episode_0033

The townspeople and what appeared to be merchant guild employees, who had brought large carriages, were chattering noisily in the square, exchanging goods.

Thanks to the new specialty products Killua had prepared, the residents’ pockets seemed fuller, and they were able to embrace the goods and food they desired with bright smiles.

I looked around at the carriages and people, searching for the merchant, the true owner of these carriages.

“That must be him.”

I saw a man wearing a plush hat adorned with antique-style gold embroidery, unlike the other employees.

With a robust physique and distinct features, he possessed a handsome appearance and was laughing heartily while chatting with the village elder.

“Excuse me for a moment.”

With a polite greeting, I stepped between the elder and the merchant, gently drawing his gaze.

“Oh. You are a new face.”

Having conducted several transactions with Eaton Village, the merchant immediately discerned that I was not a resident of this village.

He tidied his slightly disheveled attire, as if to make a good impression, after conversing with people. Then, with a light smile, he offered a slight bow and greeted me.

“Pleased to meet you. I am Tom Bolt, a merchant of the Volkswagen Merchant Guild.”

“Pleased to meet you. I am Jazel, who is indebted to this village.”

In response to his exceptionally polite greeting, I returned his salutation by placing my right hand lightly over my left chest and offering a slight bow.

A greeting performed by placing the right hand over the left chest.

To a stranger, it might appear to be an extremely polite and courteous greeting.

However, it was a traditional greeting, understood only among merchants, signifying the concealment of one’s conscience for profit.

At my greeting, Tom Bolt’s eyes glimmered slightly in surprise, and he quickly scanned me up and down once more.

“I came to see you because I have something to discuss regarding today’s transaction.”

“Ah, I see!”

At my words, Tom Bolt clapped his hands heartily and smiled brightly, as if he understood my intention immediately.

“Then, Elder-nim. Please excuse me for a moment.”

Tom Bolt, having judged that a conversation with me was more important, politely excused himself from the Elder.

He led me to a large carriage, which appeared to be his personal carriage, among the eight merchant guild carriages.

“This way.”

He walked ahead to his carriage, leading the way, and opened the carriage door and entered, as if there were no traps or ill will.

Following him towards the carriage door, I noticed a familiar object and paused.

“This is…”

What caught my gaze was a small fox-shaped doll, carved from wood and hung like an ornament beside the carriage door.

Its tail, especially, crafted from lush, soft grass, boasted a fluffiness as if one were touching a real fox’s tail.

“Oh. Do you like it? It’s our Volkswagen’s pride and souvenir, the fox toy. If you’re interested, you can take one.”

As I showed interest in the fox toy, Tom Bolt burst into hearty laughter, then personally detached the fox toy hanging by the door and handed it to me.

It was a petite toy that fit snugly in one hand.

Moreover, the fox tail, made of abundant soft grass, pleasantly wrapped around my wrist as if to prove its fluffiness.

“Hahahahat. Don’t worry, I won’t charge you for the toy. Just cherish it.”

As I fiddled with the toy, seemingly pleased, Tom Bolt also burst into hearty laughter, apparently delighted.

“I will cherish it.”

Expressing gratitude for his goodwill, I carefully slipped the fox toy into my pocket.

“Please come in, then.”

He invited me into his carriage.

The interior of his personal carriage was quite simple.

A table, prioritizing practicality for inventory and accounting management during long-distance travels; a cot for sleeping; and finally, a simple woodworking shelf.

“Did you make this yourself?”

Entering his carriage, I discovered the faint scent of wood filling the interior, and an unfinished fox toy remaining on the woodworking shelf.

“Hehe. It’s a humble hobby. There’s surprisingly a lot of free time during long journeys.”

He let out a hearty laugh, as if embarrassed that his hobby had been discovered, then took out some simple tea and humble refreshments and placed them on the table.

“Now, may I ask the purpose of your direct visit?”

I sat facing him in the opposite seat, lightly gripping the teacup he offered.

Then, as if pausing for effect, I slowly moved the teacup, taking half a sip. I then gently exhaled a shallow sigh, warmed by the tea’s heat, and revealed the reason for my visit.

“I came because of today’s transaction in the village.”

“As expected…”

He let out a small exclamation, as if he had known, and a slight smile played on his lips.

Looking at Tom Bolt, who wore an ambiguous smile whose meaning I couldn’t discern, I moistened my dry lips with my tongue and slowly began to tell him why I had come.

“The jar containing the black liquid. How much did you purchase it for?”

I first asked about the purchase price of the jar containing the black liquid, the new specialty product of Eaton Village created by Killua.

Then, Tom Bolt triumphantly held up a single finger and answered my question.

“One gold coin.”

The worst possible price. It was the worst outcome because the village elder, who was unaware of the black liquid’s true value and lacked experience in price negotiation, had sold it.

“As you know, the value of that liquid is not just that. It’s worth at least five gold coins… if it reaches the capital, it could be sold for at least ten gold coins or more.”

“Hehe. Of course. It is true that fuel is scarce these days as the war with the demon race intensifies. But frankly, I believe that liquid can also be used as a weapon. If I take it to the capital, I am confident I can make a profit of at least twenty gold coins or more.”

“……”

He overstated the black liquid’s value, as if boasting of his prowess and mocking me.

That was a boldness he could afford because the transaction had already concluded.

As I frowned slightly at Tom Bolt’s brazen remarks and glared at him, he leaned his body slightly towards me and continued speaking in a seemingly placating voice.

“However, this is not only the first transaction, but such an item has never appeared on the market before. While the black liquid’s combustion power and endurance are guaranteed… can you guarantee that the item won’t deteriorate during a long journey?”

“It is not an item that spoils so easily.”

A white mage would never create a shoddy, valueless item.

Filled with trust and faith in mages, I strongly denied his absurd assumption.

“Of course, Jazel-ssi, you may be confident in the quality of this item. But for me, it’s an uncertain first transaction. Consequently, I invested one gold coin, bearing the risk of losing everything. If the black liquid’s performance is guaranteed, I can offer a better price for future transactions.”

“Hmph…”

Logically, there was no flaw in his words.

Knowing Killua, the white mage, and her knowledge and wisdom very well, I strongly trusted the capabilities of the black liquid she had created.

However, Tom Bolt was merely a complete stranger who knew nothing about the process by which the black liquid was created, nor Killua’s identity.

It was impossible to expect him to unconditionally trust the performance and quality of a black liquid for which there was no record of sale or use until now.

“Alright. Then let’s change the topic to this.”

There was no point in discussing the black liquid, as the transaction was already concluded.

Ultimately, gaining nothing, I conceded a step back and took out a teardrop-shaped glass bottle containing World Tree Sap from my pocket, placing it on the table.

“As expected, a major incident occurred…”

Because it had been roughly twisted open in a hurry, all the gold leaf and jewels embroidered on the surface of the glass bottle had fallen off.

Seeing the ruined state of the glass bottle, Tom Bolt, who discerned the urgency of that moment, erased his smile and looked at me with a serious expression, asking,

“Was the matter resolved well?”

“Thanks to you, it was resolved well.”

It was true that thanks to him selling this precious World Tree Sap to Rai, Killua’s life could be saved.

I expressed simple gratitude for the fact that he had sold the sap to Rai.

But gratitude was gratitude, and matters that needed to be questioned had to be questioned.

“If you purchased the black liquid for one gold coin… Rai would not have had the means to purchase this World Tree Sap.”

“That’s right.”

He nodded slightly, indicating his agreement with my statement.

And as if waiting for my next words, he calmly met my gaze, propping his chin on his arm.

“What did you take in exchange for selling this item to Rai?”

Hearing my question, he nodded as if he understood my query, which contained suspicion about the transaction between him and Rai, and concern for Rai, who would have had to pay a huge price.

“I sold this potion to Rai for the price of five gold coins.”

Five gold coins. That was an incredibly cheap price.

He had sold it to Rai at the exact unit price he had purchased it for from the highest-grade alchemist workshop in the capital.

Unable to comprehend Tom Bolt’s actions—selling at the exact purchase price without making any profit—I glared at him as if to tell him not to lie.

“It seems better for you to see it directly than for me to explain it.”

Looking at me, who frowned as if disbelieving his claim of selling it for five gold coins, Tom Bolt rose and picked up a small crystal orb from a shelf behind him.

“It’s a video storage crystal orb used to verify large transactions or contracts. You know it well, don’t you?”

The crystal orb he produced could store about five minutes of video.

It was a crystal orb commonly favored by merchants to verify facts during transactions or contracts involving large sums of money.

“Please see with your own eyes what Rai exchanged for the sap from me…”

He placed the crystal orb on the table and lightly rubbed the ring on his right hand against it.

Then, a blue light emanated from within the crystal orb, and the scene of Rai and Tom Bolt’s transaction began to appear in the air.