Coolly, Mr. Dionne, who had been pouring drinks and adding food from the wagon, suddenly began to reprimand Mayor Mendale.

'Father, isn't this luncheon your way of thanking Mr. Ryota for helping me?　If it's your job, you'll have to wait until after dinner. I will fail as a father if I can't switch back and forth between my official and personal lives, and if I can't, then I'll call you mayor.

　Wow! He could read my mind just by observing me!　Scary....

"Dad, I'm going to give you the best of both worlds.　So please forgive me for calling the mayor into the house!　It's just me and Dionne and my family now, okay?　Please don't tell me I'm failing my father!

　I don't know what it is, but I don't know if my family is just two parents and a child... I guess when you're in a job that keeps you on your toes all the time, the only comforting thing you can do is to have a home.

'If you want a family, I don't mind adding to it, okay?　I'm not opposed to remarriage. Why don't you take a second wife and have a child?

　The mayor's mask comes off Mr. Mendale. His face is pale and teary-eyed, and Mr. Dionne's mental attack seems to be very effective.

'You're lying that you're not against it!　And you know that you can only choose a wife who is a breath of fresh air in another country.　I'd rather quit as mayor than flunk my father!

　Hey, hey. Forgetting about the customers and fighting with the father and son, how hard can they be pushed to the limit... Well, I do feel a little sorry for them, though.

Oh, dear, losing a point in front of the guests... I guess I'm going to fail after all?

　Then began the uncanny hospitality of the Mayor of Mendale.

　He left the room to entertain me and brought a few beautiful maids with him. (I heard some desperate pleas.) And the mayor himself performed a hidden trick.

　 After talking about Japanese zarei culture, he even got down on his knees to thank me for rescuing his daughter.

　I've taught them a few nasty things. I don't think I can refuse the stinky advice that will come later. It's no longer a very polite threat. Even though they are alp mercenaries, exterminators are like professional service providers, their customers' trust comes first.

　If they kicked the story off, what kind of rumors would circulate.......

　Eventually, we were taken by surprise from all but the direction of the vigilance, and I had no choice but to ask for advice. The food and dishes were put away and the beautiful maids left the room. With only barb tea and sweets left, I was finally approached for advice.

The Free City of Kishina is currently under pressure from the Orin oracle state to purchase a large quantity of salt. The ultimate goal is to make it a province. We need to talk to you about that...''

　Does that mean we're going to be colonized?

　And salt, the rock salt anti-salt that sold stock to Lady Sailor is going to be involved... The Alp common people nowadays use almost all rock salt. It's bad in color and taste, but it's not toxic, and they hired a benign cobolt who hasn't been demonized to lower the price. Aigis also started to buy rock salt as an example after the banditry incident.

　As for Orin, he would have lost two monopoly markets.
　Not to mention the consultation, this is going to be hard to refuse a request later on.......

"When my daughter was attacked by a bee, I was actually returning from negotiating with the Orin oracle. As you may know, Kishina has maintained its independence by balancing the various forces. That's why we had competitive bidding every year for the purchase of salt.

I see. Since we can't prioritize any of them, we'll let the neighboring countries compete with each other to decide... but if you say in the past tense, you're putting pressure on Olin this time.

'Yes. I'm sorry to tell you this, but we will inform Olin of the amount of money other countries are offering and let them win the bid. Dionne was negotiating with a proposal to do so. Unfortunately, Olin insisted on buying it at his country's stated price.

　Mr. Dionne also admitted that he proposed a backroom deal to Orin.
　Fraudulent bidding......... 300 years since the gods went into hiding.
　Orin, too, has lost its authority as an oracle nation and is focusing on the military.

　It's not fair, but there is an international organization on Earth. But there is no permanent one in this world. The dragon council only intercedes on rare occasions. You can't blame them if the city-state is threatened by a powerful nation in such an environment and proposes a backroom deal, if you think about the survival of the country.

　If we are fair, will some country protect us?　That would only be possible if the disadvantage of not helping would be greater than the disadvantage of not helping, or if it would be more profitable to help.

　Fraudulent bidding sounds bad, but given the difference in national power, I think they resisted it better at the risk than an unconditional purchase.

　Besides, even if the unfair bidding was accepted, if Orin won in a row, the other countries would find out. If that happens, Kishina's neutrality will be gone, and it will eventually be a province of Olin. So Dionne's negotiations are probably stalling. It was based on the assumption that the situation would be reversed in the time it takes to be found out.

'It's inevitable for a city-state to survive. On the contrary, I applaud you for trying to negotiate. And I don't intend to divulge that to anyone else.

　I think Xina's intelligence skills would know why she was sold salt by Olin. If the source of the problem is hinted at, it's hard for me to pretend not to know.

　Then you might as well tell me yourself. The mayor will be afraid to open up if I tell him something he hasn't heard. That will make it harder to ask for something outrageous.

'As I'm sure you know, the only reason the Alpes don't buy much salt in Olin anymore is because I introduced them to the Luxen Chamber of Commerce's rock salt antique. And Aegis started buying rock salt because of my involvement in the defeat of the bandits.

　Berta, which was originally thought to be more than the new Ares empire.
　The story that connected it with Aigis and Alpes of the Olin system.
　But after all, Xishinau and her father and son don't have a look of surprise on their faces.

''That's why Orin must have asked Xina to sell the salt to them. So I'll be happy to help you if I can, right?　Please go ahead and explain the rest of the story.

　Xishinaw and his son looked relieved to hear that they were cooperating.

''As for the salt, it was the decision of the parties involved. Nevertheless, as the head of the city-state of Kishina, I am grateful to Ryota-dono for his assistance.

Then let me, as a diplomat, explain the details of the current situation to Mr. Ryota.

　Mr. Dionne began by explaining what the Olin oracle country was like first.