Expensive Slaves

With Jon's guidance, Roland gained a deeper understanding of the place.

The Shadow Merchant Guild truly lived up to its reputation as a guild specializing in human slaves.

The slaves here were not only strong and healthy but also came in a wide variety, including men, women, and children, perfectly meeting Roland's needs for developing his territory.

"Steward Jon, what are the prices for your slaves here?" Roland asked Jon, looking at the slaves in the cages.

Although the slaves here greatly appealed to Roland, the price was the most crucial factor. If it was too much more expensive than outside, Roland wouldn't want to be ripped off.

After all, even weak slaves could serve as settlers for developing a territory; they would just suffer higher casualties.

"Lord Roland, our Shadow Merchant Guild has a long history of over a hundred years. Every slave we sell has been carefully selected. Our guild guarantees the health of our slaves and will never sell any diseased slaves to customers..."

However, before he could finish his boast, Roland couldn't help but interrupt, "Steward Jon, what about their prices?"

Jon showed no displeasure at being interrupted, and a hint of cunning appeared in his sharp gaze.

"Lord Roland, a healthy adult male costs around twenty-five gold coins, an adult female costs fifteen gold coins, and children are much cheaper, only five gold coins each."

"Of course, if you need professional slaves, our guild also has warrior slaves. A Tier 1 Warrior costs about fifty gold coins, and a Tier 2 Warrior..."

As Jon listed the prices one by one, Roland, though his face remained impassive, was inwardly shaken.

He knew from his predecessor's memories that the Terra Kingdom, due to its proximity to the Beastkin Empire and continuous warfare, had suffered heavy population losses, causing slave prices to remain high. However, his predecessor hadn't paid much attention to these details, as he rarely concerned himself with such matters.

But Roland never expected an adult male slave to be worth 25 gold coins.

It was more expensive than a bottle of Tier 3 Spirit Agility Potion.

"But... thinking about it, it doesn't seem that expensive. One human ≈ one Tier 3 potion?" Roland suddenly paused at this thought.

"Nuwa, calculate the cost of purchasing slaves for territory development."

"Understood, Master."

"Beep! Calculating based on the dangers of the Sea of Ten Thousand Islands, it is recommended that Master purchase sixty adult males and forty adult females."

"According to the Shadow Merchant Guild's quote, the total cost is two thousand two hundred gold coins."

"Two thousand two hundred gold coins?" Roland found it expensive again.

Even with his potion-making success rate, he could only earn a little over three thousand gold coins in three months, and one-third of that was needed to maintain his daily meditation and strengthen his power.

He couldn't spend all the remaining money on slaves. The supplies, food, and hiring mercenaries for protection needed for territory development were all more important than buying slaves.

Therefore, he simply couldn't afford to buy so many slaves at this price.

As Jon enthusiastically introduced the slaves, Roland's attitude grew colder.

"Steward Jon, thank you for your introduction. I'll look around elsewhere," Roland said, preparing to leave.

Seeing Roland make no move to haggle, Jon became anxious and quickly stepped forward, blocking Roland's path.

Roland's face showed a hint of anger at this, and he questioned, "Is the Shadow Merchant Guild trying to force a sale?"

"No, no, Lord Roland, you misunderstand. Our guild has a rule: if you settle with magic potions, we can offer you a ninety percent discount." Jon quickly explained.

Hearing Jon's explanation, Roland's expression softened slightly, but he still didn't agree.

Even with a ninety percent discount, it was still close to two thousand gold coins, which he couldn't afford.

However, he adjusted his tone and said, "Alright, I'll consider it."

Just as Jon was about to say more, Jonathan suddenly stepped in front of Roland and said to Jon with a smile, "Uncle Jon, let's stop here for today. Pharmacist Roland has an appointment with another guild, and time is tight."

Jonathan's words, instead of helping, made Jon anxious. He quickly turned to Roland again and said, "Lord Roland, if you can purchase one hundred slaves, I can apply to the guild for a further five percent discount."

Clearly, Jon had noticed the Pioneer Knight emblem on Roland's chest.

"Another five percent off?" Roland's interest was piqued, as the quality of the Shadow Merchant Guild's slaves was indeed good.

However, even if Jon slashed the price to rock bottom today, Roland still couldn't afford it.

So, after reiterating that he would consider it, he left the Shadow Merchant Guild with Jonathan and Old Nob.

After coming out, Jonathan immediately said to Roland in a low voice, "Respected Lord Roland, if you want to buy slaves from the Shadow Merchant Guild, you can delay for a while. I know Jon; he will definitely lower the price again."

"Moreover, if you pay with potions, I believe the price will drop to around eighty percent."

Seeing Jonathan's apparent concern for him, Roland felt a bit more favorably towards him.

"Thank you for your suggestion, Jonathan. I will consider it."

"I also know of another guild whose slaves are quite good. Why don't you check them out?"

Roland didn't immediately accept Jonathan's suggestion but asked curiously, "Do I have to buy from a guild? I see several shops on the street selling slaves too."

Jonathan looked around nervously upon hearing this. Seeing that no one was paying attention to them, he replied in an even lower voice, "Respected Lord Roland, the slaves in those shops might look good, but most of them are just for show."

"They put some strong and healthy slaves outside to attract customers, but when it comes time to trade, you'll find that they not only can't meet your required numbers, but the quality of the slaves is also very poor, with most of them suffering from some illness or another."

"In the past, many Pioneer Knights, tempted by the lower prices, bought slaves from them. They didn't notice anything wrong at the time, but after transporting the slaves to the Sea of Ten Thousand Islands, they discovered that these slaves' bodies couldn't adapt to the dangerous environment of the Sea of Ten Thousand Islands."

"Furthermore, some Pioneer Knights even experienced outbreaks of disease on their way to their territories, causing a large number of slaves to die."

"However, such situations are rare with slaves from the guilds. While the price Jon quoted might be a bit inflated, he wasn't exaggerating about one thing: the Shadow Merchant Guild does have a hundred-year history and a good reputation."

"Although the price will definitely be much higher than those on the street, I still recommend that you buy from a guild."

Jonathan's attitude was exceptionally sincere, as if he were solely considering Roland's interests. While Roland was somewhat satisfied, he didn't fully trust him. He wouldn't make such a large transaction of gold coins based solely on Jonathan's word.

"Hmm, let's look around some more then," Roland said casually, nodding.

"Please follow me," Jonathan replied, leading Roland deeper into Bell Street once more.

Over the next hour, Roland followed Jonathan to two more merchant houses. Their scale was no smaller than the Shadow Merchant Guild's, but they didn't specialize in human slaves, so the quality of their human slaves was a notch below the Shadow Merchant Guild's.

By this point, Roland had lost the desire to continue looking. The prices of slaves at most merchant houses were similar, with hardly any difference from the prices Jon of the Shadow Merchant Guild had quoted.

There was no point in continuing to browse. Unless a deal was finalized, Roland would never know the bottom prices of the various merchant guilds.

So, Roland directly instructed Jonathan, "Let's stop here for today."

"Yes, as you wish," Jonathan replied.

"However, I have one more thing I need you to do, and I'm willing to pay you for it," Roland said suddenly, an idea striking him.

"Jonathan is very willing to serve you. Please, just give me your instructions."

"I want to know the prices for food, various agricultural machinery, and hiring a mercenary group in Highland City. Do you think you can manage that?"

"Yes, yes! Within three days, I will definitely give you a satisfactory answer," Jonathan said, patting his chest to guarantee it.

"Good, this is a deposit," Roland said, pulling out three silver coins from his pocket and tossing them to Jonathan.

Jonathan didn't refuse, instead bowing slightly to Roland with a delighted expression to express his gratitude.

Seeing that the matter was concluded, Roland then set off for home with Old Nob.

Once only the two of them remained, Old Nob, who had been silent the entire way, finally couldn't help himself. With a worried look, he said to Roland, "Young Master, that Jonathan is too slick. You shouldn't trust him too much." Old Nob earnestly warned Roland.

Roland smiled at Old Nob and replied, "I know."

"This old servant is relieved," Old Nob said, feeling much lighter after finally voicing his concerns.

By the time they returned to the two-story house Roland was renting, it was already noon. Time was pressing, so Roland ate a simple lunch before heading down to the basement.

First, he put away the magic materials he had purchased that day, then immediately got to work refining potions.

Since Roland had sold all the potions he had on hand today, he made one Tier 3 Fire Element Resonance Potion and two Tier 3 Spirit Agility Potions today, prioritizing the enhancement of his own strength.

Now, after the continuous potion refining over the past few days, Roland's techniques were extremely proficient.

This resulted in his success rate for refining Tier 3 potions now being over ninety percent. Even if errors occurred, they were mostly in the first few steps, and it was rare for all three materials to be ruined.

This meant that as long as Roland had sufficient mental energy, his earning speed could reach terrifying levels.