Completed Money makes the world go around.

[Ronan Dugal]

Winter, 15th, Year 513 Outside Sultros Blades, Early Morning The reigns clacked in the hallway of the city as the wagon made its way through the small streets. The horse more or less ignored the reigns as Ronan flicked them again. Horse would only go as fast as Horse wanted. Ronan sighed to himself and gave up, not wanting to start his day arguing with a horse. While it had only been a purchase for a short time, with plans of selling Horse once he had no more need of him, Horse had been in Ronan's care for almost a whole year now. Yet, while Horse and Ronan got on well together, it seemed like the horse was actually the master and Ronan was only lucky enough that the creature decided to go in the same direction as Ronan wanted him to go in. The maneuvering was difficult in the small street and Ronan had to focus on his task as the horse pulled the wagon deeper into the city. There were some goods he had gotten his hands on specifically for a place such as this. Having spent most of his life in the city of Syliras, Ronan, like most inhabitants, knew of the Sultros blade weapon smith. His skills as a smith were quite profound and the quirky 'custom weapons only' attitude the owner had was just as famous. Finally, Ronan pulled the reigns in and Horse decided at the same time that it was time for a break. The wagon came to a halt and Ronan jumped off the driver's seat. The shop front was rather empty and Ronan found it strange there was no sign indicating a blacksmith of some sort being inside the building. Perhaps the owner didn't even know. Apparently, whoever owned the place was not human. Not that it mattered to Ronan. Mizas he got from non humans were worth just as much as those from humans. He looked at Horse for a moment and figured the creature would remain where it was. Otherwise, Ronan would have to do some running this early in the morning. He walked up to the front door of the establishment and tried to open the door. Locked. He knocked a few times but to no avail. The door remained locked. "Hello? Anyone home?" Ronan waited for a moment but nothing happened. He moved over to the window and tried to see inside but nothing but blackness greeted him. It seemed to Ronan that the window had been blocked off somehow. He moved back to the door and knocked again, waiting once more. No reaction. Ronan looked puzzled. What a strange notion, closing shop during one of the more profitable hours of the day. Shaking his head, Ronan walked back to the wagon and climbed on board, clacking the reins to tell Horse to get moving again. The narrow streets of the city passed them by as Horse carried them towards their next destination. With a 'Ho' and a pull of the reins, Ronan tried to stop the horse from moving. When he jumped off the wagon, Ronan knew as well as Horse did that it hadn't been Ronan's commands but the delicious looking weeds growing up through the cracks in the stone that had stopped the horse in place. Ronan went straight for the door of the shop and opened it. Inside he found the Myrian owner of "All things leather" behind his counter. "Nabinu, my myrian friend. Do I have a deal for you." Ronan said as he covered his mouth and nose with his hand. The smell of the shop was the one thing that would have had Ronan not do business here. The profits of the leather industry, however, kept the young trader coming back again. "Ten pounds of leather, both for garments and for armor. Waiting for you for the meager price of twelve golden mizas. What say you?" Ronan smiled as he lowered his hand, willing it away from in front of his mouth. He took shallow breaths through his mouth, trying not to breathe in with his nose while ignoring the taste of leather in his mouth. "Ronan, scoundrel. Where have you been? I haven't seen you in a long time." Ronan smiled as Nabinu smiled. Both men seemed to smile at all times but Ronan knew that Nabinu smiled because he wanted to, while Ronan smiled because it was his job. "Let's go outside and have a look at those leathers of yours. Ronan followed the owner out of the shop. With a curse and a shake of his head, Ronan ran passed the owner the moment they were out. Nabinu started laughing, knowing fully well what had happened. Horse had moved on, pulling the wagon down the street to the next patch of delicious looking weeds after having consumed the first patch. "So, Horse is still in charge, I see." Ronan smiled and shrugged. "I haven't been able to make him understand the terms of the contract yet." Ronan climbed up the back of the wagon and rummaged through the plethora of goods contained there. He pulled a bundle to the front and lifted a corner of the cloth covering it. Then he pulled a second bundle forward and did the same. With expert eyes and fingers, Nabinu inspected both bundles. "I'll give you eight gold for it." Ronan sighed and shook his head. "You're trying to ruin me, Nabinu. If I had more customers like you I'd have been out of business a long time ago. Eleven gold mizas is the lowest I can go." Nabinu knew Ronan well enough to know that the young trader wasn't being quite honest about things. "Alright. Nine gold for the whole lot." He waved his arm over the two bundles. "Nine? I won't be able to eat tonight if I sell these for nine gold. Ten is the best I can do. And only because I like you, my Myrian friend." But Ronan already knew the Myrian wouldn't go for it. The arm wave was his final offer 'tell'. He wouldn't go any higher than that. When he was met with a silent stare and a smile, Ronan sighed and raised his hands upwards. "Sure, fine. I'll just eat a little less for lunch. Nine gold mizas for the whole lot." With a smile, both traders shook hands and Nabinu lifted the bundle of leather from the wagon. Ronan followed suit and pulled the second bundle on his shoulder, walking after the leatherworker. Once inside he put the bundle down next to where the Myrian had placed his and moved to the counter. He watched intently, a flicker in his eyes, as Nabinu counted the price out, five gold and forty silver coins. With a single sweep of his hand, Ronan took the coins from the counter and pocketed them in his purse. With his purse nine gold heavier and his wagon 10 pounds of leather lighter Ronan was content. he had hoped for ten gold for the whole lot but even with nine he had made a profit. He left the store after a quick thanks to his friend. Once outside, he uttered another curse and started running down the street after Horse, who had decided to wander off after more patches of delicious weeds to eat.

[Ronan Dugal]

Once he had caught up with Horse and the wagon, Ronan had managed to direct the horse's attention back towards where he wanted him to go. There were a few stops along the way where horse refused to move until he had sampled or finished the patch of greens growing along the side of the road. With a sigh, Ronan hadn't even tried to make the horse move until Horse decided to move on his own. He wondered what he had done in his life to deserve something such as this. Nothing he could remember from his own life seemed to merit such a punishment as Horse. Once the horse decided to go on again, Ronan did his best to steer him through the streets of Syliras to the next destination. Slowly lowering the pace and finally coming to a halt two doors down from where he had wanted to be, Ronan climbed off the wagon. Having learned from his previous mistakes, Ronan coiled the reins around a wooden stake in the ground. Eyeing the horse for a moment and making sure it wasn't intent on moving, Ronan turned his back on Horse and headed for the door. Most of what he did these days was repetition. He walked in with the offer, showed off his wares and sold the goods for a profit. Things had become a little stale for Ronan, often the deals were too simple, the people he dealt with too easily manipulated, the lies he told too easily accepted. With a sigh, Ronan lifted arrows from his wagon and put them under his arm. Eight packs of twenty arrows, bound together by a piece of cloth around the middle. The arrows were quite well made, supplied to him by some hunters he had helped out in the past. He walked in the shop and looked around. Morning had been continuing on as Ronan had wrestled for control with Horse and now the shop already saw its first customers appearing. Ronan waited patiently for the customer to finish their order. His turn would come soon and it would last only as long as it would take him to get rid of these damn arrows. His face clouded over for a moment as he looked around the shop. It baffled him still how people could enjoy doing a job like this. He sighed to himself and willed the trader smile on his lips as the last customer before him walked out the shop. "Good morning, sir. Pleasant day for some business, wouldn't you say." Ronan voice was kind and soft as he spoke. He eyed the owner of the shop for a moment and put one bundle of twenty arrows on the counter. "I have 5 bundles of longbow arrows and three bundles of shortbow arrows. I'd like to sell them to you. Only 15 gold mizas for the whole lot." He smiled at the man as he continued to pile up the arrow bundles on the counter. Once his hands were free, he looked at the man again. "What do you think? Not a bad deal, right?" Ronan smiled at the man as he placed his hands on the side of the counter. "I have no need for arrows, sir. I make them myself." Ronan looked at the man for a moment. At first he didn't quite understand what had been said, then it registered to him. Why was the world filled with idiots like this? He smiled at the man. "Of course. And they are the best. Or so people say. But these arrows I'm selling are quite cheap. You could make a good profit on them at your regular prices." Ronan wondered why he had to go and explain to the shop owner how to make a profit with his items. He continued to smile however as the man looked down at the bundles of arrows Ronan had placed there. "Hmm. Still. I'd prefer to sell my own arrows only." Ronan smiled and nodded. "Of course. My apologies for disturbing your morning." With that, Ronan started picking up the bundles again. Once he had them all under his arms and in his hands he turned from the counter and headed for the door. Ronan managed to control himself just enough to not smash the arrow bundles onto the back of the wagon. Nothing but idiots. The world had nobody in it smart enough to even consider the value of money. Who cared that the man made his own arrows? Didn't he understand the price Ronan offered would get the man about 10 times more profit if he sold things at the usual price? Ronan sighed and calmed himself down, regulating his breathing. It wasn't his fault the world was so dumb. He walked around the wagon and untied the reins of the horse. Stepping on the wheel, Ronan hoisted himself on top of the wagon and took a seat in the driver's position. With a clack of the reins, Horse was off. It seemed to Ronan that it was time to head for the main market and set up shop there. With the variety of goods he had at his disposal, the market was always a good place to go. Maybe it would help Ronan to rethink his thoughts about the world right now. The man's behavior had welled up annoyance and irritation at the world and the people within it. He sighed to himself as he absently guided Horse towards the market. It seemed Horse sensed his current mood and didn't stop to nibble on some of the nice greens they saw on the way over. The crowd grew in size as the wagon made its way deeper into the city, finally stopping near the market square. Here, people were shouting their wares to the customers, constantly lowering their prices just a touch in order to remain cheaper than the competition. Horse seemed to register where they were and headed over to Ronan's favorite spot, parking the wagon in it.

[Ronan Dugal]

Syliras Gates With a 'Hooo' and a hard pull on the reins, Ronan and Horse went into a fight over who would decide where exactly they would end up stopping. Finally, Ronan managed to halt the wagon near one of his regular spots. It was a small passageway between two stalls, with space enough for his wagon. The gates of Syliras loomed over them, together with the many knights inside. Ronan looked up towards the top of the gates as he put the brake on the wagon, not wanting Horse to make a fool out of him here in the middle of his element. He smiled and nodded to his two neighbors and jumped off the driver seat, tying Horse's reins down to one of the many poles and stakes in the ground. The market had opened at first light, like it did every day. The Stall owners would start unpacking and the smarter customers went at first light to haggle quietly with the merchants. Now, with the first light of day already past, Ronan found the open space crawling with people coming and going. There were quite a few patrols of knights between the masses but most of the people were normal citizens. Late farmers heading out to the fields, early hunters returning with their prey, knights going on patrol, knights coming back from patrol, knights patrolling, knights guarding the gates, knights off duty in full armor. Ronan sighed at the sight of all those tin men playing soldier. He walked around the side of his wagon and stepped on the wheel, looking into the back of his wagon. He quickly went over his inventory, making sure everything was still present. He pulled a parchment from one of the many pockets lining the inside of his clothes and scribbled the change of inventory regarding the leathers he had sold earlier. He put down the price paid as well, completing his ledger with the new total amount. He smiled for a moment at the parchment before rolling it up again and replacing it in one of the many pockets. Then he set to work. Ronan worked for several moments pulling crates and bundles to the front, pushing others to the back as he set up his wagon as a stall. He put the knives and arrows in the center front, prominent for everyone to see. Due to the many hunters and knights coming and going, Ronan would draw their attention with these right up front. The metals he left at the back, a little out of sight but still present. He placed the dried goods to one side of the weapons, also in the front. There were always hungry people around who wouldn't mind a bite or two while they were shopping or who decided to take a snack out with them when leaving the city for whatever reason. The furs and hides he placed on the other side of the weapons, also well in sight. Here they would catch the eye of passing people as well. While most hunters brought in their own targets and skinned them for furs and hides there were always people around looking for hunters to sell their spoils to them. And Ronan had spoils to sell. "Come and have a look, Ladies and gentlemen! The finest knives and arrows any hunter could wish for. Never miss a kill and skin your prey as easily as possible! No more torn furs because of bad knives! No more arrows snapping as you line them up with your prey!" Ronan shouted towards the crowd of people passing by, his voice mixing with those of every other merchant trying to sell his goods. While he was shouting just as loud as everyone else, there was a difference between Ronan and most of the other traders. Whereas they yelled prices and numbers towards the customers, Ronan only sold his wares. Prices would be discussed in person, without having to yell them at people uninterested in his wares. For a while, Ronan continued to pronounce his wares to the world. He showed them off to people passing by, interested or not, and smiled at everyone that looked at him. But nobody came to buy. Ronan, feeling his throat starting to hurt from the shouting, retreated back a little, letting other people shout for their customers as he started a small chat with one of his neighboring stall owners. Neither of them brought up the subject of their wares as it wasn't considered professional. They were still opponents in their little game, even if their goods weren't exactly similar. Ronan learned it was a little more busy than usual and shared that it had been quiet in town this morning, which would explain why. In the end both men drifted back to their own stalls. "Of course, sir. Here, please." Ronan reached in to the wagon and pulled one of the knives out, handing it to his customer. The man took the knife from its sheet and inspected it, turning it over several times and testing the edge with his thumb. "As you can see, it's good quality material. It'll cut as well, if not better, as any knife out there." Ronan said as he watched the man 'hmm' and think. "How much?" The man asked as he put the knife back in the sheet and placed it at his belt, trying to see how it fit him. "Ten silver Mizas, sir." The man looked up at Ronan to see how serious he was. "Five." "Five would ruin me, sir. Nine and a half." "Six?" Ronan smiled for a moment and thought over the price. Six was still a little too low for him. A little bit more and he would agree to the price. "Nine silver Mizas." Ronan offered, looking at the man. "Seven silver." "I can go as low as eight silver Mizas, sir. But that is the lowest. Any less and I'd have to skip lunch or dinner today." Ronan smiled his trader smile as he looked at the man. It wasn't quite obvious enough if Ronan was joking or not. The man stopped to think for a moment. "Alright. Eight silver for the knife and the scabbard. Deal?" Ronan's smile turned a touch more genuine as he extended his hand. "Deal." They shook on it. Ronan put the eight silver coins in his purse, together with the rest of his money and looked around the crowd. He went back to selling as he picked, at random, one of the items off his wagon and showed it to people passing by. "Look at these fine knives, they'll stay sharp for the longest time." - "Finest furs and hides for sale. Fresh from the hunt. Get yours here." - "Would you care for some dried fruits, lady? Some sweets to keep you going? How about you, young man? Don't you think your mother should buy you some?" Ronan smiled at the boy as he gave him a few of the dried fruits to taste. While the boy seemed to light up, the mother in question seemed to cloud over. "Mom? Please? Can I have some of them? Please..." He let it hang between them and, after giving Ronan a cloudy stare, she looked down at her son and seemed to brighten up right away. "Of course, sweetheart." The boy unhooked his hand from his mother's and moved over to the wagon, looking at the selection of fruits Ronan had to offer. Ronan took out the small scale and placed it on the edge of the wagon, watching the boy as he filled one of the two scales with the dried fruits of his choosing. As the boy made his selection, Ronan filled the other side of the scale with weights to keep it balanced. He gladly added more weight to his side of the scale as the boy continued to pick more fruit for himself. A quick glance at the mother showed that, while she wasn't too happy about Ronan, she was glad to see her son so active in his choosing. Two times the boy picked something off the scale and put it back, replacing it with something else. Halfway through, Ronan emptied the scale onto a plate and allowed the boy to choose from the other selection of fruits, more exotic ones. Well, they were just a touch unusual but that never helped with sales. So Ronan called them 'more exotic fruits' and it worked. People always enjoyed more exotic things, even if they could see that the things were only mundane. Ronan placed the last weight on his side of the scale to balance it out, replaced one of the heavier ones with a lighter one, then replaced a lighter one with a slightly heavier one and watched as the scale balanced out. "That'll be...Two gold and 2 silver exact." Ronan looked at the mother as he put the fruits together in a piece of cloth, wrapping it closed around it. Two pounds of dried fruit mixed with half a pound of Ronan's 'Exotic Fruits' were tied up with a little string before Ronan handed the pack to the young boy and accepted the money from the mother. "Thank you very much, young man. Come back whenever you run out." - "I will, sir. Thank you." He grabbed his mother's hand and they walked off. Ronan's day continued on as the sun rose to it's highest point. While the air was chilly, Ronan found that his job kept him warm enough. His voice shouting over the crowds, his body moving around from the wagon to the customers, all of it kept him warm enough. He enjoyed it, he lived for it. As the day passed to lunch, Ronan counted the money he had earned in the morning. Apart from the knife and the fruit, he had sold his entire stack of furs and hides to two different customers, a knife to another customer. Some hunters had bought Ronan's dried fruit but none had touched his 'exotic fruits'. Two of his longbow arrow bundles and all of his shortbow arrows. For the shortbow arrows he had made a good deal. He had priced them higher than usual but had given the fifth bundle, with only 19 arrows in it, for free on top of the deal. He had gotten the full price out of the arrows in the end while still looking like a generous and good businessman. Ronan always enjoyed it when people got tricked by his schemes. As the market started to empty out for lunch, Ronan approached both his neighbors and inquired if they had any interest in sharing their lunches together. He promised to buy a mug of beer for the both of them. After feeding Horse and putting his blanket over him and covering his own wagon with a large piece of cloth and tying it down Ronan helped his two new 'friends' out with their stalls, quickly wrapping things up. The presence of the knights in every cardinal direction assured people that their stalls were safe and secure. With a last check on Horse, Ronan headed off towards one of the many food places that opened up around lunchtime near the market where he bought himself and his two colleagues a mug of ale each. final invoice5 pounds of garment leather & 5 pounds of armor leather: 9 GM Knife: 8 SM 2 pounds of dried goods: 1 GM 2 SM 0.5 pounds of dried uncommon goods: 1 GM 3 pounds of Furs and hides: 18 GM Knife: 8 SM 15 pounds of dried fruit: 9 GM 2x Longbow Arrows (20): 2 GM 4x Shortbow Arrows (20): 5 GM 1x Shortbow Arrows(19): 0 GM Free with 4 bundles Total income: 46 GM 8 SM 0 CM 3x Mug of Ale: 12 CM Total Expense: 0 GM 1 SM 2 CM Total Revenue: 46 GM 6 SM 8 CM

[Radiant]

Ronan :

Experience

Skill	XP Earned
Observation	+2 XP
Driving	+2 XP
Socialization	+2 XP
Negotiation	+4 XP
Persuasion	+2 XP
Rhetoric	+2 XP
Organization	+1 XP

Lores

Lore Earned

Location: Sultros Blades

Location: All Things Leather

Nabinu: Myrian Acquaintance

Some People Are Blind To The Value Of Mizas

"Horse": Unruly Draft Horse

Loots

46 GM 8 SM

Notes :

Good thread, Ronan. Don't forget to add your selling profits to your ledger.

My radiance is not bright enough?

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your grade, beam me a PM and we can work it out.