Chapter 350
For Starters
“To live up to your expectations, let me offer you this.”
(!)
For starters, I took out the Crystal Elk antlers from the Infinite Storage and piled it up on the table. I’m guessing that the main topic of today’s summons should be about this material, so I quickly broached the subject.
For the time being, just an armful of it. However! That’s not all, because there’s more.
But just the amount of antlers I put out on the table had everyone speechless.
“Wait, wait, wait up! Tak.u.mi, I didn’t hear there would be so many!”
As expected, it was Al-sama who showed a reaction first.
“Eh? Then, what amount did you have in mind?”
“Well, of course, about one or two pairs at most!”
“Heeh~”
They thought it was one or two pairs, huh~ Then does that mean what I took out was a dozen times the amount they thought it was?
“Oh, I will say it just for the record, but I did not kill or hurt the Crystal Elks.”
It is a crime to kill or even injure Crystal Elks, so I told them just in case. With so many antlers in my possession, there is a chance they would suspect me.
“I don’t doubt that!”
“Indeed. I believe that.”
They don’t seem to be suspicious of me… on the contrary, they believed me so easily?
Should I be happy about their trust here?
“However, what did you mean by ‘were given’ you wrote in the letter!”
“We met a Crystal Elk in the mountains. Or rather, Allen and Elena found it. Then, it took us to the Crystal Elks’ dwelling place and gave us all the antlers they shed in there.”
“I can’t possibly understand!”
They asked me to explain how I got the antlers, so I gave them a brief explanation.
However, Tristan-sama did not believe me. No, everyone didn’t.
“Even if you say that, it’s exactly what happened, so please take it as it is.”
“Impossible.—Hahh… acquisition method is obscure, huh.”
Tristan-sama let out a big sigh.
“So, what do you want us to do with this? Do you want us to buy up everything?”
“I think it would be better for them to be distributed to the various countries, but I can’t do it myself. So, I will give them to you. I will leave them to you to handle, Tristan-sama, so you can distribute them or keep them exclusively in Guardia… Oh, you can also use them as a bargaining chip with other countries. Well, do as you please.”
If it had been one or two pairs, I would have sold them to Tristan-sama and that would have been the end of it, but the quant.i.ty in my possession makes that impossible. I don’t know the exact value of the Crystal Elk antlers, but it would be quite a bit of money.
That doesn’t mean I can sell them to the Guild or something, though. It would be too conspicuous. I would have no choice but to keep secret about them.
But I don’t want to keep it secret if possible, because I want to make sure the material go to people who need the medicine. My honest feeling is that I want to get as much of them as possible on the market.
We’re not hurting for money, so let’s force them onto Tristan-sama! That’s the plan.
“You are so selfless~”
Lionel-sama laughed funnily.
“Selfless? That’s definitely wrong. I’m greedy, Lionel-sama. After all, I’m throwing this stuff onto someone else to deal with so I don’t have to bother.”
“Tak.u.mi, if you really are greedy, you should charge a fee.”
“Eh, I mean, I don’t need the money, though?”
“You don’t need money, you say! You really are an amusing fella.”
Lionel-sama laughed again.
“Ah, would you like to use the profit to pay for the research on the new liquors, Lionel-sama?”
“The Nippy Liquor and brandy have been replicated so well that there is no need to pay for the research anymore. They will be available for sale soon.”
“Ohh, I’m glad to hear that.”
“You will also receive dividends from the sales. Visit the Merchant’s Guild often.”
“Eh?”
“You taught us how to make it, and you invested in it, so it’s only natural.”
That’s going to be more regular income.
Oh, speaking of which, I haven’t been to the Merchant’s Guild for a while. I should go check on the payments for the curry powder and such! Oh, the money from the sale of the loot we got from the pirate ship we entrusted to the Serdik might have already been deposited, too. Ah, is that going to be at the Adventurer’s Guild?
“Tak.u.mi-dono.”
“Ah, yes!”
Next was the Prime Minister.
“About the magic paper, it is far from perfect, so it cannot be sold yet, but we made remarkable progress. That being the case, I have transferred the remuneration to the Merchant’s Guild, so please check with them.”
“I understand the alcohol, since I invested some money in it, but I did not invest in the magic paper, right?”
“You have given me an excellent idea to use the Gaya trees.”
“Eh!? Just because of that!?”
“Just because of that. It’s a fair reward, and I won’t accept any refusal.”
This one seems to have already transferred the money. The Prime Minister works fast!
“But you are still working on the magic paper, aren’t you? Then let’s use the remuneration to pay for the research! Oh, and let’s use my remuneration for the Crystal Elk antlers for the research as well! By all means, please complete the magic paper and set your sights on ma.s.s production!”
I still have the magic paper that Syl gave me, but I would be more than happy to complete the magic paper for my children’s growth records. So it would be a good idea to invest in it as a research expense.
“……”
“Prime Minister?”
However, my proposal received only a mute response from the Prime Minister.
“… Tak.u.mi, you~ If you were to put a price on the Crystal Elk antlers, how much do you think it would be worth? I don’t know the exact sum either, but it must be a pretty big sum of money. Don’t try to offer that like it’s nothing.”
Then, Al-sama spoke to me with a tired voice.
“Eh, but, isn’t it still better than saving it up? And it’s nice to have a steady supply of magic paper!”
“I think you should get a little more attached to your money, Tak.u.mi. I hear adventurers don’t have a steady income and have to save for retirement. See, why not save for a comfortable retirement?”
“That won’t be a problem. I saved plenty from completing requests. You see, my children often find rare things. You know, like the Crystal Elk antlers.”
“… Ah, yeah, that’s right.”
When I implied that I had found something rare besides the Crystal Elk antlers, Al-sama glanced at the children who were with Grace-sama and the rest and nodded in understanding.
“Come to think of it, you got your hands on the Majesta fruits and leaves and stuff like that. If you had gotten many things as rare as those, you would have indeed earned quite a bit of money by now~”
Felix-sama nodded in consent.
“Tak.u.mi, if you don’t want money, is there anything else you want?”
“Something else I want?”
“Yes. For example, let’s see~ a house. There are also many weapons or magic tools you may want. I don’t know if it’s worth mentioning, but jewelry or stuff like that.”
“N~ I can’t think of anything in particular. But if I had to choose something, I’d say that magic tools might be useful on our travels.”
“Is that so? Let’s look for something Tak.u.mi might want.”
Austin-sama was looking for something that could be given to me as a reward instead of money.