Dahlia's eyes were filled with complex emotions. Her father, Joe, was indeed still the shrewd businessman he had always been, planning to profit from the price difference between two regions through reselling.
But now that the matter had leaked, both Dahlia and Joe nervously looked at Lucas, waiting for the outcome. If Lucas didn't cooperate with them, their trip would have been for nothing.
"Don't worry." Lucas smiled gently and spoke slowly, "If you can sell the cloth to the Atheon Kingdom, that's your skill."
What he said was the truth. Even though selling to the Atheon Kingdom would yield higher profits, if Lucas hadn't known about this information, wouldn't he have had to sell it to the capital first? The earnings wouldn't have been much different.
Even if he had someone else handle it, the problem still came down to the information imbalance. Even if Lucas had known in advance, he would still have sold the cloth in the capital and not to the Atheon Kingdom because it was just too far. The returns from that would be too slow in terms of time.
As for whether there was any deception, at the start, Lucas had simply intended to sell the cloth to the capital, not the Atheon Kingdom. It could only be said that Joe had hidden the information out of personal interest.
Who doesn't have self-interest? Someone who gives up everything for others would be a saint, not a human being. As long as one is human, there will always be personal desires.
"Thank you, Lord, for your understanding." Joe stood up and performed a noble's salute, and Dahlia followed suit.
Indeed, he had personal interests, but he never intended to take Lucas's share of the profits; otherwise, he wouldn't have only asked for a symbolic 1% profit share.
"The cloth can still be entrusted to you for transportation and sales, but I have one condition: it can only be sold in the capital." Lucas rested his cheek on his hand as he spoke.
"This..." Joe froze for a moment, a hesitant look crossing his face. If it was only sold in the capital, even if he raised the price a little, the profit share wouldn't be much.
"Don't worry, you won't be working for nothing." Lucas smiled. "Based on the sales volume in the capital, I will give you 5% of the profit."
"Is it just the cloth product?" Joe cautiously asked. After the annual cloth sales share, he could earn over fifty gold coins a year, which compared to his previous business profits, was rather small.
If it was just one cloth product, even if the quantity was large, the market was limited. Other merchants would also come to buy, and he might make a bit more, but based on the original production data, the quantity of cloth wouldn't be high.
"For now, I can only provide five types of products." Lucas pulled a piece of paper from his desk and handed it to Joe, speaking calmly, "These are the five products. If you're agreeable, we can sign a contract."
"This... Hoo, ha, hoo…" Joe's pupils constricted as he looked at the contents written on the paper. His hand, gripping the paper, suddenly tightened, and his breathing became rapid.
"Well? With these five products, you should be able to break into the capital's market." Lucas chuckled lightly, twirling a pen in his hand.
"Absolutely!" Joe quickly nodded. He had used all five of these products and knew just how in-demand they were.
"These five products can only be sold in the capital. Without my permission, you cannot sell them in other cities." Lucas said calmly.
Lucas wouldn't hand the entire market to one merchant to control. What he was planning was a regional agency model. Once the other party accepted, it would be as if they were working for him, and their "salary" would be that 5% profit share. All he had to do was send people to regularly check their accounts.
As for the northern market, it wasn't something to enter now. The situation there wasn't peaceful. The reform in the Kingdom of Atheon was far from smooth, and many of the defeated nobles had become wandering horse bandits or fled to the waters to become pirates.
Surviving safely through that would cost a lot, but he hadn't brought it up. After Joe and the others returned, they would receive this news.
Lucas's source of information came from the crew members that Dahlia brought, with several leading captains loudly boasting and eating and drinking in a private room at the Drunken Night Restaurant.
"What? Only in the capital?" Dahlia stared at Lucas in disbelief, her eyes widening. This condition was too harsh, wasn't it?
"It's fine." Joe hesitated for a moment but agreed. He then gave Dahlia a look, signaling her not to speak.
Based on the profits from these five products, Joe roughly calculated that even with just a 5% profit, it would bring him at least 500-600 gold coins a year.
"Then let's sign the contract." Lucas said, pulling out two copies of the document from the drawer and placing them on the desk. He handed a pen to Joe.
"Alright!"
Joe took the document and began reading it carefully. The more he read, the more surprised he became. Many clauses blocked the opportunity for exploiting any loopholes. Most importantly, the handwriting on the document didn't appear to be something written by hand.
After reading through it, Joe signed his name, pressed his seal, and respectfully handed it back to Lucas.
"The goods will take a few days to prepare. You can rest in the city for a few days…"
Lucas took the document, signed it as well, and stamped it. He handed one copy back to Joe and said, "This document is valid for three years. After three years, we'll need to renew it."
"Good!" Joe thought for a moment and understood that it couldn't be permanent. He quickly added, "I'll take my leave now. My young son still needs to be picked up from school."
"Of course." Lucas nodded.
Joe bowed and gave Dahlia a glance before stepping out of the study room. His hurry to leave was because of Dahlia; he feared that if he stayed longer, she might confront Lucas. After all, she had no idea what those five products were.
"Lord Lucas, I'll leave Lady Catherine in your care." Dahlia said, bowing to Lucas before chasing after Joe.
Lucas blinked in confusion, watching Dahlia leave. Take care of Catherine? The Catherine he had already seen naked?
"...?" He turned his head to look at Mina, who was gazing out the window. Her cat ears were, however, pointed toward him.
As for Annie, she was lowering her head, pretending to handle some administrative work. But the ballpoint pen she was holding upside down clearly revealed her pretense.
Freya just stared blankly at him. As for the wolf-eared girl, she didn't need to be thought about—she still needed someone to take care of her. She could only kill people, not care for them.
"…"
"Step..step"
In the castle corridor, Dahlia caught up with Joe.
"Father, has your head been knocked by a beast from the Pigman tribe? How could you agree to such a request?" Dahlia's delicate face hardened, her sharp tongue bursting out.
Restricting sales to only the capital city limits their business so much. How could they possibly expand the business? How much profit could they make?
"Dahlia, do you think I'm senile?" Joe rolled his eyes, "Are you implying that I'm more foolish than a beast from the Pigman tribe?"
"Otherwise? Maybe you've been knocked twice?" Dahlia scoffed.
"You... you're still too young," Joe sighed, shaking his head. "Come on! Dale should be finishing school soon. After picking him up, we'll head to Drunken Night Restaurant for a meal, and then I'll explain what these five products really represent." Joe waved the documents in his hand.
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