The day after Kaito visited Kuromueina's Castle, a visitor arrived at Razulia's plantation.
"Ah, Nia-san and Mina-san! Welcome! I'm so glad you're here!"
"Hello, Razulia-dono."
"Pardon the intrusion."
The visitors were Satania and her minotaur aide, Minagard. Razulia welcomed them both with a bright smile. As a natural socialite, Razulia boasted a vast network of acquaintances; she was on friendly terms with nearly every executive serving under the Six Kings.
"Razulia-dono, thank you for putting us in touch with the Fairy Race the other day. It is a small token of my gratitude, but I have brought some sweets for you."
"Wa~ thank you so much! Please, let me know if you ever need anything else. I have lo~ts of fairy friends, so I’m always happy to help if there’s anything I can do!"
Satania had visited because she recently required specialty goods from the Fairy Race for her merchant association's procurement. Since Razulia had extensive influence within the race, she had acted as a mediator, and Satania was here to offer her formal thanks.
At Satania’s signal, Minagard handed a beautifully wrapped package to Razulia, who accepted it with a cheerful grin. They spent a short while engaged in idle chatter until Razulia spoke up as if she had just remembered something important.
"That's right! Nia-san, Kaito-kun-san shared some Riples with me yesterday. Would you like some too?"
"From Miyama Kaito-sama?"
"Yes! Kaito-kun-san received them from a friend who is a noble in the Arclesia Empire, and they are absolutely delicious! Kaito-kun-san said he really liked them, too."
"Riples that Miyama Kaito-sama holds in high regard... and from the Arclesia Empire, no less. I am very interested. In that case, I shall take you up on your offer... I see. These are indeed high-quality Riples."
The moment she heard Kaito liked them, Satania’s eyes sharpened with focus. She took a single bite of the fruit she received from Razulia and nodded in approval.
"...You mentioned they came from the Arclesia Empire, but from where specifically?"
"Apparently, a girl named Marie from the Rich Baron House is a friend of Kaito-kun-san’s! But even though her Riples are so tasty, umm... well... it seems Marie-san’s family isn't very good at business, and they're in trouble because they have a surplus of stock."
"The Rich Baron House, I see... Indeed, the logistics in that region are quite poor. There are no Teleportation Gates, and the trade cities are a considerable distance from the Baron's territory. It must be incredibly inconvenient for shipping. I can easily see how even high-quality products would remain buried and unknown."
"That’s right. Kaito-kun-san was worried about it, too. He asked me to introduce the Rich Baron House's Riples to all my friends."
Hearing Razulia’s words, Satania rested her hand on her chin, her expression turning pensive. Now that Kaito’s name had been brought into the mix, there was no way she would treat this as a casual matter.
(If the revered Miyama Kaito-sama is troubled, then it is unthinkable for me, who has sworn him my loyalty, to remain idle. While providing simple financial aid to the Rich Baron House would be easy, logistics cannot be solved by money alone. However, the Riples themselves are of exceptional quality. If we integrate them into the Western Region's logistics and apply the proper refinements, they could yield significant long-term profit... Perhaps I should simply buy up the land in that area and build one? A Teleportation Gate... If this concerns a friend of Miyama Kaito-sama, I should be able to secure Gluttony’s cooperation as well. That would allow us to construct the gate with a minimal investment... I believe I’ll bring the proposal to Gluttony at once.)
The Lord Trading Company, which Satania presided over, was a titan known as one of the Five Great Trading Companies. Its financial resources made the wealth of typical nobles look like pocket change.
Building a Teleportation Gate was not a particularly daunting expense for her, and if she could enlist Gluttony—a Master of Space-Time Magic—the construction costs would be drastically reduced.
Furthermore, Gluttony shared the same unwavering loyalty toward Kaito as Satania did. If a friend of Kaito’s was involved, she would undoubtedly agree to help without a second thought. Weighing the investment against the potential return, the venture seemed highly profitable.
"...Razulia-dono, you have given me excellent information. I believe I shall take action through my merchant association to see how we might assist Miyama Kaito-sama's friend."
"Ohh! If Nia-san is getting involved, that’s incredibly reassuring!"
Satania smiled at the prospect of being useful to Kaito, while Razulia rejoiced with innocent glee... Meanwhile, entirely unbeknownst to the members of the Rich Baron House, a massive wave was beginning to move.
Stomach Pain Devil: "Daisandaa!"
Serious-senpai: "Give her a break, will you!? At least break it into stages! If you dump all that on her at once, her stomach won't leave a single trace behind!"