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THE BERENY BUGLE BIG INTERVIEW -
MISTRESS ISSELLA UBIYA, NEW ADMINISTRATOR OF THE INDEPENDENT TRADERS OF BERENY ASSOCIATION, SPEAKS TO THE BERENY BUGLE
By Jacquetta Anichoson, Cub Reporter
Dateline: 25-
Q: Mistress Ubiya, congratulations on your appointment, and thank you for agreeing to this interview.
Mistress Issella Ubiya: I wouldn’t so much call it an appointment as fulfilling a necessary roll.
Q: What do you mean by that?
MIU: Well for a few years now, de founding organizer of de Independent Traders of Bereny Association, Master Garrick de Torfane, has slowly widdrawn from de public eye. To suggest a reason for dis can only be speculation on anyone’s part. So I will refrain from such. Suffice to say, widout de vocal leadership of Master de Torfane, de odder Traders of de ITOBA had developed de habit of keeping to demselves as dey went about deir business dealings. In trudd, I am as much to blame as any odder traders.
Q: So de … I mean the … ITOBA has been quite lately?
MIU: Very much so. Over de past few years, I am lucky to have heard so much as two to dree comments from de odder traders and dere have been no new members inducted into de ITOBA. Alddough, I know dere have been new traders wishing to join.
Q: So how did things change?
MIS: Danks to some friends sharing de news of a previously unreported trade post, I knew my fellow traders would want to know about it. Dis motivated me to try to contact Master de Torfane. Dough it was difficult, I eventually tracked him down and impressed upon him de need for de ITOBA to be fully functional once more. Our meeting was brief and he quickly agreed, giving me full administrative control of de association.
Q: So your now the leader of the ITOBA?
MIS: No, just de administrator. De ITOBA isn’t a guild or odder body widd a political agenda. We are just a loose association for all interested traders to share information for de betterment of our trade.
Q: So what is the administrator’s role?
MIS: I simply induct new traders to de association, collect shared information, and make available dat information for every trader’s benefit.
Q: What kind of information do you collect?
MIS: Primarily, we are interested in de location of trade posts, what goods dey sell and are interested in purchasing, de going rates and prices for dose goods. Dis helps us to judge de resource needs of de various communities of de Kingdom and how to maximize our profits. We also collect odder information. De location of dangerous monsters dat we might wish to avoid. Unique trading opportunities. Ways to improve our skills and dose of our employees.
Q: Sounds all rather mercenary to me.
MIS: No, just basic economics. De Kingdom wouldn’t exist as a whole widdout trade bringing necessary goods to various communities and traders wouldn’t be able to do business widdout a strong Kingdom to allow trade in relative safety.
Q: Relative safety?
MIS: We wouldn’t need wagon guards if de roads of de Kingdom were completely safe.
Q: So what do you hope to accomplish as administrator of the ITOBA?
MIS: Just a general improvement in all trader’s ability to make a profit and more quickly bring goods across the Kingdom.
Q: Do you think that would require you to petition the Regent on such matters?
MIS: If de collected traders saw a particular great need and wished me to address the Crown, den I would, but dat is really de Royal High Trader’s job.
Q: Master Kirkham Brent?
MIS: Correct.
Q: What do you think of the Royal High Trader?
MIS: He seems a rather quiet man.
Q: Really!?! He seemed quite vocal when it came to the issue of adventurers brokering trade deals with landed nobility?
MIS: Excepting dat issue, of course.
Q: You sound like you have an opinion on the issue?
MIS: Not really. Suffice to say, the Royal High Trader was doing what he thought best for trade in the Kingdom when it came to the commerce of guard and hunting dog breeding.
Q: I can see we are running out of time. One more question. Where did you get that strange accent?
MIS: My fadder was a merchant of Bereny dat sought to be one of de first to open trade widd de Frontier. While dere, he fell in love widd a native woman, my modder. Dus, I was born of dere love. My modder was always a strong woman, coming from a tribe of natives dat valued dere women as much as dere men. When Bordertown was attacked, while we lived dere, she would often join Berenian and Native alike in its defense. When I was ten, she was fatally wounded in one of dose attacks. Widd de loss of my modder, my fadder grew disillusioned widd de romanticism of de Frontier and returned to Bereny. Dere, he put me in de best schools and I grew to follow in my fadder’s footsteps as a trader. Despite my schooling, I guess I never lost my modder’s inflections. Unfortunately, my fadder died days before I purchased my first wagon and hired my first guards. De loss of my modder finally taking its toll on him.
Q: I am sorry to hear that.
MIS: I am as well, but I wouldn’t be who I am today widdout eidder of my parents. Hopefully, it has made me a better person over de years radder dan a biter one.
Q: Well, that should cover it. I wish you and the ITOBA a successful future together.
MIS: De same goes for your new journalism career.