Mistra Merchant Guild (2)
“By the way, Lord Lawrence, you really are an unusual man. A member of the Holy Cross Order visiting the Magic Tower—could it be that the Order and the tower have struck some sort of bargain?”
“...I don’t know what sort of answer you expect from me. But let me give you a word of advice: it would be best not to meddle in a mage’s affairs with half-baked curiosity.”
It was not something one asked lightly.
At Lawrence’s icy tone, Oswin waved his hands in surrender.
“Meddle in a mage’s affairs? No, no, I had no such intention. It was merely personal curiosity. When the relationship between two powers changes, goods start moving too, after all.”
“Curiosity killed the cat.”
“Oh dear... I apologize. It was not my intent to offend you, Lord Lawrence.”
Only then did Oswin wipe the smile from his lips and bow his head.
“I accept your apology.”
That had been careless of him.
He’d let his guard down because Oswin was Lionel’s acquaintance.
But the man’s behavior was calculating, somehow, beneath the surface.
There was no need to show one’s hand to someone suspicious.
That was fine.
Being wary of people was one of Lawrence’s specialties.
Once he decided on it, he would not leave a single opening.
“Have you decided on your next contract?”
“For the time being, I intend to stay in Mistra and recover from the road.”
“Hmm. Mistra is a fine place to live. Aside from the fact that the crowds make everything expensive, I think it’s one of the best cities to settle down in.”
Oswin recovered his smile.
“Which is precisely why our guild established itself here, wouldn’t you say?”
“Honestly, I was surprised. I saw a few buildings from the street, but I didn’t expect a mansion this fine.”
“Of course. Our guildhouse has a long history behind it. It was originally a villa used by a once-prominent noble house. But when the family fell from grace, the villa went up for sale. Word is that the surviving branch fled north. After a few twists and turns, it ended up in our guild’s hands.”
So that was why the place felt so upscale—it really had been a noble villa.
“If you’re looking for a place to settle, I’d recommend Mistra. In the kingdom, the only cities better than this are places like Corinthos, which is called the Thousand-Year Capital. Though, as you know, the royal city is terribly expensive.”
It’s not exactly a comfortable place to live, Oswin added.
“Settle down... Well, if I had money to spare, maybe. Right now, it’s hard enough to keep food in my mouth.”
“Having a house to return to after your travels is a wonderful thing. That’s not for nothing that mercenaries go around searching for a city to settle in. If you ever decide to make Mistra your home, I could help you.”
Had he misheard?
Lawrence looked at Oswin without thinking.
“Of course, I don’t mean I’d do it for free. Let me take a slight detour. It’s not something to brag about, but I pride myself on having a good eye for value. With that single eye, I clawed my way into the position of vice guildmaster of the Mistra Merchant Guild.”
The vice guildmaster of the Mistra Merchant Guild.
At Oswin’s mention of “value,” Lawrence paid closer attention.
So that appraising gaze had not been his imagination after all.
“By my eye, Lord Lawrence, you are someone well worth investing in. A precious jewel untouched by noble hands, one of a kind.”
He folded his hands together on the table.
“So I’d like to propose something. If you would work with me, Lord Lawrence, I’m prepared to offer you a house in Mistra and treat you with an exceptionally favorable hand.”
That was why he had arranged this meeting.
At last getting to the point, Oswin looked straight at Lawrence.
“So, in short, you want to hire me.”
“I’m not sure hiring is the right word. If my heart had its way, I’d like to employ you, Lord Lawrence, but I’m afraid I don’t have enough money for that.”
“Not enough?”
“That’s how highly I value you.”
Oswin stated it without the slightest hesitation.
“Do you truly think so?”
“I’m a merchant, Lord Lawrence. I’ve never once been wrong in judging the worth of an item. And my eye is telling me this: among everything I’ve ever seen, you are the most valuable jewel of all.”
“....”
When someone was this confident, there was almost nothing left to say.
“This isn’t something I can decide so easily.”
“I understand. In fact, if you were the sort to nod your head so readily here, I wouldn’t have made the offer in the first place.”
After wetting his throat with some orel tea, he went on. “A person’s value, unlike an object’s, changes from moment to moment. Sometimes it falls. Sometimes it rises. We have time. You’re the sort of man who’s only going to climb higher, Lord Lawrence, so take your time and answer me when you’ve thought it through.”
“And if, in the end, my answer is no?”
“That would be fine. In that case, I’d hope we could speak to each other not as employer and employee, but as friends.”
He corrected the honorific with that ridiculous mustache of his.
Whether one liked it or not, Oswin was a merchant through and through.
“I can’t promise the first, but the second won’t be a problem.”
Bringing the orel tea to his lips, Lawrence said, “Lionel’s friend is my friend too.”
“I’m relieved to hear you say so.”
The two men sitting across from one another in the reception room smiled.
* * *
Lionel only arrived at the guild after the sun had gone down.
“Well, if it isn’t Lawrence!”
“You’re late, Mr. Lionel.”
Beaming with pleasure, Lionel pulled Lawrence into a hug.
He pounded Lawrence’s back so hard that a cough escaped him involuntarily.
“Late? You’re the one who’s late. I thought you’d be back straight from the Magic Tower. Has it already been several days?”
“I set out a week after you left. I happened to get my hands on a horse, so I was a little delayed.”
“You rode a horse and still managed to be late?”
“It was my first time on one.”
It was fortunate that the horse Emily had arranged for him was tame.
During the days since he had set out, he had done little more than let the beast carry him wherever it wished.
“Then I’ll excuse myself for now.”
Oswin stood.
The empty teacup and dishes made it clear just how long the two men had been talking.
“Thank you, Oswin. You kept Lawrence company in my stead.”
“Not at all. I was the one who was fortunate enough to spend such meaningful time.”
As Oswin was leaving the reception room, Lawrence called after him.
“Mr. Oswin. I hope we’ll have the chance to meet again.”
“If Lord Lawrence wishes it, I’ll make time whenever you like.”
With a faint smile, Oswin stepped outside.
Listening to his footsteps recede, Lionel spoke up.
“A good fellow, isn’t he?”
“Yes. He doesn’t seem to have a bad heart. Though he could stand to be a bit more careful with his words.”
“Ah, I understand. I doubt he meant any harm. And if he did offend you, I apologize on his behalf.”
“It’s not something you need to apologize for, Mr. Lionel.”
Lawrence stopped him as he tried to bow.
“Sorry. I suppose being a merchant to the bone means we all tend to say a little too much. It gets a lot of people into trouble, too... but for the life of me, I can’t seem to fix that.”
Words were the root of trouble.
Still, for merchants who lived by their tongues, keeping quiet was hardly an option.
“So. Have you eaten dinner yet?”
“As it happens, I’ve been waiting for Mr. Lionel to buy me dinner.”
“You little rascal. Anyone hearing that would think I was some man who feeds you every day.”
Lionel let out a playful laugh.
After wrapping up the matter, Lawrence changed the subject.
“More importantly, what happened to Miriam?”
“Ah, Miriam? Well... there was a bit of business.”
Rubbing the back of his head as if he were a little troubled, Lionel said, “This isn’t something to talk about here. I’d rather we had the conversation at a place I know. What do you say?”
Lawrence nodded.
He had only had cookies and orel tea since lunch.
He left the guild with Lionel and headed toward a restaurant.
The Golden Cup
The name of the establishment swayed on the door plaque.
“Welcome.”
“Take us to our usual table.”
“Certainly. Lionel of the Mistra Merchant Guild.”
The place had an unmistakably luxurious air.
The attendant leading them to their seats was a man in a tailcoat as well.
For a moment, Emily came to mind.
Not in appearance, but in atmosphere, he resembled her.
The soft glow of the lamps coexisted with the darkness.
Beneath that light sat patrons whose clothes were out of the ordinary from the start.
Expensive garments with a lustrous sheen.
Jewelry everywhere—on their hands, around their necks, on every visible part of them.
And the hands that kept harassing the serving girls showed no sign of stopping.
No doubt about it. Nobles.
No wonder the place looked so refined—it must have been doing business with aristocrats.
“You may go inside.”
The attendant led the two men to a table.
The chairs were exceptionally wide.
They looked less like seats for one person and more like they had been made with multiple people in mind.
When Lawrence sat down, the cushion felt as soft as a bed.
“Sorry about that. The inner rooms are a bit pricey, so I use this spot often.”
“This is my first time in a place like this, so it’s a little intimidating.”
“First time? I would’ve thought someone like you had been to far finer places than this...”
Lionel trailed off, sounding almost unable to believe it.
“If I came to places like this often, I’d be buried in contracts every day.”
“Hah hah hah. Fair enough.”
“You didn’t need to bring me to such an expensive place...”
“That’s simply how much our guild is valuing you. This is the sort of place we come to when we have an especially valuable consultation.”
The conversation paused for a moment.
The attendant returned with two serving girls in thin clothes.
“Bring us two bottles of Red Dragon. As for the food, make it something that goes well with liquor. Ideally something with meat.”
“Your order is confirmed. Then I hope you have a pleasant time.”
The attendant withdrew from the table.
The serving girls took the seats beside Lawrence and Lionel.
The next instant, something soft brushed Lawrence’s wrist.
Startled by the girl’s behavior, Lawrence pulled his arm away.
“I’m fine. Go help with something else.”
“What? Don’t be shy, Master.”
Master?
At a word he had never heard in his life, he frowned.
“I said I’m fine.”
“I-if I’ve done something wrong, I apologize.”
The serving girl hastily bowed her head.
He could see her shoulders trembling through the wavering darkness.
“....”
At a loss, Lawrence looked at Lionel.
Lionel, seeming to find Lawrence’s reaction amusing, was grinning to himself.
“That’s enough, miss. Just sit by my side and pour the drinks.”
Lionel’s hand remained on the serving girl’s chest.
Without meaning to, Lawrence frowned.
There was no difference between this and the nobles he had just seen.
He had always known Lionel liked women, but he hadn’t expected him to act so indecently right in front of someone else.
Then again, perhaps Lawrence simply didn’t know.
This might be one way of blending into noble society.
If that was the case, then he was only growing more hostile toward nobles by the minute.
“More importantly, what happened to Miriam?”
“That’s an awfully blatant way to change the subject, isn’t it?”
There was a smile in Lionel’s voice.
“Let’s see... As soon as I returned to Mistra, I met one of her acquaintances. They talked for a while—just the two of them—and then off they went.”
“Miriam just left?”
Without even the chance to say goodbye?
“That’s right. Her acquaintance was a strikingly handsome man, too. If you ask me, he was definitely a noble. I’m guessing she had some sort of arrangement with an aristocrat. Otherwise, there’d have been no reason to rush off like that.”
For a moment, Lionel’s face clouded over.
But only for a moment. As the girl beside him began to flutter around him coquettishly, his expression softened again.
“I thought for sure you’d done something terribly rude, Mr. Lionel.”
“You know, no matter how you look at it, do I really seem like that sort of man?”
“Once women are involved, any man is bound to make mistakes.”
Lawrence glanced at the serving girl seated beside Lionel.
Feeling his eyes on her, she only smiled more boldly.
“That... is hard to deny. Since ancient times, it’s been said that women bring men to ruin.”
And yet he still didn’t stop.
Lionel’s hands continued to toy with the girl’s body.
“Master, women are also what save men.”
The reply came with a teasing lilt.
“Well, you haven’t had any experience with women yet. Let me think—should I take you to a good place sometime? Just between us, there’s nowhere better than Mistra. It’s a perfect place for becoming a man.”
Both serving girls burst out laughing at Lionel’s words.
“No, thank you.”
Lawrence’s face reddened.
“You’ll regret it later. Imagine fumbling through a night with a girl you like. Do you really think she’d be pleased?”
He had absolutely no immunity to this sort of talk.
Lionel wore a sly expression.
“Oh? So there is a girl you like, then. Who is she?”
“What does that matter?”
“It matters. She’s the woman who stole your heart. She can’t be ordinary, can she? A fellow mage, maybe?”
“I don’t think it’s worth answering.”
With an exhale, Lawrence felt as though the affection he had been so carefully keeping to himself had been dirtied.