Eventually breaking the silence, Nielson opened her mouth.
"Magic Items... we do have them, but under those conditions, it's a bit difficult."
While not an outright refusal, it was unmistakably a rejection.
Rei had been convinced that Nielson would accept Daskar's proposal, which was why her refusal came as such a surprise.
"Why not? I don't think the current conditions are all that bad."
"Listen, Rei. It's true what that man said — we can make what you call Magic Items. But they're extremely precious, you know? They're not something we can just hand over so easily."
"Well, Lord Daskar never said you had to hand over something that rare, right? In that case, couldn't you just use alchemy to mass-produce Magic Items?"
Hearing Rei's words, Nielson let out a sigh laden with exasperation before speaking.
"Our Magic Items and the Magic Items you make may share the same name, but they are completely different things in reality."
"...Is that so?" Rei voiced his doubt.
In truth, from everything Rei had researched, while it was documented that fairies could create Magic Items, nothing specifically described what those items were actually like.
That was exactly why Rei harbored such a question — but he wasn't the only one. Everyone else present shared the same uncertainty.
Seeing this, Nielson opened her mouth with a somewhat bothered expression, as if resigned to explaining, and described the difference between the Magic Items fairies created and those made by alchemists.
The distinction, to put it simply, was that alchemists created Magic Items artificially, whereas the Magic Items fairies made were created naturally.
Using potions as an example: alchemists used various medicinal herbs — and, in some cases, poisonous herbs — adding magical power to them to produce potions.
In contrast, the potions fairies made involved gathering medicinal herbs, adding only minimal magical power, and taking time to let the potion form... that was the general idea.
Honestly, Rei didn't really understand the difference. He could only accept that was simply how things worked.
Still, he at least grasped that Magic Items made by alchemists and those made by fairies were fundamentally different.
"In other words, the Magic Items fairies make can't be mass-produced so easily?"
"That's right. There are various other factors too, but for now, that understanding isn't wrong."
Nielson's reply came as a surprise to Daskar as well. He showed visible signs of disappointment at having his plan derailed.
Magic Items made by fairies would have held enormous value if they could be obtained, so his reaction was only natural.
"Does that mean it would be difficult for you to provide us with Magic Items?"
"That's right. At the very least, it's impossible under the previous conditions. ...No, to be precise, I can't say for certain without consulting the Chief, but I'm fairly confident that's the case."
Nielson stated this firmly. The fact that she could be so certain without even consulting her superior — the Chief — meant her words carried that much conviction.
Hearing this, Daskar had his misgivings about things not going according to his original plan. But as a lord — and specifically the lord of Gilm, a frontier territory — things rarely proceeding as initially planned was hardly unusual.
Given that, he quickly revised his approach and spoke.
"Then under what conditions would you be able to provide Magic Items to us? There is also the option of purchasing them..."
Even as he said this, he suspected that probably wouldn't work.
For Daskar and his people, money was essential. It supported the very foundation of their lives, one could say. While there were, admittedly, a very rare few who lived by bartering, their numbers were undoubtedly small.
However, that was only because these were the people of Daskar living in Gilm.
For fairies like Nielson, money was fundamentally unnecessary in their daily lives.
Given that, Daskar thought purchasing with money probably wouldn't work — but...
"That might actually be nice."
Those words suddenly slipped out into the room.
"Rei?"
Daskar directed a questioning gaze at Rei — a look asking whether he was serious. The reason it wasn't a 'Is he out of his mind?' kind of look was simply because Daskar trusted Rei that much.
Up until now, Rei had accomplished all sorts of things that would normally be considered utterly impossible. If so, it wouldn't be strange for him to come up with some game-changing idea this time as well — that was likely Daskar's reasoning.
That said, Rei hadn't actually thought of some wildly improbable idea. From observing Nielson's behavior since arriving in Gilm, arriving at this suggestion hadn't been all that difficult.
"Nielson. In the room we were in before coming here, you were looking at various things with great interest, right?"
"Huh? What's this all of a sudden? ...Well, I won't deny that."
At Rei's abrupt change of topic, Nielson nodded honestly despite her suspicion.
As far as Rei was concerned, he had no way of knowing just how long it had been since Nielson and the other fairies had last interacted with humans. Of course, there had presumably been plenty of interaction in the form of pranks, as they were currently doing in the Treant Forest.
"Then here's the thing: if you receive money from Lord Daskar — no, if you sell Magic Items, you could use that money to buy all sorts of things that would interest you fairies. Things you've never seen before, as many as you want. Well, when I say 'as many as you want,' that's limited to however much money you have, of course."
"Eh..."
The words that came from Rei's mouth were unexpected to Nielson — and at the same time, perfectly obvious.
After all, fairies were beings of tremendous curiosity. Being told she could obtain — to the extent her money allowed — as many things as would satisfy that curiosity was something she couldn't possibly not react to.
"How about it? This is a frontier territory, after all. There are all sorts of things here that you wouldn't find in an ordinary town or village, you know?"
At Rei's words, Nielson wavered greatly.
For Nielson, that previous room had been extremely enticing. The possibility that she might be able to obtain various things like the items in that room was enough of an impact to shake her to her core.
In reality, the furniture, paintings, vases, and other assorted items in the room where Rei's group had waited earlier were all first-class goods — not the sort of things that could be purchased so easily. After all, that guest room had been prepared by Daskar, the lord of Gilm. Since it was a room meant to be used when nobles of equal or even higher rank than Daskar might visit, he couldn't place shoddy furniture or counterfeit artwork in it.
That was exactly why Rei had judged it dangerous in multiple ways for Nielson to be roaming freely inside such a room.
"That's... hmm... but..."
Nielson displayed a visibly troubled expression.
Originally, Nielson was merely acting as the proxy for the Chief of the fairies. In other words, she couldn't possibly make all decisions solely on her own judgment.
The fact that Nielson had been chosen despite this was presumably because she was trusted among the fairies — but even so, Nielson was undeniably a fairy. When presented with curiosity-inducing and interesting things right before her eyes, prioritizing them was only natural for a fairy.
"F... for now, I can't make the decision on my own, so I'll go back to the forest and consult with the Chief."
The fact that she still didn't conduct trade with Daskar on her own judgment alone was commendable. For Nielson, this matter had been extremely tempting, yet she still chose to temporarily suspend the negotiations.
That said, whether Daskar would readily agree to that when she was the one in an advantageous position was another matter entirely.
"I understand what you're saying, but we are quite busy with various matters. If possible, I'd like to conclude these negotiations right here and now..."
"Impossible. Im-possible! Besides, even if I decided to do something here, it would be meaningless if the Chief didn't approve."
"You have full authority precisely so that you can make such decisions, don't you? In that case, if Nielson nods here, that becomes the will of the fairies. Is that not correct?"
"Even so, what's impossible is impossible!"
For the next few minutes, they went back and forth, each stating their own position.
Daskar argued that since Nielson had been granted full authority, she should be able to make a decision right here. Nielson, while strongly drawn to Daskar's words, judged that making a decision under the current circumstances would lead to trouble later — specifically, she would be scolded by the Chief — and so she pushed for a temporary suspension.
With both sides merely restating their own positions, the conversation naturally made no progress.
Amidst all this, Daskar eventually spoke with a reluctant expression.
"Very well. If Nielson insists to that extent, we shall temporarily suspend negotiations here. Originally, I had intended to settle everything in today's talks. But if you are that insistent, I will step back for now."
It was precisely because Nielson had repeated herself so persistently that he agreed to halt the negotiations here.
Seeing Daskar's demeanor as he said this, Rei understood.
(He's going to use this as a favor owed to make the next round of negotiations more favorable. ...Though whether Nielson will even acknowledge that is another matter entirely.)
If this had been an ordinary human, Daskar's negotiation tactics would have been fully effective.
However, the current negotiating partner was a fairy, first and foremost. Rei's impression was that even if Daskar tried to obligate Nielson here, when the next negotiations came around, she would conduct them without the slightest sign of remembering such a thing had occurred — at least, that was how it seemed to Rei.
Whether things would actually turn out that way, even he couldn't say for certain.
"Is that so? Then I'd appreciate it if you did that."
Nielson, showing no sign of having registered Daskar's intent, displayed only happiness at having temporarily suspended the negotiations.
Seeing Nielson's reaction, Daskar showed a brief flash of regret on his face — but having already said it himself, he couldn't take it back.
"Oh, right. Since we're at it — so I can explain this matter to the Chief, could you prepare some things that can be bought with money, in case the negotiations succeed? If I show those, I think they'll understand that these negotiations had meaning."
"You put me in a difficult spot asking so suddenly. Things that can be bought with money run the gamut. What sort of things do you want? Very expensive items would be problematic for us as well, but if it's within reason, we can prepare them."
"Hmm, there's nothing specific I have in mind. Just pick out a suitable selection for me, please."
It was a presumptuous request, but perhaps because Nielson's appearance was exceedingly lovely, Daskar didn't find it unpleasant.
This too was likely because she was a fairy.
That said, Rei, who had been watching this exchange, suddenly had a question and spoke up.
"It's fine to bring various things, but how do you plan to carry them?"
"Ugh..."
As if Rei's single remark had brought her back to reality, Nielson froze.
Given her size, she couldn't carry that much luggage.
"Rei... please."
Ultimately, what Nielson chose was a plea to Rei.
Since Rei had the Misty Ring, he could transport any kind of luggage without issue.
Rei thought, 'Is that why she asked?' but...
(Wait. Did I use the Misty Ring in front of Nielson?)
The thought crossed his mind, but Rei used the Misty Ring so routinely that it was second nature. Given that, he figured he had probably used it at some point without even realizing it himself.
Normally, one wouldn't use something as precious as the Misty Ring — or the Item Box — so casually in front of others. That was because, naturally, those who coveted such things would attack. In fact, Rei himself had been attacked numerous times.
But in Rei's case, he had repelled every single attacker. And now that he had become an Alias Holder and his strength was widely known, those who would attack him had decreased considerably.
In any case, that was why Rei used the Misty Ring without paying any particular attention to his surroundings.