The noisy square was left behind, fading into the rattling of wagons and the shouting of merchants. The girls should have already returned by now.
Grey walked fast, barely looking around. He wanted to finish everything before Junior woke up.
He headed back toward the торговый district, to the part where miners and adventurers sold their goods. It was always loud there. The smell of iron and sweat became stronger with every step toward his destination.
The place resembled a massive bazaar.
Grey stopped at every stall, carefully examining the goods on display. A week ago, he had given Little Grey a detailed description of what they were searching for: yellow crystals that looked like dried flower petals and left a faint smell of rotten water on your hands.
Turns out people here called those crystals "sunstone." It was a common tool for driving away evil spirits. Less popular than garlic or aspen shavings, but still in high demand.
Naturally, none of that occult nonsense interested him in the slightest.
He was looking for sulfur, the final ingredient needed to make gunpowder.
Charcoal caused no problems. He could burn any random branch inside a sealed pit without oxygen access. One-third of the work was already done.
Saltpeter, however, had become a problem.
Grey still shuddered when he remembered searching three days ago for a place with the highest concentration of manure, urine, and rot. It had been the most disgusting experience across both of his lives, and he swore never to repeat it again.
Still, the operation had succeeded.
He managed to obtain several kilograms of saltpeter, enough to last for quite a while.
Only sulfur remained.
Half an hour later, he finally found what he had been looking for.
"Incense against evil spirits and curses!" the seller shouted loudly after catching the boy's interested gaze scanning the goods. "Purifies the aura, drives away evil. Specialists use it to expel heart demons. Buy it if you want to become an elite warrior. Today is a special day. Our city has been cleansed, now cleanse yourself too!"
"What's the composition?" Grey asked calmly, ignoring the stream of meaningless chatter.
"Ah, I recognized a true expert the moment I saw you." The merchant narrowed his eyes and slipped naturally into flattery. "Ash from the bones of a great lizard, dried moss, and of course sunstone, the blessing of the depths. Pure. Refined. You won't regret it."
"Show me," the boy demanded dryly.
The merchant did not argue. He pulled out a small pouch and opened it slightly. Inside was a yellow powder. Grey took a pinch and smelled it. The scent was familiar. A little too sweet, but it definitely resembled sulfur.
Almost pure.
"How much?"
"You're a professional, so you should know the average price yourself. One silver coin. When will some fool finally cross my path?" The seller threw up his hands in mock defeat.
"For a handful of soot and yellow dust?" Grey smirked. "Two copper coins. No more."
"You little... do you even know how hard this stuff is to добывать?!" the merchant nearly howled. "This isn't just dirt, brat. This is the breathing power of the Earth! Sunstone! Curse the damned thing."
"The breathing power of the Earth smells like rotten eggs," Grey replied calmly. "And I'm pretty sure you're not the one mining it. Enough fairy tales, old man. Five copper coins and we shake hands."
"Copper coins?! Your eyes must be rotting if you can't see the power of the sun right in front of you..."
Grey stopped listening. He had already turned away.
"Fine, fine! Six copper coins, and may I never see your rotten city face again!"
With a faint smile, Grey tossed the required amount onto the counter, grabbed the pouch, and walked away without looking back.
The first goal was already complete. Every component needed for gunpowder had been gathered.
Next came the blacksmiths' street.
Here, the chaos and noise of the market stalls gave way to the rhythmic ringing of metal and waves of crushing heat. Strangely enough, the street did not stink of waste. Unfortunately, not because it was clean, but because the smell of soot, smoke, and burning iron was so thick it felt almost tangible.
Grey walked calmly and confidently, having already exchanged several silver coins for a handful of copper at a terrible rate. Better to suffer a small loss than attract unwanted attention. Silver shined far too brightly in this hole, where every second man might slit a child's throat for a couple of coins.
"Barrel, trigger, firing pin, grip, and bullet mold," he repeated inwardly like a mantra. "Order everything from different places. Add a few strange items for distraction. No problems."
The first forge greeted him with furious clanging.
A massive man in a leather apron stood near the entrance, hammering out a horseshoe without paying attention to the people walking past. He did not even notice Grey until the boy stepped right up to him.
"What do you want, boy?" he barked without looking up. "Get lost?"
"No," Grey answered dryly. "I need a straight metal tube forged. About the width of a finger. No bends. As straight and sturdy as possible."
"That's a strange order. What do you need a thing like that for?" the blacksmith asked, narrowing his eyes as he wiped sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.
Grey glanced toward the furnace and smiled with the most innocent expression he could manage.
"My master asked for it. I'm his apprentice. He didn't explain much, but he said something about high pressure. I don't know, uncle. Just make the order and he'll praise me."
"Ha, pressure, huh?" the blacksmith chuckled. "Where's your master? I need more details, otherwise I can't guarantee the quality."
Without a word, Grey pulled out two copper coins and slowly placed them on the anvil. The blacksmith let out a heavy breath.
"Fine. You'll get your tube. Come pick it up in three days."
Grey nodded and moved on.
Grey nodded and moved on.
At another forge, he ordered a trigger and a sharpening tool. This time, the smith was a sly-looking man with a lazy eye.
"Hey, kid, what do you need such tiny parts for? Building something?"
"None of your business," Grey answered sharply. "Are you a blacksmith or some market gossip?"
"Ha! Sharp tongue you've got there. Fine then. But it'll cost more. Small parts ruin my hands. Four copper coins."
Grey snorted.
"With hands that crooked? Two. Or I'll find someone else."
"Fine, three. Now get lost, you little swindler."
At the next forge, he ordered a firing pin and a spring. With the leftover change, he also bought a kitchen knife. The blacksmith there was not much of a talker. He simply nodded, accepted the money, and asked no questions or argued over the price.
Only the bullet molds and grip remained.
The shop he found for that purpose hid inside a narrow alley, almost lost between crooked little houses. Above the entrance hung a faded wooden sign:
"Master Elvio. Casting, carving, repairs, and secret orders."
The last words were underlined.
"What kind of secret gets advertised that openly?" Grey wondered with amusement.
He pushed the door open, and a thick smell of wax, tin, and... something sweet hit his nose immediately. Suspiciously sweet.
The inside was dim, but cozy. Cloth covered the walls, and the shelves were packed with wooden figurines of all sizes.
"Beautiful work, honestly," he noted while examining a carved wooden horse, but suddenly choked on his breath.
His eyes landed on an elegant figurine sitting on a distant shelf. A miniature woman in a shameless pose, carefully carved and... painted in detail.
Another one stood beside it.
And another.
And another.
"Missionary position. Sixty-nine. Doggy style. Dear God, can a person even bend like that?" Grey hurriedly looked away, feeling heat rush into his cheeks. Even for someone raised on Earth, this felt... excessive.
"They... do they seriously collect wooden porn carvings here?"
Grey almost regretted coming, but this was the best craftsman he had managed to find in the area.
He cleared his throat and approached the counter behind which the master sat.
The man was a thin old craftsman with faded hair tied into a narrow braid and a magnifying lens over one eye. He looked like a living fossil covered in wood dust and oil.
"Mm?" the old man grunted without even looking up. "Careful with the figurines. Fifth shelf has the new ones. Finest craftsmanship, even if I do say so myself."
"I'm not here for figurines," Grey muttered quietly while staring off to the side. "I came to order a mold for lead balls and... a specific kind of handle."
The old man finally looked up and let out a wheezy chuckle.
"Well now, I didn't expect someone your age to already need a helping hand! Heh-heh. I can tell right away you're a man of culture! Came because of my reputation, didn't you? Young, but already refined tastes. Heh-heh!"
"No!" Grey blurted out, this time genuinely turning red. "I need molds. For metal balls. For a... uh... mechanism."
"Now, now, no need to be shy." The old man grinned and winked at his young customer. "I understand perfectly. Balls, huh? And the handle? Wooden, so you can grip the spear properly, right? Heh-heh."
"No! Solid! Just... a stick carved according to my design. Straight. No unnecessary details!"
The master took the paper and shook his head with a warm smile.
"Young people these days are strange. Gone are the times when boys came asking for naked elf maidens... Fine then. Mold and handle. Pick them up tomorrow. But payment first, you little rascal."
Grey tossed a few copper coins onto the table and hurried out of the shop like he had been burned alive. His face felt like it was on fire from the inside.
He had no idea whether to laugh or die from embarrassment.
"Fantastic. My very first weapon order in this world, and now I'm known as some connoisseur of wooden pornography."
"My soul will get devoured if Lily ever finds out about this!"
"What the hell is wrong with you, you old pervert?! How dare you call yourself emotionless?!" Junior's voice suddenly exploded inside his head.
Grey flinched.
He had never heard Junior sound this panicked and hysterical before.
"I just woke up and you're already wandering around who knows where! Start talking! What were you doing with my body while I was asleep?!"
Senior sighed and tried to explain calmly.
"Nothing. I'm making weapons that will stop us from dying in a ditch. This whole thing is just a small misunderstanding."
Junior refused to listen.
"You idiot! Maniac! Pervert!" His voice sounded disturbingly similar to a girl who had just been violated.
Grey grimly stepped into an alley and leaned against the wall to catch his breath.
Junior's screaming clearly was not going to stop anytime soon.
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Author's Note. We're rapidly approaching one hundred chapters. God, you can't even imagine what kind of emotions I'm feeling right now. I sincerely hope that by the time we reach chapter one hundred, I'll have gathered a hundred active readers. And for those who want to support me, please leave reviews and visit my Patreon