NABC Chapter 36 Crisis of the Iron Throne
Chapter 36 Crisis of the Iron Throne
Ronan thought to himself that his 20000 gold coins didn't come from a gust of wind, but were an inheritance left to him by his Blue Dragon Grandfather.
Whose grandfather was Blue Dragon? And whose grandfather could leave behind such a vast legacy?
What a rare and wonderful fate!
Moreover, he estimated that he would never encounter such a fate again, so he naturally had to use this windfall sparingly.
When he heard the dwarf's offer of 12000 gold coins, mainly because of the recent rise in the price of high-quality steel, he thought that if he waited for the price of high-quality steel to drop, he might be able to spend less money.
Thinking of this, he asked Guf, "Buddy, if we take advantage of the recent low prices for high-quality steel, how much cheaper can it be?"
Gu Fu thought for a moment and then said, "At most, it will be a discount of one thousand gold coins."
As if sensing Ronan's thoughts, Guf continued, "The price of high-quality steel has been rising over the past two years."
"It seems that the surrounding environment has changed, and unstable factors are spreading in the shadows."
"I can't help but think back to more than a hundred years ago, when the three of us brothers were still apprentices, the Iron Throne crisis that almost destroyed Baldur's Gate started with the rise in iron ore prices."
The Iron Throne Crisis, one of the most significant historical events in Baldur's Gate.
Back then, the Iron Throne's leader, Shalovak, who was also the brother of Apodel Adrian, the son of Baal and the former High Duke of Baldur's Gate... and his uncle... destroyed the mines of Nashka in order to provoke a war between Baldur's Gate and the Amn Empire.
Both then and now, Nashka is the main source of iron ore for Baldur's Gate and the Amn Empire.
If iron ore becomes scarce, the Baldur's Gate and the Amn Empire are highly likely to go to war over it.
War causes a large number of deaths, and Salofok believed that this would make him a god, while also satisfying his bloodlust.
It was Apodel Adrian, along with his teammates including the high-ranking harpist Jahira and the berserker Minsk, who thwarted the plot to seize the Iron Throne and became the hero who saved Baldur's Gate.
"Baldur's Gate is never short of crises," Gough continued. "Buddy, the price of steel might rise even higher in the future."
"If you really need to craft alchemical equipment, you should decide now."
Ronan felt that what Guf said was true, and after thinking about it, he realized that the situation for Baldur's Gate in the near future was indeed not optimistic. So, he finalized the deal.
Then, Guf had his human assistant draft two identical contracts.
Baldur's Gate, as a trading city, is highly committed to the spirit of contracts.
The supreme governing body of Baldur's Gate is a four-person council composed of four Grand Dukes.
The council, composed of the committee and the upper-level district officials, formulated the Basic Law, which serves as the legislative basis for all subordinate laws.
Baldur's Gate has a courtroom specifically for trying criminals.
However, Baldur's Gate's political power only extends to Baldur's Gate and the surrounding area. If a criminal escapes Baldur's Gate, the Baldur's Gate law enforcement officers are powerless to stop them.
The same applies to other countries and cities.
At this point, the intervention of the gods is necessary.
People are accustomed to swear an oath together in the name of Woking, the god of wealth and trade, when signing contracts.
People would believe that Woking could hear oaths, and that if a person broke a covenant, Woking could pass on that person's name to Woking priests throughout Faerûn.
The Woking pastors spread the word about this man's bad deeds to the locals, and naturally no one dared to do business with him.
Ronan glanced at the contracts, confirmed that there was nothing wrong with either of them, then first signed his name with a quill pen, and then dipped his palm in red clay to make a fingerprint.
Guf did the same, and at the same time, he stamped it with the dwarf family's unique emblem.
Ronan noticed that the dwarf hadn't stamped the "Blue Flame Hammer" seal, but instead had stamped the family crest, which showed that the dwarf was truly honest.
Because if Gough breaks the contract, not only will the reputation of "Blue Flame Hammer" be damaged, but also the prestige of his dwarven family.
Family reputation is far more important than the reputation of a shop.
Then, as was customary, the two swore an oath in the name of Woking.
After signing the contract, Ronan paid a deposit of 2400 gold coins as stipulated in the contract.
Generally, blacksmith shops only accept a 10% deposit.
However, considering that Ronan's alchemy equipment was too special, once it was forged, Ronan would breach the contract, and the blacksmith shop would have nowhere to use it and no one would buy it. Therefore, the deposit was doubled.
After Ronan put a contract into his dimensional bag, he left the "Blue Flame Hammer" blacksmith shop and returned home. Based on the "Heavenly Book," he drew a blueprint for a pill furnace and then gave it to Guf at the "Blue Flame Hammer" shop.
Once the matter of forging the alchemy furnace was settled, he needed to find a place to put it.
So he went to the Blushing Mermaid Tavern and found the real estate agent who had shown him the apartment before.
Because in his previous mission about "giant spiders appearing in underground passages," the employer-merchant Rhys had been ripped off by a middleman—
After discovering the giant spider in the underground passage, Rhys tried to find a middleman, but couldn't find anyone.
Therefore, Ronan became more cautious after contacting this agent.
He secretly followed this agent and discovered—
The broker has two sons and a daughter who are learning writing and grammar from a retired scribe.
The real estate agent's wife does housework at home during the week, and in her spare time, she helps neighbors take care of their children to earn extra money.
He felt that the agent was already well-established in Bodgate and had children and a wife. If he broke the law, his family would lose its breadwinner, so the possibility of him being cheated was unlikely. That's why he felt comfortable letting the agent introduce him to houses.
The agent's name was "York Paterson," a thin, Mediterranean man in his forties with some graying hair.
Led by York, Ronan revisited the house he had seen before, the one with the ventilated basement.
He compared the house's size, location, and the construction quality of the basement.
Then, based on the feng shui knowledge recorded in the "Heavenly Book," I compared the feng shui of each house.
Finally, after considering the quotes and some deliberation, I chose a house located in a crowded side street, with a floor area of 120 square meters, far from the sea and close to the uptown area.
The monthly rent is 20 gold coins, payable for two years upfront. If the house is sold within two years, six months' worth of gold coins will be refunded as compensation.
Ronan thought it was reasonable, so he signed the contract, put his fingerprint on it, and, following the usual procedure, the two swore an oath to Woking.
After the contract was signed, York gave Ronan the keys and took his leave.
Ronan stood in the house, looking around.
The house is well-decorated and fully furnished—with a rocking chair, sofa, dining table, wardrobe, etc.—all made of oak, which looks very durable.
Moreover, York said that they hire someone to clean the house every now and then, so the house is very clean now.
He only needs to bring some items from his old residence, and he can move in directly.