POV: Sena
Sena did not like guessing. She preferred patterns, things she could make sense of, measure and test until they stopped surprising her. Over the last two days, while the others had been focused on movement, scouting, and not dying in Zone 4, Sena had been watching something else entirely.
The Gems.
Not just collecting them. Studying them.
She had kept count of every Soul Gem Nara's army produced, every upgrade Nara performed, every shift in strength that followed. At first, it had looked like simple progression. Feed a creature, make it stronger, get better results.
But it wasn't that simple.
It was scaling.
And scaling meant profit.
Sena crouched on a low rock just outside their temporary camp, a flat piece of broken stone she had claimed as her working spot. In front of her, she had arranged three Soul Gems. All from the same type of creature. All gathered within the same day.
They were not equal.
She picked up the smallest one, rolling it between her fingers. Dull glow. Weak resonance. Standard output.
Then she set it down and picked up the second. Brighter. Denser. The energy inside it pressed more firmly against her senses.
The third one was the real point.
It pulsed.
Not wildly, not unstable, but with a quiet weight that made the difference obvious.
Same creature type.
Different value.
Sena smiled slightly.
"Of course," she murmured to herself. "It compounds."
She didn't need a System panel to confirm it, but one flickered anyway as she focused.
[Soul Gem — Lesser Beast]Quality: Low
She dismissed it and picked up the next.
[Soul Gem — Lesser Beast]Quality: Refined
The last one lingered longer in her hand.
[Soul Gem — Lesser Beast]Quality: Enhanced
Same origin.
Not the same price.
Sena leaned back slightly, her thoughts moving fast now. Most traders in Zones 4 and 5 treated Soul Gems like a stable commodity. Fixed ranges. Predictable returns. You hunted, you sold, you moved on.
But that was because they didn't control the production.
Nara did.
That was the difference.
Nara didn't just collect Gems. She created stronger creatures, and stronger creatures produced better Gems. That turned a basic supply chain into something much more valuable.
It turned it into a system.
Sena tapped one finger lightly against the Enhanced Gem, her smile sharpening.
"And systems," she said under her breath, "can be scaled."
That was when she stood.
No hesitation, no second guessing. Once the numbers made sense, action followed. She gathered the three Gems and walked toward Nara, who was seated a short distance away, reviewing something with Rhen.
Nara looked up as Sena approached.
Sena didn't waste time.
"I've finished the analysis," she said.
Rhen groaned softly. "That sounds expensive already."
Sena ignored him completely and focused on Nara.
"Your army produces Soul Gems that increase in value as the creatures grow stronger," she said, holding up the three Gems in sequence. "Same source. Different outputs. The difference is your upgrade method."
Nara's gaze shifted to the Gems, then back to Sena. "I noticed the difference."
"You noticed it," Sena agreed. "I quantified it."
She crouched down and placed the Gems between them.
"The market in Zones 4 and 5 doesn't account for controlled scaling. They price based on average output, not potential output. That means you are currently sitting on something far more valuable than what you're selling."
Rhen leaned forward slightly despite himself. "How much more valuable?"
Sena didn't even look at him. "Enough that you would stop asking questions and start worrying about who else figures it out."
That shut him up.
She continued, her tone calm and precise. "If we continue the current pattern, your army will naturally produce higher quality Gems over time. But that's slow. Inefficient. You are relying on natural progression."
Nara's eyes narrowed slightly. "And you don't like inefficient."
"I don't tolerate it," Sena corrected.
She tapped the Enhanced Gem lightly.
"You can accelerate this. Feed your creatures better Gems, force faster growth, produce higher-tier Gems sooner. That creates a loop. Investment in, higher returns out."
Nara didn't interrupt. That was a good sign.
Sena straightened slightly.
"I have contacts in the Zone 4 and Zone 5 markets," she said. "Reliable ones. I can acquire Soul Gems in bulk. Not the best quality, but enough to fuel upgrades."
Rhen frowned. "You want to spend resources to make resources?"
"Yes," Sena said simply. "Because this doesn't stay even. It scales upward."
She held Nara's gaze.
"I fund the upgrades. You grow the army faster. The army produces higher value Gems. We sell those Gems. Profit increases with each cycle."
Nara was quiet for a moment.
Then she asked the only question that mattered.
"What's your share?"
Sena didn't hesitate. She had already calculated it.
"Forty percent of all generated Soul Gem value tied to my supplied investments."
Rhen choked. "Forty—"
Nara raised a hand slightly, cutting him off without looking at him.
Her eyes stayed on Sena.
"No," Nara said.
Sena expected that.
"Thirty-five," Sena replied immediately.
"Twenty."
Sena tilted her head slightly. "That's not a counter-offer. That's an insult."
"It's a starting point," Nara said calmly.
Sena studied her for a second, then nodded once. "Then we start properly. Thirty-two."
"Twenty-two."
"Thirty."
"Twenty-five."
Rhen looked between them like he had walked into something he did not understand and was not sure he wanted to.
"You're negotiating over imaginary money," he muttered.
Neither of them acknowledged him.
"Twenty-eight," Sena said.
"Twenty-six," Nara replied.
Sena paused.
So did Nara.
They held each other's gaze for a few seconds, both of them running the same calculation in different ways.
Risk.
Control.
Future value.
Sena exhaled slowly. "Twenty-seven. Final."
Nara didn't answer immediately.
Then she said, "Done."
Neither of them looked satisfied.
That was how Sena knew the deal was fair.
She extended her hand. Nara looked at it for a moment, then took it. The grip was firm, brief, and final.
Agreement reached.
From above them, a voice drifted down.
"You just let a werewolf merchant take a cut of your army."
Varyn.
He was stretched along a thick branch overhead, watching the entire exchange with quiet interest.
Nara didn't look up. "Yes."
"Why?"
Sena didn't turn either, but she listened closely.
Nara's answer came without hesitation.
"Because I need someone who understands markets," she said. "And because she was going to do this anyway. This way, I know the terms."
Varyn was quiet for a moment.
Sena finally glanced up.
He had a certain look on his face. Subtle, controlled, but there. She recognized it immediately.
She had seen it before.
It was the expression he got when something impressed him and he didn't want to admit it out loud.
Sena smiled faintly to herself and looked back at the Gems.
Nara, as expected, hadn't noticed it at all.