Chapter 355 – Can’t Make Money in Elkay

I expected that Yureena’s parents were busy.

So I decided to dispense with the smalltalk and go straight to business.

「It’s related to the logistics of supplying Elkay, the town under the castle of the former Demon Lord.」

「Let us hear the details.」

So Yureena and I described the situation that Elkay was in.

And after the talk was over, Yureena’s father said,

「I see...」

He whispered to himself, and seemed to ponder.

「Father...is there a problem?」

「Not in the way you think. Just trying to sum up what kind of business opportunity Elkay would provide...」

It had been months after we had killed off the real Demon Lord.

Of course Yureena’s father had already thought over the opportunity Elkay didn’t or did provide.

「Are you implying that Elkay doesn’t provide very much of a business opportunity.」

「Exactly. Just as sharp as a future son of mine should be.」

And Linmia Trading wasn’t a place that just gave out charity.

It was a place of people with ambition.

They all moved around because money was good, and not because of compassion.

「It’s a new city. I think there’ll be plenty of opportunity soon...」

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「You may think so, dear, but...」

Then the father began explaining things slowly,

「There still is very little population. Also there’s no production. The ground there is too bare for crops.」

In addition, since the previous agent was just a tool, there was no safety.

The adventurer’s guild had just started to revive. And until the new agent arrived...well, there wasn’t structure.

So obviously Yureena’s father wasn’t a big fan of investing there.

「I see. Then I guess I have to invest in the community myself.」

「Yourself? I know that you have money, son, but...」

It wasn’t a large town, but it was still a town.

One man’s money wouldn’t mean that much, at least he thought.

And he was obviously right in his thinking.

「Even though it’s winter there, there’s not enough fuel for fires. They’ll run out soon. I thought I should bring them some wood myself.」

「Hm...I guess...」

Yureena’s father said, with Cruz following,

「I can pay as a marquise as well, I just need the people.」

「People?」

「I think there IS a way to make a profit, right, Al?」

「...well, not for now, I think.」

There was the possibility of making a lot of money off battle treasure received after killing strong magical monsters.

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So strong adventurers should gather as well.

Also, because the ground was so hard to farm, it meant that there was a lot of magical stones and crystals that could be mined.

We could extract those by using Vi-Vi’s magical circles.

It wasn’t clear that we could find adventurers to come to Elkay.

Elkay had a bad reputation, after all.

There were so many taxes on quest payments and adventurers that refused to pay them were killed.

Even though there was a lot of room for improvement, there’s a lot of adventurers that would just blow the town off.

As for the magic stones, if Vi-Vi produced a lot of them from the ground, then the alchemists get undercut.

It probably wouldn’t be a good idea for Linmia Trading to invest too much.

「What method are you thinking of?」

After hearing me start talking about profits, the father reacted.

I explained how things might work using adventurers.

Cruz added to my explanation,

「And since the place is directly controlled by the crown, we also might find favor with them.」

「...I see.」

After that, we finished negotiations, and Linmia decided to send one clerk out to Elkay.

He would bring Linmia goods out with him.

I was very thankful.

「I have someone perfect for the job, so I’ll get her on the move right away.」

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So Linmia left and brought us a woman, a devil, with short, little horns.

「I am Millia. I am pleased to help the marquise with whatever she desires, and it’s my honor to work with you.」

「Ah, Millia, nice seeing you again.」

「It’s been a while, miss.」

「Just call me Yureena, like usual.」

「H...however...」

「Cruz and Al aren’t stranger, after all.」

I guess she had called her “miss” because she was in front of us.

「Alfred here will be Yureena’s groom, after all!」

「Is that so?! Well, congratulations.」

「T...thanks.」

There was no way to say it was fake in front of the father...I was a little uncomfortable.

But the father continued happily,

「Since Millia is a devil...she’ll fit in perfectly in Elkay.」

「I’m glad to be of service and will do my best.」

Apparently, Millia was a friend of the child of one of Yureena’s mother’s friend.

Her parents died from a sickness, so Millia was almost like an adopted child.

Not really part of the family that would inherit and so on, but supported by them.

I guess something more than a guardian would be appropriate.

As she grew up, she started working at Linmia Trading.

「I can relax if Millia’s coming with us.」

Seems that Yureena really trusted this girl.