Chapter 58
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: Recruiting a Sponsor
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A beautiful woman with a confident air.
It was the face of Ruina, one Chris knew well.
*'Of course I know her. We had quite the history in my past life.'*
Originally, the fact that Ruina of the Alliance's merchant guild and Rubid of the Demonic Path's merchant guild were the same person was an absolute secret.
Considering the relationship between the two factions, it was only natural.
Even Chris hadn't found out they were the same person until the midpoint of the Age of Ruin.
"Because I'm a genius."
"...What did you say?"
"You must be well-informed. Haven't you heard? That I'm a once-in-a-millennium genius."
Chris said in an obnoxious tone.
"The artifact's disguise was sloppy, so I saw right through it. Piercing through the illusion, I saw the face of a merchant from the Alliance named Ruina."
"Th-that's impossible...! How could that be?"
Ruina cried out in disbelief.
It was understandable.
What Ruina used to hide her appearance was a sacred artifact named the 'Mask of a Thousand.'
This artifact, imbued with the power of a Constellation, possessed an absolute power that prevented anyone from seeing through its disguise, no matter how high their level.
Chris, of course, couldn't see through it either, but he lied with a straight face.
"Didn't I tell you? I'm a genius. What am I supposed to do when it's so obvious?"
“……”
Ruina clamped her mouth shut.
In any case, the reason didn't matter.
"...What are you going to do to me?"
"Well, I think it would be amusing to let others know."
"You will regret it."
Ruina's gaze turned icy cold.
Ruina was an ordinary human.
But she seemed to have an ace up her sleeve.
*'She's probably armed to the teeth with all sorts of artifacts.'*
The Rudolph Merchant Guild ran an auction house.
The Deer Merchant Guild was the same.
Since they distributed all the treasures of the world's underworld, she had plenty of artifacts for self-defense.
If she used an artifact with some extraordinary power, even Chris would have a hard time dealing with it, but,
"I told you, didn't I? You'll regret it if you take out what's inside."
"!!"
"You will die."
Ruina gritted her teeth.
She met Christian's gaze, conflicted.
*'Just what is he.'*
She had heard the rumors.
That the scoundrel of the Dark Magic House had changed and was showing remarkable prowess lately.
That he was someone to watch.
But even so, he was only a 3-Star.
Considering his age, it was a great achievement, but there was no way he could stand up to the power of the artifacts she possessed.
So why couldn't she ignore this arrogant brat's warning?
It felt as if the moment she took out an artifact, an irreversible catastrophe would occur.
In the end, she followed her intuition.
Most importantly.
"Please, don't play games."
"Hmm?"
"You don't intend to reveal my identity anyway, do you?"
"What makes you say that?"
"If you did, you wouldn't have gone to such troublesome lengths to meet with me. Isn't there something you want to trade for?"
Ruina said straightforwardly, her expression much calmer.
"As long as you want something from me, Young Master, you can't carelessly bring me down."
Chris whistled inwardly.
Just as I'd expect from Ruina.
The woman who once backstabbed him was no pushover.
In truth, he couldn't afford to let the Rudolph Merchant Guild fall.
*'It's not easy to find such a perfect cash cow anywhere else.'*
There were many wealthy merchant guilds.
But Ruina's guild was the only one that had built up a vast information network spanning both the Alliance and the Demonic Path.
On top of that, she had the means to acquire countless treasures through her massive underworld auction house.
For his future plans, the power held by Ruina's guild was absolutely essential.
*'The problem is, she's not an easy mark to control.'*
But difficult didn't mean impossible.
Because he knew Ruina's weakness.
[How long are you going to bleed me dry?!]
Recalling Ruina's echoing cry, Chris grinned.
"Yes, there is something I want from you."
"What is it?"
"Money."
"...Pardon?"
"And the various treasures you possess."
A look of bewilderment spread across Ruina's face.
Her expression screamed, *Is he insane, openly demanding money and treasures from a merchant?*
"And what will you do if I don't comply?"
"Well, I have no intention of threatening you. What I want is a deal. I'll give you something in return."
"What is this compensation?"
Chris pointed to himself.
"The opportunity to offer me money."
"...Pardon?"
"In return, I will be your backer."
“……”
Ruina fell silent.
*'...What is with this lunatic.'*
That was her honest thought.
Of course, it was common for powerful figures to become backers after receiving a merchant's kickbacks.
Ruina herself had ties with all sorts of powerful people.
But Christian was not in a position to be one.
*'They said he was a scoundrel. He can't even tell what's what.'*
She tried to placate him with the kindest words possible.
"I'm sorry, but I already have many excellent sponsors. If you're in need of money, I can give you a certain amount with no strings attached..."
She was essentially telling him to take some pocket money and get lost, but Chris said something unexpected.
"Among all those sponsors, there's probably no one who can save your guild."
Ruina's face hardened instantly.
"What do you mean by that?"
"You're a merchant, you should know. The continent's political climate is unstable. At this rate, it's only a matter of time before war breaks out."
“……”
"The Demonic Path against the Demonic Path, the Alliance against the Alliance. And eventually, a great war will erupt between the Magitech Empire and the Alliance."
This would actually happen.
The result would be catastrophic.
And Ruina, as a great merchant with a foot in both factions, had indeed sensed such signs.
"When such a war breaks out, it's obvious what will happen to your guild."
Ruina had guilds in both the Alliance and the Demonic Path, earning immense profits by trading between them.
Her main items were precious metals and rare treasures.
She was accumulating wealth by moving treasures from the Alliance to the Demonic Path, and from the Demonic Path to the Alliance.
But the moment war broke out, such trade would be completely cut off.
No, that wasn't the real problem.
At worst, she would be branded an enemy by both the Alliance and the Demonic Path, her guild's assets confiscated, and she herself would be sent to the stake.
"...That's a leap in logic."
"A leap? You know the atmosphere in the Four Kings Castle, yet you're so optimistic. Your life and your entire fortune are on the line, must be nice to be so carefree."
Ruina was silent for a moment.
The Four Kings Castle, where the Blood Sword, Necromancy, and Curse Houses were gathered.
She knew it was a powder keg, ready to explode at any moment.
"In this situation, there's only one precaution you can take. Liquidate one of your guilds, either in the Alliance or the Demonic Path, as quickly as possible and erase all traces of your connections. That way, even if war breaks out, you can avoid the worst-case scenario."
“……”
Ruina didn't answer.
The losses from doing so would be beyond words.
It was something she could never do.
In the original history, she had never given up either guild, walking a tightrope with her life on the line until the very end.
Even though being discovered by either side meant an immediate trip to the stake, she never gave up.
Why?
Because she was a hopeless money-grubber.
A greed so intense that she would rather die than lose her money.
And that was precisely the weakness Chris was targeting.
"If you don't want to do that, there's only one other way. Prevent the war."
Chris began to lay his trap.
"...You can prevent the war, Young Master?"
"Yes, it's possible."
"...How?"
Ruina asked with a hollow laugh, but Chris answered simply.
"By preventing a clash between my Dark Magic House and the Extreme Poison House."
"!!"
"As long as our Southern Demonic Nation stands firm, the Four Kings Castle won't dare to think of starting a war."
Ruina's expression changed.
She was a merchant well-versed in international affairs.
She understood what Chris was saying.
His words made sense.
*'For the Four Kings Castle to start a war with the Alliance, they need the cooperation of the Southern Demonic Nation, where the Dark Magic House resides.'*
That's why in the original history, the Four Kings Castle, led by the Demon King of Bloodletting, subjugated the Southern Demonic Nation before starting the war with the Alliance.
As it happened, the Southern Demonic Nation, weakened by all sorts of upcoming incidents, couldn't withstand the Four Kings Castle's invasion and knelt in vain.
And what followed was the first great war with the Alliance.
"You must have heard about the artifact competition between my family and the Extreme Poison House, right?"
"I have. But I also heard that they agreed to limit their forces to prevent a clash between the two families..."
"You believe that? How naive. Blood will certainly be spilled. And this incident will become the decisive cause for a rift between our two families."
“……”
"I intend to end this artifact competition without any casualties to prevent that rift from forming. If our two families fight and shed blood, it will give the Four Kings Castle a pretext to start a war."
"But what do you mean by needing money and treasures?"
"Exactly what I said. To prevent the disaster that will occur in this artifact competition, I need to make preparations, and for that, I need money and treasures."
Chris said.
"I'll ask you. Do you feel like sponsoring me now?"
“……”
Ruina's face was wracked with indecision.
Honestly, it was just a possibility.
Whether this incident would truly become a pretext for a dispute between the Dark Magic House and the Extreme Poison House.
Whether that would give the Four Kings Castle a reason to start a war.
And whether a war between the Demonic Path and the Alliance would ultimately break out.
She thought the chances of that happening were low, but.
—*You're so optimistic. Your life and your entire fortune are on the line, must be nice to be so carefree.*
What if things proceeded exactly as the young master said?
The problem was that the possibility wasn't zero.
In the worst-case scenario, she could lose everything.
*'No!! All the money I've worked so hard for.'*
Just imagining a war breaking out, being unable to do business, and on top of that, having her entire fortune confiscated, made Ruina's vision go dark.
Being branded a traitor by both sides and burned at the stake wasn't what she feared.
But losing her money was absolutely unbearable.
*'Well, it's obvious what choice she'll make.'*
Chris waited for her answer with a relaxed heart.
It had been a similar situation in the past.
Chris had once led a massive organization. Ruina was the one who had funded it.
Why?
To protect her own money.
The reason she became the Hero's Party's moneybag and sponsored them was the same.
She loved money so much that to protect it, she had no choice but to lavishly support them.
It was the same this time.
A woman with a pathological obsession with money couldn't possibly ignore Chris's warning.
In the end,
"...Is there really such a danger in this artifact competition?"
"Yes, I'm certain."
Ruina let out a deep sigh.
"I understand. I will do as you say, Young Master."
Chris grinned broadly.
"A wise decision. But it's going to be a bit pricey."
"Pricey?"
"There are things I need to prepare, and none of them come cheap."
"...How much do you need?"
"I don't know the exact price myself. I'll tell you the items I need."
Chris listed the items he needed to prepare.
With each item he named, Ruina's face grew paler and paler.
Finally, she let out a single, sharp scream.
"Are you insane?"