Chapter 66 - 65: Negotiation

Chapter 66: Chapter 65: Negotiation

Flame Flower Moon, 16th.

Phil’s Magic Pharmacy.

The storefront, spacious enough to hold over a dozen people without feeling crowded, bustled with foot traffic. Clearly, the Magic Potion Market was extremely prosperous right now, having entered its peak sales season.

This was all thanks to the strange mutations outside the city. Most people saw these mutations as an opportunity, and many outsiders had even rushed over specifically to strike it rich. After all, under normal circumstances, hunting Earth Vein Creatures required venturing deep into the dangerous Primordial Forest. Earth Vein Creatures rarely appeared at the forest’s edge near human cities.

But now, Earth Vein Creatures were a common sight in the forest outside Hogan City. This kind of hunting, which offered a line of retreat and much higher safety, was basically like picking up free money for the many Mages who relied on hunting Earth Vein Creatures as their primary source of income. The increase in hunting activities naturally led to the unusual prosperity of Hogan City’s Magic Potion Market.

Inside the store, three or four clerks were busy attending to customers. Gaode waited to the side for a short while. The moment a clerk freed up, he seized the opportunity and approached.

"I’d like to see Mr. Oliver. Please let him know I’m here," Gaode said.

The clerk was slightly taken aback. When he recognized Gaode, he immediately understood, and his smile turned attentive. "Please wait a moment."

He immediately hurried up the stairs with a THUD THUD THUD. A short while later, he rushed back down.

"Mr. Oliver is waiting for you upstairs. Please follow me," he greeted warmly while leading Gaode up to the second floor.

The second floor was not as spacious as the first, containing only a few rooms. The clerk guided Gaode to the innermost door. "This is the VIP room where Mr. Oliver receives distinguished guests. I’ve brought you here, so you can go in yourself."

With that, the clerk tactfully withdrew.

Gaode knocked on the door, his expression calm.

"Come in," Oliver’s steady voice called out.

Gaode pushed the door open and saw Oliver sitting behind a large nanmu wood desk in the luxuriously decorated VIP room. He had his head lowered, writing something on a piece of paper with a quill.

After entering, Gaode didn’t say a word, patiently waiting for Oliver to finish his task. Was there really something so urgent that he couldn’t stop to entertain a guest? Obviously not. It was merely a tactic to put psychological pressure on him. If Gaode lost his patience and spoke first, he would subconsciously feel guilty for interrupting. That would put him at a disadvantage before the negotiation even began.

Gaode examined the VIP room with interest. It was evident that the decorative materials used in the room were extremely expensive. Even the potted plants used as decorations were the highly valuable golden-thread lotus.

But what shocked Gaode the most was the giant, diamond-shaped Magic Crystal resting on the nanmu desk, which easily weighed over five kilograms.

Magic Crystals were one of the most precious mineral resources in this world. They contained an astonishing amount of energy. Almost all Magic Facilities relied on Magic Crystals for power. A naturally formed, perfectly shaped Magic Crystal of this massive size likely cost hundreds of gold coins, yet it was casually placed on the desk as an ornament.

In other words, a decoration worth a fortune was sitting right in front of Gaode. It was truly extravagant. It was also truly stingy. He placed a Magic Crystal worth hundreds of gold coins on his desk as a decoration to show off his status, yet he only offered a meager price of two hundred gold coins for the Seda Medicinal Garden, which had been operating for over a decade.

Knowing Gaode had entered, Oliver kept his head down and wrote for a full two or three minutes before finally setting down his pen and looking up.

"What brings you here today? Have you figured it out?"

Gaode nodded. "I’ve thought about it carefully. Joining Phil’s Magic Pharmacy is indeed a rare opportunity that would be hard to come by again. I believe that even if Mage Seda returns and learns of this decision, he won’t object.

"Therefore, I accept your proposal. I am willing to transfer the Seda Medicinal Garden to you."

"A wise decision," Oliver praised, seemingly satisfied with Gaode’s sensibility.

"However..." Gaode continued.

"However what?" Oliver frowned, scrutinizing Gaode with a gaze that made one’s hair stand on end, projecting an invisible sense of oppression.

"I need more money!" Gaode gritted his teeth, forcing the words out with feigned difficulty. "Two hundred gold coins is simply too low. Mage Seda paid more than that when he first bought the Medicinal Garden. If he comes back and finds out I transferred the Medicinal Garden at this price, he will definitely punish me."

"Is that so?" Oliver narrowed his eyes at Gaode and chuckled, a knowing look on his face. "Since you put it that way, it does seem a bit low. If this causes you to be blamed by Mage Seda, I would feel bad about it too."

As he spoke, Oliver stood up from behind the nanmu desk, picked up the paper he had just been writing on, and handed it to Gaode.

"Sign this contract," he said, the bark-like wrinkles on his face trembling. "I’ll add another hundred gold coins for you."

Gaode’s heart stirred. He calmly accepted the contract and skimmed through it.

The contents were quite simple. It required Gaode to join Phil’s Magic Pharmacy and concoct Magic Potions for them. In return, Phil’s Magic Pharmacy would provide resources to cultivate him to a certain extent. Furthermore, the contract offered Gaode a base salary of 10 gold coins per month, along with a five percent commission on the profits from every batch of Magic Potions he concocted that was sold.

Assuming he concocted a batch of Basic Spider Venom Potions every day and they all sold out, Gaode would take home roughly 12.5 gold coins or more per month. While this couldn’t compare to a month’s revenue from the Medicinal Garden, it had the advantage of being a guaranteed income. He wouldn’t have to worry about sales channels or managing the medicinal ingredients himself anymore.

Of course, this assessment was based on Gaode’s current Magic Potion level. As his Magic Potion level improved, the gap between this "salary" and the profits he could generate from running his own Medicinal Garden would only widen. If Phil’s Magic Pharmacy could promptly adjust his compensation based on his Magic Potion level, it wouldn’t be an entirely unreasonable contract.

The problem was, clearly they wouldn’t. Because the duration written on the contract was a staggering "20 years"!

If Gaode no longer wished to brew potions for Phil’s Magic Pharmacy within those 20 years, he could terminate the contract early. However, for every year remaining on the contract, he would have to pay Phil’s Magic Pharmacy a breach fee of 100 Sean gold coins. Terminating it ten years early would mean a penalty of 1,000 Sean gold coins.

Gaode frowned, directly expressing his dissatisfaction. "Isn’t the term of this contract too long? And the termination fee is way too high."

"Hehe..." Oliver smiled without the warmth reaching his eyes. "Twenty years isn’t long at all. In twenty years, you’ll only be in your thirties—the prime of your life. Why worry about twenty years being too long?

"Besides, this isn’t a permanent life sentence. If your potion-making skills improve quickly, I will naturally increase your compensation and sign a new contract with you when the time comes."

A merchant’s guarantee meant absolutely nothing unless it was signed on paper. Gaode knew this well. He sneered internally, not believing a single word.

Meanwhile, Oliver continued to talk smoothly. "As for the termination fee, once you become an Alchemist for our store, we will invest a lot of energy and capital into cultivating you.

"If we don’t set the termination fee a bit higher, what’s to stop you from paying a cheap fee once your skills improve and you’ve found your wings, only to run off and work for another Magic Pharmacy? Wouldn’t we just be playing the fool, paving the way for someone else’s success?

"Furthermore, leaving the termination fee aside, signing this contract means 300 gold coins will immediately enter your pocket," Oliver added meaningfully, subtly hinting at the payoff.

Hearing this, Gaode fell into a long silence, a conflicted expression on his face as if he were deep in thought.

Seeing this, a flash of smugness crossed Oliver’s eyes. He was a seasoned businessman who had haggled countless times. He knew perfectly well that once the other party showed this expression, the deal was essentially done.

Sure enough, a moment later, Gaode snapped his head up. "What about the other apprentices in the Medicinal Garden? Why is there only a contract for me? Where are theirs?"

"Phil’s Magic Pharmacy doesn’t sign contracts with just anyone. We only draft specific contracts for capable people like you," Oliver said calmly. "Rest assured, since I am acquiring the Seda Medicinal Garden at a high price, I will naturally continue to employ the people there."

It was like the final straw that broke the camel’s back. Upon hearing Oliver’s guarantee, Gaode seemed to finally make up his mind. "Alright.

"However, I can’t produce the land and property deeds at the moment..."