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Letting Henry and Mira serve as witnesses for evaluation were words that Mike said in a fit of anger. It did not have any real credibility, so of course the two of them could not get any real reward.
The dwarf blacksmith who followed the momentum and calmed down the two of them into this troublesome matter was also a little ashamed, so as a small compensation, as a local craftsman, he introduced a relatively reliable servant to the two of them. Hotels suitable for soldiers - after all, this is the territory of the Southern Alliance. The kind of hotels that are only for accommodation and dining, which are very common on the west coast, are very rare. Most of the hotels here also take into account the functions of prostitution and casinos, and a large number of On the one hand, attracting money, it is obviously too early for Mira to do such a thing that is not suitable for children.
The Southern Alliance is full of sweet traps, scammers and gamblers can be found everywhere, but these things also reflect its prosperity to a considerable extent.
In the past, a sociologist from the Laman Empire once said: "There are no beggars in poor city-states." - It is precisely because people are generally relatively wealthy and have sufficient supplies that more people begin to pay attention to various Formal entertainment and the lives of others, white church buildings are completely invisible in the Southern Alliance. Just like when the Laman Empire began to decline in the past, the church began to rise. In the Southern City-State Alliance, everything is reversed. People He is completely indifferent to all kinds of asceticism, and all kinds of behaviors that are prohibited in areas where the White Church has influence are commonplace here.
There were singing and dancing every night, and the streets were filled with carefully tanned furs and various types of food. Even Mira and Henry had been using the Ella silver coins that are popular in the mainland, which are actually from the Southern Alliance. The capital, the floating city Ella, is named after its origin.
The profile of the beautiful girl printed on the silver coin is the way the Ella people promote and boast about themselves. It is a pure and beautiful commercial city, where you can reap the beauty of love just like meeting your first love - but who People really understand the nature of these city-states, perhaps only those who have become penniless and can only run to beg for food or work, or worse, have become slaves.
All the city-states of the Southern Alliance cannot be underestimated. It is true that they are novel, prosperous and full of opportunities for outsiders, but if you are not careful, you are likely to break your head here.
While following Henry to the bookstore to sell the basic introductory books that he had read, Mira was waiting at the counter of the luxurious and dazzling bookstore here. Through the door on the right, she saw what seemed to be an open-air courtyard inside. In the middle, there are some people operating a huge machine.
The machine is about one meter high. There is a huge wooden screw fixed on the top of the frame, and a large box below. Some people in simple clothes apply black ink on the top with a brush made of bristle, and then Rotate the rod and press it against the paper so that the pressure saturates the paper with the ink.
——That was the printing press. Mira judged this based on the knowledge she had read. When Henry and the boss were negotiating the price in Laman language, she curiously walked over and stood near the door to watch. It was still morning, and there was plenty of light in the tropics. The girl could clearly see the operators. Not only were they dressed in simple clothes and relatively thin, they also had collars tied around their necks. They were obviously slaves.
The arrival of the girl did not attract these people's attention. They just continued to repeat their work, constantly brushing ink, and then pressing down. After a part of the printing was completed, they placed new paper again. The printed thing was a whole page, about one meter long and wide. The slave took it and handed it to a man next to him who was much better dressed and not wearing a collar. The man then cut it with a huge paper knife. , then press a corner with a stone and put it in the small courtyard to dry the ink.
This series of processes was not easy, and the printed things seemed to be the same. Mira frowned and observed all this, and the questions in her heart were not revealed until Henry exchanged all the books for silver coins and the two left. Asked out.
"You noticed." The price of the gold coins from Silvalier and Avenella fluctuated greatly in the Southern Alliance, so the shrewd sage did not fall into the other party's tricks when bargaining, and the pure Danno value was higher. Some of the gold coins were exchanged for silver coins. A small bag of silver coins was heavy. He hung it on his waist, and then smiled at Mira.
"Well... I just think... the cost of printing simply like this is indeed not much lower than hand-copying, because you can only use the same board - but -" Mira looked up at Henry: "Trap board Printing was invented two hundred years ago, wasn't it? A board composed of movable text is more cost-effective than a fixed board like this. If the production is increased, even if the profit is reduced, the profit will be greatly reduced. If you sell it locally, you will get more income, right?"
She said this, and the words in her mouth were completely different from what the same girl could say a year ago. Henry smiled, touched Mira's little head, and then continued: "You are right, simply considering In terms of book production, letterpress printing is indeed much more convenient because there is no need to carve a new plate every time.”
"But, little Mira, why don't these merchants use it." The two of them walked forward together. Their horses were stored at the hotel. During Thoradin's series of problems, the plate armor had been lost and they were only wearing cotton. A is also quite annoying in such weather, so both of them are wearing light adventurer jackets and trousers at the moment.
"The reason is simple, they are businessmen." Henry shrugged, and Mira rolled her eyes at him, but the sage was certainly not showing off. He went on to explain to her: "You only noticed the printing boards, but No attention was paid to the workers.”
As always, the girl seemed to have thought of something, but she was still not clear about it, so Henry continued: "When we own something, we sometimes take it for granted, but you calm down and think about it, now These things, whether they are knowledge or writing, were you so familiar with them a year ago?"
"...Ah!" The white-haired Luoan girl showed an expression of sudden realization: "That's right! Although purely in terms of engraving cost, the printing of trapezoids is lower, but when typesetting, the printing workers are required to pay Know these words!”
"That's right..." She lowered her little head and nodded repeatedly: "There are very few people who can read, so the cost of hiring will of course be higher. Compared with carved boards, even slave workers can operate them... "
"Yes, and movable letters are easier to damage and lose than a whole piece of wood. After all calculations, it's not worth the gain." Henry added, and some aromas began to waft out of the surrounding restaurants, and iron art in various formats The made signs and wooden carved signs were hung on both sides of the street. People came and went, and the two of them continued to move forward.
"...But if we can use this kind of printing to mass-produce books at any cost, most people will be literate, and the employment cost will be lowered." She lowered her head and said in a not very high voice: "And if the people at the bottom can read... they won't be so powerless..."
"They are businessmen after all, and the only things that matter to them are the immediate benefits." Henry touched her little head again, and Mira nodded and stopped talking.
"Let's have a meal first, and then report it to the Mercenary Guild." If this matter is explored in depth, there will be no results. As long as it arouses some thinking from the girl, it is enough. Henry changed his mind. topic, and Mira nodded again.
If the city-state alliance in the south said that there was one thing that could not lie, then it would be its food. Thanks to the extensive land and sea trade system, sugar is extremely common here. Sugar cane and sugar beets shipped from the east are planted in large quantities on the outskirts of the town. Sugar is an important product of the Southern City-State Alliance. It is one of the items produced, and in addition to it, there are also an endless supply of various foods and spices.
Various spices that are three times more expensive than gold at equal weight are the main source of income for the southern city-state alliance. A little bit of cumin and a little bit of pepper are enough to change the flavor of the entire dish. Food is the most important thing for the people, and their appetites are The pursuit of sexual desire has prompted people to flock to restaurants everywhere here, and due to fierce competition, restaurants here are even cheaper than on the West Coast.
Seafood caught from the coastal city a few kilometers away, delicacies appearing in the distant mountains, bison on the grassland, cheese shipped from the north of the east coast, plus bread and rice that will never be lacking, the food of the Southern Alliance The richness and deliciousness are unimaginable to anyone - so after handing over thirty iron coins, which was only more than the cheapest lunch in Venella, Mira was served The charming aroma of the food was so attractive that all previous thoughts were thrown away.
Although she and Henry were able to ensure food and clothing as they headed here, for two consecutive months they only ate dry bread or noodle soup with water, let alone meat. Even vegetables were only available when they occasionally met the village. Purchase, Mira's little tongue felt so bland that it was almost tasteless, and now that these fragrant and hearty fish and meat meals were served like this, she immediately felt her index finger move.
It was like a land that had been experiencing drought for a long time. After eating this delicious meal, Mira felt that her whole body had regained her energy. At least they would not have to worry about eating and drinking here, but compared to the cost of living in a hotel, But it is relatively high. Although the store introduced by the dwarf blacksmith Mike does not have unnecessary additional facilities such as prostitutes and casinos, the cost of living is already as high as the price of two Ella silver coins a week - although selling books in exchange for Once you have a certain amount of savings, it is not a good idea to continue to sit back and have nothing.
In addition, the two of them also needed new equipment. In order to pretend to be knights of the Holy See, they took off their plate armor and hid it somewhere, intending to go back to retrieve it later, but the plan could not keep up with the change, so they had to lose it. Although the cotton armor is still there, if you simply wear this layer of cushioning lining, the effect is not very great.
Knowing the dwarf blacksmith Mike and getting involved in their matter means more than just a trouble. If the dwarfs are outstanding in craftsmanship, maybe Mira and Henry can customize a more refined set of armor this time, a popular one in the Southern City-State Alliance. This kind of half-body armor for mercenaries is a plate armor that combines flexibility and defense. It is connected with buckles and does not even need a belt. It looks like a miniature knight's armor. It is also quite light in weight. , although it cannot withstand the charge of heavy cavalry and is not favored by those hunting mercenaries, mid-level mercenaries who have a few dollars and cherish a part of their lives will also choose it.
You know people but not their hearts. When walking in this world, it is better not to be stingy with things like armor that are related to your life.
Henry had some opinions of his own about armor, and if he handed it over to Mike later, he believed that the other party also had the ability to create armor of this level - no matter what, they needed money now, so after eating and drinking, the two The person slowly walked towards the direction of the mercenary guild.
"..." The mercenary guild of the Southern Alliance has a similar building structure to the houses here. Mira hesitated for a while when she walked to the entrance of the guild - it was natural to meet someone again just like she did in Corey Conrad. It didn’t happen. There were people coming and going around, but no one paid too much attention to them. This paradoxical feeling reminded the white-haired Luoan girl of Emmanica and Joshua, and of the blond girl. The last smile appeared in the strong backlight - and Henry stopped with her and said nothing.
It would be great if they both came here with me.
Although the sunshine here will also make Emonica feel uncomfortable, but if they are still there...
She shook her little head and tried hard to cheer up.
"Let's go, teacher." Mira raised her little face and gave Henry a "don't worry" smile. The sage nodded calmly, and the two walked on the smooth and flat stone road towards the Mercenary Guild. Go inside.
A prosperous area like the Southern City-State Alliance is very vast even if it is just a small town mercenary guild. This organization, which was born on the east coast and spreads all over the world, can be said to be the most prosperous in the Southern Territory. There are so many staff inside, not to mention all kinds of people. There are also a dazzling array of signboards, showing an essential difference from all areas on the West Coast.
Among the mercenaries coming and going, there are a large number of green-card novices, and there are countless blue-card mercenaries of the same level as the two of them. Even orange-card and even purple-card mercenaries are not impossible to see - but compared to these most eye-catching ones, However, those mercenaries with blue cards and above were moving in groups of twos and threes. Not only were they dressed similarly, they also wore the same mercenary group badges.
This is a gathering place for real professional mercenaries. Whether they are ABC three war mercenaries or def three hunting mercenaries, they all move in groups and form a strong contrast with the sloppy lower-level mercenaries on the other side. Comparison - Mira and Henry were noticed by many people from the mercenary group as soon as they came in. After all, they are also blue cards, and these mercenaries will consider whether to recruit them.
But even so, after all, it was not high for the two people who were new here and not even wearing any armor to be noticed immediately, so they just paid attention and not many people came to strike up a conversation.
No matter what, when time has entered this day in October, the two of them are already quite far away from where they originally set out.
And life and adventure will continue. (To be continued.) Mobile phone users please visit m.read for a better reading experience.
