Wizards: Starting with Synthetic Gems

Chapter 554 The Market Analyst's Reply to Qingcao Yunze

Locke looked at the witch in front of him with suspicion, and at the badge she wore on her chest, confirming that she was indeed a staff member of the Arthas Shop Alliance system.

Seeing Locke's questioning look and realizing he had misunderstood, the witch said, "I am Scarlett the Witch. I graduated from the Analyst Academy of Quinnjoll University in Cloudweed Wetlands, and unlike other wizards in Arthas, I served as a lecturer mage at the Conjuration School's Space Magic Specialization Academy in Quinnjoll."

"Therefore, I am not only a trading analyst, but also have extensive experience in logistics, and have personally managed more than 10 best-selling products. I am a silver-level trader at Alsace Group."

Locke said, "You misunderstand. I'm not questioning your expertise. It's just that I come from the wizarding lands outside and don't know much about the specifics of the Cloud Marsh Wetlands."

"So I can only understand some of what you're saying."

Scarlett the Witch paused for a moment, then her pretty face flushed slightly. "I'm sorry, I thought you were doubting my abilities like those second-circle wizards. The group is very selective about partners like you, but you partners are also very selective about us traders."

"The so-called traders are just helping you genius breeders sell your products better. There are multiple leaderboards in Arthas, and they have vertical and average ranking structures. The Shop Alliance will not renew contracts with the bottom 30% of products in terms of sales volume each year."

"You know, the contract renewal every two years..."

"Products with poor sales will be removed from the store's shelves, and the store alliance will no longer cooperate with them. But before that, various promotional efforts will cease."

Locke nodded slightly.

Scarlett the Witch crossed her arms and said, “So, traders and you breeders cooperate and complement each other. I am a professional market analyst who graduated from the Prophecy School with a major in Group Prediction Sub-Magic. I have extensive experience in predicting the market, so I can help you sell your products.”

"Of course, this is on the premise that your product quality is good enough and that it is popular."

"Market analysts from the prophetic school can only accurately help your product find its position in the market, but they cannot turn the impossible into the possible."

Locke looked at Scarlett the Witch and said, "That sounds good. But can market behavior be predicted using divination spells?"

"Prophecy spells have huge side effects and their direction is very vague."

Scarlett the Witch looked at Locke with surprise. "You've been exposed to prophetic magic? Most breeders don't have this kind of knowledge."

“You’re right, every prophecy comes with huge side effects. That’s the great drawback of using prophetic magic, but we also have corresponding ‘side effects’ to pay the price for using prophetic magic.”

"Or, we can use prophecy magic cautiously and carefully, limiting the scope of prophecy and never making direct prophecies, in order to reduce the cost we have to pay."

"In short, we could talk about these things for months and still not finish. But we do have professional methods to make predictions as much as possible while minimizing costs."

Scarlett the Witch said, “Nevertheless, the market is still a chaotic system for us. A third-circle wizard in Quinnjoll once published an article in ‘Yan Yu Yun Ze’ that said the business market is a chaotic system, and even if a third-circle wizard makes a prediction at all costs, it is absolutely impossible to really lock the future.”

"Within a chaotic system, anything is possible. We analysts are like blind men touching an elephant, but with our predictive abilities and professional operational capabilities, we can grasp market trends more easily than ordinary wizards."

Locke took out the Wish-Giving Mushroom from his Astral Ring.

Scarlett the Witch raised her right hand and touched the wishing mushroom in his hand. Instantly, the wishing mushroom flashed with a magical light.

Then, a magical image popped up on the wishing mushroom.

The scene depicts numerous Arthas shops. Locke checked and found that Golden Crown Mountain alone has 307 shops affiliated with the Arthas Plantation Alliance, not to mention the Three Swamps.

Locke swiped the page with his finger and discovered a dense array of wizard shops.

Moreover, he also saw many leaderboards.

The leaderboard is divided into several levels: Ring 1, Ring 2, Ring 3, and Ring 4, but you can only see the information in the Ring 1 level leaderboard.

There are rankings at the first-tier level, as well as total sales rankings, best-selling rankings for various categories, and various sales rankings.

Locke glanced at the list and found that the top ten best-selling items were mostly single-item magical plants.

But upon closer reflection, it's easy to understand.

Tactical-grade magical plants are generally not for personal use, but rather for use by a wizarding organization.

Therefore, the quantity purchased is naturally inferior to that of a single magical plant.

Although the development difficulty of tactical-level magical plants is definitely higher than that of single-level magical plants.

Scarlett the Witch pointed at the interface and said, "I've opened Arthas's personal account for you. From now on, every sale of the magical plants you collaborate with Arthas on can be tracked through the Water Hyacinth System."

"Sales, reviews, and information from the rankings."

"Don't pay too much attention to the types of magical plants on the overall sales chart, because the overall sales chart changes every moment. Today wizards may like to use this magical plant, but tomorrow wizards may prefer other magical plants."

Locke understood and nodded slightly, saying, "Okay, I got it."

Scarlett the Witch said, "I also came here to ask you when you can give me your Hydra seeds. After I get the seeds, I need to find a breeder to plant them, and I also have many other things to consider."

"It's the end of July now, and on September 1st, Arthas will be holding a special event, a grand festival. I think if we can make our move during that time, we can definitely take the lead."

“I’ve seen your Hydra Plant. Its ability to create a permanent defensive field is a highlight. I’ve already identified my target customers: the major wizarding academies. My junior traders will be promoting it to them on that day. So I want to get a batch of Hydra Plants as soon as possible.”

"So I'd like to discuss this with you. What do you think? Let's see how the first batch of sales goes, and then decide on the subsequent plans."

"I hope we can all make money."

Locke nodded and said, "No problem, I will provide you with the Hydra seed as soon as possible."

Locke looked at the leaderboard.

Sure enough, I saw that the total sales ranking kept changing the product name. The number one product was actually a special nutrient soil for orchids formulated by a breeder. The product name was followed by the breeder's name and the institution he attended.

Locke glanced at him and discovered that the man came from a medium-sized wizarding organization in Yunze Wetland called the Seven-Colored Nursery.

He quickly realized that this ranking list wasn't a real ranking list, but rather an advertising space called a ranking list. The top item on the list wouldn't be the best thing, but rather the thing that everyone needed most.

Furthermore, the product names on the ranking list change frequently, which suggests that the ranking list is likely an advertising space open to everyone, so it's probably possible to buy it.

However, if you only view this ranking as a source of dynamic information, it's quite useful. It shows you the various breeders and their academies in the Land of Three Swamps, as well as the magical plant varieties they've introduced. It's very helpful for expanding your knowledge.

Locke inquired with Scarlett the Witch and received her confirmation.

Scarlett the Witch said, "The logic of the Arthasian Shop Alliance is different from that of your True Knowledge Institute. The Shop Alliance of the Three Swamps is the most pragmatic!"

"We only do practical things."

“These rankings can indeed be bought with money, and if a product stays on the list for too long, it will be artificially removed from the list because we need to constantly update our product offerings,” Scarlett the Witch said. “Arthas is a highly competitive group that values ​​continuous innovation.”

"Of course, for both us and you, the most important thing is to make money. With a lot of funds, it should be easier for Augustine, the breeder, to do scientific research."

Locke raised an eyebrow.

Indeed, doing scientific research is like diving into the ocean; there is no limit to how much money you can invest.

If you have a lot of money, you can undoubtedly increase your output quickly.

The three main factors limiting one's scientific research progress are: first, one's own limitations; second, lack of personnel; and third, funding.

Improving just one of these aspects can lead to rapid progress in scientific research.

Locke asked curiously, "So, Scarlett the Witch, with your professional analytical skills, how many orders do you think my Hydra can sell and how much profit it can make during the September 1st event?"

Scarlett the Witch said, “I don’t know. I don’t want to lie to you. When I first started as a trader and was in charge of operations, I often tried to tell a wizard the outcome. But reality… always slapped me hard in the face, making me realize that you can only know the result by trying.”

"Until then, nothing I say will make a difference."

"That was just a frivolous promise, and it will only make you think I'm a fraud. In fact, people often say that prophets are frauds."

"Because nobody knows what will happen in the market tomorrow. I once operated a plant-based product that I was very optimistic about, but its sales were not as good as I expected. In the end, the money spent on promotions and cultivation costs actually exceeded the profit."

Scarlett the Witch said, "I also had magical plants that I thought had little chance of success, but who knew that they would make me, the shop alliance, and the breeder of that plant a small fortune."

"Therefore, as a silver-level trader, I dare not say that I can predict in advance how much your magical plant will sell for."

Scarlett the Witch said to Locke, "Moreover, your magical plant is a tactical-level magical plant, which is inherently very difficult to operate. Fortunately, it's not a campaign-level magical plant, or even a strategic-level magical plant, otherwise it would be even harder for me to sell it."

Scarlett the Witch said to Locke, "The development of campaign-level and strategic-level magical plants is more difficult and costly, and fewer people use them."

"Moreover, this is only a first-stage magical plant, which means that truly powerful wizarding organizations absolutely do not need to purchase it, while powerless wizarding organizations do not have the funds to purchase it."

"It's in an awkward phase right now. If it weren't for the Hydra's special properties, this first-level tactical magical plant would actually be very difficult to sell."

Scarlett the Witch said, "To be honest, given my personality, if it were up to me, I wouldn't risk doing this business with you. It's too risky for me."

“If things go wrong, my promotion momentum will be slowed down.” Scarlett the Witch became serious. “But my boss, Arthas’ senior manager, Lord Terence the Wizard, as a second-circle wizard and my superior, certainly has a longer-term perspective. He has other opinions.”

"Of course, Hydra can stack a permanent defensive field, which is also its advantage. So I think it's worth a try."

Locke nodded slightly. "I will try my best to give you a batch of Hydra plant seeds in a week."

Based on my current work pace, I should be able to complete the return submission in just one week.

Scarlett the Witch said, "Then it's a pleasure to work together. You're the first breeder I've worked with on tactical magical plants, and I hope we can have a pleasant collaboration."

Locke smiled but didn't reply.

After Scarlett the Witch left, Locke had no choice but to do it himself.

Three hours later, he began cultivating the second generation of fast-growing hydra demon plants. "We still don't have enough manpower. Without my two students, I'd have to do the work myself."

"By the way, now that I'm the group leader, I should be able to borrow a few students from Mason and the others, and I should also be able to borrow some first-class wizard apprentices from Newt."

Locke thought about it and realized that he had no choice at the moment. After all, the Arthas Alliance was pressing him hard, so he had no choice but to shamelessly use other people's students as his own.

In return, I could simply help Mason Witch and the other two find a research topic that could be funded by the Second-Class Institute of Truth.

The night passed, and at six o'clock the next day, Gregor and Williams arrived at the plantation on time. Locke asked them to collect the seeds of the second-generation fast-growing Hydra, and after exchanging a few words with them and answering their questions for the night, he left the plantation and headed to the Dragonblood Gathering.

He was going to the Dragonblood Gathering to hire some wizard apprentices.

He doesn't expect top-tier wizard apprentices in the market to help him with projects; that's almost impossible because he has to teach them before letting them work on projects.

However, I do have a bunch of projects I've worked on with the True Knowledge Institute Foundation that have revealed the mechanisms of action of pineapple-type magical plants. I need to hire some first-class wizard apprentices to write articles for me and then submit them to those second-tier districts.

Meanwhile, when Locke returned to his dormitory midway through the morning, he found that a thank-you letter from "Green Grass and Clouds" for his two articles had arrived, along with a complimentary copy of the issue of the journal that published his two articles.

At the same time, two magic boxes containing water peaches were also delivered.

That was a reward from the academy.

For each paper published in a top-tier journal, the college would reward itself with a jade peach.

Locke opened the magic box and examined it; immediately, the refreshing fragrance of water peaches wafted out.

Locke placed the two Water Jade Peaches into the Astral Ring, along with the Water Jade Peaches that the Celtic leader had given him earlier.

He didn't eat the three jade peaches right away. It's better to wait until he reaches the later stages of his life, when his magical power increases more and more slowly, before eating such a good thing.

I have indeed noticed recently that the rate at which my magical power is increasing has begun to slow down significantly.

Although the growth rate is still relatively fast compared to that of ordinary wizards.

(End of this chapter)