《My Isekai》Chapter 74 - How to buy a shop
Advertisement
With two kids on the way I really need to start a business to create steady work and income for the girls. I want a better life for my family than just subsistence farming. Luckily Pia told me about a shop owner who might be interested in selling his shop in town. Seems like her former shady owner was trying to push him out of business. He managed to hang on by getting into debt, which he is now unable to service.
For this trip Pia is my assistant and guide, but as we approach the shop she hides her face. The shop owner must know her from before if she is worried about her presence influencing my negotiation. I am a bit nervous about this as well as I am fully expecting to be spending the waste majority of my earning on buying the shop. A month's work could easily be spent on this.
As I enter the shop Pia stays behind me with her head lowered. At the counter I see an old man. Clearly in the twilight of his years. The shop itself looks tidy and clean, but there aren't too many items on sale. Lack of capital must be hurting his ability to restock. As I approach the owner I push Pia forward, and introduce myself.
"I have heard from my recently acquired slave that you are thinking of selling the shop." The old man looks weary, but offers to take us to a backroom to discuss. An old lady appears to look after the shop. She must have overheard the conversation. In a small backroom that clearly should double as an office and a storage if he had stock, we are offered some uncomfortable seats. The negotiation starts.
I have a number of skills I could use to push for a better deal with even though the owner is quoting a very steep price I would feel horrible taking advantage of this old man. "That price is a bit too steep for me." The old man explains that the shop is his last asset, and he needs that price to pay off the debts he has acquired. "Do you mind telling me how you go into debt?" Surprisingly the old man tells me the whole story.
Advertisement
"I got into debt after having my business ruined by the shop owner down the road. You should be familiar with him as you have acquired his slave." He looks at Pia, but he harbors no malice towards her. In his eyes she was clearly just a pawn in her previous owners hands. "Yeah, I met him. He is currently being investigated by the guild for scamming hunters." The old man looks up surprised. "That is good news, but too late for me. My debts are with an even more shady character in town."
"Could you tell me more about the terms of the debt?" I am surprised by the willingness of this man to tell me the details of his personal tragedy. Based on the interest terms, I can tell that his lender is clearly taking advantage of the old man. The rates are worse than payday loans, and the terms seems to have changed without warning at least at one point.
"So pretty much all that you would earn from selling the shop would go towards your debt, but even after selling there is no guarantee that he would let the debt be cancelled." The old man looks uncomfortable. He must have known that he is completely at the mercy of this loan shark. There seems to be no protection for people without strong backers like the guild or nobles. Explains why Lawra's father was so keen on forming a connection with the guild through me.
"If you can put me in contact with the loan shark, I will try to take over your debt and give you some good terms from its release. My main purpose is to have a shop selling various things I make like potions, weapons and armor." The old man looks genuinely interested and give me directions to his lender.
After leaving Pia with the shop owner I find myself in a richer part of time outside the crook's house. When I say I am here regarding the old man's debt I am let in. Mindful of the type of character I am dealing with, I make a mental note of every person I pass, using analyze to assess their danger. I am left in a waiting room by the old servant who answered the door.
Advertisement
After waiting long enough to make me impatient I am joined by another slimy character and his two very large bodyguards. Neither would offer much of a challenge in a fight, and seem to be mostly for show. Besides his money dealings this guy seems to be all bark no bite. If he was a genuine shady character he would have hired some better goons.
"I understand you are here about the debt of one of my clients. How can I help you?" I decide to air my grievance of how the old man has been treated without clarifying my connection to the old man. Let him guess and think he has mistreated someone with a connection to the guild. I also highlight how the old man has already paid back his debt in the interest he has paid.
"I am surprised that a strong hunter like yourself is able to understand such complex calculations." Am I supposed to take that as a compliment or an insult. The lender is clearly becoming more defensive. No reason to point out that the math he is referring to as complex is basic high school math as far as I am concerned. Instead I apply every intimidation skill I have and make it clear that I am walking out with the old man's debt papers and that he will not have any further dealings with the old man again as he is under my protection.
As I leave the house with the old mans paperwork, I wonder if I will get in trouble with the guild for this. Without paying a thing I took over the old man's debt, and considering how scared that lender was he is likely to stay far away from me. His bodyguards didn't fare much better.
Back at the shop I show the papers to the old man. He offers me the shop, but politely asks for some concessions. I explain that so far this hasn't cost me anything, and it feels wrong to just take the shop as payment. "As you told me yourself, with the way this debt was set up, I would have not just lost my shop but spent the rest of my life a debtor to that man if you had not taken care of this. I only ask that my wife can keep living in the small living space in the loft and work in the shop for basic subsistence. I will go back to being a travelling peddler. I have no sons to pass a shop to and as you can see I don't have many years left."
I am reminded that in this world people who start to age, only do so when they approach the last few years of their life as their lifeforce starts to leak. The old man just wants to spend the last few years of his life not worrying too much. "Then please allow me to take responsibility for both you and your wife's futures. I will make sure you have at least some starting capital and if you can help supplying my shop as part of your peddling work, I am sure we can both benefit."
With that I have acquired a shop and still have enough savings to make sure it is fully stocked and possibly extend my potion research. I still feel like I need to provide an explanation of the events to the guild. Should probably drop by on my way back to the farm.
Advertisement
- In Serial8 Chapters
The Forgotten One
Hey there everbody. This will be my second upload to Roll 20. Unfortunately I wasn't able to continue my previous one due to life and what not but I'm now back and have a some what new idea I've been kicking around for years. We'll see if i head back to my other fiction due to having things calming down. And like always I'm open to constructive critisims. Any way on to the synopsis. The world as we know it is gone. Torn from everyone due to two major things. First and foremost a biologica lweapon that no one wanted to take credit for after it was released and couldn't be stopped (a zombie virus of sorts) and the way that many nations thought to stop it from spreading was to destory everything they could ofcourse that didn't include them selves. So there the world was in a mexican standoff with hundreds of countries with hundreds of nuclear weapons just dareing one another to make the first move. Once again no one knew who started it but it didn't matter once it started the world was doomed. In an attempt to save people some scientists began working on a way to cryogenically frezze people so they could surive the on coming armegedon. The problem was before they could begin testing it on humnas the nukes began launching. In a bid to save them selves a family gave their youngest son to the scientists as a test subject. He had already been infected by the virus weeks before the nukes were being threatened and still retained his humanitiy. After being betrayed by his family after telling them of his ability to stay him self and a few things the bio weapon had changed in him physically he was sedated with enough drugs to kill a whole pride of elephants and forced to take part in the experiment. The last thing he remembers was watching his world close around him (his cryo pod) and his family's face of sadness but also hope in the fact that them betraying him may give them a chance to live. This is a fan fiction in which many aspects of one of my favorite games will be quiet prevelent. It will be obvious to those who have played it but for those who may not the game i'm going to be baseing some of the things in this novel is called Prototype. And no I do not own the rights to the cover. If the creater would like for me to pull it down please messege me.
8 175 - In Serial6 Chapters
Journey through the Source Lands
They say the future is empty of mysteries, yet when Novak Carter awakens to find himself in a world not his own he discovers that mysteries are all that surround him. Powerful forces abound both in the dark and in the light, searching at all times for ways to end an endless battle. But, in the midst of the chaos, Novak Carter must find himself and a place to belong, otherwise, he may never return home. This series is also being published on scribblehub.com Discord Server: Here.
8 199 - In Serial42 Chapters
Battlefield NYC (LitRPG Apocalypse)
The world ends on a Tuesday afternoon, a [System] forming before detective Lance Samson's very eyes. As he gains mind-bending abilities, some of the people around him begin to change, becoming monstrous mockeries of themselves that thirst for blood. Will Lance be able to survive? Can he protect the few remaining sane people left? Find out as we enter the battlefield once known as New York City.
8 53 - In Serial30 Chapters
Kalar's Continent
Magic is a fickle thing, hard to grasp and even harder to truly master. Mana flows through everything in the world, every rock, plant, and human. They all breath, grow and influence their surroundings in their own right.Join Teo, a bright young boy with a gift for Arcane Magic, through his journey to tackle the Elements, master his Craft and climb to the very peak of magic itself.Who will he meet, friends or foes? Trusted companions or bitter rivals? Will he be able to find his answer and get to the real meaning of magic, all while wrestling with the complex laws of nature and his own unripe emotions?There is only one way to find out.The story will start with a few chapters of introductions in volume 1 to establish the characteristics and the nature of the world the characters live in. After that, it will probably become a lot more fast-paced and incorporate real story progression. My goal is to fuse the common magic advancement system in a weak-to-strong fashion, together with elements of naturalism, magic combat action and little bits and pieces of science, wherever necessary, to form a bright and interesting story about a boy chasing his dreams about magic. Please consider supporting me on Patreon.
8 130 - In Serial6 Chapters
A Light Not Extinguished [40K Dark Age What-if]
We all know the story. The Men of Iron rebel, humanity degrades into barbarism during the Age of Strife, Slaanesh is born through the depravity of the Aeldari Empire, the Imperium rises and falls and the galaxy burns in strife and bloodshed.But what if that which was ordained never came to pass? What if the Cybernetic Rebellion never happened? Can humanity defy the dark fate written in the stars with blood and sin? I DO NOT OWN WARHAMMER 40K, THIS IS AN UNOFFICIAL 40K FANWORK
8 149 - In Serial26 Chapters
,,Fan"
TAEHYUNG POV.What are you doing here? - I asked. Can I come in first? - Jungkook asked as I nodded and let him inside, closing the door behind him. Kookie took off his mask and hat then looked at me.Are you okay? - He asked......As Jungkook posted photo on instagram he looked back at Taehyung.Muffin, I think that I can't to control myself anymore. - Jungkook said.Then don't control it. - Taehyung said.
8 138