TL: Mete/ Parthios

ED: Steven Loreson/Black_Jesus

TDADP chapter 201: Dinner party

Although Frank was the person who helped the children avoid a close call with kidnapping from the merchant"s escorts, there were some people who were monitoring the situation from the forest.

「Che~, That swindler b.a.s.t.a.r.d. He saved those kids. If would have failed, I would have beaten that b.a.s.t.a.r.d black and blue」

A beastman of black panther lineage muttered.

There were not only beastmen, there were also fallen demons and corrupted dwarves around that man. All of them were wearing clothes which were able to blend into their surroundings.

This camouflage was made from the skin of a monster named “three eyed stalker chameleon” which inhabited the plant labyrinth. Which is why, in response to the surrounding colors, although clothing has the camouflage skill, it instead blended into the surroundings. Concealment was further heightened by Yuu and Russ who gave the clothing a silence and deodorizing skill.

「Either way, the children are safe, so it"s all good」

「What are you saying? Although I can’t see their figures, there are definitely more beastmen in the forest. On the other side, there are certainly fallen demons, there might even be corrupted dwarves. Although I cannot see any of the fallen demons, their smell is something that I definitely dislike. I can understand that they are hiding themselves quite well, but where could they be? Even if that swindler master did not move, the children would have still been okay. Moreover, I wonder what the King-sama is doing. That grandpa was also bought here previously, wasn"t he blushing with embarra.s.sment before?」

While being unable to hide his irritation a fallen dwarf spoke up.

「It is not grandpa. Call him Sensei」

「What is with you? Are you questioning about King-sama"s decision!」

Among the groups wearing the same camouflage, Agafon who had on a black corrupted iron armor approached the beastmen. (TL note: Corrupted here refers to the heavenly corrupted iron)

「Agafon, do you even listen to the way you"re talking? Don"t you know the difference between our age?」

「As if that means anything! I shall not forgive those who disrespect King-sama!!」

「Don"t get yourself embroiled. Remember the reason you are here. We are here because of the permission from King-sama. There is no requirement of age to be brought up here」

Agafon and the beastman gazed at each other. Although the both of them had their hands on their weapons, they were in state of embarra.s.sment.

「Agafon is correct. If someone does complain about the king"s decision, we shall not forgive said person」

The person who stopped the conflict between the two was a man who was covered from head to toe in a robe. There were two bulges on the top of the hood, therefore, it can inferred that the person was probably a beastman.

「What is this? Are you on Agafon"s side?」

「I don"t care about such a thing. All I care about is if you are having doubts about King-sama"s words」

The beastman who spoke first was silent for a while, but then he opened his mouth.

「........Yo」

「Ah?」

「I would never have a single doubt about King-sama」

「Then it"s fine. Do not forget that what we have right now is because of the king. Ah? Agafon where are you going?」

「Obviously, I am going to see the king. Because the merchants are definitely going to stay here for today, so I"m going to see the dish tree」

When Agafon said that, he pushed the bushes apart. Those that were behind were disgusted by his words, but also impressed at the free spirit and behavior of Agafon.

「That b.a.s.t.a.r.d......doing whatever he wants even though he is still a rookie. I should show him what I am for once」

The black beastman was not to be satisfied with the att.i.tude of Agafon. The anger had not gone away.

「Kuhahaha. Certainly Agafon is a cheeky brat, but his loyalty to the king is genuine. Well, let"s move now so that we can see the dish tree as well」

When the man said so, the group disappeared from the forest without a sound.

「This is certainly a very splendid dish tree」

Victor muttered as he looked at the tree which was 20 meters tall and 50 meters wide.

The dish tree is a tree whose branches are spread like a dish, as its name suggests. The branches of this tree are incredibly st.u.r.dy and does not have any problems supporting weight even if several people stand upon them at the same time. It wouldn"t even shake an inch. Some of the tribes which live in the forest have their dwellings in a dish tree and form their own villages.

「I can understand that, but this tree is still alive so do not damage it unnecessarily」

「Whahaha. Would this Victor, ever cause an inconvenience to Satou-sama?」

「Yuu-sama, is this fine for today?」

Mago asks Yuu who disregarded Victor"s act of familiarity.

「Aaa, if Povoru comes back then it will late into the night. The ocean is quite dangerous during the night」

「Hohoho, I understand.」

Even if he was ignored by Yuu, Victor still kept talking. In the corner of his eyes he noticed that there were no merchants that were supposed to be escorting them to the dish tree.

「Oh, what is this, what is this~? Boribaru-dono, are you unable to find the escorts?」

「Aa, that is indeed the case」

Although there were only a few who could understand, they were still able to discern that Victors expression had changed into one of sternness.

「It can"t be that this a ploy to embarra.s.s me, right? 」

The merchant Boribaru, brought by Victor, asks him.

「Why are you saying such a thing? You don"t seem like your usual self」

While noticing that there were no escorts that he had brought himself, he pretends to take an att.i.tude as if it was not such a big matter. Now, this could also be thought of ploy to run Victor"s face through the mud.

「Hou.....Why do you say that I am not my usual self?」

「Sometimes you cooperate with a business rival, hold hands with these rivals and make lots of profit. So please don"t get so attached to Satou-sama all that much, alright? The escorts that I brought are----no that"s not correct. Forced to bring escorts......those escorts are the subordinates who work for Finance minister Baryu」

The people rustled due to the words of Boribaru. Blood thirst was especially high, with regards to the chiefs of each tribe. Namely Rubanofu, Byarune and Mauno along with their escorts who were guarding them.

「See, look here」

「What is it?」

Despite the splendid smile that was displayed, as usual, the pressure that was being released by Victor was that of a first-grade warrior.

「If this was usual, you would have asked to me to praise you for thinking something like that, right? Certainly, if you were in the kingdom of Udon working as a merchant, then opposing Baryu the finance minister would be synonym with death. In fact Mago-dono was there one time, having to manage a crisis that had developed. I had happened to damage the mood of the finance minister, by bringing the information to Satou-sama that the finance minister might know about this country. Perhaps, those guards have already been handled by Satou-sama, am I correct?」

Victor and Mago both looked towards Yuu. But Yuu stood there as if this matter had nothing to do with him.

「You, aren"t you the same merchant who was selling over-priced products.

Was that a skill?」

「My name is Boribaru. I am a little impressed, and also quite relieved」

「This is why the merchants can’t be trusted. The day is almost over. Let"s leave the worthless quarrel and go have some food」

Soon after, the merchants entered into the dish tree one after another and then they were guided into one of the dish shaped branches. There stood the girls of the nameless kingdom in matching maid outfits.

「We have been waiting. This way please」

The girls took the merchants coats and the luggage and then guided them to their seats. Some of the merchants thought that these demi-humans were nothing more than simple girls, but they were quite surprised at their polite att.i.tude.

These kind of natural manners were nothing that could be innate, these had to be hammered into them along with the ways of n.o.bility and swindling by Frank.

Moreover, the merchants did not expect much about the dishes made in a remote island country. However, they were quite surprised by the dishes that came out. All the dishes were brought out one after another. Such as: appetizers, salads, and soups. All of them looked and tasted as if they were made in the most high end restaurant possible.

「I thought that Satou-sama had been the cook himself, but I am quite surprised at the taste」

One of the merchants gave his praise about the meal, while putting some wine into his mouth.

「The wine was made by Frank right there」

Frank who came back unnoticed was looking at the work of the girls in the corner.

「I was also quite surprised. This dish is comparable to the full course meal of Comers famous store L"arrange」

「So you knew. That"s right. This full course meal is similar to the one that Mago uses when he is negotiating in L"Arrange」

「The meat seems to be from Udon kingdoms monster cow right? Who knew that Udon kingdom’s monster cow could be found in such a remote place. W-what, did I say something strange?」

While the merchants were talking, Agafon had slowly mixed in with the escorts unnoticed.

「Agafon, are you also a guard of the chief?」

「Yessu. I am King-sama"s escort」

「No heckling way! This idiot was supposed to be on duty at the harbor and he came here selfishly!」

「Bffu!? Flavia, do not say unnecessary things! I made sure to finish my work properly!」

One of the maids, Flavia, tattled to Yuu, but Frank spoke to her using magic words. Telling her to speak elegantly while glaring at her.

「Well it"s fine, but behave yourself. There are visitors today」

「Satou-sama, please wait. You seem to have a smile on your face ever since I spoke those words. I would like to ask why」

「That is because you said that the meat tasted similar to the monster cow of the Udon kingdom」

「What about it? This meat is undoubtedly from the monster cow of Udon, it is beef meat to be precise. Because the toughness of meat is quite good while the softness is good enough to bite it with one"s teeth」

「Wrong. This meat is obtained by mating the monster cow of Udon and ordinary cows.」

「Im-impossible!? You were able to bring back a monster cow from the Udon kingdom’s『Devil"s Prison』alive!?」

The monster cow inhabited a labyrinth named 『Devils prison』which is an A-rank labyrinth in the Udon Kingdom. This amazing labyrinth boasted a maze like no other in the entire Udon kingdom. The high ranking labyrinth was inhabited by several high ranked monsters. In the first place, the Udon kingdom’s demon cow was itself a ferocious monster. It was an extremely difficult mission to bring one out alive, and the chances are that it may not even live outside the dungeon.

「Hee, Our King-sama is amazing right? Also, the food provided to is quite different--」

「Please, please tell me! Do you feed it some special gra.s.s or maybe mixed with straw gra.s.s and some other things? Moreover, how were you able to bring back its libido within it? What steps did you take to make sure to be careful while breeding?」

The merchant who was internally angry thinking that he was made fun off, completely forgot about that, and was now pestering Agafon for answers while not caring about the previous remarks. Anyhow, it was now known to them that it was possible to domesticate a monster cow which could only be found in the 『Devil"s prison』. There were a lot of n.o.bles who are self claimed gourmets. For them, who loved delicious things, they would no doubt spend a huge sum.

「No food. A――ouch....... Chief, why do you hit me?」

「Why not! Why are you telling the secrets of the king"s country to the world!!」

「Because I´m stupid」

Agafon sees Rubanov with a grudge-like face while rubbing his beaten head, but when his ear is grasped he is pulled as it is and taken to another room. Merchants who are trying to retrieve information from Agafon follow the back of Agafon, who is unfortunately being taken out and then turn to Yuu.

「I won"t teach you. I"m raising them with money and time」

「It"s a shame. Do you tell me when I pay money?」

「You cant afford to pay a hundred」

「Hundred......10 billion Madoka!?」

「It"s not an amazing amount of money. I think it"s worth it. Let"s see. It"s a pity I can"t tell anything, so I can teach a little, so in my country, there are several other cows besides this one. In addition to cattle, pigs, birds, sheep, goats and crops are also included」

「What......!? Is it possible to see them?」

「If you deal with your house, you will see it even if you dislike it」

「As one would expect from Satou! So can you only tell me secretly later?」

「I don"t want to teach you」

「Again～. Don"t say something like that」

Although there was a little uproar, the meal party ended safely, and now, Yuu was used by the merchants to collect information by calling it a chat.

「I made a profit from this business」

「Yes. But I was surprised that most of the items I had prepared here were purchased」

「I"m not taking taxes in my country. I have enough money」

「You aren"t taking taxes? Then, does it not consist as a country?」

「It"s because the country is new and it"s too late. I"ve said that it was better than that, but I"m not really able to get it there, despite the fact that it"s really like the side of a street, isn"t it?」

Merchants look at each other face and smile bitterly. Although the profit was worthwhile, they couldn"t get the potion they were looking for, so it was almost impossible to hit it.

「By the way, do you know Mòberu kingdom?」

The merchants nodded uniformly.

「Móberu kingdom´s third prince――isn"t it. The king and I know each other and I think you know about that country, that they lost the war against Ropuginus and are now recovering. So I"m going to talk to you, but don"t you want to trade with Móberu?」

Merchants did not respond well to Yuu"s question. All merchants here know about the information that Móberu kingdom lost the war with Ropuginus and that their state treasury was totally out of compensation and expenses.

「Don"t worry about customs duty? Trade on this island. Don"t worry about money」

There are a number of gateways from Udon kingdom to Móberu kingdom, but the merchant can be charged with goods. Yuu thought that they was worried about it and told that they could trade on this island, but the responses from the merchants were still weak.

「I don"t worry, but I don"t think Móberu kingdom, the defeated country, has the money to buy goods from us. In such a case, the payment is exchanged by a certificate etc. and the payment is paid after. In other words, you often don"t pay a penny while you don"t have the money」

「I am lending if it is about the money」

「However……」

Even when Yuu reported that he was lending money, the merchants were still unreliable.

「Mago, Viktor. Put it out」

「「Is it okay?」」

「If I show cash, they will be convinced」

Mago and Victor take out a number of boxes from the item pouch and arrange them. And when one of the boxes was opened, platinum coins were packed and arranged inside. It is the number of several thousand or less estimated.

「Oh, oh......what is this?」

「Do......don"t tell me all these boxes!?」

「This is part of my money......I"m lending more than 100 billion to Móberu, so you won"t lose money. I"ll pay cash to the King of Móberu. I will tell you so」

This money is a part of the treasures obtained by defeating the old dragon Maguranarus, which were sold at the shops of Mago and Victor. Although they paid a portion of the proceeds from the sale as a reward, they were able to save time because they couldn"t afford to give a merchant a huge amount of jewelry.

「How is it? Are you motivated?」

It wasn"t until they heard it. If it is cash payment, how good is a country where the shortage of supplies is a tasteful superior customer? The merchants were involuntarily smiling.

「Satou-sama, please leave it to me! So when do we start trading?」

「If its grain, leave it to me!」

「No No! Leave it to me!」

「If it"s about clothing, can my company help?」

Bolivar gets close to Yuu in the eyes of a appealing battle that merchants heat up.

「Satou-sama, if you leave the finances of the Nameless Kingdom to me, I have the confidence to create a country comparable to the five major powers within three decades. Would you mind thinking about it once?」

It was an outrageous statement. He told Yuu to leave the finances of the country to him and not to someone else. Bolivar"s face was full of confidence. It is not a hypocrisy, but he has the confidence to create a country that truly rivals the five major powers within three decades.

「You also......want to say the same thing」

Bolivar sees Victor unwittingly.

「No, Victor doesn"t say such a silly thing. It"s Mago, but it wasn"t thirty years, but less than twenty years」

Mago remembered that time and laughed to misled.

「No, no. Satou-sama, I"m embarra.s.sed to be praised so much」

「He is not praising you」

Victor mutters as he pa.s.ses by Bolivar.

「Bolivar-dono is a man of greatness, too」

Bolivar stared bitterly at Victor, but without any concern, Victor follow about Yuu.