Meanwhile, Silas had finished preparing the gifts.
He had three chests carried over to Ye Wei'an.
"Twenty iron spearheads, fifteen harpoon heads, and ten skinning knives." Silas opened the first chest. "All made in our smithy."
The Swift Spear Lizardfolk lived by fishing and hunting, so iron weapons were especially valuable to them. The damp marsh quickly rusted ordinary iron, and the Lizardfolk had no ironworking skills. They could only obtain such weapons through trade or raids.
The Mier People who had joined the territory understood that all too well.
In fact, Silas had chosen the gifts after consulting Tularmir and Vela, the former chief and priestess of the Mier People.
"And here," he said, lifting the lid of another wooden chest to reveal neatly stacked cloth bags, "are fifty pounds of coarse salt, plus five pounds each of pepper and ground ginger. Lizardfolk food tends to taste fishy and gamey, and these spices are scarce in the marsh. They're worth more than gold to them."
When Silas opened the last chest, the glint inside made Ailian squint.
"Four bronze mirrors, twelve tin bracelets, and three strings of glass beads." Silas sounded rather pleased with himself. "Little trinkets we picked up cheaply in Posku. Anyone in the territory with a second-tier income could afford them, but those Lizardfolk have never seen anything like them. To them, these will seem precious."
Ye Wei'an picked up a bronze mirror and laughed. "Silas, you've missed your calling as a profiteer."
"You flatter me, my lord." Silas's mouth curled upward. "Making a profit for the territory is my duty."
With everything ready, the envoy party left Maloren Resting Place the next morning.
Ye Wei'an rode at the front, with Amarune and Ailian behind him. Nas the Kobold rode a pony close beside Ailian's horse.