Chapter 7
Chapter 7
In a noisy, run-down tavern tucked away in a back alley.
The sour stench of cheap beer and the salty smell of peanuts filled the air as I sat in a corner, putting on a serious expression as I spoke to the guy sitting across from me.
“So… this isn’t about me. It’s about someone I know really well.”
The guy across from me—Myrtle, a merchant friend I’d gotten close to in this world and someone quite capable in back-alley business—rested his chin on his hand and looked at me with disinterest.
“Yeah, yeah. Not about you. So what about this ‘friend’ of yours?”
“My friend recently discovered and is raising an absolutely insane jackpot item. If I had to compare it… yeah. Like a baby dragon that just hatched. Something that’ll grow up and overturn the world with a single breath attack. A mythical-level asset.”
At that moment, Myrtle, who had been drinking his beer, suddenly spat it out everywhere.
“Cough! Cough! You lunatic! Don’t tell me you smuggled a baby dragon into that slum and are raising it?! Are you insane? Are you planning to sell it to those dragon-obsessed nobles or something?!”
“Hey, you idiot! I said it’s a metaphor! A metaphor!! And it’s not even my story—it’s about someone I know!”
I panicked and glanced around.
But soon, the calculator in my head started spinning like crazy.
I leaned forward slightly and lowered my voice.
“But selling a baby dragon to nobles… does it make good money?”
At my shameless question, Myrtle let out a scoff.
“Make money? Do you even know how many cows a growing baby dragon eats in a month? You’ll go bankrupt from feeding it before it even breathes fire.”
“Ah. Then never mind.”
For a moment, I thought I’d found a way to fund Camellia’s investment, but the numbers didn’t add up.
I cleared my throat and quickly changed the subject.
“Ahem! Anyway! What my friend is raising isn’t a dragon, but something like it. And later on, it’s definitely—absolutely—going to become something incredible.”
“Yeah, so?”
“The problem is the initial investment is huge. You have to educate it, feed it potions, and provide meat regularly. Not as bad as a dragon, but the maintenance cost is still brutal.”
At my passionate explanation, Myrtle raised an eyebrow and slammed his mug down.
“So the conclusion of all that nonsense is—you came to borrow money again?”
“No, it’s not my story, it’s about someone I kn—”
“How much do you need?”
“…How much can you lend?”
At my lightning-fast change of stance, Myrtle pressed his forehead and sighed deeply.
“You shameless bastard. Do you even know how much you already owe me? You haven’t even paid back the interest, let alone the principal, and you’re asking for more?”
“I’ll pay it back after I win big!! This one’s for real! If this works out, I’ll repay everything with interest—double, no, quadruple!!”
As I spouted something only a gambling addict would say, Myrtle glared at me coldly.
“Cut the crap and drink. I’ll pay for tonight, so just eat and go home quietly.”
Rejected outright, I sulked and chugged the rest of my beer.
As I slumped over, munching peanuts in silence, Myrtle, who had been watching me for a while, suddenly spoke.
“What kind of slave is it that makes you pour money into it like you’re carving out your own flesh?”
“S-slave? I—”
“About two years ago, you bought some half-dead slave for a single silver coin, and ever since then you’ve been working two, three jobs a day just to serve that slave like royalty, right?”
All those times I’d borrowed money while making excuses…
Looks like I underestimated the information network of a back-alley merchant.
At this point, I slammed the table and gave up the flimsy “friend” excuse.
“You fool! You just don’t get it! That kid is the real deal!”
Now that I’d decided to speak, I couldn’t stop myself from getting heated.
“Do you know how smart she is? She memorizes every book I give her! She’s scared out of her mind—trembles whenever I raise a hand—but still went up the mountain alone to gather herbs because I was sick! Stupid, yet admirable…!”
I passionately sang praises about my great investment product(?).
But my words suddenly stopped when I heard laughter from across the table.
Myrtle was clutching his stomach, laughing.
“Hey, hey. At first it sounded like you were introducing some amazing item, but do you know what it sounds like now?”
“What? It’s just a thorough value analysis.”
“Yeah right. Anyone listening would think you’re a doting father bragging about his precious daughter. You’re showing off like crazy. You’ve become a total daughter fool in just two years.”
“D-daughter fool?! I’m just objectively analyzing an asset!”
My face flushed red as I protested, but Myrtle simply smiled and took a sip of his drink.
“Well, whether it’s a daughter or some great item… honestly, it sounds nice.”
“Huh?”
Myrtle rested his chin on his hand and stared at me.
“You know, a few years ago when you got scammed out of everything by that skinny merchant… I thought you’d hang yourself that very day. You looked like a corpse with no life in your eyes.”
“……”
“But after you bought that slave, you’ve been running around like a madman. Sure, your body looks like it’s falling apart… but your eyes? They’re not dead anymore. They look alive.”
I couldn’t respond, my lips just twitching.
“Looks like you found something that suits you, you bastard.”
Grinning, Myrtle pulled out a heavy leather pouch and pushed it across the table.
Clink—
A clear, beautiful sound.
“Myrtle…?”
“Don’t get the wrong idea. I’m not lending this to you.”
He nudged the pouch toward me.
“I’m investing in that ‘slave’ you keep bragging about. If it’s such a jackpot, I’ll buy in too.”
“I trusted you, you bastard!!”
I immediately stood up and slammed my head onto the table in gratitude.
In this brutal back-alley world, a venture capitalist willing to fund me with almost no conditions actually existed!
Thank you…
Overwhelming gratitude…!
“Thank you! I’ll never forget this! I’ll make our penny stock skyrocket and repay you with profits!”
Clutching the pouch like treasure, even tearing up a little, I made Myrtle snort.
“You’re a strange guy. It’s not even money for yourself, yet you look happier than anyone after getting investment funds.”
Myrtle drank the rest of his beer and gazed out the window at the dark slums.
“…Honestly, that slave is kind of enviable.”
“Enviable? What nonsense. Want to be sold for a silver coin and locked in a basement?”
As I secured the pouch, Myrtle asked in a surprisingly serious tone.
“I’m genuinely curious. If I mess up my business and lose everything… would you take me in as your slave?”
“What? Already drunk?”
“You wouldn’t take me?”
“……”
I looked at him quietly.
He sounded like he was joking, but he was a merchant who had survived the harsh back alleys.
A world where you never know when you’ll go bankrupt,
when you’ll be betrayed,
or when you’ll lose your head.
That exhaustion lingered beneath his question.
I smirked and clinked my mug against his empty one.
“There you go again. Talking nonsense. You said you’d build a great merchant group—what’s with this slave talk? Just drink.”
“No, seriously. What if I fail?”
As he persisted, I poured him some beer and grinned.
“Fine, you bastard. If you really go bankrupt and end up on the streets, I’ll buy you for two silver coins and take you in as my slave. I’ll feed you gourmet meals… like potato soup every day, so don’t worry and go make money.”
“Heh, two silver coins? Guess I’m worth twice that slave. I’m honored.”
“Friendship bonus included. Now—cheers to our successful investment!”
“Yeah. To the grand future of our great slave master.”
Clink—
The sound of cheap wooden mugs colliding blended pleasantly into the noisy tavern.
And as I felt the weight of the investment pouch in my arms, I couldn’t help but feel full already just imagining the meat dishes I’d buy for Camellia tomorrow.