Peach Blossoms Amidst Snow (3)
Long green hair fluttered beneath the peach tree. Eyes the exact same shade of green stared straight at me. It was the sort of look one might give an exotic animal. I swam through the hot spring toward the woman and spoke.
“To look at me with those eyes after seeing my face. Even for me, this is a new low.”
“You’re a fire-element affinity mage, aren’t you?”
“You can tell just by looking?”
It was easy enough to guess someone was a mage from lingering traces of mana, but determining their exact rank or elemental affinity usually required seeing their magic firsthand. How had she known? I was especially good at concealing my mana, so it should have been nearly impossible to tell from appearance alone.
The woman took a long drag on her pipe, exhaled, and shook her head with an expression of pure distaste.
“There’s a famous saying among mages.”
“I know it. Magic is wonderful and lovely, right?”
“All mages are insane, but you should be especially careful of fire-element affinity mages who’ve burned their own faces off. Ever heard that one?”
“No. First time.”
“It means anyone crazy enough to chase magic without fearing death is on an entirely different level of madness. So watch yourself.”
I widened my eyes, genuinely stunned. What kind of absurd rumor was this?
“Death is the scariest thing in the world to me. I can’t die until I’ve tried every kind of magic there is.”
“That’s exactly what makes you crazy, you mad mage.”
“My master told me I was perfectly normal.”
“He must have loved you a great deal to say something so kind. Only speaking well of you like that.”
Wait. She was praising Kelton? This woman seemed like a good person after all. She even smoked a pipe just like him. There was no way she could be bad.
Feeling much brighter, I decided to introduce myself properly.
“My name is Ruina.”
“Flora.”
“Are you a mage as well, Lady Flora?”
Flora seemed skilled at hiding her mana too; I couldn’t sense any traces. But the tree standing proudly behind her, blooming completely out of season, made it obvious she was a mage regardless.
“If I am?”
“The magic you used to grow that peach tree—could you give it to me? I’ll pay whatever price you ask.”
“You want me to teach you? I suppose you don’t understand why they call it unique magic.”
“No, I’m not asking to be taught. I’m asking if you’d be willing to transfer it to me through a trade.”
“…Transfer it?”
Flora’s expression turned odd. Her tone suggested she was at least a fifth-class mage, yet even someone of her level seemed to be hearing the concept of trading magic for the first time.
Her gaze traveled over my face, chest, stomach, and thighs before finally settling on the back of my left hand.
“You must have received quite the ridiculous inheritance from your master.”
“My master is an incredibly great mage. His name is Kelton—please remember it.”
“Yes. He really is an absurd mage. Truly.”
Flora’s eyes lost focus, as though she were staring into the far distance. She seemed lost in deep thought, so I waited five seconds before prompting her again.
“So, will you trade the magic? Any condition is fine. As long as it’s something I can do.”
“Anything?”
“As long as it’s something I can do.”
Flora stared at me intently. I held her gaze without flinching. After a moment, she spoke slowly.
“Is immortality possible as well?”
“If it’s something I can do, then yes. Separately, I’m searching for the Holy Grail right now. If I find it, it should work. Would you be willing to wait until then?”
“The Holy Grail? You mean the cup made from the bones of the Avatar of Desire who accompanied the first emperor?”
“Yes.”
“Do you have any solid information?”
“Not really.”
“Hah.”
Flora let out a dry laugh and took another long pull from her pipe. She muttered under her breath.
“If it were that easy to find, I would have done it myself long ago.”
“I suppose so.”
“If it’s not immortality, I’m not interested. I have no intention of handing over my magic otherwise.”
“What a shame.”
The deal had fallen through. I clicked my tongue and lowered myself deeper into the hot spring. Then a thought struck me.
“Since I made the first offer, you won’t pass the magic to anyone else, right? I really will bring the Holy Grail.”
“Do you honestly think anyone else could trade for magic besides you?”
“You never know.”
“Lady Ruina. I’ve had the most brilliant idea. What if we bottle the hot spring water here, take it somewhere else, and sell it? What do you think?”
“You really do only ever think about making an enormous profit, don’t you?”
“In the merchant world, that’s a compliment.”
“Then I meant it as one.”
Bottling hot spring water and selling it. It was actually a pretty solid idea. Water didn’t spoil, so transportation would be easy.
“There are two problems, though. First, would anyone actually buy it? Second, even if there are buyers, would they believe the water you bring is genuine hot spring water?”
“That part falls under the realm of technique, Lady Ruina. It’s my job as the prospective merchant to handle it.”
With that, Chris held out her hand. I tilted my head. What was this supposed to mean? Well, when in doubt, just do whatever feels right. I placed my index and middle fingers on top of her fingers and made them crawl forward.
Chris blinked.
“Lady Ruina? What are you doing?”
“An ant is crawling.”
“That’s a rather large ant, isn’t it?”
“But it feels like an ant.”
“Does it? I suppose it does… No. That’s not what I meant. Lady Ruina. You’re supposed to invest. Stop playing with ants.”
Invest, huh. I carefully considered the practicality of the business plan Chris had come up with. Hmm.
“It seems difficult.”
“Why?”
“Even if people are interested in hot spring water, believing it’s the real thing would be hard. They might think it’s a scam and refuse to buy.”
“Which is why I keep saying it’s a matter of technique.”
“Let’s do this instead. Try selling the hot spring water to me right now. If I find it convincing, I’ll invest.”
Chris’s entire plan depended on her sales technique. If she wanted investment, she needed to prove just how outstanding that technique was.
At my suggestion, Chris’s expression changed instantly. She picked up the glass of honey wine.
“This is hot spring water from a renowned resort area. If it’s famous for its spring of healing, I’m sure you already understand.”
“You mean Belmonte Winterhaven’s hot spring water?”
“Exactly.”
“How can I trust that it’s genuine?”
“Here is the component analysis certificate issued by Belmonte Winterhaven’s alchemy guild. It would be ridiculous to travel all the way there and not bring back the actual water, wouldn’t it?”
“I’ll invest.”
“An excellent decision, Lady Ruina.”
I handed over one hundred and fifty gold coins—my spare funds. Chris accepted them with visible glee and began reviewing her business plan.
“We can’t approach this long-term. It’s too easy to copy, so the fad will die quickly.”
“Then we should invest the minimum amount in equipment.”
“No. We invest properly first, then sell the equipment to latecomers at a price that includes the value of the idea itself.”
“That’s such a devilish plan that even the god of money would flee in terror.”
“That is not a compliment in the merchant world, Lady Ruina.”
“This time I didn’t mean it as one.”
Just what kind of person had I gone into business with? It was genuinely frightening.
“There’s a lot to prepare—starting with that component certificate—so I’ll be busy. What about you, Lady Ruina?”
“I need to continue my investigation.”
“By enjoying more hot springs?”
“For us, that is the investigation.”
I picked up the glass of honey wine Chris had set down and drained it. Sweetness spread through my body.
“Understood. I’ll go prepare, then.”
“Please keep me updated on your progress.”
Chris left the inn. I put my pipe between my lips. Then I turned to Leon, who had been sitting quietly the entire time.
“Sir Leon.”
“……”
No response. He seemed lost in thought. I tapped the table lightly and tried again.
“Sir Leon?”
“Yes? What is it?”
“What were you thinking about so deeply? The mission given to you again?”
“…I was considering our next destination.”
“Already?”
When I asked in surprise, Leon nodded.
“It seems this place is another dead end.”
“We’ve only been here a single day.”
“Even so, can’t you feel it?”
He was right. If the Holy Grail were really buried in Winterhaven, the hot springs should have shown far stronger effects. Honestly, I felt nothing at all.
“If the Holy Grail were truly here, the hot springs would have become recovery potions, right?”
“Even if only half the legend is true, yes.”
“The chances that it’s not seem high.”
I fidgeted with my hand. The scars suppressed by flame brushed against my fingertips. Maybe I should switch from Leon coins to merchant Chris coins? At this rate, she looked like she could earn the treatment money within half a year. No. I couldn’t get complacent. My opponent was the gambling addict Chris. There was no telling when she might go broke.
Reminding myself of the old saying about not putting all your eggs in one basket, I murmured.
“Still, it’s only been a day. We haven’t even tried all the hot springs in Belmonte Winterhaven yet.”
“Which means…”
“Let’s investigate every hot spring here. You never know.”
After all, we had to stay in Winterhaven until Chris finished her business preparations. Taking the chance to check every spring didn’t seem like a bad idea.
“Oh, right. The hot springs outside this inn are open-air baths anyone can use. What would you like to do? Shall we investigate them together?”
“…Let’s divide the areas and investigate separately.”
“That does sound more efficient.”