324 - - Episode 322. Marie as usual

The day after arriving at the labyrinth city, I visited Marie's general store, and Sonia beat me to it. I'm worried that she's taking over the pace, but I'm not going to give in.

"Marie-san, it's been a while. I'm sorry to drop in on you like this."

When I was shown into the reception room, Marie was already there waiting for me. She must have read my movements perfectly.

"No, no, you are always welcome, Mr. Yuta. I would be very happy if you could visit me more often.

Marie said with a smiling face, but the "frequently" part was very forceful. Maybe she meant that I should go into the labyrinth and wholesale the materials more often.

"Ha-ha-ha, thank you very much."

"Oh, the adamantite reward is ready. Shall I give it to you right away?

Come to think of it, I never received my adamantite reward. I never realized how generous people can be when they have enough money. I miss those days when I was looking forward to my payday.

"No, I brought the same amount of colored stones as last time, so if you want to buy them, I'll ask you to do it in a lump sum later.

I named it "spirit money," but after thinking about it, it is a subtle name that is difficult to use outside of paradise. It was probably a mistake to include "genie" in the name.

"Ah, the stone. Resale is not completely prevented, but the commercial guilds have been informed about it, so it is being sold without any problem in the labyrinth city. It has a good reputation for being easy to use for crafting, and we would appreciate it if you could increase the number of them.

Wow, they're pretty popular. It's a beautiful stone and could be used for craftwork. It is also good information that you can increase the number of wholesale.

"This time I will bring the same amount as last time, but next time I will bring a lot more.

With these words, he takes the spirit coins from his magic bag and places them in front of Ms. Marie.

"I will go and check.

Sonia, who had been listening to the conversation behind Marie's back, received the spirit coins and left the room. I know you are checking the quality, but why don't you do it right in front of me?　I'm afraid that they will buy it without saying anything, even if there are some strange things in it, rather than trusting ...... me.

"Mr. Yuta, I have copper coins and large copper coins ready, would you like to pay part of the price in copper coins and large copper coins?"

You remembered that I started the store and we were short on coins. It's usually nice when someone remembers a small thing like this that I told you before and cooperates with you without saying a word. Marie is a great merchant when she's not drowning in greed. Marie is an aggressive merchant when she is drowning in greed, but she is an aggressive merchant with a power that I don't understand .......

"Thank you very much. It would be helpful if you could mix the copper coins with the large copper coins."

I understand. So, Yuta-san, are you going to dive into the labyrinth this time too?

Marie asks me, tilting her head. On the surface, Marie-san, who is beautiful on the surface, tilts her head and looks like she is asking a cute question. And yet, of course, she dives, right?　That's why you wholesale so much material, right?　Dive, I swear! Why do I feel like I'm being told to do something?　Skill?

But I don't know, I'm going to reach the 100th layer of the labyrinth next time, I'm interested to see what happens, but I'm making Merahl wait for a long time. The difference between going under and not going under is about 10 days. ...... Well, if Meral can't wait, I guess we'll have to wait 10 days. I can save time by pretending that I only got the herbs.

"Yes, I'm planning to go down there. It may be a short time this time, but rest assured that I will at least bring you a variety of medicinal herbs.

"Kuhf ...... Oh, thank you very much. The medicinal herbs that Yuta-san can supply are in great demand in the apothecary guild and other guilds, so they are very helpful.

He made up for it in a flash, but that nasty smile was definitely based on his imagination of the profit to be gained from the herbs. It is unfortunate that such an unfortunate smell is in the air.

"...... No, I'm indebted to you, Marie, so don't worry about it. So, I still have a few more things I need to know.

Yes, of course. But the three sizes are a secret!"

I remember that was Marie's special move. It's been a while since I've seen her, but she still looks somewhat old-fashioned. Did you forget that it was a dud the last time you saw it?

"........................"

"...... Oh, if you must know, I can arrange a room for you at the villa."

I was giving him a cold shoulder, so why was he going in that direction?

"No, it's okay. So, what I want to ask you is, I want you to give me some information about the labyrinth city and I want you to try a food called edamame.

"It's okay. ...... No, I know it's okay, so don't give me that cold stare. Let's see, information about the labyrinth city and tasting edamame. I am very interested in the food you are bringing, Mr. Yuta. I will give you the information about the labyrinth city first.

---------- --I heard that there were no major developments in the labyrinth city while I was away. However, the commercial and culinary guilds have asked the adventurers' guild to build a large ranch near the labyrinth city, and the economy has been revitalized.

It is true that the cooperation of the Adventurers' Guild is necessary for the construction of a new ranch outside the city in order to keep away the demons. It seems to be quite a large scale construction. It would take a lot of people to build a ranch like that, and it would eventually become a village or something like that. They are also building a ranch near the capital at the same time. There are also plans to build ranches near other large cities.

That's right, the commercial guild and the adventurer's guild are going to monopolize the milk. If the dishes and snacks made from milk spread, it would be quite profitable, wouldn't it?　Big organizations do fancy things.

I checked out what happened to the story about turning Labyrinth City into a gourmet city, and found that they have already opened a high-class pastry store in an upscale residential area, and that they used a magician to offer food and sweets to the royal family, and also to the nobles in Labyrinth City, and advertised that new sweets were available in Labyrinth City. He works fast.

As a result, they almost had their recipe seriously taken away by the state. He appealed to the fact that the guild of commerce, the guild of cooks, and the guild of adventurers had invested a lot of money in building a ranch and so on, and managed to prevent the monopolization of the recipe. Instead, they were ordered to give away the recipe and distribute milk to the royal castle as well.

That's why they decided to set up a dairy farm in the vicinity of the royal city. They were not able to monopolize the recipe in the labyrinth city, but they were satisfied by taking charge of the distribution of milk. Also, it seems that the king gave his seal of approval to the recipe as originating from the labyrinth city.

"But Marie, you seem to know a lot. Is the information that widespread?

The Pollius Chamber of Commerce is in on it too, so they know a lot about it. We can't be late when Mr. Yuta is involved. We invested a lot of money upfront.

Oh, I didn't consult you specifically, but you're really getting into it. The information network of the Polurius Chamber of Commerce is quite impressive.

"They're getting quite rich from the materials in the labyrinth, but won't people around you be jealous if they get involved in new distribution?"

"Hmm, I'm already jealous enough to want to kill you just for monopolizing the materials from Yuta-san, so it's all right. My father says that if I do this, I'm going to go all the way and become the commercial giant of the kingdom of chrysoprase.

Marie is smiling glamorously, but that doesn't mean it's okay. Is that what this is?　Is this some kind of "the stakes are high, but let's grow our stakes so high that we don't get hammered" kind of thing?

Just as far as I know, it's a labyrinth of materials, a general store, and cattle ranching. They have a food stall, and they seem to be getting into the culinary field as well. I'm afraid that if they continue to diversify their business, they might seriously take over the commercial sector.

"Well, ......, good luck?"

Yes, I'll do my best. So, since the Polurius Chamber of Commerce has been growing so fast recently, I'm in trouble because I'm getting a lot of marriage proposals too. I don't like political marriages, so I hope there is someone who sees me working hard and wants to marry me.

...... why do you glance at me. I mean, she's lying about not liking political marriages. You've been trying to seduce me for the store since the beginning, and you even tried to offer up your own brother for the business.

"...... haha, you'll meet someone nice sooner or later. I'm sure you'll be fine, Marie."

"...... you've already met someone wonderful, and it can be the start of a burning love affair, can't it?"

So don't glimpse at me. It's not a burning love, it's a burning desire for wealth. Marie is beautiful, but I don't want to make a move on her, because then I'd have to work like a cart horse.

"So, about the edamame, try this..."

To change the subject, I take out some edamame and place them in front of Marie. She won't bite if you look so blatantly dissatisfied.

"Oh, ...... these are soybeans, aren't they?　They are mainly used for livestock feed and food for the poor, but these are pre-dried. Do you eat it?"

Marie, you are a young lady, how did you know about soybeans in their pods before harvest?

"You knew how to eat the food of the poor."

"I got into ranching. I've made a contract with a farmer who produces feed, so I've done my research."

Marie, you are a scary woman, but you are a good merchant.

"Soybeans themselves are quite tasty when cooked, but I like them best when they are harvested just before they turn yellow and boiled. Please eat them like this."

He eats the edamame in front of you as if to show you a sample. After a little hesitation, Marie reached for the edamame and put it in her mouth just like I did. She looked a little strange and reached for the next edamame.

"...... is a wonder. It's not amazingly delicious, but I could go on and on eating it...... what can I say?"

Marie, on the other hand, is reaching for the next edamame. Hmmm...you're totally hooked.

"Is this a business?"

Yes, I will have to talk to my father about it, but with this flavor, we can create a new distribution channel. We already have a contract with a farmer who produces fodder. Let's get them to increase their crops. Maybe we can increase the number of farmers we contract with. Even if they don't sell, we can use them for feed. There is no loss. The commercial guilds have contracts, but we can outbid them now. Oh, and of course we'll pay Yuta-san for the information. You will leave it to me, won't you?

Marie smiles. Huh?　They're talking about outsmarting the commercial guilds?　Are you okay with that?

"I'll leave it to you, Marie."

......Well, it's good enough for me that edamame is available and I can eat it at Toruku's inn. And if it's for a little money, do what you want. I'm feeling motivated, so let's just get paid for the adamantite and the spirit money and be on our way.