Chapter 491 - 490: A Favorable Price

"So that's how it is!" Mog's face lit up with understanding as he began to mumble the note's contents. "Mog should sleep on time, not go to dangerous places, eat…"

Ale silently walked over and placed her hand on the note in Colin's.

After a flash of Magic Radiance, her small hand slowly lifted. The hole in the paper was instantly repaired, making it look as though it had just been torn from a book.

"Little ones can even fix paper?!" Mog exclaimed in surprise. He then stood up, mimicking the bow Ale and the others had made earlier. "Thank you, long-eared little one."

"I was happy to help," Ale said with a slight nod.

Colin spoke again. "Listen, Mog. Just follow the rest of the instructions. After enough time, you'll naturally find your new master and figure out how to live your life."

"Mog understands. Thank you, little Mage," Mog said earnestly.

"If you run into any trouble, go to the Black Heart Tavern in Thousand Masts City and look for Old Black Heart. Tell him you're a friend of Colin's," said Colin. "I'll help you."

"Of course, you could come to the North as well. The gates to the territories northwest of the Supreme Forest will always be open to you," Albert said with a smile.

The Ogre frowned in confusion, not quite understanding what "be open to you" meant.

He started counting on his fingers, listing the things he needed to do. "Okay, so Mog won't go to the Sunset Mountain Range. Sunset Mountain Range not safe, can't go. Mog will go to a village nearby first, earn gold. Then eat, sleep…"

It wasn't obvious, but the despair in his eyes had faded significantly.

'As long as Mog can break away from his potion-focused mindset and just live safely for a while, he might find his own purpose,' Colin thought. 'If not, at least he'll be able to live a relatively peaceful life.'

The feast continued.

The boisterous nobles of the North had no regard for etiquette. Most of them were drinking and shouting like drunkards in a tavern.

A few Orcs from other tables came over to chat with Kase, while Colin and the others did their best to demolish the food on their own table.

But judging by the endless stream of dishes, their efforts were doomed to fail. After all, the castle's kitchen staff had been preparing for the entire day.

Bathed in the warm light of the flames, a tipsy Colin yawned.

All in all, the trip had come to a successful end.

「The afternoon of the day after the feast.」

Colin and the others arrived in the castle's great hall.

Albert and Mikhailo were there as well.

A large pile of Orcish Armor and weapons lay in the center of the great hall—their spoils of war.

A gust of hot air from the fireplace made Colin's already aching head throb.

He clutched his head. "I'm starting to miss Donkexes's beer. How do they make it so you don't get a headache the next day?"

"You still get headaches from drinking, Colin? Are you a kid?" Dorn chuckled.

Ale retorted, "And you *look* like one."

"Can't you see this magnificent, handsome white beard of mine, little pointy-eared princess?" Fearing another short-joke from her, Dorn grumbled and fell silent.

Neither he nor Kase felt the slightest discomfort. In fact, they felt refreshed and clear-headed, as if it had been someone else who got blind drunk in the great hall the night before.

Colin was rather envious of that.

After all, besides light beer, there weren't many other cheap, good-tasting drinks in this world.

"What do you all plan to do with this equipment?" Albert asked.

"We need to take a look first," Colin said, carefully examining the items on the floor.

First, there was a messy pile of coins, clearly plundered from all over. They were a mix of old and new, in all different shapes and sizes.

Originally, trade among Orcs was limited to bartering. But after evil organizations like the Viper Association started smuggling weapons and equipment into the Orc Tribes, the Orcs eventually learned the value of precious metals and began hoarding coins.

Next were Orc-made bone carvings, wooden totems, and some Gemstones that looked like ordinary pebbles. Besides those, there were miscellaneous items like the Dire Wolf Knights' waterskins and whetstones.

Colin habitually glanced at Ale. The Half-Elf spoke up, "Worth two hundred Gold Coins."

'If she ever gives up adventuring, this Half-Elf could definitely get a job at a bank counting Gold Coins,' Colin thought.

He then turned his attention to the weapons and armor.

The Orcs' weapons and Armor looked incredibly crude, completely lacking any sense of aesthetics or design. It looked like they had just taken human Armor, added some Beast Hide they'd acquired, and hammered it all together.

This gear usually had a Power requirement. If someone with less than sixteen Power tried to use it, the equipment's effectiveness would be drastically reduced. As such, it was basically useless to Colin and his companions.

It was also worth noting that because they had lived in Snow Deer Valley for so many years, Kase's tribe had almost no concept of "Armor."

After all, fighting in heavy Armor in such a harsh environment would have been suicide. In any case, the thick clothing they wore there probably wasn't much different from standard Beast Hide Armor.

Next, Colin's eyes fell upon the Orc Chief's Battle Axe.

The Battle Axe was extremely crude—just a lump of iron strapped to a wooden stick. If you replaced the Axe Blade with a rock, it would be right at home in the Stone Age.

[Sturdy Battle Axe / Poor-Quality, Non-Ordinary Level Magic Weapon]

[Damage: 6.5–13.5]

[Orc Craftsmanship: This Axe was crafted using techniques inferior to those of Stone Age humans. Any creature with less than sixteen Power suffers a -3 penalty to their hit rate while using it.]

[Shamanic Evil Skill: +1 to the weapon's hit rate and Damage.]

Just like the Frost Giant's Axe, it was very heavy but also packed a decent punch. It was obvious at a glance that only Kase could wield it.

Colin stepped forward and picked up the Battle Axe. It felt like it weighed at least five or six pounds—quite a bit heavier than the Elf Giant Sword.

He could lift it and swing it a few times, but in a real fight, its weight would definitely affect his accuracy and control.

He handed it to Kase. "Alright, this one's yours."

"Hmph. Damn right." Kase smugly picked up the Axe and hefted it a few times. "The craftsmanship on this is way worse than what we have in my tribe."

"Well, you've had dealings with humans, after all," Colin said. "As for the rest of this stuff, I'll leave it to you, Albert."

"I'll offer 300 gold coins for the weapons and armor. Including the miscellaneous items, I think a total price of five hundred gold coins is fair. Do you agree?"