Otoko Nara Ikkokuichijou no Aruji o Mezasa Nakya, ne? Chapter 188

Year 7445, Month 7, Day 2

Now then, while I was unpacking my bags enduring through the headache from a hangover in my room at "Kairugu's inn", I started thinking about what I'm going to do in the meantime. First off I need to start with this, a decision on what's been piling up in that regards. I was worked to death dealing with countless people who came by starting early this morning.

As expected it's my limit just making it to the 7th floor alone. If you just look at my combat power then I'm sure I can go even further but I won't last on food. I can make a bed from dirt so that doesn't matter at all but I would need to walk around with a blanket as well. Well, it would be fine to group up with them on the 7th floor but it would be troublesome if we ended up running into {Sun.Ray} in the teleport room on the 5th floor...In the first place I have no intention of going to the lower levels alone though.

For the time being it's gotten a bit late but I guess I'll go and eat some lunch. I have an appointment as well. And just as I was thinking that it seems I have a guest. I can guess what their business is but just in case I'll learn their name and face. It's a pain but I'll at least show my face.

..After all it was an invitation to a second-rate party. They came along with their entire party. They offered splitting the compensation up evenly and the leader would cover all necessary expenses. However, even if you suddenly say that, is what I said and didn't reply right away. After all I don't have much time until my first appointment.

In order to arrive for my lunch appointment with Viruhaima of {Verdure.Brotherhood}, I walk to the intermediate open restaurant named "Henkusu". Along the way I caught a glimpse of Basutoral walking down the road with his arm around Catherine's waist but it seems they didn't notice me. The two of you, making such a happy face...

Midway through last month Basutoral purchased Catherine and freed her the next day. Now both of them are fresh new Registered Free People of the Duke's Territory. It was something cheap at only a tens of thousands of Z but they even exchanged rings. They do quite the stylish things for being cats. Now they're even saying things like making songs of love and going out together to the side of the lake in the east with an instrument something like a cheap guitar. Judging from that state of theirs it seems they're going to the lake again today. It seems like they have a bento as well. Rather~ do some training with the spear. Well, they're newlyweds after all so I guess it's fine.

I spit to the side of the road and after putting both of my hands into my pockets, I walked with an worn-out posture on my way to "Henkusu". In a short while I arrived at "Henkusu". An open terrace might sound cool but it's just a bunch of tables sitting out on the road and old man Viruhaima was sitting at one of those with his right hand raised towards me. He has a lit cigar in his left hand.

"Ya~ Viruhaima-san, please excuse me between yesterday and today.."

I make as menial of a face as I can while greeting him and take a seat.

"Oh~ just as I was wondering who it was, if it isn't sub-Noble Greed that's become a {vagrant}. Lowering your head to a commoner like myself doesn't suit you~"

He said that was an tremendously irritating face. This old man, he's completely enjoying himself. The boy came out right away so I ordered some lunch and Viruhaima ordered the same thing.

"That's quite harsh. Well please don't say something like that..and, about the matter yesterday but"

"Oh~ about that. That's fine. We'll cover the entry tax, all food and consumables used in the dungeon, inn, and expenses along with 30 a month. Plus 5% of the magic stones gathered. Other than that when it comes to items we obtain, we all vote. We put points on everyone from the person we thought was the most useless to the most useful. The one who got the highest points gets 10%, the second one gets 5%, the third gets 4%, the fourth gets 3%, then it falls 0.5% each one after that. It depends on the number of people but if we include you then with a total of 9 of us then even being ranked eighth gets 1%."

Those are considerably good conditions if you think about it as a top team. It's close to exceptional if you just take into consideration that he's covering the cost of the inn.

"How many times do you enter?"

"You already know right?"

"Please let me confirm just in case."

"Twice a month, 8 days."

"How much do you earn each time?"

"I can't say that until you've already joined. But, you can at least live a decent lifestyle."

It's said that the top teams earn an average of 500,000 - 2,500,000 Z in magic stones each time they enter the dungeon. It's information I heard from the old man at the magic stone store so it's not completely trustworthy but I doubt it's largely off. On top of that there's also finding items that become earnings for adventurers. Since there's some months where you can't find any sort of items at all they're often not included in the calculation but it's different for the top teams. Of course, it's not like the top teams are finding items every time either but the minimum condition for a top team is that they find at least one valuable item(sales in the 100s of millions) in a year.

Since they enter the dungeon twice a month that would make their average magic stone earnings 4,000,000. 5% in other words 200,000 Z would be my income. A monthly income of 500,000 Z. 6,000,000 Z annual. Since I'm a noble I don't have the 10% tax that commoners have and I don't have to pay the 1,000,000 Z annual individual tax Free People have to pay either. It's fine to think of it all as expendable income. In addition, there's expectations of finding at least one bonus item a year and if it's a {Magic.Item} or huge gem or gold ore then you can live quite the easy life.

Certainly you could say the conditions are good. But, really, this old man, his tone of speech is like a Yakuza. He's terrible at it.

"Also there's one more condition."

"I'm listening."

"The armor that's being made at your company. It seems you're the official merchant for the first knight group right? Sell it to us with a relative discount."

Viruhaima takes a puff of his cigar while sitting back.

"Putting aside the armor, 5% huh.."

"Ah~ Do you have some kind of complaint?"

"No, not particularly. I'll take it into consideration. The response will be.."

"I'm sure you already know but we enter the dungeon every month on the 5th and 20th after all. If possible I'd like a response in 4 days or the day after tomorrow. Well there's no need to hurry. It's fine 14 days later as well."

"Got it."

After that the two of us ate lunch while making idle chat and then I left the store. Next is "Mokkusu" was it...

.............

At "Mokkusu" I was invited by the semi first-rate party {King Tiger}, then at "Pegizu" from the same semi first-rate party {Eternal.Companion}, and finally an invitation from one of the slightly more decent second-rate parties called {Prime Rose}, even though their party is one made up entirely of women they requested my participation but I politely turned them all down.

Since I had a bit of time to spare until dinner so I was thinking, I wonder if it's about time? When I returned to "Kairugu's inn" and as expected there was a group of adventurers waiting for my return. Among those there was obviously some faces I knew and faces I don't know.

"Hey, I got here first. I have the right to negotiate first right!?"
"Huh? Like I care, idiot. There's no way Greed-san would even bother with your third-rate party, so jsut leave!"
"Hey, move!!"
"Greed-sama, conquer the dungeon together with us! These Boton siblings will accompany you!"
"Who are you all?"
"Umm, please let me through..I'm next."
"We the {Black Bears} will offer up 30% of all items found!"
"Hey did you all say there was only three of you just now. That's just splitting it up evenly. That's so cheap~"
"Umm, Greed-san, how about us? We'll offer two peoples share to you!"
"Umm, wait a minute, stop talking all at once.."
"We've come from Viscount Yoraizu's knight group! We'd definitely like for you to take the job as commander~~!"
"You old man don't get it~ He's someone who quit being a leader because he got sick of it?"
"Ouch!! Don't push!"
"Ah, really, my schedule for today is packed so.."
"Greed-san, please listen to us!"
"How about {Sun.Ray}?"
"Eh.."

The mob that was in my surroundings completely shut up.

"How about {Sun.Ray}?"

Faruergaz repeated the same words while wearing his plain but well-tailored clothes. Since I couldn't see the tall Hirosukol he was buried in the crowd and I didn't notice him. I could have sworn the two of them would be together the same as usual. So they were homos..No, I can't come to a conclusion yet. I let out a single sigh and turn around to face Faruergaz. With the gold cloth on his right upper arm, Faruergaz was looking at me with a serious expression. This guy, I don't usually pay any attention to it but is he normally wearing that cloth on his arm...

"Faruergaz-san..Is that a formal invitation? Just now, I put a decision with {Verdure.Brotherhood} on hold. And then, tonight after this I've promised to listen to {Black.Topaz} at "Rosun". If it's {Sun.Ray} then I wouldn't mind discussing it but was that just now the leader Rindobel-san's idea?"

I look at Faruergaz's eyes while saying it.

"..Unfortunately it's not a formal invitation. However, I think that our leader will definitely accept it. Even when it comes to me, that is, I feel that it would be best to have more allies.."

Grandstanding huh...

"Well then please return once it's become something formal. I've come to talk, I don't know what you're talking about~ those sorts of possibilities are troubling after all. Please excuse me."

I said that and pushed my way through the adventurers into my inn. I sit down on the chair in my room and I was thinking of relaxing and having some tea but I've been drinking tea for the past while. It's not like I'm thirsty so it's not necessary. I stand up from the chair and without taking my shoes off roll over onto the straw bed.

..It's a bit off from Toris and the others expectations. Though I assumed that sooner or later {Sun.Ray} would to try and recruit me but it was unexpected that Faruergaz would come without even getting permission from the leader. Honestly speaking, even I didn't expect I'd be called on by so many parties myself.

Most likely, I did think that some second-rate parties would call out to me. The people below that would either give up from the start or show constraint towards the higher ranking parties that were calling out to me first and not move right away. That's why I went with {Verdure.Brotherhood} first to try and give them a glare.

We were thinking that if {Verdure.Brotherhood} and soon after {Black.Topaz} make their move then {Sun.Ray} would move as well. The abilities of the {Slaughterers} has fallen because I left. I'm sure no one accurately comprehends my power but at the very least I've acted as the leader of the {Slaughterers} up until now. It wouldn't be strange to be estimated that I have more power than the average adventurer.

Even putting aside skill levels and mana, since the fact that I can use magic itself is known, it can already be expected that the {Slaughterers} will lose some of their strength from me leaving for that portion. It's not just a simple shift in leaders but since my leaving was accepted it could be thought that just losing my level of combat potential isn't fatal for the {Slaughterers}. It's fine to look at it as if they still have enough potential to continue adventuring on the 7th floor. However, on the other hand, if I were to participate it's possible that the forces of {Verdure.Brotherhood} and {Black.Topaz} could increase a bit as well. It's the same for simple combat strength but rather than that for these two parties that haven't gone to the 6th floor until now, gaining me who has experience on not just the 6th floor but also the 7th should be big. The possibility of them coming to the 6th floor increases even more.

They're originally parties with high levels of skill. Right now it's just by chance that {Sun.Ray} went ahead to the 6th floor but in the first place it's said that both {Black.Topaz} and {Verdure.Brotherhood} are more skilled than {Sun.Ray}. If one of those two were to recruit me then sooner or later they'd show their faces on the 6th floor. Just the same as {Sun.Ray}, even without me they have enough skill to make it on the 6th floor if they tried after all.

When that time comes, {Sun.Ray} will largely have three options. One is to not do anything and just watch the state of things. However, this is too conservative. It's on a different level from just waiting for {Verdure.Brotherhood} and {Black.Topaz} to naturally increase their abilities and make it to the 6th floor after all.

The second option would be for {Sun.Ray} to pick me up as I've become a vagrant and use me to reinforce their own ability. Toris and the others read out and came to the conclusion that this one was the highest possibility.

The third option would be to try and recruit members from the remaining {Slaughterers} now that their leader has left. This is an effective hand to drop the strength of the {Slaughterers} who were quite literally the top until now and at the same increase their own combat strength but excluding Giberuti the porter and the newcomer Basutoral there's still 8 others. No matter how I think about it absorbing 8 people all at once is unreasonable. Depending on the case it's possible for {Sun.Ray} to just become in name and they would be taken over by the {Slaughterers} from within. Not to mention they have the achievement of throwing out their leader once already.

If they just try to recruit a couple of the useful ones then leaving them full of holes, it will just come down to {Verdure.Brotherhood} and {Black.Topaz} taking the remaining members and strengthening themselves as well. Depending on the case even {Gehenna.Flare} could rise to the surface. As a result it's possible things could even worse than the other two options. Well, while it's similar to the situation the {Slaughterers} was in before they stood out, the stage for that isn't the 5th floor but the 6th floor which only a former {Slaughterers} member would know. If it's accidental then it's still fine but there's also the possibility that some intentional trouble could some as well. Therefore, Toris and the others read that the third option is the one they have the lowest chance of picking.

I guess it's about time for me to go...

I get up from the bed and started towards "Rosun" for my appointment with Anderson.

................

Anderson had her long legs crossed with her elbows listlessly on the table tilting a wine glass while waiting for me at "Rosun". So courteously it was even a table along the side of the road.

"Ah, Greed-kun, sorry about calling you out. Take a seat."

Just as she offered I took a seat across from her and ordered something from the waiter. Since Anderson seems to be drinking something white(They're not classified differently between white, red, and roze wine. If you were to ask it's closest to roze) so porae should be good. After that I asked for some light appetizers, bean soup, and bread.

Some wine was poured into the glass prepared at my seat and Anderson started talking.

"Even if you don't do anything 55 a month. After that 5% from the magic stones gathered."

Oh my~ Putting aside the entry tax, I guess the inn cost and consumables are on my own bill. Well even then you could say it's a plenty high amount.

"What about {Magic.Items} and ores?"

"It depends on the case. We split them up depending on the time. Though we've never split them up for 10% before. On average I think we're handing out around 3%."

Well, that's still plenty.

"I see, that's quite the good conditions.."

"Well, take your time and think about it."

I pick through the appetizers that were brought out while Anderson said with a relaxed expression.
I open my mouth while picking through some kind of shellfish that I don't really know.

"About how often do you enter the dungeon?"

"..We haven't particularly decided but around twice a month. The duration is between 7 and 10 days. I get into contact 3 days or so before entering..Oh my, just as expected it seems."

A group of three entered the restaurant and sat down at a table a bit away from us.

It doesn't need to be said but it's the Rindobel couple and Zemyunel from {Sun.Ray}. We matched up the timing for when all of them were on their days off yesterday and today after all, so thing's are quite busy.

Other than that, Feruergaz and Hirosukol are there as well. Though they seem to be watching over things nervously as onlookers, I guess?

Chapter end