Mastery Is Earned

The followers made no move throughout the journey back to the inn. It seemed they really had only been sent to gather information.

Raymond leaned over the windowsill in their room and watched discreetly until three furtive figures disappeared into the alleys. He breathed a sigh of relief, though he also felt a trace of disappointment.

After Raymond stepped away from the window, Henk lifted a large jug of water and took several deep swallows before speaking. “It was that woman.”

“Mm, that’s my guess too.” Raymond studied Henk again. The half-orc had not only spotted the followers first, but also understood that exposing them immediately would be unwise. He was far less reckless than his appearance suggested.

If Raymond and Henk confronted the three followers directly—or even attacked them—the person behind them would inevitably become more vigilant and might send more skilled thieves, putting Raymond and Henk at a disadvantage.

These three, however, were poor at following people. As long as Raymond and Henk continued pretending not to notice them, whoever had sent them would be unlikely to replace them.

“She recognized the ore,” Henk said.

“Yes. She clearly knew what it was. That’s probably why these people followed us,” Raymond replied.

“Trading with her is dangerous,” Henk said after a moment of silence.

Raymond sighed. “It is, but we have no other choice. You saw what happened. No one else will buy the ore—or rather, no one else dares to. We can’t haul it back and forth forever, and we certainly can’t just throw it away. That ore is worth money.”

Henk remained silent for a long time before finally nodding. “Yes. Money is important.”

“Yes, money is important.” Raymond smiled. “How about another seafood feast? I rather liked it.”

Henk shook his head instead. The corners of his mouth rose, revealing two canines. “No. Money is important.”

...

Early the next morning, Raymond and Henk went to the warehouse to wait. Around two hours passed before Tessa arrived with four or five people.

Tessa smiled when she saw Raymond again. “Good day, Master Raymond. Did you have a pleasant day yesterday? I’ve been thinking about you.”

“Ah, Miss Mercer. It truly is an honor to see you again.” Raymond looked at the people behind her. “Are they here to inspect the goods?”

“Oh? What an impatient man. You truly can’t wait, can you?” Tessa winked at him.

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Raymond chuckled but did not answer. He and Henk led the group into the warehouse, where two flatbed wagons sat securely covered with tarps. They pulled back the coverings, revealing the glossy black ore beneath.

Tessa turned and exchanged a glance with a middle-aged worker. He nodded, approached the wagons, and began examining the ore’s quality and purity. The remaining assistants followed with notebooks, taking notes as they watched him work.

Tessa took no part in the inspection. Instead, she moved close to Raymond and began talking with him, her words laced with subtle innuendo.

Henk did not remain beside Raymond. He went to the wagons and carefully watched every movement the workers made.

The workers paid no attention to Henk’s scrutiny and simply continued inspecting the ore piece by piece.

Raymond was not some naive youth who had never known a woman. Tessa’s proximity certainly made his body grow warm, but his thoughts remained perfectly clear.

Whenever Tessa tried to draw information from him, Raymond exaggerated his exploits further and further, nearly turning a single Greater Goblin into an entire goblin tribe. Even Henk, standing a short distance away, almost failed to keep a straight face when he heard the story.

“My lady, we’ve finished inspecting the shipment.” The middle-aged worker approached Tessa. “About twenty percent of the ore is high quality, half is of middling quality, and most of the remainder contains a great deal of impurities.”

Tessa’s smile vanished as soon as she heard his report. She stepped aside and spoke quietly with the workers for a moment before returning to Raymond and Henk. “The quality of this shipment is inconsistent. The most I can offer is two gold and fifty silver.”

Two gold and fifty silver!

Raymond clenched his right hand. He could even hear Henk’s breathing quicken as the half-orc returned to his side.

“Three gold,” Raymond said.

“Three gold? Forgive me, Master Raymond, but the quality of your goods comes nowhere close to justifying that price.” Tessa frowned and deliberately adopted an aggrieved tone. “Two gold and sixty silver at most.”

“Three gold.” Raymond remained unmoved.

“This shipment isn’t worth that much. If my people weren’t interested in experimenting with such unusual ore, you might not find anyone willing to take it at all,” Tessa said. “Two gold and seventy silver. That’s my highest offer.”

“Two gold and eighty silver. Why don’t we meet halfway?” Raymond said after a moment’s thought.

“You little rascal.” Tessa sighed helplessly. “Very well. Two gold and eighty silver.” She reached into her purse, took out three gleaming gold coins, and flicked them at Raymond one after another.

Raymond reacted quickly and caught all three. He opened his palm and looked at the three weighty gold coins resting there.

The Church’s holy emblem was stamped on the front of each coin, while a magnificent cathedral adorned the back. The gold coins were larger than silver ones and considerably thicker. They also felt several times heavier.

“Church gold. How fitting for you,” Tessa said with a smile as she looked at Raymond.

“We agreed on two gold and eighty silver. Why did you give me three gold coins?” Raymond closed his hand around them and exchanged a glance with Henk. “I don’t have any change for you.”

“Ha! The extra twenty silver is your tip.” Tessa blew him a kiss. “I’m very pleased with you, little Raymond. If you’d like to earn more spending money, you can come to me anytime. You know where to find me.”

Raymond did not respond to her insinuation. He merely shot Henk a look, and the half-orc followed him toward the entrance.

At the door, Raymond suddenly stopped and looked back. “Oh, one more thing. I haven’t paid the storage fees for the past few days. The goods belong to you now, so don’t forget to settle the bill when you collect them.”

With that, Raymond and Henk immediately left the warehouse without giving Tessa a chance to object.

Tessa remained where she was and watched Raymond’s retreating figure. Several seconds passed before she laughed. “That little bastard...”