Show Me Your Stats!

Merchant Ronya frowned suspiciously at the map.

He’d recently had a troubling visitor. A young man in a suspicious robe had shown up, asking him to trade cloth and food supplies with Solar Estate. He’d even offered to pay extra, but Ronya had flatly refused. Crossing those treacherous mountains in winter was practically suicide. Even in summer, that range was no joke.

Lately, the rumors circulating among merchants about Solar weren’t good. Talk of increased earthquakes, caravans buried alive by avalanches—it wasn’t a place anyone wanted to go. The place was, after all, where Lord Morunka had laid his body to rest. Naturally, danger was to be expected. And not long ago, Bolni’s army had marched right up to Solar’s doorstep in a show of force.

So Ronya had assumed that the strange young man had given up. But a few days later, he showed up again. This time, he looked pale and exhausted, clearly worn out from some ordeal. But instead of asking Ronya to buy goods, the young man simply smiled and said something strange.

“I’ve discovered a route that gets you from Solar to Bolni in just a day or two. Would you be interested in seeing it for yourself?”

“What? A route from Solar that only takes a day or two?”

In truth, Solar wasn’t all that far from Bolni. The only reason it took a week to travel between them was because of the winding detours around the mountains. A direct route that only took a day or two sounded like a scam.

Ronya stared the man down, but the young man didn’t elaborate. Instead, he handed Ronya a simple, hand-drawn map.

“I found it by accident. It’s not a scam. If you’re worried, bring as many guards or mercenaries as you like. More escorts would be better anyway. If you arrive at the marked location by tomorrow, I’ll be waiting.”

With that, the young man left the shop as casually as if he were just buying groceries. Ronya spent the rest of the day scowling at the map.

The next day, curiosity finally got the better of him. He left the shop, bringing along a small force of trusted mercenaries who were under lifetime contract with his merchant guild. Worst case, they’d wasted a day. But if this really was a direct route to Solar...

“It could mean more clients—and more profit.”

When they reached the base of the mountains, one of the mercenaries who’d been squinting at the map suddenly groaned in realization.

“Master Ronya... if we keep heading this way, won’t we end up at that place?”

“That place?”

“The Silent Cave.”

“Ah, come to think of it...”

The Silent Cave was infamous among the locals. Every kid in Bolni had once been told that if they misbehaved, the monsters in the cave would come get them. In truth, it was a dangerous cavern full of hideous demon beasts. Multiple extermination attempts had failed even before Ronya was born. So long as people stayed away, it was safe enough—and Bolni had long since given up trying to do anything about it.

So it really was a scam!

Having come this far, Ronya figured he might as well give that scammer a piece of his mind. But when he arrived at the marked location, his eyes widened in surprise.

There was a crowd gathered near the Silent Cave. He’d thought he heard voices—now he saw that the area was packed with merchants and their hired mercenaries. Just the number of armed men alone was in the dozens.

“Perfect timing. I was just about to explain everything and head into the cave.”

A cheerful voice greeted him, and Ronya turned to see a man with a snowy-white face, silver hair, and blue-gray eyes—so unmistakably from Solar it might as well have been stamped on his forehead. Only then did Ronya realize this was the same young man who had visited his shop.

Before he could say anything, the man walked right past him.

“How much longer are we supposed to wait? Are you sure the cave is safe now?”

Someone shouted, unable to contain their impatience. The murmurs of frustration grew louder. Ronya pushed through the crowd and craned his neck to look at the Silent Cave.

They said it was full of demon beasts, but from the outside, it just looked like a perfectly circular tunnel—so smooth it might’ve been carved by human hands. Not even a single bat in sight.

Then the young man stepped right up to the cave entrance, without hesitation. The mercenaries who knew firsthand how dangerous the place was flinched and instinctively backed away.

But nothing happened.

“Hello. I’m Hess from Solar Estate. Do you remember me?”

Under the sunlight, Hess’s face glowed faintly. It was a handsome face—probably one that had charmed more than a few women. His voice and looks were smooth, maybe too smooth. Ronya gave him a skeptical once-over.

“You merchants said the mountains were too dangerous to cross, so I went looking for an alternate route. And here it is.”

With a flourish, Hess pointed at the cave.

Dead silence.

Shrugging, he stepped inside. His footsteps echoed into the distance, until they could no longer be heard. Then he turned around and walked back out, completely unharmed.

With a bright grin, he raised his hand and announced:

“The demon beasts have been completely cleared! It’s a clean, safe, and comfortable passage now!”

This time, the crowd stirred. Some merchants tilted their heads in confusion. Others, who knew more about the cave, stared between Hess and the tunnel with disbelief.

Ronya, now visibly agitated, shouted:

“You’re saying the demon beasts are gone? Since when?”

“Two days ago. There were quite a few of them, but I cleaned it up nicely.”

He said it so casually, like he’d just swept the street.

“You did? How?”

“With magic.”

At that, Hess snapped his fingers—and a cluster of glowing orbs floated gently into the air above him.

Most people just stared in awe. But a few mercenary mages immediately narrowed their eyes. They could tell—this wasn’t some cheap light spell.

Even knowing he was a mage, Ronya still couldn’t fully believe it. Were all the other mages who’d tried before just idiots? He wasn’t the only one still skeptical, but before anyone could bombard Hess with questions, the mage turned on his heel.

“I’ll guide you myself. One day is all it takes to reach Solar. Anyone who wants to see for themselves, follow me.”

And just like that, he started walking into the cave again.

The merchants exchanged glances. A brave one took the lead, following after Hess. Then, slowly, the rest followed—somewhat reassured by their numbers and the mercenaries at their sides.

The inside of the cave was smooth, like someone had polished the walls with sandpaper. The ground was coated in soft soil and dotted with round pebbles, as if to prevent slipping. It was wide and tall enough for large groups to pass through easily.

Ronya found himself doing the math.

When you cross the mountains, you never know when beasts or bandits might strike. But in here, there’s no chance of ambush. Horses and wagons could get through easily. Barely any incline—it’s practically flat terrain.

It was even warmer than outside—warm enough that some took off their outer layers.

Looking around, Ronya could see the same calculations dawning on the other merchants’ faces. They could absolutely sell food and fabric through this route. Hess had mentioned a premium price. Compared to selling in Sobletz or Bolni, the profits would be far greater.

If the road’s this good, maybe I should form a long-term contract with Solar.

Not to mention—Solar was the sacred resting place of Lord Morunka. Devout pilgrims still risked their lives to reach it. But now, even ordinary believers who once feared the mountains could come and go through this tunnel.

Where people travel, money flows. Ronya listened closely as Hess began explaining things.

“Isn’t it beautiful? This cave was formed over at least three thousand years, as hundreds of thousands of solvent-type demon beasts slowly melted through the rock at a rate of one secroon per second. I’ve seen a lot of caves bored through by melters, but this—this is art. This kind of geological formation is incredibly rare. By sheer coincidence, the environment maintained a consistent acidity for millennia. It broke my heart to wipe them out, honestly. The tunnel follows the planet’s magnetic field, so it’s not perfectly straight—but it’s still amazing. I’ve never seen the Zitorgit subspecies produce such distinct wave-patterns before. And in the sediment layer, you can even observe a Heorophe waveform unit of about 20 ipcroons...”

His face was perfectly calm, but everything coming out of his mouth sounded like the ravings of a madman. Ronya just nodded along politely.

By the end of the day, they finally reached the end of the cave. The last section was rougher—bumpy «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» and uneven, like someone had broken through by force. A few merchants stumbled, and even Hess wobbled a bit before sheepishly saying:

“Another fifty years and it would’ve been a perfect breakthrough. It took some effort, I’ll admit. I used up nearly all my mana drilling through—and almost got eaten by the melters.”

Melters? Must be what he called the demon beasts. Ronya tilted his head, but then sunlight spilled across his face.

Hess stepped out of the cave and spread his arms wide.

“Everyone... welcome to Solar!”