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Chapter 350 haggler and swindler

"Hi, how are you doing?" Kevin smiled and greeted back.

"Just fine," he replied with the same forced smile. "And you?"

"Just fine too. So, what can I do for you today?" Kevin asked with a smile.

James hesitated, glancing at the other customers before speaking. "I heard you have unique products from the Den?"

Kevin found his behavior a bit strange. He thought it might be related to the condition James was in. He wanted to ask what had happened to him, but remembering how this fellow had swindled him before, he refrained and just dealt with him simply. "Yeah, we have some."

"Then, would you have some Shadowcrest Lupin bones?" James asked with a bit of excitement.

Kevin nodded with a smile and said, "You're in luck, Mr. Jameson. We have plenty of them. How much do you need?"

James's eyes lit up with excitement. "I need about 100 kg of them."

Kevin shook his head gently. "I can't sell them by weight like that, Mr. Jameson. Each piece of bone has a different price based on its size and quality. What I can do is take out enough bones to measure up to 100 kg, but you'll need to pay for each piece individually."

"That's fine, please pack them," the alchemist said, then added, "but only the low-quality ones. They'll do."

"Will do." Kevin nodded with excitement, knowing this order would bring in a few thousand omnitokens. He turned to Sia and Amy, but seeing them busy with customers, he turned back to James and said, "Give me a few minutes to get them ready."

"No worries, take your time," James replied with a smile.

Kevin went to his makeshift office, tempted to slip in some higher-quality bones, but he knew trust was crucial for business. He gathered the smallest, lowest-quality bones, each worth only 10 to 15 tokens. There were about 30 of them, each weighing between a few hundred grams to a kilo, totaling 27 kg. Then he added some larger bones to complete 100 kg.

After calculating the price, it came to just under 3000 tokens—2989 omnitokens to be exact. It was enough to excite him as he got closer to meeting the store upgrade requirement.

He wrapped the bones in a large piece of cloth provided by the system for such purposes and placed it in front of James. "Here you go," he said.

James, still wearing an excited smile, began inspecting each bone. Kevin waited patiently for him to finish. When James finally seemed satisfied, he said, "That will be 448,350 units."

The smile on James's face faded a bit as he asked in a lower tone, "Can't I get a discount?"

Kevin shook his head, still smiling. "You know I sell stuff way below market price, and you're asking for a discount? Come on, Mr. James, no can do." He pushed the bones back toward him.

James's smile turned a bit awkward. "Yeah, I get it, but I don't have that much cash on me."

Kevin shrugged, not too bothered. "No worries. Just buy what you can afford."

James sighed, clearly disappointed but not giving up. "Look, Kevin, how about a small discount? I'm a regular customer, after all."

Kevin raised an eyebrow and in his mind 'A regular who sort of swindle me before,' while shaking his head in no.

James winced, but kept pushing. "Times are tough right now. I'm barely scraping by. Can you cut me some slack this one time?"

Kevin leaned back, crossing his arms. "I get it, but I can't go any lower. The prices are already rock bottom. If I start giving discounts, I won't be able to keep the shop running."

James looked around, then leaned in closer, lowering his voice. "How about a trade? I've got some rare herbs and potions that might interest you."

Kevin considered this for a moment, then shook his head. "Unless you have something really special, it's gotta be cash."

James sighed again, clearly frustrated. "Alright, how about this

—I'll take half the bones now, and I'll come back with the rest of the money next week?"

Kevin frowned. "I don't do credit, Mr James. Cash on delivery."

James ran a hand through his unkempt hair, clearly desperate. "Come on, Mr Morrison. Help a guy out. I'll owe you one."

Kevin stood firm. "Sorry, man. Business is business. I can't risk it."

James threw up his hands in exasperation. "Okay, okay. Let's see... I've got 200,000 on me. Can you pack bones worth that much?"

Kevin nodded. "That, I can do." He started to separate the bones, calculating as he went. "200,000 worth coming up."

As Kevin packed the bones, James stood by, clearly still hoping for a better deal. "You know, Mr Morrison, if you ever need a favor... I'm your guy."

Kevin glanced up, smirking. "I'll keep that in mind. But for now, let's stick to cash."

A few minutes later, Kevin handed over the wrapped bones. "Here you go. 200,000 worth."

James counted the bones, then reluctantly sent over the money. "Thanks, Mr Morrison. I appreciate it."

Kevin nodded, receiving the money. "No problem. See you around, Mr James."

"Who was that guy?" Amy asked, coming toward Kevin after finishing up with a customer who had just purchased some herbs.

"My first customer," Kevin replied, thinking about his encounter with James. As far as he knew, alchemists typically lived quite comfortably, able to produce money in the form of their potions and other products. So how had this one fallen so low that he had to haggle and swindle people?