Half an hour later, Manid found himself bound tightly, resembling a zongzi, tossed haphazardly by the bonfire. Alongside him lay seven or eight other 'zongzi', all hapless merchants under Kees's command.

Avi sat across from Manid, her grip firm on her half-sword. Beside her stood the fully-armored Aviren and Rafe, the towering broken armor giant sword ominously close to Manid's neck, its icy edge almost tangible.

The camp air hung heavy, pregnant with silence broken only by the crackling of the fire and the nocturnal symphony of insects.

"Uh... I..." Manid stuttered, "I never imagined... I never thought you'd be... like this. But I'm just... just a horse for hire, a mere mule. I have no desire to risk my life for goods that aren't mine, so... take them, and let me go, please?"

"You seem to have misunderstood. We are legitimate mercenaries. Corpses and gunpowder hold no allure for us."

Avi flicked her half-sword with precision, the thin, sharp blade emitting a crisp echo, jolting Manid.

"Corpses?!" Fear etched Manid's voice, reminiscent of a bullied child's. "I don't know, what corpses? Am I... are you people—"

"Nonsense!" Avi's voice thundered, "Why would merchants be transporting corpses?! Where do these corpses come from, where are they headed, who were they in their former lives, and what purpose do they serve? Tell us everything!"

"Tell us everything!" Rafe echoed with intensity.

Manid quivered, his voice now as thin as that of a frightened child: "They all say I'm just a worker, how could I dare to scrutinize the goods of the big boss? He claimed it was honey and timber, and we dared not inspect..."

"Boss, he genuinely seems unaware." Rafe approached Avi and remarked, "He's trembling in fear and still hasn't uttered a word. It doesn't seem like he's deceiving us."

"Agreed..." Avi nodded, turning to Aviren, "What's your take?"

"My sentiments mirror Rafe's," Aviren stated, "These merchants displayed remarkable timidity in previous skirmishes, suggesting they lack any resolve."

Manid's arrow wound remained unhealed, worsened now by the grass rope binding his hands, causing him to wince in agony but refrain from vocalizing his pain.

"Just because Manid is oblivious doesn't mean others are..."

"Boss, what's the plan?"

"First, escort Manid back to the tent and tend to his wound again," Avi instructed, "I'll proceed to interrogate the remaining individuals."

Unbeknownst to them, midnight had crept upon them, and Avi meticulously questioned each merchant, concluding that they were genuinely ignorant of the situation.

"Well, that's a relief. Their ignorance absolves them of malice. No need to fear them causing us harm," Rafe remarked nonchalantly, "Finally, we can enjoy a good night's rest!"

"If only matters were that straightforward..." Avi sighed deeply, "The intricate business machinations these merchants engage in far surpass our battles. These individuals may merely be pawns in Kees's game; he might be orchestrating a grander scheme, and we're all mere instruments—"

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

"Boss, hold on a moment." Rafe interjected, "Do you know how that corpulent fellow ascended to the, uh... leadership of the Merchant Guild?"

"Do you know?"

"I overheard discussions during a drinking session," Rafe divulged, "The former, uh... guild leader—yes, the previous guild head and his lackeys had a falling out. For reasons unknown, he bludgeoned his confidant to death, and this corpulent fellow was subsequently thrust into the position."

"What?"

Avi felt her worldview waver, pondering, "Is this truly how the intricacies of business battles unfold?"

The next day.

Due to the 'interrogation' last night, Avi slept until the sun was fully up before waking.

"Boss, have you figured out how to deal with these guys?" Rafe gestured towards the merchants still lying on the grass. Due to the lingering suspicion, they had been assigned guards and spent the night outside the tents in the night wind. Now, almost all of them had caught a cold, except poor Manid who had narrowly escaped due to his arrow wound.

"First, take them with us. I'll deliver these corpses to Middenheim and report Kees's despicable business," Avi said, "We are mercenaries, but not the kind driven solely by self-interest. We cannot involve ourselves in matters related to innocent lives."

"Well said, Boss!"

"My lord, I commend your knightly spirit, but—please carefully consider the threat this poses to us," Aviren maintained his usual calmness, "Kees is merely a provider; we have yet to identify the identities and backgrounds of those who demand these goods."

At this point, Avi's expertise in lore combined with her knowledge of modern society almost confirmed the answer to this question.

"These are all cadavers, and the only ones who would require them are Greenskins, Beastmen, Skaven, Vampires, and Cultists," Avi said, "We are in the vicinity of Middenland, where Skaven are almost nonexistent. Vampires are also far away, so it's likely intended for Greenskins, Beastmen, or Cultists. However, there's also gunpowder inside, so it's definitely meant for humans, namely Cultists."

"Sk... Skaven?" Aviren exclaimed in surprise, "Forgive me, my lord, but I've never heard of such creatures."

"Ah, it doesn't matter," Avi remembered that at this time Skaven hadn't yet started to invade the Old World and hurriedly said, "We won't encounter those things for a long time, so we can ignore it."

"Regardless, as long as we report this to the guards in Middenheim, we need not worry about finding out the truth ourselves," Avi said, "Although this may affect the reputation of our mercenary group, we cannot engage in such inhumane activities no matter how much money is involved!"

To Aviren, these words represented 'chivalry', to Rafe, they meant 'this person is pretty decent', but to many mercenaries and merchants, they seemed somewhat abrupt.

Because this is the world of Warhammer Fantasy, where human life is not precious at all, as long as there is enough value to exchange. Avi, being a modern person, finds such practices extremely distasteful.

However, for whatever reason, having a leader who is upright always brings peace of mind, so they didn't delve too deeply into it.

"Alright, everyone, let's relight the campfire and have a meal before we continue on our journey."

"Boss, do we need to give those guys some rations?" Rafe approached Avi and pointed to the bound merchants lying there, "They've been sneezing and sniffling the whole time, looking pretty miserable."

"Just a little bit, and then we'll leave as soon as we finish eating. The longer we carry these 'goods', the more creepy it feels."

...

Carrying cadavers and gunpowder was enough to make Avi feel uneasy. The bandits and highwaymen roaming around didn't know what was in these crates, and they would swarm in like bloodsucking mosquitoes once they caught wind of it.

"My lord, be cautious. There may be an ambush ahead; I saw a glint of spearheads," Aviren warned.

"Everyone, be on guard, and protect the wagons to prevent the gunpowder from exploding. Aviren, come with me to investigate."

...

Wave after wave of bandits came, and by the next dusk, they had dealt with four waves of bandits encountered along the way, arriving deep in the Black Forest.

"There won't be any more bandits here, but there may be Beastmen," Avi instructed, "Follow the procedures I taught you for setting up barriers and watchtowers. Be vigilant!"

As everyone was busy setting up the camp, a unicorn silently tiptoed away on the fallen leaves.