Chapter 205 – Ekidos
As I entered the location, my view became filled with the sight of canine subspecies going about their business everywhere. Canines were generally in the same size range as felines, while also being furred. There were, however, noticeable differences between them. Their fur was usually longer and more rough-looking, giving a slightly messy impression. They had bushy tails and erect pointed ears, often in dark colors like grey, black, brown, and so on. Even more so than felines, they were known for their refined senses of smell and hearing.
Taifau’s society was relatively fair but extremely strict. Its most important values were loyalty, discipline, and military might. It was because of these that the ones who couldn’t fit in the mold often deserted, just like the bandits that attacked us in the forest when I first left 82.
I wasn’t the only foreign merchant making my way to the city, and no one was bothered by my arrival. I received a few glances here and there, but these were the usual due to being a “mutant” species that others didn’t recognize. On my side, I discovered a few sea species for the first time. They didn’t exist inland and always lived near seas and oceans, featuring many subspecies, too.
The bustle inside was quite something. It was clear this was a trading metropolis due to the large number of stands and shops that could be seen all over the place. The noise was remarkable too, with clients loudly bargaining for prices and sellers shouting to attract people’s attention to their goods. This was the sort of place I liked, and I felt like an animal fish in water here.
The merchandise sold ranged from the very obvious sea products to minerals, normal food, and basic life necessities, all the way to exotic products from faraway countries. This was heaven for a trader like me. I looked left and right as my carriage moved forward with great difficulty due to the large crowd on the streets.
Eventually, I reached an inn that had a stable and decided to park there for the time being. The price was quite steep, but that wasn’t much of an issue considering my current wealth. After taking care of the not-very-tired horses, I strolled around the place, examining all it had to offer.
There were noisy taverns filled with drunk sailors resting in between two sea trips, but also establishments for richer people, with all the class and services that came with it.
Men and women were going around without any discrimination whatsoever, a stark contrast to how things were in Makji. There were also many groups of very orderly soldiers patrolling the streets, and it felt like this place probably had low crime rates.
Next, I focused on the different goods and shops. Many products weren’t local but still available in large quantities and much cheaper than in Geola, in particular things like spices, ivory, jewelry, and glassware.
However, I soon focused on my main interest. Fish was being sold everywhere, and it almost felt like one in every third merchant was a seafood merchant. To be fair, the demand was as high as the supply, with many traders actively negotiating prices for large stocks of the commodity. Fish was only part of what was being sold here, though. Many other sea creatures were displayed on the stands, most of which I had no idea what they were, what they were called, or if they were any good at all.
While most foreign traders didn’t seem to care too much about freshness, some of them even directly casting the preservation spell right after buying, that wasn’t the case for me. I found one stall that was relatively quiet and approached the orange-furred dealer, who I believed was from a species called culpeo.
“Hello, sir. You’ve got some amazing fish.”
He gave me a good business smile.
“Hey there. It’s the best quality in Ekidos. What do you need? I’ll give you a good price.”
“Well, actually, it’s my first time in the city, so I have no idea what’s good here.”
He frowned a little.
“Everything is good.”
“Of course. I mean, I have a limited budget, so I’m not sure what to get with so much choice.”
He relaxed a little and nodded.
“New merchant, huh? That’s fine. What are you buying for?”
“Makji.”
He scowled again at the mention of the enemy state.
“Silly felines love their fish way too much. Well, it’s good for business.”
He pointed at a few different kinds of fish.
“You should avoid crustaceans, in that case. Just go with fish, especially those three here.”
“What’s their name?”
“Never eaten fish before? This one is salmon, this is cod, and this is redfish. Do you have someone to cast the preservation spell for you?”
“No, but about this, I have a question. How can I get the freshest possible fish in this city?”
He frowned again. This merchant changed expression every other sentence.
“This is all fresh from today. What more do you want?”
“What I mean is, can I buy fish that’s still alive?”
“Still alive? What for?”
“My goal is to get to Makji with fish as fresh as possible.”
He shook his head while sighing.
“Give up on this idea, young man. Do you believe you’re the first one to think about it? It’s impossible in practice. The only way to get fish alive would be to put them in a large basin of seawater and transport all of that to your destination. But it’s not that easy. Carriages become extremely heavy and slow due to the weight of the water. On top of that, just putting the fish into seawater isn’t enough. You need to constantly change the water, or the fish will die very fast. In short, you’d need to transport so much water that it makes your trip back a loss economically.”
“I see. That makes complete sense. Still, is there a way to buy fish that’s still alive here?”
He now looked angry.
“You’re not listening, are you? Go away if you don’t want to buy. You’re wasting my time!”
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