SMSK 20

Chapter 20. Free City of Veritas (2)

The Free City of Veritas.
One of the “Four Great Cities” located northeast of the Middle Temple.
It’s known both as a hub of trade and a cradle for adventurers, housing numerous guilds and merchant associations.

As such, a long line of people stretched endlessly before the city gates.

“There are really a lot of people here.”

Chatter, chatter—

Adelia mumbled to herself as she gazed out of the wagon.

From the lavish wagons of merchants to rough-looking bands of adventurers, and travelers with various reasons for coming to Veritas—
All sorts of people were mixed in, waiting for inspection to enter the city.

They looked visibly tense, likely having heard of the fall of the Silk Road.

Adelia furrowed her brow and spoke again.

“At this rate, it could take days just to get through the line.”

“It’s fine. We’ll be using a different route.”

Clatter, clunk—

With that response from the bald merchant leader, our wagon calmly bypassed the long queue.

Before long, another gate appeared.
Unlike the bustling main entrance, this one was far quieter.

Seeing this, the bald merchant explained with a hint of pride in his voice.

“This is a special route reserved for those with verified identities. Inspection and entry procedures are much quicker here.”

“Oh…”

Adelia looked quietly impressed.
It was understandable—she had lived her whole life in the sanctuary city of the Middle Temple and had only just now stepped into the Free City of Veritas for the first time.
To her, everything must have seemed new and fascinating.

“Stop the carriage and present your identification.”

Shing—!

As we approached, guards blocked the gate with their halberds.

Above their heads, numbers floated:

• 【Lv. 41】

• 【Lv. 45】

• 【Lv. 39】

Roughly mid-30s to mid-40s in level.
That was more than enough to be considered skilled in most places.

‘The mercenaries hired by the bald merchant are only in their mid-20s level-wise. So yeah, these guards are no joke either.’

Still, I didn’t feel anything particularly threatening from them.
Ever since I awakened in this world, I’d only run into monstrous beings—it probably skewed my standards.

“Here you go.”

The bald merchant casually detached the emblem from his chest and took out a metal token from his inner pocket.

The guard examined it carefully, then nodded and moved aside.

“Verified: Special-class merchant Hakkun Durdamel. Please report your imported goods to the trade guild by tomorrow…”

Mumble, mumble—

After listing off the formalities, the guards let us pass without inspecting the passengers or cargo.

This was proof of the immense trust and privileges granted to special-class merchants of the Silk Road.

‘Veritas is a city built on the blood and sweat of merchants.’

Trade was the lifeblood of the city, and influential merchants were treated with great respect.
Of course, to earn that status, the merchants had to achieve impressive results themselves.

“Damn, what a terrifying monster…”

Whispers—

As we passed the gate, I heard guards murmuring behind us.
Their eyes were fixed on the corpse of the Heavenly Dragonbird (Cheonryongjo).

Now that I think about it, even outside the city, people had stared at us with astonishment.

—

—“Whoa, what is that…?”
—“Never seen a monster like that before.”
—“It’s bigger than most wyverns…”

—

Well, yeah.
When would ordinary adventurers or merchants ever see a creature larger than a wyvern?

And even if they did, they’d likely die on the spot.
Against a corrupted divine beast, average folks wouldn’t stand a chance.

They’d either die running or freeze in place and die.
Unless they miraculously got help from a Swordmaster wandering through an unexplored zone…

‘Anyway.’

Even inside Veritas, we drew constant attention.

Passersby stared curiously at the giant corpse.
But it was mostly out of amazement or interest—no one seemed to recognize what it actually was.

‘Looks like no one knows it’s a Heavenly Dragonbird.’

Even merchants bearing the Silk Road’s emblem passed us without any unusual reaction.

That just proved how capable our bald merchant, Hakkun Durdamel, really was.

‘I suspected as much when he recognized Adelia’s identity at a glance…’

In the game Roel, players never got a chance to assess Hakkun Durdamel’s abilities.
By the time you reached Veritas, he had already passed away—just a dead NPC mentioned by his widow.

But meeting him now, it was clear he was much more competent than expected.

With this level of skill, it might be worth building a long-term business relationship with him.

“We’ve arrived.”

After passing through the bustling streets and vibrant marketplaces of Veritas, we finally reached our destination.

A golden sign glinted dazzlingly under the sunlight above a three-story building:

【Durdamel’s Golden Trading Company】

A large gate wide enough for cargo wagons to enter.
On either side stood majestic statues of… octopuses.

Adelia muttered in confusion.

“O-Octopuses…?”

Yeah.

Kinda random, huh, Adelia?

I had the same reaction when I first saw it in the game.

Usually, you’d expect gargoyles, dragons, or lions guarding the entrance, not cephalopods.

‘But…’

I glanced sideways at the bald merchant.

‘…Now I get it.’

Everyone has a favorite animal.

* * *

“Then I’ll see you next time! Let’s go, Wilson!”

Braaay—!

With a loud bray, Tangno the donkey trotted off with its owner.

Inside the vast warehouse connected to the entrance, employees rushed out as soon as they saw Hakkun Durdamel arrive.

Their faces were filled with worry.

“S-Sir, what happened to the other wagons? You look injured…”

Durdamel replied calmly.

“No need to worry. Just a bit of trouble in an unexplored zone.”

“…!”

“There should be some goods left along the route to Dungard. Assemble a team and retrieve them immediately.”

“…Yes, sir. Right away.”

The staff snapped into action.
His command spread quickly, and a special retrieval team was organized within moments.

I quietly observed—this was a well-run operation.

“Young master.”

The bald merchant approached me cautiously.

“Would you have a moment to speak?”

“What is it?”

“It’s nothing urgent—just about how to handle the Heavenly Dragonbird’s corpse. And while we’re at it, I’d like to introduce you to my company.”

Oh?

Nice—he brought it up first.
I was wondering how to approach the topic.

Pretending to consider it for a moment, I nodded.

“Lead the way.”

“Right this way, then.”

Step, step—

We followed him deeper into the trading company.

Past the warehouse, the interior grew more lavish—
Red carpets, intricate chandeliers, and display cases filled with rare items lined the walls.
Staff moved briskly throughout the space.

‘So this is the Durdamel Trading Company…’

I was impressed.
In the game, it had been an abandoned, dusty building after Durdamel’s death.
Now it was a symbol of prosperity.

“Please, have a seat.”

We arrived at the top-floor office and sank into the plush sofa.

…Wow, this is soft.
First time I’ve felt this kind of comfort since staying at that hotel in the dark city of Dungard.

I was starting to feel drowsy.

“First things first.”

Durdamel began.

“Do you have identity tags for use in Veritas?”

I shook my head.
Adelia glanced at me, then also shook hers.

She probably had a holy family crest, but seemed intent on establishing a clean slate.

Seeing our response, Durdamel nodded knowingly.

“In that case, let’s go issue your ID tags immediately. With my guarantee, it won’t take long.”

“I’d appreciate it.”

“My pleasure. Oh, and this is slightly off-topic but…”

He hesitated, then asked:

“…What are your plans for the Heavenly Dragonbird’s corpse?”

Before I could answer, he continued.

“Rare monster corpses usually sell best at auction. But this case is special. Few people even know what the Heavenly Dragonbird is, and it’s never appeared on the market. Plus, since it killed one of the Elder’s agents, it might attract unwanted attention…”

Rambling—

To summarize:
Dealing with the corpse could be troublesome, but if I left it to him, he’d handle everything—no effort needed on our part.

“It’s not meant to pressure you, but the body will rot. It’s best to decide soon. We’ll also take the bare minimum commission…”

“That’s enough.”

“Pardon?”

“I’ll entrust it to you. Go retrieve the corpse.”

“…!”

Durdamel’s eyes sparkled.

He brought out the paperwork immediately, and we signed the contract.

The terms were very generous—almost too generous.
He probably wouldn’t profit at all.

But it was obvious what he was really after—this was about building ties with the holy family, more than profit.

“Young master, have you chosen a place to stay?”

Durdamel asked again.

“If not, once we get your ID, I can take you to a fine inn. My wife runs a large one here in Veritas.”

I nodded.

Since we’d need to stay in touch regarding the Heavenly Dragonbird anyway, it made sense to stay close.

“Let’s do that.”

Afterward, we headed to the guild.

Just like Durdamel promised, the ID issuance was lightning-fast.
Unbelievably efficient.

‘Veritas usually has one of the stricter identity checks in the world of Roel…’

The prestige of a top-class merchant really showed.

* * *

“Darling!”

At the inn, I ran into a familiar face—
The widow NPC… no, no longer a widow—Mrs. Durdamel herself.

She wore the happiest expression I’d ever seen as she reunited with her husband.

“And who might these people be…?”

“Oh, I forgot myself.”

After their emotional reunion, Durdamel introduced us as the ones who saved his life.

Tears in her eyes, Mrs. Durdamel bowed repeatedly.

“You saved my husband…! I can’t thank you enough…!”

Thanks to that, we were treated with overwhelming hospitality.

“Here! Try this too!”

“…Didn’t you already finish cooking?”

“Oh, don’t be silly. There’s plenty more where that came from.”

“….”

It was a bit much, honestly. But still—

Step, step—

It was now the fourth day since our arrival in Veritas.

Feeling well-rested, Adelia and I stepped out into the inn’s backyard.

“Adelia.”

“Yes?”

“Show me your swordsmanship.”

[Reward: The sealed talent ‘Sword (Lv. Max)’ will be unlocked.]

It was time to test the performance of a 179,312,341-point skill.