Chapter 300 - Classic Gossip!
One member once described Rigaheim in a single phrase. The town of crooked merchants. I remembered hearing that for the first time.
Despite being newcomers, the Kikyo Society already had ties with the Vigilante Captain—the town’s most powerful figure. Rumors said they weren’t just friends, but actual allies. That kind of connection made people see benefits in getting close to us. Once you're linked to the top dog, you're no longer just some outsider.
And so it began. Self-proclaimed merchants started swarming us, one after another.
After the first few, it quickly turned into a flood. Too many to count. All trying to pitch their crap.
Sure, we earned plenty through legitimate work. But at our core, we were still an underground group. That meant shady characters felt right at home bringing us blatantly illegal goods. Which was seriously annoying.
Slaves, stolen goods, and especially drugs. So many tried to sell us narcotics. Some even wanted to buy them from us, like we were running a stash house. We don’t deal in that junk.
Worse, some treated it like a friendly gesture. Pushing their products on us like free samples. Fine if it’s a simple yellow candy, but not when it’s some weird potion or a half-dead slave. Leaving that garbage with us was nothing but a pain. Never thought I’d experience such a thing as “unwanted kindness” so intensely.
Yeah. This place really was the town of crooked merchants. And honestly? It was getting exhausting.
Just earlier today, I kicked out some idiot pushing fake designer goods, smacked away a fool trying to palm off junk gems, and literally threw out a moron who tried to feed me mystery meat claiming it was a delicacy.
That meat looked suspicious from the start. So I told him to eat it himself and forced it into his mouth. He started screaming, crying, begging for forgiveness. That meat must’ve been way worse than I imagined. Dodged a bullet there.
None of these so-called “customers” were welcome. But I guess I was foolish to hope one might bring a decent offer.
The few halfway normal ones had nothing useful—no interesting info, no rare goods. Total waste of time.
Spent nearly a whole day and got nothing. Well, maybe I should think of it as valuable experience. A firsthand feel for how deep the corruption runs here. From tomorrow on, no more entertaining walk-ins.
Funny. On our first day in Rigaheim, I complained that no one came to meet us despite our flashy entrance. Now look at me, whining about too much attention. Talk about being picky.
Still, I get why people are drawn in.
Taking over the pleasure district wasn’t just about controlling brothels and bars.
That area was a microcosm of the town’s power structure. The Vigilante Captain himself had a hidden side there. All kinds of influential figures operated in the shadows. Controlling it meant rising above them all.
So these petty merchants? They’re just trying their luck, hitting up both the Captain and us. If they get close, great. If not, no real loss.
「Ugh… From tomorrow, no more cold calls. Not a single interesting offer came up.」
「We already have the supplies and entertainment we need. Nothing new really catches my eye. Only things we might need to buy locally are food and daily essentials.」
「Yes. Some merchants did say they could provide anything we want. But since it’s just food and basics, it’s not worth the effort to commission them.」
If we were planning to stay long-term, having a go-to merchant would be useful. Right now we’re fine, but maybe it’s worth considering later.
「By the way, still no contact with the Mayor?」
「Seems he’s busy with church duties. His secretary says he’s unavailable. We’ve requested a meeting, but it’s just “wait” every time. Even the Vigilante Captain hasn’t been able to meet him. We’ll have to watch and wait for now.」
「You don’t think he’s avoiding us specifically?」
「No, I don’t think so. His church work was scheduled in advance, and he’s not refusing anyone. It’s not just us.」
We knew he held a church position, but didn’t expect him to be this devoted. Since it’s prior commitments, I guess we can’t blame him. Religious duties and all.
「What about the sea side? The shipping guild head, right?」
「He tried expanding from sea to land transport, but it’s failing badly.」
「Right. Their top guy’s been absent for a while too. We thought about negotiating with the heir, but he left town recently. Could’ve been scared off by the pleasure district chaos, or maybe went to report to his dad. Not sure. We’ll send a message, but with both of them gone, who knows when we’ll hear back.」
「What about the remaining guild officers? Can we deal with them?」
「We can reach them, but the guild head runs a tight ship. They probably can’t make real decisions. And he’s the type to throw a tantrum if he thinks people are undermining him.」
It’s not just about our plans. The other side has their own issues too. Can’t force a meeting if they’re not even here.
Besides, we’ve only been in Rigaheim a short time. Securing the Vigilante Captain this quickly is already a big win. No need to rush.
「No point in upsetting someone we want as an ally. So until we can reach one of them, we focus on gathering intel. We’ll take turns resting while keeping an eye on things.」
「Rest? Yes!」
「The first team had no time off. Everyone except essential staff can take priority breaks.」
「Also, the Vigilante Captain’s been active since we backed him. Watching how the situation unfolds after our little push could be useful.」
Some will run. Some will hunker down. Others will see opportunity and move fast.
Just like how so many slimy merchants came knocking, powerful figures we’re interested in might make contact too.
Given the circumstances of the people we want to approach, waiting a while seemed like the best move.
――Later. A harsh early summer afternoon, far from pleasant.
Instead of zoning out, I decided to use the downtime to organize intel. With things shifting constantly, staying focused was crucial for someone in charge.
While everyone else enjoyed their break, Siegrune and I stayed at Cafe Daisy, working as bodyguards while talking.
「Their cakes are all good, huh.」
「The food’s high quality too. They could run a full restaurant, not just a cafe.」
Being bodyguards here was easy. The Vigilante Captain’s presence kept trouble away, and no drunk idiots started fights during the day.
「It’s nice having good food around, but how long should we wait? I can’t just sit here for ten or twenty days.」
「True. A few days’ break is fine, but if it drags, people will get bored. Maybe ten days is a good mark. If nothing happens by then, we switch targets.」
To take control of Rigaheim, the Kikyo Society narrowed our support to three key powers.
One was already done—the land-side leader, the Vigilante Captain. The other two? The sea-side leader and the Mayor.
Infighting among Rigaheim’s elites would only hurt us as we tried to start new operations here.
Our goal was simple. Stabilize the town under a three-way balance—land boss, sea boss, and the Mayor in the middle. Once that’s settled, we could move on to pirate suppression.
「The shipping business is dead, and their new land transport venture is bleeding red. No wonder they’d want to leave town and lean on relatives.」
「Given Retnark’s current state, help won’t come easy. But they probably have no choice but to try.」
「The guild’s collapse is just a matter of time. If we could just talk to the head, we could paint them a bright future.」
The sea-side power we wanted to back was obviously the shipping guild—the one with actual profits from maritime trade.
Even though shipping was on hold now, they still had the know-how and barely enough crew left. Partnering with them was the only way to make port operations work. We could overlook minor issues.
As for rival sea-side groups? We’d bring them under our wing. Though honestly, most were already on the brink of collapse.
After seeing how the pleasure district ended, no one would dare oppose a powerful figure backed by the Kikyo Society. At least, we could drag them to the negotiating table. Unless they were crazy stubborn, most would rather surrender than be crushed.
We didn’t want to waste potential pawns either. Even if we had to eliminate a leader, we’d keep the subordinates and the organization intact. More like absorbing them, really.
If we could talk, we could discuss the future of shipping and even support their failing land transport business.
From their side, it’d seem like a miracle offer. But without a chance to talk, it was all pointless.
「If we can negotiate, there’s a real chance. But if we can’t reach them forever, we might have to switch to plan B.」
「Right now, plan B is the fishing boss. He’s the one running the port these days. Makes sense, really.」
With shipping halted, the biggest player on the sea side was the fishing boss.
He ruled the fishing industry and had massive influence. While merchant ships were idle, fishing boats kept sailing. Naturally, he became the dominant force.
We’d wanted to back the shipping guild head for port operations, so we planned to sideline the fishing boss. But things might force us to change that.
To us, the fishing boss’s power was just a nuisance.
「The problem is, the fishing boss and the shipping guild head hate each other. Getting them to cooperate or even join under one roof would be tough.」
That’s why we planned to make the fishing boss step down.
「Yeah. This just got a bit messy.」
Our top choice was still the shipping guild head.
He was essential for port operations, so backing him was the obvious move. But we couldn’t commit blindly.
We needed to talk face to face. Reputation alone wasn’t enough. Jumping in without that could lead to regrets.
On the other hand, supporting both would upset the balance with the land side. The Vigilante Captain would be pissed. We wanted things to go as planned—one sea-side boss, backed by us.
「We don’t even know if the fishing boss would accept an alliance… But let’s wait ten days. If possible, I still want to team up with the shipping guild head.」
「If we can. Just in case, let’s think ahead to a third option. Hopefully we’ll contact the Mayor by then.」
With downtime filled with light guard duty, intel gathering, and training by the sea, I ended up living a life close to a small vacation.
――Later still.
Days passed since my talk with Siegrune. Still no movement.
The shipping guild head and his son hadn’t returned. No contact with the Mayor either.
「We’re not getting anywhere with our main goals, but something weird’s going on, right?」
I hadn’t done much—just hanging around cafes and the beach—but even I sensed something off.
I asked the intel team for details.
「I’ve been looking into it. The past two or three days, street vendors have been unusually active.」
「Thought so.」
「Looks like a big deal went down. They wouldn’t be this busy without a major stock-up.」
「We even saw buyers coming in from other towns. I wonder who’s buying what.」
「Another idiot trying to be the new drug king? How pathetic.」
It’s not our job, but a town full of junkies would screw us over too. A little chaos is fine, but there’s a limit.
The Vigilante Captain’s control should be tighter now, so this is likely some outside group. Seriously, who’s causing trouble?
「Yukari-dono! Today’s local paper, you’ve gotta see this!」
Siegrune rushed back, unusually flustered from shopping.
This must be serious. I took the paper, and everyone in the warehouse gathered around.
「What’s up?」
「This.」
She pointed, her voice sharp. I followed her finger.
「Let me see… Um, “Drug smuggling ring floods market! Is the infamous Kikyo Society behind it?” …What is this?」
「Wait, are we being accused of running a drug shop now?」
「Even as fake news, they’re really pushing it. Isn’t this a local paper?」
A local paper acting like a trashy gossip rag? Disgraceful. Publishing nonsense without even checking facts. They really underestimated us.
Don’t know who started it, but the Kikyo Society never backs down from a fight.
「Onee-sama, it’s nostalgic.」
「Yeah. Back in Exembra, something similar happened.」
That time it was a magazine, not a newspaper.
Well, we were bored anyway. Time to have some fun.
「Yukari-dono, we need to make them retract this. We’re trying to win over the Mayor and other big players. Can’t let this slide. It affects the Vigilante Captain’s pride too.」
「Got it. Even if it’s a local paper, it’s published by the Newspaper Guild, right? We’re paying them a visit.」
「We’ll squeeze the reporter for the source. This wasn’t just some made-up story.」
Fools who think a guild sign protects them are in for a rude awakening.
They picked a fight with us. Let’s make sure they pay a high price.
Perfect timing. We were just bored!
2022 just started. First post of the year!
Fun fact—this chapter marks exactly 300 episodes. At this point, chapter numbers don’t mean much, but hitting round numbers feels nice.
Hope this year turns out bright and good. Let’s stay focused and keep pushing forward!
Next chapter: “Rude Awakening—The Guild Assault.” Stay tuned!