Chapter 35

From the way the older merfolk looked at his grinning son, Kai suspected Sehn knew Reishi could have forced him to drop the price. Luckily, he hadn’t said anything, so Kai could put away all the shiny copper mesars in his satchel.

Maybe he didn’t think it was worth saying anything for such a small sum. One man’s trash is another man’s treasure. I don’t think either father or son would give me a good deal just because I’m a child.

Stepping back with a satisfied expression, Kai let Moui take the stage. The hunter took off his bag and started a very different negotiation.

The first items he offered to be examined were three pelts that belonged to a mammal with brownish fur. Faint traces of mana remained present even after the animal had died. Reishi didn’t seem as impressed.

“First-tier, but not really that impressive. It’s not worth the hassle to make anything out of this.” Reishi dismissed the pelts, giving them back to Moui, who took them without a word and proceeded with the next item without missing a beat.

A series of different materials of animal origin were taken out in quick succession. At first, Reishi showed no interest, but things soon changed when it became clear Moui was going from his worst items to the most rare and valuable.

The young merman turned the hide in his webbed hands, his eyes narrowing as if to look for something only he could see. “Late first-tier. Some kind of draconic subspecies, if I had to guess. Too bad this specimen had not reached maturity yet. I can give you 3 mesars for it. I’ll need to find a good craftsman to make something of them and they are rare around here.”

Moui grunted a no, the price was too low. Contrary to Kai’s negotiations, there wasn’t much talk during their haggling. The hunter mostly grunted monosyllabic answers and Reishi offered another price or declined.

To the young merfolk’s credit, he didn’t get intimidated by Moui’s demeanor. Even if he got a little frustrated at the short answers and refusal to elaborate. Likely a deliberate tactic on the part of the hunter.

With all the help the Guide offered, it would be impossible to get a good deal from a specialized merchant. Who knew all the skills at play Kai wasn’t aware of? To come out on top, Moui decided to refuse to play at the merfolk’s game and change the rules.

Kai’s ears had not missed the mention of a draconic subspecies. Dragons were always the most powerful and feared animals in many books he read in his previous life. Reishi hadn’t shown anything more than mild interest.

Whatever Moui had hunted in the Veeryd jungle must be very far from the huge mighty dragons of Kai’s imagination, but the lack of a reaction made him think. It might be that the draconic subspecies was little more than an overgrown lizard.

Elydes showed an uncanny resemblance to Earth, with many myths and legends appearing to be real here. Kai had long-since stopped trying to reason with it. If there was an explanation out there, he had no idea where or how to look for it. Maybe one day clues would fall into his lap. Until then, there was no point losing sleep over this.

He needed to be careful not to take things for granted. There were thousands of stories and legends about magical creatures, many contradicting each other. Even if his Earth knowledge might turn out to be true, he needed to verify them first.

The draconic hide ended up being sold for 5 mesars. Considering this was only one of the items Moui brought, and not the first he sold, Kai had to reconsider his uncle’s wealth. He thought he was poor since he lived close to one of the worst neighborhoods and wore simple clothes. Clearly, he had been wrong.

I’m sure he can spare a couple mesars for his dear nephew.

One deal after another, more precious materials were brought out. From the pelts of tier-one creatures, they passed to tier-two hides, bones and fangs of beasts Kai had never seen before.

While the selection of these valuable materials was smaller, the traces of mana on them were unmistakably higher, and Reishi bargained for all of them. Goods were exchanged for growing amounts of money and given to a human attendant to be taken away.

Kai had thought himself rich after he closed his deal. Now he was feeling the opposite.

I’m pretty sure we have reached 2 silver mesars, that’s 100 coppers.

These were not sums of money you easily saw in Greenside. Probably in the whole archipelago, with the sole exception of Higharbor.

When Kai thought the last high tier-two fang had been sold, Moui took out one last thing. The once bulging backpack flopped to the side, defeated and empty. That didn’t matter because everyone’s eyes were on the carved wooden box the hunter held.

Kai thought it was a spatial item. The cherry wood was suffused with mana. With a scan, he noticed a small network of glowing runes. He soon realized he must have been mistaken.

While he couldn’t understand them, the complexity of the runes was far from that of his alchemy chest. He didn’t get a headache looking at them and could take his time studying their curious shapes, wondering about their function.

As soon as Moui opened it, a gust of mana and herbal scents swept out from the content inside. Kai had been so ensnared by the wooden box’s runes, he hadn’t realized his senses had been stopped from peeking inside. The wooden container seemed to possess some sort of preserving function.

Divided into ten small compartments rested the materials with the highest mana Kai had ever seen. Only six of the slots were occupied, five by the herbs with high mana concentration. The last one had two emerald scales with an iridescent sheen where the light hit them. They gave off an equally strong presence, even if their mana density was lower.

For the first time, Sehn also showed interest in the items presented, peeking over his son’s shoulder, and adjusting his golden monocle to take a better look. “Five grade two herbs in… more or less decent conditions and two scales from a tier-three beast. I didn’t think these could be found in this archipelago.”

Despite his comment, he continued to let his son take care of the negotiations. With a delicate touch, Reishi began to examine the herbs. The first was a small plant with crimson leaves. Kai took a step forward to admire it, subconsciously activating his Mana Sense and Inspect.

The mana channels of the herb were like an interlocking web of moving and breathing filaments. The mana itself was different from anything he had come across, moving in weird patterns far too complicated to make sense of, even with Inspect.

He wanted to get even closer to see if he could catch more details, but the edge of the table was already pressing against his stomach.

As he was considering asking Uncle Moui if he could sell that herb to him, Reishi finished his examination. The merfolk didn’t appear as confident as before, throwing a glance at his father, who remained impassive and silent.

“I’ll give you one silver for this, and I’m already taking a risk. In perfect condition, it would be worth more, but it was harvested a while ago and quite clumsily if I might add.”

Moui grunted at the ‘clumsy’ part.

A whole silver for a single ingredient. That’s 50 copper mesars and 5000 fucking chips.

He didn’t know what to think. The prices for Moui’s materials had already been ridiculous, but at least it was clear he had to fight dangerous beasts for them, and he needed quite a few to gain a silver. Not a single small plant.

His thoughts remained blank, before stepping back and silently witnessing the ensuing haggling. Reishi remained true to his word and did not raise the offer. After a few grumbles, Moui accepted.

The subsequent plants fetched similar prices, not going lower than a silver mesar and reaching one and a half. Reishi didn’t underplay their value and gave an honest offer to each.

Kai could only watch as one precious herb after another was bought by the merchant. He only got a moment to study them before they were gone forever.

The emerald scales were sold for a modest 30 copper mesars each. Kai had gotten completely desensitized to the numbers by then. Their price might have been lower than the other items in the box, but they were a couple scales. Whatever beast they belonged to, it must have a lot more.

Kai had never been so aware of his own poverty. He lost count of how much Moui made, but it was more money than he had seen in his whole life.

Sehn’s actions were even more ridiculous. The old merchant had let his son handle everything, using the exchange of these absurd sums of money as a teaching moment.

And I thought I had struck rich. What a fool.

With a dispirited look, Kai was about to walk out of the tent when Reishi stopped him.

“Please wait a moment.”

Kai and Moui turned to see Reishi hurrying after them. He was putting on a robe with a large hood to hide his features. “My father is going to take care of the rest for today. I can show you our goods on sale. You are going there, right?”

The young merchant was correct in his assumption, but his proposal felt suspicious.

Does he want to make sure we spend all the money we earned buying from him? Then people say I’m the shameless one.

Following him out of the tent, Kai heard the disgruntled grumbles of the people in line. They must have remained inside longer than anybody else. It was understandable some were upset.

Hiding behind Moui’s big figure to not attract attention, Kai waited for the merman to make way. The time they took was already proof enough, he didn’t want to advertise they were walking away with full pockets.

After exchanging a few words with one of the sailors, Reishi took the lead. Instead of going to the other tent, he headed for the dock.

“We only brought a few common trinkets to shore,” Reishi explained. “Unloading most of the cargo off the Fortuna is too much of a hassle. You don’t have to come if you don’t want to, but all our best and most precious items are still on board. I can give you an exclusive tour since you were the most interesting clients today. Do you want to come and see?”

Kai exchanged a silent conversation of glances and shrugs with the hunter, both trying to see if the other had any objection. There were none.

Do you want to see our rare and mysterious treasures on board the Fortuna? No, you don’t ‘have’ to come, you can also look through the trash we brought on shore. So, what do you prefer?

Kai wanted to roll his eyes. Of course, they would want to look at the best items. They lived in Greenside, when else would they get the chance to see, let alone buy, anything like that?

I’ve got an inkling I’m not going to get off that ship with all my money. Just a thought.

Reishi led them to a small boat they used to ferry people and goods to shore. Two human sailors with impressive biceps were already waiting there. The group jumped on board. The distance wasn’t far, just a few hundred meters. Sitting down, Reishi lowered his hood and the two sailors started rowing.

Not one to waste a chance, Kai filled the silence. “Why did you hide your identity? The people who came to sell already know. Gossip runs faster than wind in Greenside. Everyone will know of you before the day is over.”

This whole deception appeared a bit pointless to him. They could have shown their faces to the crowd and been done once and for all. Some people might be put off by the idea of dealing with another race, but that was going to be a minority.

Reishi smiled cunningly. “We are counting on the rumors spreading. We showed our faces in a previous village, and it was a mess. I’ve seen pirate raids cause less alarm. Better to create intrigue. People will flock to come and meet the mysterious mermen. You should see the faces they make when they enter the tent.”

Kai looked at the merfolk in a new light. He had underestimated him. Instead of being hindered by the prejudices of a backwater town, they turned it into a publicity stunt, using themselves as bait to attract more customers.

The hunter narrowed his eyes. “All the people who have never seen a merfolk before will be stunned. I’m sure that doesn’t hurt in the negotiations.”

The merman’s smile grew wider. “Yeah, that doesn’t hurt either.”

Kai’s jaw dropped as more layers of the seemingly simple scheme were uncovered. No matter the world, people always came up with the most conniving ideas to make a few bucks.

Reaching the hull of the Fortuna, they climbed aboard with a rope ladder. The ship looked even more impressive from up close. The deck was sparkling clean, the sails shimmering with a silver hue in the sun.

“Come on, the cargo hold is this way.” Reishi guided them, perfectly at home on the ship. “I’m sure you’ll find many interesting items.”

Even if Kai knew the merchant wanted their money, he couldn’t help but eagerly follow him inside the ship, wondering what they were going to see.