Become A Profiteer In Isekai

Chapter 2: Chapter 2: The First Unlucky One

As it turned out, doing business wasn’t as simple as Lu Wei had imagined.

Although the goods Old Yor had fronted him weren’t exactly obscure—most were the type that should sell easily—he hadn’t sold a single item after setting up a stall in the town’s Free Market all morning.

Based on the business knowledge from his previous life, Lu Wei determined it must be a problem with supply and demand.

After all, Heitai Town was a typical ”Adventurer’s Town,” with five general stores alone.

On top of that, there were three weapon shops, two Potion shops, and even a small auction house.

Compared to a roadside stall, the shops not only had standardized prices but also offered a complete selection of quality-guaranteed goods. As a result, most Adventurers chose to purchase their Equipment from those places first.

In short, consumers had far too many options.

And so, Lu Wei’s small stall had no competitive edge to speak of.

”Sigh, guess I’ll get something to eat first.”

Looking up at the high sun, Lu Wei helplessly packed the goods from the ground back into his bag, planning to fill his stomach first.

After some comparison, he went to a nearby stall selling cooked food and bought the cheapest bowl of meat soup.

There was barely any meat, but it was loaded with chickpeas and potatoes.

For only two Copper Coins, it was already a great deal; he couldn’t ask for more.

Carrying the large wooden bowl, Lu Wei found a tree stump to sit on, took out the black bread he had bought that morning, and tore it into small pieces to dip into the soup as he began his lunch.

He ate while pondering how to sell the goods he had on hand.

Obviously, the simplest way was to lower the price.

But the problem was his prices were already very low.

If he lowered them any further, there would be no profit at all, even if he sold everything.

So, he could only tackle it from the supply and demand angle.

Since he couldn’t sell his things in town, he should try his luck in a place where demand was greater than supply.

It was like a bottle of water.

It wasn’t worth much in the city, but in the desert, it could be sold easily, even for an exorbitant price.

This was a shift in a commodity’s Value caused by a change in supply and demand.

And thinking about it carefully, there actually seemed to be such a ”desert” around Heitai Town...

Watching an Adventurer Squad pass by, Lu Wei hesitated for a moment before finally making up his mind.

He would set out right after he finished eating!

To Gelan Forest!

...

...

Setting up a stall in a forest fraught with danger didn’t seem like a wise choice by any measure.

Unless his customers were goblins and Kobolds.

But this wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision for Lu Wei.

First, the fact that Gelan Forest was the place where most Adventurers in the Northern Kingdom began their path to becoming a Hero meant that the monsters here were all very weak.

And that was indeed the case.

According to the latest edition of the Heitai Town’s *Gelan Forest Adventurer’s Manual*, the monsters in the forest were mostly Low Level creatures like goblins, Kobolds, tree spirits, and Giant Spiders.

Although bear goblins and Trolls also existed, they only appeared in the depths of the forest.

Therefore, if one only stuck to the outer areas, it wouldn’t be absolutely safe, but it couldn’t be considered too dangerous either.

Besides, risk and reward went hand in hand.

After all, the very first sentence in the *Gelan Forest Adventurer’s Manual* was—

[In the forest, what takes your life is often not monsters, but losing your way!]

For many newcomers, trying to get their bearings in a forest where the scenery was extremely repetitive was very difficult.

And if they were unfortunate enough to get lost and run out of supplies, their situation would become exceedingly dire.

In such a scenario, a freelance merchant who suddenly appeared would be nothing short of an angel.

He believed those lost souls would certainly be willing to empty their pockets for a piece of bread or a roll of bandages.

’This is what a true Crafty Merchant should be doing.’

’Maybe I can even expand my business to include guide services.’

Half an hour later, Lu Wei stood in the small square in the center of town, carefully selecting his first client.

Adventurer Squads usually had an experienced veteran, so the probability of them needing a guide was low.

Therefore, Lu Wei’s targets were solo newcomers who had decent-looking Equipment.

Soon, after a period of observation, he locked onto a young human with golden hair and brand-new Leather Armor, who was hesitating in front of the notice board.

”Hello, do you need a guide?”

Time was precious. Lu Wei walked up and got straight to the point, ”I’m a resident of Heitai Town and very familiar with Gelan Forest. I can lead you to the outer areas.”

”A guide... Great! I happen to need a guide!”

The blond youth turned his head and agreed with a joyful expression, without a second thought.

’Huh? He just agreed like that?’

’He doesn’t think I’m offering my services for free, does he?’

Lu Wei paused for a second, then reminded him in a low voice:

”Uh, you might have misunderstood. I do charge a fee.”

”Hm? I know there’s a fee.”

”...Then aren’t you going to ask the price?”

”Oh, right. So how much is the guide fee?”

”Ten...”

The price he had already decided on was on the tip of his tongue, but Lu Wei suddenly hesitated and tentatively changed his words:

”Twenty Copper Coins, is that okay?”

”No problem, a very reasonable price.”

The blond youth showed no intention of haggling and agreed immediately, then asked impatiently:

”When do we leave?”

”...”

’It’s confirmed!’

’He’s definitely some rich landlord’s idiot son!’

Lu Wei broke into a brilliant smile. ”Anytime, as long as you’re ready.”

The blond youth nodded excitedly. ”I’m ready! I’ve been ready for five years.”

”Five years...”

”That’s right. That was the day I finished reading *Neserel’s Poem*.”

”Is that a novel?”

”Yes. From that day on, I vowed to become a great Warrior.”

”Good luck to you... By the way, I haven’t asked your name yet.”

”Furen. But I gave myself a nickname.”

With a proud look, the blond youth declared with immense, cringey fanfare:

”The Golden Dawn that Pierces Darkness!”

...

...

First of all, giving yourself a nickname was embarrassing enough.

On top of that, it was a phrase that was six words long.

Such an awkward act couldn’t help but remind Lu Wei of his childhood, standing on his bed with a raised fist, shouting ”Ultraman, transform!”

’He’s been reading too many fantasy novels...’

But looking at it from another angle, only a wealthy young master who had never worried about food or clothing could so easily believe in the Hero stories from novels and ”stay true to his original dream” for five years.

After all, anyone can have a dream, but ”persisting in a dream” was often a privilege reserved for the rich.

”Are you from Kalin Port?”

On the way to the town gate, Lu Wei discreetly glanced at the clan emblem on Furen’s chest.

A combination of a scale and a two-masted ship.

The latter indicated that Furen was most likely from Kalin Port.

The former suggested his family was probably in the maritime trade business.

”Yes... By the way, how big is Gelan Forest?”

Furen seemed reluctant to talk about his background, answering with one word before abruptly changing the subject.

’So he ran away from home?’

”I’m not too sure myself. I only know that if you cross it, you can get directly to Haiwang Castle.”

Lu Wei shook his head. ”A merchant guild once wanted to open a trade route through the forest, but unfortunately, they didn’t succeed.”

”Why? Was it because of monster attacks?”

Furen’s interest was immediately piqued again; he was clearly more interested in this kind of thing.

”Mm... I guess so.”

Lu Wei tried hard to recall some of the local rumors his predecessor had heard.

”It was going quite smoothly at first. The guild recruited a lot of Professionals and Beastman laborers, planning to build a dirt road from north to south that could support horse-drawn carriages.”

”But after about two months, everyone suddenly pulled out.”

”The guild said it was due to a shortage of funds, so the project was temporarily shelved.”

”But it’s been several years now, and there’s still been no news.”

”A lot of people say the real reason is that there’s an Elf Tribe in the forest...”

”An Elf Tribe!”

Before Lu Wei could finish, Furen suddenly interrupted with an excited look on his face. ”Are there really Elves in Gelan Forest?”

”Er, people always say they’ve seen them, but no one has ever brought back any loot related to Elves.”

Lu Wei shook his head. ”So they probably saw it wrong. A goblin in clothes, or something like that.”

”Oh, I see.”

Furen mumbled, a little disappointed, ”That’s weird. How could anyone mistake a goblin for an Elf?”

’What’s so weird about that? Talk is cheap.’

’In my past life, there were people who claimed to have seen a Dragon.’

Lu Wei glanced at Furen, feeling more and more certain that the boy’s skull would soon become a goblin’s dinner bowl.

From a prominent family, blond, passionate and naive, interested in Elves, life goal was probably Dragon Slaying... ℯ

Although such characters were often the protagonists in a Minstrel’s tales, in reality, they usually didn’t last three days.

’Hm... but maybe that’s just my stereotype talking.’

’After all, he’s been preparing for five years. He must know some basic adventuring knowledge and skills.’

Looking at the deerskin Sword Scabbard and the exquisite hilt on Furen’s back, Lu Wei relaxed slightly, thinking that the boy probably wouldn’t die so easily.

But Furen, oblivious to his concerns, just continued to ask with a curious face:

”By the way, how do goblins reproduce? Are there female goblins?”

”Do Kobolds really have Dragon Bloodline? Their heads look like lizards, so why are they called ’dog-headed men’?”

”Also, do tree spirits need to eat? Or is sunbathing enough for them?”

”...”

Lu Wei: ???

’So what exactly have you been preparing for these past five years?’