Two days have passed since the battle and the city-state of Leytin.
　In a city where the mercenaries and soldiers had succeeded in fighting off the herds of beasts through the power of mercenaries and soldiers, the air was filled with an uplifting atmosphere, with a lot of foolishness going on every night.

　With a different buzz than before and during the battle as background music, in the reception room of the Litte Trading Company, there were two figures sitting on the sofa and one person standing alone.

''Why?　So it ended up flying away on its own and came back on its own?

I've always thought you were in control.

　Marida and Nicole open their mouths at once.

'I didn't do anything. This guy did it on his own.'

　Looking at the red sword in her hand, Ardis made a nonchalant expression.

''The woman with the red eyes, hey ....... Have you seen Nicole too?''

She was very pretty.

Yeah. That's pretty unimportant information - that.

　Marida kicks off Nicole, who happily explains while standing behind her, with a smug look on her face.

''You really don't know about this sword either?''

'I know I keep saying this, but I've already told you what I know about it, Aldis. I don't know any more than that, either.

　What comes out of Marida's mouth is an answer that is far from what Ardis wants.

　The fact that she moved on her own, even though she didn't control it, and even calmed a demon that seemed to be immortal.
　It flew away on its own accord, and after a while it returned to Ardis by itself.
　In addition, the existence of an apparition that looks exactly like Nere.

　It's not a good idea to have an unrecognizable sword, but rather than finding out its true identity, it's becoming more and more suspicious.

"We don't accept returns!

I mean, it's not like I bought it from you.

　Aldis responds to Marida's flippant remark, which is not even a joke, with a frown.

　To be honest, Ardis was beginning to think that this was not a person's problem.
　It's a very good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.
　In some cases, it might be better to throw them somewhere off limits. Aldis thought so.

　The only redeeming feature is that it no longer has the same evil atmosphere as before.
　In the past few days, the red deformity has disappeared from the sword. Perhaps the curse has been broken.

''Girl. Shouldn't you get to the point?　It's time to numb them out and give them a 'I'm going home if I don't have anything to do' look, okay?

　Nicole, who had been looking at Aldis's face, guessed what was on her mind beautifully.

It's a good thing. Aldis, you are always so cold.

Your story is too long in the prologue. So?　What's the reason you called me here?　I'd like to go get a quick bite to eat.

　Right now, Ted and the other members of the Byakuya must be in a tavern that is famous for serving good food in Leytin.

　On the first day when Leytin was attacked by a herd of beasts, Aldis and the others fought off the beasts with the guards in the defense of the West Gate.
　It was during this battle that Ted had promised to buy them a good meal in return for a reward from the first-year captain who led the guards.
　The chaos of the war has calmed down a bit, and the captain has agreed to take you to a special bar today.

　Then Marida called out to him as if she was going to do a side job.
　Why does this guy call me out every time at an annoying time, and there was enough reason for Ardis to be non-friendly.

　It's not that Aldis is unhappy about being left with free drinks and free food.
　It's just that he doesn't like being pushed around by the gray-haired merchant sitting in front of him, and he just wants to quickly crawl into bed because he's genuinely feeling sleepy.

'Then let's get to the point. The most important thing to remember is that you're not the only one.

Messed up is an exaggeration. There's a fair amount of hunting.

''No, no, you. If you call that 'good enough', the rest of the mercenaries, including me, would have no choice but to stand their ground.

　Nicole quickly tsk-tsked.

　The number of demons Ardis defeated in this battle is eighty-seven.
　It's not possible to use up all of the 100 tsukefuda, but if you include the demons that were defeated from the top of the city walls with attack magic, the number of demons will easily exceed 100.

　Of course, the individuals that were defeated by attack magic couldn't go around with their tags, so they couldn't receive rewards for defeating them.
　However, even excluding that, the reward for defeating the eighty-seven bodies alone was 261 gold coins.

　In addition, there are some demons whose parts are sold for a high price as materials.
　The degenerate small wing-like parts on the back of the Whips, and the fur of the Hound and Tron are sold at extremely high prices.

''So. That monster you hunted, Ardis. Can you let me buy that monster you hunted?　I'll study it for your friend price...

'No, why do we have to learn to sell it?　It's the other way around. When did you and I become friends in the first place?

'Hey, did you hear that, Nicole!　You are so curt!　This is how I treat my friends who have gone through so much hardship with me.

"Sweetheart. Did you hear what he said?　First of all, even though I said it was rude, I think it was like that from the beginning.

　Nicole coldly shushed Marida as she turned around and asked for her opinion.

'I see that too,'

　The short-haired girl, who easily recovered, moved on with the conversation as if nothing had happened.

I understand. Then I'll take you in at market price.

So why are you so condescending to me, huh?

　Marida's condescending tone is patronizing, even though she's only buying it at market price.
　To Ardis, who doesn't even try to hide her grumpiness, it's Nicole who interrupts her.

''That's what you say, dude. How do you plan to collect all those numbers?　It's not just recovery. You're going to need more people to take it apart.　I'm telling you, not just mercenaries, but civilians are now being raided for material recovery, so even if you had money, there's no one to hire.

　The majority of the herds that were defeated were not demons, but beasts.
　If left unchecked, they will decay and cause a plague, so they need to be buried and buried as soon as possible, and everyone would want to recover any valuable materials before that.
　Even if the value is lower than that of demons, there are things like furs and fangs that can be sold for a high price. Moreover, the amount of these items is extraordinary.

　Soldiers and militias, like mercenaries, do not carry their own money.
　Of course, no one knows who owns the beasts that fall outside the city.
　It would be more accurate to say that the sooner the better.
　As a result, people are eager to dismantle the beasts to get their materials. Some of them even took their entire families, even their pre-grown children, to retrieve the animals.

　The damage caused by the herds of beasts and the disruption of their distribution was great, but the benefits of the materials from the demons and beasts would more than make up for it.
　Having obtained a mountain of materials that would normally be unthinkable, Leytin is showing an unprecedented boom in activity.

'Some of us try to collect the material ourselves, and some of us have been hired by mercenaries to work on the collection. I don't think anyone is having trouble finding work in Leytin right now, do you?　I've heard that even the soldiers are off-duty people out there for pocket money.

　Soldiers are assigned by the state to burn the carcass of the beast and bury it.
　But a soldier is also a child of man. On weekends, they go out to warm up their pockets with a dismantling knife in hand.

Our company can hire as many temporary workers as we need.

　Marida smiles her commercial smile as she says, "What do you think?

The effect of the tag doesn't last forever, does it?　You are indeed strong. You're the best at defeating demons.

　But when it comes to demolition, it would be a different story, Nicole pointed out.

　It's true that Aldis doesn't mind fighting against demons.
　But when it comes to dismantling and retrieving them, it's a different story. Although Aldis also acquired basic skills, his speed and accuracy were not particularly superior to other mercenaries.

　However, that wasn't a reason for Aldis to panic either.
　If he could freeze it and then sink it into the ground like he did with Tria, he could take his time and work slowly.

Dismantling can be done at any time.

Well, what about the buy-in?　Where are you going to sell the recovered material to?

There's more than one chamber of commerce in the world.

Not really. We're the only trade association that can buy the large amount of material you sell, Aldis.

　An unexpected answer comes from Marida's mouth.

'What?　What do you mean?　I'm sure there are other chambers of commerce in Leytin.

That's a lot of small businesses.

　It was Nicole who opened her mouth to Aldis's question.

'There were originally four merchant associations in Leytin, the big stores. The first is the well-known Litte Company. And one of them is called the Lovell Chamber of Commerce.

Are you with Kirill?

Yeah, that's it. Rovell Trading Company failed badly in business not too long ago, and we're just now getting a loan from Litte Trading Company the other day, and we're getting back on track. Naturally, we can't afford to buy out on a large scale.

Four means there are two more, right?

Yeah, that's another problem. Of the four, the one that's had the most momentum over the last few years is called Zimbalil Trading Company. Have you at least heard of them?

Isn't this the same company that claims to have raised its stock in response to all this?

That's it. So, the Chamber of Commerce did it.

What about ......?

　For a moment, Aldis didn't understand what Nicole was saying, and then she spilled out a goofy voice.

'I tongued it,'

　Then Nicole's words are repeated.

'What do you mean by ...... pontooned?'

Just as you said. The chairman of the company, a man named Julis, has vanished without a trace. He was last seen on the wall during the fight and has not been seen since.

They were already gone by the time the battle was over. "They were all gone by the time the battle was over," he said, "and since everyone who worked for them, including Jeurys, are gone, all hell is breaking loose. The people on the fringes are trying their best to keep the business running, but it seems that Jeurys has taken most of the working capital out of the company. I think the limit will be reached soon.

　Shrugging her shoulders, Marida reveals information that is only known to her merchant friends.

'Of course we can't afford to buy large amounts of material, can we?

That's what I mean.

De. So, it's the last big store, Croatia Trading Company. It's a complete disaster. They've been working together with Jinbaril to expand their business. But now that the Jinbaril Chamber of Commerce has made a move on us, they're going to take the heat for it. They were so tightly colluded with each other that you'd think they were under the control of the Zimbalil Chamber of Commerce. I'm sure their chairman is probably pale by now.

　I don't know if I have any good feelings about Croatia Trading Company or not, but I'm not sure if I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt.

It's a good thing that they have a lot of money. The other merchants are too small to buy a lot of materials and I think they've already siphoned off all the money they've got from their purchases. Hmmm, Ardis. We are the only company in Leytin that can buy your materials anymore.

What do you mean by that, young lady, I'm worried about you?

　Marida uttered a line about how it's still better to be a big-budget actor playing a bad guy, but she immediately panicked at Nicole's subsequent sidelong glance.

'Huh!　No!　Nicole, what are you talking about?!

''As I said before, the only one who can already buy a large amount of materials in Leytin is the Litte Trading Company. On the other hand, there's still a lot of material outside the city walls waiting to be recovered, right?　If we don't, there's no doubt that the material will eventually get dumbed down.

Hey, Nicole!

　Marida shouts in protest.

'What would happen if I did?　More people want to sell, but no one can buy. As a result, the value of materials will decline. Which means they will be bought at a discount.

You don't have to say a word.

　Marida reaches out to shut Nicole's mouth somehow, but her opponent is a skilled mercenary who treats the three dispersers lightly. Her outstretched hand is dodged by the mercenaries.
　The appearance reminds me of a kitten jumping on a catnip.

I'm sure the signs are showing even now. The glass wolf's fur has dropped 20% from 7 days ago. Unlike beasts, the number of materials of demons is small, so the drop may not be that great, but it wouldn't be completely unaffected. I'm going to buy it for a fair price before its value goes down, that's the kindness of the lady.

　Marida, who had finally grown up after understanding that resistance was futile, stood behind Nicole, looking bummed out, and turned to face the direction of the morning.
　Her ears are stained the same bright red color as Orphelia's drunken face.

　The clumsy side of Marida that she had never seen before made Aldis's earlier annoyance disappear.
　Aldis almost blurted out, but barely managed to stifle it and replied with a wry smile.

'All right. I'll talk to my mate about it.

　In the end, Ardis will ask the Litte Trading Company to dismantle the demons he hunted and buy the materials.
　There was no other choice, but I told Norris, "In short, Ardis just doesn't like this chairman named Marida, right? And the fact that he had been pointed at by the figure was also a factor. He reminded himself that it certainly wasn't a bad story if you didn't consider his feelings for Marida.

　After that, Aldis, Ted and the rest of the "Byakuya no Meibei" continued to stay in Leytin for a while to deal with the aftermath.
　After receiving the rewards and selling the materials, Aldis and the others left Leytin for King's Landing about ten days after the defeat.