Fruit
"Pleased to meet you. Suhwa Romanov."
"I've heard you've just been appointed as the new vice warden. Congratulations on your promotion."
"Thank you. But has word about me already spread?"
"To a merchant, news is information, and information is money."
Unlike his sharp features, Luthus Soros wore a warm smile as he offered Suhwa a strawberry. Suhwa had been debating whether to order a drink to freshen his mouth, so he accepted it with a light nod.
"Now that you've taken my strawberries, does that mean the Dancing Whale Merchant Guild will continue to exclusively handle Utopia’s supply deliveries?"
The fist-sized strawberry nearly choked him.
"...Ahem. Should I spit it back out right now?"
"Hahaha, just kidding. How could I make such a request with the chief clerk glaring daggers right here?"
Helena, who had already helped herself to various fruits from the basket in front of her, winked slyly. Her laugh, sweet as tropical fruit, spread to everyone nearby.
"Utopia is a prime customer that buys all sorts of goods in bulk and on a steady basis, so if you need anything beyond fruit, just say the word anytime."
Jepeto, who had already emptied half the fruit basket, perked up at those words.
"In that case, since you brought it up, could I trouble you for fishing rods and tackle? Price doesn't matter."
"Oh! Is Warden Cervantes finally retiring? I figured it wouldn't happen until the Gold Mountain ran dry of gold coins. What a surprise."
"Hey now! Nothing's set in stone. The fellow I had in mind as successor seems a bit off his rocker."
Jepeto, finishing off the last banana, shot Suhwa a mischievous glance. Luthus responded with genuine enthusiasm that lifted the mood, but he didn't miss that look. No doubt, a note reading Utopia Warden (True) had just been added next to Suhwa's name in his mental ledger.
"Does Chief Clerk Helena need anything personally? If it's something a merchant can procure from anywhere in the world, I can get it for you."
His gesture was as extravagant as a whale dancing.
"I'm fine. This fruit basket is more than enough. Oh, but Vice Warden Suhwa might need something—he was in the capital until recently, after all."
The Dancing Whale turned toward Suhwa. Was this whale, encountered amid raging seas, a lucky guide for sailors—or a destructive beast fit only for the harpoon? As Suhwa's smile grew ambiguous, he spoke up.
"You said 'anything'?"
"Of course. Merchants haggle prices, but we don't lie."
"Well, there is something I'd like to request..."
Luthus caught the hesitation laced with the scent of profit and peril in Suhwa's trailing words. Too risky to press now, but he couldn't outright refuse the true warden of Utopia.
"Hahaha. I was coming to Utopia for this quarter's delivery anyway... Mind if we discuss details then?"
"Of course. Thank you, Vice Guild Leader."
"No trouble at all. Please continue to look after the Dancing Whale Merchant Guild and Luthus Soros."
"Looks like everyone's who's supposed to head back has been paid off... Right?"
"Yes. The 'fruit basket' we just handed to the Utopia staff was the last one."
"This racket gets tougher every year. At least the officials here are honest—lucky for us. Good work, all. Go grab a drink. Deliveries start tomorrow; it'll be busy."
Luthus pulled a handful of gold coins from his pocket as he spoke. His guild members, grins stretching ear to ear, snatched them without pretense and vanished.
"'Take it when it's offered'—prime merchant stock, those lads."
"They learned from the best."
"You... Come on, join 'em for a drink?"
"Even if you say tomorrow's delivery day, I'm not stooping to their level."
A hearty laugh burst from Luthus, far more boisterous than before.
"Good to have a secretary like you—keeps me at ease. Don't be too harsh; long hauls like this, a drink in Manrmursk is fair game."
"Noted. How about you have a light one too, Vice Guild Leader? I'll drive the carriage."
"Tempting offer. The guild master would scowl if he were here, but he's not, so... ahem."
For all his words, Luthus's feet hurried toward the profane fountain bubbling with liquor and ale. His secretary followed with a fond gaze.
"By the way, about the new vice warden... Suhwa Romanov? First impressions?"
"Ah, you were handing out baskets elsewhere, so you missed him. What do you think?"
"From the imperial intel docs we got, nothing special... Probably unremarkable. Surprising he went straight to vice warden at Utopia post-Academy, though."
"Madman."
"Pardon?"
He filled a mug with Manrmursk's signature beer, brewed from glacier water purified from eternal ice. The vivid golden hue crowned with foam like clouds over the Manrmursk peaks already tickled his throat. The foam vanished at his lips, leaving only scent—but the malt wave crashed in, assaulting his tongue from all sides. It high-fived his throat, settling cold in his upper belly.
That's Manrmursk beer for you. Damn right.
His secretary waited quietly for the rest. Embarrassed at his beer fixation, Luthus continued.
"No, wait—maybe the most imperial-official-like of them all? It was weird that the warden and chief clerk never asked for anything before."
Excessive bribes burden the receiver, but the right ones lubricate relationships. Imperial law only bans bribes that interfere with duties—lobbying itself isn't forbidden. So Jepeto and Helena's refusal had irked the guild; rejecting gifts meant no "good" ties, hinting they could switch suppliers anytime.
Of course, Jepeto had no need with his non-hereditary dukedom's wealth, and Helena simply didn't care.
"Did he outright demand fruit?"
"That would've been fine... No, he seemed to want something bigger."
"Picked up all the bad habits from the Academy, huh."
"Even street rats rolling with imperial nobles learn something."
"Weren't you an Academy grad too, sir?"
"Wha— ahem, I mean! People see different things in the same place—not generalizing the whole lot."
"Just kidding."
Luthus felt equal parts pride and vertigo watching his fast-growing secretary. A cold swig soothed his burning throat.
'Anything'...
He'd made a non-promise assuming Suhwa would likely become warden, but unease lingered. No explicit agreement, but he couldn't risk souring ties.
"If you heard 'anything,' what would you ask for?"
"Hmm... Vague. Blank check or exclusive resale rights come to mind."
"You'll make a fine merchant. But think from Vice Warden Suhwa's perspective."
"Hard to guess. Why top grad to Utopia? Unclear."
"Like blindfolded elephant-feeling. Maybe slaves? Stress relief from prison drudgery."
"He doesn't strike me as sadistic enough."
"You'd be surprised. Before slave bans, holy nation's archbishops imported the most. Those filthy perverts."
The beer had melted to a third. He craved another but held back under his secretary's gaze.
"Just in case, I'll check black market slaves via anonymous proxy."
"Smart prep, but careful—the Empire cracks down hard on slave smuggling. Bail's steep if caught."
"Understood."
"But if not slaves, what then?"
"Set up a meet during delivery? 'Fruit' platter for his appointment bash—gauge reactions."
"Make it generous—no skimping. We skipped the warden and clerk before anyway."
"Yes. Thoroughly prepared."
Like an unrequited first love, the beer's final drop lingered wistfully. But Luthus stopped there—this regret would draw him back to Manrmursk brew someday.
"I've got nothing left to do, ate plenty—time to head out. You?"
Jepeto asked, sipping coffee laced with two sugar cubes after the fruit. Lunch for pre-arrival VIPs was wrapping up, and guests for the two-day feast were trickling into Palatium. He eyed the wig-and-fan peacocks like bugs.
"Can't have you lost at night, Warden. I'll go with."
"What?"
Helena, her sole goal—the Dancing Whale meeting—done, was returning to Utopia too. Their gazes naturally settled on Suhwa.
"I've got business left. I'll head back separately."
Suhwa's eyes ended on Manrmursk's Byeon Gyeongbaek, devouring meat voraciously. Spotting Palatium's most unwelcome face, Jepeto reflexively gulped his coffee.
"Tch! Do whatever. You're not a kid; won't get lost."
The coffee was still hot, it seemed.