She was right actually. A million gold for one ship, which meant ten million gold for ten ships. It was a big amount of money for someone to have, even if you were an alpha.
Ten Million gold was more than half of the River Creek pack’s wealth and her pack was the richest. They talked about a pack’s wealth, not personal wealth.
That was why Zuri questioned the money.
“Where did you get the money from?” Zuri narrowed her eyes.
Khaos narrowed his eyes. This woman was smart and observant. Women didn’t usually understand business. “You are too observant for your own good.”
That was the only thing that Khaos said. He didn’t answer her question and Zuri didn’t prod further. Her mind was clear now and she kept her medicine with her, just in case she went crazy again. She didn’t need those voices in her head when she needed to focus on this deal.
“What do you need those ships for?”
“To deliver meat.”
As shifters, they were obviously meat eaters, but livestock couldn’t live here. Only certain animals could live on this continent, wolves included. And then they couldn’t eat the monsters. Their flesh was toxic to them.
The reason why livestock couldn’t live on this continent was because of the monsters. Even if by any chance you could keep the livestock safe from the monster attack, they would eventually die, because apparently cattle and such couldn’t eat anything that came from this continent and to have the feed delivered from another continent would cost more.
“I see, you need to feed your warriors,” Zuri commented flippantly, she stared out of the window, while Khaos stared at her.
“Why ten? You don’t need that many ships for delivering meat. One is enough.” Zuri shifted her gaze back to him and he smirked. There was something in the way he smirked that made her curious about what he was thinking.
This alpha looked approachable, but at the same time, he was cold and nonchalant.
“The less you know, the better. You only need to hold the end of your deal and I will hold mine.”
And with that, the rest of the journey was quiet. They arrived at Lumicen city. The city that was the closest to the border of the Wolfdale Kingdom.
There were many people from the Wolfdale kingdom here, especially the merchants. This was a big city and one of the active ones for trading.
Khaos had prepared everything. He came under the guise of a merchant, and Zuri, she was his wife.
“Wife?!” Zuri was annoyed when she learned about it, she thought she didn’t need an identity for this. She could be an advisor, but he would introduce her as his wife?
“Hm.” Khaos nodded calmly. “The merchants here are mostly non-shifters and they use the
term wife for their partner,” he explained.
“I know the meaning of ‘wife’!”
“I don’t need an explanation, I know what it means!” Zuri was exasperated. “Why should I be your wife?”
“Last minute decision and technically speaking, it will be less complicated if you were there to join the discussion as my wife.” Khaos didn’t seem to take this seriously. He continued flipping through the few reports that Caiden had given him an hour ago.
Out there, Lumicen city was as busy as usual. Zuri had been here with her father a year ago to help with his business. Of course, she would always remain in the shadows while her father basked in the spotlight for the success of the deals she secured.
She thought Khaos would do the same thing, therefore, she didn’t ask for further details about her role in this meeting, but as it turned out, he wanted to push her into the ‘Frontlines’. She didn’t feel right about this arrangement.
“And we will sleep in the same room?”
“People in marriage do not usually sleep in separate rooms, so yes.” Khaos tilted his head and that smirk returned. “Don’t worry, you can take the sofa and I will take the bed.”
Zuri scrunched her nose when she heard that. “Shouldn’t you be the one to sleep on the sofa? A real man will do that”
“I am a beast, not a man.” He scoffed and turned his attention back to the report.
“Don’t you dare to do anything silly to me.” Zuri glared threateningly at him, but it didn’t have the effect she wanted. Khaos simply smiled at her attempt.
“I will not do anything, until you want me to do something to you.”
Zuri rolled her eyes, after she spent two days with him, she got a hold of his character a little bit. This man flirted as easily as if he was talking about the weather. His personality also changed constantly.
One minute he could be very flirtatious, but the next minute he could be very serious, scary
even.
They finally arrived at the inn they would stay for three nights, Khaos exited the carriage first and helped her down.
A bald man then escorted them to their room. It was a master bedroom with ample space and an en-suite bathroom. The room was separated into three sections, a dining area, a living area and a bedroom.
“I am not sleeping on the sofa,” Zuri declared. The sofa was comfortable enough for you to sleep, but there was no way she would sleep there. How could a man let a woman sleep on the sofa?
“Well, in that case, you are welcome to sleep on the bed with me. I don’t mind sharing.”
“You are so shameless!”
“I paid for this room.”
Zuri’s jaw dropped, she couldn’t believe that he was being petty with her. “Do you think I can’t pay for my own room?”
“No. Because you didn’t bring anything with you. You don’t have money on you, Luna.” Khaos pressed his lips to see how furious she was. Her face turned red, the flush spread to the tips of her ears.
Actually, that was true, Zuri left without bringing any money with her. One of the many bad things that could happen to you when you had been living a sheltered life was; you wouldn’t pay attention to such simple, crucial things.
“Where are you going?” Zuri asked when Khaos walked away during their argumentation.
“I am going to take a bath, do you want to join me?”
Zuri gasped at his audacity. From the looks of it, it was not a good idea to accept his deal so carelessly. But at that time, when she was so caught up in her little rebellion, it felt like the right thing for her to do.
Now that the high was gone, she started questioning everything.
In the end, she could only sit there quietly. She went to the balcony and looked at the city out there. It was full of life. She remembered the first time she came here. She was ten years old. A year after her father discovered her talent in business.
The city was bustling with countless attractions and because it was so close to the neighboring kingdom, the traditions of both kingdoms merged into one, creating a new tradition.
If there was one thing that her father was good at, it was recognizing talent when he saw it. Therefore, he had been quite disappointed that it was not one of his sons who had this talent, but his only daughter. He couldn’t put Zuri in the spotlight and give her the credit because she
was a woman.
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