Volume 2 Chapter 25 [Alliance SIDE] Iron Fist Sanction × 1 Gold Coin = X × 40 Billion Gold Coins Can You Solve for X？!
If the injury is minor──like getting beaten up real bad──a simple trip to the potion shop with just one gold coin is all it takes to heal up in no time.
Besides, in high society, leaving your wounds untreated is seen as a weakness.
Once you're looked down on, it's pretty much game over.
Depending on your position, it can be... terrifying.
Big merchant guilds are often tied to noble families, so when one of them gets involved, you can't just leave a wound like that.
You can't risk being seen as weak.
In that sense, the fear behind 'Iron Fist Justice' is equal to the value of 'one gold coin.'
On the flip side, the terror of 'one gold coin' is as dangerous as 'Iron Fist Justice.'
...It feels like about ten essential theories were skipped, but that's just how it is.
* * *
"Heh heh heh, it's so easy to manipulate them. These stupid Adventurers."
Alvaro, with his neatly trimmed brown hair and high-end suit, was sitting in the office used by Cedal and Pastor, busily working on paperwork.
"I think I'm the stupid one here, honestly. I really don't believe this plan is gonna work, though."
"Sora. You should change your attitude toward me. I keep you around because you're talented, but one wrong move and I'll toss you out."
On the sofa in the office, a young boy was lying down.
He wore a high-end suit, just like Alvaro, but under his long blue hair was a face that looked youthful and androgynous.
If you looked closely, you could see his Adam's apple clearly, so there's no doubt he's a boy.
But his voice was still high-pitched, like a boy who hadn't hit puberty yet.
"Ahhahahaha! I brought in the money, used it to butter up the merchants, and now they've kicked me out? If I go to a different place, they'll be in real trouble!"
"...I appreciate you gathering such a large sum of money. But you should know, not everything can be solved with just gold."
"Hmph... Well, that's true. There's nothing more useless than a large sum of money you can't protect."
"Exactly. The real question is what you'll use that money for. Don't end up like those nobles who hoard gold and think that alone makes them secure."
"I'm not exactly keen on heading to some noble's place after getting kicked out of here... but, whatever."
Sora let out a long yawn, then went back to examining the documents.
"So, we're really going through with the plan to acquire the rare minerals from the Great Mine of Gold World?"
"Of course. That's why we joined the coalition, even knowing we'd get ousted from the top."
"Yeah, I get why Cedal and Pastor might be out of their depth..."
Alvaro had always known that Cedal and Pastor would eventually fall from grace, even if he couldn't fully grasp the strength of the hero and his master.
He wasn't underestimating them, though.
That's precisely why he had anticipated that clashing with them would lead to the downfall of Cedal and Pastor.
"So, what's the move?"
"We can't just rely on underhanded deals. We'll have to go about this head-on."
"Head-on?"
"Indeed. There's something the hero community can never prepare for."
"Oh? What's that?"
"Simply put, 'luxury'."
"...?"
"We acknowledge their military might to defeat the Demon Lord, their technical prowess to outfit quality gear, and their logistics to support a hundred troops. But in their pragmatism, culture doesn't flourish──only technology."
"I see."
"Sure, merchants and blacksmiths in this country have the priority to purchase the metal from the major vein. But those merchants are human too. We just need to exploit their desires."
In short.
"...We wine and dine this country's merchants and obtain the metals and related goods from them?"
"Exactly, Sora."
However, getting hold of the metal that the merchants of this country acquire isn't easy.
They engage in trade amongst themselves, and not just in Jewel City Lapis, but in other towns as well, selling to blacksmiths.
And they often have contracts to purchase the equipment made from these metals first.
In essence, the merchants of this country hold a significant amount of the rare minerals and the equipment made from them.
"If there's one upside, it's that the hero's master stepped into a massive vein of ore, and now unwanted stones are flooding the rare stone market. Mid-tier ores will drop in value, making them easier to get."
"The merchant guild connected to the Union's asking us to fetch metals from deeper layers, huh? What's the plan there?"
"It's going to take time, no question. We'll just have to chip away at it, slowly."
"Huh... that's surprisingly sensible."
Sora didn't look bored... not at all.
(Yeah, that's not happening. So many in the Union think they're invincible because they're tied to the big merchant guilds. They're bound to go on a rampage sooner or later.)
The problem with Alvaro's plan, at least as Sora saw it, was that now the Union was a thing, bringing in more than just his original guild members──it meant a tighter grip was needed, something different from what he had done before.
Alvaro's a guy who knows danger when he sees it.
He knows never to underestimate the hero and his master.
But his underlings... no, the *Adventurers* who just joined, the ones who've been riding high, they don't get it.
(Also... is there seriously no real culture in the hero community? I don't know how much money they've got, but they could probably *buy* a culture if they wanted. I think. Maybe.)
Sora knew that Horace had been running around, bringing all sorts of things to different places as part of his business dealings.
In other words, it was already a precedent that 'hero-related people' were going around dropping stuff everywhere.
(Hmm... the terrifying power of a punch? One gold coin. I wonder how much violence that would translate to in the hero community.)
Sora glanced at Alvaro, but he didn't seem to notice.
(Eh, whatever. I've got time until Sid makes a move. I'll just watch for now.)
While thinking this, Sora kept reading through the materials.
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