Chapter 374: Feeble But Oh So Powerful

"It has been quite a while, Sunraku-sama. We had heard you departed for the New Continent..."

"Well, you know, I have a few minor connections here and there."

I didn't come here just for small talk. Both I and the Young Master of the "Golden Scale" trading company, who came out to attend to me, are well aware of that fact.

"...Well then, shall we get down to business. I was informed you came to sell something today."

"Yeah, let's skip the tedious preamble... What I'm proposing today is this."

I placed a strangely shaped crystal on the high-quality desk, making a sound that hinted at a considerable amount of weight and hardness.

"This is... No, this shape, could it be..."

"The carapace of a Crystal Scorpion. A little bird told me that the 'Shield' wielded exclusively by the successive Commanders of the First Knight Order uses this exact material. Am I right?"

"...Yes, several generations ago, our company's chairman at the time was involved in the creation of that shield. You intend to sell this to us today?"

A faint hint of disappointment, and a merchant's smile hiding his composure... He probably assumes a piece or two of the carapace is already circulating in the market. But just you wait, you bastard, I'm going to shatter that smile completely.

"Nah? This is just what you'd call a sample. Hell, I wouldn't even mind giving you one piece for free."

"...You have multiple?"

He leaned forward. Well, players dumping all their rare monster materials at once are probably incredibly rare. Normally, they'd hoard them, meaning even if the industry-leading "Golden Scale" trading company bought them up from the lowest rungs, they still wouldn't have many in stock.

And right there lies the business opportunity.

"Carapace, leg armor, shell fragments, a tail... and on rare occasions, a Shining Treasure Crystal generated inside their bodies..."

"Th-This is truly, astounding..."

"How much for the whole lot?"

"Let me see, well... Please wait just a moment."

If this were a genuinely historical medieval setting, he might have started writing numbers down on parchment, but this is ShanFro—a game of swords, fantasy, and occasional super-advanced civilizations. The Young Master, effectively the Number Two of the company, began casting some sort of magic on the Crystal Scorpion items, muttering to himself as he fell deep into thought.

"...My word, I misjudged the situation entirely. This Shining Treasure Crystal, was it? Simply offering one of these to the Royal Family would secure our position as their exclusive purveyors for at least a decade... Yes, this single fragment alone would easily fetch fifty thousand Mani. If we are talking about all of this combined, I would ask you to consider fifty million Mani for the lot..."

"I see, so the absolute minimum price is one billion Mani, then."

"Excuse me?"

An obvious discrepancy in numbers. Because we had been holding a perfectly normal conversation up until a second ago, the Young Master's face went completely blank.

"Y-You must be joking..."

"Well, now... Antonio-kun, what do you think is the most important thing when establishing a business deal?"

"Pardon?"

Maintain the strong character act. Violence isn't solely derived from STR. That's right, the most important thing—no matter what parameter it is—is the raw numbers.

"First and foremost is mutual profit. A good deal is defined as both parties securing an adequately satisfying amount of profit."

I uncrossed and recrossed my legs, leaning back deeply as if looking down on everything around me. Now, this is the crucial moment.

"And secondly, trust. Antonio-kun... I place a great deal of trust in the 'Golden Scale' trading company. I haven't forgotten the debt I owe you for acting as the bridge that allowed me to connect with Norman-kun... That is exactly why I am presenting this business opportunity exclusively to you."

While snapping the fingers of my left hand, I frantically moved my right hand behind my back, pulling items out of Inventoria.
The objects caught the room's lighting, reflecting an almost divine radiance in every direction—so blinding that Antonio-kun, the Young Master, instinctively averted his eyes.

They were all Crystal Scorpion materials. Materials, materials, materials... The deluxe material pack formed by unleashing ninety percent of my accumulated Crystal Scorpion stock.

"The complete set of Crystal Scorpion materials I just presented to you... Make that ten sets. Furthermore, 172 carapaces, 121 leg armors, 352 shell fragments, 8 tails..."

"H-Hahaha..."

This is a massive blowout sale of all the materials I've hoarded up until now. Sink into the swamp of the economy material pack...!

"Now then, it's time for business, Antonio-kun. Let's make this a mutually profitable transaction, shall we?"

I was certain I felt the feedback of a critical hit.

"Are you sure about that, desu wa? It felt like you could have pushed the price much, much higher, desu wa."

"It's fine. With this, my position as a patron is absolute, and I'll securely get the money I need, even if it takes some time."

Well, since it's a game, I'd like to think it wouldn't happen, but if the "Golden Scale" trading company ever thinks about skimming some of the materials off the top, a certain bright red beast is going to come down and deliver some divine punishment...

"Emul, in this world, there are relationships that exert power simply by being acquainted. The more sophisticated the society, the more unshakeable that power becomes..."

And people call that 'Authority.'
I gave them a forty-percent discount off the actual price, albeit with conditions attached. Even if it costs them a colossal sum like four billion Mani, they can't possibly back away from a sudden mountain of ultra-rare items that dropped right into their laps.
It's just like a monkey sticking its hand into a gourd. As long as it grabs the rice inside, it can't pull its hand out. If that's the case, then they've basically become the wallet for their mega-patron, me... Kukuku, fuhahahaha!!

"Well, with this, we can safely say the offerings for Elke are ready."

"Just what on earth does Onee-chan plan to do by hoarding that much money, desu wa..."

"Maybe she's gonna build a house out of Mani instead of actual building materials?"

"It sounds like it would collapse immediately, desu wa."

I think so too.
That being said, when selling the Crystal Scorpion items, I attached two specific conditions. Considering those two, you could say a loss of a billion or so is actually pretty cheap.

The first was the right to freely use the Scale of Compensation solely within the "Golden Scale" trading company's premises. Demanding the right to take it outside would be too high of a hurdle, but if it's in a location where their watchful eyes can reach... That was the compromise I won.

And the second condition was: "Do not sell these materials to the current royal authority, namely the Usurper King Alex and the factions allied with him."
The Crystal Scorpion materials, the very same used for the shield of the First Knight Order's super-handsome Commander. If the First Prince's faction somehow gets their hands on these, Torvante's chances of winning will plummet.

"Considering the trade with the New Continent, the Torvante administration is much more peaceful. In the case of the Alex administration, worst-case scenario, the funds could be completely drained dealing with a messy guerilla war."

"T-Tactician! Sunraku-san is an incredible tactician, desu wa...!?"

"Don't be an idiot. If this were Pencilgon, things would be way worse."

First of all, as a fundamental premise, she'd buy out the "Golden Scale" trading company with a massive amount of materials, secure commercial connections, and make direct contact with the Royal Family.
She'd cozy up to the Alex faction while secretly strengthening the Torvante faction behind the scenes, and then wipe out the Alex faction... The Torvante faction, now owing her a massive debt, wouldn't be able to ignore Pencilgon. If she played her cards right, there's even a chance that one of the towns from Firstia to Fifticia would become her personal property. Meaning, a noble debut.

The rest goes without saying. She'd incite a player-led kingdom takeover on the out-of-game BBS, declare herself the Demon Lord Pencilgon, and stage a coup d'état against the Einwurf Kingdom. Ultimately, as the Demon Lord, she'd blow herself up along with the castle... Yeah, that's roughly how the 'Chronicle of the Post-Apocalyptic Round Table Pencil Dynasty' would play out.

Compared to that, just becoming the equivalent of a major shareholder is incredibly soft. But this somewhat soft trust-based transaction is crucial for me. At the very least, as long as I don't betray them, they'll maneuver in a way that doesn't damage my trust either.

"Ah, we really are best buds after all..."

I'm counting on you guys from here on out, my scorpions...!

Author's Afterword
Normally, if you move a massive amount of money all at once, an extortion event like "Hey buddy, you got some cash on you, don'tcha?" triggers in the alleyways. However, since Bird-Head is basically permanently intimidating everything with warning colors, it gets bypassed.

Even thugs pick their prey carefully.