Sir Osvalt’s conjecture was likely correct. If Sir Osvalt hadn’t promised to set Harry’s underlings free when he did, it would have been harder for Harry to ask for anything other than his own release at this stage.
“Interesting analysis. I did think my freedom was practically guaranteed, as long as I provided you with the ore you needed.”
Harry certainly had a silver tongue. He didn’t need to lie. He was just tactical in which fragments of information he disclosed. He’d played Sir Osvalt and me like a pair of fiddles.
“What are your demands?”
“Hey, no need to look at me like that. I understand the position I’m in, and I have a reputation in Ashbrugge as an honest businessman.”
With a pleasant, lightheaded smile, Harry put up one finger.
What was that supposed to mean?
“One-tenth is good enough for me. I’m not going to be greedy.”
“Huh?” Sir Osvalt tilted his head in confusion.
One-tenth. I knew what that meant.
“Personally, I don’t mind a small profit margin. It’s more than worth it to secure the patronage of the Parnacorta royal family and the esteemed saint, and I recognize that I’ve been a nuisance. Ten percent of your net profits from the sale of the Moontear Flowers. Let’s shake on it!”
Ten percent of our net profits. I didn’t know much about business, so I wasn’t sure if Harry was asking for a lot or a little—but if his attitude was any indication, he’d made a significant compromise.
“Oh, and I’d like you to allow my company to set a market price and deal with sales. I’m sure there are competent merchants in Parnacorta, but this is one thing I’m unwilling to give up.”
“You want to set the price of the flowers?”
“You hear me loud and clear. I’ll prepare clear-cut financial statements and deliver precisely ninety percent of the net profit to Parnacorta and Girtonia, under whose jurisdiction the Volcanic Miasma Zone lies. Heh heh—you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours, eh?”
When Harry spoke about business, he had the wide-eyed enthusiasm of a child. He was already bragging about the huge profits we were sure to make if we left the sales to him. It was this confidence at buying and selling that had made him such a successful businessman.
“What do you say? I know you’ve been doing everything you can to help your country, Saint Philia. Surely you understand how much good this will do the nation?”
“I understand what you’re asking for, Harry. However, I wasn’t planning to profit from the Moontear Flower.”
“Excuse me? You weren’t?”
It might fill the state’s coffers if we sold the Moontear Flower, the mystical healing plant, to make money—but I wanted the plants to save as many people as possible. That was the reason I was focused on stopping the explosions, so Harry’s offer didn’t impress me much.
My reply must have put Harry off guard, because for the first time, he sounded a little flustered. “Hey, now, hold on a moment. Lady Philia, you need to think this through calmly. Aren’t Parnacorta and Girtonia strapped for cash?”
“What?”
I feared Harry was correct. Parnacorta had paid a high price to purchase me, then had suffered widespread damage from Asmodeus’ rampage. It was obvious that the treasury was depleted.
Unsure how to respond, I shot Sir Osvalt a look.
“I’m afraid I’m not in a position to respond to your proposal right away,” said the prince. “But broadly speaking, I’m not very enthusiastic about making money off the Moontear Flower.”
“My goodness. I didn’t expect this from Your Highness, too.”
“But I want to take care of this matter, and help would be greatly appreciated. Let’s see if we can meet in the middle.”
Since our marriage, Sir Osvalt had started to handle more of the official duties that used to go through Prince Reichardt, at his brother’s discretion. He sounded eager to shoulder this responsibility, too.
Effectively, he was letting Harry know that any and all negotiations involving the Moontear Flower must go through him.
“Well, well,” said Harry. “This won’t be straightforward, will it? Very well. Prince Osvalt, are you willing to take a meeting tomorrow morning?”
“Tomorrow? Let me see… Philia, I know we’re on our honeymoon, but would it be okay if I made time for this?”
“Of course. I’ll leave this to you, Sir Osvalt.”
I was relieved. I’d be happy with any decision Sir Osvalt reached.
“Okay. Tomorrow it is, then.”
“Er… If that’s settled, do you mind if I see more of the ruins?”
“Of course not. I’ll join you. Leonardo, Lena—keep an eye on Harry for us, will you?”
“Certainly.”
“Okey-dokey. You can count on us!”
Leonardo and Lena, who had been waiting in front of the carriage, directed their attention toward Harry. As slippery as he was, I knew he was in safe hands with those two. It wasn’t as though he had anything to gain from running away, at any rate.
“Rick, there’s something I want to ask you,” I said. “Could you come with me?”
“Uh, of course. Ask away. I’m terribly sorry for all the trouble I’ve caused you.”
“His Majesty will decide your punishment,” said Sir Osvalt. “For now, go along with Philia.”
“Uh, yes, Your Highness. Of course.”
With that, Rick, Sir Osvalt, and I headed back into the ruins.
“Rick,” I began, “did Harry ask to see anything other than the tower?”
“Uh, well, yes. He said he wanted to see a rock called the Mottled Boulder. Yes.”
“The Mottled Boulder?”
“Um, well, yes. It’s a large rock mottled with a pattern of countless holes, um, hence the name. Indeed.”
If my suspicions about that “Mottled Boulder” were correct… At any rate, I wanted to have a look. “Could you take me to it?”
“Oh, um, of course. It’d be my pleasure.”
Rick led us to the boulder. If I hadn’t asked, we might have skipped it altogether.
“Oh, there it is. Indeed. Uhm, that’s the Mottled Boulder. Yes.”
Rick pointed to a large rock in the distance. It was so enormous, it could easily have been mistaken for a mountain. As he’d said, it was peppered with holes.
Sir Osvalt examined the holes, amazed. “Wh-what are these? I saw some indentations like that yesterday, but there are so many here…”
These countless dimples could only mean one thing.
“There must have been frequent explosions here, just like in the Volcanic Miasma Zone.”
“What? That’s what these are? But what I saw yesterday didn’t even come close to this, and that place was dangerous.”
“I’m sorry about that.”
“No, that’s not what I meant. I’m just…shocked, I suppose.”
You could explain something to someone a hundred times, but nothing was as effective as a visual demonstration. This was a perfect example. It sounded like Sir Osvalt had finally grasped the danger of the Volcanic Miasma Zone.
“The inscription on that stone slab says the magic tool needs to be placed at the center of the area where mana is unstable. If we were to place one in these ruins, for example, it would go here.”
“Excuse me? Does that mean you plan to venture into that danger zone again when the magic tool is ready?”
I could understand why Sir Osvalt was concerned. If we wanted to stop the explosions, we essentially had three hurdles to overcome. First, we had to design a magic tool to stabilize the mana. Then, we had to obtain the materials to construct it. Finally, we needed to install the tool at the center of the Volcanic Miasma Zone.
“Don’t worry, Sir Osvalt. I’m sure there’s a way to do it without putting myself in danger. I’ll come up with something.”
“Will you? If you insist, I’ll have to trust you.”
I didn’t want to do anything reckless again. I planned to come up with a safe way of installing the device.
Right now, there was only one hurdle I was confident we could overcome: designing the tool.
The quickest way to procure the materials would be by cooperating with Harry, but he was far from straightforward. I doubted it would be simple.
Still, all hope was not lost. Even though the magic tool built by the ancients was long gone, the mana in our surroundings remained stable. If we managed to stabilize the mana in the Volcanic Miasma Zone, it would probably stay that way.
“Should we head back soon? I know Leonardo’s keeping an eye on that merchant guy, but we shouldn’t hang around for too long.”
“Yes. Let’s go.”
“We can spend the night at that nearby inn, as planned. Tomorrow we can regroup, as long as Himari comes back soon.”
We had a mountain of challenges to grapple with. Still, at least we had a plan. We knew the problems we needed to overcome, and that made a big difference.
And so we headed back to Leonardo and Lena.