Completed War of the coppers {Radiant}

[Ronan Dugal]

Ronan always enjoyed the bustle of the bazaar. Things were happening here and it was easy to miss them if you didn't look for them. Left and right coins and goods changed hands constantly. The buzzing of people talking to each came from all sides and the sound of coins clinking together or exchanging hands was like music to Ronan's ears. He had always enjoyed that particular clinking of gold miza on gold miza. He still remembered how he had felt the first time he had held a gold miza that belonged to him. Even though on his best days he handled several hundred gold mizas he still felt that same rush of possession whenever he held his own gold mizas. People were shouting their wares, trying to pull in more customers than their competitors did. They went to great lengths to get people to just look at their wares, shouting to most ridiculous lies at them. Fresh fruits and vegetables from the fields. Ronan had given the man a sharp look to try and see if the man was simply an idiot or if he really thought what he was yelling was the truth. How could you get anything fresh from the fields when there was a layer of snow covering just about every square inch of Sylira? Ronan focused back on his current purchase and looked at the old woman. For a moment, he regarded the old lady as she claimed her price. The shawl was well made and the embroidery gave it an elegant look. If it wasn't for the wool used as a base material, the shawl could have gotten a high price in some of the upper circles of Syliras. "Hmm... I'll give you eighty copper Mizas for it. The embroidery is nice but the wool makes it a little rough." He let the shawl move through his fingers, rubbing over the material as he tried to determine its quality. The wool itself was good, there was no questions about it. The only questions Ronan had pertained to his own ability to sell the shawl on to someone else for more money. As he waited for the old woman's counter offer, he let his eyes drift over the other shawls of various colors and with different embroideries on them. One in particular drew his attention, from the far back of the stall, out of reach for Ronan. He put the first shawl he had picked up back where it had come from and raised a hand to point at the white-gold one in the back. "How about that one? How much for the white one? I'll give you one gold miza for it." Ronan put up a price first, showing his interest in the white-gold shawl before the woman even set a price. While it told the old lady, if she had any skill in trading, that Ronan was going to buy the shawl in the end, it also told her that he would do his best to keep the price as close to his first offer. People were never very willing to stray too far away from their offers unless they were dead set on getting their hands on an item. While the white and gold combination had drawn Ronan's attention and his business sense told him the shawl was worth more than the others in the stall, he wasn't prepared to pay an arm and a leg for it. He regarded the woman to see what she thought of his offer.

[Radiant]

There was a reason the particular fruit and vegetable seller man offered the seemingly sweet deal of cheaper prices if a customer bought in bundles, it was to empty his stock for the Winter, Ronan might be sharp, but with the amount of potential customers in the Bazaar, a gullible person or two with coins to spare were definitely there.

Back to the disguised merchant prince, the old woman smiled at the young man, a wise smile that contained no ambition, hostility, impatience, or anything, just the contented smile of someone who had experienced life's many hardships, "I can't take it less than one gold and five silver mizas, dear," she called him by an affectionate title reserved for people far younger than her, "If you are willing to believe me, my prices are as low as they can be, I don't take much profit, I have six children, all of them happily married, I don't have much ambition left, unlike you young uns'," The elderly pointed at the shawl Ronan held, "I shall be honest, the embroidery is not easy to make, if it's a plain shawl, I can accept your price".

The old woman noticed he was examining the white-gold shawl, it was one of her most finest creation, made from silk she received from one of her children, a very successful merchant dealing in exotic objects from foreign lands, the woman simply chuckled at Ronan's offer, young people were always so eager, putting a price for an item, it became clear to her he didn't have much knowledge in terms of textiles, but she wouldn't take advantage, being old and contented made her an honest person, "This shawl is made using silk, dear, I made it myself, got the material from one of my sons, for this, I will take it no less than twelve gold mizas". The material itself was rare and the complex gold-colored lace-trimming only added to its value.

[Ronan Dugal]

Ronan felt a shiver run up his spine as the woman smiled at him. How he disliked old people like that. No more ambitions, no more desires, nothing left to live for. Content people. He sucked his lower lip between his teeth and let it slip out again as he kept his eyes on the old woman. Ronan strongly hoped that by the time he got to that age there was a few shiploads of gold mizas packed away somewhere for him or immortality had been commercialized. And then she went and made it worse. She spoke slowly, at an old person's pace, and to top it off called him 'dear'. Ronan's fists clenched, hidden away from the old lady by the counter between them. His face, however, showed a pleasant, somewhat solid smile he had dubbed his trader smile. It usually slid into place when smiling was needed and Ronan didn't feel like it personally. It was a professional reflex now. The smile seemed sincere and open as he let her words wash over him. Of course she had six children. They all seemed to have a plethora of children who were all old and wrinkled themselves. Ronan kept his smile, which never reached his eyes, the one flaw of his facial emotions. With his attention turned to the white shawl, his ears seemed to pick up more of the stories the old woman told him about it. Apparently, her son, whichever one in line he was, was a merchant in silk. Not a bad business, although highly destructive if one wasn't careful. "Your son must be a quite the merchant. I like it. It's nice. But twelve mizas..." Ronan ran his fingers over his jaw as he thought about it. Or pretended to think about it. He would pay what? About ten Mizas for it, give or take a few coppers? "I'll give you eight gold mizas for it. And one of those is only because I respect the elderly." Ronan grinned at the old lady. He had offered a price that would allow some further negotiation and would, most likely, unless the old woman was a deceptively good master haggler, end up at the price he was willing to pay for it. Their haggling would bring both offers together in the middle somewhere, around the ten miza mark. Ronan looked up from the shawl and locked his eyes directly with those of the old lady, smiling his trader smile at her. This time, however, the smile reached his eyes in the form of a slight glint. He could have traded the necklace for it but somehow, Ronan felt like the woman wouldn't really care about jewelry anymore. She was long past beautiful things. Old and wrinkled with nothing left in her life but embroidering shawls. Ronan hoped that he would never get old enough for something like that. Living your life for one single action, day in, day out. The thought sent another shiver up his spine. No, Ronan liked adventure, speed, moving about and talking. And above all, profit in his pockets.

[Radiant]

The old woman did not care much whether her customer bartered with emotion or calmness, one of the perks of being content with her life was her resistance to emotional sway. This made her a very patient merchant even though she wasn't trying to be patient. She gave him an appreciative smile at his praise, "Why thank you, yes, he's quite wealthy, if you want, I can introduce you to him, though for some reason, he likes privacy a tad bit too much." She lightly shrugged.

She slowly shook her head at Ronan's offer, "I can't dear, it's worth more than that," She might be an old woman, but she wasn't blind in the art of haggling, living for so many years taught her street-smarts. "I thank you for the respect, but, young man, you should not let my appearance affects you, nor should I. I'm an old woman, I'm perfectly aware, but in this case, I'm a seller, you're a buyer," She let out more of herself as the negotiation went on, revealing that she was not as gullible and senile as most people would expect of her.

"You are interested in the silk shawl, I see that, and I'm more than willing to give away, it do me proud to see my work bear fruit," She picked up the unfinished shawl and began tailoring, "Eleven gold mizas, dear, no less."

[Ronan Dugal]

While Ronan didn't care much for the woman's family and how wealthy and private her son was he had to admit that having a part of the silk market in your repertoire as a merchant was quite an achievement. Most of the silk in the world came only from one place: Kalinor. He wondered for a moment how the woman's son had established a trade there. Perhaps someday he would look into it and put his own finger in the, figurative, pie. It would be a delicious pie indeed. For a moment Ronan just stared at the woman as she explained to Ronan how to do his job. It surprised him to learn how right the woman actually was. Perhaps he had indeed let her looks and his own thoughts get the better of him for a moment. "You are right, of course, good lady. I let my thoughts get the better of me. I apologize. Let us focus on the buying and selling instead." Ronan made a small bow towards the embroidery lady before taking up the shawl again. The soft silk felt smooth on his fingers as he let the fabric slide through them. It was indeed a shawl of high quality. The embroidery was well done, by practiced hands. Ronan smiled and folded the shawl again like it had been at the start. For a moment he pondered the offer he would make and then decided on a solid number. The shawl was well made, the craftsmanship obvious. The base resources it was made up of were expensive as well. "As impressive as your work is I can't accept eleven gold mizas for the shawl. I will give you ten gold mizas and 2 silver mizas as a final offer. Take it or leave it, the choice is yours." Ronan spread his hands out, his palms pointing towards the ceiling. All in all, he looked rather casual about the whole thing as he put the final offer in front of the lady. The old woman had been right, however. He had let his own thoughts get the best of him and it had, perhaps, ruined a chance at a friendly barter with the old woman and a better price in the end. Now that he had a little peek under the old lady's wrinkled cover he realized that, had he played it out differently from the start, he could have gotten a better deal from her simply because she wasn't interested all that much in making huge profits or making sure she got so much percentage on top of her costs. Ronan let his hands drop to the counter of the small stall and leaned on them, looking at the old lady. For a moment his face was serious, then, out of nowhere, his face split in a big grin. His eyes twinkled in amusement as he looked straight at her. "Of course, one would prefer you to take it, as I like the shawl and I'd rather not leave it behind. But I also don't want to pay the full price for it. A... professional peculiarity, if you will. It leads me in quite a few debacles like this one from time to time."

[Radiant]

"It's quite alright, young man," The old woman understood him, no one was infallible from mistakes and the nature of mistakes themselves were subjective, a social norm in one place might be unacceptable in another, the key to being a successful merchant was to understand these customs as much as possible. Ronan accepting the old woman's wise words was the right path to take.

The old woman smiled at him, chuckling at his words, she could understand him, being the mother of a successful merchant, it was all about business. She wasn't trying to gain as much profit as possible, she simply wanted to sell her crafts for the appropriate price and it just so happened Ronan picked the most valuable of them all. For this one, she was unwilling to sell it too low, she felt unappreciative to her son if she did so, "Very well then, dear, I shall choose the latter, perhaps we can come to a deal sometime in future," she said as she took back the shawl and placed it neatly between the rest.

"You are interesting," She examined the merchant price, "You know your way around in the market, I can see you are no stranger to the art of haggling, dear, hmmm... I have the feeling that you aim to be a great trader someday, if my assumption's correct, I wish you the greatest of luck, Xyna blesses you". If Ronan wasn't interested in her other shawls, she would continue her tailoring in silence.

[Ronan Dugal]

Ronan looked at the old lady for a moment, still leaning on the counter with both hands. His mouth was half open, perhaps locked in some words he had tried to say or dropped open from surprise, it wasn't really clear which one had caused it. His eyes moved from the old lady to the scarf near his hands. The white and gold beckoned him as he looked at it. He had to tear his eyes away from it to look back up at the lady. With his mouth still half open, Ronan took a step back from the counter. He raised his hands around shoulder height, palms outwards toward the lady. With a great sigh he shrugged. He looked hurt as he spoke. "Fine, lady, you win. Eleven gold mizas for the shawl. I'll take it." He let his hands drop and went for his purse, taking out the mizas he needed. He placed a stack of eleven gold coins on the counter of the old lady's stall and waited for her to accept it and hand him the shawl. With that his purse had gone down from fifty mizas to 45,5 gold mizas and now to 34 gold mizas and 5 silver mizas. He could feel his heart break as his mind completed the math. He didn't feel particularly happy to be called interesting. An interesting trader was one that would draw attention and renown to himself. And once you were known you wouldn't be able to do business properly anymore because people would simple fall all over to accommodate you, like they did with Valini. "Not a great trader, lady. No. I aim for the top, the highest peak of the merchant mountain. Becoming a great merchant is easy." Ronan spoke softly but his suppressed eagerness and overconfidence were cracking through with his words. And just as he started liking the old lady she went religious on him. He managed not to sigh or scowl at her. Why did people always have to bring the gods into things? He didn't need the blessing of some lady somewhere who supposedly was the god of traders and money and deals. What did he care what that woman thought of him? Instead of blessings, she should have given him a better discount, that's what she should have done. No, Ronan would make his way through the world on his own and prove to everyone that he was indeed the best. Not that there was any doubt about it in Ronan's mind, of course. "Thank you, good lady." Ronan smiled at her as he bowed his head towards her. Once he got the shawl from the lady and the deal was sealed he bid goodbye to the tailoring old lady and went on his way. The ring lay somewhere forgotten in the back of his mind. The shawl was folded neatly over his arm and the necklace was still in his money purse. While he continued to look at the stalls he passed and inquired about a few items, Ronan found himself looking more for the other end of the business and was looking at the customers of several stalls to find one that would match his items. Perhaps one of those noble ladies with air in their head instead of common sense. Air in their head and a lot of mizas in their purses. Now that was a good combination. He smiled at a few passing ladies to try and gauge them. A few times he approached them with pleasant greetings but whenever he got to the selling part, it seemed that they weren't interested. But if it wasn't for his tenacity and patience, Ronan wouldn't have made it thus far. He continued on, approaching people who left empty handed from clothing or tailoring stalls to offer them the shawl he had. Or when they left from jewelry stands he pulled out the necklace. His eyes were scanning through the people in the bazaar while he was talking to other potential customers, already looking for the next one. "Good morning, Ser, Sera." Ronan bowed towards the lady as he approached the couple. "I couldn't help but notice that you are much to exposed to the cold weather outside, lady." His trader smile appeared on his face as he straightened up from the bow and it stayed there for the rest of the conversation. He unfolded the shawl from his arm and showed the white silk with the gold embroideries on it to the woman and the man before taking it with both hands and holding it open, like a mantle. "If you allow me." He held out the shawl for the lady so he could put it around her shoulders and let her try it on. Couples were, of course, the third best option when you were selling items of a gift nature. Convince the target of the gift that they like the gift and the counter part of the couple will most likely buy it to please them. It made the target happy towards their partner, the partner happy to have been able to provide for the target and it made Ronan happy because his purse always felt heavier afterwards.

[Radiant]

The old lady smiled at him, answering with a nod as the man accepted her offered price, she received the mizas, put it inside her purse, then gently offered him the shawl, "Thank you, dear, please take good care of it," she was about to continue her tailoring when the man spoke of his dreams, it was big, he wanted to be at the very top, even grander than great merchants, "I see, may you reach it". Perhaps, this man could surpass Valini and Belmont, only time would tell. She waved him a goodbye as the man bowed for his leave.

The Bazaar was crowded, that much was obvious, but the Knight's presence made outright theft of mugging non-existent, pickpockets happened once in a while, but they were rare and the offender would usually be caught soon enough. Two particular individuals, wealthy-looking young couple, happily married, Irthan and Lisista, were taking a leisurely walk in the Bazaar when a certain merchant prince approached them. Irthan, the man, quirked an eyebrow at the man who suddenly offered his wife an elegant looking white shawl with golden lace-trimmings. Lisista was flattered by the offer, smiling politely at Ronan.

"Dear, I don't thin-" Before Irthan could object, her red-haired wife was already trying on the man's shawl, commenting on its soft fabric and design, the woman was giggling, "It's beautiful, how much?"

The black-haired man couldn't help but to roll his eyes, mentally of course, his wife was always like this, cheerful and kind, but rather easily swayed by compliments, she should know better that this man's words were his marketing strategy. He let his wife had her fun, he would be taking the final decision.

[Ronan Dugal]

As Ronan had suspected, the couple reacted in about the same fashion as every other couple did. The woman enjoyed the attention and trying on the clothes, even if, perhaps, she wasn't interested in buying it. But once the shawl was draped over her shoulders and Ronan stepped back from her, the woman's eyes seemed to grow a touch brighter as she felt the fabric and saw the gold designs on them. The giggling was a good sign as well, it meant the woman was a little unsure if she would wear it, a little shy perhaps, but she also liked the way it looked on her. Ronan smiled his trader smile at the woman, mostly ignoring the man for now. "Dear lady, you look wonderful. It suits you perfectly, the way the gold comments your hair. If it wasn't for your husband here, I would ask you out for dinner." Ronan passed a quick glance over to the man before focusing back on the woman again. He reached out with a hand and rearranged the shawl just a touch, barely even moving it. He stepped back again and looked her over, nodding and humming approvingly. "Mhmm. Yes. It was made just for you." Ronan nodded at the woman and moved closer to her once more, doing some more touches to the shawl, draping it a little different over her shoulders. The end result was almost the same but the idea of being tended too often appealed to women. Ronan passed one more glance over the lady wearing his shawl. His eyes remained on her as he explained. "Normally, I'd sell it for 19 gold mizas, Kalinor silk, you know." He smiled apologetically, looking at the man before he continued. "But it suits you so well it would be a shame to keep it to myself. I would ask only for 16 gold mizas and the privilege of knowing that my shawl is being worn by a beautiful woman." Sometimes he went a bit too far, perhaps a personal failing, but Ronan had always enjoyed flirting and complimenting women. While usually he only did it outside of business, sometimes it seeped into it and landed him in trouble, or worse, lost him a percentage of the money he had hoped to get out of it. If he was lucky, the man wasn't super jealous and the woman was keen on being complimented. If he wasn't, however, Ronan could lose the couple rather quickly. He turned his attention back to the woman and smiled at her, leaving the man to think over the price. While it was indeed him who would pay for the shawl, it wasn't Ronan's task to convince him. It was Ronan's task to convince the woman to convince her husband to buy it for her. While the man was most likely hoping to get along quickly, Ronan knew that men, married or not, often had a difficult time refusing the women they were escorting, especially if they were even remotely beautiful in their eyes. And women had all sorts of tricks up their sleeves for convincing their husbands, knights, escorts or otherwise related men to give them what they wanted. Like most men with Ronan's outlook on relationships and women, Ronan knew that women held the ultimate argument, although he doubted any of them actually used it when in public. His smile got a slight touch of naughty as he kept his eyes above shoulder level on the woman.

[Radiant]

The merchant was quite the charmer, Irthan noted as he watched Ronan interacting with his wife, he knew it was all just to persuade his wife in buying his goods, if those were true flattery however, Irthan could feel a wave of pride, a man charmed by his wife's beauty, Irthan was a lucky man indeed. The husband wasn't worried though, he would be the one taking the decisions.

Lisista spun around once, admiring the white shawl adorned on her body, she giggled at his compliments, making a mock whispering sound, but obviously loud so Irthan could hear, "Hush, don't say that, I'm happily wedded with my lovely husband here," Her right hand reached out to hold Irthan's left, the man simply cleared his throat, silently telling Ronan that this woman was not available to anyone else, but him, and vice versa.

At the price's mention, Irthan slightly quirked his eyebrows, that was a rather steep price, but he relaxed when he heard it was made of silk, that material were always expensive, if not the most expensive of them all. While the man contemplated the ups and downs of purchasing the shawl, the wife's eyes were figuratively glowing with awe, a silk shawl, one couldn't find those often, she tugged at Irthan's arm, non-verbally urging him to just purchase it. Nineteen was but a small price for their wealth.

"Hmmm, I see, but nineteen is a bi-" The man paused, without even him bargaining, Ronan was already lowering the price himself, this strategy worked well, Irthan gave a small smile curling at his lips, this merchant knew how to sell. The man examined the shawl once more, feeling its soft texture, this must be genuine and if it wasn't, then this must be one of the most amazing attempt at imitation, he looked to his wife, knowing if he let this go, Lisista would bug him to no end.

"Alright, Sir...?" Irthan gestured, asking for his name, "It's rather expensive for a shawl, but since you said it's made of silk, I can understand, but I need some genuine assurance, tell me where your stall is or if you are a traveling merchant, where are you often stationed? I may be interested in browsing more of your goods in the future," He didn't speak his other reason, that was he would knew where to go if this man tricked them about the shawl. Irthan reached into his pocket and a jingle of mizas could be heard, he then procured sixteen gold mizas, offering it to Ronan, "Here you go, you sure know how to charm a woman".

"Like how I charmed you, darling?" His wife quipped.

"Yes, like how you charmed me, dear," He answered with a smile.