Monopolizing Goods (3)
Andrew and Joshua perked up their ears at Rockefeller's words.
"What is that? I'm curious."
"Me too, I'm curious!"
Without hesitation, Rockefeller told his younger brothers what they were curious about.
"It's called monopolizing goods."
"Monopolizing goods?"
"What is that? I've never heard of it before."
Rockefeller continued to explain.
"Simply put, monopolizing goods means buying up a large amount of a particular item all at once."
Joshua expressed his doubt.
"Why do that? Is there a need to buy so much?"
Andrew was also puzzled.
"If you buy a lot of food ingredients, they'll spoil later, right? That's not good."
"Right. Mercenaries prefer fresh ingredients. That's why they have to buy the necessary ingredients on the day they need them."
"Even for food ingredients, if there's a warehouse that can store them for a long time, it's possible. Since there's magic here, by borrowing the power of magic, you can keep the ingredients fresher and longer than you think."
"Really?"
"Then what's the reason for buying so much?"
"I'm curious too."
"Me too."
Rockefeller began to speak to his brothers again.
"The reason for monopolizing goods is simple. If the price of that item increases significantly, you can make a huge profit. For example, let's say there's an item called A. At first, this item A is so common that it will be traded at a regular price."
"Right, because it's common."
"Yeah, common things are not expensive."
"But then, suddenly, that item A becomes rare. It becomes unavailable in the market and even to the people around you. What will happen to the price of item A?"
Andrew quickly answered the question.
"Of course, it will go up!"
"Right. But what if the person who monopolized that item continues not to release it?"
This time Joshua spoke up.
"Won't the price keep going up? If the person who has the item doesn't release it, the price will continue to rise."
"That's right."
"Or people might look for other items instead..."
"If there are alternatives to item A, the price of item A won't rise much. But what if there's no alternative?"
"There's nothing to replace the item?"
Andrew said with a thoughtful expression.
"Then... you can't control the incredibly high price."
"Right. So what will happen to the person who monopolized that item?"
Finally, Andrew seemed to understand.
"Wouldn't they make a fortune?"
Instead of answering, Rockefeller just nodded his head.
"Yes, they would make a fortune. That's what monopolizing goods is, and I'm interested in it now."
At the mention of making a fortune, Joshua's eyes sparkled.
"So, Rockefeller, what do you want to buy a lot of?"
At the question from his younger brothers, Rockefeller asked back in a calm tone.
This was also important for educating his younger brothers.
"What's the current situation?"
"What's the current situation? Obviously..."
The full-scale battle between the two forces that occurred near their territory was well known to the younger brothers.
Because of that, the mercenary group that had come to subdue the orcs became busier, and additional mercenary groups were hired. There were also continuous stories of building a huge fortress at the border area connected to their territory.
And for a few days now, strange roars had been echoing from the castle, and according to the adults around them, the lord had bought a huge flying monster this time.
It was only recently that they found out it was a wyvern.
In this way, the territory was in a situation close to wartime.
"Orcs and dwarves are about to fight outside the territory."
"Right. That's why everything is so chaotic right now. If we're not careful, we're all in danger, aren't we?"
"The neighbors are also very worried. They wonder if something big will happen to us."
At the brothers' words, Rockefeller nodded lightly.
"You're right. You know it well. The situation is almost like a war now. Although it's not directly related to our Montefeltro territory, it's a situation where we could get caught up in it, just like the adults around us are worried about."
Seeing the worried expressions of his brothers, Rockefeller deliberately smiled faintly.
"But don't worry too much."
"Why? Aren't you worried, Rockefeller?"
"I'm scared..."
Rockefeller was still smiling.
"It's because the lord borrowed a lot of gold coins for this matter. War is ultimately a battle of money. The one with more money always wins."
At that, Andrew expressed his doubt.
"Is it really true that having more money guarantees a win in a war?"
"It's not necessarily true, but in terms of probability, the side with more money is definitely at an advantage. Why? Because having more money improves the sustainability of the war and allows you to purchase better weapons and equipment than your enemy."
"Really?"
"War is all about money. To fight the enemy, you need a lot of troops, and to operate those troops, you need money. Don't you have to pay the hired soldiers a monthly salary?"
"Right. If I were a soldier, I'd only fight if I got paid."
"Me too! If they don't pay me, there's no way. I'll just run away. Why should I fight?"
Rockefeller thought the same.
"Some soldiers may fight for patriotism or other good emotions, but that's very temporary. In the end, if there's no money, the army can't be maintained. Why? Apart from the salary, what about food? First of all, you have to eat to live. But that's also money. Without money, you can't give the soldiers their salaries, food, or even buy them good weapons."
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