The Deal is Made

"ten times?!"

Sejuani stared in astonishment at Heron, who had come to deliver the good news, and blinked her big eyes.

But she didn't really understand the meaning behind it, because she didn't know how much grain a piece of cold iron could be exchanged for.

"A piece of cold iron ore weighing fifty catties can be exchanged for the same weight of grain. And a piece of ore this size, after deducting the loss and refining during smelting, can at most be forged into a halberd. That is to say, a halberd can be exchanged for five hundred catties of grain. If meat or other food is needed, it can also be exchanged according to their market price."

This price is actually not high. It's not that ten times the price is not high, but that fifty catties of raw stones can only be exchanged for the same weight of grain.

This would be no different from robbery anywhere else, but in Freljord, it's perfectly reasonable.

The Freljordians were truly starving, and since cold iron ore was inedible, being able to exchange it for an equal weight of food was already a tremendous blessing.

"The agreement I made with the Noxians is that we need to deliver one hundred halberds to them this month, and they will send half of that as a deposit a few days later. If the feedback from them is good each month thereafter, they might expand their cooperation with us..."

"One hundred...one hundred fifty-pound bundles, that's more than enough for our tribe's consumption for a month!"

The Winter's Claws consist of several hundred men. Sejuani roughly calculated that the food obtained from exchanging a hundred halberds would be enough to cover their expenses for a month, even if the Winter's Claws did nothing, such as hunting or fishing.

Even considering the soldiers' large appetites, it was enough.

And such transactions happen every month... Including the daily hunting earnings, they are even able to save up surplus food, or have the resources to expand the size of the tribe.

What kind of life would I dare to dream of?

Sejuani's face flushed red with excitement. She lunged at Harren, hugged him tightly, and planted a big kiss on his cheek.

Sejuani's kiss wasn't tender; it was rather fierce. Heron felt as if he'd been gored by a wild boar, as if half his face was about to be bitten off.

Harren pushed Sejuani away with difficulty, wiped the drool off his face, and looked at Udyr, who was pretending not to have seen anything, with some embarrassment.

However, when Udyr saw Heron looking over, his eyes darted around for a long time before he stammered out a sentence.

"Um...can I...can I kiss you too?"

"..."

Herren coughed lightly, temporarily forgetting what had just happened, and explained with a stern face.

"Alright, Sejuani, don't get too excited. Even so, we're still at a loss. Just keep your sullen face in front of the Noxians... And Udyr."

Herren looked at Udyr.

"You still need to arrange the hunting personnel every day, and try to be self-sufficient. We will have a great use for the first batch of food... Once the deposit arrives, you should contact other tribes and buy their ore. The price doesn't need to be too high, but it must be higher than that of the Noxians."

Harren's goal was clear: he wanted Winter's Claw to become a trading hub, where Winter's Claw would exchange weapons for Noxian food, and then use that food to trade for raw materials from various tribes.

Of course, the Noxians will also notice this process, and they can try to buy raw materials at higher prices to prevent the various tribes from being gradually won over by the Winter's Claw.

The reason for continuing to hunt and maintain self-sufficiency is also for this purpose. Heron is also prepared to overturn the table. He might as well stop doing business with you Noxians. Anyway, we won't starve even if we tighten our belts. You can suffer the loss yourselves.

……

……

The Noxians left Winter's Claw satisfied, and the next day, Jessica delivered the so-called "deposit".

Herren deliberately kept Jessica behind, ostensibly to entertain a friend.

But Heron did have plans, because a new standard armor was about to be developed.

Forged: Watcher's Armor

[This plate breastplate, forged from a single piece of cold iron, requires other armor to complement it, but it is itself a top-tier item among mortals—capable of blocking physical attacks to a certain extent, but with very limited resistance to magic.]

[Obtain Golden Armor Fragment]

[Master Forger: Forge Ten Different Pieces of Equipment 10/10]

[Master-level skill! When you want to enhance a piece of equipment, there's no need to start from scratch. Just follow your intuition, add the ingredients you want, and get started! Let the hammer blow!]

[Received a new mission]

[The Heart of a Master: No longer just a weapon, but a masterpiece that nourishes the people 0/1]

Looking at the newly made armor, Herren tried it on himself; it was a little too big.

Herren hired Ercas as the model this time. Considering his own physique, which is relatively thin compared to the burly warriors, the design of this armor should be reasonable.

However, it was just a plate breastplate; the Noxians had to provide their own lining, helmet, greaves, and chainmail.

Herren also had a clever idea: if they were fed all at once, how could they raise the price later?

As expected, after personally experiencing the performance of the Watcher's Armor, Jessica was extremely satisfied and finalized the deal on the spot.

After removing her Watcher armor, Jessica chatted with Herren as if they were old acquaintances.

"I have already sent the sample of the cross-shaped halberd back to China. I should get a reply in a few days... Don't worry, I believe that anyone with a discerning eye will not refuse such a weapon. Perhaps we will expand our business next month."

Jessica said, half-jokingly.

"I wonder if your furnaces and furnace operators can fill our stomachs."

"This is indeed a challenge, so we plan to source raw materials from other tribes and recruit furnace operators. Hopefully, this won't affect your business."

Heron knew that their little tricks would not escape the eyes of the Noxians, so he simply put them out in the open.

Jessica visibly frowned, but quickly relaxed.

"That's only natural. Since we have finished weapons and equipment, we don't need to buy raw materials. I should thank you for saving us trouble."

The two exchanged a knowing smile, and unknowingly reached a certain understanding.

"Then, I will send the first batch of weapons and armor to your trading post as soon as possible. I will personally go there. You'd better prepare the best wine of your Noxian people, so that it doesn't get outdone by my homemade wine."

"Ha! You've really stumped me... If I want to come up with something even more delicious than your wine, I'll have to really go all out and bring out my best stuff."

Herren immediately noticed the key elements.

"Um... well, in that case, do you buy Winter's Claw traditional aged wine?"

"..."

Didn't you just say it was homemade? How did it become a traditional aged wine?

"Well... let's talk about this in more detail after you visit us."

Although Herren was somewhat shrewd and mercenary in comparison, Jessica didn't dislike dealing with him, compared to that eccentric war mother...

She was incredibly unpredictable, always with a dark expression... Having witnessed Sejuani's power, Jessica always felt a chill run down her spine.