A Merchant's End

The next day, Twentino was in an uproar over a bombshell of information brought back by a returning ship. It had been the work of the 'Austin Gang,' which had kept a low profile recently; the method had been appallingly brutal; and, most shocking of all, people learned why they had been attacked.

The reason the 'Phoenix Trading Company' had been targeted was betrayal. The pirates had been hired by the 'Phoenix Trading Company' to engage in piracy between Flama and Luxresia, but when other pirates appeared and a punitive expedition was being organized, the company sent assassins to ensure that its connection to the pirates would not be discovered, even in the event of an emergency.

The surviving sailors who returned with the ship tearfully relayed what they had been ordered to report, handing the guards a book and saying it was one piece of evidence. It was a list of the plunder the pirates had passed on to the 'Phoenix Trading Company,' and when the dates and the cargo of the ships attacked on those dates were checked, they matched perfectly.

"How many times do I have to tell you that it's not true!? I have nothing to do with this! Are you going to take a pirate's word for it!? I am on good terms with His Excellency the governor, you know!?"

Leon Phoenix, the president of the 'Phoenix Trading Company,' was arrested and imprisoned that very day. He had already been suspected because his was practically the only trading company whose business had grown since the pirates began running rampant, but he had avoided investigation because there had been no decisive evidence and because he had bribed the city's governor heavily while carefully limiting the damage.

But the pirate ledger was apparently evidence too damning even for the governor to cover up. Leon was thrown into solitary confinement immediately after his arrest. He begged the governor for help, but only one person was there to hear him.

"Damn it, what's going on!? Think... I'm not finished yet! I refuse to be finished!"

"You still won't give up, even in this situation...? Impressive."

"D-Dios!? How did you get in here…!?"

As Leon crouched in his solitary cell, turning the situation over in his mind, a voice suddenly addressed him from above. He looked up in surprise and found Dios of the 'Mud Rat' standing with both feet planted on the ceiling.

Leon had no idea how Dios was standing on the ceiling or how he had slipped inside, and he had no desire to find out. But he felt one thing: hope that, with Dios's help, he might be able to escape from here.

"Dios, help me! I want to get out of here!"

"Well, naturally."

"Tell His Excellency the governor! I've paid him that much in bribes! Surely he'll be willing to help me!"

"Who can say...? Ah, before that, there's something I need to tell you, boss."

"What!? Tell me quickly!"

"Our organization is pulling out of Twentino until the heat dies down."

"...Huh?"

Leon, who had been panicking until then, was left staring blankly with his mouth hanging open, apparently unable to process what he had heard. But in less than ten seconds, he understood what had been said and what it meant for him, and the blood drained from his face. His face turned deathly white, and, unable to gather his thoughts, he could only ask:

"W-why...?"

"There's no why. We were hired by you and lent you a hand. You made a fortune from it. But you screwed up and got caught doing bad things. So we're just going to skedaddle before it blows back on us."

"That's...! The people who failed were members of your organization! I'm in prison because of them! Isn't it only right that you help me!?"

"Sure, it was our idiots who screwed up. We'll definitely get revenge on whoever was responsible. But we have absolutely no intention of taking on extra risks for it. There's nothing strange about that, is there? It's the same thing you did to the pirates, boss."

Dios's reasoning was utterly unreasonable. Their crimes had come to light because the assassins sent by the organization had committed the worst possible blunder and been defeated. Despite that, instead of rescuing Leon, the organization was announcing that it would flee in the night because of the trouble that had led to his arrest. Leon's anger was perfectly understandable.

But Leon had done almost exactly the same thing to the 'Austin Gang.' Even though the pirates had acted according to Leon's instructions, he had tried to dispose of them and make them pay for his inability to control the irregularity that was Ann and the others. Someone who had always cast others aside had merely found himself on the side being cast aside.

But Leon refused to accept it. No, he couldn't accept it. No one could have. He had staked everything on rising from nothing and taking revenge, clawed his way this far, and yet he was being discarded so easily.

"I understand that I can't hope for your help. Then ask His Excellency the governor to help me!"

"I think that'd be pointless. See, that fine governor sent his own nephew to take over as acting president of the company as soon as you were arrested. Nine times out of ten, he intends to take it over. By now, he's probably burning his connection to you in the fireplace while jiggling that hanging mass of fat."

"What... did you say...?"

Leon had been cast aside not only by the organization but by the governor as well. The realization was driven home so starkly that he collapsed on the spot like a puppet with its strings cut. Seeing the once-ambitious man reduced to an empty shell, mumbling to himself with vacant eyes, Dios unusually felt sorry for him.

But despite his personal sympathy, Dios had to carry out his duties as a member of the organization. The hollow man lying there would probably remain listless, but Dios could not risk even the slightest chance of him mentioning the organization. To fulfill his original purpose, he drew a grayish-white dagger from inside his clothes.

"This is a fang sword made from a Dragon Zombie's fang, with the poison gland of a Bone-Melting Ash Poison Frog embedded in it. For someone without poison resistance, like you, even the slightest stab will melt your bones and soul into ash. You won't turn into a ghost and blab anything, and you won't feel any pain, so it's reassuring for both of us. Now then... Do you have any last words, boss?"

"Why... how... Ah, I'm sorry... Brother... Father..."

"Is that your last will? I'll make sure to pass it on. Call it a service."

An hour later, when guards visited the solitary cell to interrogate Leon, all they found were his clothes and ashes presumed to be his remains. A detailed investigation was conducted into what had happened there, but the special poison Dios had used prevented the guards from even determining the cause of death. Afterward, a rumor began circulating in parts of Twentino: anyone who entered solitary confinement would melt and die.

◆◇◆◇◆◇

"I expected the pirates to retaliate, but I didn't expect them to send evidence to bring about his downfall... Interesting. What do you think, Sebastian?"

"The development differed somewhat from what we predicted, but the broad strokes remain unchanged. I believe there is no cause for concern."

"Izaam must have fanned the flames quite skillfully. Well, it only changed the order in which they'll be ruined, so I don't really care."

In the game room of the 'Contra Trading Company,' Conrad was enjoying a game of darts while receiving Sebastian's report. The situation differed somewhat from the future he had predicted, making him painfully aware of how difficult it was to read everything perfectly in advance.

However, he was not an omniscient, omnipotent god, so deviations were to be expected. What mattered was handling unexpected situations skillfully and turning them to his own profit. To Conrad, even those irregularities were a form of entertainment.

"Leon's arrest will leave the 'Phoenix Trading Company' dysfunctional, won't it? It was a one-man operation under the president. Who will take over?"

"It seems the governor has forced his own nephew into the position. He is not a particularly capable man, but with the right staff to support him, the company should manage somehow."

"Then the contest is on until a capable adviser arrives. Let's bring over the small and midsized retailers and players who did business with them. We'll buy the goods they were supposed to sell to the 'Phoenix Trading Company' at thirty percent above the contract price... no, at fifty percent above it, even if we have to take a loss. That is, if they'll continue doing business with us."

"I'll make the arrangements."

Sebastian bowed respectfully and left without making a sound. With Sebastian at the head of them, Conrad had a collection of excellent people working under him. It was more efficient to leave whatever could be entrusted to them in their hands.

As he threw darts, Conrad considered what would happen to Twentino from then on. The city was certain to fall into confusion because of this incident, but that would soon subside. Although no report had arrived yet, Conrad expected Leon to die in prison sooner or later. Whether at the governor's hands or the organization's, it would be a problem if he said too much.

"Still, silencing someone in prison... The real world and games aren't any different, are they? Whether it's a digital otherworld or not, I suppose people who do shady things think the same way."

There was no doubt that, even after the turmoil subsided, Twentino would remain the same lively trading port it had always been. However, the confusion Leon had caused would certainly upset the balance of power among the merchants. Conrad was taking advantage of the turmoil to bring in the 'Phoenix Trading Company's' business partners, while the 'Medil Trading Company' was apparently moving to reclaim the business interests Leon had taken from it. Beneath the surface, the merchants would wage a fierce struggle against one another.

However, that struggle would end before it dragged on for long. A new balance of power would be established, after which things would return to the same low-key struggle of keeping one another in check. Steady business was fine, but as a player, Conrad had the freedom to stand outside society's constraints. Taking on challenges that seemed reckless was more interesting. Plotting this conspiracy had only strengthened that desire.

"Let's move up the schedule for that plan. I expect you'll approve, but we should prepare a presentation just in case... Yeah!"

The last dart Conrad threw sank neatly into the exact center of the target. He gazed at it with satisfaction, then left the game room to return to work.