Let the Bear Do the Trick (1)
“I hear the village has been doing quite well lately. It seems the rumors were true, Village Chief.”
“Hoho. It’s all thanks to the efforts of the Oren Merchant Group, isn’t it?”
The pleasantries weren’t mere formality. No other merchant groups had shown interest in Dunbrook Island precisely because it had so little to offer. Yet the moment the deputy arrived, the villagers’ clothing and healthy complexions made it clear these were not starving, impoverished people.
So the talk of money circulating wasn’t a lie.
The position of deputy wasn’t something one earned simply by waiting around. Having once worked as a jeweler in his youth, the deputy prided himself on his sharp eye. Tsk. They must’ve started wanting decorations now that they can afford to eat properly.
It all fit together. When people were barely scraping by, they couldn’t afford to decorate their homes or pursue hobbies. But once their bellies were full, they began craving more than mere survival.
Who was it that took the coral…
Since he’d come all this way, he was determined to recover it. These naive country bumpkins would surely fall for his polished speech. It wouldn’t be difficult.
This has become a nuisance. I’ll have to drive the price down even further this time.
He’d only ever given them pocket change, but now that they’d inconvenienced him, he smiled darkly at the thought of cutting even that.
“We’ve gathered the goods for sale at the village hall. Shall we go, Deputy?”
Upon arriving at the hall with the Village Chief, the deputy spotted children playing marbles in the corner and put on a benevolent smile.
“The children are quite adorable.”
“They’re our village’s biggest troublemakers, always running around causing mischief. Hoho.”
“Children are meant to grow up playing, aren’t they? Haha!”
Just then, a marble rolled over and stopped at the deputy’s feet.
“My marble!”
“Haha, looks like you lost.”
As the deputy bent down to pick up the stray marble, he froze in place.
“……!”
“Thank you!”
“W-wait, little one!”
“Yes?”
The deputy hurriedly called the child back.
“Th-that marble—where did you get it?”
“The marble?”
“Yes, the marble!”
At the deputy’s words, the child opened his palm to show it.
“Pretty, isn’t it?”
“……Y-yes. ……It’s very pretty.”
“I have some too!”
“Me too!”
Several more children who had been playing marbles rushed over and held out their hands. Their palms were filled with colorful marbles—white, yellow, black, and red. Among the beautiful, lustrous spheres, the ones the deputy couldn’t take his eyes off were the deep, vivid red ones without a single pattern.
“Our teacher made them for us!”
“He said we should play marbles.”
“He told us not to bother him because he’s busy and to go play somewhere else.”
“We wanted to play with Teacher, though, right?”
“But we still got the marbles.”
“Yeah? Kyahaha!”
The deputy swallowed hard at the children’s chatter.
Did he notice? ……No, that can’t be it.
Most of the colorful marbles the children played with appeared to be carved stone. But those red ones were unmistakably coral. And not just any coral—precious red coral! Formed in the deep sea, it was a gem beloved even by desert women.
There was no need to look further. The villager who had supposedly taken the coral for decoration had to be the children’s so-called “teacher.” The coral had been cut rather crudely, yet it was clear considerable effort had gone into it. The fact that he’d given them to the children as toys meant he had no idea of their true value.
“Village Chief. Who exactly is this ‘teacher’ the children keep mentioning? I don’t recall there being an academy in the village.”
“An academy? Don’t be ridiculous. Hoho.”
The Village Chief laughed as though he’d heard a fine joke, then pointed toward the hill.
“A wizard teacher arrived up there and has been looking after the children.”
“A wizard…… you say? Ah! That person!”
Thanks to the Oren Merchant Group’s various dealings with Patrick, the deputy immediately understood who he was.
Coming all the way to this backwater means he has neither money nor connections.
The deputy struggled to suppress a chuckle.
Arrogant fools.
The deputy didn’t hold lower-ranked wizards in high regard. Those close to wealth and power were one thing, but the ones stuck at one or two circles were little more than children who knew nothing of the world, despite their title.
And yet they have such pointless pride.
Unlike the children, however, they were filled with pride in being wizards and tended to look down on commoners as “uneducated.” In short, they were easy prey for a merchant like the deputy who had spent years in trade.
“He’s one of our important trading partners. Since I’ve come this far, I’d like to pay my respects……”
“To the teacher?”
“Yes.”
“Of course. I’ll guide you. Hoho.”
As they climbed the hill, the deputy plotted how to manipulate this exiled criminal wizard. But the moment he came face to face with him, every scheme in his mind was wiped clean.
***
“How much are you going to pay?”
“……Pardon?”
“I asked how much you’re going to give me. Do you think I dig up the ground to do business?”
Facing the wizard who lived on the hill, the deputy could only blink. He glanced at the Village Chief, but the old man deliberately looked away, feigning interest elsewhere.
“Oh my, there’s so much weed growing here! Hoho. Teacher, I’ll pull some out before I go.”
“Do as you like.”
The wizard, half-reclining on the wooden platform, maintained his slouched posture even at the Village Chief’s kind offer.
Is that a wizard or a thug?
The deputy began to wonder if Patrick was even a wizard at all, so different was he from every mage he’d imagined.
“No, I asked how much you’re going to pay. Why can’t you answer? What, were you planning to fob me off with pocket change? Huh?”
The same deputy who had praised the red marbles the children played with now found himself on the receiving end of Patrick’s demand.
— Would you perhaps be willing to sell any remaining pieces, or the materials used to make those marbles? I’ll compensate you handsomely. Haha!
After one wrong remark, the situation had flipped into what felt like extortion.
He gave them to the children for free!
It was infuriating, but at least the wizard seemed willing to sell. That was better than the worst-case scenario.
“How much do you want?”
“That’s for the one paying to decide, not me.”
“Pardon?”
“I’ll decide after hearing the offer. How much are you going to pay?”
From Patrick’s cocky demeanor, the deputy caught on to something.
He doesn’t know the value!
This was a good sign. Fortune hadn’t abandoned him after all. Behind the bravado was greed for money, but it was clear he didn’t know the true worth. He was fishing for information—exactly the behavior of a common thug. The sort of people who stumbled upon something precious by luck but, lacking education or experience, couldn’t sell it for its proper price and always ended up losing out.
“H-how about this amount?”
So the deputy deliberately stammered and put on an anxious expression, as if thinking, What if he asks for more? That would be disastrous. When dealing with ruffians, showing a bit of fear could be useful. Once they believed their opponent was intimidated, those fools would puff up and delude themselves into thinking they were the strong one, the victor.
Delude yourself all you want. In the end, I’m the one walking away with the money.
The deputy counted to three in his head.
One.
Two.
Three.
“Double! I won’t sell unless it’s double!”
There it was! The fool had taken the bait, just as expected.
Idiot.
The initial amount the deputy had named was actually slightly lower than what he usually paid the fishermen for coral. The wizard’s demand for double wasn’t because he knew better—it was pure bluster.
I can see right through him.
The deputy had to fight to keep from laughing. If he knew the real value, he’d faint. Red coral, grown in the deep sea where human hands could never reach. Judging by the marbles, this batch was especially beautiful in color and flawless. It would surely bring in record profits.
“B-but that amount is……”
Accepting too quickly would raise suspicion. A seasoned merchant knew to haggle a little and let the atmosphere ripen.
“Why not? Then I’m not selling!”
“Urgh…… V-very well. But double is far too expensive! This isn’t for the merchant group’s purchase—I’m buying it personally as a gift for a long-time client. If you could lower it by thirty percent—no, twenty-five percent……”
“Twenty-five percent, huh…… Fine, let’s do that. But I want the money right now.”
“Of course, of course. I always carry my own funds just in case. Here……”
When the deputy pulled out his coin purse, the wizard’s eyes gleamed.
He’s not acting like an exiled criminal at all, actively trying to make money. I wondered what kind of person he was……
The deputy had thought Patrick might have something going for him, given how he’d tapped into the unheard-of market for men’s cosmetics. But one should never judge a person before meeting them face to face.
“By the way.”
“Yes, Wizard.”
“I heard from the fisherman I gave one to that it’s not worth much. So why are you paying so much for it?”
“As I said, it’s for a gift.”
“A gift? You’re giving away something worthless? You! You’re trying to trick me! Fire!”
The wizard growled and conjured a small flame in his palm. The deputy nearly burst out laughing at how pathetic the little spark looked, but he managed to hold it in. Instead, he dramatically stumbled backward with a trembling voice.
“Th-there’s a noble who enjoys making aquariums! Even if red coral lacks luster and isn’t treated as a gem, it’s more than enough to decorate an aquarium!”
“……Is that so?”
After hearing the hastily concocted excuse, the wizard canceled his spell and clicked his tongue. Then he strode over and snatched the coin purse.
“Consider the change a gift.”
“Pardon? ……Understood.”
No matter how you looked at it, that was no wizard. That was a thug.
***
“If I’ve gone this far, you can handle the rest on your own, right?”
After confirming that the deputy and Village Chief had descended the hill, Patrick opened the ondol room door and spoke.
“Huff, huff! Yes! I heard everything clearly!”
A flushed figure tumbled out of the ondol room as if collapsing.
“Do a good job. You might get that promotion this time.”
“With this, my promotion is guaranteed! Thank you, Wizard! How can I ever repay this favor……!”
He was the same man who had disguised himself as an herbalist during the typhoon and witnessed the whirlpool off the village shore alongside Patrick. A newly appointed official from the lord’s castle, burning with ambition for advancement.
“By the way, Wizard.”
“What?”
“That coin purse—shouldn’t I take it as evidence for now……”
“……This is mine, though?”
“Pardon?”
“Ah, this is a golden opportunity to uproot the black market in the territory all at once. You can’t get hung up on trivial things when something big is at stake.”
“……Pardon?”
“We’ll have more than enough evidence soon enough. Why would we need to use something like this as proof? Consider it, what do you call it, operational expenses? I’ll just say you gave it to me.”
“Even in the North, when they send spies south, they provide operational funds.”