Business Is All About Connections
Business is all about connections after all! The next day, Richel prepared to depart. From now on, she would have to move busily. To sell the high-quality iron ingots obtained from the Iron Ants, she would need to travel around. No matter how good the product, it meant nothing if potential buyers did not know about it. She had to promote it by pounding the pavement.
“I think I can help with selling the antennae.”
“The antennae?”
“Yes. I heard Iron Ant antennae are used as magic materials. In that case, if we sell them to the Mage Guild……”
“Ah, the Mage Guild.”
Richel’s expression darkened. “It would be nice if we could sell to the Mage Guild, but that place is quite strict.”
“Is it difficult?”
“Yes, a bit difficult. It is an extremely strict and rigid organization. They will not deal with anyone unless it is a merchant group they have traded with for a long time.”
The Mage Guild was a highly closed organization. They were extremely wary of outsiders and rarely conducted business unless it was with long-standing partners.
“I tried to break into trading with the Mage Guild before…… Haah, I just threw money away.”
The deep sigh revealed how much effort she had put into establishing a connection with the Mage Guild.
“Ah, I see. Then……”
“Ah! But do not worry. It is not impossible. Iron Ant antennae are hard-to-obtain magic materials, after all. We can sell them through a merchant group that already trades with the Mage Guild. We will have to pay a small commission, but we can still make a good profit.”
Richel hurriedly continued, explaining her plan to reassure Elena.
“Besides, the Mage Guild is not the only place looking for antennae. There are others, so we can sell plenty.”
Worried that Elena might remove the antennae from the trade list out of anxiety, cold sweat trickled down Richel’s forehead.
“Hehe, I know what you are thinking, but it is not like that.”
“Eh……?”
“I am just glad I can help.”
“Help?”
“Yes. The deal with the Mage Guild—I might be able to connect you.”
“How……”
“Through connections.”
“Connections? Certainly, connections could make the deal possible, but considering the quantity of antennae, it would have to be quite a significant connection, would it not?”
“It is entirely possible. Right?”
At Elena’s question, an old man in a tattered robe approached, staggering forward. Using a mage’s sacred staff like a crutch, Grandel nodded.
“It is possible…… No, it shall be done.”
“You are……?”
“I am called Grandel. I am a disciple of Master Hades of the Mage Guild.”
“M-Master Hades’s disciple!? If it is Grandel, then! That!!”
Richel’s eyes widened like a startled rabbit. Watching her face twist into a strange mix of admiration and shock, Grandel let out a small sigh.
‘Yes, that kind of reaction is normal, is it not? But……’
Grandel glanced at Elena and sighed again. It was already in the past; dwelling on it would only hurt.
“You said Iron Ant antennae? So you obtained them? That monstrous fellow could certainly manage it. Is the quantity substantial?”
“Y-Yes, quite a lot. Enough to fill half a wagon……”
“……That crazy bastard, he hunted that many? Is that even possible?”
Coarse language slipped out of Grandel’s usually refined mouth. Filling half a wagon meant killing hundreds, possibly thousands, of Iron Ants. Was that even feasible? Countless people had tried to hunt the Iron Ants that only inhabited Monster Land, and all had failed. Even the Mage Guild had launched a large-scale subjugation to obtain magic materials, only to be forced to retreat. Yet Albert had accomplished it alone.
‘He really is insane. No wonder we got beaten by someone like him. Damn it, I came here on Master’s orders and somehow everything got twisted…… No wonder I did not want to come.’
An uneasy premonition never missed its mark.
“Understood. We of the Mage Guild shall purchase those antennae. They are rare magic materials, so the more the better.”
“Ah! Really? Hooray!!”
Richel raised both hands high. She had caught the scent of opportunity. This was only the beginning. If she expanded the deal that started with the antennae, she could naturally open trade with the Mage Guild. Moreover—
‘Judging by the looks of it, there seems to be something between Master Hades’s disciple and Lady Elena. If I use this connection……’
“Crazy, this is an opportunity. I must seize it.”
“Born with specialization in this field, it is only natural.”
Hort began crafting equipment. Though he had grumbled about being worked at low wages, once he picked up the hammer and started striking metal, his mood seemed to improve. He was a born blacksmith. Dwarves relieved stress and gained a sense of accomplishment by creating things.
“Valuable, but there is a problem.”
“Can you not tell by looking?”
Albert watched Hunt being taught by Hort. Hort kept telling him to read the breaths of fire, wind, and iron, and to listen to their voices. Not only that, he scolded Hunt, saying that even when hammering, he must converse with the hammer and pour his soul into it.
“Hort is a dwarf, and Hunt is human. Their senses differ, so even if explained, Hunt cannot understand.”
“Correct. Such sensory geniuses are poor at teaching others.”
Leaving the harshly trained Hunt behind, Hort began mass-producing farming tools and other necessities for the territory while crafting equipment. It was fortunate, as nails and similar items were also needed. Thanks to the Iron Ants, there was no worry about iron supply.
‘Things are finally getting on track.’
“Right.”
‘There is still plenty left from the alimony I…… received from the Canival family, but once money starts going into a territory, there is no end to it.’
Money always had few places to come in and many places to go out. Perhaps because he had lived in a world where one had to worry about money flying out just by breathing—
‘Taxes, income tax, health insurance premiums…… It really went out like crazy.’
Money was a pitiful existence that merely brushed past bank accounts. Though being a hunter was a high-earning profession—
Imposing taxes on the strongest hunters who protected the country did not make sense. There had been some backlash, but in the end, it had to be accepted. In return, they enjoyed numerous benefits while in Korea. Still, money worries never ceased.
“I have to keep earning money. No matter how much you have, money is never enough.”
“Then what is the next thing to do?”
“What else.”
The next task was already decided. In the first place, entering Monster Land to obtain iron had been for what came after.
“I need to appoint a guard captain.”
With the blacksmith shop activated, it was time to form the guard unit, whose original purpose was defense. The core of that was the guard captain. Depending on who was placed as captain, the character of the guard unit would be determined. The guard unit was the security force representing the territory, its public face. Careful selection was necessary.
“Abel?”
“Why?”
It was a reasonable suggestion. There would be various types among mercenaries, and some with decent abilities.
“That is good.”
Albert sought out Abel, who was loading luggage.
“You want me to introduce someone suitable as guard captain?”
“Yeah.”
“Hmm, there are a few……”
“Personality does not matter. As long as they have ability.”
“Personality? Lord Albert, not all mercenaries are gentlemen like me. Their temperaments are rough and violent, so controlling them……”
“Personality does not matter. That can be fixed by pounding it out.”
Watching him speak as if hitting a broken appliance at a 45-degree angle would fix it, Abel trembled. Did he mean that if someone had a bad personality, he would beat them into submission? The frightening part was that if he decided to do it, he could.
‘Even an S-Rank mercenary—could they win against this monster? This man who casually traverses Monster Land??’
Even mercenaries with anger management issues would have no choice but to become docile lambs before him.
“Why are you suddenly clasping your hands so politely?”
“Ah…… I did it without realizing…… Ahem. Well, anyway, a recommendation is easy. There happens to be someone who comes to mind right now.”
“Their rank?”
“An S-Rank mercenary who has retired, apparently. Though their personality is a bit peculiar…… Well, that does not matter to you, right?”
When Albert nodded, Abel told him where the retired S-Rank mercenary was. Even as he spoke, he felt strangely guilty. That S-Rank mercenary was, in a way, a friend of Abel’s.
‘It feels like I am selling out a friend…… Sorry……. But I have to survive first, do I not?’
Abel was afraid of Albert…… and of the slime he had summoned, which was far too terrifying.
* * *
Deep in the mountainside stood a log cabin. Inside, a man of enormous build, rarely seen elsewhere, was tearing into meat when he suddenly stopped, chilled by a cold that wrapped around his entire body.
“I am feeling cold?”
The man tilted his head. That could not be. No matter how severe the cold, it was absolutely impossible for it to penetrate his muscles. Especially after training his body, he could not even remember the last time he had felt “cold.” Yet he was feeling cold now.
“Something…… unpleasant seems about to happen……”
At the creeping sense of unease, his left pectoral major twitched! as if asserting its existence.
“Brawm, do you think the same?”
This time, his right pectoral major twitched as if speaking.
“Hoo, Bray, so you also think something unpleasant is going to happen?”
Filled with unease in both pectorals, the man set down the meat he had been eating.
“It seems a guest has arrived.”
He did not know what it was about, but—
“I must deal with it quickly before muscle loss sets in.”
To avoid muscle loss, more terrifying than death, protein intake within thirty minutes after exercise was essential.