Construction Mage - Chapter 26: Malik the Negotiator

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“Does one have to be an active Delver to further their profession classes? The answer is no. You simply need the right recipes and materials, which happen to be found progressively deeper and deeper into the dungeon. 

The value of a regular artisan lies in their skill. The value of profession classes lies in the recipes. To get the best of both worlds, it isn’t rare that Delvers sponsor artisans. After all, it’ll save them the time spent on crafting for a higher quality product.”

-Excerpt from Artisans and Professions

***

Not wanting to pry into his new negotiator’s matters, Clay quickly changed the topic to something more benign as they strode through the Delver marketplace. The two soon came to the outer area, where there were actual storefronts that were facing the imposing stone walls that surrounded the city’s dungeon—Greymark’s Bastion.

Malik skipped into one of the stores and headed straight to the middle-aged woman with dull orange curls at the counter. Her brows creased for a split second upon seeing him, but quickly transitioned into a kind smile.

“What do you want this time, Malik? I don’t run a charity around here, so it better be good.”

“I’m helping a client sell his longsword. It’s a Delver weapon!”

“Oh?” the woman nodded at Clay before directing her attention back to the scrawny boy. “Tell me the details? What bonuses are we talking about?”

“Umm, I don’t know,” he muttered as he turned a questioning gaze to Clay.

At that moment, Clay wondered if he had made a mistake coming with the boy. He sighed as he placed the sword in question on the counter, determined to see this through. If he couldn’t fetch a good price for it here, it just meant he wouldn’t sell.

The shopkeeper scoffed and picked up the sword. Unlike the previous vendor, the woman squinted at the blade as she peered at it from different angles. It ran contrary to her prior words, which made it sound like she only cared about the stat bonus the weapon gave. After viewing the blade from a dozen angles and feeling its edges, she nodded and finally turned her attention back to her customers.

“How much are you looking for it?”

“Ten gold coins!” Malik instantly answered.

“Ha! I’m not sure if I’ll even be able to sell it at that price myself. Only rich brats who hadn’t gotten their feet wet for long would buy this. I’ll give you three gold coins for it, at best.”

“There are tons of beginners who can afford it after delving for a bit. You’re being too harsh here.”

“Yeah? As if those green whelps will part with their coin so easily! They usually need a few setbacks before they realize not to skimp on their gear, even if they only linger around the first layer. Even then, they likely wouldn’t learn about my shop until later in their career.”

“That’s not our problem that you chose such a remote location!” Malik argued.

“I don’t like wasting time on crowds.”

The boy groaned as he stared at his opponent for a few seconds before snickering.

“Eight gold coins, and I’ll help you find customers. I spend most of my time helping new Delvers with errands, anyway. It’ll be easy for me to put in a good word about your shop.”

“My business isn’t doing so bad that I’d need a kid’s word to do business. Four gold. That’s final.”

“What? Come on! This sword will be an easy sell if you present it to the guards. Quick turnover, no risk. Don’t be such a cheapskate!”

Instead of responding to the kid’s tantrum, the storekeeper turned to Clay.

“Sorry, dear customer, but four gold coins is the best I can do here. What do you say?”

According to their agreement, Clay could easily just agree right now and cut the kid out. He would’ve gotten the same amount anyway, since the negotiator had failed to reach his end of the deal. However, upon seeing the boy’s watery eyes and stiff shoulders, Clay let out a weary sigh.

“Four gold coins does sound a little low.”

“Then you’re welcome to try selling it at other stores. Good day to you.”

“Wait. I think we can work something out instead. Just to confirm, either you or one of your staff has the blacksmith profession class, right? You guys make and adjust the equipment you sell?”

“That’s correct, sir,” the woman answered with a skeptical look, trying to decipher his intentions.

“Then, how about you do three gold coins now and two gold coins in store credit? I believe I’ll need to get some work done or make a purchase sometime soon.”

“Hmm, you want to run a tab, like in a tavern?”

“Yes. It shouldn’t be a bad deal for you, right? You won’t have to pay as much for now, and the money I’ll spend later will be to your profit anyway.”

As someone who had worked a dead-end retail job since his graduation, he had used store credits to placate Karens and Darens, who argued over refund prices numerous times. Working at an off-price retailer meant it was quite common for the prices of items to be different between branches or over time. It was a concept that was supposed to be simple, but most shoppers could never comprehend it. As a result, he had to resort to these small tricks to smooth things over.

Slowly, the shopkeeper nodded.

“Sounds fine to me. You have a deal!”

Shaking the woman’s hand, the transaction quickly concluded.

Malik gingerly followed behind with his head facing the ground.

“Look up, kid. We need to settle our agreement, right?”

“Huh?”

Before Malik could realize what had happened, he suddenly found a gold coin lying in his hand.

“There, our deal is complete. See you around, kid.”

Without missing a beat, Clay briskly walked away. The rain was soothing, but it also amplified the horrible smell of waste. The ordeal sapped his energy. He wanted to retreat indoors to somewhere where he could relax, quickly, but first, he needed to go check in on his worksite to see if the rain had caused any damage to his property.

Leaving the kid behind, he exited the second and third ring in no time and arrived on his land, where an L-shaped wall stood. To his delight, everything remained intact. The canopy effectively kept the bricks dry enough. However, the wall didn’t have the same luxury.

At the end of the day, the structure was made using mud mortar. The rain hadn’t been particularly heavy, but some parts of it were being washed out. It still stood strong, but the stability came into question.

I’ll just have to repair it later. It doesn’t seem like it’s close to crumbling anytime soon. It should be fine as long as it doesn’t rain for weeks on end.

Still, maybe I should consider using some of my coins for the kind of mortar Garrick uses? Hm, I have to be careful with my spending if I’m going to get an Adventurer’s Guild set up anytime soon, though.

I really need to get back into the dungeon soon.

***

Four days quickly passed. In that time, Clay single-mindedly worked on his home. 

“You really plan on living in this—house?” Garrick muttered in disbelief.

The foreman had worked his job for many years, but he had never seen such a rudimentary abode. Craftsmen like him had pride, and he would inevitably cry if he had to present this disaster to a client. 

“Look, Clay. I thought you were just exaggerating when you said you’d be satisfied with four walls and a roof, but this—”

Before he could finish, the dark green-haired woman next to him elbowed him in the side.

“Congratulations, Clay. I’m sure my husband is as happy for you as I am. Once his excitement calms down, he’ll surely give you some professional advice, should you need. For now, please do give us a tour.”

“Thanks, Thalia. You’re both welcome to come in.”

While Thalia passed the door curtain without hesitation, Garrick couldn’t help but step back to get another good look at the building his friend had built alone.

Earthen bricks and mud mortar. It was his suggestion, sure, but the entire place was really just a few walls without even a window. The only doorway to the place didn’t even have a door. The all-important roof was also missing, but it was the reason he had been invited. However, he wasn’t a miracle worker. With no framing to work with, how in the world was he supposed to install anything?

Joining after his wife, Garrick quickly voiced his concerns to his former worker.

“Oh, a roof frame. Do you think I can build that with more of these bricks?”

“If you want it to come down on you when it rains, sure,” Garrick quipped, earning him yet another elbow. “Ahem. It’s best you get some wood to build the support structure. You can nail them to the walls. It’s good that you have an internal column built. They should be able to bear the load.”

As the two men talked about what needed to be done, Thalia suddenly shouted to them.

“Clay, why do you have this in a room?”

Walking over to the room Thalia was in, Garrick was quickly greeted with the sight of a strange seat with a wide hole in the middle. He frowned as he surveyed the rest of the room. The floor was bare and even had a hole in the ground. It thankfully was the only room in such a sorry state, as the others had proper brick flooring, but it still hurt his professional sensibilities to see plain dirt indoors. He didn’t want to criticize too much, though, so he stuck with the most obvious issue.

“Is this a latrine? Why didn’t you just build a privy nearby? Do you need me to show you how to build a small outhouse?”

“Why would I want it outside? I’d freeze during the winters,” Clay defended.

“Maybe, but your house is going to get as filthy as the streets if you let the waste accumulate here.”

“It’s fine. I didn’t dig a hole to let it sit under my house. A bucket is under it, where I can then dump the contents afterward.”

Garrick stood there alongside his wife, watching his friend proudly demonstrate how a latrine worked, of all things. He couldn’t help but rub his beard as he contemplated its worth. As eccentric as he thought the idea was, he couldn’t think of any downsides to argue with. He began considering whether this was something worth incorporating into his own work.

The concept was like the chamber pots found within inns, but this allowed the person to sit down. Sure, it was more comfortable, right? Perhaps the church could make use of latrines of a similar design?

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