Faerûn: Lord of the Eternal Sun

Chapter 28 Waiting for Preparation, Star Silver Ore

"This is Tessia, a devout paladin. Despite her young age, she is very capable and possesses an exceptionally strong character."

"Tessia, this is Isaac, the Son of the Sun this year, and a devout follower of Amanatha."

After the high priest introduced them, the two nodded slightly, thus becoming acquainted.

Tessia is nearly 1.8 meters tall and has a more robust physique than the average woman. Isaac judged that she should be a War Soul descendant.

"Son of the Sun, I know you."

The young paladin held his head slightly high, giving off a proud air, which was indeed the case. He believed that if it weren't for the constraints imposed by the church, he might have participated in the Shield Festival tournament and defeated the warrior in front of him head-on.

Taecia stood behind the high priest, adopting a protective stance, and relinquished the right to speak to the two of them.

"High Priest, I'd like to entrust the matter of changing to a paladin that we discussed last time to you."

Isaac untied the heavy money bag from his waist, which contained 100 gold coins, each weighing about 9 grams, for a total weight of nearly 2 pounds.

He brazenly stuffed the money bag into the bald high priest's hand. This was almost all of Isaac's wealth. He felt a little reluctant, but his actions were resolute.

The paladin behind the priest, witnessing this scene, had his pupils dilate. He felt disgusted by the priest's behavior and his eyes involuntarily showed a hint of contempt.

"High Priest, I have other matters to attend to, so I will take my leave now."

Taecia disapproved of this behavior and chose to ignore it, leaving the side hall directly.

The high priest weighed the money bag in his hand, his expression a mixture of amusement and exasperation, and then tossed the bag back.

"High Priest, this..."

Isaac was visibly flustered. Refusing a gift often meant no promises were kept, while accepting it meant at least half the deal was done.

Fortunately, the high priest's next words put him at ease.

"Isaac, I've spoken with the High Priest of the Sun and he believes you have the potential to become one of the Seven Guardians of the Sun, provided you pass the test."

"The Seven Guardians of the Radiant Sun!!"

Isaac's eyes widened, and even the golden pupil between his eyebrows couldn't help but blink.

As a devout believer of the Church of the Sun, he knew what the Seven Guardians of the Sun represented: they were the church's high-ranking guards, possessing temporary adjudicative and law enforcement powers within the city.

This matter is written into the laws of the Sun, and even the Lord's Palace and the Senate cannot interfere; the only way to change the outcome is through negotiations with the Church.

"Thank you, High Priest. I will definitely pass the test and will not let you down."

Isaac was overjoyed; he hadn't expected such an unexpected surprise.

"Passing the assessment won't be easy. Go back and wait patiently for news. We'll let you know as soon as there's any progress."

The high priest stood up, patted Isaac on the shoulder to encourage him, and secretly hoped that Isaac would fail the test so that he could rightfully recruit him into his ranks.

As the high priest of the temple, he was busy with many affairs and did not have much time to chat with Isaac. After exchanging a few words, he left.

------

Isaac returned to the blacksmith's shop to prepare for the upcoming assessment.

Schickel's heavy scimitar is very handy and of excellent quality, but the shield is of poor quality. Last time, it was smashed to pieces by the gnoll chieftain's large flail in two blows, and since then, I've just made do with whatever shield I can find.

Therefore, Isaac decided to forge a shield of sufficient quality. Since there were no suitable materials in the shop, he called on Ian for help.

The apprentice was training his physique in the backyard, torturing himself like a madman every day, and his progress was rapid. If Isaac hadn't gone to the apothecary to buy some recovery potions for him to use, Ian probably wouldn't have been able to hold on much longer.

"Ian, come with me to the market."

Upon hearing this, the tall young man didn't ask any further questions. He threw down the stone lock, slung his scimitar over his shoulder, slung his shield over his back, and followed his mentor.

The two closed the shop and headed towards the trading area.

……

The trading area was located in the lower city, towards the south gate, which was the entrance for foreign caravans.

Prices in the city are high, and although it's a bit tiring for caravans to make a trip, the profits are not low.

Furthermore, merchants traveling in desert terrain could not use horse-drawn or ox-drawn carts like in other places, and could only use camels, which indirectly increased the price of goods.

Therefore, for ordinary people at the bottom of the city, income is low and consumption is high, so they have to tighten their belts to make ends meet.

As for the Shadowborn, it's already a miracle they survived; they can't ask for more.

The market was crowded with people, and the air was filled with the distinct smells of sweat, body odor, and camel dung.

The two walked to the large market. The blacksmith's appearance was out of place here, and passersby tacitly kept their distance from him. If they were to bump into him, they would be beaten up without any recourse.

Isaac used to despise the class hierarchy in city-states, believing that an ideal city-state should be one where everyone is equal.

I can't help but want to give a thumbs up now, but having spent thirty years at the bottom of society, I know how hard it is for ordinary people, and I would never do anything to oppress them.

Of course, troublemakers are an exception. Apart from the truly vulnerable groups, most of the lower-class people actually have bad personalities, and the poorer they are, the worse they become.

To put it bluntly, the most severe exploitation and bullying of the lower classes comes from ordinary people. As long as they are given even the slightest bit of power, they will treat their former peers with extreme cruelty.

The descendants of ancient gods and warriors, who are high and mighty, have very few opportunities to interact with ordinary people.

There were many vendors setting up stalls on both sides of the street in the large market, some of whom were Sandwalkers selling items they had obtained from adventures in the ruins.

Unwilling to be bought at low prices by the trading houses, they chose to set up stalls in the trading area, hoping to sell their goods for a good price if they met someone knowledgeable.

Isaac's attention was mainly focused on large pieces of timber and ore, as he squatted on the stall picking and choosing.

Most of them were common ores, and a few were unfamiliar. Isaac patted the materials and could roughly tell what they were from the echoes.

This stall sells several kinds of minerals. The stall owner is not human; he is a dwarf with a burly body, a thick beard, and a white turban worn on his head to match local customs.

"Honorable guest, these ores were mined from deep within the mountains. Let me introduce them to you."

"No."

Isaac was an expert and quickly selected a piece of iron ore slightly smaller than half a human head. This material was called "Star Silver Ore," with scattered blue spots on its surface. It was hard, but not tough enough to break easily when used to forge weapons. However, it was fine for shields.

What's the price of this piece of star silver ore?

Isaac weighed it in his hand; it should be thirty or forty pounds, enough to make two shields.

"Honorable guest, it's yours for just 5 gold coins."

The dwarf stall owner offered a reasonably priced price, not daring to overcharge.

When buying materials, you naturally have to bargain. After some haggling, I got it for 4 gold coins.

After handing over the gold coins, Isaac tossed dozens of pounds of ore to Ian and continued searching for suitable large pieces of timber.