Chapter 151: The Flies That Swarm to the Smell of Money (1)
Chapter 151: The Flies That Swarm to the Smell of Money (1)
A fairly long time—about a month—had already passed since the Breast Festival ended.
During that time, not much had changed in Fermaton.
As always, people entered and exited the Infinite Labyrinth every day to earn money.
Ultimately, one needs to earn money to bring change to their life, and it is only with money that life tends to shift in a positive direction.
Some say money causes misery, but the common consensus among most was that it was still better than the misery caused by a lack of it.
So, what did one have to do to earn this money in Fermaton?
Naturally, they had to farm magic stones.
Whether they picked up a pickaxe in the magic stone mining areas or extracted them from the hearts of slain magical creatures, magic stones functioned as a form of "currency."
They were easy to carry.
There was always a demand for them in places like the magic towers.
And they were used everywhere mana was required in daily life.
Magic stones were more valuable than gems, and the Fermaton Infinite Labyrinth had long been treated as a sort of "magic stone mine."
However.
At some point, strange rumors began to circulate among the people.
"Hey. Don't you think there are way too many magic stones on the market lately?"
"Really?"
At first, everyone brushed it off.
"Someone probably just farmed like crazy. Man, they must've worked their ass off turning all those stones into cash. Tsk, they're gonna wreck their back doing that."
An abundance of magic stones on the market meant that much farming had taken place—proof that someone was working incredibly hard.
"No, I'm telling you, the amount is insane. It's not just 'a lot'; the Merchant Guild is keeping a close eye on it."
"What? Just how many were released?"
"Enough for the price of magic stones to drop by 5%."
"That's serious."
Magic stones were like "gold."
Unlike the "gold coins" in circulation, which were minted and treated with magic by the state, magic stones held intrinsic value as a commodity, much like gold bars.
But because so many were being flooded into the market, the standard price of magic stones began to plummet.
It didn't matter much to those buying them, but for the adventurers selling them, it was enough to make their blood boil.
"Goddammit! At this rate, if this trend continues for a month, 5% of my monthly income is just gone!"
"We'll be lucky if the price drop stops there."
"What do you mean?"
"It could drop even further."
The wave of magic stones hitting the market showed no signs of stopping.
While magic stones were obtained by killing creatures in the Infinite Labyrinth, one could theoretically kill hundreds of monsters a day to farm hundreds of stones.
"Even in the Infinite Labyrinth, you've gotta farm in moderation! These bastards have no business ethics!"
But who would actually do such a thing?
"Pardon? Oh, no. We have plenty of magic stones. Since we're buying according to the budget this time... Hoho, we'll purchase more as soon as the budget is secured."
"Wow. Back when they said monsters that eat humans were appearing below the 40th floor, the price of magic stones went through the roof. Now they're worth dirt. Let it drop more. Hehe. I'm holding out until it drops 10%, no, 20%."
"Fuck, how are there so many magic stones coming out? Who the hell is hunting what, and how much?!"
Those looking to buy.
Those looking to make a killing off the opportunity.
Those looking to sell.
"We can't let this go on! We need to take organized action!"
"Find the source! Where the hell are all these magic stones coming from?!"
"Let's see the faces of the bastards who are flooding the market so shamelessly!"
A massive crash in magic stone prices was shaking Fermaton's economy.
"Ah, fuck it. This sucks. I'm going to get a 'dream-jerk' instead."
Those searching for the culprit failed to find the primary cause, even though it was right in front of them.
* * *
'Capitalism really is the best.'
In the Young Lord's office.
I poured some milk tea into Dark Jeanne for a brief rest, feeling strangely satisfied as I watched the crowd protesting outside the window.
"Foolish humans."
The protesters, wearing red headbands and carrying all sorts of pickets, were facing Fermaton Castle.
—STOP THE MONOPOLY! LET'S CONQUER THE LABYRINTH SAFELY TOGETHER!
—OVER-HUNTING IS THE SHORTCUT TO RUIN!
They weren't facing our Count's castle, but the old Fermaton Castle across from us.
'A price crash due to oversupply. On the surface, it seems right to reduce supply first.'
Since it involved money and humans, the situation mirrored many modern-day scenarios.
'Is this like reducing rice farming acreage because rice prices are falling?'
It's the same for most crops, not just rice; excessive supply leads to a drop in selling price.
"My apologies."
Because that supply...
I'm the one doing it.
'Go ahead and protest there all year. See if the market supply stops.'
If adventurers and miners reduced their own workload, the money in their own pockets would eventually decrease.
"Everyone who makes a living off magic stones is screwed. What do you think, Laura?"
"Um..."
Laura seemed to have no thoughts on the matter.
In front of her was a large pile of empty magic stones. She was simply repeating the process of attaching and detaching a Mythstone to them.
the moment the Mythstone touched them, the empty stones became filled with mana.
If there was a factory that manufactured magic stones, it was right here.
The amount of magic stones produced by Laura's hands was enough to drop Fermaton's magic stone prices by 5%—no, 7% by now.
We were making a fortune in the process, though.
"Well, if the price of magic stones drops, can't they just farm something else?"
"If they have no bread, let them eat cake?"
"That sounds like a good idea."
Was Laura always that type?
Or was it because she didn't have to struggle to save up for gear coin by coin, but instead brought back a mountain of wealth every time she went down into the Infinite Labyrinth?
"You lack sensitivity toward day laborers, Laura. Be careful. If Fermaton goes under, we could end up like them."
"Isn't that why we're working so hard to rake in money right now? So that doesn't happen?"
"I suppose so."
Maintaining current wealth and creating an environment where living expenses keep rolling in even if I do nothing.
Whether that meant the Great Fermaton Empire, the mega-corporation Fermaton Group, or the evil organization Dark-Fermaton... it didn't matter.
As long as I could maintain power and do as I pleased based on this capital.
"Laura. We 'mass-produced' magic stones to make money. We replicated them to our heart's content using the Mythstone."
"Well, strictly speaking, it's not replication, is it? We gave birth to them."
"Gave birth?"
"Yes. I take the essence you put inside my womb and cherish it for ten minutes, then use sex magic to imbue it into the Mythstone. Hehe."
"From that perspective, I suppose it does feel like giving birth to magic stones."
Correction.
It wasn't replication.
Strictly speaking, since energy is lost during conversion, it wasn't a perfect copy.
However, it was true that the volume was overflowing to a degree comparable to replication.
Every time I creampied her, we could easily fill ten empty magic stones.
Besides, who only creampies once during sex?
I had creampied her repeatedly until she could no longer use sex magic, and even if Laura fainted, Astarotte or Yurdias could take the creampie and store the essence.
The recycled magic stones created this way began to be distributed secretly through the market—
"Excuse me, Young Lord."
"Come in, Yurdias."
The culprit who had been dumping massive amounts of magic stones into the market had arrived.
"How did it go this time?"
"I sold them as black market goods at a low price. The buyer doesn't ask about the source, so there won't be any trouble. Here is the payment."
Yurdias placed a box in front of us.
I opened the box and spread the pile of gems inside across the desk. Laura began to examine the gems one by one with a serious expression.
"Laura. Do you feel anything?"
"...No. I think this one's a bust too."
"Tsk."
I slammed the lid of the box shut.
Inside were gems worth millions of gold—equivalent to Yoanna's prize money.
But I didn't even want to look at them.
I could just toss these gems into the Fermaton warehouse. I had enough money in my wallet to buy these gems by the crate.
"Dammit, this isn't it. This isn't what I want."
There was something I was looking for.
The moment Yoanna joined us, I had received intelligence through Yurdias about a certain item and ordered a thorough investigation.
And I had obtained information.
There was a woman.
She possessed the gem I wanted.
She was an adventurer who had been conquering the Infinite Labyrinth, and she had obtained a very peculiar type of gem.
And then I found out.
—I should sell this toy and buy some potatoes. Sigh...
Despite the fact that I had announced through the Adventurer's Guild and everywhere else that the 'Young Lord is looking for a special gem,' it hadn't come to the Count's castle but had flowed elsewhere.
"Haa. Should I have just spread the word according to the records? Would she have tried to sell it to me then?"
"Hmm, probably not? They say she didn't sell it thinking it was a gem, but as a mere antique."
"Whew. This is driving me crazy. I never thought building a reputation as a 'Sex Parrot' would come back to haunt me like this."
The reason she didn't come to me.
It was simple.
—What is this you're trying to sell me? How dare you bring me trash. Since you've wasted my time, I shall take your virginity as punishment!
...She was afraid of being raped.
"Sigh. What's done is done. We just have to do our best to find it."
Currently.
"We have to find it no matter what. If they think it's a magic stone, buy up all the magic stones. If they think it's a gem, buy it by any means necessary. I will not tolerate it falling into someone else's hands."
A 'Mythstone' had been released into the market.
"Dammit, some idiot who doesn't even know its value is out there causing trouble...!"
And likely, for the price of a single fried chicken.