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Elm City— Ori Tower, Sixth Floor—
Inside the reception room. Not long after the maid finished serving the fruit platter and left, another maid returned, leading a man and a giant serpent into the room.
The middle-aged man stepped in first and greeted Ryo with a cupped-fist salute and a warm smile. "I never imagined that someone of Alliance Leader Ryo Yagami's stature would visit the Ori Merchant Guild. Your presence is a great honor to us."
"And you are?" Ryo asked.
"Oh, listen to me, getting ahead of myself." The man smacked his forehead with a laugh before introducing himself. "I'm Singh, one of the directors of the Ori Merchant Guild."
He gestured toward the enormous serpent beside him. "This is another director, a Seven-Headed Naga of the naga clan. You can just call him Nanashi. He's... not especially comfortable speaking the human tongue, so I hope you'll forgive him."
Knowing his own shortcomings, Nanashi simply nodded all seven heads in greeting without saying a word.
"A pleasure." Since they had come with smiles instead of hostility, Ryo naturally responded with polite courtesy.
Seeing that Ryo didn't appear to be looking for trouble, Singh quietly let out a breath of relief. He and Nanashi took seats on the sofa opposite him.
"So," Singh asked with a courteous smile, "what brings Mr Yagami to the Ori Merchant Guild today?"
Since the other party had gotten straight to the point, Ryo didn't bother beating around the bush, "The black market."
'Just as I thought.' Singh's expression didn't change.
Officially, the Ori Merchant Guild was a construction and real estate community.
Anyone with decent connections in Little Garden, however, knew that was merely a front.
Their real business was the black market, dealing in prohibited goods. It was also the only business likely to attract the attention of someone of Ryo's stature.
After all, the Heavenly Army wasn't just for show, and most Floor Masters actually enforced the law. Many items deemed forbidden by them could only be bought through underground channels.
Slave trading. Illegal drugs. Banned divine relics. Anonymous services whose sellers couldn't be identified.
Only the black market dealt in things like those.
Someone like Ryo wouldn't come personally unless he was interested in the truly confidential merchandise.
Thinking he'd guessed Ryo's purpose, Singh smiled even more broadly. "You've come at just the right time."
He reached into his coat, pulled out a brown parchment scroll, and handed it over. "This is the catalog for our next auction. If anything catches your eye, it's yours."
"Oh?" Ryo raised an eyebrow and quietly stopped Kurousagi, who had nearly spoken up.
Only now had the poor rabbit realized that he'd brought her to shop at the black market. She'd almost jumped to her feet.
The Moon Rabbits of Little Garden were practically honorary law enforcement. Reporting illegal transactions was part of their duty.
Fortunately, Ryo caught her before she acted.
Seeing that he had no intention of causing a scene, Kurousagi reluctantly held her tongue.
Ryo opened the scroll.
The very first listing read: {Intelligence on the movements of the Greek Divine War Camp (Ten-Year Coverage).}
"This first item..."
His expression became rather amused.
Understanding the look immediately, Singh smiled knowingly. "You understand how it is. In great pantheons like that, there are always a few people who aren't entirely satisfied with their situation... and wouldn't mind earning a little extra spending money."
Ryo understood instantly.
Someone within the Greek pantheon was selling military intelligence for profit. Or perhaps Singh himself had acquired it through his own channels and added it to the auction.
Either way, the purpose was obvious. To whet Ryo's appetite.
And admittedly... it worked.
"You can really provide ten years' worth of intelligence?"
Singh straightened his posture. "I can't promise one hundred percent accuracy. But eighty or ninety percent? That much, I can guarantee."
"Interesting." A smile appeared on Ryo's face. "When the auction begins, I'll have someone place a bid."
Singh's smile faltered.
He had offered to give it to him outright, but Ryo insisted on bidding. It was his way of making it clear that he had no intention of accepting the favor.
That wasn't a good sign.
Ryo ignored the shift in his expression and continued calmly. "The real reason I'm here is because I have something I'd like to auction."
"The only question is... Whether Director Singh has the courage to accept it."
The tense knot in Singh's chest loosened slightly.
So this wasn't a raid.
He quickly forced another smile. "You must be joking. We're in business to do business. There's nothing we wouldn't dare handle."
"Excellent." Ryo clapped once. "Remember, Director Singh. Those were your words."
He glanced at Kurousagi. "Bring out our catalog."
Kurousagi looked at him, then silently retrieved a parchment scroll from her Gift Card and placed it on the tea table.
Singh picked it up.
He glanced at Ryo. Then slowly unrolled it.
Kurousagi watched, wide-eyed, as Singh's polite smile froze.
Then disappeared.
Sweat beaded across his forehead. And within seconds, his face had gone deathly pale.
Beside him, the Seven-Headed Naga Nanashi looked over in surprise.
As Ouroboros's chief black market manager in the south, Singh was hardly the timid type.
What kind of merchandise could frighten him this badly? Could Ryo actually be selling the captured avatars of two members of the Twelve Olympians?
But even that shouldn't have terrified Singh. After all, the black market had sold plenty of goods connected to major figures before.
Even the illegitimate children of the Twelve Gods had appeared on the market.
So what exactly had Ryo put on that list?
Across from them, Ryo calmly speared a slice of apple with a bamboo pick.
He bit into it, juice bursting across his tongue as he smiled. "Director Singh. If you're in business... You accept anything your customers bring, don't you?"
"I... yes... no... I... this..."
Singh's lips trembled.
His eyes darted between the scroll and Ryo.
Finally, with a pale face, he managed to ask, "...Could you give me a little time to think?"
"Of course." Ryo leaned back against the sofa, crossing one leg over the other. "But since I'm giving you face, I hope you'll return the favor. Business should leave everyone satisfied. I'm sure a director like you understands that."
"I do... I don't... No, I do..." After stumbling over his words several times, Singh clenched his teeth. "Rest assured. We will give you a satisfactory answer."
"Good." Ryo nodded, rose to his feet, and prepared to leave. "I'll be staying in Elm City for one week."
"One week from now, I'll deliver the merchandise. I hope your satisfactory answer reaches me before then."
"Y-yes." Still wiping the cold sweat from his forehead, Singh hurriedly stood. "I'll escort you out."
"No need."
With that, Ryo left the building together with Kurousagi.
The instant they were gone... Singh collapsed onto the sofa. Cold sweat soaked his back.
"What in the world is he selling?" Nanashi asked, all seven heads lifting at once.
One head used telekinesis to pull the scroll over.
The moment he opened it, the first line came into view: {Slave: Vishnu (Five-Digit Spirit Rank)}
In an instant, all fourteen of Nanashi's eyes went wide, looking as though they were about to pop out of their sockets.
"Stop looking." Snatching the scroll away, Singh rolled it up with trembling hands.
His face was ghostly white.
"Go. Inform Lady Lakshmi immediately. This is beyond us."
What he didn't say aloud was that it might be beyond Ouroboros as well.
But after accepting that auction listing, there was only one way to survive. Pass the problem to someone higher up.
Nanashi's massive body shook uncontrollably.
"So this is Ryo Yagami... The very first thing he puts up for auction is something involving Two-Digit beings."
He let out a bitter laugh.
Then he didn't waste another second. Grabbing the scroll in one of his mouths, Nanashi shot toward Outer Gate 7777 at full speed.
He had to place that catalog into Lakshmi's hands as quickly as possible.
.
.
.