The dwarves' goods were extremely popular, and everything was quickly sold out. This group of dwarves gathered their gold and silver coins and left the marketplace, heading straight out of Hemgart City.

"Aren't those Rangers from the Angland Clan? Looks like Belgar is with them too." Laine said to Surya with interest, "I didn't expect Belgar to bring his clan here."

"His Majesty King Belgar may have a... sense of dignity, but he's not foolish. He's here to investigate market prices and surrounding forces. Actually, ever since he reunited with his clan upon coming to your territory, he's helped us a lot. Dugen wouldn't be able to make the Iron Dragon Cannon; it was His Majesty Belgar who had Harharaver the Gold Digger, the chief engineer of the Angland Clan, teach him," the female knight said softly.

"I know that too. The dwarves originally planned to give you a set of meteorite iron armor, but when I saw my father sent the armor, I had them make a set for my brother instead," Laine whispered.

"Brother? Angerong?" Surya asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Yuri, your brother is my brother, we're family." Laine muttered, "Getting a set of meteorite iron armor for Brother Angerong is a waste. I think it's not much use; Brother Angerong's way of fighting is all about slashing, so it doesn't make much difference whether it's rune mithril plate armor or meteorite plate armor."

"Pfft~" The female knight couldn't help but chuckle, feeling quite delighted in her heart. Although both "your brother" and "brother" refer to Julius, they contain different meanings.

She curiously watched the dwarves leaving the city, then said, "By the way, why did these dwarves come here to sell their wares? Our Brittania also needs dwarf equipment."

"Because those equipments are either inferior goods or defective products." Laine continued to complain, "My relationship with Belgar is quite good; he sells us first-rate goods. But even dwarves inevitably produce some defective products in their production process. These defective products are never used by dwarves; they sell them at a high price to humans. In Dwarf Language, humans are referred to as 'creators of defective products.' But that being said, even dwarf defective products are often better than the crafts made by many human craftsmen."

Laine and his group didn't go up to greet Belgar and his people. They casually strolled around the town for a while before quickly settling in the Oliver Inn within the city.

This is a large three-story inn located in the bustling market area, in a deep alley near the marketplace. Due to the timing (just past the Winter Festival), the inn was relatively quiet. Laine and others greeted the inn owner, who immediately opened the most luxurious suite on the third floor for them to stay.

The group placed their belongings, while Rudolph and Wagner went to seek the Border Count to process the customs clearance documents. After settling in, the Count looked at the inn's wooden floors and animal hides, nodding, "Oliver's business has grown larger over the years."

The Oliver Inn is part of the Oliver Commerce Association. With Laine's support, Oliver has opened many inns in parts of Brittania and the Empire.

Running an inn has many purposes, the greatest of which is not profit but gathering intelligence and internalizing transactions. Hemgart is a border town at Axe Bite Pass, where changes in diplomatic relations and trade tariffs between the Empire and Brittania Kingdom are always first known in Hemgart.

For merchants, gathering information is the most important. That's why Oliver opened inns both at Montefel Castle at Axe Bite Pass and in Hemgart. Axe Bite Pass is the most significant land trade route between the Empire and Brittania. Laine finds the astonishingly high tariffs at Axe Bite Pass frustrating, but he must admit that with the joint efforts of the Empire and Brittania, the security at Axe Bite Pass can be assured.

That's how business works; high risk, high reward; low risk, low reward. People always want low-risk, high-reward investments.

Is there a trade with both low risk and high reward?

There are only two: a scam or a high-level trade with a high threshold.

Just like the trade contract signed between Laine and Tygris, this contract is genuinely low-risk and high-reward. But such a deal is impossible for ordinary merchants to achieve. Human merchants looking to trade with high elves privately might face a sour expression or even a Fireball Technique.

"Oliver's business has grown bigger over the years," Laine overlooked the cloud-enveloped buildings of Hemgart, which is nestled on the mountainside overlooking the checkerboard plains of Rick Territory in the distance—unfortunately, it's winter now, and the mountain's fog makes it impossible to see far away.

"Oh, Oliver! When we first met him in Nord, he was just a small merchant," Teresa dressed in a stylish Brunswick mist gray shoulder-draped frosted dress, her black hair gleaming with tiny flashes cascading behind her, tightened the white bear fur coat she wore. She held a black crocodile leather bag in her hand and said, "Do you remember, Laine?"

Surya and Veronica were both very interested in this matter, asking eagerly.

"Of course, I remember. I can still recall Oliver's outfit back then—it was truly strange." Laine stroked his chin, "I still remember his utterly odd attire, wearing gold and silver yet forcibly armoring himself; when he told me 'time is money.' We were still marching up Scavell Mountain at that time."