Chapter 1231: Custom Offsets and War Profiteering

By offsetting the price at sixty percent of the market value, a single Communication Magic Tool can still net a profit of 400 Gold Coins; it really is a case of the more that is sold, the more it appears to be a loss on the surface, while in reality, the more is actually earned!

Even without further bargaining, Xia Duo felt this result was acceptable, though it was unlikely the Halan Chamber of Commerce would accept using only Communication Magic Tools for the offset.

Furthermore, there was the Ming Shui Chamber of Commerce; if too many Communication Magic Tools were used for the offset, would it be considered a violation of the exclusive sales agreement? This was also a problem.

If other Magic Items were used for the offset, aside from the three types the Tower of Time could already mass-produce (Communication Magic Tool, Missile Wand, Warning Amulet), the profit margin might not be as high, meaning less would be earned.

After some thought, Xia Duo proposed again: "Magic Items on the market are rarely high-quality goods. Lord Xia Duo gave me some quotas for custom-made high-quality Magic Items. If President Jalasuo is interested, we can discuss it further!"

No matter how high the premium on generally circulated Magic Items is, it is not as high as when a Senior Arcanist personally takes action. Since he had already decided to earn money to buy a house, he had to make full use of his own value!

The most prominent of Xia Duo's various identities was that he was a Senior Arcanist; other things like being a member of the Tower of Time or a Pioneer Lord could not bring much of a premium.

Of course, the identity of being a student of Iolum could also bring a premium, but not by much.

There were plenty of students of Iolum; if he were not a Senior Arcanist but a Low-level Mage, would others still accept a high premium?

If it were in the Yiaole Mu Ling, outside chambers of commerce might, but in Seventon, it was basically unlikely.

Not to mention, only a Senior Arcanist or an Archmage could reach the threshold for manufacturing high-quality Magic Items; the more advanced the Magic Item, the higher the premium it could command.

If one were to produce an Artifact, it would no longer be a question of price, but rather that it could not be bought even with money; even if used for trade, it could be exchanged for more high-end resources.

……

In Netheril, high-quality Magic Items generally refer to Mage creations with Magic Effects of 8th circle or higher; such Magic Items can only be manufactured by Archmages, Senior Arcanists, or even higher existences.

They are currently the commodities with the highest premiums on the market, but at the same time, they are also the commodities that people scramble for!

Hearing Xia Duo say that he had quotas for custom high-quality Magic Items, Jalasuo's eyes became incomparably fiery in an instant; he was very clear on the concept of high-quality Magic Items.

Even an ordinary person, as long as they possessed one high-quality Magic Item, could to a certain extent contend with an Advanced Rank Mage. These were not the shoddy Advanced Rank Mages outside the chamber of commerce's station warehouse, but true Advanced Rank Mages with skilled Spellcasting, accurate tactics, and numerous Spells!

Such things, let alone Jalasuo himself, he had even heard his older brother, the Lord, speak many times of his longing for a high-quality Magic Item.

It was not that just any Archmage or Senior Arcanist had the ability to make a high-quality Magic Item; Spellcasting was one thing, and converting Spells into Magic Items was another matter entirely.

Jalasuo had also studied Magic when he was young, but after his brother—the current Halan Lord—showed higher talent, his father decisively gave up on him.

Although such abandonment did not forbid him from studying Magic, without his father's special care, others would not waste time on him, and everything depended entirely on his own efforts.

But if that were the case, the life he lived might not even be as good as a Commoner Mage from the poorest background; that was a life he could not accept, so he simply gave up on Magic later on.

He felt that his current life was not bad; if he were made to wither away in a Mage Tower for a lifetime, even if he inherited the position of Lord, even if he became an Archmage, how much fun would such a life have?

But Jalasuo then thought of Lord Xia Duo behind Dailike, and he could not help but fantasize about the possibility of himself becoming a Senior Arcanist at a young age; deep in his heart, he sighed, "This world is truly too friendly to geniuses!"

……

To Xia Duo, Jalasuo's silence was him considering the profound impact of this matter. High-quality Magic Items could not only be used for oneself; if one found the right channels and gave them to the right people, one might even be able to seek higher benefits.

He did not believe Jalasuo could resist such temptation; even if he could, the Halan Lord behind him might not necessarily be able to.

Currently, Halan Territory was selling real estate in Seventon, surely not because the Halan Lord sensed that Seventon might decline after the appearance of the Floating City in the future, but because of some other situation.

According to Xia Duo's speculation, this situation might be related to the Underground Passage.

Netheril and Danzo jointly cleared out the underground creatures in the Underground Passage that might pose a threat to Commoner caravans, causing the safety of the Underground Passage to rise by more than a notch.

It was far safer than sea transport.

Not long ago, Halan Territory disbanded Bill's fleet, and now abandoning the real estate here in Seventon was not impossible.

As for why it was being sold instead of left idle, Xia Duo speculated it was related to the offensive of the Drow in the underground.

Danzo was facing a Drow offensive, and whether it was war supplies or general civilian supplies, they were relatively in short supply. If one could transport some things over at this time, wouldn't one make a fortune?

Halan Territory was located in the south of Seventon, adjacent to the land corridor from the Nether Core Region to Zhenisi, and it was also relatively convenient to head to the Underground Passage.

If several territories teamed up, land transport would also be safer; perhaps Halan Territory selling Seventon real estate was to pool funds to go all-in on the underground war.

In fact, regarding the underground war, Xia Duo might know more than the Halan Lord; the Seventon Council and the Arcane Union had long ago agreed to aid Danzo, and this was even an important part of the Northland Alliance negotiations!

He had just received the negotiation details of the Northland countries from Iolum; although Xia Duo had not had time to look at them carefully, he had roughly flipped through them a few times, and one of the points was very clear—

In addition to providing aid in an official capacity, individuals were also encouraged to participate, regardless of the form: participating in the war in person, providing supplies, providing tactical strategies, or even solving certain technical problems in the war, etc.

This part would also have rewards, paid on behalf of the Seventon Council, to be settled with Danzo after the war ended or became relatively stable.

It was just that the negotiations between the several countries had not yet ended, and this was not the final plan.

In reality, it would be subject to the announcement, though of course, it would not be far off. The Halan Lord might have caught wind of something from somewhere and then wanted to play a big game, to the point of even selling the real estate in Seventon.

Xia Duo even felt that if the price was right, the Halan Lord would not mind selling the chamber of commerce station as well. Judging from the fact that this station had already begun to be cleared out, perhaps the other party had long had a plan to leave it idle.

……