Chapter 30: Booming Business (Part 2)

Time passed quickly, and within just over ten days, Donald, who had been visiting the Mage Guild Hall in Giant Rock City every other day, had already copied down nearly one-fifth of the books in its library.
Although the library seemed to contain a large number of books, there were only a few hundred in total—far fewer than the thousands reported to exist in the mage tower of the Royal Capital Mage Association.
“At this rate, it should take me about three to five months to copy all the books here. At the beginning of this month, I also prepared fifty bottles of Moonlight Wine, which I should deliver to the mages at the guild hall! Another two thousand gold sols in hand! Hehe…”
Donald calculated in his mind as he set off, carrying the Moonlight Wine made from the wine purchased by his butler over the past half month.
In silence, they arrived at the entrance of the guild hall. Donald got out of the carriage and ordered the driver to park it outside, then entered the hall and summoned three servants to carefully unload the goods and bring them inside.
During this time, Donald noticed that there were many more people around the guild hall than usual. After a discreet glance around, he found that the shoppers, noble servants, and shop assistants all seemed normal, but it was precisely this normality that made him feel uneasy, as if their presence had been arranged in advance.
“Wait! Arranged in advance?”
Donald quickly understood why he felt something was off. These people must be spies or informants sent here by certain forces. As for their target, it was obvious.
Just by observing their movements, which all centered around the mage guild hall, it was clear they were here for him.
Selt’s most profitable export product was its top-quality wine. Although other goods like furs and timber were also exported in large quantities, their profits paled in comparison to those of luxury items like wine.
Currently, Selt had only two brands that could match the quality of premium wine, both of which were in the hands of the royal family and major nobles. The emergence of a new wine with a flavor comparable to these two would surely attract attention, especially from those noble factions eager to seize the profits.
Donald had anticipated that he would soon attract the attention of various powerful forces after introducing Moonlight Wine. He didn’t expect them to find out so quickly even before he released it officially.
But better to have their attention anyway. Donald had planned to build a reputation for Moonlight Wine anyway, so having it gain attention without any effort saved him a lot of trouble!

So Donald didn’t intend to hide it either and brought in four wine barrels straight to the guild hall. This time, he didn’t use crystal bottles for pouring—the process was troublesome, and the number of such bottles was limited. Last time, butler Kord had already purchased all the scattered wine bottles from merchants in Castle of Giants and Maple Town. Crystal bottles were originally a luxury item of lower value, used mostly by nobles and mages—the former for storing spices and fine wines, the latter for holding potions and materials. Commoners mostly used wooden barrels and clay jars to store liquids. Alchemy in this world could be used to create crystals, but the cost was too high, preventing them from becoming as widespread as glass in his previous life. Only mages or alchemists in financial distress would craft crystal items to sell for funds.

So this time, Donald simply brought four barrels of Moonlight Wine, half red and half white, in amounts roughly equivalent to those in the bottled version last time. He sold them to the guild hall at 500 gold sols per barrel, totaling 2,000 gold sols for four barrels—same as 50 bottles before.

The mages then distributed them as they saw fit, and the payment soon reached Donald’s hands.

After completing the transaction, Donald approached Madri, the mage in charge of managing the guild hall’s public materials warehouse. This middle-aged mage was a second-level mage who originally came from a merchant background but lacked great magical talent. Realizing he wouldn’t be able to advance to the next level before old age, he turned back to his original profession. Relying on his merchant skills, he acted as the guild hall’s representative to do business with external merchants and nobles, collecting resources and materials for the mages. He sold the small gadgets created by the mages during their apprenticeship or the failed experiments from regular tests to merchants and nobles at a suitable price, earning a large amount of materials and gold sols to support the research and training of many mages. This was also the source of the guild hall’s public wealth. Once just a place for gatherings and exchanges, it had now become a permanent base for mages.

Donald greatly admired this merchant mage, Madri, and spoke his purpose directly. “Master Madri, I have a business deal to propose to the guild hall!”

“I’m not worthy of such a title. Please call me Mage Madri, and I’ll call you Mage Donald!”

Madri didn’t dare to show off his seniority in front of this talented young noble mage. Not only was he now a full-fledged mage, but even during his apprenticeship, he had been able to defeat Snow Mage, who was at the peak of black iron rank. He couldn’t afford to neglect him. After all, the system in this world still valued the strong.

Donald expressed understanding of Madri’s attitude and shared his plan.
“Well then! Mage Madri, I have an idea. These days, I’ve been working on increasing the production of the Moonlight series of wines. So, aside from supplying them to the mages here, there are about twenty bottles left. I think if you sell these wines on behalf of the guild to the outside world, we can use them to exchange for materials needed by other mages, and it will also save me from being harassed once word gets out. What do you think of this idea?”
Madri, being a businessman by background, understood immediately and said excitedly, “Mage Donald is truly a genius! Even if you became a merchant, you would surely become the richest merchant in the kingdom. You don’t know—these days, nobles and merchants keep coming to the guild to inquire about the Moonlight wine. Of course, we mages haven’t revealed your name.”
“Those people, not getting any reply, became even more interested. Some even offered three hundred gold sols per bottle. But as you know, mages won’t sell items they value just for money, so their offers were firmly rejected. When those nobles went back and talked about it, it sparked a lot of discussion, and nobles and merchants became even more eager for your Moonlight wine!”
After hearing this, Donald said, “Three hundred gold sols is ten times the cost, but if we’re to sell the Moonlight wine, we can’t charge that much. Here’s what I propose: I’ll sell it to the guild for forty gold sols, while the guild can sell it to the outside world for fifty gold sols. That way, we can make ten gold sols per bottle. Twenty bottles a month would yield two hundred gold sols. Production might increase in the future—this is a profit-making venture for the guild with no real cost!”
Mage Madri was extremely excited upon hearing this, but then he thought of Donald’s situation and said, “Mage Donald, by selling the wine to the guild at a low price despite the high cost, and giving up the opportunity to sell it externally, won’t you lose hundreds of gold sols per month?”
Donald smiled and said, “Compared to the help the guild and the mages have given me, this is nothing. Consider it my contribution to the guild! I can’t just use their resources for free without doing anything in return.”
Madri was filled with admiration and immediately said, “I’ll convey your idea to Master Messeur and the other mages right away. I’m sure all the mages in the guild will appreciate your contribution!”

“In that case, I’ll send someone to deliver the wine to the mage hall early tomorrow. I’ll ask Mage Madri to make extra preparations today!”
Madri patted his chest and assured, “Don’t worry! Though those nobles and merchants are quite powerful, no one dares to cause trouble at the mage hall!”
After bidding farewell to Madri, Donald continued to work in the library, dedicating himself to copying books.
A few hours later, all factions in Stone City received news from the mage hall.
Due to the previous tensions caused by the Moonlight Wine, spies from various factions had been instructed to wait near the mage hall, noting down the appearance of any mages bringing goods.
However, before they could deduce the identity of the owner of the Moonlight Wine based on the spies’ reports, they were caught off guard by a public announcement from Mage Madri.
The mage hall was going to sell the Moonlight Wine openly, which meant the mage who had created this miraculous drink would be under the collective protection of the mages in the North County. Anyone who tried to harm that mage would be at war with all the mages in the North County.
This news was good news for merchants who simply wanted access to the supply and sales rights, but it posed a challenge for those who aimed to seize the formula for the Moonlight Wine and reap its enormous profits for themselves.
At the best inn in Stone City, the luxurious complex reserved for nobles where Donald had once stayed, a handsome man dressed as a noble said to a man in black kneeling below him, “We must get our hands on this Moonlight Wine.”
“But what about the lord of Stone City…” the man in black asked hesitantly.
“Don’t worry about Macbeth. He’s just a local tyrant who can’t even control his own family. Though he’s nominally the governor of the North County, within Stone City itself, he can only control the viscounties and affiliated territories. Nearby is Baron Redmaple’s domain, and further away are Bloodstone Fortress and Shining Gold Town—places he has no access to. The mages here are the real challenge!”
“If necessary, we can withdraw from our long-established stronghold in Stone City. As long as we can obtain the ingredients and formula for making this fine wine, it’s all worth it.”
The noble man said confidently, then changed his tone.

“The only thing to consider is the will of the Celt royal family. Such fine wine can bring immense wealth to Goldthorn, and it’s also the best tool for them to open doors to the nations across the continent. If we arrive too late, their king likely won’t allow much of it to fall outside the royal control! Once you’ve completed this task, you can withdraw and return to your country. Your achievements are enough to earn you a hereditary title and lands, making you a true noble who can enjoy the rest of your life!”
The nobleman’s tone carried an inexplicable allure. The man in black replied in a hushed, excited voice before quietly leaving the room. Yet he didn’t see the hint of mocking smile on the nobleman’s lips.
After confirming the man in black had left, the nobleman chuckled lightly, “Achievements! Those are all mine. As spies for the kingdom, you know too much, and few of you get to see a good ending!”
At the same time, similar conversations were taking place in several secret locations across Stonehold.
In a heavily guarded courtyard behind Goldthorn Auction House, an energetic old man stared at a stack of intelligence in his hands and murmured to himself, “The cost is lower than that of alchemical potions. It doesn’t matter if the effect is weak—what’s important is that the output is hundreds of times higher, and the taste can rival top-quality wine. This Moonlight Wine is truly remarkable. The profits from it are enough to support a full-fledged knight order in a kingdom. The old man who received my message last time was very interested; this time, he’ll surely send a special envoy!”
With a hint of mockery on his lips, he added, “It’s laughable that those guys still want the formula. Don’t they realize who the target is? Not to mention his status as a hereditary knight, he’s also the most promising talent in the North County to become a Silver Mage, as well as a rare summoner skilled at overcoming odds. Not only in the North County, but even the powerful elders of the kingdom’s Mage Association would likely protect this kid. Moreover, his own strength is already on par with that of a Bronze-tier professional. If anyone dares to act rashly, they’ll likely be wiped out by those enraged high-level mages, leaving it to be seen how many of those ‘fish in troubled waters’ will survive.”
He sighed again after saying that.

“I’m old and won’t live many more years, but my children at home are at a critical stage of growth. I need to secure some shares before orders come from the capital and build up enough capital. Otherwise, as my health deteriorates day by day, I might pass away at any time. If those two boys fight over that position, it will lead to chaos. If I can’t take a proper stance then, it will mean destruction. Andrew is ruthless; once he comes to power, he’ll surely eliminate all rivals. I’d better prepare an exit route for little Duri in advance!”