Chapter 34

Chapter 34: Chapter 34

Ingrid’s eyes widened so much and she nearly forgot to breathe. "Did you just... Did you just say... Thirty thousand gold coins? Gold?!" She yelled, her voice echoing around the market.

’Lorna, pinch me. I think I’m still sleeping.’ Ingrid said to Lorna mentally, her eyes still as wide as saucers.

’Don’t be silly. There’s no way I can pinch you. But I can send you a shock to know that it’s real and not a dream.’ Lorna replied happily, her mechanical voice was not so mechanical.

’A shock? What are you... Omg!’ Before she could process what Lorna just said, a sharp jolt ran through her body, making her whole body jerk. ’What the fuck?!’

’Host, now you can believe that the amount of coins just mentioned is real, right?’

Ingrid almost jumped out of her skin, and Lysander immediately moved toward her and caught her before she could stumble.

"Are you okay?" Lysander asked, his hands holding her shoulders as he looked her over. "You suddenly shouted, what happened?"

Ingrid quickly waved her hands, trying to calm him down while she fought the urge to laugh. "I’m fine, I promise, I was just surprised." She took a deep breath and added, "I honestly didn’t expect the offer to be anywhere near that high."

Ingrid looked toward the man again while trying to hide how excited she was. She had known the herbs would make her money, but she had never imagined she would be standing here with someone offering her thirty thousand gold coins for the entire batch. If she had been the one to name a price earlier, she probably would have asked for around seven thousand, mostly because she was greedy and that seven thousand was an amazing offer but never in her wildest dreams did she think she would get offered thirty thousand?!

Not far away, Falcon stared at her with his mouth slightly open. "Thirty thousand gold coins," he muttered under his breath, as though saying the number aloud might somehow make it less shocking. His eyes remained fixed on the herb in Ingrid’s hand, and Ingrid could see the disbelief written all over his face.

The man smiled and nodded. "This herb is in very high demand, so we are willing to spend a lot to get it. If you want to sell, then the choice is yours."

"If I want to sell?! Are you kidding?! I’ll sell it," Ingrid answered immediately. "Of course I’ll sell it. Why would I refuse thirty thousand gold coins?"

The man laughed softly and nodded. "Then follow me. We’ll go inside and finalize the deal."

Ingrid nodded and turned toward Lysander, expecting him to follow her. Instead, he moved toward the cart, apparently planning to bring it along with them. Ingrid quickly slapped his arm and leaned closer to whisper, "Leave the cart here. We are not dragging that thing inside."

Lysander looked at the cart and then at her before giving a small nod. "Is that a good idea? We can use the cart for other things later."

"Don’t worry." The man spoke and he was looking a little amused, "If you’re worried about your cart, my men will watch over it. Once we’re done, you can take it along with you."

"Okay."

Ingrid followed the man without looking back, although she could not help noticing Falcon dropping heavily to his knees behind her. He remained there, staring at the ground as if thirty thousand gold coins had completely broken his brain.

The building they entered was much larger than Ingrid expected. From the outside, it looked like some kind of government building, but once they stepped inside, she realised it looked more like a huge guild hall. Several Beastmen were moving around the large room, carrying boxes, checking documents, speaking to merchants, and arranging different goods. The place was busy, but it did not have the tense atmosphere Ingrid had expected from a world overrun by zombies.

"This is a merchant guild," the man explained as he led them deeper inside. "Merchants from different parts of the region come here to trade their goods, and this is the only merchant guild built in this part of the village."

Ingrid looked around again. Something about the whole place bothered her. Ever since she arrived in this world, she had expected everything to look like a disaster zone because of the zombie apocalypse. Apart from the Beast Zombies she had encountered inside the Whispering Ravine, she had barely seen any zombies at all. The people around her looked healthy, the market was active, and now she was standing inside a huge merchant guild where everyone seemed to be carrying on with their lives as though the world was not falling apart.

She frowned and the question slipped from her mouth before she could even stop it. "If zombies are everywhere, why does everyone here look so normal?" The moment the question slipped, she slapped her hands over her mouth, ’I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to ask that."

The man laughed. "You are right to be confused, but this village is a little different from the places outside."

"Okay... But what is so special about this place? It’s just a little village, isn’t it?" It’s not even near the city and she hadn’t seen any big buildings or run down houses on their way, the whole place looks well taken care of.

Instead of answering immediately, the man stopped in front of a large wooden door and opened it. He stepped inside, then motioned for Ingrid and Lysander to follow him. Once they entered, he walked toward the large window at the back of the office and pointed outside.

"Take a look outside."

Ingrid frowned but walked toward the window anyway. The moment she looked down, she froze. A massive wall surrounded the entire village.

It was so tall that Ingrid had to tilt her head back to see the top properly, and the wall stretched so far in both directions that she could not see where it ended. It looked strong enough to stop something enormous from getting through, and even a giant would probably have trouble climbing over it.

Ingrid’s mouth dropped open. "Don’t tell me I’m in the world of Attack on Titan and this is Wall Rose or something like that," she muttered.

The man blinked. "A... Attack On Titan? Wall Rose? What does that mean?" 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

"Nothing," Ingrid said quickly. "I was just talking to myself."

The man gave her a strange look but decided not to question it. "The walls are the reason this village can survive. Outside them, there are zombies everywhere. They crawl around the land and attack anything that moves, especially when the zombie waves begin."

Ingrid turned away from the window. "Then I still don’t understand. If there are zombies everywhere, how are merchants coming here?"

"Not everyone is allowed to come here," the man explained. "Only certified merchants can use this guild. Certification means they have enough combat ability to kill zombies and survive the journey here when the waves appear. Without that ability, they would never make it through the outside territory."

Ingrid slowly nodded as things began to make more sense. "The merchants bring supplies from outside, then?"

"Yes. They bring food, materials, medicine, weapons, herbs, and anything else this village needs to survive." The man walked toward his desk and leaned against it. "But most of them arrive injured, and some are already infected when they reach the walls. Some eventually turn into zombies, while others survive because their wounds can still be treated."

He looked at the pouch in Ingrid’s hand. "That is why the Star Glow Herb is so important."

Ingrid’s expression changed. "The herb can treat those injuries." It was more of a statement than a question.

"It can treat injuries that ordinary medicine cannot handle, and it can slow certain infections before they become irreversible." He sighed and continued, "The problem is that the herb is almost extinct. Finding even a small patch is difficult, which is why I am willing to pay so much for yours."

Ingrid looked down at the pouch. "So that is why you offered thirty thousand."

"That is one reason."

Ingrid looked back at him. "Is there another?"

The man nodded. "Yes. However, before I can tell you, I want to ask you something. I’ll be honest with you, from now until 7 days later, I’ll need a steady supply of these herbs along with any other herbs you can find. I’ll take them all. I want to know if you can do it."

Ingrid narrowed her eyes. "So you’re saying that you want a regular supply of my herbs?"

"Yes. If you can promise to bring me more herbs, then I’ll tell you the reason why I need them so badly. To be honest, it concerns the life of everyone in this village. Especially you, since we’re going to be working together from now on. I’m willing to make that trade."

Ingrid stared at him for a moment. At first, she didn’t really want to hear his reason, as she thought it was none of her business. But hearing him say it concerned their lives, she had to hear him out. Besides, she has a lifetime supply of those herbs anyway, so she can help him for 7 days.

"Okay, I promise. I’ll help you with the herbs."

He seemed satisfied, but then his eyes shifted toward Lysander. "In that case, I would prefer to speak with you alone."

Ingrid immediately shook her head. "No."

The man looked surprised.

"Lysander is my man, and I trust him," Ingrid said firmly. "Besides, I do not trust you enough to stay alone in a room with you, so he is staying." Lysander’s eyes narrowed slightly, but Ingrid could tell he was pleased by her answer.

The man stared at her for a few seconds before letting out a quiet laugh. "Fair enough. I suppose I should have expected that." He walked toward the desk and sat down, his expression becoming more serious. "To be honest, this guild used to be much more crowded than it is now," he said. "You may have noticed that there are fewer merchants here than you would expect."

Lysander spoke for the first time since entering the office. "I noticed. Several people have been leaving since we arrived."

The man nodded. "They have been leaving because they know what is coming. Because soon, this whole place... will be flattened to the ground."