Beastmen: She Tames the Land-Chapter 109: The scent of a new trade

The delegation returns and they were all smiles.

It was apparent to anyone that the trade had gone well. Looking at the cart, they could also see the things the River Clan had given to them. The new pottery was clearly much stronger. These were washed just like the others and put in the warehouse for later use.

When they returned, Kaelen came forward to report. "The River Clan is willing to have us travel with them. They are not planning to trade in cement right now. They want to use it make pottery and to change their dwellings."

He continued, "They plan to go trading with other tribes in the next new moon. If we are planning to join them, we need to arrive at their clan the day before they set off. They will leave space for us on their raft."

Uri nodded, "Good. Now go back and get some rest."

The trio sat together talking about the pack. They knew that after they went trading with the River Clan, there would be more eyes on them. They needed to be careful, but they also needed to prove themselves useful. This way, people would be more likely to see them as allies.

As long as no one had any evil intentions, the pack would be able to flourish under these trade routes.

"We need more trade goods," Uri stated. "The flare crystals cannot always be used. Cement is fine, but we need something else."

Visha sat beside them, grinding herbs in a mortar. "What can we use? The only unique thing we have so far is cement. Unless you want to start selling herbs." Visha gestured to the herbs beside her.

The conversation reached a lull. They weren’t sure what to trade in. It wasn’t until Visha was mixing the herbs that Xeno stood up suddenly.

"Spices!" he exclaimed.

Uri and Visha looked at him, confused. He continued. "We can sell spices. Shasha, your food is the most delicious after you put spices on it. Why can’t we use the spices you make and sell them?"

"Don’t tribes already use spices?" Visha asked.

"Not like yours. Didn’t you notice that the only thing the River Clan uses is salt? The Tiger tribe also only uses salt," Xeno exclaimed.

Visha hadn’t been around many other tribes. She didn’t know what kind of spices they did or didn’t use. She turned to Uri, wondering if the snake tribe used spices. When she saw Uri shake his head, her eyes went wide in disbelief.

She couldn’t help but think about the rest of the Beast Continent. Does everyone only use salt on their food? She didn’t believe it. There must be someone, somewhere, who uses something more than just salt.

"I don’t believe that. Don’t priests use herbs to perform rituals? Don’t they use them in people’s diets?" Visha’s eyes flickered from the two men to the herbs she had just ground.

These were herbs she would put in the seasoning she made for when they cook at home. She didn’t give them to the other members of the pack because she would normally give them calming tea leaves.

This was for Visha’s personal stash. It not only keeps them strong but also...lessens the sex drive. She isn’t proud of it, but she felt that if she didn’t desensitize them, she feared she would be walking around plugged at all hours of the day.

Her fear wasn’t irrational. During the time she has been here, she can’t count the number of times she has heard the people in the pack having sex. There aren’t that many couples, but these people are willing to do it any time, anywhere.

The most private of the bunch is Krag and Chi, but Visha still remembered hearing them once. Usually, it wouldn’t be strange, but when she heard the sound coming from above, she couldn’t help but check. There, she found them having sex in a tree.

Visha could only think to herself that it was a very sturdy tree.

"I’ve never heard of priests using herbs in food," Xeno responded. "It’s only ever for rituals and blessings."

She turned to Uri and asked, "What do you think?"

"I think the best person to ask is Kaelen. His eagle tribe would know much more about what and how other people eat. I can only say for the snake tribe, they either use salt or a sweet fruit to flavour the food."

Since Uri suggested Kaelen, they waited until he had finished his usual aerial patrol to call him over. They asked whether he knew of any tribes that use seasoning to make the food taste better.

He advised them that there were some he knew that would use different fruits and grasses to enhance the flavour of food, but he had never met one like ours. The myriad of herbs and plants that Visha uses to create different flavour profiles isn’t the norm in the parts of the Beast Continent that he knows of.

But he could only refer to the eastern section of the continent.

The trio didn’t think there was anything wrong with the information Kaelen had shared. If it was right, they would have a new market to exploit. All the pack members could contribute. They could trade the things they want for their own homemade spices.

Visha shared the idea with Uri and Xeno. "What do you think about making the spice trade an individual or family thing? Each family makes their own spices, and they can trade them for whatever they like. Cement would be a pack trade. We can use it to exchange for things the pack needs."

"I am not sure that would be viable. We would need to have something else to trade when the demand for cement lessens," Uri responded.

"Then let’s do both. We make one with a uniform taste for pack sales, and everyone can make their own kinds of spices from home," Xeno said.

"I think it could work," Visha replied enthusiastically.

Xeno and Visha waited for Uri to confirm or deny. They didn’t need a unanimous vote, but they wanted each of their voices to be heard.

It didn’t take long for Uri to respond and when he did, Visha and Uri both smiled.