Well, well, well, the secret just keeps on piling up. Oh, I would like to ask someone to make Epubs and PDF’s for the past 2 volumes of MnD. They are just 2 volumes, so please! It’s not much work.
Chapter 38 – The Season When It Blooms Part 2
And some minutes later, we both visited the origin of that『Client』.
「Glad you came here. Minato, even Elk-chan」
To the origin of my sister, who was shaking her cream-colored fox ears up and down happily.
No, still for the client to be Noel-nee-san
「Ah, Elk-chan raised up to Rank C, right? Congratulations. I will prepare a celebration this time」
「Just how fast are your ears. This just happened some minutes before」
「Fufu, never underestimate the Trader’s intelligence network」
Holy Frigging Scary!
From the time after the case about『Naga』ended, we had been accompanying nee-san and receiving favors, it’s already been 2 months since then. In this time I have come to understand just what type of person my sister is.
She’s a really good person, but also, though not to the point of black bellied, but she is really strict, she does things mercilessly, her mercantile mind-set keeps on appearing and disappearing in her smile. In conversations she would use sharp painful words, or sometimes glare with her severely sharp eyes.
Maybe she might even be trying to find information even in this casual talk, or trying to start at psychological warfare, well now-a-days I think this stuff quite always.
Maybe because she has that sort of mind-set that she is able to reign over a big trade company.
Well, setting that aside, today we both are here to hear about the request by the client, my sister, so while telling our intentions we sit on the sofa.
At that time, I had a hunch that nee-san’s eyes squinted……maybe my imagination?
☆☆☆
The request of nee-san was, in simple words, the escort of a Trader Group.
I had heard from Elk just before, in this season, there are a lot of Traders who replenish their stock from the commodities in『Flower Valley』, and then sell those here.
The types are various, like for admiration purposes or for flower arrangements, flowers for medicine or for eating, dry flowers and saplings of flowers and even seeds.
Furthermore, using the nectar of flowers or the materials used in food or doses, various types of processed goods like sweets and perfumes are made……In short, in this season just too damn hell of things can be bought.
As expected the Traders get proactive in replenishing the stock with stuff which is popular and has direct relation with making profits, at the same time the Guild is flooded with escort requests.
Well no wonder. That so-called『Flower Valley』is a region which is across several danger areas, if route taken from this『Volka』City.
If they go to restock by themselves, then they would certainly need escorts with good ability, or else the journey won’t be safe. Hence restocking personally is impossible for people barely scraping by peddling. The people who can do it are Traders or Brokers.
People other than that would restock their stocks by buying the stuff restocked by big companies, via their broker upon giving them commission while the stuff has already turned expensive, and so including the maintenance cost, the stuff becomes ridiculously pricey, therefore not many people do this.
Sister’s『Malras Association』is the personally restocking side. And for that, as expected, they recruit escorts, in that regards I was hired by her this time.
Of course there are other than us who are recruited, but she wanted to recruit me too after all she knows my ability and my temper.
「Minato is A, and Elk-chan has raised her Rank to C, I can trust you both enough. Reward is 1 Gold coin, the reward can be increased based on conditions. Time limit is making a round trip between the valley and city, and also staying in the valley, so it would be a little bit over 2 weeks. So, how is it? Not bad, right?」
「I see, you’re quite generous. What about the meals en route?」
「Will give it. Well if you find that not sufficient, then just hunt some animal nearby and make a food of it」
「Approximately a half-moon time. Isn’t this too long?」
「It between the medium-term and long-term. It’s neither short nor too long」
Like that, Elk checks the minute details of request details. Noel-nee-san kept on answering Elk’s question rush without showing even a bit of disagreeable expression, meanwhile Elk kept on asking questions without any reserve, through-and-through. Maybe sister is already used to being probe for the true intentions during business negotiations.
Elk being Elk, was closely investigating with her cautious attitude, after all she has had hard time because of a contract.
If it was me, I would’ve just glanced over it and accepted it. It’s great to have such a friend.
「In the path we would pass by en route, there is a danger area with danger rank D, right?」
「It’s the route we use every year, so I can surely say that place is the one which would take the longest time but balance with safety would be good. The demons which appear wouldn’t be that strong」
「Hmm……In that case……」
Like that, while staring-out the request document, Elk entered into a lengthy consideration.
She compared the Risks and Returns, and finally after one again investigating the request details, the answer was……
☆☆☆
Few minutes later,
In the room, from where Minato and Elk had already left, Noel was still sitting in the sofa.
There, a female with brown hair appeared from a door, different from the one Minato and Elk left from.
Noel just moved her glance to her, that girl traverse across the room, came beside the sofa Noel was sitting on, and sat on the back side of the sofa.
「It’s good that they took the request, right, Noel-chan」
「All thanks to you, Irene-san」
Noel gave a nonchalant reply, but Irene didn’t seem to be concerned with that. Like that, she came forward and sat on the sofa on which Minato sat before, so as to sit in front of Noel.
「Sorry, I had you called here, but made you wait」
「Oh no, it’s not bothering me. But, you sure are in your own troubles. To be monitoring your own brother, even if it is the order from Lilyn」
「……For that, though I am quite reluctant, but I don’t care about it. Personally too I think he would become quite a troublesome guy if left alone」
「? Really?」
To Irene’s unexpected question, Noel continued after standing up from the sofa.
「How does he, our youngest brother, look to you Irene-han?」
To her question with a strange mysterious expression, Irene replied without any trouble.
「I think he is quite a good guy, he’s got ability, is kind and also frank. It’s really rare in this age. Though I think his mind is somewhat childish」
「Just that much?」
「Yeah, just that much. Other than the fighting strength to insta-kill A Rank demons, and magical energy of superdreadnought level, along with several original magic and out-of-norm equipments, oh and also having a legendary magical bird as pet, he’s just a normal young boy. Is this answer fine?」
Irene spit it out in just one breath.
Normal people, upon hearing this, would either get surprised and open their eyes from surprise or hold their heads with a sense of giving up, however Noel’s expression was none of the two.
As if not satisfied with the current answer, she furrowed her brows.
Maybe that reaction was quite different and unexpected, signs of bewilderment appear on Irene’s face.
「So, as expected……even someone like Irene-han can’t notice it」
「……What do you mean by that?」
「……There is something I want to show you, please come here」
Saying that, Noel opened the『secret door』of the Sofa on which Irene was sitting, and retrieved a『Card』from it, then opened the door to her office.
Irene too sensed a different atmosphere and disappeared into the room after Noel.