Chapter 27: I’ve Shown Everything There Is To Show (1)

Keter was exceptionally knowledgeable. This was less due to innate talent and more a result of his experiences, which was the result of the unique environment of Liqueur.

Liqueur, the place where everything in this world exists.

It had everything. Born and raised in Liqueur, Keter encountered countless people, learned from them, and lived through various experiences. He didn’t learn out of a desire for knowledge, but purely for survival; in Liqueur, the more skills and knowledge one possessed, the better their chances of surviving.

Keter knew how to tan hides, was an excellent cook, and could handle all types of weapons. He was even knowledgeable in medicine and commerce.

Through this education, Keter naturally developed an exceptional eye—the ability to assess and understand any situation. For instance, when he visited Volkanus’ bow forge, he wasn’t satisfied with merely obtaining a bow. He observed and analyzed everything. And...

I see the areas that need improvement.

With his extraordinary powers of observation and analysis, the flaws stood out clearly to him.

The Sefira family’s forge.

To Keter, the place felt stagnant. Though it was brimming with pride in producing the continent’s best bows and arrows, in his eyes, it was a space filled with vanity.

Volkanus, the head of the blacksmiths, had some sense of crisis, but that was it. He didn’t take any proactive measures. It wasn’t because he disliked the Sefira family; he had spent his entire life hammering iron, so his simple and straightforward mindset was focused solely on repaying them by crafting high-quality bows and arrows.

It was outdated thinking. What was needed now was innovation.

At that moment, Ultima appeared, right when Volkanus had been struggling with how to deal with the bows unnecessarily taking up space in the forge’s storage.

I’ll probe Ultima and sell off the bows. Kill two birds with one stone.

This was only the beginning, but the fate of the Sefira family was undoubtedly starting to change.

* * *

In the dining room connected to the reception hall, Ultima, whom Keter had sent ahead, was doing something strange. He was writing on a small, rectangular glass pane the size of a finger that he had taken out from his coat. The glass pane was too small and thin for note-taking, yet Ultima continued to write on it.

This was possible because the text disappeared as he wrote. Ultima was currently using a magic communicator, a device where text written on one glass panel was transmitted to another. Though it only allowed for sending messages, its range was significantly longer than other communicators.

Ultima continued to write on the glass pane.

A Class-1 dangerous individual has appeared. The name is Keter. Raid groups one through three, prepare for immediate battle. All personnel on leave must return and stand by.

The Ultima Merchant Company commanded an army of about three hundred people disguised as escorts. They were all at least Silver-class in the mercenary world. There were also plenty of Gold-class mercenaries like Jacose, and even some rare Platinum-class fighters among them.

Ultima appeared to be under Keter’s control, but he was merely appeasing him, not genuinely submitting to him.

If I had just wrapped up the Sefira family deal, I could’ve been one of the top five in the kingdom. Now, that prospect has vanished.

Ultima, whose plans had gone awry with the sudden appearance of the Keter, chewed on his thumbnail.

But sending all my forces to kill him is out of the question.

Killing Keter meant war with the Sefira family, and that was insane. The Sefira family wasn’t weak; if they were a family that would fall from weakness, they would already have fallen. Their weakness was in politics, not military power. A mere merchant company couldn’t handle them.

And it’s not like I can picture Keter being assassinated either.

Assassination contracts were the most common in Liqueur. Yet there are people even the assassination guilds refused to target: the Godfather and the five lunatics of Liqueur.

I can’t deal with him through force, so my only option is to appease him until he leaves Sefira.

If Keter decided to follow him and leave Sefira, he’d deal with that problem when it arose. As Ultima pondered how to handle Keter, he sensed movement by the door and quickly put the communication device back in his coat.

Creak.

The door to the dining room opened, and Keter, whom Ultima had been waiting for, entered. Beside him was Hans, who looked pale. Ultima couldn’t help but feel some pity for Hans.

Keter, you really don’t discriminate.

“Why are you sitting there so calmly? It’s like you just hid a communication device after using it in secret,” Keter said to Ultima, who was sitting quietly.

Having regained his composure, Ultima responded slyly, “I was just using it for business reporting. Haha.”

“Sure, whatever. Let’s go check out the goods.”

“Oh, it seems like you have more than a few things to sell. But why is Mr. Hans with us?” Ultima said, glancing at Hans.

Hans hadn’t heard anything from Keter, so he avoided eye contact. Then, Keter answered for him.

“He’s needed. Just come along without asking questions.”

With that, Keter led the two of them to Volkanus’ forge.

“Lord Keter?”

A guard at the entrance recognized Keter and greeted him awkwardly. He was the one who had trouble when trying to stop him earlier.

“Yeah, it’s me. We’re going in.”

“P-please wait a moment. Lord Keter and Butler Hans may enter, but this person cannot,” said the guard, pointing at Ultima.

Ultima, who was looking around the forge with curious eyes, turned his gaze to Keter. Keter narrowed his eyes and looked at the guard.

“What’s the problem now?”

“It’s a rule of the Sefira family that outsiders can’t enter the forge. It’s true,” the guard explained.

Hans, who had been quietly standing by, nodded in agreement.

“That’s correct. The forge is one of the family’s core facilities,” Hans added.

Relieved to have Hans’s support, the guard sighed in relief, but Keter pointed to Ultima and said, “This person is not an outsider.”

“Excuse me?”

“We’re as close as brothers.”

Keter put his arm around Ultima’s shoulder. Quickly catching on to the situation, Ultima played along.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Ultima, head of the Ultima Merchant Company. I’m fortunate enough to call Lord Keter here my brother.”

“Oh...” the guard muttered, his expression still unsure.

If they’re calling each other brothers, does that mean they’re not outsiders?

Details like this weren’t clearly outlined in the rules.

As the guard hesitated, Keter approached him and said, “If you don’t make it a problem, it won’t be one. Do you want to cause trouble with me?”

“N-no, my lord! But Master Volkanus despises outsiders...”

“Well, then I might end up despising you.”

“I’ll step aside.”

Having already experienced Keter once, the guard mentally patted himself on the back for holding out this long before finally yielding.

* * *

The heat inside a working forge wasn’t simply just hot; it stung. The temperature in the forge, which reached hundreds or even thousands of degrees, was something no one could endure on willpower alone.

“

Ahem.

”

Feeling the heat from the entrance, Ultima removed his coat and draped it over his arm.

Clang, clang!

The rhythmic sound of blacksmiths hammering iron echoed in the air.

Crack! Scrape!

The sound of planing and carving wood for bow bodies or arrows was strong.

“Ultima, what do you think of the skill of our Sefira blacksmiths?”

Despite the noise, Keter’s words cut through the air clearly. It was strange, as he wasn’t even speaking particularly loudly.

Ultima gave a thumbs-up and responded, “They’re even more impressive than the rumors. Each one is worthy of being called a master.”

Ultima wasn’t merely flattering Keter; he was genuinely impressed. Keter nodded in satisfaction and quickened his pace.

“I’m planning to sell Sefira’s bows.”

“...!”

Hans was shocked at Keter’s declaration, all of his features widening in disbelief. Ultima looked at Keter like he was asking if he was serious.

Before Keter could respond, Hans stepped in front of him, blocking his path, and urgently said, “Lord Keter, are you serious? You’re going to sell Sefira’s bows to Ultima? The patriarch would never allow it!”

𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Unlike Keter, Hans’ words were drowned out by the noise of the forge. Even Ultima, standing right next to him, couldn’t hear what Hans had said. However, Keter heard.

“How do you know that? Did you ask the patriarch?”

“No, but... The bows haven’t been sold up until now, and wouldn’t selling Sefira’s bows harm the family?” Hans replied.

“No. The benefits far outweigh any harm.”

“And what would those be?”

“I’ll explain it to Grandpa Midget anyway, so you can listen then.”

Keter shoved Hans aside, who was blocking his path, and resumed leading the way. Ultima didn’t hear the full conversation, but he could easily gauge the situation: Hans had opposed the sale of the bows, but Keter had brushed him off.

If I can buy Sefira’s bows, it’ll more than make up for any losses I’ve suffered because of Keter.

When they reached the end of the forge, where Volkanus worked, Keter glanced around. Volkanus wasn’t there, but another blacksmith was tidying up the tools.

“Did Grandpa Midget go home?” Keter asked the blacksmith.

Recognizing Keter, the blacksmith nodded.

“Go fetch him. Tell him we’re looking at the bows,” Keter said.

The blacksmith hesitated for a moment at Keter’s order, then nodded and set off.

Keter, who had visited the forge once before, familiarly guided Ultima and Hans to the storage room. However, they encountered a problem—unsurprisingly, a thick lock secured the door.

Since the noise from the forge didn’t reach the storage room, Ultima could say something without it being drowned out.

“Besides having permission to see this, won’t we need a key to get in?”

Hans chimed in, supporting Ultima’s point.

“Lord Keter, I think it’s rather rude to inspect the bows without Master Volkanus present.”

“Grandpa Hans, Grandpa Midget and I are already comrades in the same boat. And as for the key, don’t worry—I’ve got it covered,” Keter replied.

Hans gave Keter a puzzled look as he reached into his pocket.

“Why do you have the key to the bow storage room...?”

But Keter didn’t pull out a key. Instead, he pulled out a wire. He squatted in front of the lock, inserted the wire into the keyhole and began to skillfully, yet boldly, manipulate it.