Getting Wood (2)
“You’re young, after all—full of vigor! I like it!” the retainers cheered, thumbs up, fueling Cloud’s energy.
“Everyone heard me loud and clear?” Lord Aaron smiled happily, glancing around at the retainers.
“To put it simply again, as the administrative officer mentioned earlier, the one who wins the next week’s competition will recommend a person to be appointed as a centurion. Anyone have objections?”
“None!”
“Understood!”
“I am in awe of Lord Aaron’s wise judgment!”
All the retainers stood from their seats, grinning brightly, and clapped enthusiastically. The atmosphere buzzed with the rare thrill of an entertaining spectacle.
After Lord Aaron left the conference room, the retainers split into groups and converged on Cloud and Torres. Most flocked around Torres, while only a small handful approached Cloud.
“Hang in there!”
“I’ll keep an eye on you!”
Among them, old butler Loopman approached with a calm tone. He was someone Cloud had occasionally crossed paths with when visiting the barracks by chance.
“Have you decided where to go first?”
“Well… I’m still pondering. Probably should head to a place that distributes timber first.”
“The Valua Timber Cooperative in the commercial district is a good place to start. Should I arrange a carriage for you?”
Cloud glanced at Loopman’s eyes. This unexpected kindness from a complete stranger surprised him. But with no time to question it, he was actually glad. Riding a horse sore and tired was far less comfortable than riding in a carriage to travel around.
“If you’ll prepare a carriage, I’d be grateful. Please do.”
“Then you’ll need to get ready outside. I’ll wait right in front in thirty minutes.”
“Thank you.”
Cloud hurried back to the 10th Legion barracks. He spotted Lucy, who was training soldiers inside the building.
“Come with me.”
“Where to? Do I have to wear armor?”
“No, just dress in light civilian clothes. We’ll be walking around a lot today.”
“What for?”
“It’s tied to my fate. We don’t have time.”
“What’s happening that you’re doing this?”
Cloud led the bewildered Lucy back to the command headquarters. They boarded the carriage prepared by Loopman at the entrance and headed together to the commercial district.
***
As they entered the cooperative, the scent of alcohol hit them like a wave. Six people who looked like members were gathered at a customer table inside the building, drinking. The spacious interior, usually bustling, was now empty except for them. The moment the door opened, there wasn’t even a guide at the reception desk to greet them.
‘Heard timber was short, and this place is practically bankrupt. I wonder if timber can even be bought here?’
While Lucy and Cloud walked over to the noisy table, they looked around the cooperative and felt a pang of sadness.
The cooperative members sitting at the table eyed Cloud and Lucy’s military uniforms warily. The oldest-looking old man spoke first.
“What’s the matter? Did one of our boys cause trouble again?”
“Sorry for interrupting your fun time.” Cloud smiled gently.
“I should have contacted you in advance, but showing up unannounced… sorry.”
The old man at the cooperative, now clearly seeing through Cloud, spoke first with a knowing tone.
“We have no timber for supplying the troops. You can tell by looking at us, right?”
“Is there no remaining stock at all? I’m not trying to take it by force under the name of taxes—I want to buy it with actual money.”
“With money?” The drunken old man stared at Cloud with wide eyes.
“How can I believe that?”
Cloud took out his wallet and handed over a promissory note. It was a blank check issued by Lord Aaron. The administrative officer had divided fifty each to Cloud and Torres before leaving the command headquarters.
“This should convince you, right?”
The old man’s expression changed. He scratched his back lightly and said with a sly grin.
“Well, there might be some left, but…”
Cloud smiled brightly.
“How much stock do you have?”
“I can’t disclose exact numbers, but we’re holding some that we planned to sell at the peak timber price.”
“What’s the price?”
“Ten million zents per kilogram.”
“What?”
Cloud was inwardly startled by the unusually high price. The administrative officer had clearly said five thousand zents per kilogram. Ten million zents was twenty times that—absurdly high.
“Can’t you lower it a bit?”
He deliberately smiled sweetly.
“How much?”
“Around five thousand zents, I think. Hehe.”
“You’re trying to rob me?”
“What?” The old man blew a raspberry in disbelief.
“You think the current timber market price is five thousand zents? Even five years ago when prices were high, we didn’t sell at that rate.”
“What was it before prices rose?”
“Twenty thousand zents.”
“E-Even ten million zents…?”
Cloud was stunned for a moment. The situation was impossible to resolve normally. They were being asked to buy timber at a price worse than the market rate? He wondered if Lord Aaron and Torres had conspired to cheat him.
“Huu…” Cloud let out a heavy sigh. He had no choice but to use his secret tactic.
The sales strategy had popped into his head the moment he entered the cooperative earlier and saw the scene of a drunken table.
“Lucy, step forward.” Closing his lips firmly, he stepped back and silently watched as he pushed Lucy ahead.
“Me? Why me?” Lucy looked at Cloud with a bewildered expression as she stepped forward.
He gave a quick wink, then shouted directly at the members.
“From now on, this friend will entertain all of you with dance and song! Enjoy the show, and drink your fill!”
“Real service?”
“Is this free?”
“Ohho, I’m looking forward to it?”
The drunken members whistled.
“W-What are you saying?!” Lucy stared at Cloud in confusion.
He quickly leaned in close and whispered softly in her ear.
“It’s riding on you. Consider this me saving one poor human life. Dance so lewdly that their hearts melt.”
“B-But won’t that change anything?”
She nodded.
“It will. Men always throw money around when a beautiful woman is at a drinking table and try to show off. So go all out and seduce them. Each time you seduce one, it becomes ten million zents, eight million, then two million. Please. Got it?”
“Or what?” Lucy pouted, clearly unwilling.
But Cloud suddenly grabbed her military uniform and ripped it open.
“Kyaaah!”
Lucy screamed in panic. Buttons flew everywhere, and her bra-clad breasts were exposed. The members at the table shot up in their seats, spilling the liquor they’d been drinking with a “Puuu~!” and erupted in cheers.
“It’s amazing!”
“Not just the head, but even her underwear is red—perfect!”
“I won’t be able to sleep tonight! Yohoo!”
Cloud swallowed hard with a satisfied look, thinking he’d be happy to take a beating from Lucy later.
‘Don’t think it’s underwear! Think bikini! Bikini! When you go to the beach, everyone wears that!’
She covered her breasts with her arms in embarrassment, then glared at Cloud with a proud expression before finally sighing and spreading her chest wide.
“Wow!”
The members cheered at the sight of her smooth abdomen and bra-clad breasts with no military fat visible.
“S-Sing.” Lucy stammered and began singing.
“The window is wide open, and fresh sea breeze flows in through it~”
As she sang, she waved her hands in the air and gracefully twirled her hips. She was dancing a traditional folk dance from her hometown. At first it was awkward and stiff, but over time it became natural, capturing everyone’s gazes with its sexiness and elegance.
“Wow, she dances well.”
“I hope you go away, Jessica, the waitress at the tavern I know.”
Lucy had talent in dance and song. All the men were completely captivated by her charm and occasionally gulped down their drinks, thirsting.
Cloud, watching from the side, had forgotten what he was supposed to do and stood there with a dazed expression.
‘So Lucy has this kind of charm. She could’ve been a dancer instead of a soldier….’
“Hey there.”
“Y-Yes?”
The old man suddenly noticed Cloud staring at him. His expression had softened compared to when they first met, as if he too was under the spell of Lucy’s dance and song.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen our boys so happy. You’ve given us a good show for once, so I’ll give you fifty thousand zents.”
He had cut the price in half, but Cloud was still very disappointed.
“Can’t you go lower?”
“Forty thousand zents.”
“Just a little… please cut a little more.”
“That’s the lowest I can go. We have to live too. I sell, but I use the money to support our members, their families, and my own family.”
“Um…”
Cloud was pondering if there was any way to lower it further.
“Cooperative chief!”
Suddenly the door burst open from outside, and a group of people rushed in.
Lucy, startled by the dancing, quickly covered her underwear with her top and hid behind Cloud’s back. The lively atmosphere halted as one of the newcomers approached with a shrug. He spoke to the old man.
“We’re from the Tilán Trade Company’s Valua branch. We’d like to speak with the cooperative chief for a moment. Could we move to a private room?”
“Certainly.” The old man and the man walked to a room through the corridor connected to the lobby.
A short while later, the man emerged from the room with a satisfied expression and left with the others. The old man returned with an expressionless face and approached Cloud.
“The timber is all sold. They bought it.”
Cloud nodded silently with a dark expression. This was what he had expected from the moment the two entered the room.
“At what price did they buy it?”
“Sixty-five thousand zents.”
“Did Lord Torres send them?”
“How did you know?” Cloud smirked suddenly.
“Yeah, I roughly guessed.”
“The Tilán Trade Company is looking out for Lord Torres. They exchange goods with his family and are very close.”
“So the Tilán Trade Company also knew there was still stock, huh?”
“We’re a local cooperative, and Tilán is a nationwide merchant. We compete, but we also share information. For example, we hold periodic meetings to adjust timber prices.”
“So it’s what they call price collusion?”
“It’s not about killing one side—it’s about coexisting.”
“Coexisting…” Cloud let out a bitter smile and took off his top.
He handed the removed clothes directly to Lucy. Her top was in shreds with no buttons left to fasten.
Lucy’s eyes widened in surprise.
“You’re giving me this to wear?”
“Put it on.”
“Why?”