Chapter 111: Act 44 – Bruglas’s Underground Deal (Part 2)
The interior space of the Maria Market’s auction house isn’t large; it resembles a dimly lit small theater. Rows of seats form a stepped arrangement around a central ‘stage,’ but these are for the general guests. Surrounding the ‘theater’ are private boxes decorated with silk and satin, tightly packed together across three tiers, each containing a brass telescope mounted on a mahogany stand for the nobles to scrutinize the goods displayed at the center of the stage.
Lohn had a connection to secure a box for Brendel, but the young man declined. His purpose for coming was not to draw attention; participating was secondary; he only wanted to see if there were any unexpected gains.
A group entered and received numbers before taking their seats in order. Although Brendel appeared relaxed on the surface, underneath his knight’s outfit was a repeater crossbow secured tightly, with cursed bolts crafted by Tam stowed in the box, ready for any emergencies.
Vaunte’s crossbow was a finely crafted piece of equipment, its sight resembling a small raised box, which could be difficult for novices to handle flexibly. However, Brendel’s mercenary profession granted him the skill of ‘Weapon Familiarity’; this knowledge allowed him to utilize the exquisite weapon like a seasoned mercenary—he even fashioned a simple sight on his ring for calibration during actual shooting.
Not long after Brendel sat down and before the trading event began, Lohn, donning a long cloak after masquerading, approached and sat beside them. Cautiously checking around, he replied, “My lord, the poisoned daggers and those potions have been sold—the daggers were snagged by members of the Brotherhood, and you can rest assured they were quite generous, paying two thousand five hundred Tor for each dagger without questioning the seller.”
In underground deals, not every transaction takes place at the auction house. In fact, most deals are completed privately, with sellers and buyers reaching agreements through intermediaries like Lohn—sometimes even involving several intermediaries for safety and discretion—with just a small sum paid to the middlemen as commission and gag money.
In Bruglas’s gray domain, no one’s mouth is wider, nor their silence more profound; everything is relative.
“What about the potions?” Brendel pretended to adjust the staff at the table while casually inquiring about unrelated matters. He understood the rules of the underground market; items like poisoned daggers and magical potions usually weren’t showcased prominently.
“The potions are a bit trickier; the person in charge of the Tower of Stars and Moon has been investigating the creators of these potions. It seems they’re implying that the crafting method for mana potions hasn’t been circulated for a long time—they stated: ‘The Wizard’s Guild welcomes professional alchemists to settle in.'” Lohn said, carefully observing Brendel’s expression with his small eyes.
He wanted to gauge Brendel’s reaction; if the young man found this information useful, he might receive compliments—every time he felt more secure in his standing among this group, it brought him solace.
If Brendel sensed the issue was precarious, Lohn would also feel a surge of satisfaction. Although he and Brendel were essentially in the same boat, lingering feelings of resentment and fear were not uncommon.
Yet, Lohn perhaps harbored thoughts akin to Antinna’s; he watched Brendel, hoping to benefit from his success, yet secretly wishing to witness him stumble.
However, Brendel merely shook his head and nonchalantly replied, “My friend isn’t interested in that; let’s just discuss the trade situation, Lohn.”
Clearly, his assessment wasn’t wrong; mana potions were indeed rarer in this world than in the ‘Amber Sword.’
“Each potion is one thousand Tor, totaling thirty thousand Tor.” Lohn did not show the disappointment he felt inside.
Brendel nodded. The price of the daggers was twenty-five percent higher than he had anticipated, and the cost of the mana potions far exceeded his imagination—moonlit grass, black mage samples, and glow moss were merely common magical materials, yet at this price, the profit margin for a single mana potion exceeded two hundred percent.
It was absurdly profitable.
He immediately categorized this as a long-term money-making scheme. Brendel couldn’t help but glance back at Romaine. If the mana potions became the brand, it seemed feasible for Little Romaine to establish a trading company.
Of course, our Miss Romaine noticed Brendel’s gaze and couldn’t help but raise her eyebrows, clasping her hands in front of her chest, openly exclaiming, “Half of one hundred thousand, huh, Brendel? Just as you said! I knew Brendel could do it!”
“The main act is yet to come, Miss Romaine.” Mr. Charles, sitting behind Brendel, replied with a smile.
“No, Charles, you might have misunderstood! Our Business Lady is merely reminding me that this one hundred thousand Tor is her capital.” Looking at the staff below, Brendel said expressionlessly.
The Business Lady seemed to feel exposed but showed no embarrassment, appearing instead like a little fox that had taken advantage of a situation, smiling coyly as she covered her mouth.
Seeing this, Antinna, sitting beside Charles, couldn’t help but raise her eyebrows slightly. Born into a noble family, she had dealt with tens of thousands of Tor in cash before. But it was unthinkable for individuals like Brendel and Romaine to treat it so casually—after all, her family’s wealth had once been considerable, but that was the extent of it.
Thus, this scene to her confirmed that although this young knight lord was out exploring on his own, his background must surely be significant.
However, this young lady clearly miscalculated—Romaine had no such conception; Brendel had handled hundreds of thousands to millions in the game, and this small change was naturally insignificant to him—but if one were to speak of his background, it would be hard to pin down.
The lights in the ‘circular theater’ suddenly dimmed. The group turned to notice that the workers around had extinguished half the torches lining the walls, indicating that the trading event was about to start—
Lohn lowered his voice, saying, “If we were in a private box, the auction list should have been delivered to those nobles by now. My lord, do you have anything you desire?”
“Not yet.” Brendel looked at the spotlight coming on the central stage. “Speaking of which, have they bothered you afterward?”
Lohn shook his head. “As you expected, it’s well known that that day you and Mr. Balthom coerced me to visit Grey Rat Street. Afterwards, someone from Test’s crew came to find me, and I mentioned I didn’t know you—”
“It sounds like you didn’t take kindly to it?” Balthom teased from the side.
“Not at all.” Lohn had now understood Balthom’s position and, in his presence, was no longer as submissive as before. He glanced at the staff below and changed the subject, saying, “By the way, my lord, what do you consider the psychological price of that sword? It’s truly a perfect piece of art in my eyes.”
Brendel knew he was referring to the brass-level magical weapon forged from a dwarven sword and thought for a moment before estimating, “At least one hundred to one hundred fifty thousand Tor.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Antinna behind him gasped softly. Everyone was startled, turning around to see the noble lady blushing, waving her hand, “S-sorry, it’s nothing.”
She couldn’t help but gently press her chest, fearing her heart was pounding too quickly. The young girl’s light blue eyes sparkled with a quick-witted gleam—one hundred fifty thousand Tor translates to one hundred fifty of Erluin’s small gold coins. As a staff member, she was aware of Brendel’s financial situation—they had entered empty-handed, not expecting to suddenly possess a fortune rivaling what some minor nobles saved over a lifetime.
Two hundred thousand Tor could easily purchase a knight’s domain in a remote countryside, making it entirely possible.
In the eyes of Antinna, a girl born into nobility with an assertive mindset, wealth should be invested for further production to be considered fluid wealth. Previously, she had been so absorbed in her designs that she depleted her family’s fortune, but a smart person would not make the same mistake twice in the same place.
She rapidly calculated what two hundred thousand Tor could achieve. With that amount of money, whether in business activities or upward mobility, it appeared to be a broad path ahead. She estimated that with such an amount, she could enhance its worth by thirty percent within a year.
However, she furrowed her brow. Although she offered her services as Brendel’s aide, would he really let her manipulate such a large sum freely? That was uncertain.
Meanwhile, Brendel noticed the changing expressions on the face of his new subordinate and couldn’t help but ask, “Miss Antinna?”
“What?” Antinna started, lifting her head.
“Are you considering our financial situation?” Brendel asked.
Antinna’s face turned slightly red but quickly returned to normal. The girl nodded seriously, replying, “Yes, as your aide, I believe I need to consider these matters—”
As she spoke, she cast a somewhat uncertain glance at Romaine; after all, as Brendel’s fiancée in name, she seemed to have more say in that regard.
However, the Business Lady smiled sweetly, as usual.
After hearing this, Brendel wore a contemplative expression. He looked at the others before saying, “If you have ideas, I’ll divide this money in half: one portion for you, one for Romaine. You can utilize these funds as you see fit, but—”
Before he could finish, Antinna displayed an incredulous expression, “Knight sir, are you serious?”
Brendel nodded, as it was customary for him as a captain in ‘Amber Sword’—he was always trusting of others, or rather, evaluating a person’s capability through permissiveness.
The girl took a breath, nodding gravely, “I will ensure to utilize this money wisely, knight sir. I have already devised a plan that can increase this funding’s value in a short time…”
Brendel interrupted her, stating, “No, I’m giving you this money to tell you. I’ll let Little Romaine help me make money, and Miss Antinna, I want you to help me spend the money—”
“Spend money?” Antinna froze.
At that moment, the bell of the trading event chimed melodiously. Brendel turned back and replied, “You will soon understand. Of course, if Miss Antinna is willing, she may also guide our Business Lady on her plans, as she has a big plan ahead!”
Brendel first thought of the territory. If Little Romaine were to establish a trading company, it would be inappropriate for it to be overtly connected to the territory; if that were the case, he would need a steward.
Now that Antinna voluntarily stepped up, he was pleased to benefit from it.
“A big plan?” Antinna was taken aback, struggling to envision what this eternally spirited ‘Business Lady’ could be planning—truth be told, she had some reservations about entrusting such financial responsibilities to someone like her, but it was difficult to interrupt at the moment.
Yet she soon dismissed that thought, as something suddenly clicked.
The girl’s eyes brightened slightly as she connected the Business Lady’s incessant discussions over the past few days regarding the yearly festivals held in Bruglas—she immediately pieced together the rough outline of the whole affair from the details.
She pondered, tilting her head as she quietly asked Mr. Charles beside her, “Mr. Charles, where was Madara’s army before entering the city?”
“It has been stalled in the Draggas region for nearly half a month,” Charles casually replied, then paused before asking, “Have you realized something, Miss Antinna?”
The wizard apprentice couldn’t help but be amazed; deducing the cause and effect of the situation from just one sentence showed that this aide Brendel found was indeed no ordinary person.
“If Miss Romaine’s plan succeeds, the profit margin would be at least eighty percent—!” Antinna couldn’t help but glance at the smiling Business Lady chatting with Brendel ahead, as if recognizing a different side of her for the first time.
“Previously, Miss Romaine calculated that it would be one hundred percent.” Charles responded.
“That’s because we hadn’t accounted for the channel issues—” Antinna bit her lip, feeling her confidence slightly shaken. She thought for a moment and said earnestly, “But if we work hard, with Mr. Lohn’s presence, achieving a hundred percent isn’t impossible…”
Brendel, of course, didn’t notice the quiet conversation between his two subordinates, as at that moment, the highlight of the underground trading event—the auction—had begun. What he hadn’t anticipated was that the first item would pique his interest.
That flat parchment laid under the spotlight bore an ancient contract written in the elemental languages of the four tribes. Its four corners curled slightly upward as the magical powers of wind, earth, fire, and water caused the edges of this magical scroll to bend toward the center.
This scroll existed to open pathways to elementalists for those lacking talent. Many nobles used such items to unlock the gates of the magical world for their family heirs.
It was undoubtedly valuable.
But for Brendel at that moment, this item was worth more than gold.
Because in his eyes, it held just one name:
‘Elemental Pool Opening Scroll’
(PS: I had to go out today for medical insurance and ran around for half a day, only to be told I needed to come before the 20th. Feeling down, I only managed to produce this chapter today due to time constraints. I’ll write more tomorrow to make up for it. As for the monthly ticket matter, I’ll ask for it tomorrow. Starting now, there’s a mobile authentication event for monthly tickets—everyone can give it a try. If you get them, just hold onto them for now and see how I perform tomorrow!)(To be continued. To know what happens next, please log in. More chapters await, support the author, and support legal reading!)
