Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody

Satou here. Refugees were something I only encountered through news reports or commercials asking for donations, but in this world, they seem surprisingly close at hand.

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Although we arrived in Nowkey Town in the morning, we were only allowed inside the town in the afternoon. It took much longer than expected to deal with the bandits.

This town is the second largest in Count Cuhanow's territory and is located in a position suitable for trade. Yet, its population is just under 20,000. The land area is about a quarter the size of Seryu City. Slaves make up about 30% of the population, mostly general slaves, with very few lower-class or criminal slaves.

The bandits—confirmed as bandits by the Yamato Stone—were sold to a slave trader who was called by the gate guards. The male bandits sold for two silver coins each. Those skilled with bows and weapons, or higher level, fetched higher prices, but the female bandits were cheap. A middle-aged woman only sold for one silver coin.

As a reward for defeating the bandits, each person received ten copper coins. Is that reasonable?

In total, we received 48 silver coins and 140 copper coins. With this, I feel there would be many bounty hunters willing to bring them in alive, not just me.

The city entry tax was one Large Copper Coin for commoners, two copper coins for slaves, and two Large Copper Coins per carriage, so the tax was offset from the reward.

While receiving a small pouch with five silver coins and ten copper coins—the difference between the reward and the tax—I chatted with a young gate guard. The guards here wore blue dyed shirts as uniforms.

“Yeah, you really helped us out. Recently, many refugees from other territories have been turning into bandits.”

“Was there some disaster somewhere?”

Refugees usually mean war or disaster.

He said that many farmers escape from the territory we plan to visit next and become serfs in the rural areas of Count Cuhanow’s domain or general slaves in the town.

Those who refuse slavery hide in the mountains to hunt beasts or cultivate fields, but as winter approaches, more and more are turning to banditry.

I almost felt sympathy for the bandits, but since “murder” is punishable, sympathy is unnecessary.

] Title acquired: “Bounty Hunter.”

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Well, I could have finished business at the gate, but I decided to stay overnight to buy some supplies we were short on.

The townscape isn’t much different from Seryu City, but there are fewer two-story houses and more single-story ones.

It feels less lively, not only because of the lower population density but also due to a lack of town energy.

I confirmed with the gate guard that hostility toward beastmen is strong here too, but if you pay an extra fee, you can stay at inns, and if you pay well, you can shop normally at stores. Unfortunately, the wealthier and noble districts don’t welcome beastmen, so I was advised to stay away.

After leaving our carriage at the inn, we went together to buy equipment. The shops were not far from the inn, with the weapons and armor shops standing side by side.

First, at the armor shop, we bought armor for five people: me, Nana, and three beast girls. Since full suits of armor take time to order, we picked iron helmets without face guards, iron chest plates adjustable with belts, the same type of light greaves covering below the knees, and light gauntlets protecting the backs of the hands and arms.

The other three said they didn’t need armor, so we didn’t buy any for them, but we bought extra shields instead—three metal bucklers and three round shields.

When fitting Nana’s armor, the armor shop owner tried to fondle Nana’s behind, but my ironclad vigilance stopped him. I never thought my danger sense would come in handy here. I made a joke about it when haggling the price.

The total was about 30 gold coins, but after some bargaining, we got it down to 14 gold coins, somewhat cheaper than the market rate.

Next, at the weapon shop, we bought bows and arrows for Mia. There were only three shortbows she could draw, so the purchase was quick. After bargaining, they threw in 30 arrows and charged one gold coin.