I've Never Had Anyone Comfort Me Like This Before
The day after the Lorend Merchant Guild signed the contract for the exclusive Imperial supply rights to Blue Stone.
Shouts echoed through the estate of the Jebb family, a merchant house specializing in Blue Stone.
"How on earth did you handle this?!"
"F-Father, please calm down."
Helchen Jebb, who usually packaged himself as a refined, silver-haired gentleman, had no choice but to hang his head like a pathetic loser at this moment.
Standing before him was his father, Tyron Jebb, the head of the Jebb Guild, practically vibrating with rage.
Tyron Jebb, whose face bore scars from a harsh life in the North, tore at his own silver hair and roared.
"Do I look like I can calm down right now?!"
Tyron hurled a letter at his son.
It contained intelligence indicating that the Lorend Guild had secured the exclusive Imperial supply rights for Blue Stone.
"Those Lorend bastards got the Imperial supply rights. Do you have any idea what that means?!"
"O-Of course I do."
"If you knew, how could you screw up this badly?! I told you to steal Lorend's Blue Stone, not push them into the mining industry!"
Realizing that selling the Blue Stone to Lorend had been a mistake, Tyron had sent his son to buy it back.
But shortly after, those Lorend bastards had offered it all to the Imperial family and walked away with the supply rights.
Tyron could only come to one conclusion.
My idiot son's threats pushed Lorend into a do-or-die corner, forcing them straight into the Blue Stone mining business.
In business, the golden rule was that even if you couldn't make allies, you must never make enemies. Seeing that his son still hadn't learned this basic lesson, Tyron felt his blood pressure spiking dangerously.
"Well... I mean, who would have thought they'd react like that..."
Hearing his son's pathetic excuse, Tyron felt a sudden, violent urge to fold the boy in half backward.
Gulping down a glass of liquor to soothe his churning stomach, Tyron spoke.
"Sigh... Do you at least have a countermeasure?"
"Of course, Father!"
Helchen quickly blurted out the excuse he had scrambled to put together.
"All they have is a piece of paper. As long as our guild maintains its tight grip on the hunter guilds in the North, they won't be able to source a single pebble. They'll be left twiddling their thumbs."
Helchen's point was actually something Tyron had already considered.
Without a steady supply of Blue Stone from the northern hunter guilds, the Imperial supply rights were utterly useless.
And because of that, the Lorend Guild's next move was entirely predictable.
"Still, I can't shake this unease... Go to the North."
"What? But all the gates to the North are closed right now, so how..."
At his son's clueless response, Tyron finally snapped.
He snatched up an ashtray and hurled it.
Crash!
"Ah! Father?!"
"Use the capital's asshole! Go through Outerloon, get to the North by any means necessary, and keep those hunter guilds in check!"
"Y-Yes, sir! Right away, Father!!"
The back alleys of the capital, Outerloon.
Terrified by his father's roaring command to head to the North via the notorious 'capital's asshole,' Helchen scrambled out of the room in a panic.
Watching his pathetic son's retreating back, Tyron thought of his rival, enemy, and old friend, Gilbert Lorend.
"Must be nice to have such a brilliant heir, Gilbert..."
If only his own son could be even half as competent as Gilbert's boy.
Tyron took another long draft of his drink, trying to quiet his churning stomach.
At that very moment, a carriage procession led by Kyle Lorend departed for the North.
Princess Shuren, who had come all the way out to the carriages to see them off, bid her final farewell to Lady Matilda.
"Safe travels, sister... Take care of yourself, and make sure to write, okay?"
"I will... You take care too, Shuren..."
With those final words, Lady Matilda stepped into the carriage.
Shuren then turned to Kyle, who was about to board the same carriage.
"I'm leaving Lady Matilda in your capable hands, Kyle."
"Yes, Your Highness. I will escort her to the North with the utmost care."
With that, the carriages of the Lorend Merchant Guild set off toward the North.
Countless servants and onlookers watched their departure.
With this public display, the news that the Lorend Guild had openly crossed the Crown Prince would spread like wildfire throughout the capital.
As I watched the city fade into the distance, Lady Matilda, sitting across from me, spoke up.
"You don't need to worry so much."
Lady Matilda de Ludmily.
With her flowing silver hair and ethereal presence, she looked like an ice goddess come to life. Her voice wasn't as cold as one might expect; instead, it carried a deeply human warmth.
"Pardon? About what?"
"The North never forgets a debt. If things become difficult for you in the capital because of Lukas, come to the North. I will do everything in my power to help you."
Ah. She probably thinks I'm trembling in my boots because I offended the Crown Prince.
In reality, I was staring out the window hoping the rumor of our feud with the prince would spread as far and wide as possible...
Well, there was no reason to reject her goodwill, so I gave a polite, agreeable response.
"Thank you for your kindness, Lady Matilda."
Lady Matilda accepted my gratitude with a calm nod.
As the carriage rattled over the uneven road, filling the chilly interior with steady vibrations, she spoke again.
"Since we're on the subject, shall we lay our cards on the table? I doubt you volunteered for this out of pure altruism. What is it you want from me?"
Straight to the point. First Shuren, now Matilda—I absolutely love how these northern women operate.
I got straight to the point as well.
"I want the hunter guilds that harvest Blue Stone in the North."
A brief flicker of surprise crossed Lady Matilda's face.
She stared at me with a look of mild intrigue, much like Shuren had before.
"...You're remarkably candid. Usually, people try to milk their favors for all they're worth before bringing up what they actually want."
"Honesty is my greatest virtue, after all. I absolutely despise hypocrisy."
To hell with hypocrisy! Money is king!
That was the core tenet I had established for myself ever since being reincarnated into this world.
As she looked at me, an expression of understanding dawned on her face.
"I see... You are very honest about your desires."
"I don't believe being honest about one's desires is a sin. The real sin is realizing what you want too late and making everyone around you miserable in the process."
If I like a woman, I say so.
If I like money, I say so.
Trying to clumsily hide your desires only leads to disasters that drag down everyone around you.
Just like a certain Crown Prince.
As if she understood exactly what I meant, Lady Matilda let out a faint, enigmatic smile.
"Heh... I suppose you're right."
Seizing the opportunity to leave a lasting impression, I pressed on.
"And that applies to you as well, Lady Matilda."
"What... do you mean by that?"
"What is your desire? Is there anything you truly want to do?"
"I... Well..."
In the original novel, Lady Matilda embarks on a journey of self-discovery after her broken engagement.
Eventually, she finds her true calling and awakens as the ultimate weapon of the North.
I was trying to slide my spoon onto her plate early and take some credit for that awakening.
"My father always says, 'A crisis is just an opportunity in disguise.' In a way, I believe you've been given a golden opportunity to realize your true desires and make your own choices."
Forget about being dumped by that royal idiot, and start living a new life for yourself.
Catching my drift, she let out a soft chuckle.
"Haha... Shuren was right. You really are an amusing man, Lord Kyle. I've never had anyone comfort me like this before."
"I do pride myself on my sense of humor."
"My own desires... Yes... I suppose I've never thought about it even once."
She turned her gaze back to the window.
The carriage had already left the capital far behind, heading toward the increasingly desolate landscape of the North.
She fell into deep thought, staring at the passing scenery and her own reflection in the glass.
"You are beautiful and intelligent, Lady Matilda. Plus, you have the Duke backing you. Surely, a much brighter future awaits you than whatever lay behind."
While she might not be quite on Meriel's level, Lady Matilda was undeniably gorgeous.
Gorgeous enough that, if it weren't for the terrifying Duke of the North standing behind her, I would have launched a full-scale confession attack by now.
Lady Matilda looked genuinely startled.
"...Are you flirting with me right now?"
"Ah, forgive me. My tongue slipped because of the beautiful flower sitting right in front of me. Ouch!"
At that exact moment, a sharp, agonizing shock shot through my thigh.
This pain... it was Elina's signature thigh-pinch!
I glanced sideways to find Elina staring at me with eyes colder than a northern blizzard.
Glare—
"..."
'Are you trying to ruin everything by flirting with another woman, Young Master?'
Her icy glare spoke volumes.
Alright, alright... I'll behave...
Defeated by Elina's silent pressure, I shrank back into my corner of the carriage.
Watching our silent comedy routine, Lady Matilda suddenly burst into laughter.
"Pfft! Hahaha!"
Wait, was that actually funny?
Matilda laughed heartily, completely shattering her cold, ice-goddess image.
After laughing for quite some time, she finally managed to compose herself.
"Haha... Whew... I'm sorry. It's been a very long time since I've seen something so entertaining."
"...Well, as long as you enjoyed it, Lady Matilda, that's all that matters."
Apparently, the silent bickering between Elina and me perfectly hit her unique sense of humor.
Who knew she liked this kind of comedy?
Talk about a quirky taste.
"Sigh... I don't hold the authority over the hunter guilds myself. However, I know the person who does. I will introduce you to him."
"Yes, that is more than enough, Lady Matilda."
Having cheered up, Lady Matilda readily gave me the answer I wanted.
Hey, who cares if her sense of humor is a bit weird? As long as she helps me make money, she's the absolute best.
Just like that, I secured exactly what I wanted from Lady Matilda right inside the carriage.
A few days later, we arrived at the gateway to the North, which connected the region to the central empire.
We had reached the Frostbite Gate.