Chapter 106: A Good Opportunity

In situations like this, most people would simply feel envious.

But if someone were to feel jealous, that kind of person would quickly be ostracized from the caravan’s social circle, and before long, they’d be kicked out altogether. After all, any leader with a brain wouldn’t allow a “pest” like that—someone who could poison the atmosphere—to remain and affect others, disrupting the harmony of the whole caravan.

After listening to Dory’s thoughts and explanations, Lyle gained a deeper understanding of the caravan—and found himself admiring the woman he’d just been speaking with.

“So, this small caravan is doing well, probably because it’s well managed and the profits are distributed fairly?”

Dory nodded, confirming his words and adding, “Besides profit-sharing, there’s also the outcome of this trip’s trade…”

If the trading journey didn’t go well, there wouldn’t be any profits to share at all. Everyone would have worked for nothing, and the mood would naturally be sour.

“I see… In short, it all comes down to Captain Yun’s abilities.” Lyle summed it up in a single sentence.

Why is the profit distribution fair? Because the captain manages things well and arranges everything properly!

Why do the trades go smoothly and end with good results? Because the captain is capable, able to negotiate for more and walk away with gains!

Although not every caravan is run solely by its captain, that’s usually the case—and certainly true for this one. Otherwise, the others wouldn’t follow Captain Yun’s orders so willingly.

“That’s right,” Dory replied, a faint look of envy in her eyes as she recalled that woman.

After all, being able to lead a caravan and trade everywhere had once been her dream. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have loved tagging along with caravans so much.

But after what happened with Qinyao, that dream had faded…

Maybe it was because she’d opened up to Su You just yesterday, finally letting out what she’d bottled up for so long. Dory felt much lighter now. Even though thinking about it still affected her, it wasn’t as bad as before.

After that, Dory headed to the tailor’s shop to continue her work—after all, her repair skill still hadn’t leveled up.

Her top priority now was to level up her skill as soon as possible so she could help the lord repair a certain “item.”

That “item” referred to the “Damaged Fire Demon Armor” Su You had found in the Fire Demon Lord’s treasure chest.

Although the armor was currently gray quality, the ability to repair items depended on their original quality.

In other words, as a beginner repairer, Dory could only fix items up to green quality. With great luck, special materials, or certain buffs, she might manage blue quality or higher.

But the Fire Demon Armor, in its original state, was blue quality.

With Dory busy, Lyle didn’t idle either. He went down to the creek, picked up a hoe, and started turning the soil.

He’d just seen this new task posted on the bounty board that morning—it looked like the lord wanted to open up new farmland, so the task was to till the earth.

Lyle didn’t think too much about the reason; he just accepted the task and got to work.

As for chopping wood… The lord had mentioned that the wood stores were more than full—there were over a thousand units in the warehouse, taking up more than a dozen slots. Even if he chopped more, there’d be nowhere to put it.

Given that, Lyle decided to take it easy and do some other work for a change—and get in a bit of combat training at the same time.

Combat skills, like life skills, gained proficiency through repeated practice.

But while life skills could be leveled up just by crafting as long as you had materials—like Dory at the tailor’s—combatants couldn’t always go out looking for monsters to fight.

Not only would that be dangerous, but there just weren’t that many monsters or creatures to hunt. Still, not having opponents didn’t mean they couldn’t improve their combat skills.

They could still practice their moves to gain proficiency, though progress was slower and there was a cap. But it was better than nothing.

So, after Lyle finished tilling a row of land and turning in the task, he took out the fang dagger Su You had given him and began practicing his moves on a tree.

…

Who knows how much time passed before the stone gate of the territory creaked open—Su You and Doya had returned.

Hmm?

Wait!

Was there someone else with them?!

Lyle stopped what he was doing and hurried over to Su You. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a young girl, her face showing anger and unease as Doya restrained her. He only glanced at her before turning his attention away.

Then, Lyle recounted everything about Yun Li and the caravan, as well as the impressions and opinions he and Dory had formed about them.

“…Just like Dory said, this caravan may be small, but their profits are definitely substantial… My lord, this is a great opportunity.” Lyle especially emphasized how much cargo they’d brought—enough to fill five or six rooms—and his tone was tinged with excitement.

It really was a great opportunity!

The more goods the caravan had, the more they could trade for. If they managed to get something valuable, the territory’s development would only accelerate.

“I understand. Thank you, both you and Dory, for your hard work.” Su You glanced at the inn, then pointed to the girl Doya was holding and continued, “They’re probably still resting, so let’s not disturb them for now. I’ll take this young lady to the tavern for a chat. If Captain Yun or anyone else from the caravan wakes up, please bring them over.”

“You’re too kind, my lord. I’ll keep watch here.” Lyle had trained enough for the day—he’d nearly maxed out his daily proficiency gain, and could save the rest for later.

As Lyle finished speaking, the girl in Doya’s grasp glared, then looked at Su You in disbelief."