"I WANT A REFUND!"

Roland slammed the table without a trace of noble demeanor, roaring loudly at the merchant seated opposite him.

His anger was justified. The maids he purchased betrayed him. Not only did he lose currencies, but he felt so hurt and deceived.

His loss must be compensated!

"Grandet, do you know what jewelry Julie took? It was the wedding gift my father gave to my mother, her favorite piece of jewelry while she was alive! The fact that the domestic maid you sold could pick locks, without informing me, was outright fraud."

Mentioning his mother's jewelry was supposed to just amplify his anger, but as he spoke, Roland began to recall how caring she had been during his childhood. Even with awakened memories, he would never forget the nurturing love of parents for over a decade.

Recalling his mother's gentle smile, sorrow welled up in Roland, and tears came unbidden. He started crying loudly.

Grandet, sitting opposite him, was a merchant runner for the gods, seasoned in all scenarios. Roland's exaggerated acting was nothing new to him.

Therefore, he didn't bother with any disclaimers, since he knew what Roland wanted.

"Triple compensation, this was an exception for you. You know we have a disclaimer clause; even if you went to the court to sue, you wouldn't win."

Roland cried even harder, tears streaming down his face.

Grandet, somewhat helpless, thought, damn, who's the real swindler here, with this guy being more shameless than Grandet himself?

"Five times the compensation! That's my final offer!"

The merchant hissed through clenched teeth. Roland's wailing intensified, echoing to the skies.

"Ten times compensation, or I'll leave right now!" Grandet stood up suddenly, his face turning sour. This was indeed his bottom line and the highest compensation he could offer Roland.

"Deal!" Roland flicked his sleeve, using a cleaning spell to wipe away the tears, his expression instantly returning to calm. His face, pure and without a trace of tears, showed no signs of recent crying.

Grandet: "..."

He couldn't help but comment:

"Roland, that was a quick emotional turnaround. That was your mother's favorite piece of jewelry, may I ask what makes you not sad anymore?"

Roland, unabashed, proudly declared:

"I was deeply saddened just now, but in the midst of my grief, I saw my mother smiling at me from heaven. She taught me to face life with a smile, and so I should."

He wasn't lying; his mother had been optimistic and gentle, her tenderness was like sunshine and illuminated Roland's childhood. His crying wasn't an act, but a genuine longing for his mother, albeit a bit exaggerated in expression.

Sitting there, thinking of the time with his parents still alive, the joy of tenfold compensation vanished.

When Grandet took out the goods list, Roland suddenly asked, "Can the souls that cross the River of the Underworld still be found?"

"Pardon me?" Grandet was stunned for a moment before responding, "You want to find your parents' souls?"

"Yes."

After a moment, Grandet honestly said, "I can't..."

"Thank you, I understand now."

Roland's smile returned as he took the goods list, browsing as if nothing had happened. If it couldn't be done, Grandet could have cut off Roland's hope directly, but the merchant's answer was non-committal. There were many interpretations to "I can’t...".

Perhaps Grandet's superior didn't allow it, or maybe Roland's status and power weren't enough to warrant such knowledge. In a world where gods and sorcery exist, miracles were always possible. As long as he's strong enough, it's not an issue.

He was already caught in a vortex, just too weak to see the outer turmoil. The mysterious elf girl of noble heritage. The Star Mage of the StarGazers had no intention of leaving the castle. The naive barbarian girl likely didn't have ulterior motives, but who knew about the god behind her?

Roland Galaxia didn't want to probe too deeply. He tended to judge people by their actions, not their intentions. He would reciprocate kindness with greater kindness. Those who opposed him would face tenfold retribution. His mother taught him to treat those around him well.

Let it start with the loyal and fearless Granni. Despite Grandet's urging to buy a few beautiful and "reliable" maids, Roland was already traumatized by Julie and Lana.

"Can you guarantee the absolute loyalty of top-tier maids worth a thousand gold coins? Can you ensure no one's pulling strings behind them? It's difficult, right? To be frank, I'd rather find a companion in the real world than buy one."

Grandet was left speechless by Roland's barrage of questions. He smiled and shook his head and gave up persuading.

"This set of Guardian Armor!"

"No problem! 300 divine gold coins, please."

"And this Glory Sword!"

"No problem! 500 divine gold coins then."

...

Roland purchased a set of equipments worth 1300 divine gold coins for Granni, a legendary longbow for Melannis, and a ring that helped amplify his sorcerous power for himself, leaving only 300 divine gold coins.

What can 300 divine gold coins do? Enough to buy several maids as loyal as Julie and Lana.

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

Roland's gaze swept over the maid section of the goods list, quickly turning the page. May god bless them, the vile act of trading humans must be prohibited!

The longbow allowed Melannis to elegantly snipe enemies from afar. The Guardian set ensured Granni was unshakeable in charge. The Energy Amplification Ring significantly boosted his sorcerous power. Other equipment can either be crafted by a blacksmith without wasting money or was unaffordable and out of his league.

Divine gold coins don't breed; Roland still wanted to spend right away. He looked up and asked:

"Do you have any items related to Astromancy?"

"Roland, although you've earned the title of stargazer, you don't actually understand astrology. These items were of no use to you; don't waste your money. I seriously suggest you consider the 300 gold coin tier maids, they're really good, skilled and still virgins. Hey, don't refuse me yet, I..."

"Not being able to do it now doesn't mean I can't learn later. Trading maids was a crime, and I've already paid the price for it. Please, Grandet, behave yourself."

"Alright, these were the Astromancy-related items, the cheapest of which will cost you three hundred gold coins." Grandet shrugged, handing over a booklet with a cover depicting the profound starry sky.

Reciprocity was a traditional virtue.

Egilina had helped Roland a lot, and although the investment in the StarGazer ultimately needed to pay off, it was she who reached out to help him at his most difficult time.

Judge by facts, not intentions.

He was about to accept a new territory from Egilina but had nothing to offer in return. It might be better to spend these three hundred divine gold coins on whatever he can afford.

Astrology-related equipment and props were listed separately, which surprised Roland.

Looking through the list, Roland instantly understood what constitutes an elite profession.

No wonder every star mage owns at least one ducal territory. Without a vast fortune, one simply cannot afford astrology.

The first item on the first page shook Roland's view of wealth.

"Astrea's Star Globe, said to be a crystal ball used by the Star Goddess, priced at 500,000 gold coins."

This was not ordinary gold but 500,000 divine gold coins!

In the real world, this would be worth more than ten million gold coins. The value of this equipment was more than ten times the peak wealth of the Galaxia family.

This piece of equipment was not even a divine artifact but merely related to the star goddess, and it was only rumored, yet it was sold for such a high price.

Roland shrugged and calmly turned the page. These treasures had nothing to do with him. He flipped to the last page, entering the book section.

Giving books was an elegant matter.

The books available here were pricey and all contain sorcerous essence.

Roland cannot tell which book was more useful, but fortunately, all were unique, so there's no worry about giving duplicates.

After some thought, he followed his instinct's guidance and chose a book with a purple cover.

The purple matched Egilina's hair color; this was the one.

If other astrologers knew he chose a book by its cover color, they might faint from shock.

Seeing Roland select the book, Grante's eyes lit up, and he complimented:

"You are so lucky! This 'Melos's Insight Scroll' is the most valuable among the three hundred gold coin books. If you sell it, some would be willing to exchange it with tens of thousands of gold coins."

Roland smiled and nodded.

This was the power of his luck attribute being 10.

Leave it to intuition if in dillema; the goddess of fate will look after her favorite.

The next day, the merchant arrived, and after completing the transaction, Roland saw a system prompt appear.

【You've spent all your gold for the second time. Achievement Unlocked: 'And Then There were None'. 500 divine gold coins distributed.】

【You equipped a Fine-grade sorcery amplification ring. Achievement Unlocked: 'Equipment Expert—Fine Grade', 'Equipment Expert—Common Grade', 'Equipment Expert—Broken Grade'. 1500 divine gold coins distributed.】

【Note: Activating a higher-tier achievement automatically activates lower-tier achievements】

Well, that's a neat trick; just spent over two thousand and immediately got it back?

Roland's mood was exceptionally sunny.

He began to understand the system's game rules, which was to do more, better to make mistakes than to do nothing at all.

Another good news followed. Melannis, who went to deliver a message to Geralt's camp, had returned.

She went with the StarGazer's handwritten letter to King Geralt's camp, informing the king that the war was over.

Unless he wanted to start a war with the StarGazer, he should head home.

She recounted the delivery process in great detail, disdainfully saying, "King Geralt looked majestic like a golden lion, but that man was a coward actually. You can't imagine how scared he was when he received the StarGazer's letter."

"Scared?" Roland was puzzled; shouldn't he be angry?

"Right, scared. His body was shaking, and his face turned pale."

Roland pondered and got the point.

It was not fear that King Geralt was showing, but he was indeed shaking with anger.

It was not wrong to say he's scared; he indeed feared the StarGazer.

It was not his fault. Who would darer to offend the StarGazer?

And so, this farcical war came to an end.

How King Geralt regained his dignity was his own business, and Roland didn't care at all.

The only forces still in a state of war were the Forest Brotherhood and the Divine Court of Light.

These two forces were a bit far from each other, and deciding on war or peace was a diplomatic matter, requiring headquarters' approval. With such a cumbersome organization, the process would take months, and by then, the declaration of war would have already ended.

Roland recalled Egilina's deduction of these two forces' attitudes.

There would be no wars.

This was the most reasonable outcome.

Roland caught a glimpse of sweat under Melannis's ears, knowing she had had a hard journey, and quickly took out a handkerchief to wipe it for her.

"You've worked hard, Melannis! We've kept our territory, victory was ours! Prepare for the celebration, we'll pop the champagne when Egilina returns!"

Melannis's ears were touched by Roland's silk handkerchief. Her whole body softened.

Ears were a sensitive part of elves, not easily touched, but Roland did it twice.

She didn't protest, since whether as a servant or a direct knight, she could not resist Roland.

Melannis knew that Roland didn't do it on purpose and was unsure what to say.

Just when she was almost unable to stand from weakness, Roland considerately helped her to the bed, indicating she should sit.

Why let me sit here on his bed?

Melannis could hear her heartbeat, more chaotic than a deer scampering in the forest.

Just when she thinks Roland was about to make a move, he took out a blue longbow from nowhere.

This is...

"This was the Bow of the Wild, said to be used by an elf archer. I came across it by chance and have no use for it, so it's yours."

"Roland, this... this was the weapon of the archer Dreyus, lost with Dreyus's death at the end of the last era, its whereabouts unknown to our clan. This bow was too precious, I cannot..."

Melannis's eyes sparkled with an unusual brilliance, unable to hide her admiration.

This divine bow was priceless! If presented to the high council of elves, could sell for at least two hundred thousand gold coins. Melannis desired it but felt embarrassed to accept. Seeing Melannis's hopeful gaze, Roland remembered his mother's teaching.

Do not ignore the hopes of those around you!

Elves exceled in archery; which elf could refuse the Bow of the Wild?

Roland grabbed Melannis's hand, forcibly placing the longbow in it.

"My guardian knight, the bow will be useful only in your hands. Accept it, this was an order!"

Melannis nodded, her gaze tender as water, her voice somewhat drifting.

"As you wish, my lord."

Just when the atmosphere turned slightly peculiar, hurried footsteps resounded in the corridor.

Roland releaseed Melannis's hand as if electrocuted, returning to his seat to sit upright.

Without asking, it's clear that only Granni would dare to run like that on the second floor of the castle.

"Master, I'm back! No enemies detected..."

Granni's hearty voice arrived before she did.

As her left foot stepped into the room, she was stunned to find Roland and Melannis inside.

Catching a glimpse of Melannis's shy and blushing cheeks, Granni realized what was happening.

Granni was usually very reckless. Today her intelligence took the high ground.

She got what was happening. She unintentionally interrupted the master and the elf maid's moment.

Covering her eyes and turning around, her voice lowered, "I didn't see anything, I need to go scout again, I'll leave now!"

Just as she was about to turn and leave, Roland's voice came from behind.

"Who said you could leave. Come back, you're included today!"