Chapter 157: Swift travel and a quick return

Chapter 157: Swift travel and a quick return

Roderick Kallvek, second assistant merchant to the Great Kallvek, (May his fortunes multiply as fast as his family!), looked at the partially loaded wagon and thought that his father would be pleased. The family was indebted to the Village of Sedgewick and its Mayor for quite a few wagonloads of flour, salt, sugar, spices, and dried vegetables and fruits, but there was room for profit in this deal. Quite a bit of profit, actually. He suspected that the new Mayor of the village knew that. You caught a fish with bait, and what better bait for a merchant than profit? He liked taking the bait, but he’d have to be wary of landing in the frying pan.

And to the Butcher he had promised twenty-four barrels of syrup that he would have to purchase from the Maple Priests. It was tricky dealing with them. He would spread the sales over several buyers. Other things the Butcher wanted as well: three barrels of molasses, fifty pounds of ginger root, and a barrel of peppercorns. His father was going to want an explanation for these orders, he was sure of that.

Luckily, he had one prepared. He just had to show the contents of this wagon. First it contained a dozen sets of the magical knives. They were wickedly sharp and weapons made from beasts were always in style. Not that it was difficult to sell magical blades, but these would sell quickly. He had kept the first set for himself, and was wearing them on his belt. Every merchant needed a good knife, and he liked the little butterfly carvings.Ñøv€lRapture marked the initial hosting of this chapter on Ñôv€lß¡n.

There were also twenty of the Ironwood Wands, with twenty more promised to him. They were very good wands for a beginner, and he could sell hundreds to the colleges in the capital. If the village could supply them at a steady pace, it would create an income source for both his family and the village.

The three barrels of gourmet bacon he was tempted to take by one of the several colleges he traded with. Because of the mana restoration enchantment they carried, they had value to any mage. Student mages were always low on mana and would purchase low level mana restoration potions by the dozens. But the bacon would sell just as well to taverns and restaurants. Hmm, maybe an eatery next to a college? It would be doubly popular.

Finally there was the small barrel of highly enchanted, and quite explosive, Mage's Delight.

The last item he would leave to his father to sell. The destructively enchanted meat was closer to ammunition for a Fire Mage than it was a foodstuff. By family law, only the Great Kallvek dealt with powerful weapons and destructive magics. The old man handled trade with the arms dealers and the rest of the family made the more mundane trades.

He turned to see it was Suzette, the little mayor, "Yes, my dear, how may I be of service."

She smiled and indicated the Butcher behind her, "We don't mind helping to bring the mana cost down. It's the least we can do, and neither of us have heavy work today. Just lots of shopping."

Roderick bowed; help was help. Even if they could bring the cost down by one or two gold, it was less paid out in fees. He liked paying less.

The Centurion nodded and showed them where to place their hands. The merchant was fairly sure he saw the mayor wink at the butcher and whisper, "Race you!" The stone glowed brighter as they put their mana into its storage. Sparks flew on the mayor's side and the Butcher seemed to grimace and bear down. A moment later he sat back down, exhausted. The little woman kept going for another ten seconds before straightening up and looking at the Legion mage, "That should do it." She grabbed the Butcher's arm, heaved him up off the ground, and declared that he owed her a snack. They waved to Roderick and the Legionnaires and went in search of the candy seller before he closed for the night.

The mage in charge of the teleporter looked at Roderick and said, "Good to go. Get your load up there and hold tight to the wagon."

Roderick and his son did so, but then he turned to the mage, "And the fee, what do I owe?" The mage shook his head in exasperation. "Not a damn thing, and I'm lucky she didn't ask for some money back from me." More than that the man wouldn't say. Two seconds later he and his son were in Northguard, home of Duke Greywolf, who ruled the northern duchy.

Quickly moving the wagon out of the large building that housed several massive teleport stones, they found a quiet spot by the buildings wall and he sent his son off to the family holdings to bring back a horse and some help. He was pondering the implications of how much mana his two new trading partners had used. He had suspected the woman of having some spells, but had thought it was limited to her brewing and other simple cantrips. The butcher was obviously the one crafting magical food. It now seemed likely that both might be powerful mages - and yet unconcerned with entrusting him with such a secret. Likewise, it was obvious the Legion knew. Marcus had seemed amused by the whole affair.

Yes, this was important information. He needed to impress upon his father, the Great Kallvek, the need for a speedy return with good quality foodstuffs. And then it was time to see about buying a building in the Village. Maybe a warehouse and a shop? And an eatery for Myrna? He'd been thinking of turning over the traveling part of the business to his son and settling down. Sedgewick was a nice little place, wasn't it? He'd be sure to explain how nice it was to his wife and family while he visited.