Sorry, mister. Give up on any payback for now. I’ll make sure Gol understands she can’t do anything like that again.
“I-I won’t accept…your damn demands…” Spero repeated.
“What did you say?” I asked. Ah, shoot. It appeared I really shouldn’t have ignored Mr. Chotos’s advice and added a personal demand.
Sorry, mister. Forgive me. No matter what kind of person you are, you’re still a senior and your words should be respected. I mentally expressed my deep regret to Mr. Chotos.
On the other hand, Spero glared at me with his face twisted in hatred and his eyes bloodshot. Incidentally, this dashing man was the type of beauty whose face turned repulsive when emotional. “I am from Kinas and I am of pure blood! My lineage, character—everything about me is superior to you moronic country bumpkins and vile savages from the eastern frontier! I will never yield to scum like you!”
“What?” I was bewildered by this spitting, red-faced man’s feeble-minded statement. What did our conversation have to do with race? Racists and elitists of all kinds were terrible; the thought processes of such distorted people were truly incomprehensible to me.
To make matters worse, it seemed that in his fear, this man had lost all composure and good judgment. I honestly didn’t know why he was so afraid of me when I’d only come to talk, but we weren’t making any progress.
This was bad. He had the face of an intellectual, but within, he was a feral monkey. What could I do? At this rate, we wouldn’t be able to settle anything.
I admit I became a little gloomy and muttered, tears in my eyes, “This is hopeless…”
Suddenly, Spero screamed like it was the end of the world. “Gaahhhhh! Arrrrghhh! Eeeek! Oh NOOOOO!”
“Huh?!” I was so startled that I almost released him—but I remembered that I couldn’t let go. I couldn’t allow this opportunity to negotiate to escape, not for anything. What the heck are you getting so timid for, me? Remember who you’re doing this for.
Just then, I felt something soft and warm at my back. It was Gol. She draped herself over my spine, popped her head over my shoulder, and frowned at me with a worried face. She was no doubt concerned by my hopelessness.
Huh? That reminds me, Gol. What happened to Ginem Bari?
Well, whatever. She was right. I didn’t want to make her worry, and as her partner, I had to show her I could settle this difficult challenge with aplomb.
I once again tightened my grip on Spero’s collar. My partner’s support had filled me with determination. I was sure I could do this. Rather, I had no choice but to do it.
“Hey, Mr. Branch Manager,” I began, but when I brought my face close to Spero’s, I found myself thinking: Isn’t he panicking kind of a lot?
Everyone, personnel and customers alike, was staring at me in some kind of petrified horror. Was something wrong with my face?
Ugh, I knew my face wasn’t the friendliest. When I’d seen my expression reflected in the ancient Earth Dragon’s dying eyes, I hadn’t looked like a mere delinquent—I’d looked like a Demon King of Hell Unending. If a fainthearted person had seen me then, they would have burst into tears and begged for their life.
Oh no—could it be that I’ve been unintentionally intimidating and oppressing people just like those advocates of violence I abhor with every cell of my being? Ah, right, okay, a smile… What I need now is a smile.
I smiled sweetly and got even closer to Spero.
The moment I smiled, I failed to notice that the onlookers paled and shook even more terribly.
“I don’t care about your lineage,” I said. “I want you to listen to our demands and find a compromise. So let’s talk.”
“D-damn brat. I’m above you. I will never yield. I am a beautiful person of superior lineage, chosen by—auuuughhh!”
“Hm?!”
Spero began to scream again. However, I didn’t even flinch.
Sorry, I lied. I was actually startled and moved a little. However, I managed to maintain my smile. “Like I said, I don’t care about your circumstances. I only care that you listen to my demands… So hey, let’s talk, okay?”
“Talk or not, this kind of…torture wo—gaahhhhh!”
I was baffled, but I strove to maintain my smile. “Speak in words that even I can understand. If answering in sentences of your own devising is too hard, you can just reply, ‘Yes, I understand.’ So give it a rest and let’s talk.”
“Thamn savage gihh—gahhh—auuggghhh!”
I blinked.
“Hah gangh ngh! Ngh?! HooOooOOOOOHH!”
“Eh?”
Huh? Two times in a row, now?
As I stared in utter bafflement, the two soft, marshmallowy pillows pressed against my back moved delicately leftward. This time, Gol quietly popped her head over my left shoulder.
What is it, Gol? Is this a new game? You know, I’m kind of in the middle of an important conversation with the manager… The difficulty of this negotiation had spiked.
While the trajectory of the two parties failed to intersect, Spero screamed for the fifth time. Excluding the first series of loud screams, he had now screamed a total of ten times. At this point, Gol finally separated from me.
Are you sulking because I didn’t play with you? Sorry, partner. Once I finish this job, I’ll play with you a bunch.
Although I inwardly apologized to Gol, the situation wasn’t progressing. Spero started screaming all over again.
Hm. This wasn’t the first time I’d encountered this phenomenon. It had been the same with Ginem Bari and the large leader of the punks. It appeared that sometimes the people of this world let out a tremendous scream in order to intimidate their opponent and, if possible, escape. I could probably attribute this strategy to some sort of otherworldly cultural quirk, but for now I’d avoid making any claims.
Each time Spero screamed, some of the onlookers wobbled, and some eventually began to faint from dizziness. No one left the building, though. Everyone was glued to their spot as if they had lost the use of their legs. In other words, Spero’s screams were intimidating the crowd, innocent and otherwise. Ugh, what a problem. This man always found stunning new ways to disappoint me.
Also—I wrinkled my nose—the horrible stench of blood was coming from somewhere. Had I gotten some of Ginem Bari’s on my robe? I needed to check later.
Spero screamed an additional ten times after Gol separated from me. In total, the number of times he had screamed today exceeded twenty. In a way, his capacity for screaming amazed me.
As I frowned at his unsightly behavior, which was unbefitting of a working man, Gol stuck herself on my back again and popped her head over my right shoulder.
Oh? You came back, huh, partner? Where have you been playing?
Gol’s long elven ears tickled my right cheek. The two of us exchanged a glance and had a silent conversation for some time. This was the very image of a heartwarming connection between two trusting partners.
In contrast, Spero’s expression when Gol returned to my right shoulder was truly something. He vibrated in fear, and his eyes filled with the hopeless despair of a sinner thrown into Avīci, the lowest and most dreadful level of hell.
In any case, since the branch manager had been screaming his head off this whole time, was it possible he had already forgotten the contents of my demand? I should probably reiterate them just in case.
“Hey, Mr. Branch Manager.” With a warm smile, I spoke to Spero in the kindest voice I could. “If you really didn’t understand what I was saying, I don’t mind giving you an overview. It’s a little frustrating, but it can’t be helped. I’ll just have to keep explaining it until you understand, right? So let’s talk, okay?”
Spero was drenched in sweat as he wheezed, his face ashen. His eyes had become dull and his dilated pupils didn’t seem able to focus.
Well, that’s what he gets for all that screaming.
“E-eek! N-no more. Puhleeze fuhgive… Guh arrggghhh!”
For a while now, I had been hearing these odd cracks, like something thick had been broken, or snaps, like something hard had been twisted. However, they were practically drowned out by Spero’s terrible howling. Furthermore, he had been screaming so close to my face that my ears were ringing.
I thought that maybe those sounds were all in my head. To tell you the truth…I really didn’t know.
“Hey, if we keep having to do this over and over again, we’re going to reach the end of business hours, you know? Don’t you guys have a reputation for prompt work?” I suggested this to Spero with a smile. “So let’s hurry up and get started.”
“Aah, aah. I’ll do whaehbur ou say, so… Please. Please nuh muure…” Just like that, Spero finally stopped objecting with those awful wails and decided to listen.
As long as you persevere and strive, you can engage in sincere discussion, no matter how stubborn your opposing party or how difficult the negotiation. I felt like I had reached new heights as a peaceful, cultured man.
Filled with a sense of accomplishment, I smiled—not a forced smile, but one of genuine pleasure. Still pressed to my back, Gol looked elated.