CH 30

The day after Elsa’s group came...

I have been working on packing the products since morning. With the wooden boxes made by the Goblin tribe, I placed jars of sugar and spices inside it, before filling the gaps with straw, and sealing it.

After Elsa and her guards loaded them into their carriage, they left the town in the afternoon.

Since they didn’t have enough money, I had them write an IOU so that they can pay the leftover amount next time.

Well, it’s not like the IOU has any significant meaning in this independent place. It will just become a record for the time being.

What’s more problematic is Elsa’s next visit. Elsa said that she will come back in 2 months at the earliest, and 4 months at the latest. She needs 10 days to return. In addition, she needs to contact other merchants from another country, and passing bribes to the church will need around 40 - 60 days, To come back here, she will need another 10-40 days. Thus, in total, this will take around 2-4 months.

Although the number of days to return back here is about 10-40 days, it is kind of vague since they need to lose their pursuers.

“We will certainly be tailed. In order for this place to remain unknown, we need to go in the opposite direction. So, it will take time.” Elsa explained. “Ah, if there is no news after half a year has passed, we have probably already departed to heaven. You’ll have to be patient...”

Elsa said something like this while laughing... I think that she is an unusually brave woman.

Anyway, it takes too many days! Elsa said if she was able to prepare the staff and gold, and organize a unit to transport it, it would be possible to trade more frequently.

However, forget about the money. She doesn’t even know how long until the system can be set in place since the staff have to be carefully investigated first.

As I need to save as much gold as possible until the upcoming war, I need to do something.

Now, after seeing off Elsa’s group, I sat down and slid my feet into the kotatsu at home. In front of me was a leather bag full of gold coins. I took one out from the bag, and placed it on the desk.

It’s called the Furoo gold coin, and it has the same size as a one yen coin. It has a high gold content, and so far, the ratio has never changed, so the value of this coin is stable. It seems to be used as an international currency.

The gold content is 90%, and its weight is around 3.5 grams. Because the price of 1 gram of gold is around 4000 yen in modern times, one piece of Furoo gold coin would be about...　

3.5 X 4000 X 9/10 = 12,600 yen.

It should be something like that.

But, when I summoned ‘Town Data’, and chose to sell it, it became something like this.

[Furoo Gold Coin] [Sold Value] 110,000 yen

《Do you want to sell it?》[Yes/No]

The sale value was nearly 9 times over!

The [selling value] is the value of the item in this world. Aside from that, this gold coin has a value that can let a peasant family live for 1 year with just 20 gold coins.

Anyway, it’s funny that the selling price is not according to modern value. But, it will be very beneficial for my funds.

I selected 150 gold coins in the bag and [sold] them.

[Furoo Gold Coin] [148 pieces] [Sale Value] 16,280,000 yen

[Furoo Gold Coin (Counterfeit)] [Sale Value] 90,000 yen

[Furoo Gold Coin (Counterfeit)] [Sale Value] 84,000 yen

《Do you want to sell it?》[Yes/No]

Hmm..? Eh?

I thought my eyes had misread the words somehow, so I looked at the screen in front of my eyes again.

No, there wasn’t a mistake.

Oi, Elsa! There are imitations mixed inside!

Well, since there’s only 2 out of 150 pieces, I don’t think it’s on purpose. Before the deal, Elza did said that since it was a tentative trade, she chose proper gold coins piece by piece.

Maybe the fact that two counterfeit gold coins were mixed in with the others is normal in this world. When it comes to this, in the end, I wonder how do they handle the counterfeit gold coins?

Let’s ask Elsa the next time when she comes by.

For now, I completed the sale of the gold coins. I am looking forward to how much money Elsa will bring next time.

After winter is over…

Elsa came to the town with many people. That group consisted of soldiers who guarded the gold on the carriage.

Well, since I have been told last time that they will visit in greater numbers, I am not that surprised.

But, I refrained from letting the humans into the town for our mutual safety. Although Elsa said that they are trustworthy people, this much is unavoidable.

That is why only Elsa and Reina, who came last time (Lyle doesn’t come), were allowed inside the town. As for the rest, I decided to let them stay at a brick house that was newly built by the Kobold tribe in the west.

By the way, the ceiling of this brick house was built with thin plywood and straw, so even if an earthquake occurred and the house collapsed, no one would die.

“Fujiwara-san, is the rate the same as the last time?” Elsa asked as we made way to the vacant shop they used before.

“Yes. I don’t mind.” I replied casually.

“How much do you have? This time, we would like a large quantity of black pepper.” She requested.

“We have prepared enough of sugar, black pepper, and chilli pepper to fill your carriage.” I stated proudly.

“Then I am relieved.” She grinned.

A little after we arrived at the store, the operation to carry the gold coins into the house started. When it’s over, we can then proceed onto the next transaction since the amount she owed us was finally paid.

“Then, please confirm the number of coins. There are 500 gold coins inside each bag.” Elsa reported.

There are 150 bags with 500 gold coins in each. There is no way to calculate all of these at one go. I picked one of the bags and arranged the gold coins onto the desk so that Elsa and Reina can see and count them.

“Alright, there is no problem. Next is this.” I stated as I grabbed the scale.

The scale is used to measure the authenticity of the gold coins.

“We will choose 5 pieces from one bag and weigh them. Let’s do this quickly since it will get dark soon.” After I said that, I placed the gold coins onto the scale.

While doing that, I opened my mouth to ask about the counterfeit gold coins.

“By the way, I have something I wanted to ask.”

“What is it? As long as I can answer it, no matter if it is ten or one hundred questions, I will answer. Ah, but the three size are a no no!” She winked at me.

“No, I am not interested in your three sizes.” I replied quickly.

“...Fujiwara-san, it’s okay to be a little more carried away.” Elsa’s eyes suddenly became cold.

[TL: YOU FOOL!]

Eeh..? What did I do wrong?

“I am sorry, but this is about something serious.” I apologised without knowing why.

“Mu...” Elsa pursed her lips as her expression became serious.

Even though she usually has a rather laidback appearance, when we start talking about business, she becomes like this sometimes.

“There were two gold coins with low gold ratios mixed in last time. They were obviously counterfeit gold coins.” I recounted.

“...Haa...” Elsa sighed as if she was exhausted.

What? Did I say something strange?

“Did I say something strange?” I asked.

“When you get something like that, then it’s a ‘hit.’” She stated.

“A ‘hit’?” I repeated after her.

“That’s right. You chose a random gold coin and weighed it just now right?” She asked.

“Yeah.” I nodded.

“There is a rule that at the time of trading, choose one piece from the 100 pieces and weigh it. If it is is a counterfeit, weigh another 5 pieces next. If there is a counterfeit again this time, weigh 10 next. If there is another counterfeit in the middle of weighing, the side receiving the gold will be given the right to check all of the gold.” Elsa explained clearly.

“Haa.” I gave a half hearted reply while thinking that this was such a troublesome rule.

Isn’t it like a rule to not let you discover false gold coins at all?

“Why does it give more advantage to the paying side? ...Or rather, do they pretend not to see the small number of counterfeit gold coins?” I questioned.

“No, unfortunately.” Was Elsa’s short reply.

I do not understand.

‘Bad money drives out good money.’ I have heard this saying in the previous world.

Bad money and good money... Even though they have the same monetary value, since precious metal is much more expensive, people will hide the good money and let the bad money circulate around the world. This means that the value of the money will drop, which would lead to the collapse of the monetary economy.

“It’s simple. The person who is able to make counterfeit money is a mint right holder. In other words, people who hold great power in the country. To be specific, it could be a grand duke, influential feudal lords, the archbishop, or some bishops. These people were delegated to manage the foundry by the king. In other words, the problem of counterfeit money is, more or less, to be crushed by people who care about it.” Elsa elaborated.

“I see.” I nodded listlessly.

In other words, if you try to intervene with this problem, it will result in bringing harm to oneself. Such decisions were made so that the problem will not become bigger.

But, is the monetary economy of this world alright?

I mean, the rule doesn’t apply when dealing with me…

“There is still something worse than this. There is a country where the use of scales for business is prohibited. They even give awful excuses, like ‘the business that weighs the coinage is synonymous with the business of metal. Because it will damage the value of money, therefore it is prohibited.’ Lowering the gold ratio of their own coinage, isn’t it the same as dropping their value of money? It’s messed up, right?” She complained.

The metal, before being processed into coinage, is pure gold. Indeed, if you trade by weighing it, you won’t need coinage anymore, so their reason is acceptable. But, we also need to know the ratio of the gold of the coin, so the argument will never end.

“Well, that country’s economy was destroyed, and now, only foreign currency and barter trade are being used. That is quite an old story. That is why the people who own foundries only made a slight adjustment to the quantity to the degree that it can be overlooked by the odd rule. In the end, the king overlooked it. But, if they go overboard, then the king will do ‘this’.” Elsa mimed the slicing of her neck and stuck her tongue out when she said ‘this’.

“Still, if enough dust builds up, it will become a mountain. When that happens, the one that will get sore eyes are the merchants. That rule. If you find more than 30 counterfeit coins from the buyer after you examine them, on top of being investigated by the authorities, they will be forced to forfeit their entire fortune. That is why everyone only gives out counterfeit money little by little. Even so, if you accumulate a lot of it, you will lose some money, but the government officials will buy it back at a reasonable price.” Elsa stated.

That means you knew about the counterfeit gold coins.

“Well, even though I said a lot of things, it is common for one or two bad coins to be mixed in, and it is customary to pretend to not realize it when you find out later. That is why merchants call it a ‘hit’.  There is no doubt that it is a loss, but at least you can comfort yourself by thinking you won the lottery.” She laughed lightly.

While thinking ‘I see’, I began moving my hand which had stopped from a while ago.

“Also, if you are a first class merchant, even without using a scale, you will know its weight even if you only use your hands. For a suspicious person, you can choose one coin and weigh it on the scale afterwards.” She explained further with a slightly shy smile.

Before long, I have finished weighing the 5 pieces of coins on the scale, and I also received the order slip for this transaction from Elsa. This time, sugar and chili pepper were in small quantities, while black pepper was requested in large quantities instead.

Apparently, the reason for sugar was to not intrude upon the production of honey, which was under monastery control. As for chilli pepper, although it is not unpopular, it seems like there is more demand for black pepper.

Thus, there is something I am curious about. Even though they knew about the honey, why did they still take a large amount of sugar last time?

Elsa explained it like this.

"Sugar is to sell our name. Sweet things are the easiest to sell due to its taste, and it's popular. On the other hand, black pepper and chili pepper are the first of their kind right? Because I’ve never tasted them before, I was startled by their prices. Therefore, [sugar] is actually really helpful. The people who bought sugar were some amazing people that have not seen something like spices until now. So, they did not mind about something with an absurd price. Well, even with such a thing, there are a lot of rich people who starve for an unknown taste, if you know what I mean.”

After thinking and discussing about various things, we finished the transaction on that day. After loading the gold onto the Riyaka, I asked the people of the Wolf tribe to transport it to my house.

At night, we served some sake and meals for Elsa’s group, and organised a small banquet.

“Ahh, that hit the spot! Those guys who always look so self-important. Why are they now rubbing their hands and speaking with polite language?

I wanted to show that to Fujiwara-san!” Elsa seemed to be in a considerably good mood as she said that.

From her story, it seems like the position of the opponent she despised so far, and hers, had changed completely.  Well, she is the only one with sugar and spices after all, so for other merchants, it’s something like giving them a Koumon-sama seal.

[TL: Koumon-sama is a character from drama mito Koumon where the old man travel around japan hiding his identity, at the end of the show he will always show his seals and all the villain will run away like a straight man being chased by drag queen *no LGBTsmn intended]

“Umm, did your actions make a lot of enemies..?” I asked hesitantly.

I would be troubled if a strange grudge was created, and they stupidly come here for revenge. Also, if something happens to Elsa, it will hinder her business with me.

“I understand. I will say it now. I properly put on a mask when I talk formally with other people. I disregard my feelings while trading in consideration of the profit and loss. We are professionals after all.” She declared.

In other words, she hides her feelings, and only shows her true self here. Does Elsa trust me this much, or is this one of the masks that she’s put on right now?

The next day, Elsa received the goods, and left the town. After seeing her off, I smiled a little.

The money I gained this time round is approximately 76,000 gold coins. The total weight is around 230 kilograms.

I already [sold] all of them last night, and it came to total amount of 8.4 billion yen.

[Funds] 49,881,122,000 yen → 58,313,170,000 yen.

I can’t stop grinning on my way home while being jolted around by Catherine. It’s exactly like how it felt so good to see the money accumulating in the bankbook back in the original world.

Gold has the charm of the devil.

Even a slight decrease and increase will shake one’s heart.

I often killed time by counting the money in my wallet when I was a child. However, with 76,000 gold disappearing from this world, I am worried that the currency market of the human world will be negatively affected.

Well, it can’t be helped now. I will ask about it next time Elsa drops by.

Anyway, with this, my funds are about 58 billion yen. Because I made a decision that the minimum amount of funds should be at least 50 billion, I can finally be a little bit unreasonable now that I have excess funds.