I arrived at Kuro’s castle carrying the pottery and glass pieces Nebula had crafted. I had already sent word to Tre and the others that I was coming.
After a brief greeting to Funf at the entrance, I stepped inside to find Tre waiting for me—or rather, it felt like she had been lying in wait.
The moment she saw me, she flashed a suave, cynical smile. Since she was a tall, cool-type beauty—in appearance alone—the brooding expression suited her perfectly.
"Heh... your mood clearly just improved. I take it you’re happy a beautiful big sister came down to greet you?"
"Well, you definitely have the beauty part down, but..."
"Huh? That's weird. Isn't that the kind of thing people say when someone looks good but has a messed-up personality?"
Her playful banter was as charming as ever. Slipping in those little gags was very much Tre's style.
"Well, regardless, welcome, Kaito!"
"Hello, Tre. Oh? Where are Cento and Cien?"
"They’re waiting in our room. We’re heading there anyway, so there was no point in all three of us coming down. Besides, even I wouldn't get lost inside this castle."
"Ah, I see."
"In that case, I’ll show you to our room right away!"
I followed Tre as she started walking. I had been to Kuro’s castle many times and was relatively accustomed to it, but this was my first time visiting Tre and her sisters' private quarters, so I had no idea where we were going.
The castle looked massive from the outside, but because space expansion magic had been applied throughout, the interior was far larger and more complex than it appeared. Tre had come to meet me today, but even when I dropped by unannounced, Ein would usually come to fetch me, so I had never actually gotten lost before.
"Come to think of it, do you and your sisters live here in the castle full-time, Tre?"
"Hmm. We have a room here, so I suppose it’s true that we live here... but we have several other houses too. Depending on the work season, we might be staying elsewhere. We’re only here about half the year, I’d say. You see, I’m actually quite the big deal! Ahem!"
"I see. It certainly makes sense to operate from different bases depending on the job."
"Yeah. Right now, I’m involved in the project in the Human Realm that Chrome-sama is spearheading, so I go there quite often. I even bought a house in the Arclesia Empire near the magic crystal veins."
The project Kuro was advancing aimed to increase the number of magic tool technicians in the Human Realm. The technical intern program my mother and father participated in was one part of that effort.
As a side note, my parents had successfully obtained their magic tool technician qualifications and were now working at the Sinfonia Royal Capital branch of the Seditch Magic Tool Trading Company.
Thinking back to the shipboard party, Tre had been looking for a partner for magic crystal mining, so she might be very deeply involved in the logistics of that project.
"Oh, that reminds me, Kaito. Thanks for introducing me to An!"
"Oh, no problem... Did the negotiations go well?"
"Yeah. We signed an exclusive contract with An’s union. Just like you said, they have a lot of talented people. The mining is going even more smoothly than I anticipated."
"I’m glad to hear that."
At the shipboard party, An and Tre's interests had aligned perfectly, and both seemed eager to work together. I was simply relieved to see the contract settled successfully.
It seemed An’s union hadn't been receiving fair compensation or treatment for their skills until now, so as a friend, I was happy to see things turning around for them.
"By the way, this isn't about magic crystals, but... it looks like Isis-sama—or rather, Isis-sama’s faction—is going to be expanding their trade network."
"Ah, I heard a bit about that recently. Had it been a near-monopoly until now?"
"Yeah. To begin with, it was difficult just to reach Isis-sama's castle in the Land of Death. Mining there is an ordeal because of the environment, and since Isis-sama was so widely feared, most people found it too intimidating to even try. But now that Isis-sama has subordinates, there are more points of contact for negotiation. Plus, those subordinates are putting a lot of effort into environmental improvement in the Land of Death. That’s probably why it’s becoming easier to expand."
"I see. Since the Land of Death is an extreme cold land, the environment itself was a major hurdle."
With Shiro-san’s Blessing constantly active, I tended to forget, but the Land of Death was a place locked in snow and ice year-round. That alone must have made mining incredibly difficult.
"Remember Rasal? The one I negotiated with thanks to your introduction? Lately, we’ve been getting a surge of additional orders. Apparently, they’re experimentally deploying permanent-type barrier magic around some of the crystal veins. I assume she has a subordinate who specializes in that?"
"I believe Polaris is their expert in barrier magic."
"I thought so. Anyway, reforms are gradually moving forward like that. Maybe a town will even be built in the Land of Death before long. It’s exciting to think about."
"It really is. It would be wonderful if that happened."
If a town were built and more people moved there, I was sure Isis would be happy. It would take time and there were plenty of challenges, of course, but I found myself hoping for that future.
Serious-senpai: "While this is all very heartwarming, one mustn't forget that behind the scenes, there is the young lady of a marquis house currently getting her stomach punched..."