Read Novel Full Vol 4 Chapter 8
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Chapter 8 – First Business Meeting and a Higher Price Than Expected
“Nchu, master, wake up. It’s time for breakfast with the Girasole.”
“Oh, thank you, Ines.”
“Chu, good morning.”
“Felicia, good morning.”
Whew, that’s right, I promised to have breakfast with them. When I got ready and went to the dining room, the members of Girasole had already gathered there.
“Good morning, everyone.”
“”””””Good morning.””””””
We had breakfast while briefly reviewing today’s schedule. Recently, Rimu has been going back and forth from table to table to get a little bit of food from Girasole and me after he finished his own meal. Cute.
I feel sorry for the members of Girasole, but it is so cute to see Rimu moving around and being so happy to receive a share of the meal.
Carla-san, who loves to eat, also shares some of her food with Rimu, even leaving a little bit for him. I am so happy to see that kindness, Carla-san, that I am touched by it.
Among the members of Girasole, Dorothea-san, and Marina-san are also slime-loving companions, so I can understand them. But the sight of Alessia-san, Ilma-san, Carla-san, and Claretta-san all smiling kindly and sharing their food with Rimu was such a nice sight that the other customers in the dining room were glued to the table.
By the way, when I told them that if they didn’t have enough food, I would order more, they said, “No thanks.” Apparently, they enjoy sharing their food with others.
After breakfast, we rented a cart from the merchant guild and headed for the ship. I summoned a pepper boat on the ship and loaded one cart for the time being.
“Wataru-san is quite careful, isn’t he? I had an image of you as more of a casual sort.”
“Haha, I’m not cautious, Alessia-san, but timid. So when I think of the trouble I might have to go through if my skills were discovered, I’m afraid to even try.”
“I see; you went to such lengths to tell me the secrets you hide. I am glad you trust me.”
I feel like I’ve gained some likability in a place I didn’t expect. Since all the members of Girasole are beautiful women with amazingly large breasts, I’ll take what I told you to my grave, having given in to my desire.
“N-no. I’m indebted to Alessia-san and the others, and I’ve worked with you many times. I knew you were trustworthy people, so it’s no problem.”
“Fufu, thank you, that’s very kind of you.”
“Well, now, let’s go to the Filippo Trading Company, shall we?”
“Yes.”
Following the map and pulling a cart, we arrived at the Filippo Trading Company. …I’m nervous even after all this time. Is it possible to visit early in the morning without an appointment? While I was hesitating, a middle-aged man came out of the store and approached me.
“Good morning. How can I help you with our business?”
“Oh, good morning. I am Wataru, from the Kingdom of Latina. I have heard that this trading company deals in foodstuffs, so I came to have you look at my goods. May I have a moment of your time?”
“Oh, that would be my pleasure. We would like to see them. Please come into the store.”
Was I doing it right? While I was nervously talking, they started to show me inside the store…
I was asked to leave my cart in the store and took a bag of pepper, and followed him. We are shown into a room and offered tea. I am greeted in a proper manner, which in turn, makes me more nervous.
“I apologize for the late notice. My name is Filippo, the president of this trading company. Pleased to make your acquaintance.”
Oh, he’s the chairman of this trading company… Please don’t be so polite to an F-rank merchant; it makes me want to go back home.
“It’s my pleasure to meet you.”
“May I take a look at your goods?”
“Y-yes, this one, please.”
I put the bag of pepper in front of the chairman of the trading company.
“Is this… pepper, a rare one? May I taste it?”
“Yes, you may check it out.”
“Excuse me. Oh, this is wonderful. A full aroma, a pungent taste, a very good pepper indeed.”
“Thank you.”
“Is everything in the cart you brought with you pepper?”
“Yes, everything is pepper. You may taste it if you like.”
“Now, if you will excuse me.”
We moved to the front of the cart, and Filippo-san seriously checked each bag one by one. I was nervous as if I were being graded on a test in front of me.
“All the peppers are first class. You seem to have a wonderful eye, Wataru-san. Even the freshest pepper is a precious commodity, but to have such a large quantity, all in first class, thank you for coming to the Filippo Trading Company.”
I don’t have a great eye or anything. I just used a cheat to stop time and transport them from their place of origin. It hurts my heart, so please don’t praise me anymore.
“No, I am very glad you are satisfied.”
We returned to the reception room and resumed our business discussion.
“Now, if we could discuss the price, would it be correct to assume that you would be willing to sell all of these goods wholesale?”
“Yes.”
“Then how much would you be willing to sell them?”
Eh, am I supposed to be the one to decide the price? I just heard about first-class products, and I know what they are? How much should I add on top? I don’t know… Good grief, let’s be frank. I can’t negotiate, I’ll just ask for a price, and if it’s more than three platinum and 60 gold coins, then I’ll sell it to you.
“Regarding that, I’d like to discuss something with you. I have no experience in business negotiations, and I only have a rough estimate of the price of this pepper. I would like to ask Filippo-san to give me a price, and if the price is higher than my estimate, then I will sell it to you. How about it?”
“Fumu, are you saying it’s a one-shot deal? I don’t mind. Wataru-san, business negotiations are a time for merchants to show their skills, and it is not a good idea to show weakness.”
I just have a merchant guild card, but I have never studied to be a merchant. I just thought being a merchant was better than being an adventurer. I’m sorry.
“Thank you very much. I will keep that in mind.”
“But it’s a very valuable pepper and a first-class one at that. To be sure of getting it, I have to pay a high price for it. If you are not accustomed to negotiating, this is a good way to go.”
“Thank you.”
Filippo-san is thinking seriously.
“Wataru-san, I have to ask you, is this all the pepper you have here?”
“No, I still have some pepper because I intend to wholesale pepper in the capital as well.”
“I see. By the way, is it possible for our trading company to wholesale additional peppers?”
Since I have a lot of pepper, I can wholesale it, but since I am walking around selling it to avoid being conspicuous, it makes no sense to wholesale it in large quantities. But for one cartload per trading company, I’d have to do 495 business meetings… that’s a lot of trouble.
And three more carts, for about three carts, would that be a problem? No, let’s increase it by one more cart and have a total of 5 carts. If I tell him that I’ll wholesale five carts even in the capital, he’ll be convinced that he’s getting half of what he wants.
“Well, I’d like to do business in the capital as well, so… I wouldn’t mind adding up to four cartloads of pepper.”
“I see you have that much pepper, is the quality the same as the one you just showed me?”
“Yes, I can’t say they are exactly the same, but I think they are of the same quality.”
“I see, I understand. How about four platinum coins and 50 gold coins for a cartload of pepper? If this price is acceptable, I would like you to wholesale the remaining four carts of pepper after confirming the price.”
Oof, I was hoping that I could boldly go for four platinum coins. But now I’m getting another 50 gold coins.
“Yes, that’s fine, thank you.”
“Then, can I also check the remaining four carloads of pepper?”
“Yes, I understand. Can I borrow three carts so I can go back to the ship and bring them in?”
After unloading the pepper we had brought, we returned to the ship with the women and the three employees that Filippo-san had sent out, pulling the carts. I summon the pepper boat to load four carts of pepper and return to Filippo’s Trading Company.
As I watch Filippo-san earnestly checking the pepper, I think about the price. I should have Filippo-san pay as much as he can with platinum coins, and the rest should go into the merchant guild. I want as many platinum coins in kind as possible.
In addition, I’ll withdraw 30 platinum coins from the merchant guild here as well. If I withdraw the platinum coins from each town, it will be less noticeable, and I can collect more platinum coins.
“Wataru-san, I’ve finished my checks. Everything is first class, I am sure of it. They will be 22 platinum coins and 50 gold coins. How would you prefer them to be paid?”
“As for me, I’d like to take as much as you can afford in cash. For the rest, I would appreciate it if you could deposit it into my guild card.”
“I understand. The maximum amount of cash I can provide today is ten platinum coins. Would it be fine if the remaining 12 platinum coins and 50 gold coins were deposited into your guild account?”
“Yes, that is fine. Thank you very much.”
Do you also have ten platinum gold coins? …Can you find 10 billion in a normal store?
“Excuse me, may I ask you something?”
“What is it?”
“A 10 platinum coin is a lot of money, isn’t it? Is it something you can get right away?”
“Most stores have a certain amount of cash on hand. Even though they are members of the guild, every trading company has a flow of funds and relationships that they do not want the merchant guild to know about.”
Eh? Didn’t he just tell me something scary?
“U-um, is it something that sounds a little shady?”
“No, no, there’s nothing shady about it. There are unexpectedly many customers to whom we give special preferential treatment, valuable purchase routes that we don’t want people to know about, and transactions in cash.”
“I-I see. I’ve learned a lot. Now it is time for me to leave. Thank you very much for your time today.”
“No, no. If you ever find another good product, please feel free to contact us again.”
“Yes, I look forward to working with you then.”
He says it’s nothing shady, but it’s kind of scary.
After the business meeting, I left the store. Then I will ask the merchant guild to withdraw 30 platinum coins while I return the cart.
“Wataru-san, you’re so rich. I envy you.”
“What are you talking about? Ilma-san earns a lot of money, too, aren’t you? I was envious just by imagining how much money all of the Girasole on that island was making. Just thinking about it makes me envious, you know?”
“Is that so?”
“You two, this is not the kind of thing you talk about on the street.”
“Indeed it is. Thank you, Dorothea-san.”
“It’s alright. It’s Ilma’s fault.”
Dorothea-san and I looked at Ilma-san, but her expression remained the same with a bewitching smile. Oh, Dorothea-san sighed and gave up. Ilma-san, you have a strong heart.
We arrived at the merchant guild, returned the cart, and went inside. Since the fox-eared Onee-san was not there, I lined up at the cat-eared Onee-san’s place.
I was a little relieved because I felt a little depressed when the fox-eared girl was processing my application in a formal manner.
“Hello, I would like to withdraw some money. How long does it take to withdraw 30 platinum coins?”
“Please wait a moment. I’ll check.”
“Thank you.”
“…Thank you for your patience; we can have the 30 platinum coins ready for you in a few minutes.”
“Eh? Oh, yes, please. It took several days at another merchant guild. But here, you can withdraw the coins on the same day, huh?”
“Usually, it takes us a few days. We recently closed a large transaction. Since the withdrawal was made when we had enough cash, we were able to get it to you right away.”
Hmm, this Onee-san also doesn’t have a “nya” at the end of her words… Is “nya” at the end of words only an illusion in this other world?
“I see; thank you very much.”
“Phew, I thought it would take me a few days. Everything I wanted to do in Bergamo is done today. What shall we do?” Wataru said.
“Well, since we can’t leave today, let’s do some sightseeing and think about it at night.”
“Understood. Shall we do some free time then?”
“Hmm, I’m worried about Wataru-san carrying a lot of money. I think it would be better to go back to the ship once and then go on our own.”
“Oh, yes, that would be great. Thank you, Alessia-san.
Funds.
On hand: 26 gold coins, 78 silver coins, 32 copper coins.
Guild account: 49 platinum coins, 0 gold coins.
Savings ship: 66 platinum coins
Pepper ship: 490 ships.
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