Book 4-3.2
Yulian, Runa, as well as the members of the merchant guild residing in Pareia were all waiting outside of Pareia to greet Edwin.
“I greet the Glow.”
Edwin ran toward Yulian and bowed in front of him.
“Welcome, Edwin.”
“You personally came all the way out here?”
“I was curious after hearing that it was a giant caravan. It really is as large as it was rumored.”
Yulian spoke with shock after seeing the caravan behind Edwin. Edwin bowed once more.
“It ended up being that way. I relied on the Glow’s promise to push forward even though I knew it was a bit much.”
“You do not need to worry about your caravan since you are now in Pareia. Our Pareia will guarantee your safety.”
“Thank you, Glow.”
Edwin knew Yulian would say that, but this trip really was putting the guild’s existence on the line. So hearing Yulian say it once more let him let out a sigh of relief.
“Then let us enter.”
Yulian called the Red Storm over and shared stories with them as they entered the paoe. Once they entered, Runa started to speak to Edwin.
“We have prepared 300 paoes for the caravan. Please organize everything.”
“Thank you for the preparations, Runa-nim.”
Edwin showed his thanks to Runa before calling the members residing in Pareia over to have them organize the cargo. Once that was finished, he headed into the paoe with Runa.
Once Yulian, Edwin, and Runa were all in the paoe, Runa was the first to speak.
“Edwin-nim. The size of the caravan this time really does go beyond our wildest imaginations. Did something happen?”
“To be honest with you, it was the nobles. Once they found out that we were making a lot of profit by crossing through the desert, they wanted us to combine their personal merchant guilds with ours. A small guild like ours could not reject the request of the nobles.”
“Then the carts you brought this time have the belongings of the nobles as well?”
“Yes. Our items are probably not even a fourth of the entire caravan. It’s very frustrating since they haven’t even helped us with the cost of travel or security. They are probably plotting so that if their items end up being robbed, they can use that as an excuse to eat up our guild. Well, it might be difficult because there are so many of them.”
“Ho!”
Yulian shouted in disbelief. He could not understand these people known as the nobles in the continent. There were similar types of nobility in the desert, but they were all warriors and people who knew how to love the citizens of the oasis.
The nobles of the continent should be more civilized and have received proper etiquette lessons, but their actions were more childish than the children of the desert.
“That is how it ended up such a large caravan.”
Edwin let out a sigh at Runa’s comment and answered.
“Sigh~, it ended up that way.”
“If you let them do it once, they will repeat it a second, and third time. Are you planning on bringing such a burden with you every time?”
“That is what I am worried about as well.”
Runa thought for a long time before starting to speak.
“Edwin-nim, do you have any thoughts about joining our Pareia or a different country?”
Edwin quickly understood Runa’s intentions. However, it would not be possible.
“That is not possible. The guild members still have a lot of family members in the kingdom, and my father is a viscount in the kingdom.”
Yulian and Runa, who had never heard that Edwin was the son of a noble before, looked toward Edwin with shock.
“I never had a chance to bring it up since my identity was not very important. I understand Runa-nim’s thoughts, but it is not possible. I plan to do so some day in the future though.”
“Mm.”
Runa started to think again. If Edwin falters in this situation, Pareia would falter as well.
He then came up with a great idea.
“Edwin-nim.”
“Yes, please speak.”
“This time, the warriors of our Pareia will help you safely get to your destination, so you will not need to worry about this caravan. The GLow’s horse is one that even ten thousand pirmas will not be able to catch.”
“Of course. If I am being honest with you, if it was not for the Glow’s promise, I would have rejected the nobles even if it made the guild falter.”
Seeing Edwin answer like that, Yulian wanted to help reduce Edwin’s anxiety a little more and confirmed for him once more.
“I will help you as much as you have helped me. Even if it is bigger than this, if you can make it safely to Pareia, I will take care of you from there. No matter how many times it may be.”
Edwin bowed his head deeply as he responded.
“The Glow’s deep friendship, this Edwin will never forget it.”
Runa started to speak to Edwin.
“However, it is not practical to come with such a burden each time. So this is the plan I came up with. The next time you come, please make sure to bring along some important nobles with you.”
“What?”
Edwin tilted his head in confusion as he could not determine what Runa was plotting and asked for clarification. Runa continued to speak.
“I am telling you to come with important nobles next time. It would be great if the caravan is as large as possible. The thing to keep in mind is that the size of Edwin-nim’s portion of the caravan needs to be the largest of them all.”
Edwin was getting more confused as Runa continued to speak and had to ask for a direct answer.
“I cannot understand Runa-nim’s intentions.”
“Do the nobles know about Edwin-nim’s relationship with us?”
“Of course they do not. If they did, it would be hard for me to be safe. All they know is that I trade with Pareia while going through the desert and that I pay mercenaries to keep me safe through the desert.”
“Isn’t that dangerous as well? There is a significant amount of steel coming to us.”
“I am paying the relevant taxes for it. Please continue.”
Edwin urged Runa on. If he could get rid of these greasy nobles, Edwin would gladly give up a month’s worth of profit.
“Then, act natural as you come into our Pareia to trade. We will then give you some warriors to protect you as you head back into the desert.
“Then?”
“Then our Pareia’s warriors will show up as a band of thieves to steal your items. If we kill the most annoying noble to set an example, everyone will be quiet. All Edwin-nim will have to do is stand next to the most terrible noble at that time.”
Runa thought that his plan was pretty good and started to smile as he continued.
“If your items get stolen like that, I presume the caravan will return directly to the continent. At that time, Edwin-nim can apologize and say that you will slowly return the amount that was stolen on the trip.”
“Mm.”
Edwin was finally starting to understand Runa’s plan.
“In their point of view, the one who lost the most would be Edwin-nim, and since there will be nobles to serve as witnesses for it, they will not be able to touch you. They will also never think about stepping foot into the desert ever again since they will think you are putting your life on the line and taking a gamble.”
“That is quite an exquisite plan.”
As Edwin praised his plan, Runa opened up one finger as he answered.
“There is one extra effect as well. Edwin-nim must make sure to bring materials belonging to very important nobles. With Edwin-nim promising to pay back for the losses, that noble will protect Edwin-nim with the greed of getting their money back. So wouldn’t it be killing two birds with one stone?”
Clap.
Edwin clapped and started to laugh loudly.
“Hahahaha. Runa-nim. Very exquisite. Truly exquisite. There is already a small portion of money that are taken as donations or taxes, so I can use that money to pretend to repay the debt. Hahaha.”
Yulian knew he would have to do something terrible with his warriors turning into a band of thieves, however, he nodded his head knowing that the plan will definitely get those noble bastards away from Edwin.
“We will need to be cautious at first. I think it would be better if the stolen goods were stored in Pareia for a bit of time. You need to act like a merchant who took quite a hit for a while.”
“Of course. From then, it will be about keeping a complete poker face. Haha.”
Edwin felt refreshed, as if a ten year long congestion was finally pushed out. He did not have any means to get rid of the nobles on his own.
‘You bastards. Just wait for me.’
Edwin started to grind his teeth while thinking about the nobles.
“Some of the Red Storm warriors, as well as other desert warriors will protect you until you reach your destination.”
“Thank you very much.”
‘They say that the best time to start negotiations are when you are at an advantage.’
“Then let us talk about our trade now.”
Runa put on an eloquent smile as he started to speak. This negotiation will definitely be advantageous for Pareia.
‘I cannot let my guard down.’
Edwin realized that he had let his guard down at Runa’s sudden change, but it was already too late.