The next day, more than ten merchants came looking for Patrick.
By the day after that, including those from the first day, over twenty people had gathered.
While they marveled at the other monster materials, they were absolutely stunned by the Saber Tiger pelt. To see a pelt from a Saber Tiger of this size, preserved in such top-tier quality, was a once-in-a-lifetime event.
How could they call themselves merchants if they let an opportunity like this slip away?
"Young Master, please, reconsider."
"If you go to the capital and sell it yourself, you might get more money. But think of the transport time and the necessary expenses to get there."
"You will absolutely not regret it. Please, trust me."
Under the merchants' persistent badgering, Patrick appeared to be gradually wavering.
"Hmm, can you really give me a better price than I'd get in the capital?"
"Yes! Of course!"
"Then I suppose it can't be helped. I shall sell the goods to you all."
"Oh...! A truly wise decision."
"In that case, our merchant group will—"
"No, I can offer a better price!"
"What are you talking about? You don't even have the funds. Step back!"
"What did you say?!"
The moment Patrick announced he would sell, a fierce battle erupted among the merchants.
Watching them, Patrick spoke up.
"There is an old saying."
"..."
Patrick flashed a grin at the merchants, who were now hanging on his every word.
"Encourage a deal, and encourage a fight."
"..."
"..."
No. That wasn't it.
Leaving the silenced merchants behind, Patrick continued.
"Anyone who wishes to purchase, gather at this inn within the hour with all the available cash you have on hand."
"What are you planning to do, Young Master?"
"I'm starting an auction."
"An... auction, you say?"
"Yes. That's the most fair way, isn't it?"
It certainly was.
When there were many buyers compared to one seller, it was only right that the person offering the best price took the prize.
However, if they did it that way...
'There's no telling how high the price will go.'
'I might end up having to buy it for much more than I originally thought.'
'I don't even have that much cash available right now...'
One of the merchants spoke to Patrick.
"Young Master. If that is the case, could you give us a few days? We are short on cash at this very moment."
"No. If I have to wait, I'd rather just fix the carriage and leave for the capital."
"Young Master, if you give us more time, we can prepare more cash. Then the price of the goods will also—"
"I don't need it. The auction starts in one hour."
"..."
Patrick flatly rejected the merchant's proposal.
The naive young master who had been listening with keen interest to their temptations just moments ago was gone. Patrick spoke with a firm, consistent expression that made him look like a professional gambler at a high-stakes table.
"One hour from now. This location. The condition is a bulk purchase of all the monster materials we have, and I will only accept cash. There will be no further compromise."
At those words, the merchants' faces crumpled.
'Damn it, this brat...'
'Could it be that we've been played? By a kid like this?'
'Blast it, this is bad.'
The merchants realized it the moment Patrick's attitude shifted.
It wasn't that they had seduced the boy into a deal. It was quite possible that they had walked into a spider's web of their own accord—and so deep that they couldn't pull their feet out anymore.
Patrick inwardly sneered at the merchants' souring expressions.
'Asking for time to prepare cash? You're just looking for a chance to collude on the price.'
Patrick easily predicted what they were trying to do. If he gave them enough time before the auction, the merchants would surely band together to fix the prices. There would be no problem for them to fleece an outsider like Patrick.
But if it was only an hour, the story changed. No matter how hard they tried, it was impossible to coordinate a price-fixing scheme in an hour. Now, it had to be a pure competition.
Patrick told the merchants, "I'll see you in an hour then. If you don't show up, I'll assume you've given up."
As they watched Patrick turn his back as if there was nothing more to say, the merchants realized it for certain. They had been completely outmaneuvered by the child they had dismissed as a naive young master.
*
One hour later.
Despite being a hastily arranged auction, the number of participants had actually increased.
Merchants who had previously stayed on the sidelines, merely testing the waters without approaching Patrick, joined in, all aiming for the Saber Tiger pelt. Naturally, the atmosphere grew heated, and the price rose along with the tension.
"70 gold!"
"72 gold!"
"75 gold!!"
The merchants scrambled to raise the price, and Patrick, presiding over the auction, said with a smile, "75 gold. Do I hear anything higher than 75 gold?"
"75 gold and 50 silver!"
"My apologies. Price increases are accepted in gold units only."
"Ugh... 76 gold!"
76 gold. It was an amount that exceeded the entire annual budget of the Schneider Barony.
And the price didn't stop there; it kept climbing.
"77 gold!"
"80 gold!"
"Everyone get lost! 85 gold!"
One merchant raised the price significantly and glared around with bloodshot eyes.
Try raising it more, you bastards!
Faced with that gaze full of intimidation, the other merchants swallowed their sighs of regret.
'Seeing how he's intimidating the surrounding merchants, he must be someone with considerable influence. Is this the limit?'
It was a bit disappointing, but it was a satisfactory amount. Just as Patrick was about to close the bid, deciding to be content lest he get greedy and choke...
"90 gold!"
Another merchant, who had arrived late to the auction, shouted loudly, raising the price.
The merchant who had bid 85 gold frowned and spat, "Joshua! How the hell are you here...?"
"Is there somewhere I'm not allowed to go, Taylor?"
The gaze the two merchants exchanged was filled with hostility that went beyond mere rivalry.
Seeing this, the corners of Patrick's mouth curled up.
'Is this... that? The exact situation I was hoping for?'
The merchant called Taylor spoke.
"95 gold!"
"100 gold!"
"You crazy bastard?!"
"What? Why? What are you going to do about it?"
Seeing the merchant named Joshua immediately counter the price, Taylor ground his teeth.
"Do you really think you can make a proper profit buying at that price? No matter how high-quality it is, it's useless if you don't have a sales route."
"For petty merchants like you, perhaps. Our Wilder Merchant Group has connections with nobles in other kingdoms. For an item this rare, we can make plenty of profit. No, we can gain something even more valuable than profit."
'Yes, yes, exactly. That's a very desirable mindset.'
He likely intended to sell the item at a low price to a foreign noble or give it as a gift to build a connection. This was why the value of rare items skyrocketed. If one considered long-term benefits rather than immediate gain, the uses became far more diverse.
'And thanks to that, I'm making money too.'
Patrick looked at Taylor with great anticipation.
Come on, you have to bid too, right?
A man's got his pride; you can't back down now, can you?
'Bid~♪ Bid~♪ The money is growing. Up, up, up~♪ Up, up, up~♪'
Unfortunately, it seemed Taylor's financial power had reached its limit.
"Just you wait, Wilder."
"Get lost, loser."
Taylor stood up indignantly and stormed out, while Wilder wore a triumphant smile of victory.
The two likely had bad blood between them for a long time. Wilder, who had come with the intention of making a profit while simultaneously sticking it to his rival, had snatched the victory.
To Patrick, it didn't matter who won. However, from the moment he planned the auction, he had hoped that if he played it right, their pride would catch fire, the competition would overheat, and he would make more money.
And his plan had hit the mark.
"Sold! I declare the participant from the Wilder Merchant Group the winner at 100 gold!"
Patrick then hammered the table with a wooden mallet he had found somewhere.
100 gold.
In just three days, Patrick had earned a fortune that far exceeded the annual operating budget of the Schneider territory.
*
"My god..."
"Is all of that really money?"
"Whoa... I've never seen that many gold coins in my life."
The workers were dazed as they stared at the pile of gold coins stacked in front of Patrick. When else would they see such a sight in their lives?
That mountain of gold coins, and...
"Ehehehe. Money. Money! Shiny, shiny gold money~♪ It shines so beautifully~♪ Khe-hehehehe!"
...and a ten-year-old noble young master losing his mind in front of the money so blatantly. That was another sight they were unlikely to see again.
Regardless, it was a massive success. Originally, the expected profit from this trade expedition was around 30 gold. Even that was a staggering amount for the Schneider Barony. With that money, they could have bought farming tools and daily necessities for the residents, and stockpiled food to ensure everyone had a warm winter.
But Patrick had raked in more than three times the initial estimate. And in the short span of just three days.
What if they had proceeded normally? First, they would have had to find merchants, negotiate prices, and engage in various tugs-of-war, which would have taken over a month. And they certainly wouldn't have received a better price than this.
Patrick's achievement in saving time while simultaneously earning far more money was incredible. It was truly a great feat. However...
'It's amazing. Truly amazing.'
'It is amazing, but...'
'Looking at him like that, well...'
"Uhehehe, it's a money shower! A money shower! It doesn't hurt at all! Ahahaha!"
Watching Patrick throw handfuls of gold coins over his head and let them hit his forehead with joy, they couldn't bring themselves to be impressed. It felt like if they acknowledged his greatness now, they would lose something precious as human beings.
Just then, Patrick spoke to the workers.
"Where did Chandler go?"
"Yes. He said he was going to carry out your orders and stepped away for a moment."
"Really? Then it can't be helped."
Patrick tossed a pouch of money to the workers.
"Good work, everyone. Take that and go have some fun today!"
"Pardon?"
"Things went well, didn't they? Then we should eat, drink, and be merry until we lose our minds."
"..."
That was true. It was true, but was there usually a noble who gave money to low-level workers to go play?
To the bewildered workers, Patrick said with a stern expression, "If you come back before you've spent all that money, you're in trouble. Do you understand?"
"Yes! Young Master!"
"We will follow your orders!"
The expressions of the workers, which had been filled with pity and exasperation, were now overflowing with respect and loyalty.
'Cute little things...'
As expected, no matter where you went in the world, money was king.
Having achieved a grand success in his primary goal of commerce, Patrick spent his time exploring various parts of the Parmas County.
'Hmm, I knew our territory was a backwater, but compared to a big city, it's pretty serious.'
Not only the population and scale, but the city's infrastructure was incomparable. Compared to the Parmas County, calling the Schneider Barony a "backwater" was an understatement. A slum? A beggar's den?
Patrick hadn't truly experienced the level of development in this world until now, but after touring a proper metropolis, he felt he understood the level of civilization.
'The overall standard of living seems higher in this world. Especially the presence of magic makes a huge difference.'
Streetlights that lit up the city at night. Communication tools far more convenient than signal fires or messenger pigeons. Slave brand scrolls used when punishing criminals, and so on.
Because of magic, the civilization of this world was far more advanced than the Central Plains.
'Can't I find a mage somewhere?'
Mages were said to be rare and expensive to hire. But if he could hire one, they would surely be worth the price, so he definitely wanted to recruit one if possible.
While Patrick spent a few days like that, Chandler came to find him.
"Young Master. I have returned after carrying out the mission you ordered."
"Oho, really?"
"Yes. As you instructed, I have found a way to make contact with the Thieves' Guild."