Chapter 136 - Big Deal

Although Gaven had been focusing his main efforts on Eagle Cliff Burrow recently, the development of Blackwell Tribe had not halted in the slightest.The population had also broken through the two thousand five hundred mark.

Compared to the explosive growth at Eagle Cliff Burrow, this side indeed seemed a bit slow, but stability was its asset.

The slowdown in the development of Blackwell was also due to another reason: Blackwell needed to "bleed outwards," not only transporting food to Eagle Cliff Burrow but also transferring people to Pitfall Tribe.

Pitfall, as an internally subordinated entity, maintained a certain degree of secrecy and seclusion, implementing closed-loop management. It did not recruit Gnolls directly from the outside but rather chose selectively through Blackwell to "bleed" into it.

So far, the population of Pitfall Tribe was only about eight hundred, but they were all professionals in mining and trapping, and the output of Spirit Crystals from the mine had already doubled since the Goblin era.

The biggest change in Blackwell Tribe was at the outside square.

Two rows of stone houses had sprung up from the ground, beginning to serve as inns and shops, trading not only with human merchants but also with surrounding Gnoll tribes.

The thunderous measures that Gaven took against Klay had the desired effect of killing the chicken to scare the monkeys.

Even with other Gnoll tribe merchants present, the human merchants led by Bede would only do business with Gaven and Blackwell and paid no attention to the other Gnolls.

Perhaps it was Gaven’s excessively brutal method of killing Klay that frightened those merchants, or maybe it was the effect of his wake-up call to Bede initially, or it could be the relative stability of the trade here.

In any case, the frequency of those business owners personally making trips to Blackwell was diminishing; they increasingly left matters to their agents, and the outline of a business association was starting to take shape.

Gaven did not care about these things; as long as those business owners could get their goods out and bring in the materials they needed, that was enough.

The merchants who currently visited Blackwell Tribe most frequently were still two individuals: Bede and Hanson.

This return to Blackwell was mainly for Gaven to meet these two.

When Gaven entered the house, the two business owners were leisurely enjoying barbeque and drinking beer.

"Brother Gaven, at last you’re back. It’s lucky that Brother Hanson accompanies me this time, or I would have been bored to the point of growing mushrooms here," Bede greeted with his usual warmth, coming up to give Gaven a big hug and, unable to help himself, compared their height, "Brother Gaven, have you grown taller recently? Uncle here can hardly reach your shoulder."

Gaven couldn’t help laughing, "I don’t know if I’ve grown taller, but Uncle’s belly certainly has, making your arms seem shorter."

"It’s not impossible," Bede said, patting his round belly, "and it’s all thanks to you. Good business, good food, sound sleep – naturally, my weight keeps climbing."

"Uncle Bede, you should consider some proper exercise. If you keep getting fatter, you really will become a ball."

"Who says I don’t exercise?" Bede tried to open his squinty eyes wide, "I may not match Brother Gaven in diligence, but I do more training than most people. Touch and see, how solid this is—not all of it is fat. But I can’t help this growing belly."

"That just means you haven’t put in enough effort. You’ve moved your legs but haven’t kept your mouth shut," Gaven shot back sharply, "If Uncle Bede is really set on losing weight, set aside three months to come to me. Live and eat as I do, and I guarantee to return you a tough body."

The very thought of Gaven’s extreme training intensity gave Bede a shiver, and he shook his head, "Let’s forget about that. It hasn’t come to that yet. There are many dealings out there waiting for my attention. Let’s talk about serious matters first, serious matters first."

Gaven was just firing off his mouth. If Bede really wanted to come, he would not have the time to accompany him; not just three months but even three days would be too much.

After retaking his seat, Gaven finally turned to the other business owner, Hanson, and greeted him with casual indifference.

Every time he saw Hanson, Gaven couldn’t help but feel a sense of the unpredictability of life. An individual he initially thought would be a thorn in his side was now discussing business with him, while the peacemaker from before, the greediest of them, had grass growing almost half a foot high on his grave.

"Tell us, have you made us wait for your return because there’s some big business you want to discuss with us?" Bede couldn’t contain his curiosity, his eyes constantly sneaking glances at the small wooden box Gaven had brought in.

"Nothing escapes Uncle Bede. Indeed, there is a batch of rather special merchandise I need to unload," Gaven said, not just for the sake of catching up, "Let’s see the merchandise first."

Gaven didn’t waste any more words and directly opened the small wooden box he had carried. It was stuffed with silk floss, and in the middle, sat an egg the size of a human head, covered with patterns resembling eagle feathers.

Bede and Hanson’s heads both leaned in simultaneously.

Bede asked uncertainly, "Is this a Harpy Egg?"

Gaven nodded and praised sincerely, "Uncle Bede, you really do have a broad range of knowledge. This is indeed a Harpy Egg. Are you interested in acquiring it?"

By the look on Bede’s and Hanson’s faces, Gaven knew that his last question was redundant. They were not just interested—they were very interested.

Bede excitedly said, "How many of these goods do you have in hand? What’s your target price?"

"Uncle Bede, how much can you offer?" Gaven countered, not giving an answer. These kinds of goods were quite special, indeed a bit tricky to price.

This little fox.

Unable to help himself, Bede glanced at Hanson, knowing that once he chose to haggle, the fellow in front of him, younger than his own son, would out-talk him. He stretched out three fingers towards Gaven.

Gaven arched an eyebrow and said, "No beating around the bush, just give me a number, or don’t blame me for giving you the runaround."

This little rascal.

Bede bared his teeth and said, "Three thousand gold coins, I can offer three thousand gold coins for each. No matter the amount, I’ll take them all."

"Five thousand gold coins, all eight for the lot, I’ll bundle them and sell them to you on the spot," Gaven counter-offered.

"Five thousand? Why don’t you just rob me?" Bede shook his head repeatedly, "Three thousand, that’s already the family price I can offer. You should know, the merchants who have the capability to buy in bulk and are interested in such goods are relatively limited. These goods can’t be hoarded; they must be sold quickly. Even I am not sure how much profit I can actually make."

"Uncle Bede, stop trying to pull one over me. Over in Sambia, we’re not short of curious merchants interested in such goods. If nothing else, I could send them to Ser and sell them to those Red Robe Mages for no less than six thousand each. Here’s what we’ll do, I’ll take a step back. Thirty-five thousand for the eight, bundled together," Gaven bargained, drawing on the limited knowledge from his previous life.

"Thirty thousand, thirty thousand for the eight," Bede also took a step back.

"Thirty-two thousand, deal or no deal, if you don’t take it, I’ll keep them and hatch them for fun," Gaven adopted a take-it-or-leave-it stance.

"Deal," Bede said, beaming as he raised his chubby, thick hand.

Gaven smiled as he high-fived him, signifying that the deal was struck. "Just to be clear, for this transaction, I don’t want goods in exchange, I want cash, preferably gold coins. I’m not fussy about which country they come from; Komeer’s Golden Lion, Sambia’s Nu Bao, or Waterdeep City’s Zugan, any will do as long as the value matches."

"What do you need so many gold coins for?" Bede was flabbergasted.

Then, remembering Gaven’s rules, he mock-slapped his own face, "I forgot, I forgot, I shouldn’t ask about your affairs. It’s not that I can’t provide the gold coins, but such a large amount will take time to arrange."

"No problem, take the goods first," Bede said, understandingly. "You’re right, Uncle Bede, these goods have a shelf life and can’t wait. You can bring the cash with the next shipment. If it’s too rushed and you can’t get that much ready, just prepare half to start with."

Felen Commerce, for the most part, still operates on barter. Places where large amounts of cash are used are still quite rare.

This was the three months’ commission prepared for the young dragon Aivensa; it didn’t have to be delivered all at once.

Bede laughed heartily, "Brother Gaven trusts your uncle so much, I, Uncle Bede, can’t be too timid. Thirty-two thousand gold coins, that won’t stump me. I’ll make sure the next shipment arrives together with the payment."

"That’s much appreciated, Uncle Bede," Gaven replied without further pleasantries, slightly revealing his intentions, "In the future, I’ll need at least ten thousand gold coins every month. Uncle Bede, if you could keep an eye out and prepare in advance, that’d be great."

"No problem," Bede confidently said, "As long as we’re not suddenly overwhelmed by large bulk purchases, ten thousand gold coins a month is no issue. As long as you have goods, I can supply enough gold coins."

"With Uncle Bede’s word, I’m relieved," Gaven said sincerely. "There is another matter for which I need Uncle Bede’s assistance."

"What is it? As long as it’s in my power, I will do my utmost," Bede, having just closed a profitable deal, was in high spirits.

"Keep an eye out for a magical item, the Favorable Wind Orb, priced no more than fifty thousand, scoop it up," Gaven had suddenly remembered one of the more common magical items found in dragon nests during his raid on the young Red Dragon’s nest.

The biggest effect of this magical item was the manipulation of weather, allowing the area within a five-kilometer radius of its placement to maintain a mild and pleasant climate.

To ordinary people, it was like a super-large air conditioner, ensuring no fear of extreme heat or cold with this toy.

But to Gnolls, it was a divine artifact for surviving winter, shielding them from the lethal impact of the cold season.

Especially this winter, he would organize a large Gnoll army to join the joint Expeditionary Force on an expedition to Cesk. The Favorable Wind Orb would be indispensable, and he needed to plan ahead.

"Alright, I’ve got it," Bede said, pulling out a notebook and earnestly jotting down Gaven’s request. His success was not due to pure luck. "Anything else you need, just lay it all out."

"No special requests for now, but there is still a huge shortfall in the food supply; the more you can bring in the future, the better," Gaven hadn’t expected the rapid growth in the population of his Gnolls, causing a bit of a strain on their food supply. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ NovᴇlFire(.)nᴇt

"Food supply is definitely not an issue," Bede’s eyes darted around, "You name how much you can consume, and we’ll get it for you. Best if you could bring in more special goods like Harpy Eggs, that would be even better."

"Don’t dream about it, these eight, they’re just a windfall," Gaven shook his head without hesitation. He wouldn’t intentionally scour the world for Harpy Eggs just for their value.

If he happened to come across them, he didn’t mind an unforeseen windfall.

"Actually, not only Harpy Eggs have a market, even Gnoll eggs have buyers," Bede said tentatively.

Gaven’s expression suddenly turned serious, "Uncle Bede, I’ll take what you just said as a joke. Don’t bring it up again. Harpies are monsters, but Gnolls are now my tribespeople, the two are not the same. Of course, if you have any Gnoll slaves or Gnoll eggs, bring them here, and I’m willing to purchase at market price."