“Are you alright, Ryouma-kun? You look tired.” [Reinhart]
Reinhart asked me on the way back from the mine.
“I was hoping we could drop by our partner for your three products, but…” [Reinhart]
“Don’t worry. I’m alright. I just used to much mana.” [Ryouma]
Creating all those red soil bricks with Create Block brought me near mana exhaustion. It’s been a long while since I last felt like this, but other than that, I’m alright. After all, I didn’t actually exhaust all of my mana. This much discomfort shouldn’t pose a problem.
One hour later, our carriage finally reached town. We stopped in front of a certain store. It was not lavish by any means. It was a simple store made out of wood and had a calm feeling to it.
I thought for sure we’d be going to a luxurious store considering this was the duke, but it seems that’s not the case. Because of that, however, the store was not intimidating.
As soon as we entered the store, we were brought to a huge guest room where paintings lined up the walls and a decorative vase could be seen at one corner. The store was much more luxurious inside than outside.
The sofa I sat on was soft, and my body sunk into it.
…It’s just a bit more lavish than the reception office for clients in my previous world, but I feel a little out of place… Anyway, let’s just sit and behave beside Sebasu-san for now.
As I behaved myself and quietly waited, before long, a well-built man came. He was the person responsible for the store.
“My, my, if it isn’t the people of the duke’s household. Welcome.” [Well-Built Man]
“It’s been a while, Serge.” [Reinhart]
“It’s been a while, indeed. It would be great if we could meet more frequently, but alas, it seems the opportunities just refuse to show themselves. Regardless, it is good to see that you are all well.
I do believe this is our first meeting. Greetings. I am Serge Morgan, president of the Morgan Company.” [Serge]
Oh, he’s talking to me.
“I am Ryouma Takebayashi. I met the Jamil Household by some stroke of fate. It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.” [Ryouma]
He smiled back at me. I heard he’s someone we can trust, but exactly what sort of person is he, I wonder.
“Alright, let’s get to business…” [Reinhart]
“Did you bring something new today?” [Serge]
While I was thinking to myself, the two of them started talking business.
Wait? Today? I guess Reinhart-san must’ve brought several things here already.
“Before I show you the goods, I want you to promise me that not one word of this will make it out of this room. I trust you. But I want to be sure.” [Reinhart]
“But of course… We value the information of our partners. We would never leak it. And in fact, if you so wish, we could work in such a way that not even the slightest trail would be left. Still, I must say this is unusual for you, Reinhart-sama. I never thought you would say something like this.” [Serge]
“The goods this time come with some… circumstances. Mark my words, what I bring to you today will bring profits beyond anything I’ve brought you yet.” [Reinhart]
Really? As far as I’m concerned, a raincoat is about as common as they come, but… Well, I don’t really get it.
“Sebasu.” [Reinhart]
At Reinhart-san’s behest, Sebasu-san took out a waterproof cloth from his Item Box, as well as a slime thread, and the iron ingot I made.
“Oh, this cloth has good texture.” [Serge]
“Texture isn’t all it has going for it. It can also repel water.” [Reinhart]
“…Is that true?” [Serge]
“Use Identify or wrap you hands with it and touch water, I don’t mind. That’s a test product, so feel free to experiment with it.” [Reinhart]
“Then I’ll do just that…” [Serge]
Serge-san summoned a servant and asked for a bowl of water. Until then he used Identify to examine the cloth.
As Serge-san’s eyes began to sparkle, the bowl of water came, and immediately, he wrapped his hand in water, and then soaked it into the bowl.
“Reinhart-sama, what a truly wonderful cloth this is!” [Serge]
“Right? So, do you think rain gear made from it would sell?” [Reinhart]
“But of course! It would definitely!” [Serge]
Wow, he really likes it!
“But that’s not all I brought. Take a look at this thread next.” [Reinhart]
“I shall examine it.” [Serge]
He took the spool of thread into his hands and examined it by touching it and pulling it.
“Was the same material used to make this thread and that cloth?” [Serge]
He could tell!? Without a single hint, just by touching, he was able to tell!?
Reinhart-san smiled and nodded.
“As expected of you, Serge. Although there were some slight changes to the process, the thread and the cloth were indeed made with the same material. What do you think? The thread has good quality, no?” [Reinhart]
“Yes, companies specializing in luxurious clothing probably won’t even blink before gobbling all of it up. It’s beautiful, yes, but what’s most remarkable about it is its durability.” [Serge]
“Actually, we have clothes made from that thread and that cloth.” [Reinhart]
This time what was taken out was the set of clothes I made for cleaning the latrine pits. Huh? Wait a moment. I have my set with me. When did they make that?
“These are clothes meant for working with water or dirty places. The design is a bit… original, but function-wise, it’s excellent.” [Reinhart]
“Yes, I’m sure laborers will love this. Once word gets out, it’ll sell like hotcakes.” [Serge]
“We’ll need to do something to make it popular first, but it definitely has a lot of potential. Now, as for the last one…” [Reinhart]
The last thing that was brought out was of course my iron ingot.
“Mind if I use Identify?” [Serge]
“Not at all.” [Reinhart]
Serge-san identified the ingot with Reinbach’s permission, but afterwards, he was visibly disappointed.
“It’s good material, yes, but… If I may be frank, there’s nothing special about it. It’s just an iron ingot.” [Serge]
“Then what about this one?” [Reinhart]
Sebasu-sama took out the other ingot (ultrahigh purity iron) and handed it to Serge-san.
“Is this silver? No, this weight…”
As he said that, he used Identify on it. In the next moment, he was visibly shocked. He tried to keep his composure, but he still couldn’t stop himself from sweating buckets.
“Reinhart-sama, this ingot is…” [Serge]
“Amazing, right? We’d probably cause a huge fuss if we sold this thing.” [Reinhart]
“Naturally. With a luster enough to be mistaken for silver, anyone would be able to tell that it’s different from the iron we know. People will definitely want to get their hands on the manufacturing method.” [Serge]
“And because of that we’ll have to settle for that previous ingot. Actually, that ingot used to be just like that, but it was made to be more like normal iron ingot.” [Reinhart]
Serge-san nodded.
“That makes sense, but then it won’t be different from any other ingot. It won’t catch attention. Is that alright?” [Serge]
“It’s fine. We just want to sell these ingots legally without anyone knowing. These ingots come from the abandoned mine, but we didn’t find a new vein.” [Reinhart]
“I see, so you wish to keep the manufacturing method a secret while still selling the ingots?” [Serge]
“Yes. To be more precise, I want to export these things to other countries. If we sold it locally, we’d have to indicate where it was made, but if we exported it, it would be enough to just mention our country.” [Reinhart]
“I see. Yes. That shouldn’t pose any problems.” [Serge]
Seriously!? With just that!?
“Also, Serge, I want to introduce to you the secret manufacturer behind these ingots.” [Reinhart]
“Thank you.” [Serge]
“The manufacturer of these ingots is also the developer of all the three products I showed you.” [Serge]
Oops, this isn’t the time to be shocked. I’m being introduced.
“All three products are so amazing, and yet, you’re telling me they were all made by one person?
Reinhart-san smiled.
“Yes. The one who developed all these is none other than… Ryouma-kun.” [Reinhart]
The moment Reinhart-san spoke my name, Serge-san’s eyes turned into dots, and he looked back and forth between me and Reinhart-san.