“Don’t those kinds of ships all go to Kerube?”
“Pretend you’ve come a long way and you’ve been served local food you don’t really understand. What would you do if you knew there was a place offering familiar food from your own hometown? Even if it is a little out of the way, everyone would still go there instead.”
In all honesty, Lawrence had led a wanderer’s life for so long that he did not really understand what sort of meaning food could have.
But once, when he and Holo first started traveling together, she had been so nervous and upset that all the places they visited had transformed beyond her recognition. And so when a dish she used to eat was served to her, she had shed tears of relief.
“And it’s thanks to Col that all the big southern companies that deal in luxury goods have been thrown into utter chaos. Their highest-paying customers have traditionally been from the Church, only they’ve all stopped buying. The big companies who deal in expensive items from the deserts all complain while they send boats up north this way. Even though they were ones that never gave us product, no matter how much we asked.”
And that was the only time Eve flashed a wicked smile.
They were trading partners that had given even her a rough time.
Lawrence felt like he had gotten just a tiny glimpse of the troubles that plagued the Debau Company, the people who safely delivered all the goods they needed for the bathhouse; when he realized how wretched he was for thinking it would be cheaper to obtain those very same things via Karlan, he immediately regretted it.
“The large port cities that used to be the main ones have been constantly betrayed by the southerners’ greed, so they’re trying to beat down prices in retaliation. So here, if they put Karlan in their debt and manage to secure this deal, then it’ll be a huge investment into the future.”
Lawrence would never say that running the bathhouse in Nyohhira was easy or boring.
But he got a whiff of grand, noble trade from Eve’s story that did not come with the day-to-day minutiae of the bathhouse.
Anyone who had walked silently on their own two feet for profit to the top of the hill could picture the brilliant future in the distance.
The moment he recalled the scent of the dusty earth from that point in time, he was kicked under the table. He looked over in his shock to see that Holo was grumpily eating her meat, not even looking at him.
Perhaps Holo had gotten the same sense that he did when he saw her gaze deep into the forest outside the Tonneburg smithy. He reached out to pat her head, to tell her that he was not going anywhere, but she swatted his hand away.
He gave a self-effacing smile at her indifference and turned to Eve.
“I now understand why you were making merry, why the tavern seemed as gaudy as it did, and why Lord Tonneburg doubts the eager Karlan merchants. And that you are not trampling over Col and Myuri’s feelings or working against them.”
Eve only closed her eyes and shrugged.
“The last thing I want to ask you is if you really need all the lumber the forest has to offer.”
Eve’s eyes remained closed, and Holo’s red irises stared at her.
“What on earth could you be using all that for?”
Lawrence knew that everyone needed lumber at the present.
Eve was not making unfair demands, and it seemed she was getting what she could by bartering wool. And he could tell that Karlan was using Matthias, Lord of Tonneburg, their lumber supplier, as a way to gain Col’s protection.
But in a plan where everyone benefits, it seemed Tonneburg was the only one that was losing out.
What happened in Salonia caused something in Lawrence’s chest to pang, but that just meant he could do some more work here to protect Tonneburg, just like last time.
If he was able to cut down on the lumber that was to be handed over to Eve, then he could prevent that much damage to the Tonneburg Woods. And that, too, might suppress the effects the cutting would have on the great wheat fields.
He knew there was a lot of hope in the thought, but he wanted to make sure it was possible.
But Eve’s expression coolly saw through his wishes.
“This isn’t a nice answer,” she said, looking to Lawrence with a sharpness that reminded him of the past.
“Merchants never want to hear nice answers.”
The wolfish merchant gave a grin and lifted her head. “Col and Myuri are causing quite a stir.”
“They are.”
“Big enough to split the world in two. There are storms whipping up everywhere.”
Eve swirled the glass in her hand, creating a whirlpool with her drink.
She kept going, and some droplets eventually leaped out.
“Look at that. People are getting ejected from the equation left and right.”
The girl sitting next to her reached out to wipe her wet hand, but Eve instead lifted it and licked away the droplets.
“Merchants might be different in their likes, personalities, and thought processes, but they’ll always reach a deal when there’s profit to be had. But there are things we can’t always profit on, and one of those things is faith.”
In that moment, Lawrence recalled how nervous Matthias looked when he informed Lawrence which side of the church conflict he took.
“There are people who the local rulers decided have different faiths, and are treating them like heretics of the past. But Col and Myuri have gained too much power for even the Church conservatives to simply brush them off as mere heretics. And so while the Church is not threatening them with excommunication or being burned at the stake, it’s a lot like finding pebbles in a sack filled with wheat. You’re going to have to get those out at some point.”
Lawrence nodded slowly. “Are you working to save these displaced people?”
Eve scrunched up her face when she heard that, acting like a child that wanted to be seen as an evil merchant. When she spoke, it came out quickly, like an excuse.
“I have a lot resting on Col. If he stumbles, then my business fails. I’m just getting rid of the pebbles that don’t belong.”
Lawrence could easily picture Col pained by the news that his own actions were causing people to be chased from their homes. He wondered what Eve thought when she saw the same sight.
Holo trusted her, which meant she had to be a good person deep down.
“Then is it true you want to settle talks before winter comes?”
Eve sulked, averting her eyes as she answered. “The kingdom is colder than it is here. If we did accept refugees only to end up treating them like beggars, then Col’s reputation would fall.”
They would have to build houses to shelter them. And with more people, they would need more kindling to warm the houses. No amount of lumber would ever be enough.
“We’d need ships to transport the refugees. And honestly, if we had the ships, they’d rather—”
“Hmm?”
Eve suddenly fell silent; Lawrence looked at her curiously.
She sighed and shrugged. “It’s nothing. You should ask them for the details yourself. That’s why you left the bathhouse, isn’t it?”
What was this about ships? Lawrence and Holo found themselves exchanging glances.
“Col and that little knight of a wolf are a whole lot more reckless than our generation. I’m worried.”
Her expression was anxious; this was not an act.