05.LITTLE GIRL GOES MEET WITH A SLAVE MERCHANT
“Yes, now I will be handing you your payment. Please, sign here.”
“Alright. Well, it should be about this.”
Bela smoothly wrote down her name: Bela Heiroh.
“Oya, despite being so young, I have nothing to criticize about your writing. It seems you´ve been very well educated.”
“Well, even though I used to live in a village, it´s not like there weren´t any books there. When I didn´t have anything to do, I would study by reading those, you see.”
What Bela had said was the truth. Even though Bela pretty much perfectly knew how to write the letters and words, the merchant Kooza didn´t take those words seriously. To begin with, no matter how much of education she received and how gifted she was…it was impossible for her to learn it by the age of six. Supposing Bela had some situation she couldn´t talk about, Kooza ended their conversation without commenting anything in particular about it.
The money Bela received from selling the raw materials of the bigrobears was more than thirteen million goldin. One unit of bigrobear skin would cost more than one million goldin, but with it, it was possible to produce a great amount of good quality leather armor made of them, which was boasted of being more resistant than steel. It was necessary to have craftsmen for that, and it would take a considerable amount of money to pay them, but even so, Kooza gave Bela an amount of money that would be considered a nice amount of money even for Kooza,
The percentage of death when fighting huge beasts even when using machiinis was very high. There were mercenaries that specialized at hunting them, but because they wouldn´t really hunt greater beasts other than the hagre ones that would invade villages, the amount this material would enter in the market wasn´t much. There was also this reason for the price to be high.
“By the way, is there a company called Vagahte in this city?”
After finishing counting the money inside the pouch she received, Bela spoke, breaking the ice.
“Yes, it is very big for its slave trading. What about it?”
“On my way here, I saw a corpse that seemed to be from someone from there, so I thought I should go tell them.”
“Very righteous.”(TL note: Better wording anyone? I couldn´t think or find of a word with this meaning that doesn´t feel chuuni D:)
Kooza said that, but when Bela heard that, she shrugged her shoulders.
“It´s not that, you know? I need to buy some slaves. So like, I just thought of having them see me favorably.”
Bela spoke while showing a smile. Showing his understanding, Kooza said “I see”. This was easier to accept rather than she
“I am acquainted with the owner there, and you´ve sold me very good material this time. Since that is the case, how about I guide you there?”
“Hyahya,, this would be of help.”
After nodding to Bela´s words, Kooza asked her.
“However, what kind of slaves are you looking for?”
“You see, I have this appearance after all. For some reason, people picking a fight with me happens all the time, so I kind of wanted some insecticide, you see.”
Bela happily spoke to Kooza. By looking at that happiness, Bela looked like a normal child that was happy because she was going to buy new toys, but Kooza couldn´t look down at the girl in front of his eyes. The impression given by how she came with twelve pelts of Bigrobear was something that overpowered her appearance.
There was no way Kooza would pick a fight against a monster that would act as if greater beasts were nothing, but if one wasn´t to know anything about this, there would be people that would come at her to try sell her as a slave. It wasn´t something unimaginable.
“Well, for now, let´s go check there.”
“I will leave it to you.”
Nodding at those words, Kooza told his subordinates he was going out. Leaving [Aiandinna] at the parking lot, Bela headed to the city together with Kooza.
—-
Once she got inside the city, Bela could see the it was lively, but there also was a feeling of restlessness. Inside there, Bela, Kooza and three warrior escorts were walking.
“It is said that soon, the war is going to be over. So like, they want to sell out everything they can.”
While Bela was glancing through the situation of her surroundings, Kooza explained.
“Does this mean that I came in a good timing?”
“Perhaps.”
If one thinking only about the prices, perhaps this could be said, but in fact, all the good products had already been sold and everything there was left remaining were only the leftovers. Even if it was a slave that was expensive, the chance this one had certain peculiarities was high.
“By the way, what kind of slave are you looking for?”(TL note: Wtf is that ->購入するとすると
If it was about having the insecticide, it would be enough to get some cheap slave that was all appearances. However, Kooza thought this wouldn´t be enough for a machiini pilot of her caliber to let herself walk along with a slave of such worth.
“I would prefer one that comes together with a machiini. Well, I guess one like this is impossible in the end.”
“Yes. To buy only one simple machiini by itself, you would need thirty million goldin.”
The costs for the compensation for the capturing of the machiini, changing its owner, and the transportation costs would also be included. This wasn´t something Bela could put her hands on.
“Well, I was thinking about other options and after looking at those silphies, I thought it might be better to look for element pilots.”
“I see. Indeed, the price would be less, so it should be fine. However, wouldn´t it be a bit lacking with just the money I have paid you before?”
“Well, I have my own savings here.”
Nodding at Bela´s words, Kooza stopped in front of a certain building that was facing the main street.
—-
“Isn´t it Kooza-sama?”
Once the gatekeeper of this building had seen Kooza, he lowered his head.
“Hey, I´ve brought another customer today. Is Marfoi there?”
“Yes, he is here today… But where is the customer?”
The gatekeeper looked at Kooza and the escorts that were next to him, and at last, he looked at Bela.
“Yes, she will be a good customer for you. Could you let us pa.s.s for now?”
“Y-yes, by all means.”
While suspiciously looking at Bela, the gate keeper opened the door, and after talking to an attendant that was inside the building, he let Kooza and the others inside.
“Did you feel offended?”
As the attendant guided them through the building, Kooza asked Bela.
“Well, I can just purchase what I came for in other to the suspicions. There is no need for me to care about that.”
Saying that with a wry smile, they continued to walk through the corridor. And then, at the end of it, there was a room that was needlessly decorated with gaudy ornaments. And inside it, there was a chubby old man.
“Hey Kooza. It has been a long time.”
Once the chubby old man saw Kooza, he extended his arms and came to hug him.
“Hey Marfoi. Likewise. It is good to see that your business has been going well.”
Kooza hugged him back. Releasing him, Marfoi looked at Kooza, and then he looked at Bela.
“Hmpth. I heard you brought a customer for me, but…”
Kooza was showing a smile to Marfoi. Marfoi narrowed his eyes and he increased his vigilance in his heart.
“It would be this ojou-san here.”
Looking from Marfoi´s perspective, it felt like a stupid thing to be saying, but by looking at Kooza´s behavior… it could only be seen that he was treating the girl as a customer. Marfoi would brag he had discerning eyes for people. Because of that, he was able to keep alive as a great slave merchant, but even so, he couldn´t see through the girl in front of his eyes.
“”What rich guy would tell Kooza to go buy escort slaves for a child? No, I guess there isn´t any. Her clothing is not even of someone that would have money. It doesn´t seem like he was playing house together with the kid.””
There wasn´t even the slightest feeling that the girl was showing the fear of strangers and the innocent curiosity that was typical from kids. The equipment she was wearing seemed to be cheap, but they were prepared having real combat in mind. Marfoi was able to feel that her gaze was also looking at him, evaluating his worth.
“Yes, Bela-san is indeed still very young, so it seems she doesn´t know well about the trading here. And so, I came here with her to help her.”
Bela laughed at Kooza´s words.
“I see. From what I can see… Would she be something like an adventurer?”
Guessing from Kooza´s tone of voice and Bela´s appearance, Marfoi said. If this was only a prank, he would be giving big laughs right now. However, this seemed not to be the case.
“That´s right. I came here just to inform you about a thing here.”
“Inform?”
“It seems Bela-san had been next a person called Kidan from the Vagahte company in his last moments.”
“Kidan? Yes, he should have gone to the south now.”
With his eyes blinking with surprise at the name that suddenly came out, Marfoi said.
“He was eaten by some puppies, you see. Other than that, I´ve picked this notebook that was lying by him.”
Saying that, Bela put the logbook onto the table in front of her eyes. Bela had already tore all the pages that had things related to her and the Laila village. Looking at the dirt that was on the logbook, Marfoi made a bit of a unpleased face, but Bela didn´t mind that.
“This… What can I say… No, first, thank you for contacting me. ”
Marfoi said. Kidan was the one Marfoi had been the most concerned about among the young ones that worked to him.(TL note:Not sure about the accuracy in this one -.-キダンはマルフォイが気にかけていた若い連中の中では頭ひとつ抜けていた男だった。)
“I think there were other slaves with him, but it seems they were eaten whole together with their rags, you see.”
“This is something that can´t be helped. Then, was Bela-sama fine at that time?”
Because Bela had said “puppies”, Marfoi thought she must have encountered the greater demons killed Kidan. In that case, why was the girl in front of his eyes still alive?
“Hah, there is no way I would be killed by only four puppies.”
“Bela-sama is skilled enough to defeat bigrobears.”
Hearing that, it seems Marfoi was able to understand this girl had something going for her.
The information that raw materials from bigrobears had been sold at the Benmark company has spread even inside the city. And also, it was said that the one to defeat the bigrobears wasn´t a group of combatants, but a single machiini pilot.
He didn´t know how the little girl was able to fight them by herself,
Actually, at that time, Bela didn´t have something like a machiini with her, and the weapon she was using was one she stole from Kidan. She had killed the demon beast with it, and then, she killed Kidan and the other slaves. Well, but there wasn´t any reason to tell a trivial thing like that. Demon beasts attacked, Kidan died and Bela survived. The important part was only that.
“I see. You´ve done me a great favor. Let me give my thanks in the stead of Kidan.”
“Hyahya, don´t worry about it. Well, now the next thing I want to say.”
To Marfoi, who wanted to give her his thanks, Bela said as if it wasn´t that big of a deal.
“Now then, Bela-sama. You may be our client. H Bela-sama should be aware of the merchandize we deal with, correct?”
Slave merchant. It was a well known business in this world, but there was no mistake this was a shady business. It wasn´t something children could easily get related to. Most of the times. the parents would tell their children something like “If you get near them, they will make you their slave”, so because of that, even if the person wouldn´t do something like that, it was still a business that was expected to receive avoidance.
“Of course. I am expecting ones full of energy there.”(TL note: Better word to use here? 活きの良い -.-)
However, there wasn´t any feeling of avoidance or fear in Bela´s eyes, who was laughing as she said that. All there was in her eyes was the feeling of antic.i.p.ation just the way she had told him.