“Whew, I think that covers it.”
After discussing all the various items I wanted to request from Lenarute, quite a bit of time had gone by. I’d passed on the most necessary items, so the next step was to see whether we could actually establish trade with Lenaruten companies.
“You really are terrifyingly impressive, Sir Reid. I never knew that item had so much potential.”
What I wanted from Lenarute was a raw material that Kris would hopefully obtain for us to process. We would then sell the final product in Lenarute and the imperial capital. If my marriage to the princess of Lenarute went through, it would also make negotiating tariffs and tolls easier, as well as potentially getting us some special treatment. Considering that possibility, this was a good opportunity for us to establish business connections there.
I also wanted to bring over people who were trained in a certain craft from Lenarute to Magnolia. The Kristie Trading Company was handling the job of finding candidates, and the Valdia family would handle the rest.
“Even if this succeeds, we won’t see results right away,” I remarked. “But I think it could definitely be a draw for both the Kristie Trading Company and Valdia Mark in the future. By the way, do you know any skilled artisans here in Magnolia?”
“Artisans? Do you mean dwarves?”
The mention of dwarves got me a bit excited. When it came to works of fantasy, they were always the talented craftsmen. I hadn’t had any opportunities to encounter a dwarf, so it would be exciting to meet one.
“A dwarf would be great!” I replied, beaming.
Kris seemed a bit troubled as she replied, “Dwarves rarely leave their home country, so recruiting one may take some time. However...” She hesitated but then seemed to steel herself and proceeded. “We also have the option to search for a dwarven slave in Valst or some other country.”
“A slave, huh?”
In this world, there were several countries where slavery was legal. Valst bordered the coastline, which gave them access to the international slave trade. The profit and labor force gained through their participation in the trade had contributed to their recent rise in power. However, with their power came growing criticism of the country. Valst was in all sorts of quarrels with other nations, the worst conflict being with Lenarute.
I was troubled by this. I was going to be marrying the princess of Lenarute soon, and slaves were the cause of the Valst Incident, so it seemed dangerous to be buying a slave at this point in time, even if I were to do it indirectly. I decided this was something to speak to my father about.
“For now, let’s set aside the idea of getting a slave. Can you proceed with a regular recruitment?”
“Understood. If I may ask, what are you going to make?”
“Oh, yeah, I’m thinking of something related to board games.”
Perhaps my response was unexpected, because Kris was staring at me with a suspicious look.
“Board games? You mean those things nobles use for leisure activities, such as chess and playing cards?”
“Something like that,” I replied.
Simple games in this world included chess and playing cards. I had no idea why those two things existed here, but I decided not to think too much about it. Rather, since I had those games as a jumping-off point, I could make other similar but different games, which would most likely sell well. The various games I knew from my previous life would surely come in handy.
Kris looked down and thought for a moment before looking back up at me. “I’m not very familiar with board games, but I believe you won’t have a need for detailed craftsmanship on gemstones or weapons, correct?”
“That’s right. I don’t think it’ll be difficult work. I’ll come up with the actual idea, so the artisan just needs to make it.”
“In that case, I should be able to recruit skilled people of other races. What would you like to do?”
Hm. I’m so enticed by dwarves, but there’s no need to limit our scope if it’s hard to find them.
“You don’t have to limit your search to dwarves,” I said. “I just want them to be skilled.”
“Very well. I will proceed with the search under those terms.”
“Thank you. I think that’s enough for today, then.” I raised both my arms up and let out a groan as I stretched.
If we establish some business connections with Lenarute, I think we’ll be set to see some big profit and development in the future. I’m surprised to learn that dwarves don’t really leave their home country. I hope I can do something about that in the future.
As those thoughts ran through my mind, I noticed that Kris seemed a bit down.
“What’s wrong, Kris? Are you having a hard time with something?”
“What? Oh, no. Nothing is wrong!”
“I... If you say so...”
I couldn’t help but worry about her. As I sat there wondering what could be wrong, Kris bluntly asked the question on her mind.
“Um, how old is the princess of Lenarute?”
“What? Oh, I think she’s the same age as me. Six years old. Isn’t it crazy that we’re both kids and getting married? It’s the epitome of a political marriage.”
“You’re both the same age? That is truly something else...” Kris was smiling, but she still seemed a bit sad for some reason.
“Since she’s going to be my wife, I want us to eventually be the kind of couple that my parents are. I’ll introduce you to her when the time comes.”
“Yes, I will be looking forward to it.”
With that, our meeting came to an end.