Chapter 87
Chapter 87
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 87
Chapter Title: The World's Stupidest Man
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Who is the stupidest person in the world?
"Right in front of me."
The buffalo, smitten with lovesickness for Syria.
Leyzon regarded him with profound pity.
Oberizel finally left the room after getting an earful from Leyzon.
Which left just Leyzon and the buffalo in the room now.
"What are you going to do for me if I make the introduction?"
Nothing in this world comes free.
Leyzon leaned back leisurely in his chair.
The buffalo answered with a desperate look on his face.
"Anything I can do!"
"Alright then. How about handing over the Sun Buffalo Guild?"
As Leyzon eyed the Sun Buffalo Guild, the buffalo's face stiffened.
Of course, Leyzon was only half-joking.
The idea of giving away a guild for a woman was absurd.
"Ughhh."
But in that moment, Leyzon caught a glimpse of real hesitation in his eyes.
Is he actually insane?
As Leyzon stared at him in disbelief, the buffalo flinched.
"O-Of course that's impossible."
He'd clearly been seriously considering it just a second ago.
"One of your guild members bent over backward to save the guild, even bowing to the guy who broke him."
Leyzon felt a surge of pointless anger.
"And now the guild master is thinking of selling out the guild because he's bewitched by a woman."
The buffalo's body twitched repeatedly.
He knew he'd done something shameful.
Leyzon decided to drop the scolding.
It wasn't his guild anyway, so none of his business.
"...Sorry. You saw something unsightly. It's a trait of our race to be weak to women. Happens sometimes."
The buffalo apologized, aware of his own behavior.
His complexion had changed.
Now, maybe they could actually talk.
"So, what brings you here from the Steel Wolf Guild?"
Leyzon pointed toward the door.
"Your guild mate Oberizel asked me to join the tournament the Imperba Duke is hosting as a Sun Buffalo representative."
"That guy Oberizel, always meddling in everything."
The buffalo sighed, complaining that Oberizel stuck his nose in too many things.
But he was well aware the Sun Buffalo Guild was in crisis.
"So, what's the condition?"
He knew full well that bringing Leyzon on board was a smart move.
If the Moon Goat Guild snatched control this time, who knew when they'd get another shot.
"The Steel Wolf Guild's been working on some business tied to Sahā Village lately, right?"
Leyzon, Rafila, and a few others had put their heads together.
And decided to leverage Sahā Village's advantages for a venture.
Sahā Village sat right in the heart of the empire.
Not a huge place, by any means.
But perfect as a stopover for merchants.
In other words,
it was a key hub for those with capital.
'What matters most to merchants is how much they can trade cheaply and in volume.'
Merchants want to spread the word about their goods.
In a world without TV or the internet, that meant getting out there in person.
Sahā Village, smack in the central crossroads, saw tons of merchants pass through.
Perfect spot for merchants to promote to other merchants.
And if they built a secure bulk storage facility, it would cut the hassle of long hauls in half.
Turning Sahā Village into a major hub for smooth merchant deals.
'Then use the profits to expand into finance.'
That's how society keeps the money flowing.
Either way, even just this business model was mouthwatering.
But they lacked the credibility to draw in merchants.
The Steel Wolf Guild's bad rep from past misdeeds didn't help.
So at first, they'd asked Rafila to seek backing from Aegis.
Aegis, leader of the top guild, Frostnight.
Her guarantee would be gold-standard credibility.
But Rafila bowed directly to Leyzon.
"Leyzon, I'd like to do this with our own strength, without borrowing Aegis's power."
Rafila, who always followed Leyzon's lead without question.
For him to bow his head like this and plead.
They'd once been at each other's throats.
Now, partners.
Leyzon decided to respect Rafila's pride.
In return, Rafila promised to scout wider connections.
But he couldn't leave Rafila to shoulder it all.
"If the Sun Buffalo Guild throws some support our way, it'd help a ton."
He might be a mess of a guild master.
But he ran a major guild in the duke's territory.
The public image favored Sun Buffalo over Steel Wolf.
"And while we're at it, some investment would be nice."
They'd blown a fortune buying up Sahā Village.
Fresh investment capital would ease the strain.
"Investment, huh."
The buffalo didn't answer rashly.
Crazy about women or not, he was still a major guild master.
Profit calculations flickered behind his eyes.
"Long-term, it does look promising."
As the buffalo said, this was a long-haul venture.
No guarantees of success, either.
Fail, and Sun Buffalo eats the loss.
"The Steel Wolf Guild's staking everything on this. You know you can't live off being a pioneer forever, right?"
Pioneers had clear limits.
Even young guild masters aged eventually.
Then the next generation pushes them out.
That's why older guild masters spread their wings.
"Still, it's not a decision I can make lightly."
The buffalo was more cautious than expected here.
Makes sense. Shiny on the surface doesn't mean profitable.
"Syria."
So Leyzon decided to shake things up more.
"Yes, Leyzon."
Syria popped up right at Leyzon's feet.
Her white hair, streaked with black at the tips, fluttered slowly.
"Uh, oh."
The moment he saw Syria, the buffalo zoned out.
His sharp eyes went slack in an instant.
Slap!
Right then, the buffalo smacked his own face.
Blood dripped from his nose.
A sudden self-mutilating maniac.
"...I'm a sucker for women, but I know when to stay sharp."
The buffalo declared firmly, eyes resolute.
"No, I wasn't planning to use Syria like that."
Why'd he hit himself?
"Buffalo, doesn't Syria give you any vibes?"
The buffalo blinked and stared at Syria.
"...Pretty."
"Cut the idiot talk."
Syria smiled faintly.
The buffalo grinned vacantly back.
But his face froze solid at the same time.
Because killing intent pouring from Syria was choking his throat.
Cold sweat beaded slowly on the buffalo's face.
Syria was level 19 in Corruption.
The buffalo was hero-tier at best.
No match for her.
"Eden."
Then Leyzon called another.
Shadows gathered beside Leyzon.
A gentleman in a sharp suit appeared.
The buffalo tensed up again at his entrance.
Eden was just as formidable as Syria.
Leyzon, with those two flanking him, rested his elbows on his knees.
Steepled his fingers and smiled faintly.
"Buffalo, everything I say from now on? You keep it secret. Just you."
The buffalo was sensitive to powerhouses.
The instant Leyzon's aura shifted,
his posture quietly adjusted.
"You've heard of the Abyss, being a major guild master."
The buffalo nodded slowly.
Good—he knew of the Abyss.
His face paled stark white because he knew it well.
"This is Vampire Queen, Syria Nosferatu."
"Hello."
Syria gave a short greeting.
"This is Curse Demon King, Eden Yuphéra."
"Pleased to meet you."
Eden followed suit.
"I'm their master."
The buffalo swallowed a quiet groan.
"And I'm overseeing the Steel Wolf Guild's business."
The buffalo might look dumb, but he wasn't.
He grasped what Leyzon's words implied.
A glint returned to his eyes.
He sensed the value of a venture under Leyzon's watch.
This world ran on power hierarchies.
A major guild master like him knew that full well.
"The Moon Goat Guild's putting the screws to Sun Buffalo this time, right?"
Leyzon's lip curled wickedly.
"If a tournament contender has an 'accident' and breaks something, no issues in a fair match, yeah?"
He gave as good as he got.
The buffalo gulped.
This pitch carried a veiled threat.
Refuse, and he'd collect the price for revealing their identities.
Syria and Eden's power was beyond imagination.
They'd crush Sun Buffalo faster than reporting to the empire.
The buffalo finished his math and looked up.
"...We can definitely stick it to the Moon Goat Guild hard?"
"As long as it's worse than what happened to Oberizel."
The buffalo extended his hand.
"Deal."
Smart call.
Leyzon shook it firmly, beaming.
One major guild secured.
Rafila would be thrilled.
"And separately, you've got that reserve gear vault, right? Open it up."
"Vault?"
The buffalo's face hardened.
But Leyzon wagged a finger.
Syria had sidled up beside Leyzon, sitting demurely.
The buffalo couldn't tear his eyes away.
"You're repping the guild, aren't you? Gotta look the part with gear."
Leyzon grinned slyly.
"At least on the outside, you need to pass as Sun Buffalo."
"Using your gear sells the credibility better."
His silver tongue worked overtime.
The buffalo fell to Syria's gaze, Leyzon's words.
Mind muddled.
"Especially if it's gear you've squirreled away."
"Makes it look like Sun Buffalo's backing their member."
"...Yeah, that makes sense."
The buffalo nodded unwittingly.
His eyes stayed glued to Syria, mind adrift.
"So, just borrow some gear for a bit."
Indefinitely, but a loan was a loan.
"You'll do it, right?"
"You'll do it?"
Syria echoed with a sweet smile.
The buffalo was nodding before he knew it.
"Oh, and FYI, I'm not entering the tournament."
"Huh, what?"
The buffalo snapped his head up mid-nod.
"Not doing it."
Syria repeated after Leyzon.
The buffalo nodded blankly again.
Leyzon really liked this consistent guy.
Keep it up.