Madame Corzet, the base representative of the Sören Gren Merchant Union, was a woman brimming with energy and spirit, unlike that of a widow.
The impression is that of a hungry career woman?
And yet she wears an elegant dress and has not forgotten how to look like a woman.
I sat down on the sofa opposite him in the reception room where we had been waiting.
Her gestures were also elegant.
"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. The person I was negotiating with last time was a bit stubborn."
"No no! I don't care!!"
The other person's overly confident attitude made me feel intimidated.
"No, for us merchants, time is our most precious asset. Those who treat time poorly will never succeed. Right, Flim?"
"Yes ma'am."
The maid standing behind him replied.
"Serve the guest some tea. Use the best tea leaves. As an apology for keeping him waiting."
"No, never mind!!"
I was carried away by this very adult atmosphere and felt excited.
I feel like a high school student on a field trip.
"Sao-sama, please calm down. If you get carried away, you will lose your footing."
Ronpaia whispered.
"As we discussed earlier, I will be the one to handle the initial negotiations. Sao-dono, please calmly observe the situation and find out what the other party is thinking."
Yes, yes.
So let's just shut up and observe. Widows have big breasts!
"What business does the Kingdom of Leniosegura have today? To be honest, we are also perplexed by this sudden request for a meeting."
"I'll get straight to the point, it's about our neighboring country, Niosebuku."
Mr. Ronpaia, you spoke very frankly.
This way of negotiating without being roundabout is very knightly in a way.
"His country has been invading the surrounding areas, causing great damage. They are too troublesome to have as neighbors. This time, this troublesome people have ended up eating their own limbs."
"It's a civil war."
The commercial alliance, on the other hand, responded favorably to the move.
Is this how conversations between wise people proceed so smoothly?
"The country is in turmoil due to the sudden death of the long-reigning tyrant King Imasi Nunda I. The princes and princesses who inherited the tyrant's blood are engaged in an ugly family feud, not even hiding their ferocity."
"His Majesty the King's death was so sudden that it left us extremely confused. It seems to have been an assassination, but does anyone in the Kingdom of Lenio Segura have any idea who the culprit might be?"
"Who knows? He was someone who incurred a lot of hatred. We have no idea."
"Is that so, Ufufufufufufu..."
"Hahahahaha..."
A dry laughter echoed through the room.
Ah, tea please. Zzzzzzz... what's this!? Blue Eyes Mountain!? (I don't get it).
"But we are wary of his country. They accused us of assassinating the former king, and used that as a reason to declare war… without any clear evidence. That's the kind of country they're willing to go to."
"That's not the case... it's frustrating that I can't say that for sure."
"It's a country that's not worth defending, is it?"
A wry smile escapes from both sides.
"Therefore, it would be best if his country continued in its current state of civil war for as long as possible. I would have no complaints if he continued on until he self-destructed."
"Just pray that it turns out the way you want it to?"
"Do you like people who just sit back and hope for the situation to improve?"
"For the time being, I wouldn't entrust any important business to such a person."
"I'm glad we seem to agree."
Hmm, can I have another cup of tea?
thank you.
The maid also has big breasts and a big butt.
"We have no intention of just watching the beasts cannibalize each other. We want to prolong the fighting as long as possible and whittle down their vitality. For the sake of the future, too."
Maid, can I touch your butt?
Is that not okay...?
"So I would like to ask for your cooperation."
"Intervene in an act of war?"
"It's not like we're starting a war or anything."
"Sabotaging another country is a quasi-act of war."
Sparks quietly fly between Mr. Ronpaia and the widow.
It would make things a lot easier if she would just nod at this point...
"...This is a problem. We are a commercial alliance after all, you know? There is no role for us in an armed conflict."
"You've got to be kidding me. Isn't it the economy that supports these acts of war? And you are the ones who can use that economy more freely than anyone else in the world. Your cooperation is essential to cornering Niosebuku."
"Merchants must remain neutral. If we side with one side in a conflict and are unable to do business with the other side, we will suffer great losses. If the Alliance HQ were to find out about something like this, I would surely lose my position."
The tea is delicious....
Huh? There's cake too?
Sorry, I was treated to a feast!
"Isn't there a way to do this while remaining neutral? We have prepared a method that will not bring you any disadvantage, but rather promise you enormous benefits."
"...We merchants always have profits in mind."
A roundabout translation of the phrase "Let's listen."
"The truth is, just the other day we managed to secure a large amount of dungeon production materials. We would like you to buy them from us."
yeah?
What is that?
Isn't that the one we made a killing in the dungeon in Kitoteru town?
"It's a huge amount of material. There are a wide variety of types, and I promise that the total amount will easily cover several months of market demand. I would like you to buy it all from me. At a bargain price... How about three-quarters of the market price? In some cases, I wouldn't mind even half the price."
"What?"
Even the executives of the Commerce Alliance were taken aback by this.
This is probably what Ronpaia is aiming for.
It's price destruction in the market.
When an extraordinary influx of goods causes a glut of supplies, what happens is that the price of a product that is no longer scarce falls.
I guess what Ronpaia is thinking is to drastically lower the price of monster materials on the market.
"What's the point of doing something like that...?!"
"There are others who are trying to make a profit by selling materials. His country is no different, right? They sell the materials produced in the dungeon to you and use the profits to fund the war."
That's why they were planning to cross borders and fight in the dungeons of other countries.
They probably dig up as much material as they can from dungeons within the country, then sell it overseas and convert it into foreign currency.
The biggest point of contact for this is the Western branch of the Commerce Alliance.
"If we cause an oversupply and cause the prices of materials to plummet, the things the Niosebuku Kingdom is trying to sell will become worthless junk, and we will be able to hinder their fundraising efforts. That's not a bad idea for us either."
"But... to sell off a large amount of materials for less than the market price...? Won't that be a huge loss for you as well?!"
"It will be less expensive than an actual war. Her Majesty the Queen has approved of this, and I have determined that it will be beneficial overall. Of course, it will also be beneficial for you guys…"
"That may be true..."
As expected, the widow, who is in charge, could not hide her confusion and was at a loss for words.
"Your commercial alliance has a distribution network that covers the whole world. If we use that to expand our sales areas all over the world, we may be able to sell the products we purchased cheaply at their original price. We are considering providing a certain period of guarantee to adventurers who regularly supply us with dungeon materials. Of course, this will only apply within our country. We are confident that this will prevent any unnecessary losses and will only affect the Kingdom of Niosebuku."
"Wait a minute... can I just wait a moment?"
The widow hurriedly lifts her big butt off the sofa...
"That offer seems very appealing, but how can I put it... I'm not sure how to respond to it, so could I have some time to consider it?"
"Please do so as quickly as possible. As you said earlier, time is a valuable asset."
"... In that case, how about we arrange another meeting the next day? I will prepare a first-class room for you all, so please rest there for today."
"To tell the truth, we are also tired from traveling this far... We would appreciate it if you could let us rest. Shall we continue our conversation tomorrow?"
"Yes, we will do our best to give you a positive response."
So that concludes today's meeting.
The widow left the room accompanied by the maid.
◆
"Phew... it seems to be going well for now."
As soon as the other person left the room, Ronpaia wiped the sweat off his face.
Thank you for your hard work in negotiations.
Rest in my arms.
"Could you please stop being so soft on her so suddenly? In any case, that proposal must have swayed the widow. At the very least, she won't be able to dismiss it straight away."
"I can't believe they would use the materials we earned like that."
"That's right. It was only possible with your cooperation. It seems that your penis isn't the only thing Her Majesty values."
Please stop making it sound like the penis is the most valued thing.
Why not reassess the value of this item? You'll also have to reassess your belongings at the same time.
"Well then, for now, let's wait and see what the other party will do. I don't know what they'll be considering, but I hope they come up with a good answer…"
"That would be the least troublesome way to do it, but the other party is not so easy to deal with. Merchants in particular are the kind of people who don't care about ethics or human life as long as they can make a profit."
That's a bit of a prejudice isn't it?
"I need to take one more action to find out. The time has finally come to reveal my 'calling'!"
Isn't Ronpaia's calling to be a knight?
Because she's a female knight, right?
"My 'calling' is to be an analyst! I need to be someone who can collect information circulating among people and analyze it properly!"
What kind of job is that that sounds like you'd love anal sex?
She's a female knight, but she's not a knight!? I've been deceived!?
"Just because someone is a member of the Knights, it only means that half of them have a knight-type calling. An organization can't function without the ability to use Quirks to fulfill a variety of roles. And..."
Ronpaia put both hands on each ear and posed as if listening...
"The [Analyst] skill is Information Gathering! It's a skill that allows you to detect minute vibrations even in a room just one wall away, and eavesdrop on conversations!"
Eavesdropping?...
Also, during this negotiation phase, a cheat-class skill appeared.
"I have already confirmed by footsteps that the widow from earlier has moved to the next room. If I could find out what interest she has, it would be a great advantage in the negotiations to come."
"In that case..."
"Ah, what is it?"
As I pulled down Ronpaia's trousers and removed her underwear, leaving her completely naked from the waist down, the familiar mark of a woman was revealed.
Lick it once to loosen the entrance, then insert it all in one go.
"Nnhiiiiiiiiii♥♥ Sao-dono, why bother here like this♥♥ If you want to hold me, I'll let you hold me tonight, but right now is the important time...♥♥"
It was because it was such an important time that he was violating Ronpaia's vagina.
I also have special skills that correspond to my own "calling", and one of them, "Shared Property", allows me to use the skills of the woman I'm having sex with, but only for the duration of our genital union.
And with that, I'll be using Ronpaia's eavesdropping skills.
This skill can only be used during sex, and it severely limits the position you can use, making it difficult to use.
It's treated as a sensory-only skill, like Princess Seeker's "Telephoto" or the "Information Gathering" skill I'm currently borrowing from Ronpaia.
And with her skill flowing through our crotches... oh, oh... I can definitely hear it.
It was a unique sound, like the sound heard underwater, but it was useful as I could still hear the words.
Isn't that the widow who was there a moment ago speaking through the wall?
What is he saying...?!
◆
"You've brought us such an incredibly difficult task. That female knight...!"
His language is much more rude than when we met in person.
"But isn't this definitely a money-making opportunity for us? Looking at the list she brought in, there's a lot of high-quality items. If we can sell them off, we'll make a lot of money. It'll also raise your wife's opinion at headquarters."
The person he was talking to was...the maid he was with?
There were no other voices or breathing to be heard, so it seemed like they were having a private conversation just between the two of them.
"I need to see things from a bigger perspective. I'm the head of this branch after all."
『I understand.』
"I'd love to take part in this profitable business, but I don't want to make the Niosebuku my enemy. Aren't those people scary?"
"If we upset him in some way, he might attack us. Even though your wife and I have tried every trick in the book to keep him happy..."
"They're also customers that need to be kept happy. To be honest, they're good at paying. They're constantly fighting wars both at home and abroad, so they're always spending money."
From eavesdropping on their conversation, I realized that things were not looking good for us.
Merchants only care about profit and have no understanding of ethics or human feelings.
Is Ronpaia's criticism spot on?
They're still pitting us against the Kingdom of Niosebuku!