The next few days, I spent them lounging about with Sophie. I helped train her a bit in magic and gave her some ideas on what she can do with spatial magic. Like inscribing runes into items to make them into storage devices. If she were to sell such things, she could make a pretty penny for herself. Of course, this would need Adel's help as well to make sure she was protected and did not get scammed.
But today was a day that I decided to do something about my own money situation. I still had some gold and could live off it, if I so wished, for quite a while, but it was not enough! So right now, Sophie and I were both on the streets of the capital heading to a blacksmith that Sei told me about.
It was said to be the best blacksmith in town when it came to intricate items. He was a one hundred percent dwarf! I was actually quite excited to finally meet a staple fantasy character. I know I am a dragon, and I know I have a fox girl sitting next to me, but dwarves and elves were different! They were like the cream of the crop when it came to fantasy.
We did not walk today. Sei was nice enough to get us a carriage as the place we were heading to was very far away. The carriage was not as fancy as Adel's carriage, but it was still quite nice. It had two large, scaled horses pulling it, and no one dared to stand in their way. Their hoofs alone were enough to squash me!
As we made our way down the streets of the capital, I rested my head on the window and watched the passerby as they did their thing. It was strange being able to ride around the city after all the walking I did the past few days, but to get to this blacksmith, it would have taken almost all day by foot.
The trip was rather pleasant without anything really interesting happening. Little Bell did dance around while looking out of the window just as she did when she was in Adel's carriage. She seemed to really like carriages. I guess I should get one when I am rich.
The place we pulled up to look like a run down shack. But as someone who is well read and had read of many situations like this in novels, I knew never to look down on the building. Normally the masters of their trade would always have such places. Little Bell did get scared and turned into a ray of light and shot into my body. I was still getting used to this. Sophie held onto my arm and seemed slightly afraid as well. But to be honest, I had no idea what there was to be afraid of. I mean, it's just a run down smithy with a loud, angry voice yelling from the inside about how it was just not working.
"Why the hell is it not working! I could have sworn I forged the piece correctly." Hearing the gruff voice coming from inside, I became curious as to what he was trying to make that would cause him to be so angry. With a fox girl at my side, I walked into the blacksmith to finally meet Thurul.
"Excuse me!" I yelled loudly because I felt that if I didn't, I would probably be here all day waiting for the man to come out.
"Ahhh! Pull my beard out, why don't ya! Why did you have to yell so loud!?" Oops. It seems Thurul has good hearing. But looking at him now, I couldn't help but nod at the stereotypical dwarf in front of me. He was short and stout and had muscular arms. His long red beard almost reached his stomach, and he looked quite jolly at first glance if you did not look at the eyes filled with a bit of anger. "Well, speak up, why are you yelling at the entrance of my shop?"
I scratched my head feeling slightly embarrassed as I answered: "I heard you yelling from outside and figured you might be hammering away inside, so I did not know if you could hear me. Sorry for yelling. My name is Faith. I came here to talk to you about a job that will need a bit of fine tune crafting."
"Hmmm? Not bad for a young'en. Normally you all run around wild, not caring about how you talk to your elders. It's good that you came. I really needed a break." Thurul seemed to be a down to earth guy. Even Sophie relaxed a bit and let go of my arm.
"Do you have a place we can talk? The item I want to make needs to be kind of kept secret." I hoped he did have a quiet place. Because if I started talking details or someone saw my blueprint, they would definitely take my idea!
"Sure thing, follow me." Thurul did not make things hard as he nodded and took us to a side room. As soon as I stepped through the door, I could feel myself passing through a strong barrier. And I mean something I have no idea how to make. I once again realized how small my world is compared to the actual world around me.
The room, unlike the rest of the shop, was well kept and had two couches facing each other with a table in between. The walls were painted a light yellow with white trim. And the couches were both light blue, while the table seemed to be made out of some kind of expensive wood. Thurul even walked over to a tea station and made tea after having us sit down. When it was ready, he walked over and poured a cup for both Sophie and I before sitting down himself. "So what kind of item would you like me to make you, little lady?"
"Before I show you anything, and I know this may be rude, but I need to know that I have your word to never tell anyone what I am about to show you." I gave Thurul a deep look. One thing I loved about this world was one usually always kept their word, allowing those who swear on something to never break their promises.
"No worries, little lady. I have never spoken about anything I have ever crafted to anyone that is wished to be kept secret. So you have my word on this." Thurul did not seem offended, which allowed me to breathe a sigh of relief.
"Then please take a look at these." I set out two blueprints. One was for the ballpoint pen the other was for the cast to make it. As long as there were casts, things could easily be quickly made. I could then buy some metal and make them all myself using my dragon fire to metal the ore.
"Hmmm…." Thurul looked at the design, and it seemed he could not make heads or tails of it. "Little Lady, do you mind if I ask what this is?"
"I call it a ballpoint pen. You see, the ball goes inside the tube here, and when you press down on it, it will allow ink to slowly flow out as you write."
"This! Hahaha! Little lady, I think you will be making a killing if you sell these things. And you even drew up a cast for it. So I am guessing you are looking to mass produce them, right?" Thurul was straight to the point.
"Yes, I was planning to do so." I answered. I mean, no sense in lying.
"Then let's make a deal, little lady. I just so happened to be needing more money for my research. Until you make enough to get your own little factory set up, how about you give me one percent of your sales per month, and I will supply the ore and will mass produce them for you?" Oh? It seems Thurul wants to become a business partner. I sat back and thought for a moment and nodded my head. This was not a bad idea. If it's only one percent, that would be nothing. But I do feel it is a bit too low since he will be supplying the materials.
"Let's do ten percent. If you are supplying materials, the amount you get in return should be a bit more than what you are spending. But we need to make a magic contract as well. This way, everything is set in stone." Of course, business tycoon skill was now in play. Always get a contract no matter what. And also, always make sure that your partner is not getting screwed. Because if they pull out, you might go under yourself. Never burn your bridges.
"Ten percent…. Alright, now that I think about it, that does seem fairer. The materials would end up costing more in the long run." Thurul nodded his head. He gave me an approving look. I guess he was happy that I was not trying to screw him.
As I was thinking about the sales of these pens, another thought idea came to mind. "Then let's talk about variations as well…."
