42-38

Chapter 38: Recognizing Value 

The reason Person of the Esta Merchant Company wanted to tour Milk’s tribe was to offer a goodwill gift. 

Since they hoped for ongoing trade, it was only natural to give a small present and win favor with the still-somewhat-wary tribe members. 

As they toured the village, most of what they saw were log houses and a nomadic lifestyle, with people living directly on untreated earth. 

Holstaurus are sturdier than humans, but their habit of sitting on the bare ground and their generally unclean living conditions shocked the humans. 

There was a public latrine, but it was just a large hole with a channel leading away hardly sanitary. 

Valen, the deputy leader, frowned and whispered to Person up ahead: 

["Sir, these people are truly barbaric… Are you sure you want to keep trading with them? Even if their milk is valuable, associating with such people seems beneath us."] 

["Careful, deputy. Holstaurus have good ears they can probably hear this. Their lifestyle comes from their robust bodies, not stupidity. They lack the skills and technology for our kind of culture, but they’re smart enough to use better things if available. Next trip, we’ll bring some hygiene goods and talk to the chief. He’s more reasonable than I expected."] 

["You mean that little kid?"] 

["Shh! Don’t be rude!"] 

Fortunately, Yuri and Yuke didn’t hear Valen call Milk a kid, but they caught enough of the conversation to report it to Milk later. 

As the tour ended, the merchants watched some girls playing in the distance and smiled. 

But Person’s eyes were drawn to the objects the girls played with. He asked Yuke, 

“What game is that?” 

“It’s Tuho. The chief taught it to the children. You throw sticks into that cylinder whoever gets more in wins. It’s both a game and training, and it’s our tribe’s signature pastime.” 

“Training?” 

“We use throwing spears as secondary weapons. So from a young age, kids get used to them through this game.” 

“Throwing spears?” 

Person thought, ‘I heard Holstaurus don’t use ranged weapons… This tribe is different. Why spears, not bows and arrows?’ 

Then, glancing at the women’s chests, he realized why: 

‘Those chests get in the way. So they chose throwing spears instead. Maybe we could supply them with human-style throwing spears those are cheap compared to bows and arrows.’ 

Person, not greedy but always calculating, was already planning how to get more milk and devilbear hides in future deals. 

But he missed one thing: Milk’s throwing spears were vastly more powerful and destructive than anything humans used1 

. 

“Eh?” 

“What’s wrong, sir?” 

Person, seeing a warrior woman walking by, stared at her back in shock. Valen called out, but he stood frozen for a moment. 

Regaining his senses, he hurried to catch up with Yuke and asked, 

“Yuke!” 

“Yes? What is it, Head Person?” 

“That weapon the warrior has on her back what is it?” 

“What else? A throwing spear.” 

“A throwing spear? That?” 

It wasn’t a crude, pointy stick. The tip looked like an oversized arrowhead, the balance was perfect, and the grip looked comfortable. 

Unlike the uneven, long human spears, these were short and uniform. 

“That’s really a throwing spear?” 

“If you want, you can see for yourself. The chief said to show you anything you’re curious about.” 

“Please!” 

Unlike the others, Person had seen the spear’s design and was desperate to learn more. 

At the warriors’ training ground, Person and his group watched as the Holstaurus women practiced with the spears. 

“Ready!” 

“Hup!” 

Older warriors led the training, and the women planted their feet and prepared to throw. 

Not a single one wavered. Person’s group swallowed nervously. 

Then the instructor shouted, 

“Throw!” 

Whoosh! 

The spears flew in perfect arcs, all hitting the target 200 paces away. 

The target was a solid rock, but the spears pierced it, with a quarter of each shaft buried in the stone. 

Person and the others were stunned and began examining the spears more closely. 

“My god… these are deadly weapons.” 

“Holstaurus are strong, but that was 200 paces. A human at 100 paces could probably pierce the rock, too… And the tips didn’t even get damaged. They must be gloss-coated. The shafts are devilbear hide lightweight and strong. Warriors armed with these…” 

“Why spears? If they made swords, they’d be incredible.” 

“That’s not the point. These aren’t ordinary spears. They’re designed to pierce enemies. The head is like a giant arrow. Imagine being hit by one terrifying. If a group threw them at a city gate, it would be shredded. They’re so light, too. Even humans could use them effectively.” 

“Now that you mention it…” 

The group discussed the spears, but Person was more shocked than anyone. 

‘Supplying them with human spears? That would have been a huge mistake. I underestimated them. They lack metalworking skills, but their craftsmanship is excellent. They just don’t know the methods. Who would have thought Holstaurus had such spears…’ 

Feeling the weight of this realization, Person quietly followed Yuke and Yuri back to the chief’s house. 

“Did you enjoy the tour?” 

“Yes… Thank you. Chief, there’s something I’d like to discuss.” 

“About the spears?” 

‘He’s biting.’ 

Milk smiled inwardly. He’d expected a sharp merchant like Person to recognize their value. 

Trying to appear casual, Milk replied, 

“The spears? Why?” 

“I won’t ask about the method or where you learned it. But could we trade for some of those spears?” 

“Hm shouldn’t we be the ones buying weapons? Isn’t it odd for you to want ours?” 

“Yes, but honestly, those spears would be just as effective for us humans. Spears have faded since bows, but nomads still use them. If word gets out about these, everyone will want them for their power.” 

“So you want to act as a buffer to keep them out of the wrong hands?” 

“Exactly. Also, I hear you invented them, Chief. We’ll patent them in your name. They’re hard to copy without the gloss finish, but if they get out, someone will try to make imitations. Let’s build a brand and sell them together.” 

That was exactly what Milk wanted: to make them drool and show interest. 

But the idea of using his name as a brand was surprising. It meant the name “Milk” would spread far and wide. 

“Not a bad deal. So what will your company give me in return?” 

“We’ll provide female blacksmith slaves and high-quality ore for making the spearheads. Seventy percent of the profits will be saved in your name, which you can use as credit with us at any time.” 

He also explained how to handle any issues with using Milk’s name. 

“Each caravan leader has their own clients. If I say I’m dealing exclusively with the famous blacksmith Milk, no one will suspect a thing, and your location will stay secret. We’ll split shipments along five routes to make tracking harder. If we say we need ore for spears, the company will ease restrictions. It’s a win-win.” 

Milk nodded and shook Person’s hand. 

“I’m glad we could make a good deal. I’ll give you 20 spears for the first shipment.” 

“That’s plenty. That’ll show off their power, and we can increase the quantity from there.” 

“No, let’s actually reduce it to 15.” 

“What?” 

Milk knew that flooding the market would lower the brand’s value. 

He planned to keep quantities low to maintain high value. Right now, spears were considered obsolete by humans. 

If they became widely available, their value would drop, and people would dismiss them as relics. 

So he decided to control supply to keep the price high. 

“Next time, 10, then 5. Each time, fewer spears and a higher price. Our milk is expensive because there’s so little of it. Let’s sell the spears the same way.” 

“I see. You want to maximize the brand’s value.” 

“In the long run, this is better. If too many spears appear, people will get suspicious. But if only a few show up, they’ll think they’re masterpieces by a legendary blacksmith, and the price will soar. This is the better way.” 

“I agree. I’ll follow your lead, Chief.” 

“Thank you, Person.” 

Thus began the exclusive trade between Person’s Esta Company and Milk’s tribe. 

Not long after, when Person’s caravan returned to the Chelson Kingdom’s capital, the city was thrown into an uproar.