"Renting skills? This isn't what I can agree to. You should realise I have plans to get into a middle-tier sect after the tournament ends. All I can offer is my humble cooperation, otherwise, it would be unfair to count on you with my troubles if I already planned to leave this place altogether!"

To make any real business with a serious merchant, honesty is the strongest tool one can use. Trying to trick the other party, using half-truths and other manipulative tricks can do wonders in the short term, but only mutual satisfaction can bring the desired results in the long term. If I were to make her back me up and the suddenly leave the city, I'm sure that my life in the sect we would get into would be soon interrupted!

"So you plan to advance as well… What about this then. If I will be satisfied with the results of your work, I might secure a spot for you two in the sect that I have rather good ties with. While they might not be the best out there, you won't need to worry about the lack of any resources as long as our cooperation will be profitable for me. Not only would that make your life far easier in a rather good sect, but you guys would also be free from all the struggle that newcomers always have to go through!"

Who could've thought that my honesty would rack me such results in such a short time! Our sole objective in coming to this place was to enter a higher-tiered sect that would allow us to keep growing, the way in which we would secure our spot didn't matter at all!

"While your words are certainly tempting until I prove my worth to you, we won't drop vague terms. I can't expect you to reveal your hand with nothing but words from our side!"

Only our current equipment could be used to convince Venna of my abilities, but it was far too great to just reveal it. Considering how much worth did those people put in a 'noob's smasher', even revealing them the prowess of 'Utopy' would very well end up in her simply comprehending us and forcing into slave labour! Unless I wanted to bind my future blindly to this power I knew honestly nothing about, I had to tread carefully!

"You are certainly right!"

Laughing out loud, Venna couldn't hold herself from showing a sympathetic smile. My direct and straightforward approach must have been a pleasant novelty for her. In the end, merchants had to operate in a really elusive manner if they wanted to maximise their profits. Putting all the bits on the table right away allowed her to experience the long lost art of fair and easy cooperation!

"Where can I expect the first sample to be delivered then? While I don't have any proof you are not lying, I will make this leap of faith and rent you both the smithy and the materials to craft something that won't disappoint me. As to what will you create, it's entirely up to you. Is that okay with you?"

Setting the whole talk to be simple and straightforward paid off with her really generous offer. While renting the smithy wasn't something hard or expensive, providing the materials for crafting was a whole different thing. But what can I expect from an expert whose strength I can't even gauge? While she called it a leap of faith, I'm perfectly conscious of the fact that if I dare to cross her expectations, I will be as good as dead!

"I need some time to think this matter through and obviously, ask my dear fiancee for her opinion on it. Also, the tournament is just around the corner, so I expect the next two weeks to be rather busy… What would you say for three days from now? And since you need to be sure I was the one to craft something, would you mind giving me some sort of detail that I could include in my creation? This way no one would claim that I simply bought it for the sake of sneaking into your favours."

While I'm trying to ensure the worth of my craft in the future negotiations, this kind of arguments is often used in trade manipulations. As long as someone manages to direct his opponent on a particular way of thinking with the guarantees, he would gain a lot more leeway in doing shady things somewhere else. With that not being my intention at all, if Venna will be vary of this aspect, she will waste a lot of effort looking into useless things and will be even more surprised when the final effect will come into view!

"Three days? Are you certain this long is enough?"

Ugh. My bad here. Without proper knowledge how long others would take to craft things, I just gave the timing that would allow me to comfortably make the sword and still added another day on top of it! I guess I need to be honest again!

"I will plainly say the truth. My way of crafting is certainly unorthodox, so I don't know how long others would take to finish their products. Three days is certainly enough for me, but if something will happen to make my smithing slow down, I will be sure to inform you. After all, if something outside of my predictions happens, I might be unable to even start crafting in the first place! If such a case arises, I will have to rely on your help!"

"You sure know how to place your bets…"

With this unfinished sentence, Venna grabbed one blank piece of paper from her table and jotted down a few words on it. When she was done, she simply rubbed one of her rings with her thumb and pressed it on top of the letter.

"Bring it to the receptionist and show the golden card that I gave you to retrieve the stones. Until you convince me it's worth to invest in you, I will have to ask for you to pay with the money you received from the auction!"

With everything said and done, we bid our farewells and left for the main arena of the building. After exchanging most of our money for the stones, I made sure that the number of the wares we bough was correct, packed them back into my storage ring and left the building to go back to our place. With only a few hours left before the opening ceremony of the tournament, I still wanted to get some rest and have a calm talk with Eve!