"A fully grown sheep for ten gold coins? That’s actually quite reasonable."
Sheep’s wool could be woven into warm winter clothing, while their at was highly sought after by restaurants and taverns.
With a purchasing cost of ten gold coins per head, the Ironcrest rchant Guild could expect a profit margin of at least fifty to sixty percent.
Multiply that by thirty thousand sheep, and the total profit was staggering. Yet, despite the promising deal, Gorren hesitated. He wasn’t entirely sure if he dared to accept these sheep.
Because deep down, he had a terrifying suspicion, ’What if these aren’t normal sheep at all? What if... the Elf King had used shapeshifting magic to turn sothing, or soone, into these sheep?’
’...’
’And if so... what exactly had they been before?’
His expression grew serious as he carefully asked, "Your Majesty, how does a place like this forest have so many sheep? This forest land is like a playground for magical beasts!"
Renjiro responded with a calm but unyielding tone. "That is none of your concern." He crossed his arms, his erald cloak shifting slightly. "You only need to know that the sheep and the wyvern are part of a bundle deal. Your rchant Guild will pay a total of one million four hundred thousand gold coins."
Gorren stiffened.
"Wait... Your Majesty, you’ve made a mistake," he said quickly. "Thirty thousand sheep should only cost around three hundred thousand gold coins, maybe a little less than four hundred thousand."
Renjiro’s expression remained unreadable. "Gorren, you are a mage, and your greed might just ruin the negotiations between us."
Gorren nearly choked on air. ’Greed?!’ He wanted to scream. Who was the greedy one here?! At this point, he was seriously beginning to wonder if Renjiro was actually a dragon in disguise.
And yet... He hadn’t even agreed to buy the sheep yet, so how had Renjiro already finalized the sale? This was basically forcing the deal through sheer authority!
Gorren took a deep breath to suppress his frustration and said in a asured tone, "Your Majesty, as a rchant, I have a responsibility to our clients. If sothing unexpected happens with these sheep during resale, it could severely damage our na and pur rchant guild reputation."
Renjiro replied smoothly, "You need not to worry. The quality of these sheep is excellent, and nothing unexpected will happen. If any problems arise, I will take full responsibility for that."
There was no room for negotiation in his voice.
Gorren hesitated for a long mont before finally relenting. "...Very well. We will purchase the sheep as well." His expression darkened slightly.
Transformation magic... was just too terrifying... How many of these sheep had been sothing else before?
Renjiro gave a satisfied nod before shifting his gaze to the Wyvern, which was still gleefully rubbing itself against Theron the Sheep.
He spoke with calm authority. "Take them to the underground Territory. You don’t have to return." The wyvern let out a deep growl.
Excited beyond words, it snatched Theron up in its jaws once more, not to eat him, but to savor his strangely enticing scent. It was starving, and the lingering musk of sheep had truly grown on it.
But for Theron, this was pure agony. Though trapped in a sheep’s body, his mind remained intact.
After being forcibly rubbed against the ground for ages, now he was being snatched up again, a humiliation so soul-crushing that even as a Ninth-Circle Knight, he couldn’t endure it anymore.
His consciousness faded. He had fainted. Gorren barely suppressed a shudder at the sight.
Clearing his throat, he quickly said, "Your Majesty, we don’t have enough gold with us for now. We’ll need to return to the city to prepare the funds. Please grant us one day."
Renjiro casually waved a hand. "You may take both the wyvern and the sheep with you. Bring the gold to tomorrow as you have just said."
Gorren froze. He hadn’t expected Renjiro to trust them so easily. This was a deal worth a staggering one million four hundred thousand gold coins.
With that kind of money, one could buy an entire noble territory, or even hire strong rcenaries to fight on behalf of their guild.
Yet Renjiro wasn’t even asking for collateral here. Gorren bowed his head respectfully. "Your Majesty, we are truly grateful for your trust in our guild. Rest assured, we will deliver the paynt on ti tomorrow."
Renjiro’s lips curved into a subtle smirk. "I believe you won’t disappoint ." He paused for a beat before adding with a faint edge, "Otherwise... you will just regret it everyday thinking about this."
The underlying threat was impossible to miss. A veiled warning, wrapped in polite words.
The Ironcrest rchant Guild was one of the most powerful and grusted in the region. But even they wouldn’t want to test the wrath of an Unknown thing like Elf King... it was still a mystery to him how in the world their population grows from under a thousand to tens of thousand and that too in just a month’s ti.
Before Gorren could think further or respond, Lyra suddenly bead with excitent.
"Your Majesty, why don’t you visit the human city?!" She clapped her hands together. "You’ve never seen a human city before, have you? If you do co, I’d love to show you around! There’s a beautiful lake in the northern district that glows under the moonlight. It’s truly a breathtaking sight!"
Renjiro studied her for a mont, then gave a small nod.
"I will rember your invitation, Lady Lyra." Lyra stole a quick glance at Renjiro, before quickly looking away.
Renjiro was simply too handso from human standards and even from elf standards. That was the only thought running through Lyra’s mind as she stole glances at the Elf King.
Compared to the noblen of the city, Renjiro’s appearance was on an entirely different level. He far surpassed any human she had ever seen. And it wasn’t just his looks, his noble bearing was sothing that no human aristocrat matched or even if they did she had never seen it.
While Lyra was lost in admiration, Gorren was wiping cold sweat from his forehead.
Lyra might be naive, but he wasn’t.
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