Peddling Snake Oil (1)
The Corporate State of Burgund. It was none other than Charles's homeland.
Though the sudden mention of the name caught him off guard, it wasn't entirely nonsensical when he thought about it. While the Corporate State's territory was as small as Westania's, its economic power was incomparable to other minor nations. Naturally, the demand for books and the size of the market there would be much larger than in Westania.
"Ah, so you know of the Corporate State. As expected."
"I used to wander around quite a bit back in the day."
Although they couldn't export the books to the Empire just yet, breaking into the Corporate State was a massive achievement in its own right.
"In any case, you will undoubtedly obtain both wealth and fame. And according to the terms of our previous contract..."
"Ah, I'll leave that in your hands. I trust you."
"Yes, of course."
When Yohan had first signed the publishing contract for the fable book, he had included a clause stating that if the book were to be sold outside of Westania in the future, this printing house would handle the foreign distribution rights. For the printing house, a clause they had agreed to just in case had turned into a jackpot. For Yohan, it meant they would handle all the tedious administrative work for him, so it was a win-win situation.
Of course, the printing house would rake in extra profits because of it... but since Yohan hadn't published the fable book for the money in the first place, he didn't really care. After all, hadn't he gone around hunting bounties like a madman just to raise funds, fully prepared to take a massive financial loss?
"So, you guys handle the business in the Corporate State."
"Yes, of course. We certainly will."
Perhaps due to the influence of the Empire, the vast majority of nations and peoples on the continent spoke almost the same language. While minor vocabulary differences or accents existed depending on one's region, the core meaning was perfectly understood, meaning there was no need for tedious translation work.
"However... to be honest, a small favor has come up regarding this expansion, Mr. Martin."
For some reason, the owner of the printing house spoke while carefully reading Yohan's expression.
"Huh?"
"The publisher in the Corporate State wishes to invite Mr. Martin to a party to celebrate the publication."
The next day, Yohan visited Henry and Charles's shop right around closing time.
"So, you've got a business trip to the Corporate State, and since you're going anyway, you want to take Charles along... Is that the gist of it?"
"Yeah, exactly."
Yohan nodded in agreement with Henry's summary.
"I won't ask... what exactly it is you're up to these days."
Yohan gave an awkward smile at Henry's follow-up. He wasn't doing anything shady, but in moments like this, a merchant's sharp intuition was certainly convenient.
Frankly, there was no real need to drag Charles along on this trip to the Corporate State. Yohan knew that well.
"I'm not trying to just run off with the kid. After all, you're his guardian right now, and Charles is an official employee of your shop, right?" he said, resting a hand on Charles's shoulder.
Charles was definitely a friend to Yohan's group. But at the same time, he was Henry's partner. At first, they had met by chance when Yohan, driven by a sudden pang of conscience, was doing some volunteer work. But over time, Henry had also become one of Yohan's close acquaintances.
"Haha, it's fine. In the first place, this isn't about my permission. It's up to Charles to decide," Henry replied with a hearty chuckle.
He was leaving the decision of whether to go entirely up to Charles. Yohan and Henry both turned their gaze toward Charles at the same time.
"What do you want to do?"
Charles remained silent at Henry's question. Honestly, Yohan hadn't expected Charles to immediately jump at the offer. In fact, he thought there was a high chance the boy would decline. He had only come to the shop to ask for the kid's opinion just in case.
Charles was indeed from the Corporate State. It was only natural for someone living in a distant land to yearn for their home. But Charles had been driven out of his homeland with deep, painful scars. He had essentially been sent to his death by his own older brother, who had inherited the family estate. He had used the money given to him for travel expenses to hire guards, but far from protecting their employer, they had tried to rob him of his remaining funds.
Having survived that peril thanks to Yohan's timely intervention, Charles might very well prefer settling down in Balifield over returning to his homeland.
"If you don't want to go, you don't have to force yourself. I just thought it'd be nice to go together, but it's not like you absolutely have to," Yohan said, looking down at Charles.
"I..." Charles spoke in a quiet, subdued voice. He turned his head, exchanging glances with the two men.
"I'll go. There's no telling when an opportunity like this will come again."
After a brief pause, he answered with a look of firm resolve. Henry nodded repeatedly, looking immensely proud for some reason.
"Uh..."
Once we register the location in the Corporate State, we can teleport back and forth whenever we want, though. Yohan's tongue itched to say it, but he couldn't bring himself to speak aloud. Above all, Henry was right there with them.
Charles stepped away from Yohan and approached Henry.
"I'll be back."
"Alright. Tell me all about what you see when you get back. I'd love to travel around too, but someone's got to watch the shop."
Watching their exchange, Yohan secretly let his lips curl into a smile. The Goddess in her spiritual form is probably wearing a warm smile right now too, he thought to himself.
"Whoa..."
Yohan returned to the village with Charles. Finding the village scenery quite novel, Charles let out a series of soft exclamations, his eyes wide with wonder.
"You there! Your waist is sagging! Your foot placement is wrong too!"
The most eye-catching sight in the village was, without a doubt, Annie and the village youths she was instructing. Even though the sun had already set and the sky was dyed in shades of indigo, the hellish training continued.
Of course, Annie wasn't a drill instructor who just ran people into the ground mindlessly. She had undoubtedly balanced training and rest with meticulous precision. In fact, with the weather getting quite hot lately, training in the cool evening was probably better than under the blazing midday sun. It was just that her superb training skills made the experience feel all the more agonizing for those on the receiving end.
"Her... her first impression was incredibly fierce, but she's definitely no ordinary person. That lady."
"Heheh."
Watching Annie's back, Charles swallowed hard. Yohan couldn't help but chuckle at his reaction.
"Alright. Everyone, proceed with self-directed training. You may spar with a partner or refine your posture individually."
Annie suddenly leaned her wooden sword against a nearby tree. Then, she turned around and strode purposefully toward Yohan and Charles.
"I am hardly an impressive enough person to warrant being called 'that lady.' Since we are both friends of this guy, speak comfortably." She said, lightly patting Yohan on the shoulder.
"Y-you heard that?"
"I-I mean..."
Yohan and Charles stammered in embarrassment. She doesn't even have any special superpowers, yet her ears are practically as sharp as a pointy-ear's.
"At any rate, Charles, your presence here must mean you've decided to follow the Commander to the Corporate State."
"Y-yes, that's right."
Annie asked, wiping the sweat from her forehead. Charles nodded in response.
"It's late today, so we'll rest up and head out first thing tomorrow morning."
"Okay."
Yohan briefly explained the travel itinerary to Charles. Although the physical distance to the Corporate State was quite vast, the route between Westania and the Corporate State was connected by multiple Teleportation Magic Circles. It was precisely because of this transit network that Charles had been able to travel all the way to the distant land of Balifield in the first place. On top of that, since Yohan possessed the Goddess's teleportation ability, physical distance posed no obstacle whatsoever.
"Well, that's that, so let's head inside. And you, don't drive those people too hard."
"Hmph."
After parting ways with Annie, the two headed to Yohan's house. Thanks to two seasonal shifts since settling in the village, all the members of the Knight Order, including Yohan, had acquired their own homes. Yohan's house was packed with various religious texts and reference materials that Annie had previously brought over.
"There are quite a few books inside, right? But don't worry, there's plenty of room to lie down."
Yohan decided to turn in earlier than usual to ensure he was in peak condition. Yohan offered the bed to Charles and laid a blanket on the floor for himself. As he closed his eyes to sleep, he felt Charles staring at him. He opened his eyes to find Charles poking his head over the edge of the bed, looking down at him.
"What?"
"S-still, shouldn't I be the one sleeping on the floor...?"
"Forget it, it's fine. I'm used to sleeping on the floor anyway."
"Mmm..."
"I said it's fine."
Though he had reassured him several times, Charles's expression still looked somewhat uneasy. Soon, Yohan realized that Charles wasn't just acting this way out of politeness.
"Up we go."
He suddenly sat up. Looking at Charles, he patted the blanket on the floor. As if he had been waiting for this very moment, Charles's face lit up. He climbed down from the bed and sat cross-legged in front of Yohan.
"It's obvious you can't sleep because you're thinking about going back home."
"Hehe..."
"Hold on a second. I've got just the thing for before bed."
Saying so, he quickly brought out a drink made by boiling wine from the kitchen.
"Th-that is..."
"It's made from grapes Falco grew. It's been boiled once, so don't worry. It's perfectly fine for minors."
"Thank you. I'll enjoy it."
Though tilting his head at the unfamiliar slang Yohan used, Charles accepted the wooden cup and took a sip.
"Oh..."
"Heh, cool and sweet, right? I recently got a fridge for the house, you see."
Yohan and Billy's houses each had a small cooling device powered by magic. Of course, they hadn't acquired them just to drink chilled beverages or alcohol; they were strictly necessary equipment for brewing potions.
"So, it's not like you're having second thoughts about going back home now, right?" Yohan asked, watching Charles gulp down the drink.
Charles shook his head from side to side.
"Phew— No, it's not that. It's just that all sorts of old memories are coming back..."
Nostalgia, huh? Yohan scratched the back of his head.
"Come to think of it, didn't you say you weren't from Balifield either, Yohan?"
"Yeah, that's right."
In fact, not a single member of the Goddess Knights was originally from Balifield. Billy had lived in the mountains near Balifield, but even his true hometown lay elsewhere.
"Can you tell me what it's like?"
"It's not really a place with anything grand."
"Still, please?"
"Hmm."
Yohan crossed his arms and hummed in thought. After a moment, his eyes widened as if something had just occurred to him.
"Right. I'm not entirely sure, but the guy who first founded your country was probably from the same place as me."
True to its name, the Corporate State of Burgund was a nation whose administrative foundation was built on corporations rather than a monarch. Furthermore, it wasn't ruled by a single CEO, but operated by a board of directors elected from among the citizens. For that reason, Yohan suspected that the founding monarch of the Corporate State was a modern person like himself.
No doubt some guy got transported to a fantasy world and decided to play a real-life isekai business sim before he left, he thought, nodding to himself.