The Sea Folk Merchant

Kroya brought the Kaba Beasts to the warehouse where the ore was stored.

The warehouse was inside the castle. Since the ore had not been processed promptly, nearly all the stockpiled ore was covered in dust.

There certainly seemed to be plenty of it.

This ore weighed only a fifth as much as ordinary iron ore, yet offered almost the same defensive strength, making it ideal for knights or soldiers who needed to march quickly.

However, extracting this ore was essentially a matter of finding mineral deposits inside rocks. Without a mage to refine it through magic, processing the raw ore would be a tremendous hassle.

That was why the seemingly large pile consisted mostly of stone, with far less actual ore than one might imagine.

The servant guarding the warehouse lowered his head and respectfully handed Kroya a ledger-the inventory of incoming stock.

The parchment ledger looked quite worn.

Kroya took it and casually flipped through it. He had expected absolutely nothing from this world's bookkeeping methods, only to discover, to his surprise...

There was actually a table listing exactly what time each delivery had arrived each day, who had brought it, and how much ore they had delivered.

The handwriting was very clear, too, hardly what he would have expected from an ordinary person on a remote island. For people in isolated regions, learning to read was practically harder than reaching the heavens.

Tsk, did I actually stumble across someone talented? He can read and do arithmetic.

Finding a treasure was always a pleasure.

Over a thousand jin? After refining, there should be two or three hundred jin left. At five silver coins per jin, that's not a small sum.

After finishing the ledger, he glanced at the honest-looking, utterly unremarkable middle-aged man. "Come with me and help me record something. If you do well, go to the castle afterward and find Rob, the steward. Tell him to arrange a job for you."

The middle-aged man froze.

His weathered face filled with disbelieving joy.

He opened his mouth, but Kroya had already entered the warehouse, with bobbing blue fluorescent algae following behind him.

Overwhelmed by a jumble of emotions, he could only hurry after Kroya, even more respectful than before.

Inside the warehouse, Kroya looked at the stockpiled ore and sent the Kaba Beasts straight over.

"Go eat!"

The Kaba Beasts reacted as though they had found a buffet. As magical beasts, they possessed plenty of strength and considerable intelligence. Working together, they hauled pieces of ore down onto the floor and began devouring them.

The warehouse immediately descended into chaos.

The thuds of falling ore, the grunts of Kaba Beasts fighting over food, the crunching as they chewed through ore...

The jumbled noises mingled together, making Kroya, who had grown accustomed to listening to the Song of Red, feel as though his head was about to explode.

He immediately handed the task over to the middle-aged man whose name he had not yet had time to ask.

"You see what they're doing? Keep a record like this. Write down how much ore they digest and how much they produce.

Give it to Rob afterward."

Then he left the warehouse without a moment's delay.

It was not as though he was deliberately shirking his responsibilities. He was giving someone a chance to prove himself. The middle-aged man ought to thank him.

After leaving the warehouse, Kroya intended to find somewhere to sit and rest, but before he could sit down...

Rob, the steward, came hurrying over.

"Master!"

"What's wrong? Don't panic. Take your time."

Kroya casually cast a Calming Spell on him and sat down on a large rock, his expression composed.

"What happened?"

Rob took several deep breaths, then said with a peculiar expression, "Sea Folk. A Sea Folk merchant has arrived!"

"..."

"What?" Kroya froze for a second. "A Sea Folk merchant? Why would a Sea Folk merchant come here?"

When he came to Reef Island, Kroya had known that it lay only a short distance from Sea Folk territory-a few dozen kilometers really was a short distance on the scale of the ocean.

But he had never imagined he would meet the Sea Folk so soon.

"She said she's here to fulfill the Ancient Contract signed by the Mage Association. Once a mage arrives on Reef Island, trade with the Sea Folk must begin."

Rob did not look pleased either.

This had come out of nowhere, and they had made no preparations whatsoever.

"...The Ancient Contract?"

Now Kroya truly had a headache. He knew absolutely nothing about matters outside the usual arrangements, and he deeply hated being left completely in the dark like this.

Refusing to go was not an option. As things stood, the Sea Folk held an overwhelming advantage, even without this Ancient Contract.

Why hadn't the Mage Association told him?

He sighed deeply, stood, straightened his robes, and ordered someone to fetch his staff and prepare the carriage.

As a distinguished mage, he had to maintain his elegance no matter how flustered he felt. At this moment, he represented the Mage Association. Surely the other party would not do anything irrational.

The Sea Folk had chosen a location by the shore.

When Kroya arrived by carriage, he saw a... mermaid sitting upright on a seaside reef, her long reddish-brown hair flowing loose like seaweed.

She was extraordinarily beautiful and wore nothing at all.

Her tail hung in the water, slapping against the sea.

Even her breasts were only half concealed by her flowing hair. Rings of water magic surrounded her like rolling waves, shielding her from the scorching sunlight.

She looked deeply mysterious.

Perhaps the nervous soldiers and knights could sense nothing, but Kroya felt it clearly-she was an Archmage of at least the sixth level.

Even in the Royal Capital, she would have been an important figure capable of establishing her own mage tower.

The vast water-element mana obeyed her like the most loyal soldiers. With a mere thought, she could use the water-controlling ability unique to the Merfolk to drown everyone present.

A Sea Folk merchant? Are even their merchants Archmages?

Kroya forced down the urge to complain about the Mage Association's outrageous conduct and walked forward.

"Oh, you must be Kroya."

The mermaid noticed Kroya stepping down from the carriage and excitedly hopped off the reef. Her tail shimmered in the water, transforming into a pair of long, straight legs.

Azure water-element light glimmered beneath her pale feet as she hurried over and seized Kroya's hand.

"You..."

The cool touch made Kroya uncomfortable, and he instinctively tried to pull away, but it was already too late-the mermaid dragged him forward a few quick steps and leaped straight into the water.

In an instant, they vanished into the rippling blue-green sea without a trace.

"!!!"

Everyone present was stunned by the sight.

"Master!"

"Lord Kroya!"

It took Rob a tremendous effort to suppress the urge to order the knights underwater to search for Kroya. Merfolk were the rulers of the Sea Folk. Entering the water would be no different from seeking death.

Besides, Kroya was not necessarily in danger. What Rob needed to do was keep the situation under control and wait for him to return.

He looked out at the sea, his expression darkening as he gave his orders:

"We'll stay here and wait. Everyone else, get back to your duties. Remember, not a word of this is to spread... or else."

He left the rest unsaid.

Kroya had been whisked away by a mermaid so suddenly, and the situation remained unclear. If anyone grew restless and tried to stir up trouble, things would become difficult.