Necessary Expenses

The Dwarves of Durin's Folk meet with the mysterious wizard Miathon again to finally conclude their negotiations. This time they chose to meet in a more secluded, private location; that is Frimsi's Bree-land residence, a small property he owns only for tax reasons. But despite these additional security measures, the Dwarves are still unable to complete the negotiations. The wizard asserts that he can only part with 400 gold coins and a promise to let the Dwarves keep this enchanted mithril box once it has been used to successfully subdue this great evil he has been alluding to. But the Dwarves insist that they need at least 500 gold coins to make sure their craftsmen are fairly paid for the making of this box. They are unable to reach an agreement, and so decide to give each other more time to consider the offers made.