“Chairman! They’re here, the ＜Paraiso＞ bunch!”
“……They’ve arrived.”
At that report, the chairman of the merchant guild, Kullavia Telek, couldn’t help but sigh in relief.
Since the last transaction, the royal capital’s purveyor had been sending urgent requests like arrows. Of course, they knew it was trade goods. Judging from the tone of the letters, the sender must be of considerable status. Perhaps backed by a high-ranking noble, or even royalty.
“Even so, they were fast. From what they said last time, I thought they were quite far away.”
Last time, she had asked how long a round trip would take, and they said it would take several months each way. Apparently, it took them half a year to reach Telek Port City in the first place. They said it would be faster this time since they knew the route…
But for them to return in just over two months was a welcome miscalculation.
“Chairman, and what’s more! It seems they’ve come with three ships!”
“What!”
More ships meant more cargo. If the amount available for trade increased, so would their options.
The chairman was driven by the urge to worship those cold-eyed women like goddesses. Since their arrival, a favorable wind had been blowing for sure. A wind of fortune, a wind of life, for the dwindling Telek Port City.
“We have the iron ready, right!?”
“Chairman, you checked yesterday! We’ve gathered as much as we could!”
For some reason, they seemed unusually interested in iron. They requested iron ingots, but from their attitude, it seemed like any kind of iron would do. Fortunately, there was an iron mine town a little inland from here, so iron was readily available. Although the quality was a bit poor, they diverted the amount sent to the royal capital and had it sent here. They had piled up so much in the warehouse that they wondered if it would be enough, but with three ships, they should have gathered much more than the other party expected.
“Alright, let’s go meet them. And send word to the other merchants to release their iron! They’re probably hoarding it anyway. The rate is 1000:1, they’ll be pulling nails out of the pillars to bring it!”
“……Pirate flag.”
“Yes. We took it down on the way. I thought it would be distinctive, so we recovered the pirate flag.”
Girls with the same faces and beast ears. This time, there seemed to be more of them, about ten who had come ashore. After introducing themselves, she thought they could chat for a bit, but then came those words.
“Do you know it? We want to know. We brought the flag.”
The captain, or rather, the fleet commander, Zwei, spoke, and another girl moved, placing a black cloth she was holding onto the table.
A pirate flag.
A flag raised by pirates to advertise their affiliation.
Naturally, there was a considerable bounty on it. If it was a famous pirate’s mark, it would be known in the surrounding area, and a bounty would have been placed on it. Well, in the current situation, it’s common not to be able to contact the country that’s supposed to pay the bounty, so you can’t rely on it.
“This is…”
She spread out the pirate flag and checked the skull mark.
“……Red Cap.”
“Isn’t that the notorious, great pirate! Are you saying these young ladies defeated them!”
“I don’t know the name. We were attacked, so we just fought back.”
A white skull on a black background, wearing a red hat. The great pirate Red Cap, who commands the largest and strongest ship-of-the-line, carrying nearly 100 cannons. That pirate flag was casually spread out on the table. Frankly, it was unbelievable…
“Red Cap, that would be the massive ship-of-the-line. You were able to win…?”
“If you don’t get hit by the cannons, it’s nothing.”
The chairman shuddered at that response. She remembered the bombardment that blew away that bastard’s mansion with a single shot, without even a test firing. Everyone seemed to be focused on the blown-away mansion, and hardly anyone paid attention to it.
That ＜Paraiso＞’s rotating turret. From the front-facing position, the turret rotated in less than 10 seconds, raised the elevation of the gun barrel, and fired a cannon shell without precise observation. Moreover, perhaps because horizontal fire would cause too much damage, the cannon shell flew in a parabolic trajectory and landed accurately in the center of the mansion. Without a doubt, they were dropping the cannon shell exactly where they wanted.
It was a chilling feeling. The time required to aim and fire. Because it was a rotating turret, there were almost no blind spots. With that, a ship-of-the-line wouldn’t even be able to fight in the first place. The power of the cannon shell was also sufficient. If they were hit by two or three shots, any large ship would sink.
“There’s probably a bounty on it, but payment isn’t possible here. Normally, we would contact the royal capital, and the bounty would be paid…”
“We understand the situation around here to some extent. You can use this. We want you to use it.”
“Whoa, now that’s…”
They said something incredibly generous. Of course, defeating a famous pirate is a prestigious thing. If they used this fact well, they could negotiate advantageously in any port. And they were saying they would give it up so easily.
“We only desire trade. We don’t need status or honor.”
That is.
The chairman, Kullavia Telek, understood. They didn’t need status or honor. Normally, people want both, but they didn’t think they needed them. That was almost certainly because they possessed immense power. In this world, power is everything. With enough military force, you can get anything. Money and power are just means to create military force.
If they turned that power against them.
This Telek Port City would be reduced to ruins overnight.
Last time, there was only one ship, with only two cannons. But this time, there were three times as many. If they were shot with those powerful cannons, their forces would be easily annihilated.
That’s why they were giving up that pirate flag.
Give it to them, and use it well.
Gather trade goods, and be useful to them.
“……Understood. We will gratefully accept this. ……Hey.”
“Yes!”
She had her subordinate put away the pirate flag, and the chairman breathed a light sigh. She thought it would be a casual chat, but it had turned into an unexpectedly heavy conversation.
“Well then, once again. You must be tired. Let’s postpone the negotiations until tomorrow, and I’d like you to rest well today, how does that sound?”
“We will do that. If possible, we would like to have half of the crew come ashore. Do you have rooms available? We will pay the price.”
“Oh. You’re willing to come ashore this time?”
To the chairman’s question, the fleet commander, Zwei, nodded.
“We are considering allowing half-shore leave for a while. This port is thriving, and the治安 (chian – public order) is good. Unlike our last visit, we have enough crew members, and we have currency. There is no problem.”
“I understand. You are welcome to come ashore, but would you allow us to provide you with a guide? With all due respect, you are unfamiliar with our customs, and we do not know your ways. To avoid unnecessary trouble, I would like you to agree to this.”
“We don’t mind. All of the crew members have been trained to understand your language to some extent. We welcome having a guide.”
The chairman breathed a sigh of relief inwardly at Zwei’s immediate nod. No matter how good the public order was, there were fools everywhere. If these girls with their appearances were to wander into an alley, it was easy to imagine what might happen. No, even the central city might be dangerous.
“Yes, that would be helpful. And we will prepare the lodging here. No, don’t hesitate. To us, you are important guests.”
Incidentally, at this point, the chairman had not confirmed the appearance of the crew members belonging to this ＜Paraiso＞ fleet. She had no idea that all of them were girls with beast ears. If she had known that, she might have proceeded with a little more caution.
But in reality, she didn’t pay much attention to it and took a form that welcomed the nobles. In other words, she made a big announcement, gathered people, and proceeded with the landing.
Therefore, their appearance became known to many people.
Not a single man, but beautiful girls with beast ears and tails marching in a row.
It brought shock to Telek Port City, which had been filled with a sense of stagnation. Residents flocked to see them every day, and security guards were increased to protect them from the enthusiasm. With a large crowd of people behind them, the sight of them strolling through the city became a common sight for a while.