by Ryota Hori
“Right... And these are pretty dangerous, too. I’ll leave them in your care.” Ryoma handed his katana over to the man, and then also gave him the small leather pouch dangling from his belt.
“Oh... Why, this is quite impressive...” the man exclaimed, peering into the pouch.
The pouch contained Ryoma’s chakrams. They were quite lethal projectile weapons, but they certainly weren’t something a noble would normally be walking around with.
The man’s gaze bored into Ryoma and the sisters. It only lasted a few seconds, after which he looked away and politely bowed his head before stepping onto the staircase.
“Please come this way. The guest room is on the second floor.”
Apparently, the fact Ryoma voluntarily handed over his chakrams left a good impression on the man. Ryoma nodded slightly and followed the man up the stairs.
“Please wait here. The acting president will be with you shortly.”
The man led them into the room closest to the stairs before lowering his head again and leaving.
“What do you think?” Ryoma whispered to the sisters quietly.
He had no way of knowing what tricks were set in this room. The room could very well have been tapped in some way.
“He’s quite skilled... But what really strikes me as odd was how tanned he was...” Sara said, to which Laura nodded in approval.
All three of them were wary of that man. The glint in his eyes and the way he carried himself didn’t look like the way a merchant might act. Instead, it came across as the way a man skilled in combat might behave.
“And he smelled like salt for some reason... Even though Count Salzberg’s territory doesn’t have any access to the sea...”
“Yeah, you’re right. I noticed it, too... I don’t know if he just drifted here from another town or if there’s some kind of other reason for it...”
There were a few possible options, but...
“No point brooding over it now... We need to focus on speaking to Simone, first.”
And as if in response to Ryoma’s words, there was a modest knock on the door.
“May I?” a young woman’s voice asked.
It was a serene voice, but at the same time seemed to harbor a certain inner strength.
“Go ahead.”
With Ryoma’s permission, the door opened and a woman walked into the room and bowed before them politely. Her chestnut-colored hair was tied up neatly and fixed into place with a silver hair ornament. The silk dress she wore was dyed in a faint blue, granting her a refined, cool-looking image.
“Yes, pardon me... Thank you for waiting. You are Baron Ryoma Mikoshiba, yes? A pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am Simone Christof, and I currently serve as the Christof Company’s acting president.”
While the company had fallen on hard times, she was still the daughter of the man who once served as the head of the trade union. Her introduction and apology were perfectly polite. Her flowing body motions had a distinct grace to them.
Hmm... She gives the countess a run for her money.
Ryoma compared Simone to the countess, Lady Yulia, whom he met mere days ago. They were both fair, attractive women, but the beauties they boasted seemed to be almost opposite of each other.
Lady Yulia was, in a word, dazzling. She had a calculated beauty that put even the fairest gemstones to shame. She asserted herself in a powerful, almost violent way. But Simone, by comparison, came across as pure. Her pale skin was almost transparent, her sleek hair was clearly well cared for and she wore the bare minimum of ornaments. She came across as reserved and docile.
It was like the difference between a rose and a lily.
But Ryoma keenly picked up on the animalistic ferocity hidden beneath that meek appearance. The fact she came to this room alone was suspicious, to begin with. Ryoma expected her to have bodyguards, like that man from earlier.
This... might not go the way I expected.
“Hmm... Did I offend you in some way...?” Simone asked reservedly, eyeing Ryoma as he fell silent in contemplation.
“Ah... Not at all, pardon me.” Ryoma came to and apologized politely. “Yes, I am Ryoma Mikoshiba. My apologies for requesting this meeting on such short notice.”
“Oh, no, don’t let that bother you, Baron... You’re a prospective client, after all.”
Ryoma only made the appointment for this meeting earlier that afternoon. It was far from polite, but Simone’s expression didn’t betray any signs of displeasure. She merely smiled at Ryoma pleasantly.
“I’m very glad to hear that... It means this visit will likely be a worthwhile one,” Ryoma said after waiting for Simone to take a seat opposite of him.
“My! That’s good to hear... Although, our company is rather busy as of late. I don’t know to what extent we can meet your expectations, Baron... You may not be aware of this yet, but my father, the company president Louis Christof, is currently ravaged by illness and is in a catatonic state. I am now serving as acting president in his stead, inexperienced though I may be.”
“Oh, I see... A catatonic state... The rumor I’ve heard is that he lost his wits upon having his position as head of the trade union taken away by the Mystel Company.”
Ryoma intentionally worded himself crudely, so as to provoke her. He wanted to see how she’d react.
“So you did hear of it... I’m surprised, to be honest... You only arrived in Epirus a few days ago, Baron. You must have good people working for you,” Simone said, elegantly cocking her head to the side. “Though I suppose you would, given your accomplishments... Your strategies in toppling Heraklion make it clear that you know the importance of information and intelligence. Even an amateur warrior such as myself could tell how creative and novel your tactics were... Your ingenuity in coming up with them is a thing to be feared.”
And despite her words, she didn’t seem to be holding back her anger. Quite the opposite, in fact, as her words put Ryoma in a position that necessitated that he riposte.
“Oh... So you’ve heard of Heraklion... Maybe you even predicted I’d pay you a visit.” Ryoma regarded Simone with a complacent smile, probing for her intentions.
This world had limited means of circulating information. There was no television, radio, or internet in this world. Sending letters and carrier pigeons were the only ways of gaining information that wasn’t based on hearsay. That was why information was so precious.
And Simone knew about how Ryoma manipulated information in Heraklion. It went deeper than simply knowing that he helped Queen Lupis win. This was something she couldn’t have known without investigating the smaller details. Knowing that much was proof that Simone was more than just a rich man’s daughter.
“Hmm... I’d say I was half sure and half in doubt about that. I did assume someone of your wit would see through Count Salzberg’s intentions... But I didn’t expect you to seek me out a mere few days after arriving in Epirus. At worst I thought I may have to approach you myself.”
“Did you, now... In that case, are you aware of the situation I’m in?” Ryoma asked.
Simone’s expression didn’t change one bit, even in the face of that question.
“Of course, Baron. I know about how Queen Lupis’s scheming landed you in this situation, and about Count Salzberg... Ah, I can’t believe myself! I didn’t even offer you any tea, did I? Someone! Could you come in?”
Simone clapped, to which a maid entered the room. Simone requested she bring them tea. It was almost as if she was about to hold a tea party along with her friends. The maid walked into the room before long, carrying a teapot.
But the moment Ryoma saw the maid prepare the tea, his eyes narrowed. She poured the hot water from above directly into the teapot in a method called jumping. The water’s temperature seemed to be just right, and a pleasant aroma wafted from the room as soon as the water filled the pot.
“Please, help yourselves. These leaves are a Qwiltantian specialty,” Simone said, bringing her cup to her lips.<
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This was likely to show off that it wasn’t poisoned. Ryoma took a sip after her. The first thing he felt was the rich aroma. It was vivid, and had a way of exciting the heart. Eventually, a moderate lingering bitterness remained on his tongue. He naturally reached out to the cookies placed in front of him. They had a fragrant scent and appropriate sweetness.
“Hmm... This is good! The tea leaves are high quality, and even the way it was served was perfect! And the cookies fit the tea just right... Whoever made this is a master at serving tea.”
High-quality tea leaves that were perfectly prepared, and teacakes that had just the right degree of sweetness. Whoever served this went about their job like a master craftsman.
Ryoma didn’t assume himself to be some kind of gourmand, but his tongue was more sensitive than most. Possibly because his grandfather, Kouichirou, had absolutely no taste when it came to teas and alcohol. But even that aside, good food would be seen as such even by those who weren’t connoisseurs.
As proof, the Malfist sisters, who were sipping tea at his side, had their eyes open wide and round with surprise. The two of them were daughters of a noble house from the central continent, even if it had since fallen into ruin. Nothing but the finest quality would elicit surprise out of them.
“Oh! You can tell? You’re quite the refined man, Baron.” Simone smiled with praise.
“Refined? Uh, I can just tell what tastes good from what doesn’t, that’s all.”
Honestly, Ryoma never really pursued delicacies out of the intention to be some kind of connoisseur. He just happened to have been graced with the chance to taste a wide range of food.
“I suppose so...” Simone shook her head slowly. “Rearth must be blessed with many types of cuisine. I’ll admit I’m quite envious of you.”
Those words made Ryoma’s pulse hasten in his chest.
This woman... How much does she know?
Ryoma quickly restrained his agitated emotions. He couldn’t afford to affirm Simone’s words here.
“What do you mean?” Ryoma asked, not letting his expression change any.
“There’s no need to hide it... Anyone might come to this conclusion, given enough thought,” Simone said as if the whole matter wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. “Your wit and intellect, Baron. They’re something no commoner could ever hope to achieve. That meant you must have been a noble, but when I looked into your past, I found nothing. Absolutely nothing dating further than six months ago, when you registered with the guild. That should not even be possible... I may not find any definitive information, but my intelligence network is quite expansive. If it could turn up no information about your past, Baron... The only explanation is that you must have appeared in this world suddenly. I did know you were summoned in the O’ltormea Empire capital city. Roughly around that time, O’ltormea’s court thaumaturgist, Gaius Valkland, disappeared mysteriously in the middle of his work. I concluded, then, that he must have fallen by your hand.”
Her conjecture was perfect.
“Right... Well, if you figured out that much, there’s no point to me playing dumb,” Ryoma said, a resigned expression on his face.
Her knowing he was from Rearth wasn’t that fatal of an issue, but the same couldn’t be said for his involvement in Gaius Valkland’s murder.
Shit... Depending on how she goes about it, I might have to shut her up... Killing a woman doesn’t really sit with me, but...
Ryoma wasn’t pretentious enough to claim he was some kind of gentleman who indulges women, but he wasn’t sick enough of a man to derive joy from killing them, either.
Still, that intelligence network of hers is impressive...
Nothing turned up when she tried looking into his past, and so she concluded he must have been an otherworlder. That showed she had absolute trust in her intelligence network.
“Yes... Though truth be told, I didn’t quite believe you were an otherworlder. I thought it was likely... But normally, otherworlders are immediately bound by thaumaturgy, which ensures they wouldn’t be able to escape.”
“Right... So, what’ll you do? Do you intend to oppose me?” Ryoma asked, bloodlust radiating from his body.
This was a threat, of course. If Ryoma was truly keen on killing her, he would have wordlessly crushed her throat with a brandish of his hand. Simone understood this as well, and didn’t so much as stir despite being exposed to Ryoma’s seemingly seething bloodlust.
“No... I have no intention of doing that. To tell the truth, I agreed to this meeting for two reasons. The first was to confirm my intelligence network’s findings, and the other was to prove that I don’t intend to make an enemy out of you, Baron.”
True, no person who would openly share their information source to the other party could be considered hostile. If Simone did intend to oppose him, she wouldn’t have told Ryoma about this.
“Right... I guess we should lay all our cards on the table this time,” Ryoma said, allowing his bloodlust to recede.
“I’ll admit you’re as strong as they say... The pressure was so great, I couldn’t even budge...”
“You looked pretty composed to me.”
“Only because I knew that wasn’t truly your intent...” Simone’s expression changed to a whimsical, alluring smile.
“Yeah... Though the people hiding in the walls don’t seem to think that way... I can sense them, you know.”
“Do not blame us for it. Mystel’s subordinates are always plotting against us... My people were merely worried for my well-being. Please overlook it, out of respect for me.” Simone bowed her head in apology.
With that, the thick murderous intent Ryoma felt from the walls died down.
“Was that the man who showed us to this room?”
“Yes. He is my secretary and bodyguard... And oh, yes, my apologies for his having to ask you to leave your weapons behind.”
“That’s fine. Let’s just say I feel more confident about teaming up with a person who knows how to keep herself safe.”
Simone regarded Ryoma’s words with a bitter smile and sat back down on the sofa.
“Then let’s begin the negotiations. We already have an understanding of your demands, Baron. You’re seeking to ensure you have a source of provisions in Epirus for the time period until you can turn the Wortenia Peninsula into a self-sufficient land, correct?”
Simone’s expression was still friendly, but upon entering into negotiations, the air around her changed. She regarded Ryoma with an aura that felt like a vivid, sharp blade.
“Yeah... And in the future, I intend to build ports in the peninsula and trade with other continents. We want the Christof Company to provide goods exclusively to us, so we may sell them as trade commodities.”
Simone likely didn’t plan that far ahead. Those words made her expression stir.
“My... You plan on a very grand scale... If that were to become a reality, the Wortenia Peninsula would become an extraordinary source of profit. And a permanent, self-sufficient source of profit, at that... And you wish for me to help you with that?”
There was a shiver in Simone’s voice. Understandably enough; if Ryoma’s intentions were to become reality, the Christof Company would be granted a great deal of wealth and privilege for helping him — the sort of wealth and privilege other companies wouldn’t be entitled to.
A powerless merchant would scoff at this plan and write it off as impossible. But Simone’s mind could envision the port that would be made in the Wortenia Peninsula.
“But making that happen would take a long time and require a great deal of funds... And once you’re in on it, there’s no getting off halfway through. In other words, if you help fund this, you’re with us whether we sink or swim.”
Ryoma’s words were only a promise for what may come. To get there, they’d need to build cities on the peninsula and secure trade routes. It was an endeavor that would take years. Simone choosing to help them would be equivalent to placing the fate of the Christof
Company in Ryoma’s hands.
But Simone had already made her choice. She’d intended to offer them funds even if Ryoma hadn’t said anything.
“It is fine... This was my intent to begin with. Though I didn’t imagine your plans extended that far...”
“I get it...” Ryoma said, picking up on the meaning behind her words. “You’re hanging by a thread, aren’t you?”
Ryoma turned a probing glance at Simone. The Christofs’ business was well-maintained and they had expensive furnishings passed down through the ages. In terms of appearance alone, one wouldn’t be able to tell the Christof Company was in financial trouble.
But that wasn’t the case. They’d lost all their clients, and they weren’t able to form new business connections. A company like that had no future.
“Yes... The company has some funds left, so we won’t go under immediately. But the way things are going, we have three years left, at best. We need to make a choice by then. We either leave Epirus behind and seek our luck in new lands, or fight back against Count Salzberg and the Mystel Company to the best of our ability...”
“I see. I guess we’ll need to talk this through a bit more,” Ryoma said.
“Yes.” Simone nodded. “We should get to know each other a bit better.”
Ryoma described his plans and future outlook, and then went on to explain why they were more than just a pipe dream. And to prove it, Ryoma would need to exhibit his power.
“By the way, how did you get those tea leaves from Qwiltantia?” Ryoma mentioned a concern that nudged at the back of his mind since Simone revealed the Christof Company’s troubles. “They’re one of the largest powers on the continent. Isn’t it going to take days to get there, be it through a sea route or land?”
Goods brought from afar were expensive, as transport costs were reflected in the price. The Christof Company expressly chose to use expensive tea leaves. And Qwiltantian ones, at that. That made Ryoma think there might have been some hidden agenda there.
