Konoha Aogen

Chapter 7: Useless Xiao Luo

Just the day before yesterday, when Ye Xuan and After Shadow were fighting with others in the gambling house of "Tairan City", a small incident happened in "Kurong City".

"Kurong City" in "Imperial Era" was originally a real small border town near the "Xiaoyun Mountain Range", but now it is one of the top five big cities in the world.

For "Kurong City" to be as strong as it is today, both God and man are indispensable.

Stretching for tens of thousands of miles from the frozen soil in the north to the Mohai in the south, the "Xiaoyun Mountains" lie between the "Western Territory" and the "Eastern Territory", dividing the entire land in two. The mountains tower into the clouds, almost reaching the sky.

Among the countries in the Western Region, the one closest to the Eastern Land is thousands of miles away. Since ancient times, the caravans that have traveled across the "Xiaoyun Mountains" have said that a life of nine deaths is not enough to describe the danger. A life of a hundred deaths is even closer to the truth. Therefore, the communication between the east and west is almost the same as being cut off. Therefore, the profits from trade between the two places are also outrageous.

It has been more than seven hundred years since the Qi training method was introduced to the people at the end of the empire. Low-level "qi practitioners" are becoming worthless. Although these warriors are no longer able to cause chaos in the Central Plains and grasslands, they are much more durable than ordinary "camel merchants" when traveling through the "Xiaoyun Mountains". This was the trade route between the East and the West in the past and became a way out for many "low-level warriors".

The most difficult part of Qi training is that it is “almost impossible to be noticed.” Once known, it spread very quickly, and more and more "qi practitioners" emerged in the countries in the Western Region. It's just that the Western Region has been full of states and cities since ancient times. It is not as unified as the Central Plains, and the "qi practitioners" have not had much impact on the original structure.

All in all, the emergence of "qi practitioners" has made the cannibalistic "trade routes" no longer as scary as the ghost caves in the devil forest, and the trade between the Eastern and Western Regions has gradually increased. The border town at the foot of the "Xiaoyun Mountain Range" has therefore been transformed from the end of the world into a bridge between two worlds. This is God-given prosperity.

Speaking of which, there is more than one entrance to the trade route leading to the Western Region. There is more than just "Kurong City" in the border city near the entrance of the commercial road. However, at present, several other border towns have gradually withered, and "Kurong City" is almost the only hub. Before the caravan from the Eastern Region departs, and after the caravan from the Western Region arrives, "Kurong City" is the best choice to rest and collect wealth. This is the result of the hard work of the "Konoha Family" for more than a hundred years.

"Kurong City" is famous for its "simple tax system, good public security, freedom of contracting, and extravagance." Forgetting the Moon Tower, Qianjin Pavilion, the Martial Arts Arena, and the Colosseum are all known as the "Xiaojin Grotto" and "Heroic Place" resounding throughout the northwest.

"Kurong City" does not impose separate taxes on business travelers. There are only two types of taxes, "one light and one dark", for both the inner city and the outer city.

The clear tax is "real estate tax". According to the city law, any land or property in "Kurong City" is initially regarded as an ownerless property. Whoever pays taxes for it is the owner of the place.

The taxable amount is two cents of the quoted price (Note: i.e. 2). If the quoted price of a house or shop is "one hundred taels of silver", then the owner of the house must pay two taels of silver to the "City Lord's Mansion" every year.

The empire also used this method when taxing city residents. The novelty of "Kurong City" is that the tax base, that is, the total price of the house and land, is filled in by the owner, and the price must be posted on the wall pillar of his house for publicity. The "City Lord's Mansion" or anyone in the city can forcefully purchase the property by adding 50% to the quoted price.

If the homeowner resists the city guards because of his martial arts skills, the next thing he will face is the "Security Corps" of "Lord Ghost Moth", or even "Ghost Moth" himself.

The hidden tax is "prostitution and gambling franchise". Regardless of the brothels, brothels or gambling houses in "Kurong City", apart from the "Night Palace", there are only ten families or business groups that can make such a living. Ten "dead wood cards" are repurchased every five years, and the one with the highest price wins.

It is absolutely impossible for a brothel to operate secretly, and gambling houses and brothels, even if they have a small scale, are difficult to hide, and they will either be wiped out or annexed by the license holders. And "Ye Palace" is the owner of the largest brothel and gambling house in "Kurong City". Unexpectedly, various business groups are collaborating to lower prices. In fact, "unity of merchants" and "loyalty of courtiers" have been a joke since ancient times. Even without any means of restraint, the newly emerged business groups will destroy the alliance.

Although the tax system of "Kurong City" is simple, the amount collected in the end is not really frivolous. There are two wonderful features of this "hidden tax" method: one is that it does not hurt, and the other is that it does not hurt.

The strategy of monopoly is actually to use the power of weapons to swallow up half of the profits of the prostitution and gambling industries. The two industries can enjoy the monopoly, which makes it difficult to fully exploit the competition and the prices are also high. However, for the residents and business travelers in the city, they have no real sense of it. This is painless.

Although the pleasures of prostitution and gambling are deeply rooted in people's hearts, whether or not to play or not to play depends entirely on one's own free will. Those who gamble and engage in promiscuous prostitution will have their families in ruins, while those who are self-disciplined and self-disciplined will have more wealth. Most of their tax sources will come from the former, who will reward those who work hard and punish those who fall, and obey nature and people. This is not harmful.

As for a well-off family, sooner or later it will fall into the hands of an unfilial son like "Chen Qi"... If the family is strong enough, it will be humiliated, and if it is profitable, it will not last long. That is another level of cyclical retribution.

The biggest annoyance brought by the growing population to "Kurong City" is food. A border town with a population of more than 200,000 people could never be self-sufficient on nearby fertile land. It could only be purchased from "a little further away" or "further away". The high price due to shipping damage is certainly a problem, but what Ye Xuan is more worried about is that there has not been a major disaster in the Northland for nearly a hundred years.

Not all those living in "Kurong City" are merchants and craftsmen. Two years ago, the famous doctor "Yunda" who was well-known in the north and south moved his family to "Kurong City", which is quite an anecdote. It has been six hundred and forty years since the first year of the "Disaster Era". No matter how much the literati deny it, "qi-training warriors" are the natural nobility of this world.

Among the three sects and nine streams who do not practice qi, the only one who can make warriors bow their heads is the doctor. Although martial artists who practice qi don't get sick, it is inevitable if their families are young; warriors who practice qi cannot have children, and their relatives are the most important thing.

"Yun Da" and his disciples had countless relatives of city lords, gang leaders, and sect leaders alive. If they asked those warriors to kowtow to him a few times and call him "hero", most of them would agree. Therefore, the relocation of "Yunda" also has quite unusual meanings for "Kurong City". It was only after that that many people finally stopped seeing this place as a corrupt border town filled with cheap businessmen and dandies.

"Yunda" moved to "Kurong City" because, in addition to seeing the vitality and prosperity here, the more important reason is that here, he can get the strange and weird Western medicines and foods at the first time, and see Western men and women of all shapes and forms. There are even doctors from the Western Regions. "Yun Da" is not a doctor who is satisfied with the rejuvenation of his life. In Ye Xuan's words, "the ambition is so rampant that it is almost the end of the world." He wants to tear open the veil of life.

"Yunda" has no concubines, and his wife is "Bao Rui", the daughter of the late literary giant "Bao Peng". She has two daughters, the eldest daughter "Yun Qin" and the youngest daughter "Yun Luo".

"Yunqin" Huixiu is quiet and graceful. A charming and charming person is even better than his mother.

"Yun Luo" also inherited his mother's incomparable appearance, but his stature was as thin as his father's, only half a forehead taller than "Yun Da". Fortunately, she has been practicing martial arts since she was a child, and her body is well-proportioned and tall, and she has a pretty face that can be considered exquisite. That little incident that "resulted in trouble a few years later" was caused by her.

Since ancient times, "southerners" have been disgusted and despised by "northerns", but traveling around the mountains and rivers does not stop at the southern scenery. A warrior wields a sword, and the wandering wind is even more powerful. When people from the south travel north, people who are good at literature and history are fond of the two old capitals "Cangcheng" and "Liangcheng". The "Luocheng", now in ruins, is a pleasant place for literati and poets to express their poetry and sigh about the past and present. Those who are curious about novelties are more willing to go to "Rongrong City" to enjoy them.

The "Yi Shi Ju" across the street from "Wang Yue Lou" is a "Western Region Restaurant" that specializes in catering to "Eastern natives". It claims to be authentic Western Region cuisine, but in fact it only has its own shape, and the taste is more in line with "Eastern natives". "people" preference, so there were not many Western diners in the store.

This place is located in the most prosperous neighborhood of the "inner city" of Kurong City. During lunch time, the private room is already fully booked. Although the three fairies of the "Xixia Sect" carry "endless silver bills" and "endless gold leaves" with them, they can only sit in the hall and make noise with everyone.

"Senior sister, how does the authentic Western Region's Camel Lip Cake taste?" A woman wearing a light pink silk shirt said with a smile.

"It's disgusting!" The woman wearing a blue velvet cloak next to her cursed with a look of disgust.

"You can still eat the roasted lamb ribs." The woman sitting on the bench on the other side said in a gentle tone, and her clothes were not what a warrior should look like. The "beige skirt" covered her ankles, which was extremely incompatible with the long sword leaning against the table with a "plain sheath and silver grid". (Note: "Gate" refers to the hand guard between the hilt and blade of the sword)

"Humph, what kind of 'pica' is roasted lamb rib?" The woman in the blue cloak put down the bowl and chopsticks, looking extremely dissatisfied with the meal. "Xiao Bei, pay the bill."

"Well, okay." The woman in pink clothes was shouted at by her bossyly. She was neither timid nor annoyed. She greeted the waiter with a smile, and without asking the price, she tore off half of the gold leaf and said, "That's it, there's no need to look for it."

The waiter bowed and thanked him, cursing in his mind: "You little girl from outside, what do you think of the 'Pisa Residence'? This small half sheet is enough." (Note: The total weight of a whole gold leaf is about one tael, It is made of extremely thin square gold foil folded in half many times. Converted into silver, it is worth about ten taels.)

"Senior sister, Xiaoyun, how about we go to the 'Wangyue Tower' opposite to have a look?" Xiaobei said with a smirk on his face.

"Have you polluted your brain by eating camel lips? Go look at those vile things?" the woman called Senior Sister said sarcastically, but in her harshness, it was clear that she had a close relationship with Xiao Bei.

"Oh no, I heard that there are male actors in Wangyue Tower." Xiaobei lowered the noise and whispered in front of his senior sister.

"A woman from a wealthy family may not necessarily be noble." The three women turned their heads in shock and saw a petite woman wearing a light yellow silk shirt looking towards them with disdain. The woman was sitting on a stool, with her toes almost touching the ground. At first glance, she thought she was a child, but after carefully examining her voice and appearance, she realized that she was just like the three of them.

"What did you say?" The woman who was called senior sister became furious. Huo Di stood up from the bench and stared at Yun Luo condescendingly. The unsheathed long sword is tightly held in his left hand.

"I said, a woman from a wealthy family may not be so noble." Yun Luo did not stand up, raised his head to meet the other person's eyes, and said word by word. In fact, she originally meant "us" as a woman from a wealthy family, and she may not be so noble. But now that she saw that the other party was angry, the word "we" was naturally hidden. But when the words reached the ears of the three women, they naturally interpreted them as "you" women from wealthy families... This time, they called themselves prostitutes. Even Xiaoyun, who was always gentle and kind, couldn't help but blush with shame and anger.

The waiter, who had just collected the gold leaves, saw this and hurriedly came over to persuade him. The senior sister flipped her wrist and exhaled her true energy. The long sword immediately popped out half of the sheath, and the end of the sword hilt was pressed against the waiter's heart. Seeing this formation, the waiter quickly retreated. The senior sister's delicate hands did not move at all, and the long sword was retracted into its sheath.

Yun Luo saw that the other party had shown such skill and was unmoved at all: "What are you doing? You have to do something even after you scolded someone?"

In the eyes of the other party, it was obvious that she was the first to provoke and curse, but they did not know the relationship between "Yun Luo" and the brothel opposite. There are very few female doctors in the city, and brothel girls are despised by others. It is difficult for female doctors who have diagnosed illnesses for brothel girls to interact with the wives and ladies of wealthy families. Therefore, even the actors in "Wang Yue Lou" can only seek medical advice from a male doctor.

There are a lot of secrets and secrets about women in brothels. By chance, this Wangyue Building...is a building that really tolerates actors choosing their patrons and doing their acting and self-promotion entirely on their own initiative. Therefore, the actors in "Forget the Moon Tower" are much more pretentious than ordinary actors. "Yun Luo" heard about this verse from his father "Yun Da", and immediately volunteered to consult the actors. For this reason, both father and daughter were beaten by "Bao Rui".

After the Dongchuang incident, "Yunda" visited brothels less and less, but "Yunluo" became addicted. She has admired her father since she was a child, and most enjoys the noble feeling of helping the world, especially helping those patients who cannot receive diagnosis and treatment. At first, she could only find some "loneliness" to satisfy herself, but later she found that consulting prostitutes could arouse an inexplicable joy. Therefore, in recent months, she had been working with clients from major brothels and brothels in "Kurong City". The Ying'es got along quite well with each other. As her "birthplace", "Wangyue Tower" is even more extraordinary. Today I heard someone calling the sisters in the building "cheating things", and I immediately felt angry.

The senior sister smiled contemptuously: "Are you worthy of letting me do it? You're a dirty-mouthed girl, I should have cut off your tongue. Today, I'm merciful and will give you three slaps, Xiaobei."

When Xiaobei heard his senior sister's call, he didn't mind the sword on the other party's table. He took a few steps forward and raised his hand to slap her. Yunluo was still tapping her toes like a little girl, sitting on the stool. When the palm reached his face, he imitated the opponent's slap gesture and slapped Xiaobei's palm.

"Ah!" Xiaobei squatted on the ground covering his palms. After being helped up by his senior sister, big tears fell from his eyes that were as bright as gems. The senior sister gently took her hand, held it in her palm and looked at it: "It's not broken." After saying that, two eyes pierced Yunluo like cold light.

Yunluo finally jumped down from the bench reluctantly. Once you stand up, you are truly "a dwarf".

"Just do it. If you lose, I'll slap you." He picked up the sword on the table and stabbed it straight towards the ground. With a thud, the dagger sank deeply into the dark stone slab beneath his feet. The crowd of onlookers was instantly moved, and the few men who loved watching women fight consciously retreated to the wall.

The three girls of the "Xixia Sect" were also horrified. "Xiaoyun", who had been silent all this time, took a step closer and whispered: "This woman is luxuriously dressed, but she is not ashamed of her wealth. With such skill... I am afraid she is the 'Xuanqing Academy' His origin may be related to the 'Konoha Family'."

"I'll take care of it," the senior sister whispered, staring at Yun Luo without turning her head. The other party openly provoked her, and she had no room to retreat in front of everyone. The woman who Xiaobei calls his senior sister is named "Ding Lan". She is the daughter of "Ding Qiuwen", a wealthy businessman in "Ronghe City". She and her cousin "Tong Xiaobei" are both disciples of the "Xixia Sect".

"Xiaoyun", who holds a long sword but wears a skirt, has her real name "Qiu Shiyun". She is the distant cousin of "Qiu Shimai", the leader of the "Xixia Sect". She is considered the second female master-uncle in terms of seniority, but she is the youngest and does not practice martial arts from the "Xixia Sect". The two of them do not regard her as their elder.

Yun Luo's burying the sword into the stone was not to show off her skills. She was really afraid that when she did it herself, the sword would be passed on to someone who knew what to do. Yunluo's martial arts were inherited from "Wuyou Sanren" and can be said to be the true inheritance. "Useless Sanshou, Useful Sanshou; Useless Swordsmanship, Useful Swordsmanship" The four-way martial arts, when they were separated last time, were already showing signs of improvement.

The sword in her hand was forged by "Gu Changqing" himself. The blade of the sword was extremely sharp, but it was deliberately sharpened to be short and thin. It was named "WuYong" and was given to an old friend "WuYong Sanren" on his birthday as a joke. Later, the "Wuyou Sanren" passed this sword to Yun Luo, and when she held it in her hand, she didn't feel any difference at all, as if it was tailor-made. If the exquisite product of "Jianhu Village" is thrown on the table, there is no reason not to throw it away.

At this time, Yun Luo just lazily raised his hands to his chest: "Let's move in."

When Ding Lan saw that Yun Luo was empty-handed, he immediately took off his cloak and handed it to Qiu Shiyun along with the sword. Under the azure cloak, he was wrapped in pure white snow. When she was sparring with Xiao Bei, she would often imitate the great master and say, "I'll give you three moves." Then she would blurt out the words as soon as she raised her hand, and then swallow them alive.

Ding Lan concentrated his mind and slowly took two steps forward. His right hand suddenly pointed like a knife and stabbed Yunluo's throat diagonally. Yunluo's left hand instantly melted away, and with a volley of his right hand, he forced back the opponent's left palm that was hiding a back move. The elegance of "Wuyou Sanshou" hides an indescribable strictness, but it does not hurt the enemy.

This was the case for Ding Lan's several consecutive attacks. One of his moves was dismantled, and two of his moves were defeated. Countless exquisite backhands were stuck in the middle and couldn't be used. It was as painful as a chicken bone choking in the throat.

"Ding Lan, give up." After retreating in humiliation for the sixth time, Ding Lan heard Xiaoyun persuading him to surrender, and then looked at the woman opposite him who tilted her head and looked at him with an almost provocative expression. Ever since she was in the spotlight, she felt a sense of grievance that she had never felt before, wrapped in shame and resentment, exploding in her chest. Suddenly he took two steps back, endured the severe pain, pinched the edge of the copper basin, and poured a basin of lamb soup that had just been boiled over charcoal fire at Yunluo, not caring that there were still people around him.

When Yun Luo saw what she was doing, he was really angry, and his naughty attitude was gone. He raised his eyes and rushed forward, brazenly breaking through the boiling water that smelled of sheep's mutton with his head and face. There was a crisp sound and a heavy slap on Ding Lan's face. This palm was extremely spicy and extremely fast. Ding Lan felt a small thing emerge from the waterfall and was hit by the palm on his left cheek, but he could not see anything clearly.

"Useful Sanshou" is not such a cheap move. The main point of this move is to poke the left ear with the middle finger while slapping the face, or directly pull out the eyeball with the index finger. When he succeeded, Yunluo finally cut out the complex and simplified it, and lost the essence.

Ding Lan collapsed on the ground, and after a long time he sat up with the help of the two women. He spat out his two teeth in the palm of his hand with blood on them. He gasped with hatred, but did not dare to raise his head and glare at Yun Luo again. The people behind Yunluo who were watching the excitement were screaming because of the hot mutton soup. Fortunately, they were far away and did not cause a big disaster.

Xiao Bei squatted beside Ding Lan and kept crying. Qiu Shiyun stood up slowly, looked at Yun Luo, and said calmly: "Please leave Wan'er down, the heroine. I will come to you later to apologize." Boiling water will not invade, this is "drought" "Mutually. Even though Qiu Shiyun's martial arts was better than Ding Lan's, she didn't dare to push herself. She just hoped to use her words to squeeze the opponent and get away today.

Qiu Shiyun is calm in the face of danger, but has little experience in the world. I failed to ask for someone's name, but I didn't tell him first. Yun Luo, who was opposite him, was also a young child. He didn't realize there was anything wrong with Qiu Shiyun's behavior. He just wanted to avoid being punished by his mother. She was afraid that the other party would complain to the "Yun Mansion", so she refused to declare her family name: "If you don't want to fight, then just leave."

Qiu Shiyun was dressed in a skirt, but she followed a man's example and clasped her fists in a shallow salute, and helped Ding Lan away with Xiaobei. When they came to the door, Xiaobei turned around and said bitterly: "Just wait, this matter is not over yet!" After saying these harsh words, the three of them stepped up and headed towards the city gate. The luggage in the inn was not taken away either.

Yunluo was not very afraid when he heard the other party's threat. When she was born, the world had already entered the "Sword Power Season" for a long time, and the world of warriors had already had its own rules. If you lose the contest, you can only make another contest. It must not lead to a vendetta, let alone involve relatives and friends. At worst, someone more powerful would come to find her in the future, and she was just happy about it.

After the three people left, Yunluo gave half a gold leaf and a few silver coins to the shopkeeper. The decoration of "Pixi Residence" is very luxurious, but I don't know whether it is enough or not. It's just that she doesn't take any money for medical consultations on weekdays, and her mother is in charge of her family, so she doesn't have much on her body. The shopkeeper didn't know who she was, but seeing that she was so powerful and sincere, he didn't care about her.

After Yunluo paid the money, he grabbed the ones who were burned and apologized, and talked about many things that need to be paid attention to after being burned. The people who were burned didn't know that she was the daughter of "Yun Da", and they didn't pay much attention to the instructions such as "try not to bandage, bandage should be breathable, use less spicy food, and avoid strong alcohol". I just felt that this young lady was highly skilled but not deceiving. She was very cute and delicate.

After walking out of the strange food residence, Yunluo complained in his heart. With a greasy head and mutton all over my body, I will definitely scold my mother when I get home, as I'm afraid I won't be able to hide the fight. I looked up and saw the "Wangyue Tower" across the street, and I had an idea.

Wangyue Tower is a three-story pavilion that looks a little chunky at first glance. It looks low because the base is too wide. In fact, standing on the third floor and leaning on the railing, you can look straight at the rows of never-ending rows on the fifth floor of the "Mowen Tower". A black window will open. The "main building" of "Wangyue Tower" is located in a large courtyard. The courtyard is divided into front and back areas. There are many independent and claustrophobic courtyards in the backyard, which are the residences of high-level actors.

In the afternoon, Wangyue Tower was still quiet, but the side door was not closed. The turtle gatekeeper knew her and didn't stop her. "Miss Yun Er, what are you..."

"Go find Xiaodi." Yunluo walked into the main building without satisfying Mr. Turtle's curiosity.

"Xiao Luo? How did you do this?" Yun Di has already stood up and is playing with his "treasure box" in the room, which is full of rare objects given by his patrons.

"I had a fight with someone at the Pisa House. I want to wash up and change my clothes." Yunluo said directly without being polite to her.

"Look, you must have lost the fight like this. Are you injured?" Yun Di circled around her with concern.

Yun Luo curled her lips and said, "I won't win again. I didn't hide the mutton soup on purpose." She told the truth, but Yun Di didn't believe it at all: "Okay, okay, as long as it's not hurt."

Yun Luo sighed softly, too lazy to argue anymore.

Yun Di pulled the rope bell and summoned the Turtle Gong to fill the bathtub. The attentiveness of "Wangyue Tower" is far beyond that of ordinary inns. Not long after, a whole team of turtles carrying hot water entered the room, and the bathtub was filled up in just one time.

"There is a hot spring in the backyard, why come to the 'second floor' to trouble me?" Yun Di said this, but he was very happy in his heart. The high-level actors in "Wangyue Tower" usually wait on guests on the "third floor", but they have separate residences in the "backyard". Ordinary actors wait on guests and live in one place. To a young lady from a good family, this kind of place can be considered dirty. Yun Luo didn't mind bathing here. He thought he really regarded her as a friend.

"Who named you Yun?" Among the actors, Yun Luo and Yun Di are the closest.

Yun Di smiled, showing two slight dimples: "My surname is not Yun." Yun Di is half-Western Region ancestry, and her real name is "Di Yunzha Yipu". She only knows how to pronounce it, and no one has taught her to use the Western Region name. How the text is written.

"Uh..." Yunluo was not afraid of being burned. As soon as Turtle went out, he took off his thin shirt and silk pants and immersed his whole body in the steaming wooden barrel. Yun Di didn't dare to reach in at this time. He scooped hot water with a gourd and rinsed her hair that was covered in "mutton fat" over and over again.

"Is there anything I can wear?" Yun Luo asked.

"I'll borrow it from Xing'er later." Yun Di is tall and Yun Luo can't wear her.

"It's best if it's light yellow, more like mine. But you can't let my mother see it. If she knows about my fight..." Yun Luo stopped mid-sentence.

"What will happen if you find out?" Yun Di asked curiously.

Fortunately, the bath water was boiling hot, and Yunluo's little face had already turned red from steam, so no one could see his embarrassment: "Just... family methods."

"What's the family law like?" Yun Di was lonely since he was a child, living under the roof of others and being beaten and scolded at every turn. She wanted to know how Miss Qianjin's family was doing.

"Oh, just... hit your palms with a ruler or something." Yun Luo responded awkwardly.

"Are you still afraid of this?" Yun Di always felt that her words were not entirely true.

Yunluo doesn't understand why her mother still beats herself with a ruler. Doesn't she know what level her daughter's Qi has reached? Yun Luo didn't even understand why her sister slapped her palms when she made a mistake, but he always had to be spanked by his mother on his lap just like when he was a child. Perhaps in the eyes of my mother, I am considered an adult only when I grow taller...

Exile Diary - Excerpt (6)

I was too impulsive and must admit this mistake. Moreover, I have begun to pay the price for my impulsiveness, and I have to do the work myself. You really shouldn't have killed that last slave girl!

Catching snakes, disposing of corpses, cleaning cabins... I have done all these despicable things with my own hands in the past few days. Curse Ergus! Something went wrong when we were removing the last body. I couldn't pull out the sword nailed to the cabin board. Is that sword so strong?

Anese bled a lot, but the wound was not as deep as I thought. I applied some wound medicine to her, and then carefully bandaged the wound. After three days of rest, she was able to work. However, her left leg was still weak. It's too flexible and I can't use my left hand hard. In the past few days, we have been drifting on the sea and drifting with the current, without sailing north.

Yesterday evening, Anese timidly told me that she couldn't do the driving alone. She was unable to control the mainsail and foresail at the same time as the helm. She also had difficulty raising and reefing the sails, at least not the mainsail. I was angry, but I had decided not to whip Anessey randomly.