The Magic Empire for 20,000 years

Chapter 165 It's better to buy than to build, and better to rent than to buy!
Doron lowered his head, seriously considering whether he should pay an extra silver coin to support domestically produced goods.

“Recently, I helped my tutor transcribe scrolls and earned quite a bit of money. Now I have plenty in my pocket.”

"This time, we only need to pay one more silver coin to support our own elven kingdom's industries."

"Under normal circumstances, this kind of arcane ink produced in the Elven Kingdom itself would probably cost more than one gold coin."

"Let's go all out and support the creation of elves!"

In a flash, Doron bid on six silver coins:
"I want this ink made in the Elven Kingdom. Please give it to me."

The Moon Elf shop assistant handed over the ink bottle with a smile:

"Okay. Thanks for supporting Elf Goods!"

Watching the over 100-year-old child leave, the Moon Elf shop assistant shrugged.

Young kids are so easily swayed by these kinds of emotions...

In fact, the raw material for these two bottles of ink—the blood of wyverns—all came from the wyvern breeding base in the Emerald Mountains south of Eldoron.

The specific alchemical preparation process was also carried out by the alchemists of Eldoron.

The Sun Elf's Magic Item Workshop is mainly responsible for the final bottling process!

……

In this way, a large number of goods, which were actually produced by Eldoron and branded by various elven magic item manufacturing workshops, circulated in various towns and cities of the elven kingdom and were widely sought after by elven consumers.

Of course, some astute consumers noticed the problem and raised questions:
In the entire production process, what exactly is the role of the human kingdom of Eldoron?

However, defining the proportion of "human-made" and "elf-made" products has become a challenge.

It is conceivable that as trade and interaction became increasingly close, Eldoron grew richer day by day, and its production capacity became stronger and stronger. It would become increasingly difficult for a product to completely shed the "Made in Eldoron" label.

……

The 19th year of the Empire.

Inside the Golden Petal family's manor.

In the center of a flower field surrounded by countless golden blossoms, inside a magnificent mansion.

Inside the spacious and magnificent hall, several high-ranking members of the Golden Petal Family sat around.

Everyone's face was solemn, and the air was filled with a suffocating atmosphere, as if a giant mountain was pressing down on everyone's hearts.

An elven elder with a gloomy face finally broke the silence and spoke first:

"Under the impact of Eldoron's industries, our family's potion-making and artifact manufacturing industries are declining more and more."

"Although in the past year, the magical item manufacturing workshops belonging to our family have been importing some semi-finished magical items from Eldoron, which are then finished by our elven kingdom. Only in this way can we maintain a competitive price in the market."

"However, under this production model, we found that the lower the proportion of products made by elves and the higher the proportion made by Eldorans, the greater the profit."

"If this continues, our nearly 2000-year-old magical item manufacturing industry will eventually become a vassal state that merely labels Eldoron!"

At this point, the elven elders all sighed softly.

I'm not reconciled...

Someone suggested:
“Our family’s legendary mage, the esteemed Mr. Alamir, is currently serving as a court mage in Her Majesty’s court. Could you perhaps ask him to persuade Her Majesty to raise the tariffs on imported goods from Eldoron even further?”

"In this way, perhaps our products, which are manufactured entirely in-house by the elves, will be able to compete with those manufactured by Eldor."

Another elven elder shook his head:
"That might not be a good idea."

"After all, we are now also in the business of processing semi-finished magical items in Eldoron. Our main competitors are actually other Sun Elf families that are also in the business of rebranding."

“Simply raising tariffs on Eldoron may not be beneficial to the family.”

Another elven elder had an even longer-term vision and was even more radical:
"This can't go on any longer. The great Golden Petal family cannot be reduced to mere appendages, branding human products!"

"My suggestion is that we should abandon traditional handcrafting techniques as soon as possible and learn from and emulate Eldoron's production model."

"For example, we should also learn that [Divine Craftsmanship] spell. We need to train a group of production mages for our family!"

The Elf Kingdom must be independent and self-reliant!

However, the other elven elders looked troubled upon hearing this suggestion.

"No, no, are we really going to abandon the skills passed down through generations and learn human things? If we do that, we'll surely be ridiculed by the gods of Avangard!"

"To achieve the production efficiency of Eldoron, mages must be highly proficient in the [Masterful Craftsmanship] spell. At the same time, the caster must also have the skill to create the corresponding items, even without magic."

"In other words, this monk also needs to learn the skills of a carpenter, blacksmith, or craftsman."

"In our elven kingdom, the mages responsible for the final enchanting process are two different groups of people, while those who make staves and trim them earlier are different groups of people."

"Given our slower pace of life and learning compared to humans, it would take us elves countless years to cultivate a group of production mages comparable to those of Eldoron!" An elven elder beside him echoed.

"Yes, by the time we succeed, who knows if humanity will invent a new production model?"

Another elven elder also said:

“I also support their argument. Our family can already make enough profit by doing post-production processing of magical items. Why take the risk of investing heavily to imitate human production methods?”

It's better to buy than to build, and better to rent than to buy.

—This was a scheme that Elian had already devised during the elven delegation's visit!
Over the past year, Elion has intentionally allowed the major Sun Elf families to maintain a decent profit margin when doing OEM business, rather than competing for that portion of the profits.

The purpose was to make them abandon their ideas of independence and autonomy, and to make them more willing to maintain the status quo.

The elven elder who had advised the elves to become independent and completely break free from Eldoron's vassal status, roared in anger upon seeing everyone opposing him:
"Humph!"

"You only see the immediate benefits."

"Centuries later, all the artisans in the entire Elven kingdom will only be able to make OEM products for Eldoron."

"At that time, who did you think would be the hegemon of the mainland?"

These words struck like a bolt from the blue in the spacious and luxurious living room, plunging everyone into silence.

There was a brief silence.

After a short while, as if by unspoken agreement, everyone looked at the elven woman sitting on the edge, who remained silent the entire time.

The legendary priestess of the Golden Petal family, Guillacer Golden Petal.

— In situations like these, where the fate of a family rests on a decision, legends have the most say!
Looking at the intense yet bewildered gazes of the crowd, Guirasser sighed softly, feeling immense pressure.

Nine years ago, when she and Princess Lia led troops to attack the human kingdom of Eldoron, on the battlefield of magical duels, on the night she was captured, she realized that the human race had completely different values ​​and worldviews from the elves.

This godless race views magic and everything in the world from an absolutely utilitarian perspective.

On that night of debate about the gods, how could Guillermo del Toro have imagined:
Today, humanity will just as it is now, overturning the traditions, values, and ways of life that it has been proud of since ancient times.

After a brief moment of thought, Guirasser slowly spoke, from the priest's perspective:
"The gods of Sidrian created us elves. They endowed us with graceful forms, long lifespans, exceptional hearing and vision, and innate magical abilities—gifts unique to us elves."

"Humans do have their own advantages, such as their amazing speed of learning and growth, and their fast-paced lifestyle."

"Therefore, in purely utilitarian fields, in fields that are solely focused on efficiency, it is difficult for us to compete with them."

The next moment, Guirasser raised his head slightly, and the legendary priest's voice became loud and clear:
"However, we Sun Elves also have abilities that humans cannot match!"

"We regard magic, and even life itself, as an art. This is a quality bestowed upon us by our destined fate to go to the Kingdom of God, a quality that humans do not possess."

"I remember that our Sun Elf manufacturing industry was ahead of Eldoran in some areas."

"That is, the fields of art, high-end crafts, fashion design, and other fields that revolve around artistic value."

Mentioning this, the eyes of many elven elders lit up slightly, knowing what Guiraser wanted to express.

"What Guillermo del Toro means is to transform our industries and focus more on high-end crafts and other areas where we have an advantage?"

"After all, we have a hard time competing with Eldoron in the market for inexpensive magical artifacts. Why not focus on what we're good at?"

Guillermo del Toro nodded, one hand on his chest:
"exactly."

"Humans are a race without divine protection, and can only exist in the world by using magic as a tool. But elves have the right to pursue something far beyond that."

“I think this is also the will of the gods.”

……

Under the leadership of Guirasser, the Goldflesh family reformed the direction of their industry, abandoning direct competition with Eldoron and focusing their efforts on crafts—especially high-end crafts—areas where elves had a relative advantage.

The existing business of "importing semi-finished products from Eldorlen and then further processing them" is still ongoing.

However, with the transformation of the industry, the degree of completion of imported semi-finished products is getting higher and higher, and the content of the final product's manufacturing is getting lower and lower, which is getting closer and closer to pure OEM.

To this end, the Goldflesh family also joined forces with other Sun Elf families, including the Radiant family, the Sunflower family, and even the Sunbeam family, which is the royal family.

Six months later, the ten major Elf families jointly introduced the "Elf Craft Master" certification system, selecting craft masters within the Elf Kingdom.

In addition, the various families are also preparing to hold an exchange meeting for painters and fashion designers to jointly develop craftsmanship grading standards, and so on...

Of course, most importantly, it emphasizes the value of design and prohibits humans from piracy and imitation of elven crafts and clothing designs.

It is conceivable that, without external interference, the market in the Elf Kingdom will present a new landscape in the near future:

The handicrafts produced and designed in the Elven Kingdom are renowned, while humans are known for their ability to create inexpensive magical items and everyday goods.

(End of this chapter)