- Fantasy Lord: Start with Daily Intelligence
- FLDI Chapter 27
Chapter 27: When It Comes to Making Promises, I’m a Professional
On the west side of Lorren City, inside a moderately sized house, Racios Assad paced back and forth, his face filled with worry.
As an illegitimate son of the Assad family, Racios had never been given much importance. Even his father, the current head of the Assad family, didn’t like this son who was born unexpectedly from a maidservant.
Despite becoming an apprentice knight before the age of eighteen, Racios still didn’t win his father’s favor.
He wasn’t given the opportunity to serve the family directly, nor was he entrusted with managing any of the family’s caravans like his siblings.
Instead, he was only given a small shop in Lorren City.
Lorren City—a barely developed city in the desolate Northern Province.
Not only was it a backwater, but the shop he was given was also pitifully small.
To be honest, he wasn’t happy about it.
But what could he do? He didn’t have the courage to become a pioneering knight, so he had no choice but to obey the family’s orders and take charge of that tiny shop in Lorren City.
However, once he accepted reality and arrived in Lorren City, he found that things were even more difficult than he had imagined.
The entire commercial market in Lorren City was monopolized by the Habs Trading Company. It was nearly impossible for him to sell any goods.
After six months, the gold coins he had brought with him were almost gone, and the revenue from the shop amounted to only a few dozen silver coins.
With this kind of income, running the business properly was out of the question—just surviving would be a challenge.
That was when, three months ago, he noticed that the Northern Province lacked certain special goods. He came up with a bold idea: smuggle special items into the Northern Province and sell them.
Specifically, military supplies.
Given the province’s constant state of crisis, he figured these items would sell like hotcakes.
And since the Assad family was deeply involved in trade, Racios, though not well-regarded, was still the son of the family head. Obtaining a few items wouldn’t be too difficult.
Once he had the idea, he moved to act.
His first target was wildfire oil.
Compared to other military supplies, wildfire oil was relatively inexpensive and extremely useful.
It could be used in a variety of environments.
From Racios’ perspective, ten pounds of wildfire oil cost him around ten silver coins from the family, but he could easily sell it for fifty or even a hundred silver coins in the Northern Province—a profit margin of at least tenfold.
Moreover, because of the oil’s unique properties, it could be mixed with regular water during transport and then extracted upon arrival in Lorren City, thus evading border patrols.
And indeed, things went as planned.
Seven days ago, the first shipment of wildfire oil arrived safely.
Three days ago, Racios had successfully extracted the oil.
However, just when things seemed to be going smoothly, he encountered a problem: finding a suitable buyer.
Yes, a suitable buyer.
He had thought there would be no shortage of people needing wildfire oil.
But that was just his assumption.
In reality, finding a trustworthy buyer was no easy task, and finding one he could trust with such sensitive goods was even harder.
Smuggling something as important as wildfire oil was no joke. If word got out, the consequences would be severe.
Had he been a noble, it might have been less of a risk. But he wasn’t, and if caught, he would undoubtedly end up on the gallows. His father likely wouldn’t lift a finger to save him.
He was starting to regret his rash decision.
Pacing back and forth, worry etched on his face, Racios turned to the knight standing by his side.
It was one of his most loyal knights.
“Lamm, can we really trust this buyer?” Racios asked, his voice tinged with concern.
“Yes, my lord, the man is trustworthy. He holds no noble title, and his backer is only a baron. Even if something goes wrong, we can deny everything. No one can prove that we sold the oil, or even that it was wildfire oil in the first place.”
Lamm’s voice was steady as he reassured his master.
“You’re right,” Racios nodded, relaxing slightly. He had taken many precautions, after all.
However, just as he began to calm down, a servant rushed into the room.
“My lord, Sir Thor Dresrosa requests a meeting with you,” the servant said respectfully, handing over a letter.
“Thor Dresrosa? From the Dresrosa family?” Racios furrowed his brow, clearly puzzled.
He was well aware of the situation between his family and the Dresrosa family—they weren’t exactly on friendly terms.
Now, a member of the Dresrosa family was requesting a meeting. Racios couldn’t help but feel a bit suspicious.
“Let him in, and prepare the room,” Racios ordered after a brief moment of hesitation. Noble etiquette dictated that he couldn’t refuse the meeting, and besides, he was curious about what this visit was all about.
Soon, Thor and Raine were ushered into the room by a servant.
“Honorable Racios Assad, I apologize for the sudden visit. Please accept this small gift as a token of my respect,” Thor said with a smile, motioning for Raine to present a wooden box.
A servant handed the box to Racios.
“You’re too kind, Sir Thor Dresrosa,” Racios replied politely, opening the box casually, intending to close it right away as he normally would.
But the moment he saw the contents, Racios froze.
His eyes widened, and the box slipped from his hands, crashing to the floor.
“You!” Racios exclaimed, standing abruptly, his face shifting from shock to uncertainty as he glared at Thor.
“Racios, there’s no need to be alarmed,” Thor said calmly, still smiling. “I’ve come to discuss business, nothing more.”
Thor’s gentle voice and serene demeanor helped Racios suppress the panic rising within him. He took a deep breath and waved for everyone to leave the room.
Once they were alone, Racios turned back to Thor.
“Business, Sir Thor Dresrosa? This is not how business is usually conducted,” he said, his voice low and cold, a dangerous glint in his eyes.
“No, no, you misunderstand, Racios,” Thor responded. “I did say I’m here to discuss business. For example, I’d be interested in purchasing five hundred pounds of a certain item.”