"I should have reminded you to leave one alive."
Halbarad sighed.
He really hadn't expected the killing to be so fast...
"A living captive. What would be the point?"
Levi asked while walking over, though he didn't sheath his sword.
"Sometimes you can interrogate them for useful information."
"Alright."
The long sword, still gleaming with azure radiance, pressed against an orc's neck. Even though he lay on the ground covered in blood, appearing already dead.
"If you want to continue pretending, I don't mind immediately cutting your throat."
His health bar isn't even empty. Who's he trying to fool?
"Hiss..."
The orc opened his eyes, breathing with some difficulty.
Halbarad immediately pinned him down, preventing movement.
"Speak. Why are you here?"
"Tell me everything you know, and I might consider granting you freedom."
"Heh heh heh..."
The orc grinned, revealing blackened, filthy teeth, and sneered: "You won't live long. Master will soon swallow this place. You'll all die. No one will live long..."
With these words, his breath was exhausted. As his voice faded, the orc's body gradually stiffened and went still.
Halbarad pried at the orc's eyes a couple times.
"No need to check. He's definitely dead."
This orc had been in a dying state to begin with, hanging on by a thread. Left alone, he wouldn't have lived much longer anyway.
"Seems to match the intelligence you gathered. Sauron's been quite active in this area recently."
"We need to pick up the pace."
That night, there was no rest.
Two shadows continued racing along the highway.
This continued until the sun fully rose and hoofbeats landed on fertile green earth.
Levi dismounted, clearly feeling the difference between here and the wilderness behind them.
This place seemed much more abundant. The plants and grasslands were more lush and tall, with vivid colors.
The roads also appeared more level.
Walking along, before long, a large array of grapevine-covered trellises appeared before them, with plump clusters of grapes hanging everywhere, looking sweet and juicy.
However, when Levi tried to reach out and pick one to taste, Halbarad suddenly grabbed his arm.
"Don't. Don't do that."
"Though these grapes grow by the roadside, they all have owners."
Halbarad said bitterly: "I really don't want to recall that incident, but the Dorwinion people... they value grapes and wine more than their lives."
"Last time I passed through, I was terribly thirsty and couldn't help picking a small cluster of roadside grapes. This action happened to be seen by two guards who shouted and chased after me. No matter how I explained, they wouldn't listen. They chased me from noon until dusk, only stopping when they couldn't maintain their stamina."
"Listen, Levi. Never, ever pick their grapes without permission."
"To protect their grapes, even rabbits and birds are often put on wanted lists. I'm sure they wouldn't mind adding another person to the wanted posters."
"Moreover, Dorwinion's grape guards aren't some estate servants or bodyguards. Every one of them is a recorded soldier. It's best to avoid conflict if possible."
"Huh?"
That scary?
Levi's hand froze in midair.
Though that's what he said, but... those were new crops and seeds!
"This grape field is so large. How many guards could there be?"
He said: "We'll secretly pick a little, just a tiny bit. We won't be discovered, and I'm not taking them for free. I'll leave some silver coins here. A few grape clusters definitely aren't worth this much..."
"That makes sense."
Halbarad nodded quite seriously, his eyes also staring straight at those grapes.
"I know the local prices. Two grape clusters only cost..."
"What are you two doing!"
The sudden shout directly startled both men, making them hastily retreat several steps.
Both shifted their gazes from the grape trellises. One rubbing his hands, the other with hands on hips. They practically had "guilty conscience" written on their faces.
These two people, who wouldn't blink an eye facing tens of thousands of orc armies, were so frightened by one guard's shout that they didn't dare meet his gaze.
This guard had achieved a rare accomplishment.
"I saw you acting suspiciously. What are you doing here?"
The guard sized up the two men with an unfriendly expression.
This grape guard wore excellent armor, had what looked like a very sharp sword at his waist, and carried a round shield on his back marked with Dorwinion's characteristic golden goblet emblem.
He certainly had the credentials to question suspicious individuals.
"I'd like to purchase some grapes from the owner here, if that's convenient."
Levi stepped forward to explain.
"You'd better actually want to buy them..."
The grape guard examined the person who had stepped forward, and the hand gripping his sword suddenly felt somewhat stiff.
Even though certain legends hadn't yet spread to this far eastern land, experience and the past would always manifest as a natural bearing, making people unconsciously react accordingly.
Though the person before him seemed very mild and showed no hostility.
But judging from his equipment and some instinct emerging from deep within, the guard felt that probably ten of himself working together might not be able to defeat this person.
When someone you can't beat wants to have a proper conversation with you, it's best to speak properly.
Taking a breath, the guard said in a relatively calm tone:
"I can make this decision. We'll go by market price. You can check the market yourself. I guarantee it's fair."
"Also, remember to think before setting your sights on grapes next time. We're not gentle with thieves."
"I'll keep that in mind."
Levi nodded to him and paid for three grape clusters.
Very cheap. So cheap it felt like barely symbolic payment.
As soon as the grapes were in hand, Levi put them in his crafting grid.
Now I have the seeds too.
Three grape clusters. One for Halbarad to quench his thirst.
The other two were entirely converted to seeds.
One cluster was purple grapes, the other green grapes. These two types could brew red and white wine, respectively.
"From now on we'll have endless grapes and wine to drink."
"Are you planning to buy this entire area?" Halbarad guessed.
With Levi's wealth, never mind this area. Buying all the wine estates in this region would be effortless.
"No, of course I'll grow them myself. I already got the seeds."
Grow...
Recalling Roadside Fort's production efficiency, Halbarad fell silent.
Well, they definitely wouldn't lack grapes then.
Two days later.
In a city in eastern Dorwinion where humans made up the majority, an adventurer in linen robes and a person in the rare dress of a Ranger sat in a tavern, eating while listening with pricked ears to conversations at neighboring tables.
"Easterling invasion? What kind of rumor is that? Complete nonsense."
A border guard on rotation said while drinking potent wine: "Our trade is going perfectly well."
"Exactly."
Another guard sitting across from him said: "Nothing to fear; shouldn't be considered a threat. After all, no matter how much they make a fuss, what they want is our wine, not blood."
"Rather than that, we should pay more attention to those grape thieves."
This guard spoke and then suddenly shook his head:
"Heh, but it's truly ridiculous. Once the greatest guards have now been reduced to police catching petty thieves..."
"Watch your words."
Hearing this, the guard across from him sobered up a bit and immediately warned.
"I'm very interested in the Easterlings."
A voice interrupted their conversation.
Levi slightly stood and moved to the neighboring table, placing a small pouch of silver coins on the table:
"Could you tell me about them in detail?"
The two guards exchanged glances. One looked around and made a gesture.
The other quite naturally pocketed the silver, saying:
"Sure, this isn't any secret."
"Those Easterlings, though barbaric, are very wealthy. In their lands, gold and gems are as common as wine is here. Even their sentries wear gold-plated iron armor. I've seen this with my own eyes. However, their weapons are truly lacking. Steel isn't very common in their territory."
"We two sides usually get along quite well, without conflicts."
"Though I think this is merely due to their fear of our guards. Once we lose our guards, what happens afterward is hard to say."
Hearing this, the guard keeping watch nearby suddenly frowned.
Is this something to say about trading partners?
Ignoring his companion's reaction, when reaching this point, the talkative guard leaned in slightly and asked Levi in a lowered voice:
"How should I address you?"
"Adventurer."
"Good, adventurer sir. Regarding your visit to Dorwinion, I welcome you. Here you can taste Middle-earth's most mellow wines and see beautiful scenery found nowhere else."
"But take my advice. If you're just here to travel, stop here. Don't go further east."