Gold and Goodies

Smirking, Alice knew the upper-hand that she held, and she delighted in tormenting the young man, slowly tilting her head as though deep in thought, seeing if she could draw out any semblance of impatience from the overseer. She knew how negotiations worked, and that he was making a mistake by allowing her to anchor the initial offer. Was he underestimating her, or had he simply gotten excited at the prospect of another promotion? It didn't matter, as long as it served her purposes. Drumming her fingers on the table, she counted down the seconds as she could see Roger slowly sweat, as though slowly realizing that her first offer is going to be anything but reasonable.

"5000 gold," the princess said sweetly, giving him a bright smile. A stark contrast to the pale sheet of ice that Roger had become. An outrageous sum, more than a year's worth of revenue for even the capital branch of the merchant's guild. It was not a price they could afford, not even for something like this, and Alice knew it. In truth, she would be surprised if she could pry more than 1500 from their greedy hands, but gold wasn't actually her motivation here. Gold was useful, but the merchants guild could provide her with something much more valuable, something they alone could offer her. After all, gold may be useful, but it was also ubiquitous, and she could earn it anywhere. She'd rather use this once in a lifetime opportunity for something else.

"Apologies, your highness, but such a sum is beyond what we could afford," Roger replied truthfully. While he could probably scrounge that much in liquid currency if he had to, expensing such an absurd amount would probably bankrupt the operations here within the city, as they would no longer have the capital to sustain any sort of business expenses. It would be tantamount to suicide. "We are hard-pressed for coin in this market downturn, perhaps you might be willing to lower your price? To 700 gold?"

"Do you take me for a fool?" Alice asked, feigning indigitation, placing her hands on her mouth in a practiced act of seeming scandalized. "I assure you sir, I know the value of this information, and I refuse to part with it for anything under 4000."

"Indeed, but it stands, you may very well be walking away with nothing," Roger argued, and Alice had to admit he was doing decent, especially considering she didn't actually care about these negotiations at all and therefore can be as ridiculous as she liked with her demands. "1000 gold is a hefty sum, as much as we would normally loan with a high interest rate. Is that not to your liking?"

Pretending to think for a moment, Alice shook her head. "Very well, I can see very clearly that you and your guild lack the funds to satisfy me. Fortunately, I have one final offer to you, one that hinges on a different request of mine," she says, and she can tell that Roger was immediately interested. Favors that didn't cost money were a merchant's best friend, after all. "I wish to have access to the special deals that you offer to your best customers... You know the one. If you allow for that, I shall accept an offer of 2000 gold."

Roger narrows his eyes, no doubting wondering how she even heard of the guild's illegal sales. When enough gold was offered, the guild could find anything. Though Alice herself has only heard rumors, she knows enough to understand that the arcane artifacts and mysterious weapons they hold were enough to topple a whole kingdom if they wanted to. Everything from dragon eggs to miracle elixirs, and everything else in between. Of course, they would only offer to the customers that they trusted, to ensure that no one spills the beans. And now, it seems, Alice would be counted among them.

"Fine," Roger says after a moment of thought. Rising to his feet, he shakes her hand firmly, sealing the deal by writing and signing to notes. One, a bank note giving her permission to withdraw the aforementioned gold, and the second allowing her to access the vaults of the guild. "Needless to say, don't-"

"Mention it to anyone? Hah! Do you take me for a fool Roger?" Alice interrupts with a sharp laugh. "No, your secrets will remain with me, as long as our alliance is beneficial. Good day to you then, good sir."