Chapter 366 - 306: Currency War 2

Chapter 366: Chapter 306: Currency War 2

"Hmm," Herbert mused, pouring half a glass of wine into the glass in front of him. "I understand. The Nightmare Forest is so vast that trying to find a pair of ears in there would be like finding a needle in a haystack. But that you’ve already started taking action... that’s a bit of a surprise to me."

Shire tilted his head, quietly waiting for him to continue.

"To be frank, I signed that commission with you more out of a sense of ’let’s see what happens.’ Goblins don’t exactly have the best reputation among humans, after all. But when I met you, my intuition told me you were different. You seem to possess a nobler soul." Herbert picked up his glass, raised it toward Shire in a toast, and then took a small sip. "Still, I wasn’t certain. I couldn’t guarantee I had made the right choice."

"But for my family, we have nothing left to lose," he said slowly, swirling the wine in his glass. "Thank you for taking this commission so seriously."

"No, Mr. Herbert, exploring the forest is something I must do anyway. Helping you find those ears is no extra trouble," Shire said with a wave of his hands. "You don’t need to go out of your way to thank me. Waiving the fee for my Commerce Alliance’s potion bottles was more than enough."

"So, why have you invited me here this time?" Herbert asked with great interest, twirling the wineglass with two pale fingers.

"Mr. Herbert, what are your thoughts on the gold and silver exchange rate disparity between the Fran Kingdom and the Savoy Kingdom?" Shire leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, and asked with a smile.

"The gold-silver price difference?" Herbert frowned slightly. He knew there was a certain difference in the gold-to-silver exchange rate between the two kingdoms, but most of the time, people didn’t pay it much mind. Only major merchants and those who frequently traveled between the two nations would notice.

The Savoy Kingdom to the west has its own currency, distinct from that of the Fran Kingdom. The Fran Kingdom’s Gold and Silver Coins are engraved with a Plantagenet crest on the front and the denomination on the back.

The currency of the Savoy Kingdom, on the other hand, features crossed swords and a number on the front, with a phrase on the back: "Power comes from the mountaintop." The phrase has a dual meaning: it references the Savoy Royal Family’s origins in a mountain city, while also declaring to the world that their power is sacred and inviolable.

For ease of daily transactions, both kingdoms’ currencies use a 1:100 exchange ratio. The difference, however, is that the Savoy Kingdom is rich in silver mines, so their Silver Coins are of better quality and higher purity. They are even a size larger than the Fran Kingdom’s Silver Coins.

This has led some to privately exchange Gold Coins from the Fran Kingdom for Silver Coins from the Savoy Kingdom, smuggle the Silver Coins back into the country, and re-mint them as Fran Silver Coins. A single such operation can yield a profit of as much as one-fourth the amount of silver.

"You’re planning to smuggle currency?" Hearing Shire’s question, Herbert immediately understood what he was implying. "Pardon my frankness, but that will be very difficult."

The old gentleman took a sip of red wine. "My family has shops in various places, so I’m well aware of how strictly these kingdoms monitor their Gold and Silver Coins. There are always diligent officials at the docks checking how many Gold Coins merchants are carrying. If you want to transport Gold and Silver Coins on a large scale, I think you’ll find it very difficult to succeed."

"No, Mr. Herbert. I’m aware of how tightly the kingdoms on the continent control their currencies," Shire said, waving a hand. "I don’t plan on simply shipping Gold or Silver Coins back and forth by boat."

"Then what’s your plan? Carry twenty Gold Coins at a time?" The old gentleman chuckled. "With such a small box, after all the hassle, you probably wouldn’t even earn back the ship fare."

"No, not 20 Gold Coins. The sum I’m looking to move is 300,000 Gold Coins," Shire said with a smirk.

Hearing such a large sum, Herbert froze and studied the goblin across from him. "That amount is too large. You’re just a goblin; you can’t possibly have that much."

"For now, don’t worry about whether I can produce it. I just want to know how an operation like this could be pulled off in Savoy," Shire asked with a shrug.

"It’s difficult. Nobody smuggles currency on such a large scale anymore," Herbert said, shaking his head. "Many years ago, a few banks under the Commerce Alliance illegally conducted several cross-border gold exchanges. Their bosses were quickly arrested, and everyone involved, from top to bottom—officials and bank clerks alike—was dealt with. So now, hardly anyone attempts gold and silver exchanges anymore."

’Is that so?’ Shire frowned. His memories held quite a few examples of currency exchanges in various places. When the Commerce Alliance had approached him, he’d wondered if he could leverage the situation to make a quick profit.

"I won’t be using ships to transport the Gold and Silver Coins," he said after a few moments of thought. "I have my own way of getting the Gold Coins to Savoy without anyone being the wiser."

’As long as I find an unnoticed corner in the Savoy Kingdom and set up a Teleportation Stone Ring, I can easily transfer all 300,000 Gold Coins over.’

"No, young man," Herbert said with a laugh, waving his hand dismissively. "There’s no such thing as a perfect secret in this world. The moment you produce 300,000 Gold Coins, someone will quickly notice the fluctuation in the currency exchange, and then the guardsmen and soldiers will be all over you."

"That..." Shire hesitated. ’He has a point. An injection of that much currency is bound to make waves.’ "This is indeed tricky," he admitted. "I just want to exchange them for Fran Silver Coins."

Watching the goblin frown in thought, Herbert took a sip of wine and said with a smile, "If all you want is to exchange the Gold Coins for Fran Silver Coins, then I might have a solution."

"What is it?" Shire’s face lit up. "Do you have a large enough reserve of Silver Coins?"

"No," Mr. Herbert chuckled. "An amount of Silver Coins that large... I imagine only the Fran Kingdom’s treasury has that much."

Then, under Shire’s questioning gaze, he poured himself another half-glass of red wine. "I assume you don’t need all these Silver Coins immediately, do you?"

"Yes. The timeframe is one year."

"In that case, I do know someone who could help you."

"Help me?" Shire thought for a moment, then asked, "Is this person a merchant?"

"No. His name is Jean, and he’s a Border Count in the Savoy Kingdom," Herbert said, raising his glass to eye level. "In a sense, he is my enemy, and yet, also my friend."

Shire was momentarily thrown by the statement, but he remained silent, waiting for the old gentleman to elaborate.

"We were both transformed by the Demon Lord Envy—no, I should say our two families were," Herbert said, raising a finger. The nail on it quickly elongated, becoming sharp. "My Chenxi Clan are Vampires, and that fellow Jean’s family... they are Werewolves."

"Werewolves?"

"Yes. Just as we fear the sun, he fears the moon and silver."

"Then why can he provide Silver Coins? He should be afraid of them," Shire asked, puzzled.

"Yes, Werewolves are indeed afraid of silver. But his family is very stubborn. After their transformation, they started a silver mining business," Mr. Herbert said with a wry smile. "In their words, ’if you expose yourself to it enough, maybe one day you’ll become immune.’"

Shire’s mouth twitched. ’What kind of bizarre logic is that?’ he thought. ’It’s like thinking that as long as a small allergic reaction doesn’t kill you, you can just keep exposing yourself until you’re completely immune.’

"And what happened to them?"

"Later, their silver mining business grew larger and larger. Family members would often come into contact with silver, and as a result, incidents of them ’keeling over’ occurred," Herbert shook his head. "To this day, they’re still playing with silver."

"Er," Shire’s eyebrows twitched. "So, are you saying I should buy silver ore from them and then smelt and mint the coins myself?"

"No. I mean you can go directly to Jean and have him mint Fran Kingdom Silver Coins," Mr. Herbert said, smiling at Shire. "You don’t actually believe that we in the Savoy Kingdom don’t secretly mint Fran Kingdom currency, do you?"

"After all, on paper, we’re still enemy nations."