I’m Angry!

12

Fairy Tale. That was the name of the new drug that suddenly appeared in the world two years ago.

Like a true narcotic, when ingested, it offers a rush unlike any conventional drug, but the price for that pleasure is a torment so profound when deprived, one might find death preferable.

“That’s why it’s so easy to fall into the vicious cycle of using again. Its addictiveness is just that powerful.”

But that wasn’t all.

According to Owl’s investigation, the real purpose of Fairytale was mutation.

The new type of monster they secured was immediately delivered to the Imperial Research Division, and the examination yielded a shocking result: as suspected, they were once human beings, transformed into monsters by the drug.

This meant it was no longer a simple matter of drug addicts emerging.

“If we’re not careful, a mass slaughter could occur within the capital. We have to cut off the drug supply itself, completely.”

At John’s words, the Owl members, other intelligence officers and agents, and Celine all nodded.

He was right. If mutants were to appear within the capital, a massacre would begin in that very moment.

“But in this desperate situation, where has the Minister gone?”

The answer to the question everyone had carried since entering the conference room came from Celine.

“He is absent precisely *because* the situation is so desperate.”

“What do you mean?”

“The Minister has gone to negotiate with the Sinistre Merchant Alliance. He should be arriving at the capital branch about now.”

“What?!”

The Sinistre Merchant Alliance. As its name, containing the continent’s title suggests, it is the world’s largest merchant collective.

They have branches in every country, and it could be said that any merchant house of a certain size or larger is invariably affiliated with the Alliance.

“For them, gold is god, their very faith. Especially the upper echelons of the Merchant Alliance; they’ll stop at nothing, no matter how dirty, to make money.”

An example would be the anti-aristocratic faction in the small kingdom of Klamor, who recently tried to distribute Fairytale to the Empire.

No matter how powerful the Imperial Chancellor is, he can’t arbitrarily control the logistics of a distant foreign nation.

But if you pay the Merchant Alliance, they can bring anything in, drugs or otherwise, no matter the distance.

“As those who went to the field know better than anyone, the Merchant Alliance had a significant stake in why that whole affair was ‘erased’ from the record.”

They do business with the entire continent, so even the Empire had to tread carefully.

If the Merchant Alliance and the Empire were to become enemies, it would cause massive detriment to both sides.

That’s why both sides usually tried to cover things up at a reasonable level.

“What constitutes a ‘reasonable level’ is ambiguous, but that’s a matter for His Imperial Majesty to decide; it’s not something we need to worry about. In the first place, drugs like that can be easily found in slums and other places, even without the Merchant Alliance.”

But now, things were different.

The existence of Fairytale directly threatened the Empire, so they had to resolve this matter with the Merchant Alliance in some way.

“And to that end, the Minister has gone alone to the capital branch?”

He wasn’t truly alone, not with the escort that always trailed him, but considering the purpose of this parley, it was, in effect, a solitary venture.

“Why didn’t Celine accompany you?” Christina questioned.

Celine sighed. “Of course, I wished to go, but to be frank, I wouldn’t be of any assistance to the Minister. And…”

“And?”

Remembering the Minister’s demeanor upon receiving the report, Celine shuddered lightly. “…He was incensed.”

“Really?!”

Shock rippled through the room.

Their Minister, always so composed, so utterly professional, had displayed raw emotion.

Rage, no less.

“Leader, if things go ill today, the Jeido Branch might be obliterated.”

“Indeed…”

John nodded solemnly, concurring with Alexander’s pronouncement, delivered with a distinctly unnerved expression.

—

I was angry.

Truly, deeply angry. Approaching a state one could justifiably call ‘rage’.

Because the self-assembly bookshelf I’d splurged on yesterday was defective!

A self-assembly unit that was missing parts! It wasn’t even furniture then!

I’d realized the issue while assembling it yesterday, and immediately rushed to the furniture store, only to be met with the shopkeeper’s brazen claim that they merely received and sold the goods, and I should take it up with the manufacturer.

When I asked where the manufacturer was located, I was told, the Palcitas Republic. Thus, I resolved to take it up with the Jeido Branch of the Sinister Merchant Guild, to which that furniture store belonged.

Yesterday was too late to go, but today was different.

I was grinding my teeth, eager to confront them the moment I finished work, and currently, I was leaving the Intelligence Department, striding purposefully towards the Jeido Branch.

I arrived, entered the building, and was immediately greeted by someone who rushed to attend to me.

“Welcome, Minister Barmut. I am Maximilian Zamel, Branch Manager of the Sinister Merchant Guild, Jeido Branch.”

I gazed down at the man who bowed almost 180 degrees, and paused for a moment.

Branch Manager? That means he’s the highest authority here?

Indeed. True to form for merchants so dedicated to trade, the Branch Manager himself had come down to address even such a minor issue.

My anger hadn’t dissipated entirely, but I could certainly appreciate their professionalism.

“You know why I’m here?”

“Yes, of course. There are too many eyes and ears here for such a conversation. Perhaps we could continue in my private office?”

So, the claim from yesterday was passed along directly, it seems.

Nodding, I allowed the Jamel branch manager to guide myself and my guards toward what he called his private office.

The moment I settled onto the sofa, the branch manager presented me with tea, which I pointedly ignored.

If I drank it, my resolve might weaken.

“I’ll be blunt. How does the Merchant’s Guild intend to compensate me?”

“…With all due respect, the word ‘compensate’ doesn’t seem quite appropriate. That was merely the action of a rogue individual, not the collective will of the entire Merchant’s Guild.”

Ah, I was just beginning to feel slightly more accommodating, but now he’s thrown fuel back onto the fire.

“Is that your answer?”

“It is.”

“Fine, I understand.”

“Huh?”

I stood. If this was the attitude even at the Jedu branch, there was no further point in discussion.

I’ll be damned if I ever use a store affiliated with the Merchant’s Guild again.

“We have no further business. At least, not within the Empire.”

“A-are you serious?!”

Of course, I am. I’m a man who follows through on his decisions.

Sometimes I don’t, but I mostly do.

Probably.

“W-wait just a moment! No, no, there’s no need to act so emotionally!”

“Emotional? I am perfectly composed.”

Composed, indeed. Hot head, cold heart – that’s the way it is.

Wait… Or is it the other way around?

“Understood! I understand! Please, just sit down! I beg you!”

The Jamel branch manager actually knelt, bowed his head, and began wringing his hands together.

It seemed a bit extreme, but when I considered it, a merchant’s reputation with a customer was directly linked to their profits, so their desperation was somewhat understandable.

Still, I’d already stood up. Wouldn’t sitting back down make me look weak?

After some internal debate, I decided to remain standing and ask,

“What do you mean, understood?”

“I-I mean we will compensate you as you requested. Just tell me the sum you desire, and we’ll do our best to meet it…”

“I don’t need the money.”

Even though it was on the pricier side for prefabricated stuff, I hadn’t exactly come to get a refund.

“Th-Then…?”

“…”

Come to think of it? Besides an apology, I wasn’t really hoping for anything in particular.

I was at a loss for words, flusteredly fiddling with my fingers when, just in time, something appropriate caught my eye.

“That’ll do nicely.”

“Huh?!”

What I pointed to was a somewhat luxurious-looking bookshelf standing against the window-side wall of the room.

“A-As much as I’d like to help, that’s going too far…!”

“You object? Then the conversation ends here.”

“No, no! I don’t object! I-I’ll do as you wish!”

Seeing the branch manager of Jamel nodding, close to tears, made me feel a bit bad, like I was forcefully seizing it, but I couldn’t exactly swallow the words I’d already spat out.

“Then that matter is settled.”

“A-Are there other issues…?”

“Of course. The distribution structure, for one.”

“D-Distribution?”

It was their business if they wanted to import and sell goods from elsewhere, and I wouldn’t interfere with that, but asking me to go all the way to the Palcitas Republic for missing parts was too much.

This wasn’t just about me. It was a problem for all consumers who wanted to purchase prefabricated furniture from the Institute.

“You called it an individual deviation earlier, but logically speaking, you can’t import goods at will without the Merchant Guild’s permission, can you?”

“W-Well, that’s true, but…”

“I’m not trying to interfere with the entire structure you’ve built. I’m just saying, don’t import *that*.”

If you’re going to import, bring *everything*, including the parts. That way, when parts are missing like this time, you can get them right away.

“In that case…yes, in that case, I think the upper management will understand.”

“Is that so.”

They should have done that from the start. Then we wouldn’t have had to get all heated.

“Then I’ll be going now. I hope to not see you again for something like this.”

“Y-Yes… p-please go safely.”

Thinking it was a good deal, I stepped out of the branch only to realize I hadn’t given them my home address for the bookshelf delivery.

I debated what to do, but going back to tell them seemed like too much trouble, and I’d achieved my most desired goal, so I decided to just consider it a freebie.

Heaving himself upright, Maximilian Jamel felt like he’d clawed his way back from the dead. He swayed, making for the window.

‘Damn it all. It’s the upper echelon cutting deals with the anti-aristocrats, so why am I taking the fall…!’

Unless the top brass had completely lost their minds, they wouldn’t dare cross swords with the Imperial Intelligence Director. Fairy Tale would soon be erased from the Empire, gone without a trace.

That much was alright.

The order to cease supplying Fairy Tale to the Empire was a matter for the Merchant Guild as a whole, not a personal loss. But *this* was different.

‘They say if I don’t give it to them, they’ll banish the Merchant Guild from the Empire… I can’t refuse…’

If that happened, the upper echelon would kill him even before they tallied the losses. Not metaphorically, but literally.

A split with the Merchant Guild was unthinkable, but when the words came from Ervin Barmut, the gravity shifted.

The Director did not issue empty threats. He wouldn’t speak of something he wasn’t prepared to do.

If he said he would, he would.

The upper echelon had given up on fighting the Director after watching one of their highest executives – confident in the Merchant Guild’s protection – challenge him. The executive, his family, friends, relatives, and every business he personally conducted across the Empire were ‘evaporated’ overnight.

‘A real damn shame…’

Branch Manager Jamel swallowed his tears, gazing out the window at his masterpiece, the largest magical artifact department store on the continent, soon to be nationalized by the Empire.