After parting ways with Mia, Cassandra did what she thought to be the best course of action. First, check what is available and then check what people need. With some luck she could get stuff that people didn't realize they needed and sell it.
She would have to do it without any personalized protection. But if anyone tried to attack her, she could at least run away safely and any retribution that comes back is not her problem.
As she looked around, she was sad at how little food there was in the emergency warehouse. She never really knew what true hunger was but as a merchant she knew that food was one of the basic necessities of life and not having enough would mean death.
After leaving the warehouse, she gently asked for a few guards to accompany her around the city and a few came forward with a carriage. She gave them a few coins and asked for a tour of the city.
It took a few hours but she got a good grasp of what was happening. A few merchants were being given special privileges while others were being barred at almost every point. Only by the end of the tour some resolution to what was happening came to pass when something that Cassandra could identify as the work of Katia appeared everywhere saying that anyone could sell pretty much anything not illegal without permits.
A lot of small merchants opened their doors, bars that were closed opened and some semblance of happiness began to slowly spread.
She quickly found some promising place in the city and made contact with a few merchants there so she could supply them some of the food she brought with her, for a price of course, or in this case, a share of the profits since most small merchants didn’t have cash on hand to buy supplies the normal way.
She went back to the warehouse and distributed the food after making the merchants sign a few contracts. Onyx was a smart dog and hid in the shadows while that happened so no one became scared of him.
As the daylight began to fade, a group of people that Cassandra identified as nobles and their guards approached her as she was checking her stock in the warehouse.
“I heard that you have some good products, little girl. We will allow you the honor of making a deal with us. We will give you 3 gold for your entire stock.” A pompous fat man said. Cassandra could just laugh at the proposition. She had well over 30 gold of food here to sell if she sold at the bare minimum and ignored the food for her class.
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“What is so funny?” Another noble asked.
“First, that is too low. Second, I refuse to make deals with the people who made the situation as bad as it was to begin with. Third, you don’t scare me enough to ignore the last two points.” She said as she continued to count a few fruits. Cassandra didn’t exactly know that they were the ones that were giving special privileges to some merchants but no one, all day, came even close to what those people were trying to do. So it had to be them, at least was what her instincts said.
“You little wretch! Guards, show her her place!” The first noble said.
“GENTLEMEN!” Katia screamed as loud as she could, making the noble’s guards stop for a moment. “If you come any closer I can’t guarantee your safety. If you somehow reach me I can’t guarantee that any of you will live for much longer, no matter who you are.” The last statement going to the nobles.
“You little bitch! Kill her!” One of the nobles shouted and the guards complied.
As one of the guards passed the line that designated the area to be used by her, Onyx suddenly appeared, as if emerging from the shadows and bit the leg of the guard clean off.
Onyx was always very docile, calm and somewhat cute as far as Cassandra saw him but at that moment she understood that like Mia, Onyx was a terrifying creature with a facade that masked it. Even knowing that he was protecting her, she couldn’t help but be a little afraid.
As for the nobles and guards, all they could see was a giant tamed monster wolf that made them consider every decision they ever made. Onyx emanated an aura that made those afraid of him see him like a wolf straight from hell.
One guard, in a panic, tried to attack Onyx with a halberd only to find himself missing his two arms from a slash coming from Onyx’s claws along with part of the armor in his torso.
“RUN!RUN!” All of the offenders said in some way as they grabbed the injured. And as fast as they went Onyx came back to normal.
“You know,.. you are as terrifying as your owner.” Cassandra said to Onyx.
“Woof!” The wolf said and licked her face to show that he wasn’t going to harm her. Strangely enough there wasn’t a speck of blood anywhere.
“Well, I need to finish this so I am ready for tomorrow. I will make sure to make someone deliver a good piece of meat to you.”
“Woof!”
Little did Cassandra know that what happened that day would be the catalyst for a boom in commerce in the city. The nobles left the city in a hurry, ignoring everything happening around them. When they passed by the next city word came that the roads were open again and an influx of people and goods would soon arrive at the destroyed coastal city.