The Trade Federation refers to the cities in the southern part of this continent.

　There are no large countries in the south of this continent, and each city has its own autonomy, each ruling independently.

''Does that mean there is no king?''

　On the way to Zenobia, Sati asks me.

'That's right. The Trade Federation, otherwise known as the Merchants' Union, is a country owned by merchants.

There is a country without a king? Does that mean there are no nobles?

　Sati seems to be in shock.
　She had been a slave to the nobility in the city of Arsenum for many years.
　She couldn't imagine a country without a king or a nobleman.

'The Trade Federation is not a country, it's a federation of cities. As the name implies, it thrives on commerce. I believe that the trade association is responsible for most of the agricultural products and spices that are unique to the south.

Does that mean that pepper and cinnamon are coming from the Trade Federation?

That's right.

I see, it's suddenly very close to home.

　He finally understood when he got to the topic of his specialty, the field of cooking.

'The Trade Federation takes advantage of its mild climate to produce crops that cannot be found in the north. In return, the Northerners sell their crafts and resources. That's how they trade and make money," he said.

　Of course, they wouldn't sell anything directly to the Demon King's Army.

　Although the Trade Federation did not participate in the Alliance of the Lords, they were still not foolish enough to sell things directly to the Demon King's Army.

　They must think that if the Demon King's Army continued to conquer the world, their position would be in jeopardy.

　The Trade Federation is a nation of merchants, they can make that much calculation.

　The Trade Federation is a nation of merchants, that much can be calculated, and no matter how strong a merchant nation they are, they have always held the line.

　Now, I'm going to ask the most formidable merchant of them all to join me in this fight.

"Deal directly with the Demon King's Army.

　I have to offer to do it.

Can we do that?

　I let out a sigh of relief.
　It is impossible to think about it calmly.
　The Trade Federation is not participating in the Lords Alliance this time.

　The reason for this is because they do not have an ancient pact, and they do not get along with Rosalia, a member of the Lords Alliance. And the Trade Federation is not a 'country' but a federation of cities. We are not obligated to join it.

　But that doesn't mean that they are abandoning the Alliance of Lords and Kings, which is in dire straits.

　It seems that they are providing aid behind the scenes.

　It is said that they are helping the Lords Alliance by providing free or cheap agricultural products to the Lords Alliance.

　After all, the rulers of the Trade Federation are also human. Perhaps the feeling that the Demon King's Army is terrifying is deeply rooted.

　How in the world should I persuade those people?

　I couldn't help but feel weak, but the maid beside me didn't seem to be worried.

''Don't worry. Nothing is impossible for your master!''

　When she said that, she encouraged me.

''If the great merchant of Zenobia can touch your master's kindness, I'm sure he will understand that the people of the Demon King's army are not bad people. Then, I'm sure they'll also tie up that guy called Jouyaku.

　I say confidently.

'Do it,' I thought, 'easy-going, but I won't say it.'

　I was right.
　If you feel like this even before you go to negotiate, you won't be able to succeed.

The future of the demon king's army rests on my shoulders, so how can I be so timid right now?

　When I changed my mind, I decided to think about the best way to go about it.

"If we're going to have a successful negotiation, we need to get the information out first.

　The first thing we need to do is to find out what kind of person and what kind of mindset this Zenobian leader is.

　There is nothing more foolish than to challenge the odds without any information.
　For now, I'm going to go to the city of Zenobia and gather information.
　With that in mind, I quickened my horse's pace.
　I decided to do it, and I wanted to do it as soon as possible.

"Satie, let's get the horse up to speed.

　I told him beforehand so that Sati wouldn't be surprised, but surprisingly, Sati didn't say yes.

''........Master, what is that?''

　Satie pointed modestly.
　East.
　I turned in that direction and saw a carriage parked there.

　If you look, there was a group of people there with swords at the ready.
　Of course, they weren't aiming at us.
　It seems that bandits are attacking the carriage.
　It was a common occurrence in this world.
　The peasants who have been devoured have become bandits and attacked the merchant's caravan.
　It's a familiar sight.

　The number of bandits is around 20, the number of troop merchants is 5, the troop merchants seem to be better armed than the bandits, but should we still see the advantage of the bandit side that has more numbers?

(...At this rate, the merchant side will lose.

　I thought so, but I ignored it and advanced my horse to Zenobia.

'Master, will you not help those people?'
I won't help.

　I cut him off with a single word.

'Yeah, but if we don't, those people might get killed.

'This is already Zenobia territory. If I make a scene now, my true identity might be exposed.

　By the way, my current form is human itself.
　In other words, I don't wear the robe of immortality and the mask of change.

　Even without the immortal robes, I have no intention of losing to the bandits, but as I said before, I didn't want to cause any unnecessary commotion here.

　If they found out that I belonged to the Demon King's Army, I wouldn't be able to gather information, or worse, I might lose the chance to meet with the Zenobia's allies.

　We should be mindful of this and ignore them.
　That was his duty as a brigade commander of the Demon King's army.
　No, it was his duty.

''.........''

　Satie silently grabs my clothes sleeve.
　She's modest and loyal.

　If I told her I wouldn't help her, she wouldn't blame me for it, nor would she blame me for it.

　But the warmth that comes from her palm reminds me once again that I'm human.

　I thought about it and ordered Sati to get off her horse.
　Hearing those words, Sati's face lights up.

''Master, you are going to save those people, aren't you?

Abandoning him would be a bad dream. Besides--

　Maybe we can get some information from those merchants.
　In the meantime, such an arrangement is necessary.

　The action I'm about to perform is clearly an irrational action for the brigade commander of the Demon King's Army.

(Totally, this past life's memories aren't always useful.)

　If only I could have left it behind completely, I could have lived a much easier life.

　With that in mind, I looked down at Sati from my horse.

You've got five minutes. Get down and hide in there.

　I ordered.
　Satie obeyed obediently.　
　I watched her do it, and then I ran my horse.