In a room within a building in the Slum District, Lebejev sat face-to-face with the man before him.
Seated on a lavish sofa that seemed out of place for the area was a man in his fifties.
He exuded no sign of age-related decline, possessing the commanding presence one would expect of someone running an organization.
It wasn't that he had slash marks or anything of the sort on his face, but the atmosphere he radiated was simply different.
Lebejev had been through his fair share of ordeals, yet even he found himself nearly overwhelmed by the presence the man before him gave off.
Naturally, since he was speaking directly with the boss of the organization, guards were present in the room, and Lebejev had been relieved of his weapons before entering.
"You tryin' to take me for a fool?"
Several minutes had passed since Lebejev voiced his request.
Eventually breaking the silence, the boss spoke those words.
A clearly displeased tone colored his voice, and sensing this, the guards positioned themselves to draw their weapons and attack Lebejev at any moment.
It was so they could react immediately if negotiations broke down and Lebejev took some kind of erratic action.
Lebejev, having operated for years as both an adventurer and a villain, had confidence in his own skills.
Even so, surviving an attack from the guards would be difficult.
That was how capable the guards were.
(Especially that cat? Leopard? Beastman is troublesome. He's definitely more skilled than me.)
He directed his gaze for just an instant toward the man who was likely the most capable among the guards, then immediately shifted his focus back to the boss.
"Of course I would never do such a thing. We've been in your care, Jestal."
At Lebejev's words, the boss——Jestal——frowned for a moment.
Whether the blatant flattery irritated him, or his thoughts had turned to something else entirely——even Lebejev, who was being subjected to that displeased stare, couldn't tell.
"Yeah, I'd say so. That's exactly why I went along with your unreasonable demands and gathered the women by force. Even after you suddenly shortened the deadline on me. But... what's this now? You're saying it ends today? You come to me asking for work, and that attitude of yours——what's that supposed to mean?"
He brought the wine to his lips, but the lukewarm wine only soured his mood further.
"Of course I understand why you would be displeased, Jestal. But we have our own circumstances to deal with."
"Obviously. And just like you've got your circumstances, we've got ours. Especially when it comes to gathering women, we've got no choice but to prioritize our own situation."
"Naturally, we understand that as well. So, the women we've gathered so far will be enough. We'll pay the fee as originally agreed. ...How about it? Would that be acceptable to you?"
At those terms, Jestal's somewhat displeased expression eased.
Thinking about it normally, Lebejev's proposal held nothing but upside for the organization.
They would receive the payment they'd contracted in advance without having to expend any further effort.
However... even understanding that, Jestal didn't nod on the spot.
The fact that they were bringing such a sweet deal meant precisely that they had some kind of circumstance driving them.
"...What did you bastards do?"
Setting his cup of wine on the table, Jestal stared hard at Lebejev.
"You must have done something, which is why you told us to cut short the job you requested. Given that, you've got a reason to hurry, don't you?"
"That's..."
Lebejev hesitated for a moment over whether to deflect here, but if Jestal discovered he was being evasive, it would certainly cause all sorts of trouble.
In that case, he decided to speak without hiding everything——concealing only the crucial details, the kind of information that would make the other side want to pull their support.
They were leaving Gilm tonight, so even if a commotion broke out after they were gone, it would be fine. That was his reasoning.
"As you can tell from the fact that we've been trading with an underground organization like yours, and that the trade involves gathering women, we're people with our own shady dealings. We've had our hands in all sorts of crimes."
Everyone listening to Lebejev's words wore expressions that said this was obvious.
After all, someone with nothing to hide would never have come into contact with them in the first place.
"And among those crimes, naturally, killing people is included. ...And of course, those who've been killed hold grudges against their killers, right?"
"Obviously."
Jestal nodded as if that too were a matter of course.
Jestal had also been through various bitter experiences over the years.
It wasn't once or twice that acquaintances or subordinates had been killed by members of rival organizations.
At such times, he had naturally taken revenge against those responsible, so the feeling of vengeance was something Jestal understood intimately.
Granted, in Jestal's case, beyond the hatred of having an acquaintance killed, there was also the aspect that to survive in the underworld, he couldn't afford to be looked down upon.
Regardless, having experienced revenge many times himself, Jestal understood it well.
And from Lebejev's words, he understood why they had come asking to conduct an already shortened-deadline trade today.
(This guy's reasonably skilled himself. ...Which means, the one who showed up seeking revenge was quite the capable fighter? Well, having capable fighters in Gilm isn't particularly unusual.)
Gilm originally attracted many skilled adventurers.
Thinking of it that way, the one who had come to kill Lebejev and his associates being a capable fighter was something he could accept without finding it strange.
"I see. Fine, I'll accept that you're not just taking me for a fool."
At this point, Jestal's mistake was not asking who had come seeking revenge against Lebejev and his group.
Of course, Lebejev——who knew full well what would happen if he dropped Rei's name——would have given only Ilse's name even if Jestal had asked.
However, had the conversation gone that far, there was a real possibility that Jestal would have felt doubt about Lebejev's words.
And if he felt doubt, he would have investigated the circumstances... and there was a slight but real chance he would have traced things back to Rei.
However, Jestal neglected to do so.
No——the way Lebejev told his story made it seem as though the one seeking revenge against him or his associates was someone who had only recently arrived in Gilm, in other words, not someone who had been in Gilm before.
This was partly due to Jestal's carelessness, but more than that, it was because Lebejev had been clever in how he steered the conversation.
As a result, Jestal ceased prying any further about who was pursuing Lebejev's group.
The fact that he had never held favorable feelings toward Lebejev in the first place was likely a significant factor as well.
Not wanting to be dragged around by Lebejev's circumstances any further, he opened his mouth.
"Fine. I'll go along with your circumstances and do the trade. But there aren't that many women gathered yet. You understand that, right?"
"Yes. I suppose that can't be helped. So, the trade will be tonight... let's say, around the time the date changes. And also, as I mentioned before, the method of getting us out of Gilm along with the carriage..."
"Hah? Obviously that's impossible."
While feeling relieved that the trade would take place, Lebejev moved on to the next matter.
They had originally planned to flee Gilm tonight. Given that, they couldn't exactly escape through the Main Gate.
Additionally, Jestal had originally told them he had arrangements to sneak them out of Gilm without being spotted by the guards, and Lebejev's group had been counting on that.
...It went without saying that they couldn't openly lead dozens of women——women fitted with slave collars, no less——through the Main Gate.
However, Jestal dismissed Lebejev's words without so much as a moment's consideration, flatly declaring it impossible.
"Why? Getting out of Gilm was supposed to be part of our contract with you."
"True. It was in the contract. ...The original, initial contract. And that contract didn't include finishing everything in such a short timeframe. You guys forced me to change the trade date with your own unreasonable demands. Everything can't just go your way, you know."
At Jestal's words, the surrounding guards silently nodded, intensifying their gazes toward Lebejev.
It served both to pressure Lebejev into accepting Jestal's words, and to stay vigilant in case Lebejev lost his senses and lunged at Jestal.
"But originally..."
"Listen here. Maybe that was the original plan. But you're the ones who forced the schedule to change. Getting things in order isn't something we can just do on a moment's notice."
Put that way, Lebejev had no choice but to show a certain degree of understanding toward Jestal's position.
The trade with Jestal had originally been planned to proceed at a leisurely pace until the requested number of women was gathered.
They had been the ones to demand it be done as quickly as possible for their own convenience, and to say they wanted the trade tonight.
Naturally, that proposal was unexpected for Jestal as well, and asking him to arrange escape routes immediately would be difficult.
However, considering their current situation, it was also an absolute fact that they had to make this work somehow.
To begin with, even if the women were handed over to them, they couldn't escape Gilm——it would be extremely conspicuous.
Indeed, even hiding in the Slum District, it would be nearly impossible for Lebejev's group to conceal themselves while leading dozens of women.
"Is there no way you could work something out?"
"...If we're talking about whether it's possible or not, of course it's possible. But that'll cost considerably more than originally planned, you know?"
"Understood. I don't mind adding that amount to the payment."
Lebejev's expression was stern as he said this, but inwardly he was relieved.
He had anticipated that the amount they'd need to pay for this whole affair would increase.
Given that, this development was within expectations.
Seeing Lebejev agree so readily to the increased payment, Jestal appeared to think it over for a moment before eventually speaking.
"In addition to the original payment, five platinum coins."
"Wh—!?"
Lebejev understood that an additional payment would be necessary.
Even so, five platinum coins was beyond what he had expected.
"No matter how you look at it, that's far too expensive, isn't it!?"
The fact that Lebejev, who had been calmly advancing the conversation until now, cried out like this was itself a testament to the absurdity of the amount Jestal had named.
Watching Lebejev's reaction, Jestal once again brought the lukewarm wine to his lips.
It was as if he were using his demeanor to tell Lebejev to calm down.
"You can say that all you want. Something that originally needed a certain amount of time, you're rushing like this. We need a corresponding amount of money to make preparations. Let me tell you——there's almost no profit for us in those five platinum coins. Nearly all of it is necessary expenses."
Whether those words were true or not, Lebejev had no way to discern.
Whether nearly all of the five platinum coins truly went to necessary expenses, or whether Jestal had judged that he could squeeze even more money out of them given the situation.
But even so, it was Lebejev's group who had drastically shortened the trade deadline and further requested that the trade be conducted tonight——which meant no options remained.
No——there was still the option of throwing everything away, the trade included, and disappearing with Ajas and Haston.
However... Ajas could be stripped of his status as an adventurer, and if the incident with Ilse's family came to light, there was a possibility he would be designated a bounty target.
And if the Guild investigated, they could quite easily uncover the likelihood that Lebejev and Haston had been secretly connected to Ajas.
What's more, if it became known that in this affair they had forcibly abducted dozens of women and even fitted them with slave collars, Lebejev and Haston would undoubtedly become bounty targets as well.
If they threw away the trade itself here, beyond assassins in the form of bounty hunters from the Guild, there was a very real possibility that assassins would be sent by the organization Lebejev's group currently belonged to, and even by Jestal right before his eyes.
To prevent that from happening, they needed to complete the trade at minimum... and in the end, all Lebejev could do was nod to the amount the other side demanded.