Return to Jorgaldur Volume IV: Reunion

Magna (I)

"Hello Gjaki. I didn't expect to see you again so soon. I hope you don't bring bad news this time," the great chief of the Chamber of Commerce greeted her.

"Hi, Tihgla. I came for business, but if you want, I can look for a problem or two," the vampiress mocked.

"Very funny... What business are you talking about?" Tihgla asked.

She sat in front of her and stared at her, without showing her excitement. The word "business" coming from that visitor had brought them many benefits in the past. The expectation was natural.

"My contact wants an anemone gem. If they get it, they're willing to sell through you up to a thousand barrels of Magna Mountain beer for ten years. You'd have to provide the ingredients," the vampiress offered.

"Magna Mountain Beer? That Magna Mountain beer!?" the merchant asked.

Gjaki smiled. Tihgla's voice had betrayed her, trembling slightly. It was evident that, just as she had hoped, the impact on her had been profound. That beer was no longer made, and the recipe had been lost in distant legends.

In the game, Goldmi had obtained it in some ruins. The group had gone there for some missions, but she had been the only one of all the players who had obtained said recipe. Gjaki had been checking it out on the forums, but she had found neither the usefulness of it nor any mention.

By then, it had ended up becoming an anecdote. Now, it was surprisingly valuable.

The main problem was the difficulty of finding some ingredients. However, it wasn't that difficult for an entity like the one presided over by Tihgla.

"Is there another one? I have a sample. It's not much, since they had few of the ingredients on hand," she explained.

She took out a small barrel, which barely contained a couple of liters, and gave it to the merchant.

"Can you wait a moment?" she asked, as she took the small barrel with her trembling hands.

"Sure. If you prefer, I can come another day."

"No, no. It'll be five minutes!"

"Grenja! Stop everything... whatever you're doing... and taste this!" a woman suddenly entered the room.

"Tihgla? It's not like you to be in such a hurry. What the hell is going on?" the dwarf asked.

"I need... you to taste... this, and give me your opinion," the big chief insisted, while catching her breath.

"Can't you see I'm fucking busy? Give it to another idiot," Grenja disdained.

"If I do that, and it is what they say it is, you'll never forgive me," Tihgla assured.

The dwarf raised her head for the first time from her work table. Multiple small pieces were scattered there, around the strange artifact she was repairing.

"What's it?" she asked, for the first time with some interest.

"I need you to tell me without knowing it. Just a little," the chief filled a small tasting glass.

The dwarf took it with wide eyes. Suddenly, nothing else mattered, not even the artifact she had been busy with for the last week.

It was everything. The sound of liquid falling. Its color. Its delicious aroma of beer, a very special beer. It reminded her of something, something she had only drank once, something the dwarf didn't think she would ever have the chance to savor again.

With great delicacy, with devotion, the dwarf raised the glass to her lips. She passed it under her nose first, to enjoy its intense scent, while Tihgla watched her expectantly. The change in the dwarf's attitude was undoubtedly revealing.

"Impossible, fucking impossible. It can't be..." the dwarf murmured, incredulous.

"So?" her boss asked, anxiously.

The dwarf's eyes passed over the small barrel with desire. Then, she stared at the merchant.

"It's fucking impossible, and at the same time there's no fucking doubt. It's Magna Mountain beer, and it's fucking fresh. It hasn't been rescued from some shitty ruin. How's that possible!? The recipe was lost..." the dwarf explained.

"It really is! Ha, ha. It was true!" Tihgla congratulated herself.

"Are you going to explain what the hell this is about?" the dwarf demanded, no matter she was speaking with her boss.

"We may close an agreement for a thousand barrels. I don't know who makes them nor are they going to tell me, but I don't need to explain to you what it means," she explained exultantly.

Of course the dwarf knew it. Doing business with dwarves wasn't easy, not even with the mediation of a dwarf like her. Except for a few isolated groups, such as those of Khaladok, the dwarves often traded among themselves. They didn't need much from the outside.

However, that beer changed everything. Not only could they get a good price, but it would surely allow them to open trade routes with them. In the past, there had been. For various reasons, most of them had been lost, and it wasn't easy to open them again. That beer was the key.

"I want a barrel!" the dwarf exclaimed.

"Finish that, and we'll talk," her boss smiled.

"Can't you at least give me that fucking mini barrel?" Grenja asked.

"For now, I need it. It's the only sample," Tihgla refused.

"Shit!" Tihgla exclaimed after checking the stock.

She worriedly entered the room where Gjaki was waiting. She was enjoying a hot chocolate with a slight menthol touch.

"Do we have a deal?" the vampiress smiled, confident.

"Sure! But... If you had come a day earlier... We had one, but it's already advertised for auction. I don't know when we'll get another one," the merchant lamented.

"Oh? Where's the auction?" the blood warrior was interested.

"In nine days, in Goltrak."

"Goltrak? I haven't been there in a while. I'll see if I can buy it," Gjaki thought out loud.

"So... the deal..." Tihgla worried.

The vampiress smiled. The deal she had offered wasn't only for the gem, but to have the services of the Chamber of Commerce closer at hand. They couldn't refuse to look for any material for them as long as they wanted to buy the beer.

While she had always been treated as a preferred customer, having an ongoing deal was much more convenient. Plus, it cost Goldmi almost nothing. Luckily, they didn't know.

"If I can buy it, I'll consider it valid. If not, you'll have to get it for me," she assured, while throwing two scrolls to the merchant.

Tihgla caught them, and opened them one by one. They were the ingredients for the beer, although nowhere near enough to make it. Many had tried in the past, and failed miserably. The temperatures needed were very strict, as well as the time and variations. Furthermore, when and how to make the mixes was by no means irrelevant.

She frowned slightly after opening the first one. Some ingredients were rather scarce, although not impossible to obtain. However, it meant that she wouldn't be able to get all the barrels in a short time, which was her first intention.

After that, she unrolled the second one with curiosity, since she didn't really know why there was a second one. Her eyes and mouth widened when she saw the contents. She looked at Gjaki, unable to keep her composure.

"It's a joke, right?!"

The vampiress smiled. She had expected that reaction.