High Risk, No Return
Four days had passed since then. I had holed myself up in the guild leader’s office, scouring every detail of the Runea Kingdom’s territorial laws, its noble immigration statutes, and even the precise limits of the political influence the Kaldia Ducal family could wield within the empire. Thick legal tomes that sent dust flying everywhere and high-grade intelligence reports purchased from the information guild piled up like mountains across the wide desk.
Then, at dawn on the fourth day—in other words, today—I finally finished every calculation. Filled with absolute certainty, I reached my conclusion.
This… is actually going to work!
Of course, from the perspective of the Runea Kingdom—where the Rumien Barony was located—this situation would be anything but welcome. Without lifting a finger, the barony was already sweeping in enormous sums of gold and paying massive taxes. What country would willingly hand over a goose that laid golden eggs?
But the most important parties involved had made their will crystal clear. Baron and Baroness Rumien, along with their successor Lilian, had sent me an impassioned letter several days earlier. They declared that if they could repay their debt to me, they were prepared to uproot their entire family and immigrate at once.
When the people directly concerned were eager to leave, what power did the kingdom have to stop them?
Well, if they’d treated them properly, maybe things would be different.
Besides, if we borrowed the solid backing of the Kaldia Ducal family—one of the empire’s greatest shields and pinnacles of power—we could cleanly crush even the noisiest diplomatic friction. It was the perfect board.
Naturally, I felt some reluctance at the thought of completely trampling people who had only just grasped a thread of hope for my own goals… Paradoxically, though, the guilt wasn’t that strong. After all, the empire was destined to be destroyed the moment the main story began. As long as I took them with me to Ertio when the time came, that would be enough.
The moment the sun rose, I immediately convened an emergency meeting. I called every senior executive—myself as guild leader, Vice Leader Eleanor, and the chief managers who ranked directly below us—into the main conference room at guild headquarters.
The eight chief managers and Eleanor, seated around the massive round table, were visibly tense from the sudden summons. Receiving their undivided attention, I slid the carefully prepared proposal I had spent the last several days refining toward the center of the table. It detailed the purchase of land in the Marbas Margraviate and the relocation of the Rumien Barony.
But the instant my ambitious announcement ended, the conference room fell into a heavy silence, as if someone had dumped a bucket of cold water over everyone.
The subsequent vote on the proposal was about as bad as I had expected—perhaps even worse. Nine against, one in favor. The sole vote in support, naturally, came from the madman who had proposed the plan in the first place: me.
“Guild Leader, this may be presumptuous, but I must speak.”
The first to break the silence was the eldest chief manager, the one who had overseen the Kaldia Merchant Guild’s major operations for decades. He kept his eyes fixed on the documents as he spoke.
“The land belonging to Margrave Marbas cannot simply be dismissed as ‘a bit barren.’ Every night, monsters swarm in droves, making civilian residence absolutely impossible. The soil itself is steeped in an unknown toxin that prevents even weeds from growing. It is a perfectly cursed wasteland.”
The problems he pointed out were exactly what I had intended.
“Moreover, while the purchase price itself may be cheap, the defense taxes and territory maintenance fees we would owe the margrave to hold such a vast area would consume a considerable sum. And above all, no matter how much profit we have made from Magic Stone Fruits, the Rumien family—barely recovered from the brink of ruin and not even an average baronial house—could never bear the burden. In short, this is simply pouring water into a bottomless bucket.”
“I agree with the chief manager’s assessment.”
Eleanor, who had been listening quietly, chimed in. She glanced over my proposal once more before continuing.
“The greater issue is the process of bringing a foreign noble house—the Rumien Barony—into imperial territory. Not only must we obtain approval from the Imperial Noble Council, but we would also face a tangled web of diplomatic friction, enormous immigration taxes, and the empire’s protective laws that severely restrict commercial activities by foreign nobles.”
“…No wonder it looked too easy on paper.”
“Exactly. Not every piece of information from the guild is flawless. In any case, even if we borrow the ducal family’s influence, the legal procedures are unimaginably complex and the costs astronomical. I see no rational reason to shoulder such excessive risk and capital simply to relocate an entire barony.”
With Eleanor leading the way, the eight chief managers each unleashed counterarguments drawn from their respective fields of expertise. Their logic was nearly flawless. If one truly placed the guild’s profit first, their explanation that this was the worst possible move—one that must never be executed—was correct from beginning to end.
So for a moment I had nothing to say. I pressed my lips together, lowered my head slightly, and began to genuinely ponder the matter once more.
Or rather, I began to act as if I were genuinely pondering.
The guild members in the conference room seemed to expect that I would collide with their logical persuasion, realize the wall of reality, and withdraw the plan.
They’re all drinking the kimchi soup way too early. Why would I withdraw a plan I worked so hard to devise?
I had predicted the situation would turn out this way from the very beginning. Let me say it again: my goal was not to run the merchant guild properly. My true objective was to shake off the shackle called the Kaldia Merchant Guild as quickly as possible before the original story began.
After letting a sufficiently long silence weigh the air in the room down even further, I slowly raised my head and swept my gaze across everyone present.
“As the new master who will lead the Kaldia Merchant Guild in my father’s stead, I will state this clearly. For the growth of the Rumien Barony, we must be willing to shoulder a certain degree of risk.”
“……”
The chief managers’ brows furrowed in unison. But I did not stop. I spread both hands toward them.
“High risk, high return.”
“Pardon…? What does that…?”
“It means the greater the danger, the greater the reward. You can never achieve explosive growth by walking only the safe path. The fatal flaws of the Marbas Margraviate’s land, when viewed in reverse, prove the exclusive value we will gain if we successfully develop that territory.”
It was utter nonsense. Yet when paired with my confident voice, my unwavering gaze, and the proven track record of turning the Magic Stone Fruit business into a massive success, that absurd sophistry began to exert a strange persuasive power.
High Risk, No Return was also a somewhat unfamiliar phrase in this world, but I had no doubt that these people who had lived their entire lives as merchants would instinctively grasp its meaning. After all, for a merchant, reading the room was the most important skill.
Well… my actual intention was High Risk, No Return, of course.
Sure enough, before long the nature of the silence filling the conference room began to shift from suspicion to contemplation.
“Heh heh…”
The first to let out a dry chuckle was the oldest chief manager. He stroked the guild badge pinned to his collar and slowly nodded.
“You are correct. We may shoulder quite a large risk, but it is precisely such decisions that have allowed the Kaldia Merchant Guild to reach its current heights. This old man failed to keep up with our guild leader’s bold vision.”
As if in agreement, the four most experienced chief managers cast their votes in favor one after another.
“Even if it ends in a miserable failure, we will surely gain something from it.”
“It wouldn’t be so bad to experience setbacks before it’s too late.”
With opinions suddenly split evenly, the remaining managers began exchanging uneasy glances. In the end, however, they did not cast votes in favor.
And Eleanor, who had been quietly observing until the very last moment, let out a small sigh and shook her head.
“The vote is tied. In that case, we must follow the guild leader’s decision per the rules. Very well—show us once again. Show us what kind of return this ‘high risk’ of yours will bring.”
The moment the ever-rational vice leader raised the white flag, the mood in the conference room swung decisively in my favor.
“Thank you all for trusting your guild leader.”
If possible, I’ll take all of you to Ertio as well.
A few days after the meeting ended, I was busily moving about to take the most crucial first step of my plan: negotiating with Margrave Marbas.
“Eleanor. Since we’re spending money anyway, let’s spend it properly.”
“…What do you mean?”
“I’m talking about the mansion we’ll build for the Rumien family in the margraviate. Let’s commission the continent’s finest architectural guild—one renowned for creating buildings that stand firm even through countless disasters. Inquire as quickly as possible.”
I intended to pour the guild’s capital endlessly into the excuse of erecting a grand mansion on cursed wasteland.
“…Understood. The north constantly battles the greatest number of demonic beasts and monsters, so safety must be secured. I will compile a list of continental-class guilds immediately. And how shall we prepare the hospitality items for meeting the margrave?”
“I’ll choose them myself. First, prepare one bottle of Ro Veinstar 18-Year Whiskey.”
“……”
Eleanor’s body froze for a moment.
“You mean that supreme liquor that costs two hundred gold coins?”
“That alone won’t be enough. We can’t have him drinking strong liquor on an empty stomach, so we must provide accompaniments. Salted roe of the crimson sea turtle, steak grilled at low temperature from the tongue of a northern frost ox, and the highest-grade truffle cheese fermented from the milk of a golden-horned deer—prepare all of them. Oh, and a pudding made from spirit water dew would be perfect for cleansing the palate.”
Every single item was among the greatest delicacies of this world—luxuries one absolutely had to taste at least once before dying.
Since I’m spending money anyway, shouldn’t I fill my own stomach too?
…No, that wasn’t it. I paused briefly and rummaged through my past-life memories. High-ranking superiors or lords with old-fashioned temperaments were invariably weak to ostentatious, visible hospitality.
To perfectly ruin the guild, I needed the margrave to willingly hand over that worthless land and to secure his firm cooperation so he would act as a shield when the imperial family raised objections later about the territory transfer.
“This should come to roughly seven hundred gold coins just for the hospitality expenses… Plenty left over even after throwing a proper feast.”
“S-seven hundred gold coins?! For a single meal?!”
The always-composed Eleanor’s expression shattered completely. Her eyes widened as she stared at me in utter shock.
“No matter if he is a margrave, burning seven hundred gold on a single meeting is a waste of the budget! Wouldn’t it be far more practical to buy more land with that money?! Or purchase additional magic stones…!”
“No. On the contrary, approaching him with extreme humility and elevating him as much as possible is a solid investment for the future. It visually proves that the guild leader of a ducal house has shown this much sincerity toward a margrave. It is an essential step for my grand plan, so stop complaining and prepare everything as quickly as you can.”
“……”
My black-hearted scheme to devour the budget with absurd hospitality expenses had been wrapped up rather convincingly as a shrewd business strategy.
After that, I left behind Eleanor, who remained standing with her mouth agape and unable to utter a word, and slowly rose from my seat.
“I’ll handle some work outside and be right back, so make sure you secure an architectural guild!”
“But… even so……”
Come on now—if the guild goes bankrupt quickly, you’ll be able to spend the rest of your life comfortably in Ertio too~