When Aric came out, he let out a visible sigh. He had been quite casual with his response and even talked about the aluminum items. This was all done to show that he didn't even feel threatened by Gopher's words or the fact that Gopher being an Acolyte in his city barren city was just to show that he was not fazed at all and would continue being mysterious.
But it also didn't mean that he was very scared when it came to them, and Aric had already made an exit plan if everything crumbled here. One of these days, he walked quite a distance away from the city towards the direction of another city which was closer to the capital than the Distant Wind.
The small business which he had opened wouldn't suffer much if he changed jobs, but he wouldn't be able to move always if he wanted to settle and establish his own power. He hoped that the people around wouldn't antagonize him too much. It was also another reason why he didn't go to a big city yet because in big cities there would be competition and greed.
He might be able to earn money, but he also felt it would be dangerous there. It was better to start in a small city first and then move to a big one. Aric was back in his world after coming back to his home. He just needed to wait until 10 pm to earn more money.
During dinner, his father suddenly asked, "Have you thought about what you would like to do when you grow up?"
"Umm... Do I need to think about this now?" Aric asked while gulping down the chewed rice with curry.
"No, but you will have to think soon. A ship without a rudder will never reach its destination," his father said.
"Uhh... I will be able to tell after I complete class 9," Aric thought about it for a minute and said.
"Class 9? Okay... Don't forget what you said just now," his father said. Aric could only nod. His dad was always strict with his career, and his concern was always the well-being and future of the family.
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21:45
He was back in the city, sitting on his sofa and looking at the warm glow the small fireplace was giving out. The weather had turned a bit cold. The summers were short at this place, and the winters were harsh and longer. The fireplace not only gave him warmth but also light that made the entire room filled with light.
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Aric waited for 20 more minutes when he heard a knock on the door. Aric opened the door, only to see Gopher walk in without waiting for the invitation. Though it was a bit rude, he could tell that that was how Gopher was. He was wearing an overhead coat and also a hat that made him almost unrecognizable.
"I made sure that nobody knows I came in," Gopher said. Aric didn't understand what he meant by those words, but soon it hit him. Gopher was doing this because he felt Aric was trying to hide his business and thus trying to give him safety.
"And then you said that you would try to kill me," Aric said.
"Hahahah... I had to see if the person I was going to do business with has the courage and the guts, and you seem to have both," Gopher said. "Where are your parents from? Your accent isn't local at all or even from the neighboring countries. I have never heard of your accent in the entire North, so I am curious."
"You have traveled the entire North?" Aric was surprised and asked. He was also very curious.
"I did visit some empires after I left school, hoping to gain inspiration to reach Neophyte. Alas, very few can reach that kind of power. But you haven't answered my question yet," Gopher reminded him of the first question he had asked.
"Does it really matter where I am from?"
"Yes, at least I would like to know. Are you from those reclusive clans way up the north?" Gopher asked.
"Why do you think so?" Aric asked, curious as he remembered those wretched men had said the same thing, and he was able to lure them out on that vague conclusion.
"Your accent and your ideas. They are unique and can only be made with those clans who are more accustomed to magic. You can tell me, are you some kind of illegitimate child of some clan lord who is supporting you from behind?" Gopher asked, feeling that Aric could easily be one.
Maybe the clan lord had sent some guards to keep him safe but also start a business here. Hell, Aric could even be a legitimate son of the clan lord too since he wasn't trying to hide his face. But he was also confused about why he wanted to know about the runic circles before like an idiot. That didn't make sense to him since children such as him were supposed to know about this kind of knowledge.
Gopher stopped thinking about such complex matters and decided to concentrate on the more pressing ones.
"Maybe I am. Maybe I am not. Who knows. Here are your items," Aric said, changing the topic and showing him papers stacked over each other. There were 20,000 of them and were bundled with the help of ropes. And Gopher's face brightened seeing the stack of papers. He didn't care about the origins of Aric at the moment and just started checking the papers.
Each stack contained 1000 papers, and there were 20 of them. Gopher's eyes glittered as he saw them counted. Without any hesitation, he brought out 14 gold coins and forwarded them to Aric.
It was a few silver coins more than he expected but he didn't try to be humble here.
"I will be taking one stack at a time. Give a week to clear all of them." Gopher said. Aric was nodded and was surprised that he even paid him forward. This man was peculiar to say the least.