This Blue Stone Is Mine Now
After concluding his conversation with Kyle, Young Lord Ivan headed to Lady Matilda's room. Despite the late hour, Lady Matilda was still awake and welcomed Ivan as he entered.
"Did your talk go well, Brother?"
"Ah, yes. It went well."
"Indeed, he is an interesting man, just as you said."
"Right? I met many people in the capital, but I've never encountered anyone quite like Lord Kyle."
Matilda felt a sense of friendliness toward Kyle, who had treated her without any pretense. However, Ivan, having glimpsed Kyle's true colors, felt something entirely different.
"And... he is a terrifying man."
"What? Kyle is?"
Ivan recalled his meeting with Kyle just moments ago. At first, he had thought of him as merely a greedy merchant. But Kyle had engineered a situation that was impossible to refuse, seizing control of the narrative and steering everything exactly where he wanted it to go.
Ivan had met all kinds of people in his life. Yet, Kyle was the first who possessed such an overwhelming ability to dominate a situation. In the treatises on statecraft Ivan had studied, it was written that one must do one of two things with such an individual: either eliminate them entirely, or make absolutely sure they are on your side.
What frightened Ivan even more, however, was the feeling Kyle evoked in him.
How reassuring would it be if he threw his weight behind the North?
The thought kept nagging at him, fueling a desire to bind Kyle completely to the North as an ally. And then, his gaze fell upon his younger sister, whose eyes sparkled whenever she spoke of the man.
He had worried that she would return with a broken heart after suffering the ordeal of a broken engagement with that scoundrel of a prince. Instead, she had returned to the North looking brighter than expected, and now she was speaking of Kyle with a cheerful expression.
An ally for the North, and his sister's happiness. Ivan realized that, if played right, his two greatest worries could be resolved in a single stroke.
"Tilda... if you don't mind, I would like you to maintain a close friendship with Lord Kyle."
"With Lord Kyle?"
"Yes. Call it a hunch, but I believe there is a very high probability that Lord Kyle will become an indispensable ally to our North in the future."
Matilda couldn't help but be surprised by her brother's words. When it came to judging people, Ivan was ruthlessly cold and incredibly accurate. Even with the prince, Ivan had realized upon their very first meeting that the royal was nothing but a hollow shell, and had warned her accordingly.
What on earth had Kyle shown him to make her brother evaluate him so highly? Matilda grew intensely curious about Kyle's true nature.
"Of course, if you'd rather not, that is perfectly fine. After what happened with the prince, you probably don't even want to look at another man for a while."
"Ah! No, that's not it, Brother! I... I am perfectly fine."
"...Very well. If you are willing, then I leave it to you."
"Yes, Brother."
For the future of the North, and for the future of his beloved sister, Ivan had laid down a small bridge. A cold, invisible noose was beginning to quietly tighten around Kyle.
A sudden chill ran down my spine. This feeling... it was the exact same ominous shiver I felt back in the day when I flirted with a certain noble lady and ended up on her protective older brother's hit list. Hmm... what gives? I haven't even flirted with anyone lately...
"Are you alright, Lord Kyle?"
"Ah... yes, I'm fine."
Having successfully concluded my talk with Ivan, I led the Northern Guard to the hidden warehouse. The warehouse, which had been concealed by illusion magic, revealed itself through the activation of an artifact.
Inside lay the massive stockpile of wheat I had secretly gathered in the North. The Northerners' jaws dropped at the sight of the staggering quantity.
"My God..."
"Is... is all of this really wheat?"
"Yes. One hundred percent pure wheat from the Eastern Empire. I gathered it in secret under the orders of Young Lord Ivan."
I had to maintain the cover story that I had stockpiled this wheat on Ivan's orders. Otherwise, it would look like I had illegally hoarded food in the North. Ivan, who had accompanied us, knelt before Grand Duke Cromwell de Ludmily and spoke.
"Because the information was unconfirmed, we had to proceed in absolute secrecy. I apologize, Father."
Grand Duke Cromwell firmly grasped his son's shoulders. His face was a mask of deep emotion as he roared.
"What is there to apologize for?! Thanks to your foresight, the North has been saved!"
Grand Duke Cromwell was a warrior, but he was also the leader of the North. Because he couldn't let his people starve to death, he had been planning to negotiate with the Imperial Administration in a month, just as they expected.
But the appearance of this food changed everything. Now, the North could hold out much longer, and the ones who would be sweating were the imperials. Cromwell looked at his son, who had made all of this possible, and declared:
"Ivan... you are indeed my true successor!"
My true successor. Hearing his father utter those words for the very first time, Ivan felt a surge of overwhelming emotion swell in his chest. With their food supply secured, the Grand Duke gathered all the people of the North to announce the news.
"Brothers of the North! Our opportunity has arrived! This time, I will make absolutely sure we extract a proper price for the humiliation we have suffered!"
The people of the North cheered, ecstatic that they would not starve and that they finally had a chance to avenge their wounded pride.
Watching them celebrate filled me with a deep sense of satisfaction. Man, this is great. I get to make money, and they get to be happy. It's a win-win for everyone in this beautiful world.
Afterward, as a reward for making everyone cheer, I received exactly what I wanted.
"I am Lac Haim, Guild Master of the Hunter Guild."
A silver-haired man in his forties who looked like a veteran hunter bowed to me in greeting. His face was etched with deep worry. What's with him? Is he sick or something? At any rate, this anxious-looking middle-aged man was the head of the Hunter Guild whom Ivan had introduced to me.
"I am Kyle Lorend, Vice Leader of the Lorend Merchant Guild. I look forward to working with you."
"I have received my orders from the Young Lord. I am at your service, Vice Leader Kyle."
Lac Haim was the head of the Haim family, which had served the Ludmily family for generations. In return for their loyalty, they had been appointed to run the Hunter Guild, which they had managed ever since.
Following his lead, I headed to the Blue Stone storage warehouse. Inside, thousands of tons of Blue Stones were piled up like mountains.
"An incredible amount. Is this all of it?"
"This is only the contents of Warehouse One. We still have Warehouses Two and Three."
Staring at the warehouse containing the Blue Stones destined for the entire empire, I felt a sense of sheer awe. To think all of this is mine now... Man, how much will this fetch once it hits the capital? Just imagining the profit made my heart race.
"But... are you sure about this?"
"About what?"
"For us, it is simply a matter of redirecting our supply from the Jebb Guild to the Lorend Guild... but transporting such a massive quantity of Blue Stones from the North to the capital is no easy feat."
Lac spoke with a face full of concern. I knew exactly what he was worried about. In an era without railways, transporting this mountain of Blue Stones to the capital and across the empire was a logistical nightmare. But it was fine. I already had a method in mind.
"Don't worry, I have a plan. More importantly, take this."
"What... what is this?"
I slipped a pre-prepared pouch of coins into the Guild Master's pocket. It contained roughly double his annual salary. In short, it was a kickback.
"I'm sure you have a lot of worries now that your trading partner has suddenly changed. But I assure you, none of the things you're worrying about will happen, so rest easy."
"...Thank you for your consideration, Lord Kyle."
While dealing with the Jebb Guild, Guild Master Lac and the other higher-ups in the Hunter Guild had undoubtedly pocketed some under-the-table cash on top of their official pay. From what I had gathered, they had been taking home an extra 1.5 times their annual salary in bribes.
So, I decided to up the ante and throw down double. Come on! A real man goes big—two times, three times! What kind of cheapskate only gives 1.5? My kickback was a clear message: I would always pay them more than the Jebb Guild ever did, never less.
Guild Master Lac, fully catching my drift, bowed about fourteen degrees deeper than before. When he raised his head, the worry was completely gone from his face. Yep, money really is the ultimate cure-all. Works like a charm every single time.
Just as Guild Master Lac and I were basking in this heartwarming atmosphere, a sudden, loud commotion shattered the quiet of the North.
"Lac!!!!!"
"Lord Helchen? How are you here..."
I spun around to see Helchen and about five of his lackeys. But their appearance... they looked like absolute bums.
The Helchen who used to wear only the finest luxury clothes in the capital to match his silver hair was nowhere to be seen; instead, he was clad in rags straight out of the empire's back alleys.
He had probably disguised himself to sneak into the North from Outerloon. The moment his eyes landed on me, his face froze.
"Kyle... you... why the hell are you here?!"
His face was completely stiff. The worst-case scenario was probably flashing through his mind. Being the kind friend I am, I graciously confirmed his worst fears.
"Why else? I'm here to greet my new partners as the Hunter Guild's latest associate." You're too late, buddy. This Blue Stone is mine now.