That being the case, Amati possessed the equivalent of eight hundred silver coins' worth of pyrite. This meant that if the price of pyrite were to increase by an additional 25 percent, he would be able to gather one thousand silver coins. If the actual sum were greater than what was indicated by Horo's information, then an even lesser increase would be sufficient.
Even so, Lawrence did not feel that he was at a disadvantage.
"Let us settle this tomorrow evening then,”
Amati lifted his head and uttered excitedly as the seal was stamped. Lawrence gave a sturdy nod in response.
Lawrence's mention of Horo crying in his arms seemed to have a great effect.
It seemed that a merchant would become useless the moment he became involved with things unrelated to business.
"I shall take my leave then, and disturb you no further in your enjoyment of wine," Lawrence said after completing the contract, and left the bar.
The arrow Lawrence shot out had scored a direct hit on Amati's heart. Although Lawrence felt that Amati himself must have realized that he had been struck, there was one other thing that Lawrence had purposely failed to mention.
And that was the fact that this arrowhead had been painted with a slow-acting poison familiar only to people knowledgeable about deals involving selling on credit.
Merchants did their hunting between the lines of honesty and deceit. There was no need at all to explain everything.
Because all merchants were naturally insidious.
After signing the selling pyrite on credit contract with Amati, Lawrence proceeded directly to the marketplace.
Though it was already long past working hours, the marketplace atmosphere was as bustling as it had been during the day. Merchants held feasts under the lighting of the moon, and even the night guards became involved in the endless commotion.
Upon arriving at Mark's stand, Lawrence discovered that Mark was there after all, and not at home.
Mark was not drinking with anyone, but simply drank alone, accompanied only by the bustling atmosphere. The sight revealed the fact that he was once a traveling merchant.
"Hmm? What's the matter? Don't you need to keep the princess company?”
Mark spoke thus upon perceiving Lawrence's approach. Lawrence shrugged his shoulders, revealing a strained smile.
With a smile, Mark said, "Have a drink first," and poured some beer from a clay bottle into a beer mug. "Am I disturbing you?" asked Lawrence.
"Haha. You would be if you continue to remain sober. You won't be if you're drunk.”
After sitting down in the chair consisting of a sawed-short log, Lawrence set down the gunnysack containing gold and silver coins, and began drinking the beer Mark had poured out for him. As he held a mouthful of froth-filled beer in his mouth, the sweet taste spread out instantly, and the numbing, bitter taste trickled down his throat.
This was an indication that the hops (note: the dried ripe cones of the female flowers of this plant, used in brewing, medicine, etc.) within the beer had taken effect.
As expected of a wheat merchant, distinguishing between good and bad beer seemed no trouble to him either.
"This is good beer," said Lawrence.
"That's because the harvest this year has been good for all types of wheat. During times when the harvest is bad, even the barley used to make beer would be used to make bread instead, so we have to be thankful to the god of harvest.”
"Haha, indeed. However…”
Lawrence said as he set the beer mug on the discussion table.
"There's something I want to tell you, although this may not be the ideal topic for livening up a feast.” “Aye…geh. Is it something good for making money?”
"No, it's hard to say. Depending on how things develop, perhaps a profit could be made, but that's not my aim.”
Mark picked up a piece of salted fish and delivered it into his mouth, opening his mouth to speak as he continued chewing, making a crunching sound as he chewed on the salt: "Aren't you being a bit too honest? You should've said it's profiting, then I'd be more than happy to help you out.”
"Of course I'll be paying you a service fee. Moreover, depending on the way things develop, perhaps it'll bring you a profit.”
"How so?”
Lawrence wiped away the froth stuck to the corners of his mouth, then opened his mouth and spoke: "When the festival is over, all the wheat will be gathered up to be bought and sold right?”
"That's right.”
"When that time comes, I want you to help me spread a rumor.”
Mark revealed the kind of expression one would show when determining the quality of flour. "I'm not going to do anything dangerous," he said.
"If you were to say it yourself, that might be dangerous, but if the boy were to say it, it shouldn't be a problem then right?”
In fact, Lawrence only wished to spread a little rumor. However, rumors possessed a fearsome power.
It was said that long ago, there was a large country that walked onto the path of destruction merely because a young man from some town had said that the king seemed to have fallen ill. The young man's words were passed around, eventually spreading to various neighboring countries, finally resulting in a disintegration of alliances, and the invasion and cutting up of the large country's lands.
The number of conversation topics people had was in fact quite limited.
And their ears existed for the exact purpose of listening to such little rumors in order to spread them about wantonly.
Mark thrust out his chin, beckoning Lawrence to continue.
"When I give the signal, I wish someone to help me say at a certain place-that it's about time for the price of wheat to be rising.”
The instant Mark heard this, his movements ceased, as if time had frozen, and his gaze was directed at some far-off place. Mark was contemplating the implications of Lawrence's words.
Soon after, Mark revealed an incredulous smile, and pulled his eyes back into focus. "You intend to purposely lower the price of that mineral?”
"That's about right.”
Lawrence guessed that those who bought and sold pyrite were mostly people who had come to town to sell off their merchandise and purchase some products to take with them as they left.
As these people left, the product they purchased the most of was certainly wheat.
When wheat was gathered to be sold and purchased, if there was word that the price of wheat would be rising, everyone would surely sell off the pyrite they had bought to make some additional money, and immediately purchase what they had originally set as their target merchandise.
In such a situation, the price of pyrite would no doubt begin to drop.
Moreover, once the price began to drop, as soon as a certain critical point was reached, it would nosedive the rest of the way.
The wheat merchant took a big gulp of beer before saying coolly: "I didn't expect you to be such a simple-minded person.”
"If I were to tell you I was planning to simultaneously sell off a considerable-sum's worth of pyrite, would you still think so?”
Mark's eyelid twitched once. After pondering this for a moment, he asked Lawrence the question: "How much?”
"One thousand Trenni silver coins.”
"Wha….one thousand? Are you a fool? Do you have any idea how much loss you would cause by doing that?”
"No matter how much the price falls, it doesn't matter to me.”
Mark revealed an infinitely bitter expression, stroking his chin repeatedly and causing a rustling of his beard. His gaze drifted back and forth, and a groan came from his mouth. From his appearance, it seemed that he could not understand what Lawrence was thinking.
"As long as I can manage to buy another five hundred silver coins' worth of pyrite, whether its price rises or falls in the end, my money pouch would be unaffected.”
It was Amati who was at a disadvantage in the deal proposed by Lawrence. The reason was precisely this.
"Damn,
selling by credit huh," said Mark.
If the price of the product on hand were to rise, of course one's money pouch would be unhurt, but the special case in which even a drop in the price would not hurt one's money pouch was rare.
If the price of the product sold were to fall, all that needed to be done was to re-purchase the product at the lowered rate and hand it to the other party. If, on the other hand, the price of the product on hand were to rise, it would bring a direct profit; as long as the selling on credit of the former was paired with the regular deal of the latter, a situation would be created in which Lawrence's money would neither increase nor decrease whether the value of pyrite rose or dropped.
Moreover, Lawrence's most decisive advantage lay in the fact that once the product was sold in bulk quantities, its price would inevitably fall, plus the fact that Amati had to get the price of pyrite to rise because he needed to gain a profit no matter what.
In other words, Lawrence's plan was to use the five hundred silver coins collected from Amati by selling on credit, along with the rest of the cash he had on hand to go around buying pyrite, and then sell off the pyrite all at once in order to cause a great crash in its price.
It was possible to do such a thing as soon as one was able to throw away the idea of profit. As a former traveling merchant, Mark immediately detected Lawrence's plan.
Of course, he also detected who Lawrence's opponent was.
"The poor fishmonger who's been tricked out of ignorance sure stirs one's sympathies." Lawrence's shrugged his shoulders in response to Mark.
Yet, the plan which at a glance appeared to hold such a great advantage also had one point that unsettled Lawrence.
There was truly no such thing as a perfect plan in this world.
"That guy seems like he should be aware of just how dangerous it is to participate in an unfamiliar deal though," said Mark.
"Aye, he should be aware of the risks, yet he still accepted the deal. I wouldn't have failed to remind him of even this.”
Mark uttered a light laugh from his throat, then finished the remaining beer and said with a change in expression: "So, is that all you wanted to ask of me?” “There's one other thing.”
"Go on.”
"Help me seek out and buy pyrite.”
Hearing this, Mark simply stared at Lawrence with a look of unexpectedness. "You signed the deal without first getting a hold on the pyrite sources?" he asked. "Unfortunately, I don't have that much time. Can you help me?”
This was the reason why Lawrence could not steady his mind.
No matter how perfect the plan, nothing could be done unless all of the necessary conditions were met. Moreover, the condition that Lawrence lacked was very difficult to come by.
Of course, Lawrence could also wait till daybreak to purchase pyrite in the marketplace. However, if he were to buy several hundred silver coins' worth of pyrite in the marketplace, a sudden jump in the price of pyrite would inevitably result.
Lawrence needed to work in the shadows, and purchase pyrite in a manner that would not affects its market value.
In order to achieve this end, the best way was to gather a large quantity of pyrite by making a number of small purchases through the connections of town merchants.
"The payment condition is cash only. Price doesn't matter, even if it's above the market value. If the quantity is relatively large, the price can be paid directly in Rumiones," said Lawrence.
If a Trenni silver coin were a sharp sword, then a Rumione gold coin would be the equivalent of a forest of spears lined up densely beside one another. When purchasing a high-value product, the Rumione gold coin could be said to be the most powerful weapon in the world.
Yet, although Lawrence possessed cash, he did not have connections, and besides Mark, he did not have any friends to help him.
If Mark were to refuse him, Lawrence would have to rely on his own strength to gather the pyrite.
In this town to which he only came a few days each year to do business, it was only imaginable just how difficult it would be for Lawrence to gather a large quantity of pyrite in a proper manner.
Yet, Mark simply gazed in some unknown direction, his body completely motionless. "I'll repay my gratitude. It won't be a small sum either.”
What Lawrence meant was that he would not be paying only a service charge. Hearing this, Mark glanced at Lawrence momentarily.
Mark was, after all, a merchant. It was only natural that he would not be willing to do fruitless labor. And then, Mark said briefly: "Can't do it.”
"Alright, then…huh?”
"Can't do it.”
This time Mark was looking Lawrence in the eye as he said this. "Wha-”
"I can't help you on this one,”
Mark said in completely serious expression and tone. Lawrence extended his body forward and said with emphasis: "I'll thank you for it. I won't be so stingy as to only pay you a service charge. You won't have anything to lose. The condition is pretty good isn't it?”
"Won't have anything to lose?”
With his beard trimmed so that his face appeared square-shaped, the moment he frowned, Mark's face became like a solid piece of rock.
"Isn't it so? I'm asking you to help me look for and buy pyrite, not to make any sort of investment. Besides, you'll be paying in cash. What could you possibly have to lose?”
"Lawrence.”
Mark's utterance was more powerful than any kind of stop signal in cutting off Lawrence's words.
Yet, Lawrence could not figure out what was going through Mark's head. It was impossible for a merchant to refuse when met with a deal that promised a reasonable reward and involved absolutely no risk.
Why then did Mark say he couldn't do it?
Could it be that Mark only saw Lawrence for his flaws? Having thought to this point, an emotion nearing wrathful suspicion boiled up within Lawrence's heart.
At that moment, Mark continued to speak: "The sum you can pay me is what, ten Rumione at best?”
"Considering it's just making some purchases for me, such a reward is more than sufficient isn't it? It's not like I'm asking you to take up the burden of an entire business team's purchases, and to scale mountains and return within a day.”
"What you mean is that you want me to go throughout the marketplace to help you look for and buy pyrite right? That's the same thing.”
"Just how exactly….!”
The log-made chair in which Lawrence was seated fell over on the ground with a knock. Lawrence extended himself in a frightening manner, and was a step away from seizing mark when he regained his composure.
Yet, Mark was not moved in the least.
The merchant's expression that Mark wore on his face did not change one bit.
"Erh….just how exactly are they the same thing? I'm not asking you to spend the entire night going back and forth in the marketplace, carry around heavy merchandise, much less head toward some precipitous mountain path where you might be exposed to danger or accidents. All I'm saying is I wish you to help me buy some pyrite through your connections.”
"What I mean is that they're the same thing, Lawrence," Mark said slowly.
"You're a traveling merchant who comes and goes in the wilderness, and I'm a merchant whose battlefield is this marketplace. The dangers you perceive are all those which a traveling merchant would meet with.”
"Ah….”
Lawrence swallowed back the sound, and Mark also furrowed his brows deeply as if he had swallowed something bitter.
"From a town merchant's perspective, showing no hesitation in jumping on the first available opportunity to make money certainly cannot be called a virtue. Compared to making big money through side jobs, making an honest living through one's main business is what defines a truly prestigious town merchant. Although I'm the owner of this vending stand, the reputation this stand involves is not just my own name. This vending stand is connected with the reputations of myself, my wife, all of my blood relations, as well
as all of those who have dealings here. If it's just making a bit of side profit, even if the source is unclear, it's certainly not a bad thing to act as quickly as possible…”
Having said to this point, Mark poured some more beer into his mug and drank a mouthful. Although his brows were still deeply locked, it was probably not due to the beer being too bitter.
"…but helping you look for and purchase the five hundred silver coins' worth of pyrite you seek is another matter entirely. How do you think the people around me would view me? Surely they would think of me as a good-for-nothing whose heart isn't with his main business and who seeks to become rich through ill-gotten gains. Are you capable of paying me a sum proportional to such a risk? Because I used to be a traveling merchant myself, I daresay the amount of money a town merchant regularly handles is such that a traveling merchant who only makes small sums cannot begin to compare with.”
Lawrence could not make any sort of dispute, and was completely speechless. Mark threw out the final statement: "This shop of mine may appear small, but its name (note: literally the shop's signboard. In Chinese culture, a shop's sign is often equated with its name/reputation in a metaphorical sense. Hence, sign and name can be used interchangeably) possesses a surprisingly high value. If the name were to be damaged, the amount needed to repair the damage would go well beyond ten or twenty gold coins.”
The decisive statement.
Lawrence could not utter a word, and his gaze dropped to the table surface. "That's how it is.”
Mark did not see Lawrence only for his flaws, nor was it his intention to make Lawrence unhappy. What Mark had said was exactly right.
But then, this just led Lawrence to understand more clearly that although they were both merchants, he and Mark lived in totally different worlds. "I'm sorry.”
Even hearing this from Mark, Lawrence could not find any words with which to respond.
The number of people remaining whom Lawrence could go to for help could easily be counted on five fingers.
"No…it's alright, sorry for causing such awkwardness," he responded.
If there was anyone left to turn to, the only one Lawrence could think of was Bartose.
Spice and Wolf, Vol. 3 Page 18