Chapter 468 Your daughter is in my hands!
Half an hour later, in the cabin.
Hela and Holo each covered their red and swollen buttocks and stood side by side miserably, like two elementary school students in training.
Luo En sat on the chair, tapping the cane in his hand and asked in a cold voice:
"Tell me, whose idea was it?"
"Holo!"
Hela raised her hand and pointed at the culprit without hesitation.
Being stabbed in the back by her accomplice, Holo could not help but angrily rebuke:
"You're selling me out now? You have no loyalty!"
"If the teacher asks me, of course I have to tell you."
Hela answered simply, as if it was a matter of course.
Hearing these very sycophantic words, Holo touched his wolf ears unconfidently, muttering to himself.
Who is the canine family?
Besides, this is my home and that’s my father, so I should be the first one to be a lackey!
"Hai La's moving hand!"
Holo unceremoniously chooses to inform on Hela, confessing Hela's crimes, while at the same time not forgetting to exonerate herself.
"It's because she wanted to find a dwarf to forge a sword, and we helped her out of kindness!"
"Is this how you help? You kidnap someone's daughter and put her in the cellar, then force her to work for you?"
Luo En scolded with a dark face, and once again he picked up the "whip for obedient sons and filial daughters" beside him.
Seeing this, Holo quickly shouted in defense:
"Are we that stupid? If you want to redeem his daughter, just pay some money!"
Loen was furious: "Isn't this kidnapping? You are really amazing, Holo, using the money you extorted from the dwarves to ask them to forge swords!"
Seeing that the cane in her father's hand was about to fall on her again, Holo immediately shrank behind Hela, dodging while defending herself:
"Transaction, that's a normal transaction! We didn't do anything bad!"
"You kidnapped people here and called it a normal transaction?"
"Yes, we said we were treating, but we didn't say we were paying! She lives here, eats our food, drinks our drinks, is there anything wrong with charging her?"
“…”
Hearing this righteous question, Loen was speechless for a moment and fell into deep thought.
It seems to make sense...
What the hell!
Lorne frowned and rebuked Holo's heresy:
"You are abducting an underage dwarf girl!"
"She's thirty years old, older than me and Hela combined. She wanted to come on her own initiative. Can you blame me?"
"What about forced buying and selling?"
"Who told you not to give us money?"
Holo felt even more aggrieved and narrated her experiences with full of resentment.
"You don't know that the craftsmen in the Dwarf Kingdom are small in stature but have big appetites. They dare to charge a huge price just for forging two swords!"
When Luo En heard this, his anger subsided a little, and he hummed and asked:
"How many?"
"twenty……"
"Twenty gold coins is too expensive for you? What's so expensive about it?"
Lorne raised his voice and glared at Holo.
"Wouldn't it be enough if you just drank less mead and bought fewer apples?"
Holo's face darkened, and she added unhappily:
"It's not a coin, it's a car!"
“…”
In silence, Lorne's facial muscles twitched, and then he replied calmly,
"It's not much. If we save up, we can still get enough."
"You're going out?"
“…”
Lorne coughed dryly, his eyes flickering.
"Where were we? Oh, yes, your new friend's name is Eden, right?"
"Stop playing dumb!"
Holo looked at her old father with disdain and snorted resentfully,
"You've been embezzling the village's annual harvest offerings. For so long, we haven't even seen a single cent!"
"Nonsense! Didn't I give you pocket money?"
Luo En glared and retorted with his neck stiff.
Hearing this, Holo became even angrier.
"That's just a small amount of money, not even enough to buy apples and mead every month. You use all kinds of excuses to deduct it. How can we forge swords for Hela?"
Facing his adopted daughter's accusation, Lorne coughed guiltily:
"There's nothing we can do about it. The humans in Central Court are just starting out, and there's still a huge gap in civilization compared to other ethnic groups in the nine kingdoms. Money is needed everywhere, and I just handled those donations, but I didn't put them in my own pocket."
"So, I shared your worries and tried to get the money to forge the sword for Hela. But you two sold me out and beat me with a cane. It's really true that good things come to those who do good things..."
Holo looked at the two people in front of her with resentment, and looked like she was about to cry, as if she was heartbroken.
However, after waiting for a long time, the tears still did not flow.
Luo En was silent for a moment, then reminded faintly:
"You can make some eye drops from Houttuynia cordata and carry them with you. Try it next time."
Upon hearing this brilliant idea, Holo immediately put down her hands, took out her little notebook in surprise and wrote it down.
Hela took a quick look and discovered that it was already covered with densely packed notes of various kinds.
Almost all of them are the essence of the teachings of a certain god of trickery...
Well, now she understood why the father and daughter were so alike.
Then, Hela retracted her gaze and frowned to get the topic back on track:
"So what do we do with Eden now? Send him back?"
"What are you sending back? Let his own father redeem him! Paying bills for meals and repaying debts is a matter of course. Even if Odin comes, he must do the same!"
Lorne looked righteous.
Holo immediately smiled, flipped through the account book, and began to calculate Eden's expenses during this period.
A superior bed, 800 gold coins;
Two plates of specialty dried fruits, 700 gold coins;
A pot of honey water, two hundred gold coins:
The offerings are some monster meat jerky and three thousand gold coins...
Hela only took a glance and her little heart was deeply shocked.
It’s dark, so dark!
In the human market, all these things combined might not be able to be sold for a hundred gold coins.
As a result, Holo just made a few random comments and added a few adjectives, and the price increased by more than a hundred times.
As Loen watched the bill quickly forming in Holo's hand, he couldn't help but frown:
"Didn't she just arrive? Did she eat so much?"
"Of course! We came all the way from the Dwarf Country. Not only her, but even Hela and I are so hungry that we can eat a cow."
Holo started with a smile, and then added slyly,
"So, I put her in a cellar full of food and wine, and let her eat and drink well."
Fishing enforcement?
Luo En suddenly realized, and then he coughed lightly:
"She even broke a bottle of wine when I was there."
"Three hundred! No, three thousand gold coins!"
Upon hearing this, Holo excitedly added a few entries on the paper, bringing the total amount of compensation to ten thousand.
However, when this inflated offer came out, Loen looked over quietly and frowned.
Seeing this, Holo's neck shrank immediately, and she quickly crossed out the last two zeros, and smiled dryly and changed her words:
"I remembered it wrong. It should be thirty-one jars. It's worthless stuff."
"nonsense!"
Lorne stood up from his chair, furious.
"That's the Asgardian fairy brew Odin gave me! The ingredients include the wisdom spring of Jotunheim, the Urd spring of Asgard, and the wheat from the first sacrifice to the gods on Heath Island... It's very precious! There is only one jar of it in the entire nine kingdoms. I can't bear to drink it myself. Thirty gold bricks are not enough to cover the cost. The market price is at least thirty carts, and this is a friendly price, no discount!"
Hearing the angry declaration, Hela opened her mouth.
If I remember correctly, that jar of wine was brewed by her and Holo together. Because it turned sour and no one drank it, it was piled in the corner.
However, unlike the straightforward Hela, the more intelligent Holo heard the hidden meaning and quickly changed her words:
"Yes, yes, I remembered it wrong. The friendship price is thirty carts of gold coins per jar, no discount!"
But when it came time to put pen to paper, she was still a little hesitant.
It’s not that I feel guilty, but I’m wondering if those stingy dwarves will believe such an outrageous price.
Seeing this, Luo En asked with interest:
"Holo, do you know what is the most important thing if you want to sell a product at a high price?"
“Control quality and master channels?”
Hearing that testing tone, Holo subconsciously gave a more traditional answer.
But Lorne shook his head and spoke meaningfully:
“Neither. You have to learn to tell stories first. Only when something has a good story can it be sold at a premium far exceeding its cost.”
The unexpected answer made Holo stunned at first, and then she suddenly realized.
That’s right!
A jar of sour wine is indeed worthless according to normal value calculations. But what if this jar of wine is a proof of friendship between the God King Odin and his blood brother Loki?
Thousands of years of time, the love of life and death, plus so many precious materials...
What's wrong with asking for thirty carts of gold? It's really just the cost price!
Or, the other side wants to say that the friendship between Odin and Loki is not worth this amount?
As she thought more and more deeply, Holo felt as if a door to a whole new world had opened in her mind, and she looked at her scheming old father with admiration.
Dad is worthy of being a dad, he always has a lot of bad ideas!
Loen enjoyed the admiration from his adopted daughter and felt quite pleased with himself.
Times are progressing, and new marketing and packaging ideas are a dimensionality reduction blow to the old traditional business model.
"Just cross out the rest of the items and let the dwarves pay for the wine."
After hearing her father's reminder, Holo understood and did as he said.
Compared with the thirty cartloads of gold for a jar of wine, the rest of these trivial charges are not worth mentioning. Writing them in would easily lower their identity and status, making it seem like they are really extorting money.
"And now?"
"Call your dwarf friend up here. We must face what needs to be faced."
Luo En answered in a deep voice, his face full of helplessness.
At the critical moment, Holo pursed her lips, feeling a little embarrassed:
"Isn't this a bit too much? She's a good friend we just made. She even showed us the way..."
“Thirty percent…”
"make a deal!"
Holo agreed without hesitation.
After all, that’s 9 cars of gold!
As the common currency of the nine kingdoms, coupled with its superior magical properties, this golden thing is loved by almost everyone.
If she hesitated for one more second, it would be disrespectful to gold and the market!
Soon, Eden was called up from the cellar.
Seeing the two friends who were beaten badly in the cabin, the little girl was shocked at first, then she mustered up her courage and pleaded with Lorne who was sitting with a gloomy face:
"I was the one who came here, can you please not punish them?"
"I beat them not because they wanted to entertain their friends, but because they actually brought people into my wine cellar and ruined my precious mead!"
Luo En snorted coldly and explained the reason, looking heartbroken.
The kind-hearted little Lolita immediately took the responsibility upon hearing this:
"I did it, I'll pay for it! It has nothing to do with them!"
"Goodbye, Eden. You can't afford it."
Holo on the side waved her hands dejectedly, and then tried to force a tragic smile towards her new friend.
"At worst, we'll get beaten up a few times."
"How can that be! You've been so nice to me, playing with me and treating me to so many delicious foods. How could I let you get punished just because of my own fault?"
The little girl, who had been completely fooled, straightened her chest and walked forward bravely.
"How much does that jar of wine cost? I'll make up for it!"
"Not much, just thirty carts of gold."
Loen snorted in response, and his tone towards Eden was no longer as friendly as before, as if he was still upset about the damage to the wine.
Upon hearing this outrageous offer, Eden was stunned, and the small hand holding the purse trembled slightly.
Thirty carts of gold?
What kind of drink is so precious and worth so much!
As if she had seen through Eden's confusion, Holo tearfully told him the origin of the jar of wine, adding some artistic processing of her own in the middle.
After listening to this, Eden opened his mouth, speechless.
Well, this is proof of the blood alliance between the God King Odin and the God of Fire Loki, so this wine is not expensive if it costs thirty carts of gold.
"It doesn't matter. Dad will just beat me to death at most."
Holo continued to play the good cop, acting like someone who would risk everything for her friend.
The simple little dwarf girl couldn't stand this kind of deception. She got excited and shouted:
"Thirty cartloads of gold, I'll give it to you!"
"You have that much money?" Lorne expressed doubt.
Eden answered honestly, "I don't have any, but my father and uncles might be able to get enough."
Luo En nodded and waved slightly:
"Well, contact them and ask your family to come here to talk."
Upon hearing this, Eden felt as if he had been pardoned. He quickly went to the open space outside the house and constructed a resonance spell to communicate with his father.
Seeing her father lift it high and then put it down gently, Holo realized belatedly that she had been fooled.
That's not right. His purpose was not to ask for money, but to use the money as an excuse to trick the dwarves into forging a sword for Hela!
So, even though they say the profits will be split 30% to 70% afterwards, who knows how much I can actually get!
Holo's nose felt sore and she looked at her extremely cunning father with resentment.
"fraud!"
"Okay, take a long-term view. When the matter is accomplished, I guarantee that you will get some benefits, and they will be no less than those nine carts of gold."
"real?"
"I lied to you, I'm a puppy!"
"You said it, and we recorded it."
At this moment, Holo, who was about to cry just now, took out a shining rune with a cunning smile on her face.
Seeing this, Luo En's face darkened. Just as he was about to pick up the cane to punish this unfilial girl, the little girl Eden ran back:
"The ritual is ready."
"Then why did you come back?"
"I, I dare not say..."
The little Lolita spoke shyly, looking timid and stupid.
Lorne was helpless and looked at Hela on the side.
"Come on."
Since it was her business, Hela nodded without hesitation, then walked to the open space outside the door, activated the resonance spell, and after thinking for a moment, she slowly spoke:
"We have your daughter in our hands!"
Suddenly, there was a sound of debris falling from inside the resonance ritual, and a rough and angry roar echoed.
"Touch my daughter? I'll fight you!"
"I advise you to calm down. You don't want to not be able to see her, do you?"
Hela reminded coolly with a straight face, trying to calm the dwarf father.
The effect was immediate, and the voice on the other side suddenly stopped:
"Don't mess around. If you have something to say, we can talk it out. I only have this one daughter."
Just as Hela was about to get to the point, Lorne immediately interrupted the resonance spell and scolded her with a dark look on his face:
"I asked you to inform, not to blackmail! You can't even say a word, go away, get out of the way! Holo, come here!"
Then he pushed Hela away and handed the task of communication to his adopted daughter who was more smooth and shrewd.
When the spell was reconnected, Holo stepped forward confidently and asked elegantly:
"Within three days, come to the Central Heath Island as soon as possible to pick up your daughter, and bring thirty carts of gold with you. Is that ok?"
"Bang~~"
There was a more violent collision sound coming from the resonance ritual, and the gritting of teeth roared and made people's eardrums hurt:
"Thirty carts of gold? Why don't you just go and rob them?"
"Well, how about nine chariots? The rest can be made up with forging materials and your craftsmanship."
Without waiting for Holo to continue bargaining, Loen, whose face had turned as black as the bottom of a pot, forcibly cut off the communication again and kicked away the unfilial daughter who was frantically smuggling goods in front of the resonance ritual.
"Get lost!"
After two consecutive operational mistakes, Loen decided to personally negotiate with the dwarf Ivald.
But as soon as he reopened the resonance technique, a voice of suppressed anger came from the other side.
"I can consider nine carts of gold, but I have to hear my daughter's voice first, otherwise there's no point in talking!"
Immediately afterwards, before Loen could speak, the other party took the initiative to cut off contact.
Even though he tried several times, the other party hung up without giving him a chance to say anything as soon as they heard the male voice. In the end, they even changed the secret code of the resonance technique.
The more you describe it, the darker it gets...
Luo En had no choice but to give up his position and waved back weakly:
"Eden, you should explain it yourself."
“Oh, oh…”
Hearing the shout, the timid and dumb little Loli trembled, and tremblingly came to the resonance spell, waiting for the resonance spell to light up again, and then flattened her mouth and cried with a slightly crying voice:
"Father, bring me money to redeem me!"
Then she glanced at her two good friends who were beaten to pieces and stated the seriousness of the problem.
"If it's too late, someone will die!"
"Bang!"
The resonance spell was overwhelmed by a violent surge of magical power.
Through the last dissipated light, Loen vaguely saw a muscular red-bearded dwarf, who rushed out of the house with a forging hammer bigger than a mammoth's head, calling his friends along the way, and with a hundred relatives and friends armed to the teeth, he rushed towards the Heath Island in the Atrium World with murderous intent.
"you……"
Loen looked back at the three lolis behind him who were joining forces to strengthen him, and was speechless for a moment.
This time, it really became a kidnapping.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
