When I saw the settlement again, its situation was much better. It was shocking how different a place could look without a raging horde of beasts trying to raze it to nothingness.

I approached them loudly, which was deliberate to draw their attention, assuming they would be tense. Yet, despite that, it took a while for them to notice my presence. It wasn't too shocking, as they had only a few people to spare for labor, most busy putting a second line of the palisade, while the others doing their best to rapidly grow a garden, using the carcasses of the slain monsters, no doubt to be used to replenish their health.

A reasonable set of precautions, I admitted, even though that didn't excuse their relatively lax scouting. Maybe they assumed the next attack would be led by the boss monster, which was difficult to miss.

"Faster, we only have minutes until nightfall, and we need to put everything in order," their leader shouted.

As I got closer, I got a better glimpse of the settlement. Several platforms were in place, some hosting archers, the others carrying their wooden cannon variants. An ingenious variant, I had to admit. Yet, no one noticed me. Most likely, they assumed I was one of them.

"We have incoming!" one of the archers finally shouted when I was almost at the edge of their walls. "It's human." Immediately, a team of warriors rushed out … well, stumbled out, their state yet to recover.

I raised my hands. "Easy. I'm just a merchant guard."

The boy in front narrowed his eyes. His youth struck me as significant. "We won't go back!" he spat out angrily, but his voice cracked. "We are no slaves. We have the freedom to leave."

"Calm down," I said. "I decided to split off from my caravan once I noticed the commotion, and decided to help a bit."

"How convenient that you arrived just after —" he started, but before he could finish, another figure, a woman in her fifties, came out of the gate, stumbling. Only when she got closer, I noticed her eyes were milky white. She was blind.

"Timothy, he arrived before," the woman said even as she looked at me, a slight flare of mana around her. "Just before the boss monster decided to run away, and he disappeared soon after."

From the way the others looked at her, she must be one of the leaders. I guessed she had a decent Perception stat. "Are you sure?" Timothy asked.

"Yes, boy. He has a pretty distinct presence," she said, her face turning toward me in a way that unsettled me. I felt that, despite her lack of eyes, she could see through me.

"Why are you here?" Timothy asked.

"Since you're clearly a new settlement, I thought I could offer a trade. I have some mana alloys to sell, and some emergency rations as well," I explained. "It could be useful." They looked at each other, their suspicions almost physical. "Why don't you go ahead and discuss. If you don't want it, I can turn and leave," I offered.

That didn't make them any more comfortable. "And what if we delay until after the nightfall. Are you going to ask to stay, perfect for a sabotage?" he asked.

"Thanks for the offer, but I have other things to attend," I replied. "Either way, I'll leave."

"Even at night?" one of the others gasped.

"Nothing I can't handle," I said with a wave of my hand.

"Don't be silly, boy," the old woman cut in. "He scared away a boss monster, alone. You think there's anything else in this swamp that would scare him."

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"True," Timothy assented, but even as he looked, I could feel his mana flare instinctively, marking him as one of the few mages among them. No wonder he was the acting leader despite his age. "We can't afford much," he said. "What do you want in exchange."

"I'm feeling generous," I replied. "So, I can take a lot of different things. Any skill upgrades you have discovered, information about variant classes, even some interesting skill stones that you have in excess, even parts from different animals."

That made him tense once more. "Variant classes?" he asked, trying to bluff like he had never heard it. He wasn't exactly a master poker player.

I sighed, pointing at the tower with the wooden cannon. "Those artillery are the exact specification from the guides that are spreading around these days. And, I know for a fact the same guide also explains how to discover new skills and upgrade classes, so…" I said. They looked shocked. "You didn't think you were the only ones that received those guides, right?" I asked. He still looked hesitant, so I quickly referred to several points highlighted there.

Easily, considering I was the author of the said guides.

"Fine, I admit you have the same document," he said. "But I can't make the decision alone."

"Go ahead and discuss. As I said, I'm not in a hurry," I said. "But, before you go, here," I said, pulling a pack from it.

"What's this?" he asked.

"A gift," I said. "High-density, easily digestible processed liquid food to replenish health, perfect for assisting the injured."

He took it, his mana spreading over it as if to check. After a pause, he nodded and whistled. They pulled back into the palisade. Well, all but that old woman. "Lady Laila, please come with us," one of them said.

"Go deal with your own things, boy. Leave this old woman to her things," she said, but she still ripped a spear from his hand, using it as a blind stick to walk toward me. She was quite aggressive, enough to put a smile on my lips.

"How can I help you, Milady," I said, teasing. Enjoyingthestory?FindmoreatMV-LEMPYR.

"Don't mock me, young man," she responded.

"I'm not that young," I said.

"You're to me," she replied, then her milky white eyes narrowed. An interesting habit, making me wonder since when she was blind. But, that question fell to the wayside when she ambushed me with hers. "You wrote those guides?"

I froze for a moment, then sighed ruefully. The statement was too sharp, catching me with surprise. It seemed that, while I was reading Timothy, she was reading me as an open book in turn. "Guilty as charged,"" I replied. "Though I didn't expect this as a result."

She studied me for another beat. "You should have. The memories before the Cataclysm might be buried, but they are not forgotten. All it takes is a spark, and… Spreading that kind of information freely can cause more trouble than it can solve."

"I have to admit, that was not my first choice. But, at that time, there was a good chance we would fall. Between two options, letting it disappear was worse."

"Good to see you're not as reckless as those batch of kids. They are kind enough to keep a blind old woman alive, but..." She sighed deeply. "Tell me, what do you need from us?"

"Actually, I was mostly truthful. I had my own task, but noticing the situation, I decided to lend a helping hand," I explained.

"Is it something that would harm us?" she asked.

I opened my mouth, about to claim it was not, but then paused. It would be a lie to say no. "Not directly," I said. "But, eventually, our enemies will come here as well, and there's a chance I can't control them."

"Should we move away?" she asked.

"It might be safer for you to move away. I can even give you the necessary supplies to make it safer, but … would any other location be safer?" I said. "I don't know if you heard, but there's a war between cities, and things will only get worse. I'll make sure to send more support if you stay."

"A dangerous decision," she said.

"A dangerous world," I countered.

"True," she said with a chuckle. "Tell me, young man? Is it better for you if we stay, or leave?"

"All things equal, I prefer if you stay. If you move immediately after settling, it'll make others curious," I admitted. "But, I can't ask you to make that decision. It's yours to decide. But, if you stay, I recommend not to stray too far away from the town for a few days."

She paused. "I can't make that decision alone," she determined. "We'll talk and decide —"

Before she could finish her decision, the gates opened once more, and Timothy approached, flanked by the two spearmen, pulling a smaller cart behind him. "What can we get for those?" he asked, hesitant. I could understand his point. The battle likely depleted everything they owned, and they were clearly not rich before as well.

"I'll just leave the cart here. Take it as an investment for future trades," I said, leaving it there as I grabbed the smaller cart. "Deal?"

Timothy nodded absentmindedly, and I walked away, making sure to ask Terry to keep an eye on the settlement.