"By the way, it seems that there are a lot of missionaries in this town," Erwin said, intentionally changing the subject.

"They can promote their religions however they want. As long as they don't get in our way, we won't get in their way," the manager replied.

Erwin nodded in response. When it came to their attitude toward the churches, his was quite similar to that of the residents of this town. "Why is this town so lively? I can't help but feel like it's different from all of the other towns of a similar size that I've been to before."

The manager took a glance at Erwin with a smile on his face, then cast his gaze out the window toward the dark forest in the distance. "Of course this town is more lively than the other ones you've been to. The things that come out of those forests are immediately brought here to be sold."

"The forest is really dangerous, isn't it? How are there still people who dare to venture into it?"

"Greed has been the death of many people. There are always people willing to venture into the forest for profit."

"What do they search for in there?"

"Anything, really. Most people either search for some precious magic potions ingredients or try to capture some living magic beasts," the manager replied.

"Magic beasts? Are you referring to those werecats?" Erwin asked as he thought back to the slave traders he had seen on the street.

"Werecats? Werecats are the lowest grade magic beasts that can be caught. You won't even have to go very far into the forest at all to capture them," the manager scoffed.

"Then what else is there?" Erwin asked.

"Are werecats still the only magic beasts that can be caught in the south?" The manager was rather surprised to hear this, and it was clear that he was relishing this opportunity to speak to a southerner.

"What else do you catch around these parts?" Erwin asked, happy to learn more from the talkative manager.

"These past few years, they've been catching things like conch horses and fire-ice camels. Usually, there are one or two of those captured every month or so," the manager introduced with a smile on his face. "As for some of the rarer ones, such as twin-head qilins, we only see one around once every one or two years."

The names "conch horse", "fire-ice camels", and "twin-head qilins" were completely unfamiliar to Erwin, and he hesitated momentarily, unsure of what expression to display in reaction to hearing this. In the end, he merely gave a slight nod in response, displaying a rather mild and indifferent reaction to the manager's introduction. Having faced formidable magic beasts like wyverns and giant ice dragons in the past, it was very difficult for him to put on an intrigued expression in response to what he was hearing.

The manager was rather disappointed to see Erwin's indifferent reaction, and he thought to himself, I guess this is a normal reaction, considering he crossed directly over the Terarody Mountain Ranges from the south to the north. Perhaps he's seen all of the magic beasts I've mentioned, and perhaps he's even killed a few on his way here. If that's the case, then it's no wonder that he doesn't look very interested.

However, Erwin decided to humor the manager in the end, and he smiled as he said, "I haven't heard of any of the magic beasts you just mentioned. What is a conch horse? And what is a fire-ice camel? And why are those twin-head qilins so rare?"

A smile immediately returned to the manager's face upon hearing Erwin's question. He didn't know if Erwin was genuinely curious or not, but he was still happy to show off his knowledge on this subject. "Alright, let me tell you about conch horses first. These are a very interesting type of magic beast that look like a white horse with a conch shell sitting on their back. At night, it would go back into its shell to sleep, and it wouldn't wake up no matter what you do."

"So that means they can't be ridden at night?"

"You can't ride them during the day, either. With such a massive shell on its back, how are you supposed to fit on it?"

"Then what's the point of capturing them?" Erwin asked with an amused expression.

"These things are used to draw carriages, and they make quite a grand statement," the manager explained. "Think about it: if you're a noble who can afford to travel in a carriage drawn by conch horses, wouldn't that be a spectacular sight to behold?"

The manager inspected Erwin through narrowed eyes as he spoke, then asked, "Pardon me if I'm wrong, but you're a noble, right? Can you tell me what nobility title you have? Or are you still yet to inherit a nobility title? Also, the woman who accompanied you here is also someone of a very lofty status, right?"

Erwin merely gave an ambiguous smile in response and didn't elaborate.

"I've never seen anyone so beautiful in my entire life," the manager sighed, then raised his head with a curious expression as he asked, "What were a pair of nobles like you two doing venturing into the Terarody Mountain Ranges?"

"We ended up in there by chance," Erwin replied in a vague manner. "Why are we suddenly talking about me? You still haven't told me what fire-ice camels and twin-head qilins are yet."

"Oh right, I got a little sidetracked there. Fire-ice camels look very similar to normal camels, but out of its two humps, one of them is as cold as a block of ice, while the other is as scorching hot as a piece of metal that's been burning in an open flame." The manager's curiosity toward Erwin and Onean was clearly outweighed by his urge to introduce these magic beasts to Erwin.

"In that case, it sounds like they can't be ridden, either. Why does it seem like all of the magic beasts that you capture around these parts aren't very practical?" Erwin knew that the manager wanted to ask him about his and Onean's identities, so he was doing his best to keep the conversation away from that subject. "What about those twin-head qilins? Don't tell me they're just as impractical."

"You can't always think about these magic beasts as livestock," the manager murmured in a distracted voice. Internally, he was still speculating about the identities of Erwin and Onean, so he was looking a little absentminded. "I heard that there are some magic beasts captured from some parts that can even imitate human speech."

"What? Like parrots?" Erwin asked with a serious expression.

"You're a funny young man," the manager chuckled with an amused expression. "I heard that it was a magic beast with the head of a mountain goat, but it walked on two legs. Not long after it was purchased by a certain noble, news began to spread that the magic beast had learned to communicate in human language."

Erwin immediately thought back to those wereleopards. If he were to stay with them for some time, he was sure that they would also be able to learn the human language very quickly. 

If there are often people from this town hunting magic beasts in the forest, then the magic beasts living in the forest must be extremely resentful toward humans, Erwin thought to himself. No wonder those wereleopards were able to pick up wine bottles. I'm assuming they were brought into the forest by the magic beast hunters.

"So the reason why this town is so lively is because there are magic beast traders waiting here to replenish their stock?" Erwin asked.

"That's right. Take a look outside. Most of the people on the streets are either magic beast traders or jobless mercenaries waiting to see if any of the magic beast hunting parties would be willing to hire them. There are also many thieves that are hiding in obscure places, targeting the magic beast traders who have brought money here to purchase magic beasts. As for the people from the churches, they only started coming here a few years ago," the manager explained.

"Are they really only here to spread their religions?" Erwin thought back to the fact that the True Light Church had always had its sights set on the Fall Crystals in the Terarody Mountain Ranges. Wouldn't it stand to reason that the churches of the north would also have similar ulterior motives?

"What else could they be here for?" the manager asked as he looked at Erwin with a perplexed expression.

Erwin didn't continue this topic of discussion. Instead, he stood up again and made his way over to the window, listening to the singing of the traveling poet. "That's quite an interesting song that he's singing there."

At this point, the missionaries of the New Light Church and the nun and pastor of the Holy World Church had already departed from the scene, leaving only a group of bystanders behind to listen to the song of the traveling poet.

"That man is nothing but a scoundrel! His eyes immediately light up as soon as he sees any woman, and all of the women in this town have been harassed by him!" the manager said in a resentful manner. "He doesn't have any useful skills. All he does is play that lute and sing his stupid songs! He's a waste of the air that he breathes, if you ask me!"

For some reason, the manager suddenly lost his composure and delivered a scathing tirade.

Erwin took a glance at the manager's daughter, who was waiting for Onean outside the changing room, and he could only presume that she had also been harassed by the traveling poet in the past.

At this point, Onean had finally changed into the dress that she had chosen.

"Oh my goodness, you are so beautiful!" the manager's daughter exclaimed as soon as Onean emerged from the changing room. She then hurriedly clasped her hand over her own mouth, slightly embarrassed by her own loss of composure.

Even though Erwin was already accustomed to Onean's breathtaking allure, he still couldn't help but be extremely impressed that she was able to look so good even in such a simple dress. The design of the dress was a classic among young women in the countryside, and the top half consisted of a clean and crisp white shirt that tapered at the waist with layered sleeves to give it a very fashionable appearance. As for the bottom half of the dress, that consisted of a black skirt under a brown overskirt that cut diagonally across the black underskirt. The lines of the dress were very simple and clear-cut, and having changed into the dress, Onean was giving off the aura of a pure and refreshing young maiden. Erwin could already imagine her wearing this dress as she frolicked through the wilderness, twirling and dancing across the farmland.

"I wasn't able to find a dress that I liked. The range in the shop is very limited," Onean said as she turned to Erwin with a resigned expression. However, it was clear that her words didn't match her mood. Despite her complaints, it was clear from her expression that she was very pleased with the dress.

Erwin was no longer so easily overwhelmed by Onean's beauty, so he didn't offer her any exaggerated words of praise. However, the shrewd manager of the tailor shop was able to clearly see from his expression that he was also very pleased with Onean's dress selection.

"Let's settle on this one then. I felt like I could feel myself aging as I was waiting for you," Erwin jibed, then turned to the manager to ask how much it was going to cost for the two sets of clothes.

"That'll be a total of 320 Loonies," the manager said with a warm smile.

Looking at the smile on the manager's face, Erwin couldn't help but be reminded of the elderly man who had sold him his staff back in the Luzen Equipment Shop.

Why is it that all of these old geezers are picking on me to charge exorbitant prices from? Do I look like an easygoing cash cow? 

At the same time, he couldn't help but wonder if the manager had gone through his money bag in secret while he was changing into his new clothes. Otherwise, how did the manager know that he only had less than 400 Loonies with him?

Onean was able to detect the hint of hesitation that flashed through Erwin's eyes, and she immediately had a rough idea of why he was so hesitant. As a result, a hint of shame and embarrassment also appeared on her face. For a princess like her, this was the first time that she had ever been restricted by a budget. She had never had to worry about finances back when she was the princess of the Effer Kingdom, and after leaving Sarus, Erwin had taken care of the financial side of things, so she didn't have to worry about money, either. However, life was very fickle and unpredictable. Who could've anticipated that they'd be inexplicably swept to the northern continent as a result of their battle against the ice dragon? The vast majority of Erwin's wealth, which consisted of those chests of Loonies, was still back on the airship.

However, at the same time, they had to be grateful that the cloud of black mist hadn't swept away the money bag that Erwin was carrying with him. If that had happened, then they'd be in an even more embarrassing situation.

"How about..." Onean had only just opened her mouth to speak before she was cut off by Erwin, who promptly issued the required payment.

Going by his etiquette as a noble, Erwin casually counted out the right number of Loonies before placing them on the counter, not even bothering to barter with the manager.

The manager thanked Erwin warmly for his patronage while also giving his daughter a subtle glance, instructing her to count the money.

Meanwhile, Erwin grabbed onto Onean's hand, and the two of them went downstairs before exiting the shop.

"We have no money left," Erwin declared not long after they emerged from the tailor shop. He was like a minister of finance delivering a frank report to the king of their nation.

"I know." Onean couldn't help but be amused by how casually Erwin had declared their financial situation, and it seemed that she had already forgotten her embarrassment. "What do we do now?"

"What else can we do?" Erwin asked as he turned to look at her. "We have to find a way to make some money."

After asking around, the two of them discovered, to their surprise, that there really was an art supplies shop in this town.