The Azzurri Trading Company, which had been hijacked by Yotel, began selling dried "Balai berries" all over Nerf Island.
　The price was set very high, or rather, it was a rip-off.
　Even so, the islanders could not stand the mosquitoes, and they had no choice but to buy the fruit.
　As much as the islanders were made to cry, the state of affairs was such that Yotel couldn't stop laughing.
　If they sold out of their roaring, larger-than-usual quantities of Balai Fruit, a tremendous amount of money would be rolling into the Azzurri Trading Company.

　It was in this situation that we set out to do business.
　With Mrs. Hanna at the helm, we put up the sign of the "original" Azzurri Chamber of Commerce, which the Malm Chamber of Commerce leased to expand their store.

'Eventually we intend to do business all over the island, but the first thing we need to do is to secure a bridgehead.

　It was Aria who said so forcefully.
　She was only fifteen years old. But even before she could remember, her father drilled the art of business into her.
　It's a good thing that you're able to get a good idea of what you're looking for, because it's the biggest port town on Nerf Island.

We don't even need a store. We'll sell them all together in the harbor warehouse. It doesn't matter how it looks, as long as it's the truth and the product the customer wants. We have the trust of the islanders thanks to Hannah's willingness to lend us a sign.

　Under the direction of the ever-reliable Aria, we began to sell that "product our customers could not get enough of.

It was incense made from dried cutlery.

　Luxtas have four seasons and are rich in water and greenery.
　That being the case, the country is usually plagued by mosquitoes in the summer. However, the reason why mosquitoes are almost non-existent in this country is because of the katori tree, which grows all over the country.
　The mosquitoes hate the faint scent of this tree. If they try to burn it, the smoke is very poisonous to mosquitoes.
　And for humans, too, the smoke is not so bad. It's just a bit harsher.

　In other words, our product is more effective against mosquitoes than the Balai Fruit, and it doesn't smell as bad.
　And I learned a lot about the price. I'm sure it would bring a smile to the departed Felix's face if he could see it.
　There's no way it wouldn't sell!
　Word of mouth was getting out, and there was a daily line in front of our warehouse.

''What is this........what does this mean.......''

　It was Yotel who was astonished to see the situation.
　He'd heard the rumors and came to check on her.

　I decide to take turns taking a break and head over to him.

'Is it okay for you to be here?　I thought you were making money and were extremely busy?
Shut up!
Mostly because they can't sell the Balai fruit, they don't have time to waste.
Shut up, shut up, shut up!

　Yotel ranted and raved about the ground.
　On the other hand, he twisted his shape and threatened me.

"Don't you think you're in a good mood, young man?　It's only time for you to get on your game. You still don't understand business.
Oh. Well, I'd love to hear what your predecessors have to say about it.

　My dare to be condescending and provocative, while Yotel was easily agitated by my dare and provocation.

I knew about the Catri Tree!　They just looked into it, decided it wasn't good for business, and didn't touch it!　Lakstad is too far away and timber transport is too bulky!　It means the cost is too high and the price is too high for the average person to reach!

　Hmmm, that's an extremely good argument.
　Mrs. Hanna is right, after all, this guy has a decent sense of judgment when it comes to business matters.

'I suppose you're mostly selling yourself cheap as a customer!　You can't keep doing business like that forever!　And it's an inventory problem!　This will always come back to haunt you.

　Yotel continued to rant as he pointed to the pile of goods in our warehouse.

'I don't know where you've been hiding them, or if our employee's eyes were a knothole, but I'll give you credit for preparing all this. But it's not enough at all!　It's a long summer on Nerf Island, and this stock won't be long before it runs out!　What about additional stocking up?　Don't tell me you're ready for it. From far away from Rakstad?　You know about the bulky wood?　A large fleet of ships?　Everyday supplies that can't be sold for much money?　Hahaha, that's not realistic by any means!

　As I was searching for alas for myself, my confidence must have grown gradually.
　Yotel's chest was beginning to heave.

You can't even make a profit, you can't even sell at a fraction of the cost.　And get off the island with only the deficit!　Gwahahahaha!

　Yotel left with another triumphant smile on his face.
　I watched his back in silence.
　Just lift one cheek, sarcastically.

　　　　◇◆◇◆◇

　The Yotels were wise enough to put up a big banner as the "original Azzurrians" and avoided competition from us, focusing their efforts on selling the Balai Fruit outside the largest port city of Nerf.

　At the same time, we gradually expanded our business outside the largest port city (Nerf).
　Many of the employees from the "original" Azzurri Trading Company in Yotel came back to see that Mrs. Hanna had started business under the "original" sign.

'I'm so sorry, ma'am!
But we couldn't afford to be lost with Kakaa and Boz, so...
I had to reluctantly go along, no matter how much I didn't like the bastard from Yotel!
'I work my ass off!　And for that I apologize!　So please, please hire us!

　They did so and fell flat in front of Mrs. Hanna. He rubbed his forehead against the ground.

'They are in good shape. I don't understand how Chocolat could betray his master for any reason.'
We are not part of this family. I'll leave the 'original' Azzurri Chamber of Commerce to the wife.
That's right, Chocolat. I don't mean to be sneaky, but you can't do business just because you're beautiful.

　Me and Aria quieted Chocolat, who looked disgruntled.

　And she tolerated most of them who wanted to come back and made them employees of the "original home".
　However, from what I've observed, only those who were blatantly Yotel's spies were rejected by the wife. She wasn't just a young, good-looking, ornate wife around here.
　The late Felix was also right in his judgment of his wife.

　Anyway, we were doing a lot more business now that we had a whole new staff.
　The momentum was like the sunrise, and in the blink of an eye, it spread across the island.
　Naturally, it wiped out the original Azzurri trading company's sales network of Balai berries.
　Yotel hurriedly brought the prices back up to normal, but no longer did the customers return. The islanders, who had discovered the beauty of the katori tree, would only buy our products if they were of equal value.

　Humans are conservative by nature and are not as fond of new things as they might be.
　I figured it would take some time for the merits of the Cutori Tree to catch on. I had planned to sell it patiently.
　However, when some lunatic attempted to sell the Balai fruit, the islanders were forced to buy our cutlery, and as a result, they quickly realized that they no longer needed the Balai tree.

　Thanks, Yotel!
　For all your greed, we can't stop laughing!

　And then that katotsuki-tenri (yoter) came to our warehouse to scout out again, and I was aghast.

"This........what does this mean........

　I was stunned to see the piles of cutlery still piled up, even after selling and selling all over the island.

That's strange!　This can't be happening!　We have our employees monitoring the port all the time. I know you guys haven't landed any of your additions at all!　So why don't we run out of stock!

　He ranted as if to accuse me, but that's a loser's howl.
　I said curtly.

I'm sorry, but I don't have time to deal with you. We're in the middle of the workday, and we're too busy to do anything else.

　No longer dealing with yotters, I continued to sell the Tree of the Catori to the customers who would stand in line, one by one.
　I wish them good health and a good night's sleep.

　　　　◇◆◇◆◇◇◇.

　It was early the next morning.
　Me, Aria, and Chocolat had come to the warehouse at the port of Nerf as usual.
　It was time to stock up.

　Right in front of us, in the middle of nowhere, a jet black gate suddenly opened.
　It was the "Town Gate" that connected the Royal Capital Laxtia to this warehouse.
　The first thing that emerged from the gate was the sisters Nadia and Salima.

"Thank you for your hard work, both of you.
It's outrageous, Miss Aria!
I'm so happy and energized to be able to do meaningful work that supports the lives of so many people.
'It helps me to hear that. I'll pay you a lot of money and I hope you'll continue to do so!
No, we're not...
'No!　You'll get what you deserve!
"Aria-sama is right. The reason for our existence as servants is diminished if the human being is given free service.
".........if the world is flooded with people like Chocolat-san, there will be a lot of people out of work and lost on the streets, or there will be a lot of people who will stop working and become corrupt.......
"I am honored by your praise, Lady Aria!
I meant to say, "You devil," but...

　While these conversations were going on, carriages appeared one by one at the Transition Gate.
　These wagons were loaded with piles of dried "katori wood," which were then unloaded by the employees of the Malm Trading Company.
　The employees of the Malm Chamber of Commerce and Industry unload them quickly and efficiently.
　Once again, the stock was piled up to the point where it began to growl.

I can't believe this contraption is here...!

　We suddenly heard a surprise.
　When we turned around, we saw Yotel in the shadows of the warehouse entrance.
　He'd come in for a sneak peek, having never learned his lesson.

Yeah, yeah. With Nadia's Towngate, we don't need to ship our goods or go all the way across the ocean. We can get them directly from Laxtia in an instant. That's why it's so cheap, and we can sell the Tree of Catori for a fraction of the price of a regular citizen.

　It was nothing to hide, I told Yotel.

　He was trembling, staring at the Tree of Catori being carried out of the Transition Gate one after another.
　I'm sure you'll be pleased to hear that. I can't believe it." "I don't want to believe it." "This isn't real." "Don't make it real!

　But unfortunately, this is real.
　Yotel will have learned the hard way. They'll never be able to defeat the original Azzurri family, the original Azzurri family, and us, the Malm family.
　That would leave Yotel with a lot of unsaleable Balai berries.
　In order to combat this year's extraordinary mosquito damage, Felix must have prepared for it by overreaching himself - in other words, by investing too much upfront.
　The cost of all this was going to fall on Yoter. The man who poisoned Felix and sat in his place!　Instead of Felix!

'Ohhhhhh...'

　Yotel finally cowered in place and held his head in his hands.
　Then he was half-sobbing and pleading with me.

Please! Please take all of my fruits. Please buy them! I don't want to make any profit.　Think you can help me, please!　Please!

　I replied curtly.

'Huh?'　You'll never do business with us while your eyes are black, will you?

　You have to take responsibility for the words you say.