Chapter 156
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 156
Chapter Title: The Merchant's Habits
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When Aria suddenly appeared and bowed her head, Pernyan was a little flustered.
One reason was that he hadn't expected Aria to act so drastically.
The other was that his mind was completely preoccupied with the thought of meeting Aint.
But after checking the two letters Aria handed him, he understood her feelings.
The contents of the letters were complete opposites.
“These came a few days apart?”
“Two days. It reminds me of that time.”
“The order isn't mixed up, is it?”
“No.”
“Then it certainly does remind me of that time...”
The time when Verian and Aria were made into fools.
The moment Andromalius was summoned, sending Pernyan into a panic.
“Right? I'm not mistaken, am I?”
“You could be. One can't judge based on just a few letters.”
Above all, if Aria was right, another assumption had to be added.
“Are you suggesting this elf, Adolf Friedien, is connected to the Vile Breed?”
“I don't know for sure. I hope not, for what it's worth.”
“But you still have your suspicions?”
“To put it nicely, my cousin Adolf is radical. To put it badly, he's an extremist.”
“Neither of those sounds particularly good.”
Well, that wasn't important. Aria continued.
“You know that the Friediens have faced continuous discrimination even after becoming Electors, right?”
“How could I not?”
The Fallenbergs didn't care if you were human or elf, an established Elector or a newly rolled-in one, as long as you had money. But the other Electors were different.
They didn't welcome the crack that had appeared in a ruling system that had stood firm for a thousand years.
“So, among some elves, there are those who complain, asking why they joined the Empire if this was how they'd be treated.”
“I think I've heard about that.”
It wasn't particularly strange.
It wasn't because they were elves; anyone would be furious if they felt they were being denied their rightful due.
“My cousin Adolf is one of the more extreme ones. I heard he even argued they should just break away from the Empire again. It's safe to say that most of the elves who are dissatisfied with the Empire follow him.”
“A force to be reckoned with, then.”
“As you know, fifteen years is a long time, isn't it?”
It was long.
If the Fallenbergs had received such treatment for fifteen years, Pernyan probably wouldn't have stood for it either.
“I understand everything you've said.”
Pernyan folded the letters in half and handed them back to Aria.
“But there's nothing I can do right now.”
“What? Why?”
“Have you forgotten it's the middle of the semester?”
If the Vile Breed were truly involved, it wouldn't be a matter that could be resolved easily.
It wasn't something that could be solved in a day or two, and the academy was strictly in session.
Even for Pernyan, skipping this many classes wasn't a good look.
“Couldn't you find a way to get out of it, Sunbaenim?”
“Why should I go to such lengths for you?”
“It's the Vile Breed! And of course, I'm not asking for free. I'll pay you.”
“...That is tempting, but nothing is certain yet.”
And if it really was the Vile Breed, and they were using the same methods as they did with Aria, they wouldn't escalate things so suddenly.
“Especially now, with everyone in an uproar trying to catch the Vile Breed. They'll be more cautious. So it's not something that will blow up immediately. In my opinion, we have until summer break at the very least, no matter how urgent it feels.”
“...That may be true, but I'm anxious.”
Aria's eyes wavered with anxiety.
Considering she hadn't been like this even when fighting Andromalius, it was quite surprising.
‘No, it's to be expected.’
Her family was on the verge of being shattered, after all.
“For now, investigate further to be certain. If more clues pointing to the Vile Breed surface, I'll help you during summer break.”
If what Aria said was true, he would have to go one way or another, even without her request.
No matter how much discrimination they faced, they were still an Elector family.
If an Elector family were to be consumed by the Vile Breed, the repercussions would shake the entire Empire.
If the Empire shook, the continent would shake, and that was an outcome the demons would desire above all else.
And in a world of demons, gold would be reduced to worthless scrap metal.
Those fools were morons who didn't understand the value of money. Such a world must never come to pass.
“Thank you.”
“Have as much money ready as you can.”
“I'll try. By the way, why have you been so anxious this whole time?”
“Me?”
“Yes. You look like a student waiting for lunchtime...”
Aria's eyes narrowed.
“Are you, by any chance, annoyed with me right now?”
“I don't get annoyed with clients.”
“So you would have been annoyed if I weren't a client? What's going on?”
“Business.”
Pernyan stood up.
“If we're done talking, I'm leaving.”
He disappeared.
“...What? What could be more important than the Vile Breed? Is there such a thing?”
Aria tilted her head in confusion.
Surely he hadn't just listened half-heartedly and dismissed it, right?
***
“Here you are.”
Aint accepted the thick pouch from the headmaster.
“Thank you.”
“We agreed to cooperate, and I promised you compensation. Thanks to you, we caught a member of the Vile Breed that had infiltrated the academy. It's only natural.”
The headmaster poured milk into his black tea.
- That fellow drinks it with milk every time I see him.
Aint peeked inside the pouch. He barely managed to suppress the corners of his mouth from turning up at the sight of the gleaming gold coins.
- Excellent. At this rate, it might be better if more of the Vile Breed showed up.
Aint's goal was to become emperor, and to do that, he needed to restore the Armian family.
And the one thing most necessary, and most costly, for a power to grow was money.
- Pernyan made a good offer, but I think it's best to borrow as little money as possible from the Fallenbergs.
‘I agree.’
No matter how favorably Pernyan viewed him, a Fallenberg was still a Fallenberg.
No, it would be the same even if it wasn't a Fallenberg.
If you borrow too much money from others, you inevitably become subservient to them. Aint's goal was to minimize the amount he borrowed, if he had to borrow at all.
“Well then, I'll be counting on you next time. Though I hope there won't be a next time.”
“Could I ask what happened to the Vile Breed member we caught in Professor Rosalia's lab?”
“You mean Aaron?”
Aint nodded.
“His body is completely frozen, except for his head. With all his demonic energy and movements sealed, only his mouth can twitch. I've tried my hand at interrogation, but he's incredibly tight-lipped.”
*Tsk,* the headmaster clicked his tongue.
“If I have the chance, may I see him?”
“Not a bad idea. I've done all I can, anyway. I'll arrange an opportunity for you as soon as possible.”
“Thank you.”
“I should be thanking you.”
Aint stood up.
And as he was heading back to the dormitory, he ran into someone.
“Sunbaenim Pernyan?”
“Aint.”
“When did you get back? Weren't you at the Continental Academic Conference?”
“I just returned. Are you heading to the dorms?”
“Yes. I'm on my way back from a brief meeting with the headmaster. Did you receive the letter I sent?”
“I did.”
For a moment, Pernyan's gaze swept over Aint's chest. He secretly groaned at the sight of the thick object there.
‘Damn it, he got money from the headmaster.’
He had expected as much. Aint had said he would be rewarded every time he caught a member of the Vile Breed.
But seeing it in person made him feel even more impatient.
I have to stop this. I have to make him accept the investment, no matter what.
‘But how?’
What kind of person would agree if you just blindly told them to accept an investment?
Of course, such people existed, but Aint wasn't one of them.
‘I need to make him accept the investment without resistance...’
Normally, he would have devised a method before meeting Aint to negotiate.
But running into him on the street like this and realizing he'd received money from the headmaster made him anxious.
“...Perfect timing. I was just looking for you.”
“For me?”
“This isn't the place to talk. Let's go to a teahouse.”
“Yes.”
After arriving at a private room in the teahouse, Pernyan sat facing Aint. He stalled for time, pretending to savor the coffee a servant brought, lost in thought.
“They often say to look someone in the eye when you talk to them. That you can hide your expression, but not the emotion in your eyes.”
Just before his first transaction as a merchant, his father had given Pernyan a few pieces of advice.
“It's not wrong. But it's not the best method.”
“If you don't know your counterpart well, it's the best you can do. But if you know them, it's a poor strategy.”
Everything in the world is finite. When one person profits, another is bound to suffer a loss.
A merchant's transaction, in the end, is mostly about snatching the other party's profit and turning it to your own advantage.
“Look at the whole person, not just the eyes. Their eyes, their expression, their breathing, their hands, their feet, their body.”
“No matter how perfect someone is, they're bound to have at least one small habit. Those habits come together to reveal their psychology.”
That's why it's important to know the other person's mind, their emotions, and their circumstances.
What they want, how anxious they are, what they're thinking.
All those things come together to make a transaction advantageous.
‘This is more important than any deal or contract I've made in my life.’
Pernyan recalled his father's advice, returning to his roots.
“I met with Aria earlier. She was seriously troubled by a letter from her family.”
The topic he brought up was the Friediens. A welcome rain for him, who had been without a plan.
“Troubled?”
“The Vile Breed. They've infiltrated the Friedien family.”
“...The Vile Breed has reached the Friediens.”
Aint swallowed a groan. His eyes and breathing faltered.
‘Aint is neither a merchant nor a seasoned politician.’
He's just a young student who happens to be the successor to the first emperor.
Thanks to that, all his emotions were visible on his face.
“Yes, those bastards have extended their reach to the Friediens.”
No matter how much the other Electors looked down on the Friediens, an Elector was still an Elector.
The power they held was comparable to that of a kingdom, so if they were tainted by the Vile Breed, the storm would surely engulf the entire Empire.
“Surely not the head of the Friedien family?”
“No, not the family head. But we can't let our guard down. The suspect is a direct descendant. Adolf Friedien, Aria's cousin.”
“That's a relief, but if it's true, it's still quite serious.”
Aint let out a sigh of relief.
Seeing that genuine expression, Pernyan thought that he at least wouldn't have to worry about being unable to read his opponent when he got to the main point.
“It's still just a suspicion, but even if it's true, we have some time. The problem also lies with you, Aint.”
“Me?”
“At first, they were just targeting you at the academy. Then they stirred up a horde of monsters and demonic beasts in Altriark, and even raised an army composed solely of demonic beasts in Bercefe.”
And now, the Friediens.
“As you've probably guessed, the stage is getting bigger.”
“...I'm aware.”
This is it. Pernyan secretly swallowed a dry gulp.
“And on a bigger stage, those who are unqualified are bound to be swept away like duckweed.”
He paused for a moment, observing Aint. Had he caught the meaning? ‘You can't do anything alone.’
‘He got it.’
The subtle twitch of his eyebrow meant one thing.
It didn't matter if the subject was Aint himself or Gardner.
Seeing no further reaction, Pernyan continued.
This time, more directly.
“You want to be emperor? You don't become emperor just by wanting it, nor by defeating demons.”
The first emperor didn't become emperor simply because he defeated the demons and King Collomo.
“It was because countless people followed him, and he was backed by the powerful Armian Kingdom. No matter how much I help you, the Fallenbergs and you, I and you, are ultimately separate.”
“...I know. But...”
His gaze hardened completely.
But it wasn't anger. Pernyan quickly continued.
“I told you last time. Grow the Armian family. But this time, the meaning is different. Time is not on your side.”
Directly telling someone to borrow money is amateurish. The important thing is to make them think they *must* borrow the money.
Only then could he be in the position of power.
Even if his counterpart was Aint Armian, he couldn't just lend money and be led around by the nose.
“I know that too. That's why I took the headmaster's offer...”
“That's certainly not a bad method. But it's not a steady income. You can't raise and maintain a family on simple unearned income.”
He cut Aint off, making him realize there was only one option.
“I wouldn't call it unearned income...”
“It's money you can't receive unless the Vile Breed invades.”
An Armian who wishes for Vile Breed invasions just to earn money.
“How ridiculous is that.”
“...So you're saying I should borrow money from you, Sunbaenim?”
Finally, the words he wanted to hear came from Aint's mouth.
Pernyan noticed the faint hostility showing in his eyes. It was regrettable, but something he had to endure.
It was a flimsy plan with flimsy preparation, after all.
Pernyan replied as calmly as he could.
“I didn't say that specifically. In the first place, if you can rebuild the Armian family, there's no need to borrow from me.”
“Really?”
- There's no way a Fallenberg would say that.
Both Aint and Gardner expressed their doubt, but Pernyan nodded nonchalantly.
“From the start, it's not like I absolutely have to lend you money. Honestly, considering the terms I offered you, I'd profit more by lending to others.”
“That's true. But Sunbaenim, are you alright?”
“What do you mean?”
Aint gave an awkward laugh.
“Well, you've made a hole in the table.”
*Tap, tap, tap—*
Pernyan's fingers were habitually tapping the table.
Hard enough to pierce through it.
“......”
His father's advice didn't just apply to Aint.