Volume 2 - CH 29.2

Chapter 2-29 : Final Push Ⅱ (part 2)

As an alchemist, if you are asked to make an artifact, first, you need to prepare the materials needed. Normally, you will collect them yourself if possible, but if you can’t, you have no choice but to buy them from Collectors.

It’s fine if you accept the requests to make simple artifacts, but if you are overconfident and accept the request to make difficult ones, you may suffer the risk of losing all the materials if you fail in the process.

If you have money, you can buy the materials and try it again. You will probably have almost no profit, but the request can be fulfilled.

However, what if you don’t have money?

If you don’t have money and you fail in processing the materials, you can either give up and decline the request, or borrow money from someone and try it again.

If you choose to borrow money, only the debt will remain if you fail again.

「Sarasa, you will think that it can’t be helped if you fail because of your own carelessness, right? But, what if you fail because someone planned it?」(Leonora)

「Hmm…」(Sarasa)

「For example, you have to make an artifact but you don’t have much money at the time, but then a merchant who sells the necessary materials at a very cheap price appears. What will you do?」(Leonora)

「Well, I will buy the necessary materials from that merchant for sure.」(Sarasa)

「Right. But what if that merchant did something with the materials so that you would easily fail in processing them?」(Leonora)

「…That would be awful….」(Sarasa)

「Right?」(Leonora)

I see…

I don’t know the alchemists that Yok Baal tricked, but they are all novice alchemists like me, right?

Yok Baal… That wicked merchant is unforgivable…!

「So this time, he is targeting me, huh…?」(Sarasa)

「Most likely. You look like easy prey for those kinds of people after all.」(Leonora)

「Yeah… I’m aware of it…」(Sarasa)

It hasn’t been long since I graduated from the alchemist training school, so I still don’t have much experience.

Moreover, I open a cheap store in this rural village and sell cheap goods.

Yup. I look like easy prey who is easy to deceive for sure…

「But unfortunately for him, he chose the wrong target this time. He completely has no idea what will happen if he makes you angry!」(Leonora)

「Umm… Leonora-san, you make it sound like I’m the villain here…」(Sarasa)

「Ahaha! I’m sorry, that’s not what I mean. I mean you’re terrifying as an enemy.」(Leonora)

「Is that so? I’m just a novice with little experience though. I’m still a fledgling.」(Sarasa)

When I said that, Leonora-san glared at me.

「Look. A fledgling will never think to strike back at a bad merchant and make a plan to make them go bankrupt by involving another alchemist.」(Leonora)

「Ahaha… 」(Sarasa)

「By the way, do you have any other alchemists in other towns helping you?」(Leonora)

「Nope, because I believed that you would distribute the fangs you bought from that merchant to other towns anyway.」(Sarasa)

Other than Leonora-san, I actually asked Gretz-san to help me with this matter. I handed him some Ice Fang Bats’ fangs and told him to sell them cheaply in other towns.

「Hee, you’re so well prepared, I see. Well, of course I distributed those fangs to other towns. Thanks to that, the market price for Ice Fang Bats’ fangs in this region keeps dropping.」(Leonora)

「My oh my, I pity those fools who have been hoarding Ice Fang Bats’ fangs~ They won’t be able to sell them at a normal price~ Khu khu khu~」(Sarasa)

When I smirked, Leonora-san shook her head and smiled bitterly.

「You’re talking about Yok Baal, right? You really have no mercy… Also, you didn’t want to be called a villain, but you’re laughing like a villain, you know? Honestly, that freaks me out a little.」(Leonora)

「I, Is that so…?」(Sarasa)

「Hahh… But to be honest, I’m glad that you decided to strike back. Do you remember that the fangs were quite pricey a while ago? It was probably because of him.」(Leonora)

「Ah, so he started to make a move way back then?」(Sarasa)

「Yeah, most likely.」(Leonora)

At that time, I just started selling the fangsー No, to be exact, selling Cooling Hats, the artifacts that were made using Ice Fang Bats’ fangs. That’s probably why Yok Baal came to my village.

「If a merchant who ignores the code of conduct manipulates the market price of alchemy related materials, it will be a big problem for us alchemists.」(Leonora)

「Yes, you’re right. Those kinds of merchants only care about profit.」(Sarasa)

As good people, we have to follow the rules. Those who don’t want to are bad people, and most of them only care about themselves.

「Right? That’s why, I want to make Yok Baal go bankrupt for good. Let’s do it together, Sarasa!」(Leonora)

「Yes, let’s do it! I’m sure we can defeat that merchant if we work together.」(Sarasa)

Evil merchants should be annihilated! There’s no mercy for those kinds of people!

***

After that, Leonora-san and I exchanged our ideas and minds to predict the opponent’s next moves and built a plan to make sure he will go bankrupt.

We then decided how we would execute the plan and determined our tasks.

「Hooー As expected from a veteran. You noticed everything I didn’t notice!」(Sarasa)

「No, no. You’re pretty clever as well. Too clever for a girl your age even.」(Leonora)

「Ehehe… Thank you. I hope everything will go as planned.」(Sarasa)

「Nah, I don’t think you need to worry about that.」(Leonora)

「Haha. You’re right.」(Sarasa)

Even at this point, our victory is almost certain with this plan.

After enacting this plan, all we have to do is to wait until Yok Baal goes bankrupt. How long it will take depends on his greediness though, but we will surely win at some point.

「This is gonna be interesting. Khu khu khu~」(Sarasa)

「Yeah, you’re right. I can’t wait to execute our plan. Khu khu khu~」(Leonora)

When we both smirked like villains, Filione-san entered the room.

「What is this…? The secret meeting of an evil organization…?」(Filione)