Chapter 47 – New House and Orders
After arriving at the Tropical Inn alongside Akra, Kaelen noticed an unusual detail: the draconian girl had been imitating him much more than he realized. He wondered in silence whether this happened because he kept their mental conversation active through the psychic link. Since the day had been exhausting, they returned close to dinner time, and the distinct rumble in Akra's stomach gave away that it was well past time to eat.
They had resolved several issues along the path between the workshops, ranging from contracts with the artisans to acquiring the magical pouches at Master Galian's shop. The weight in his pocket had been considerable when paying one hundred and forty gold coins for two dimensional space pouches—artifacts that, since he could not use them due to his limitations, would serve perfectly for Akra and Miri. He would have liked to acquire one for Eradan as well, but the local market only had two units available.
Shortly after, at the equipment shop, he had bought light defensive clothing for Akra for another ten gold coins, along with protections for Miri and Eradan, a safeguarding pendant for Thys, and a new staff for the elf, speaking with the shopkeeper about the possibility of upgrading the latter in the future.
Upon gathering at the table in the main hall, Kaelen mentally calculated their expenses and what he would still need to spend. Out of their initial five thousand gold, three thousand five hundred and fifty coins remained, as he needed to set aside a considerable sum to pay the specialists the next day and cover materials. It was inevitable to feel a pinch seeing resources dwindle so fast.
As soon as the group settled, he initiated the conversation: — I've arranged a place for us to live. How was your day?
— All sorted, young master — Thys replied, wiping her hands on her apron. — I bought the essential house and kitchen items; the merchants are just waiting for your order to deliver them.
— Really? That's great! Then have them delivered to this address. Can someone coordinate that tomorrow? Aside from that, did you find anything interesting or buy what you needed?
— Young master, I was strictly rigid with them so they would spend only what was necessary with the coins — Thys retorted, maintaining her usual firm posture.
— But at least you ate something, right?
Miri interrupted, twitching her long ears: — Sir, I even saw some gorgeous tapestry pieces and some vases at the markets, but... I couldn't even get close due to the spending discipline.
— Sir, we ate, don't worry — Eradan explained with his habitual innocence. — But Mrs. Thys was quite firm in ordering us to keep expenses down so we wouldn't overburden you.
— I have to thank you, Thys. I know you worry about our accounts—and with total reason—but your well-being matters to me. Did you eat? At least something warm? It will take a little while for us to adapt here until I can get commerce moving, don't you agree?
Kaelen viewed Thys both as a maternal figure and a severe intendant. He knew she would never yield on discipline, but it was impossible not to recognize and value that care.
— Since you went out and don't want to tell the details of the walk, that's fine. I just hope you enjoyed the time. Akra, can you get what you brought for Thys?
Akra untied the string of the small pouch attached to her waist, opened the dimensional space, and pulled out the bronze protection pendant.
— This is for you, Thys. It's a gift to protect you. And this one is for you, Miri.
Kaelen handed the other smaller magical pouch to the bunny kin, and right after, Akra retrieved the reinforced linen defensive clothing to hand over to Miri.
— Thank you, sir... but why all this? It's far too expensive, especially this space pouch! How am I supposed to walk around with an item of this value in the streets? — Miri questioned, wide-eyed at the gift.
Letting out a short laugh, Kaelen pondered: — Miri, tomorrow you will come out with me. After lunch, I'm heading to the Trade Guild for a meeting, and the one who will negotiate at the table is you. You need to be well-dressed and, more than that, carry the posture of someone with room to bargain; otherwise, the councilmen will try to pay us the absolute minimum. Think of this as an investment for our group's future.
— Sir... thank you for the trust — Miri replied, twitching her ears with deep respect.
— Don't be intimidated. Tomorrow you will come with me and Akra to the Trade Guild late in the afternoon. Be prepared.
Miri stood up with renewed energy, tapping her foot lightly on the floor: — Yes, sir!
Amused by the bunny kin's vigor, Kaelen gestured for Akra to hand the rest to the elf: — I didn't forget you, Eradan. Here is a new staff and sturdy clothing for travels or potential dangers. If you prefer to keep your old wooden focus, I arranged with the shopkeeper that we can upgrade it later. By the way, the magic item merchant... he was a dragonkin, wasn't he? Given their natural predisposition to store mana in their blood...
— Yes, sir, you are correct... — Eradan explained in a low, shy voice, while his large eyes shone in the dark. — Dragonkin possess a very strong affinity with aether, much like lizardfolk.
— You know, Eradan, I'm preparing surprises for each of you in the new house... and of course, that will require dedication in the garden and on the land.
The elf broke into a happy, innocent expression, hugging the new focus like a child on a holiday. With serenity re-established in the room, Kaelen turned his mental focus to planning the next day.
At that moment, Thys cleared her throat lightly and remarked: — Pardon me, young master, but Miss Akra has been imitating you in various gestures ever since you started walking... It's been rather comical to watch, though difficult to restrain.
Kaelen remembered when he crossed the city and noticed people's curious glances—now he understood why. Akra, realizing the attention, stopped eating, stared fixedly at him, and repeated the exact gesture of rubbing her chin where there was no beard.
— Stop it, Akra, don't make me look ridiculous — he muttered, shaking his head.
The little girl stared at him without understanding the annoyance, finding it perfectly natural to mimic his example, and blurted out with a victorious pose and a slight stutter: — Deal... closed! We're going to make... a lot of money!
The scene drew bursts of laughter from everyone at the table, even the impassive Thys. With spirits relaxed, Kaelen withdrew to his quarters and called Miri for a private conversation before sleep.
The bunny kin entered the room with caution and respect: — Miri, listen closely: we are not going to sell the idea on a silver platter to the Trade Guild. If we do that, they will crush us with fees and profit off our sweat. What we will present is the finished product ready for scaling, maintaining strict manufacturing control and ensuring continuous supply. We control production, which gives us real bargaining power. They'll want the regional distribution monopoly for the resale profit, but we will dictate the pace: they buy the closed batch with a high margin for us, test the market, and any future restock will demand renewed contracts. Do you understand the spirit of the negotiation?
Miri looked at him with shining eyes: — Sir, you're going to propose something entirely new... Something that doesn't exist?
— Yes, Miri. I've done something similar before, but for my father. Now we're on our own, and a merchant always deals better with another merchant. Can I count on you to be our future master merchant in trade relations with the guild?
— Sir... that is a lot of responsibility for me. I was merely a small trader... I'm afraid of failing... — Miri replied, swallowing hard.
— Nobody is born knowing everything. Mistakes will bring correctives. Go rest and get ready; tomorrow afternoon we're heading to the guild together.
Bidding her farewell, Kaelen sat at the desk to advance the technical designs on parchment, structuring the artificial rain engine and sprinklers for the Old Mill Estate—detailing the upward flow driven by the waterwheel, the ceramic channels descending from the elevated tank, and the bronze rotating spray head in the garden.
The next day, following breakfast and a morning session of fencing and psi control training with Akra—observed from afar by Miri and Eradan's curiosity—time flew swiftly until lunch.
— I'll get ready to go out and settle the final contracts with the artisans at the farm. Four days from now we are moving there for good — he warned his companions.
Upon arriving at the Old Mill Estate shortly after lunch, he found the group assembled: Gorgon, Sssaris, Master Boris, and Gorim.
He presented the final terms and deadlines for producing the pilot batch of fifty lamp and filter units, alongside the two hundred and fifty staggered pieces and the property's complete infrastructure. After aligning gold advance costs and reinforcing the absolute importance of contractual secrecy before the guild, the artisans confirmed delivery schedules for the coming days.
With farm preparations underway, Kaelen returned to the inn to pick up Miri and head toward the Trade Guild. Sssaris and Gorgon's prototypes traveled hidden and secure inside Akra's dimensional pouch.
Crossing the marble and fine wood doors of the guild, they headed to the main counter and requested an audience to present an unprecedented product. Escorted to Negotiation Room Three, they waited until the arrival of the institution's senior evaluator—a middle-aged man in a velvet tunic and a cynical expression.
Faced with the evaluator's initial disdain, Kaelen pulled the artifacts from the magic pouch and demonstrated the efficiency of the stable-flame lamp and ceramic filter, purifying murky water in seconds and drinking the clarified liquid without hesitation. Professional greed replaced disdain in the guild official's eyes as soon as he realized the commercial potential of those innovations.
Firmly and strictly following the combined strategy, Miri took charge of the verbal negotiation, refusing to yield the patent and imposing her entourage's terms: temporary regional distribution exclusivity for the guild on the initial batch, while absolute manufacturing control of the technological cores remained strictly in their hands.
Faced with hesitation and the evaluator's attempts to impose abusive clauses of prolonged exclusivity, Kaelen executed a calculated bluff, pretending to abandon the table, threatening to cancel the estate purchase, rescind contracts with local artisans, and take the technology to a rival city.
The pressure worked perfectly. The evaluator, fearful of losing the novelty's monopoly to a competitor, yielded immediately, accepting the terms, excluding the hydraulic and heating systems from the contractual bindings, and offering a twenty percent bonus on the payment of the first batch.
With the contract formalized and signed on official guild sheets, the "Artificial Rain Engine" secured the financial and logistic backing of the region's largest commercial force, preserving creative control and the entourage's profit margin entirely intact.
