Mercenary Wars

Chapter 33 Black Gold Corridor
Ryan's return was a timely relief. If he hadn't come, Gao Jianuo would have gone to the Raven Inn by himself.

On the way to the slums, Gao Jianuo noticed that Ryan's walking posture was a little strange, as if he was trying to avoid touching his wound, so he couldn't help asking, "Are you injured?"

"Yeah, just a little injury," Ryan said.

"Where did you deliver the letter?"

Ryan: "In the Kingdom of Presto, the road is a little uneasy..."

The two came to Crow Street.

Compared to his first visit, the treatment Gao Jianuo received had changed significantly.

The Grey Eagle Mercenary Group's logo and Ryan beside him made those sneaky guys put away their malicious gazes.

But at the same time, the beggars who had originally ignored Gao Jianuo became much more enthusiastic. They came up to him in twos and threes and said, "Master Pharmacist, please be kind!"

"Your Excellency, I missed breakfast at church. For Moza's sake, could you spare me a few slices of bran bread?"

"I don't want copper coins or bread. I just want some poison lamp leaves. I haven't tasted them in a long time... Pharmacist, I think this won't be a problem for you, right?"

Gao Jianuo was completely indifferent to these beggars, while Ryan gave alms to some of them and remained indifferent to others.

"You never give alms?" Ryan asked.

GAO Jianuo: "If the help doesn't make a difference, I usually don't help."

Ryan was silent for a moment: "That makes sense."

"Why do you give alms to some people?" asked Gao Jianuo.

"Because I know them. I used to live here." Ryan pointed to a lame homeless man in the distance, a flash of memory on his face. "That man, I stole with him when I was a kid."

"Later we understood a truth: if you steal money from a kind nun, the worst that can happen is a scolding. But if you dare to reach into Luoha's pocket, at least one leg will be broken..."

Ryan talked about the past intermittently until the two turned a corner and saw a dilapidated hotel.

The Raven Inn.

As the sign said, this was indeed an inn, with many guests staying and dining here. The air was filled with the smell of cheap ale, and bran crumbs were everywhere.

But when Ryan entered the inn, walked up to a waiter in the corner and took out the badge of a fourth-level thief, the other party immediately stepped aside, revealing a narrow and dim passage.

Ryan entered the passage with ease, followed closely by Gao Jianuo.

The passage spiraled downwards, and as they walked along it for a while, their vision gradually became brighter, and the sounds of some conversations became clearer and clearer in their ears.

After passing through the passage and a small room, Gao Jianuo came to a long corridor. There were many stalls in the corridor, and dozens of people were chatting in groups of three or four around these stalls. It was even more lively than the inn above.

"This is the Black Gold Corridor." Ryan said.

Gao Jianuo noticed that some people here were wearing masks or hoods: "Should I also hide my identity?"

Ryan: "If you're here to trade Mosastu slaves, concealing your identity is undoubtedly a wise choice, but if you're just selling a Level 2 Bloodsail Pirate Badge, there's no need to do so."

Gao Jianuo: "I'm a little curious, why can the Bloodsail Pirate Badge be exchanged for money here?"

Ryan simply said, "Almost every named Bloodsail Pirate is on the Dibuto Marquisate's wanted list."

Gao Jianuo nodded, perhaps understanding.

"Come on, I'll take you to see the 'middleman'."

Following Ryan, Gao Jianuo soon came upon a man in the corner of the Black and Gold Corridor. He was completely wrapped up in a robe, a hood, and a scarf that only revealed his eyes, making it impossible to tell his gender. "What can I do for you?" the middleman sat at the booth. His voice was also peculiar, sounding completely without any regional or gender characteristics.

Gao Jianuo took out three Bloodsail Pirate badges.

Like most identity badges, the Bloodsail Corsair badge has the logo on the front and detailed identity information on the back.

The middleman took the three badges, glanced at two of them, and put them down. "You can sell these two badges to the scavenger at the Crow Inn. I don't accept junk."

The "Water Man" badge made his eyes pause for a moment.

Then he closed his eyes and slowly ran his index finger over the badge, as if sensing something.

After a moment, he opened his eyes: "Can you tell me how he died?"

Ryan interrupted, "I think you should know that it usually costs money to get information in the Black Gold Corridor."

The middleman said calmly, "You don't have to answer. I'm just curious. This Bloodsail pirate, nicknamed 'Waterman,' was originally a radical sea raider until he received a prophecy that he would die in a storm. Since then, he has stayed away from the stormy seas and committed crimes on land."

After a pause, he asked, "So he's back on board?"

Gao Jianuo just said: "No."

The middleman nodded without asking any more questions. He then took out a purse and handed it over: "Sixty silver coins."

Gao Jianuo counted the money and found that it was indeed sixty silver coins. He happily accepted it and escaped the imminent personal financial crisis.

Ryan then said, "This is my friend's first time here. Could you please give him a proof of transaction?"

The middleman took out a piece of cardboard with patterns printed on it and handed it to Gao Jianuo.

Gao Jianuo took it in his hand and looked at it. He thought it looked a bit like an invoice and didn't understand why.

Ryan explained, "If the transaction amount reaches fifty silver coins and you pay a five-silver-coin handling fee to the Thieves Guild, you can receive a Black Gold Certificate and enter and exit the black market freely. Otherwise, I might have to bring you in every time."

As he spoke, he walked straight to a stall, sat down, and put up a sign.

The sign reads: Long-term acquisition of all types of intelligence.

Gao Jianuo was stunned: "Is this your stall?"

"Technically, this is the mercenary group's stall, but it's my turn on duty today," Ryan said. "I have to work, so feel free to hang out here... By the way, why do I feel like you don't have to work? Every time I call on you, you're always available. Is it the same with other pharmacists?"

"I'm just better at time management." Gao Jianuo shrugged.

"Ok."

Gao Jianuo strolled around the Black Gold Corridor for a while.

Generally speaking, everything is sold here, some are legal or gray goods, but most are prohibited goods, such as stolen goods, religious banned books, black magic books, restricted potions, counterfeit currency, criminal contracts, smuggled goods, etc.

Aside from stolen goods, the most common merchandise was probably products made from the leaves of the poison lamp.

The use of poison lamp leaf is restricted by the church, lords and the Pharmacist Guild. The only poison lamp leaf products that can be obtained through formal channels are painkillers.

But this is a black market, so products made from poison ivy leaves are not only common, but also come in a wide variety, including candies, desserts, tobacco... and so on.

A stall called "Strong Medicine Expert" caught Gao Jianuo's attention.

The stall owner, wearing a mask but appearing to be a woman, saw Gao Jianuo approaching and asked, "Buy or sell?"

(End of this chapter)