Upon arriving at the private reception room, Xu Xiao casually sat down on the soft leather sofa and then spoke to the sales assistant.
"I've heard that the Delta Merchant Guild has a vast selection of goods; you can buy anything as long as you have money?"
"Of course, that's for sure. What would you like to buy?"
"I'm Milra, a senior sales associate from the Delta Merchant Guild. It's a pleasure to serve you."
Milra's smile never faded, while her peripheral vision was fixed on the money bag that Xu Xiao had casually tossed on the table.
The glow emanating from within were irregularly shaped gold nuggets. Although she hadn't touched them herself, based on Milra's years of experience, she knew they were all of high purity.
'No wonder he's dressed in rags, he's a gold prospector! This is another big customer!'
To the left of the capital of the Kingdom of Demacia lies a vast sea, surrounded by a rich network of rivers and towering mountains.
In these rivers and mountains, gold prospectors often reap rich rewards and obtain considerable wealth.
This information was obtained by Xu Xiao when he inquired about the identities of the mages during their escape. One of the mages was a gold prospector who had awakened his powers. Later, due to a dispute over the division of spoils, he used magic to kill his companion in a fit of anger, which led to his being hunted by the Mageseekers.
The best way to impersonate someone is to choose an identity that everyone can reasonably deduce, so that other people's imaginations will save Xu Xiao a lot of trouble.
"I need several sets of clean clothes, food that can be stored for a long time, good weapons, and light armor. Oh, and I also need a detailed map, preferably a map of the continent."
"It needs to be fast and good; price is not an issue."
Xu Xiao rattled off his needs in one breath, then raised an eyebrow at Milra, "So? Does your company have these things?"
"Of course, but..." Milra initially agreed, but then looked hesitant.
"What's wrong? Is there something troubling you? Or is it that you don't have enough money?"
Xu Xiao grabbed the bag on the table and poured the gold inside onto the table.
Several large, egg-sized nuggets of gold, along with some gold ingots of varying sizes, made Milra involuntarily swallow hard.
"Clothing, food, armor, and weapons are all relatively easy to obtain; our guild has a wide variety of goods that will surely satisfy you. However... maps are generally not sold to unfamiliar customers."
"Especially the mainland maps; the sale of each map requires registration within the kingdom, and the process is very complicated."
Milra looked slightly troubled, but her eyes remained fixed on the gold nuggets on the table.
With so many gold nuggets and such a large order, she would receive a huge commission if she secured it.
"Oh? You can't buy anything with money."
Xu Xiao shrugged and carefully put the gold nuggets back into his money bag, one by one.
"Since your esteemed chamber of commerce cannot meet my requirements, I will have to find another one. Great City of Demacia is not short of merchants who want to make money."
Xu Xiao pretended to leave, which startled Milra.
If such a big client leaves, forget about bonuses; if her supervisor finds out, she'll be punished.
"Please wait a moment, this isn't something that can't be discussed." Milra stretched out his hand to stop Xu Xiao, who was getting up, his smile becoming even brighter.
"If you can pay twice the price, the map can be sold without registration, but you can't tell anyone that you got it from the Delta Merchant Guild," Milra whispered in Xu Xiao's ear.
"How much?" Xu Xiao acted like a normal gold prospector, not rushing to agree, but first asking about the price.
"Not much, three hundred universal gold coins. If you want to exchange them for pure gold, you'll need to pay 100 ounces of pure gold."
Milra smiled, while giving a look that the little gold in Xu Xiao's purse was far from enough.
Knowledge is priceless, especially a continental map. This requires caravans and many explorers, merchants, and kingdoms to share information, then draw, compare, and modify it, making it extremely expensive.
A gold prospector who desperately needs a map of the mainland often means he wants to run away, and the Delta Merchant Guild naturally wouldn't pass up an opportunity to make exorbitant demands.
Milra has encountered many people like this in his years of experience. They are either making a huge profit or have successfully double-crossed someone and are eager to escape. They are rare targets for easy prey.
'If I don't take a single bite from him, I'll have wasted my time as a top salesperson.'
Xu Xiao was silent for a moment, then spoke with a troubled expression:
"Okay, I can accept this price, but I need to be quick."
"First, prepare the items I need. Then you can come with me outside the city to get the money. I don't have that much gold on me."
"Consider this as a deposit." With that, Xu Xiao took off the money pouch he was carrying and handed it over.
Taking the heavy money bag, Milra's smile grew even brighter. "Yes, please wait a moment, I'll prepare it for you right away."
Milra apologized, took the money bag, and turned to arrange the goods, while Xu Xiao stayed in the reception room, enjoying delicious snacks and waiting.
'They're just some stones whose properties have temporarily changed, and you guys are getting all excited.'
Enjoying the delicious snacks, Xu Xiao felt content.
While he doesn't possess the magic of Turning Stone into Gold, he can still briefly use Arcane Energy to alter the composition of a substance, making it resemble gold.
That bag of gold was just a fake; it would turn back into stone after 24 hours.
However, by then, Xu Xiao had already left the city and even gone far away from Great City of Demacia, so no one could find him anymore.
Soon, Milra entered the reception room with a group of merchant guild servants, each carrying prepared goods.
"This is Mithril forged by the most skilled craftsmen in the royal court, lightweight yet incredibly defensive; these are forest fruits from overseas Ionia, which can be preserved for a long time and are rich in nutrients, just one can provide an adult with a whole day's worth of food; and this..."
Milra explained everything in detail, and it must be said that the Delta Merchant Guild of Commerce was very efficient.
Finally, Milra took out an exquisitely bound scroll from her bosom and opened one corner of it.
"This is the latest map of the entire continent, including every river and every piece of land that caravans and explorers have explored so far, from the icy Freljord in the north to the Ancient Kingdom of Shurima and the overseas continent of Ionia in the south, all of which are recorded on it."
"Aside from some hidden locations and military-related areas, this is the most detailed map available to date."
"Great, I like it very much, I'll take this one." Xu Xiao made a move to take it, but Milra smiled and let him pass.
"I'm sorry, the map is too valuable. We can only hand it over to you after you have paid the remaining amount. That's the rule."
As they were talking, a group of armored caravan guards appeared outside the room. Milra smiled sweetly.
"For your safety, we will accompany you to settle the remaining payment. I don't think you'll mind, will you?"
Xu Xiao was stunned for a moment, then he laughed.
"Of course, I'd love to!"