Chapter 96
Chapter 96
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 96
Chapter Title: Deception Operation
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"This is all useless. It's not what I need."
I tossed the papers into the stove, and the flames roared hungrily, devouring them in an instant. This wasn't what I wanted at all.
"I'm sure you all thought you could make several times the amount written here. Am I right?"
The merchants clamped their mouths shut and bowed their heads, saying nothing.
"Anyone who only chases small profits can leave now."
Not a single one budged at my words. Only those desperate to land this hide business remained—and they knew full well I held all the cards here.
I couldn't help but smile at the sight of them swallowing their pride, hanging on my every word. Now it was time for a real deal. One where I called the shots.
"Tell me how you'd handle the trade and what kind of profits you could turn."
The merchants took turns pitching their ideas in front of me. The one who caught my eye was the man who'd pulled out his money pouch first—the one named Hans, who'd called himself a former slave. Right in front of me, he slammed his forehead to the floor.
"I'll take the magic beast hides straight to the Burvan Empire! I can net at least 150 pounds per skin there!"
"Lies! My lord, that man's spouting nonsense! Even in the Burvan Empire, who pays 150 pounds? At best, you'd get 100!"
The other merchants pointed and shouted at Hans's claim. But he ignored them, looking straight up at me.
"If you grant me the honor of your ear, I can explain!"
His eyes held no deception. He truly believed he could fetch over 150 pounds per skin. I beckoned him forward.
"All right. Come closer and lay out your plan."
With my permission, he edged in and spilled the details.
"The Burvan Emperor just took a new concubine. I'm sure you're aware."
I wasn't, truth be told—rumors from foreign lands didn't interest me much. But I nodded as if I knew.
"What does that have to do with hide prices?"
"The Burvan imperial family loves its luxuries, and this new concubine's supposedly extravagant beyond measure. With a concubine comes a new annex to furnish."
"Hmm... Wouldn't that just mean a few extra skins at most?"
Did decorating an annex really require that much magic beast hide? Hans shook his head, insisting it underestimated the Burvan Empire.
"At least a few hundred, minimum. They're throwing a party to celebrate the concubine, so they'll need gifts for the nobles too. And if it's magic beast hides—the rare, highly sought-after kind..."
The beasts we bred here for magic beast production were like cats or dogs: easy to source, but their hides were soft and fluffy—the exact type nobles adored.
Comparable to wolf or leopard magic beast pelts. If the Burvan Empire was as lavish as he said, they'd pay top pound for something far more striking and beautiful.
"Sounds good. Step back for now. I need to hear the others out."
But no one after Hans offered anything compelling. Just vague pitches about selling somewhere for middling profits—well short of 150 pounds. My mind was already made up.
"You're dismissed."
The merchants filed out. Then I had my men fetch Hans just as he was leaving. He knew he'd been chosen—his eyes gleamed with it.
"Thank you for selecting me! Once this trade run succeeds..."
"150 pounds, right? You confident?"
"Absolutely! Just get me to the Burvan Empire, and it's done!"
Hans didn't look like he had the coin to buy all our hides anyway, but that was fine. I had no intention of selling them to him outright. Instead, I'd propose a different arrangement.
"More importantly, do you have the money to buy them all? Production's ramping up—we'll hit over thirty skins by week's end. Even at 100 pounds each, that's three thousand pounds."
Three thousand pounds in hides alone. Maintain that output, and it'd be a cash cow raking in tens of thousands yearly. Rarity would drive prices down eventually, sure.
Hans rolled his eyes at my question about buying everything.
"I can buy it all! I'm sinking my entire fortune into this run!"
Trade runs in this world failed more often than ships passing Somalia without pirate trouble—hundreds of times more likely. Yet here he was, ready to bet it all without a second thought.
"Fine by me. You said 150, so I'll sell at 100. Here's to more good deals ahead."
But first, one loose end nagged at me. That baroness Cassia, among the rejected merchants—her glare stuck with me.
"When do you plan to depart?"
"Right after buying the hides—the next day."
"I see... In that case, go out tonight and get some drinks in you. Spread word of the deal."
He looked baffled at the sudden order.
"Why would you..."
"Seems some riffraff's snuck into the castle. I'll use your caravan as bait to round them up. And while you're at it... make it ten thousand pounds, not three."
If I was wrong, oh well. But my gut had been spot-on so far. Hans seemed to catch my drift too—his nod was resolute.
"Understood. It's an honor to close a ten-thousand-pound deal today, milord."
"Good. You're dismissed."
Once he left the castle, I summoned Cutter right away. I ordered him to pick a few Landsknecht rookies whose faces weren't known and disguise them as regular mercenaries.
"What's this about?"
He looked puzzled at the abrupt summons and orders, but he followed through—reporting back that he'd prepped two newbies as ordinary sellswords.
"There should be a merchant out there called Baroness Cassia. Keep an eye on her."
"If big bro says so... but I need to know what's going on."
"It's about this business. Those merchants seem to have ideas they shouldn't. Watch them close—but don't get spotted."
*****
"You're just going to take this lying down? He screwed us over!"
"So what do you suggest?"
The merchants—kicked out without even a real shot at the deal—had gathered at the tavern to vent.
There were over a dozen of them. Kyle had deliberately excluded major caravans, so these players chafed at being toyed with. Noble or not, there were rules to merchant decency. Barring them entirely was a slap in the face.
"Hire some mercenaries to rough him up?"
"You mad? He's a viscount—small force or not, he's still nobility!"
The naive suggestion drew headshakes. Those in the know blanched.
"Know Viscount Lucas's nicknames? Cligrove's Mad Bear, the Count's Daughter's Guillotine, Magic Beast Hunter, the guy who punched out a werewolf barehanded... Anyway! Anyone scheming against him can walk out now!"
Unhappy but out of options, the merchants drowned their gripes in ale, blabbing freely. But when the rented tavern's door swung open, they fell silent as if by cue.
Word getting back to Kyle could mean a noble-insult charge—and execution.
"Sorry to bother you, caravan leader. A guy named Hans says he's a merchant too and wants in."
It was one of the escort soldiers guarding the door. While the merchants eyed Baroness Cassia, she smirked.
"Let him in. He is a merchant."
With her okay, Hans entered. The merchants—who'd just been cursing Kyle—greeted him with fake grins. But Hans hadn't forgotten Kyle's instructions.
'Drink up and blab about the deal.'
Recalling that, he grumbled like he was miffed.
"Isn't this roughing it among fellow merchants? Least you could do is buy me a round."
They weren't really peers—his league was far below—but Hans, face thick as iron, played it cool. The merchants stared, then burst out laughing and shoved mugs his way.
"Haha! We did go too far!"
"Right you are! Can't come all this way without a drink!"
They sneered inwardly at him. But that lasted only moments. As he downed the strong, bitter ale, talk of the magic beast hide deal poured out.
Feigning a pleasant buzz, Hans chuckled.
"I snagged the hide trade rights this time! Means I'm a proper caravan leader now!"
"Hmm... You?"
Baroness Cassia spoke up. Remembering Kyle's words, Hans avoided her eyes, hamming up his drunken brag.
"Yup! Got the rights! Viscount said he'd hand over the hides tomorrow, so we'll head to the capital first thing in the morning... Urp!"
His acting—honed from slave days eating scraps and flattering masters—was flawless. Even these big-league merchants bought it hook, line, and sinker.
Figuring they'd gleaned the tiny caravan's departure date and time by accident, they laughed and steadied the staggering Hans.
"This guy's plastered!"
"We get the excitement, but no overdoing it before tomorrow! Off to bed with you!"
Cassia watched Hans stumble out with a strange look. The timing was suspiciously perfect—trap-level perfect.
But how would the owner of that hole-in-the-wall outfit know what they'd discussed? She dismissed her paranoia with a smirk.
"Baroness Cassia... so, are we doing this?"
"Doing what?"
Her lips curved slyly as she spoke. Revenge on the Kyle who'd humiliated them. Punishment for the upstart shopkeep who'd snatched the golden magic beast hides out from under them.
The merchants raised their mugs with raucous laughs.