interest.
"Not bad, I'll take it! How much?" Norn sheathed the sword.
"This sword was originally ordered by another baron for his young son from Nuremberg, but he never came to pick it up," the shopkeeper said cautiously. "If you want it, I'll let it go for 55 silver dinars."
"What!? 55 silver dinars? Are you trying to rob me?" Norn feigned walking away. "A pound of wheat only costs one copper fenie, and you want 55 silver dinars for a sword?"
"Since this is your first visit, sir, I'll give you a discount—50 silver dinars," the shopkeeper said, wincing as if in pain.
Norn gave Padrick a look, and Padrick, understanding, stepped forward and said, "Can't you go any cheaper? You know, these specialty swords might be hard to come by again once we miss this chance."
"Forty-eight silver dinars, that's my final offer. And to sweeten the deal, my shop will throw in a leather belt for you," the shopkeeper said, looking like he was about to cry.
Padrick nodded at Norn.
Ten minutes later, Norn walked out of the weapons shop with his new belt and his new toy, "Needle," leaving the shopkeeper looking disheveled in the wind.
Throughout the day, Norn wandered around the commercial district, inquiring about prices. The more he asked, the more shocked he became.
Thanks to the fertile plains in the southern part of the empire, the prices of agricultural products were relatively stable: a pound of coarse flour cost only three fenies, and a milking cow was just 30 silver dinars. However, the prices of imported goods were exorbitant: a barrel of wine from the Kingdom of France cost 25 gold nomismata, a mastercrafted mail shirt from the
Milanese city-state was 20 gold nomismata, and a finely crafted longsword was 10 gold nomismata.
What pained Norn the most was that a pound of spices from the East cost 10 gold nomismata, and a pound of slightly yellowed sugar, though a bit cheaper, still cost 8 nomismata.
No matter how much Norn tried to negotiate, the shop assistant just smiled politely and ignored him. In order to have a better time on the road, Norn reluctantly parted with 18 gold nomismata to buy a small bag of spices and sugar.
"My money doesn't seem to be enough to fulfill my dreams," Norn lamented inwardly.
Suddenly, Norn seemed to realize something and looked at Padrick. He remembered the finely crafted longsword, the excellent mail shirt, and the warhorse, helmet, arm guards, leg guards, lance, and longbow that Padrick often took out to maintain on the road.
"Come to think of it, all of his equipment..." Norn gasped. "It would cost nearly 100 gold nomismata!!"
And then he thought, not only Padrick, but also Demor, and even the rough William seemed to have such equipment. His uncle had several sets, and they all had fiefs that could continuously produce income.
"So, I'm actually the poorest one here!"
After several days of rest, the caravan finally set off again.
Norn sat in his newly purchased freight wagon and sighed at his once again empty money chest.
But looking at the dazzling array of goods inside, a sense of pride welled up within him.
Remembering how the group of rough men didn't understand before, in William's words, "Kids should stop playing house, or they'll end up being cheated out of their toy money."
"When I have money, I'm going to slap William's face with gold coins," Norn thought fiercely.
Several days passed in the blink of an eye. The caravan traveled through the southern part of the empire, where the population gradually thinned out and the road was flanked by more and more dense forests.
In the evening, as usual, everyone gathered the wagons around the campfire and rested. Overcome by the fatigue of his young body, Norn fell asleep early.
While Norn was still dreaming, "Wake up! There are wolves!"
Norn was jolted awake by violent shaking and saw everyone drawing their weapons, forming a defensive circle around the campfire.
With a low growl, several dark figures flashed before Norn's eyes. He was so scared that he jumped up and quickly hid behind the others.
The distant darkness seemed like a beast with a gaping maw, swallowing the light and spitting out bones of fear. The horses were restless, pawing the ground, and a soldier hurriedly tried to calm them.
A dozen pairs of green eyes glowed menacingly, staring at the group.
William grabbed a torch and threw it at the wolf pack. The flickering light briefly illuminated the darkness, and Norn could see a few grayish-yellow wolves dodge the torch and then disappear back into the shadows.
Norn drew his "Needle" to embolden himself, but the trembling of his sword betrayed his fear.
The wolves' howls were especially loud in the moonlit night.
Everyone was on high alert, while the wolf pack lurked in the darkness, waiting for an opportunity. It was a game of patience, with life as the stakes.
Finally, one wolf could no longer wait and lunged at the youngest member of the group, Norn.
Norn was terrified and retreated hastily. Otto, standing nearby, took a big step forward and slapped the hungry wolf with his shield.
The wolf let out a mournful howl as it was knocked flying by the shield and crashed into a tree, motionless.
The death of its companion only seemed to further enrage the wolf pack. Their growls became even more ferocious.
The group tightened their defensive perimeter, warily eyeing their surroundings.
With a rustling of leaves, two wolves lunged at the group, one after the other, and the rest of the pack attacked from all directions at once.
Padrick and Demor each held up a shield to block the wolves, but the experienced and hungry beasts, seeing their attacks fail, quickly leaped back to avoid the short swords of the two men.
William, on the other hand, roared in fury, swinging a short axe at the lunging wolf without flinching. The splattering wolf blood covered his face, making him look terrifying.
The other soldiers were also fighting the wolf pack, while Baron Otto remained by Norn's side, keeping watch.
At that moment, a hungry wolf sneaked up behind William and bit off a piece of his flesh. William roared in anger and swung his axe at the wolf pack.
Another wolf was struck, but more saw the opportunity and latched onto William's feet. William roared and swung his axe to fend off the relentless wolf pack.
Baron Otto suddenly charged out from behind William, his longsword thrusting forward to pierce the airborne wolf. With a forceful swing, he flung the wolf's carcass aside and simultaneously killed another wolf.
"Ah!!"
Taking advantage of Baron Otto's momentary absence, a hungry wolf bit Norn's foot and dragged him backward.
"Norn!" Baron Otto tried to rush back to rescue him, but several wolves lunged at him. The baron hastily blocked with his left hand. The wolf clung to the baron's left hand, hanging in mid-air and writhing. The baron shook his hand vigorously, but to no avail.
On the other side, seemingly tired of playing with Norn, the hungry wolf released his foot and lunged at his chest, apparently intending to bite him to death and then drag him back to feast on him.
Time seemed to slow down like being stuck in mud. The gaping maw of the wolf loomed large in Norn's eyes. "Am I going to die?"
His "Needle" was long gone, and Norn struggled frantically.
Memories flashed before his eyes: studying diligently in the monastery, sharing food with everyone, teasing William until he roared in frustration...
"No! I want to live!" Norn's hand felt something hard.
"I still have so many places to go!"
"There's so much I haven't done yet!"
"I'm not going to die here!" Norn grabbed the stone and smashed it into the wolf's head.