The guard noted my interaction with the lady and let
pass through the door without saying anything. Beyond it was a simple corridor, with doors on both sides. Each corresponded to an office belonging to soone working for the comrce office. I understood that this was where the real work was happening, the one that made the whole system turn.
I followed the nas on the doors until I arrived at one with Clifer written on it. The doorplates only had nas without the official position of the person inside, which might be because it was a trend that didn’t exist yet in the kingdom. I knocked, and a voice imdiately responded from inside.
“Co in!”
I opened the door and entered. There was a woman, looking busy with paperwork. She was a rank 6 mage and a lynx, a dium-sized feline subspecies common in the kingdom. She stopped working on a docunt as I made my way inside, observing .
“Nice to et you. I’m Tila Urtek, a trader from Geola.”
“Yes, nice to et you too. I’m Clifer Veng, deputy chief of the comrce office. Who sent you to ?”
“Soone from the reception. She gave
this letter.”
She took it and glanced at it.
“I see. Sit down so we can talk.”
I sat in front of her desk, and she continued when I was comfortable.
“You want to open a store in the capital as a foreigner, correct?”
“That’s right.”
“It’s normally impossible unless you have a royal silver token, or higher.”
“Royal?”
“It sounds intimidating, but it’s the sa token you have for Chian. We only call it this because Hyien and its surroundings are the kingdom's property.”
“That makes sense. Is there a way for
to obtain that token?”
“Not really. We don’t offer it to just anybody because it gives its owner a lot of rights. However, this is different from opening a store. The silver token allows you to do many things, including owning property, but that doesn’t an there’s no way to give that single right without the silver token.”
“I guess you’ll want sothing in exchange for giving
that right?”
“That goes without saying. You do know about the three great rchant companies, right?”
“Of course.”
“The queen has beco dissatisfied with them lately. Are you aware that about 70% of all trading in the continent happens through one of those three companies?”
I knew they were big, but that number was incredibly high. It was almost… monopolistic.
“…They have grown too big?”
“That’s right. Using the free city of Geola and Vejas as a shield, their growth has beco explosive. What’s worse is that they signed so kind of deal between them to get almost monopolies on many goods, with each company specializing in certain sectors. They’re able to control the flow and prices of rchandise, and that’s a huge problem for us. They didn’t manage to provide us with what we needed for the war, and whatever they sold us was overpriced. Plus, all their goods are steadily rising in price because they know people have no choice but to buy from them.”
I was learning a lot from this discussion, even though I still didn’t know what she was expecting
to do.
“I understand, but how can a simple rchant like
influence such giant companies?”
She suddenly sent
an impish smile.
“You know about Geola’s situation, right?”
“Yes.”
“Well, it just happens that the heads of the three great rchant groups were in Geola when the epidemic started.”
She chuckled while I realized what she ant.
“Yes, that’s right. They’re completely stuck inside the city and can’t go out! That doesn’t an the companies stopped working since huge organizations like these can function without their leaders, but they’re definitely not at their top right now. I heard that they need to bribe Geola’s soldiers with a large amount of money whenever they want to send a ssage outside.”
“You an that now’s the chance to do sothing about them?”
“Precisely! And that’s where you co in. While they’re in trouble, we want to diversify our trading partners. We’ll allow you to open a store in the capital if you sign a contract with us.”
“What sort of contract?”
Her grin changed into a professional one.
“It’s very simple. Whatever you sell in Hyien, it should never be priced over 80% of the price from the three great rchant companies. As long as you respect that, the contract will be valid and you’ll be able to continue trading here as long as you want.”
It seed simple, but that condition was very stringent. If the three great companies truly owned 70% of the trade happening in the region, it ant that I would always need to sell my goods 20% under market price. It might not seem that bad, but that was a lot. If I were to acquire sothing at 70, and the market price for the good was 100, instead of earning 30 on each sale, my profits would be limited to 10. In this example, my profits would be cut by two-thirds. It could even be worse for low-profit margin goods.
I also understood what the woman hadn’t explicitly expressed.
“You must have given a similar proposal to many other rchants.”
She only smiled aningfully without answering. However, that wasn’t the end of the issues.
“If I sign such a contract, wouldn’t I beco the three great rchant companies’ enemy? Wouldn’t that be similar to a comrcial suicide? Or maybe even a real suicide if they take it badly.”
Her lips stretched even further on both sides.
“That’s right. Are you afraid? No one’s forcing you to do it. We want solid partners, and not wimpy rchants ready to give up at the first sign of danger.”
“Will I get any sort of protection?”
“No.”
“You’re giving almost nothing, but you get a lot in return. That contract is overwhelmingly in your favor.”
“You’re the one who wants sothing from us. There’s only one capital, but there are many traders like you. If you don’t take the offer, soone else will.”
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