Chapter : 40
Because of this, Brachsapool’s only trading partner was the royal family.
The price paid by the crown was just enough to cultivate Brachsapool, but it never satisfied Conrand. Since the crown was backing them, there were obvious limits.
If the royal family finds out about this, it’ll be a bit troublesome… but the more clients, the better.
“Now, are you ready to talk seriously?”
It was at that moment.
The woman, who had tucked the documents back inside her robe, gave a faint smile.
Only then did Conrand nod obsequiously.
“Yes, yes. That’s right.”
“It’s illegal, so it must be troublesome work. You’ve been trading without getting caught?”
Even though it sounded like a passing question, Conrand’s gaze sharpened.
From here on, every word of his answer carried the weight of a massive contract.
“Yes. Our Antrang Merchant Guild began cultivating Brachsapool in earnest five years ago and have been delivering it since. In all those years, not once have we been caught.”
“How do you handle the cultivation process?”
“We keep it entirely internal to the guild so it won’t be discovered. As you know, mercenaries are stationed with us. Even if someone barges in with a sword, the mercenaries take care of it.”
“I see.”
Conrand swallowed hard.
“Yes, that’s the secret behind our five years of remaining undiscovered.”
“…”
At this point, one would expect a contract to be sealed, but the couple remained silent for a while.
“Perhaps you have some concerns…?”
Growing anxious, Conrand asked.
The woman simply shrugged.
“Master Reber wants to bring in Brachsapool, but since it’s illegal…”
“You really don’t have to worry about getting caught!”
“On what grounds?”
“If you’re that concerned, I’ll personally take you to the cultivation field.”
The Brachsapool fields were off-limits even to guild employees—only the trusted mercenary overseers were allowed.
But if he could secure a contract with the Reber Merchant Guild?
That vast guild would surely distribute Brachsapool secretly to high-ranking nobles.
And then the Antrang Guild, as the supplier, would soon be rolling in gold.
His brain was already consumed with greed, everything turned to gold coins.
Licking his lower lip, Conrand’s eyes darted about.
Then the couple nodded.
“Very well. We’ll confirm it ourselves.”
“Of course! Allow me to escort you!”
Finally, the deal is right before my eyes!
Springing to his feet, Conrand bowed deeply and led them down the corridor.
First the crown, now the Reber Guild… once this deal is struck, I won’t just rival commoners, but even nobles in wealth!
Arriving at the door that led to the Brachsapool fields, he grinned broadly at the merchant couple and opened it.
He had already sent the workers elsewhere, under the pretense of cleaning up. Dreaming of all the gold to come, he proudly introduced the field.
“This is the Brachsapool field!”
Click!
A sudden shutter sound rang out.
“Good pose. Nice expression.”
At some point, the woman had pulled out a capture artifact.
“…Expression?”
Conrand froze, arms outstretched and face flushed with excitement.
He had just been photographed together with the Brachsapool fields.
And then—
“Conrand. Under Article 243 of the Kingdom’s Law, you are under arrest for cultivating illegal plants and smuggling banned goods. What gave you the nerve to strut around in the Marquisate of Syria? We’ve finally got the evidence, hahaha!”
Knights burst in alongside the Marquis of Syria, surrounding Conrand in a fan-shaped formation.
“Wh-what is this…”
Still unable to process what was happening, Conrand looked around desperately.
On a hunch, he glanced at the Reber couple, but they were too busy admiring the capture device that had just taken his picture.
Don’t tell me… all of this!
Heat flushed through his wrinkled forehead as realization struck.
Sensing his expression, the woman added a victorious smile.
“This isn’t your land, Conrand. It belongs to the Marquisate of Syria. Why did you have to get greedy and meddle in the Marquis’s territory?”
Though the Antrang Guild controlled the town of Layton in the shadows, it was still legally part of the Lydia Kingdom, under a noble’s governance.
Naturally, the Marquis of Syria resented the guild’s influence.
Every time he tried to investigate them, the crown would shield the guild with absurd excuses.
Supposedly, excluding the guild from scrutiny was for “economic vitality.”
“But now that we have undeniable proof, the investigation should be much easier, right, Marquis?”
“Investigation? No need. I’ll just arrest him on the spot and throw him in prison. Hahaha!”
Listening in a daze, Conrand’s breath grew ragged.
My honor.
My wealth.
And… my very life!
He should have been suspicious the moment they demanded mercenary attendants.
No—he should have doubted everything when the “upright” Reber Guild showed up!
“You crazy woman—!”
Roaring like a beast, Conrand lunged at Angela, but it was pointless.
Before Velix even had to step in, the knights seized his wrists.
“The Marquis made the arrest, so why are you raging at me?”
The woman snorted.
No—she even pretended to flick away a booger.
“Y-you—!”
Conrand’s face turned purple with fury at her blatant provocation.
At any rate, if the crown learned of this, he was finished.
“You think you’ll get away with betraying the crown like this?! The Brachsapool was for the royal family—for His Majesty himself!”
“Oh? He’s confessing of his own accord now. But really, why would my father want such a plant?”
Angela muttered idly, unfazed.
That was when—
“When the crown learns of our guild’s arrest… ah, yes!”
Conrand’s mouth twisted into a grin, crescent-shaped.
“If I’m captured… quite a few innocent people will die. Are you ready for that?”
“What are you talking about?”
Yes. His Majesty had woven dark magic into this very scheme!
Long live the King.
Proclaiming once more his loyalty to the crown, Conrand looked around smugly.
Just imagining that cheerful woman’s face contorting was delightful.
“There are families of the Royal Third Knight Order within our guild. Every single one of them is cursed. If I’m imprisoned, the curse will trigger and they’ll all be poisoned to death within thirty minutes.”
“Oh, is that so?”
…That’s it? Just ‘Oh, is that so?’
The woman smiled mysteriously.
And then—
“So what you’re saying is, we have thirty minutes for revenge?”
Suddenly, she looked toward the doorway.
And through the ranks of the Marquis’s knights, the families of the Third Knight Order appeared.
“Thirty minutes is plenty!”
“My dad’s a knight, so I can fight too!”
“…How… how are you…”
Conrand’s mouth fell slightly open.
They were his last trump card.
But why did these people, who should have been cowed, stand so boldly?
“You said my dad killed the Queen? If you lie like that, you’ll burn in hell!”
In a burst of fury, Daisy ripped up a fistful of Brachsapool and flung it in his face.
“…That timid brat who never dared say a word…”
Never in his life, as the Merchant Lord of Antrang and “King of Mercenaries,” had Conrand suffered such humiliation.
His face boiled red like a kettle as he ground his teeth, preparing to attack the child.
“Trash? You threw trash at our Daisy?”
“Let’s knead this bastard’s face like dough.”
Before the Marquis’s knights could restrain him, the families of the Third Knight Order swarmed forward.
“Bring some Brachsapool! Stuff it down his throat—!”
“Yeah. If he likes it so much, let him eat his fill!”
Rough hands clamped his jaw open.
“W-what are you doing?! This is barbaric, inhuman—”
But he couldn’t finish.
Because the Brachsapool was crammed into his gaping mouth.
“Y-you fools… The crown… will surely…”
The sharp, thorny leaves made it impossible for him to close his mouth, bloodshot eyes glaring desperately.
But then—
“Y-you’ll… all…”
The hallucinogenic effects of the Brachsapool began to take hold.
Whether blissful or horrifying, there was no escaping it.
