Chapter 761 - Chapter 5: The Dragonewt Village Again
A place for the mother and child to stay was also completed. After moving them with the bed using Mel's air bubble, we left only the Dragonewts after calling the husband and one Dragonewt friend. The others had a celebratory banquet at the exchange base.
Gnome was worried about Beatrix, but he was relieved to hear that she was doing a demonstration of earth magic in front of magic soldiers from various countries as a temporary instructor for the Regnentes Magic Corps in Morandine.
On the way, the Dragonewt's Wife flew over. It was to express her gratitude.
It seemed to be the first time the Chieftain's Wife had come to the exchange base, and she was surprised to see spirits including the five greats, Dragonewts, beastmen, and humans having a banquet together.
"Is it always like this?"
The Chieftain's Wife is asking one of the Dragonewts. Only young ones are coming in and out of the exchange base. There are blue, yellowish-green, red, and brown ones. Everyone is sitting scattered as they please. They aren't particularly grouped by race. Since the four greats, who maintain the combinations of fire and earth, and water and wind, are divided, there are times when they are divided by gender, but that's not always the case either. Alex, the Elf Prince, and the Henry Party are moving quite freely. It's different between the Royal Capital region and Sertoria, but for beastmen, it depends on the day. Lately, Germana has been showing her face in both.
"I hear that even with the dragons of the four attributes, they have banquets in this frank manner depending on the place and time."
During the banquets with the dragons, we didn't think about seating order or anything. They were all from other countries... except for the Earth Dragon, they were from Finis, but they originally didn't say stiff things and had banquets appropriately.
"Jeanne, is that so?"
For some reason, she's asking me.
"Yes. It's not that there's a difference between races."
I think co-existence, co-prosperity, and equality are fundamental. Otherwise, we couldn't truly cooperate from the bottom of our hearts.
"It seems we must follow your example too."
It was terrible when I first met the Chieftain. There were clear upper and lower seats. Of course, the Dragonewts were in the upper seats. Especially the Chieftain in the middle was in a position about three steps higher. Humans and monsters... it was Violet... were in the lower tier. For humans, it's like the treatment of nobles and serfs. Though that might have been even more so because it was an audience, if it were between human royalty or high-ranking nobles, it would be immediate war.
The Chieftain's Wife, perhaps having made up her mind after hearing the talk of the young ones, sat normally next to Eleanor-sama and took her hand.
"I thank you for your various efforts for my daughter and for our Dragonewt race."
It's somewhat from a superior perspective, but I guess it's not something that can be easily fixed now.
Regarding the Dragonewt Princess and the baby, Lich was given full responsibility. According to Germana, there's generally no problem with the amount of mana they are exposed to. After that, it seems they will adjust as necessary while watching the Princess's recovery.
At this point, according to Dune, both mother and child are extremely healthy. However, for the child, there is the issue of whether it will remain an [Amphiptere] or if it can become a Dragonewt. Fortunately, it seems to have recognized the Princess as its mother. Apparently, its attitude toward its mother and others is different. We should be happy about that. After that is whether it can speak. Normally, it seems they start speaking simple words about three months after birth. For humans, it would be words calling for the mother or father. Furthermore, whether it can transform from the form of an [Amphiptere] to a human form. That will be when the early childhood ends and the boy/girl period begins. It's a story many years in the future. Only when that is achieved will Lich's experiment be successful. However, since individuals who properly recognized their mothers have mostly grown up without problems, it's a relief. Lich was thanked profusely by the Chieftain's Wife and the others, and the young pregnant woman with yellowish-green hair was also happy.
In the future, Dune and Germana... probably, we'll have to call the other three spirits or they'll sulk. Especially if Gnome gets sulky, it'll be troublesome... will occasionally participate in the banquets at the exchange base and examine them, and Germana and I will also participate. Since we were told it could be the day after or the day after the recovery of the Northeastern Forest, Erikson-sama and the Wetlands Priestess can also participate.
During the banquet, while Eleanor-sama and Magdalena-sama were talking to Alex about [Anti-Magic Material], the Dragonewts showed interest.
They were making a fuss about this and that, but for some reason, I was called by Alex.
"What's the matter?"
"These guys are negotiating with me."
When I asked, Alex was pointing at the Dragonewts.
"Negotiating?"
What are the Dragonewts negotiating about?
"You know that [Anti-Magic Material] from before, right?"
"Yes."
"They're telling me to teach them how to make it."
"Is that not allowed?"
"It's not that it's not allowed, but if the Dragonewts start making it in earnest, we'll be out of business."
"Is that so?"
"Of course. The endurance when handling mana is different. If production increases and the volume hits the market, the price will drop, won't it?"
"I see."
If the price drops, wouldn't Eleanor-sama and Magdalena-sama be happy? Though, it seems that's why I, as a neutral priest, was called.
"But even if you say mass production, will the production of raw materials keep up?"
I think there's a limit to the slug farm too.
"Well, I'll teach you. Come here."
From here on, it's a state secret. After confirming with Eleanor-sama, he taught me with [Mute] in a separate place. Since Eleanor-sama is also with us, there should be no problem.
"Actually, it went well."
Did the slugs increase?
The key to [Anti-Magic Material] is slugs. That slime repels magic and weapons. If you mix in dye and boil it, you can smear it on various things. And once smeared, it negates magical effects. However, it can no longer repel attacks with weapons. It was Eleanor-sama who discovered that. So, she ran a slug farm.
"No, you know how those guys swell and suddenly get huge if they keep bathing in dense mana, right?"
I've never heard of that. Is it different from growth?
"And then, if they keep bathing in even denser mana, they'll burst, right?"
I've never heard of that either. Why are you talking as if I already know?
"Well, it turns out that if they've been bathing in dense mana since they were eggs, they grow into quite large individuals. And those guys, they put out a lot of slime."
"I see."
"Yeah, and then, when you cross those guys and have them lay eggs, large individuals that put out a massive amount of slime when exposed to dense mana started appearing."
Apparently, Lich developed it. He's doing his job, isn't he? A man trying to carve out a future for the Dragonewts is different.
"And then, when you add [Elf Adhesive] to the slug slime and mix it into mortar, it's just perfect."
Mortar is used to stick stones together. Even if the stones are made sturdy, it's pointless if the mortar is weak. The mortar made by adding slug slime and [Elf Adhesive] apparently showed sufficient resistance not only to magic defense but also to physical attacks. According to Alex, the only things that could break a stone wall made with such [Anti-Magic Material] are hundreds of years of time, or if a fire dragon smashes it with its prized silver spear. Since an experiment would be impossible, it's probably a guess, but at any rate, I understood it's sturdy.
The reason the Elves aren't coming forward is that they are treating it as a classified matter. If one material is missing, a truly strong one cannot be made.
According to Eleanor-sama, she wants to make [Anti-Magic Stone] a national industry.
With the prospect of mass-producing slug slime thanks to Lich's efforts, mass production of [Anti-Magic Material] can also be expected. There's a quarry in the Central Mountain Range, and Dwarves and Elves are active there too. So, Sertoria can have stable production in its own country. Measures against the Demon Lord's army are related to the Church, so they won't be a profit, but some countries will use it for wars between humans. Border fortresses even more so. The Class of 175 won't be involved, but the Sertoria Royal Family apparently has high expectations for it as a high-value transaction item second only to silver.
"Regarding measures against the Demon Lord's army, it's fine with no profit, right?"
"Yes. We've given up on that."
Given up... In other words, they were aiming for it.
"I see. Then, how about narrowing the window for receiving orders to just the Dwarves? For example, in the case of measures against the Demon Lord's army, Sertoria would be the wholesaler and the Church would be the retailer."
It's an insolent way of putting it, but I think it's a fact.
"It would be so."
"And it's fine if the person who places/receives orders and supplies the products is different from the person who produces them or gathers the raw materials, right?"
It's the basis of Shop No. 4. Shop No. 4 takes orders for all kinds of products needed in the flatlands. Among the orders taken, the ones not made by the Class of 175 are ordered from merchants in Nakanohara. In that case, we have no profit. We just take orders. The merchant who was ordered from gives us products from their own stock or items bought from craftsmen. All the earnings from the products obtained that way are given to the Nakanohara merchants. In other words, the Nakanohara merchants have a window for order-based sales without having to set up a shop and without having leftovers. In return, they make things as cheap as they can.
That method is applied here too. In this case, the Dwarves correspond to the Class of 175. What's different from us is that the Dwarves, who teach the Dragonewts how to make it, just need to add a bit as a technical guidance fee. In other words, the difference between the wholesale price and the retail price. This would be a normal transaction. The Elves contract with the Dwarves and give the mortar to the Dwarves. The Dwarves give the mortar to the Dragonewts according to their orders. After that, the Dragonewts and Dwarves just need to sign an exclusive contract.
The selling price to humans... it would be limited to the Sertoria Royal Family... would be the same as now, and the amount after subtracting the Dwarves' share would be the Dragonewts' share. The Dwarves would get the difference between the wholesale and retail prices for not only what they made themselves but also what the Dragonewts made. As long as the Dwarves aren't greedy, it should be fine.
When I explained, I got the answer that it seemed good.
It was decided to take the form of the human as the purchaser, the Dwarf as the order source, and the Dragonewt as the contract producer. The Dwarves will not only provide technical guidance but also sell at a retail price added to the cost. This part is the same as human business. Even if the unit price becomes cheaper as a result of mass production, the Dwarves won't lose to competitors.
"If the Dragonewts make it in large quantities and sell it cheaply, it will be a help."
The two royals were also happy. Since the price became related to the Church, the profit was gone. Now, quantity was needed at any rate. If production increases, they can probably use it for their own country's share too.
When the talk was about to be settled, the Chieftain's Wife came. The Dragonewts must have informed her just in case.
"Hmm. Stone material that repels magic, you say?"
The Chieftain's Wife is asking. The opponent is Alex, the material developer.
"That's right. Depending on how you make it, you can also make mortar, so there are no gaps. So you can also harden it into various shapes. Of course, it's also possible to smear it over normal stone material to reinforce it."
Alex is explaining. Lich, who is next to him, is nodding grandly.
"Can that be applied to weapons too?"
"Weapons? Weapons are impossible. It's for making defensive positions, so it's strictly for defense."
"Hmm. Quite interesting."
"Well, as a Dwarf, I've been allowed to do a good job."
"And will you use it for measures against the Demon Lord's army?"
"What the human who bought it uses it for has nothing to do with a Dwarf."
"Hmm."
Eleanor-sama, who was asked again by the Chieftain's Wife, nodded.
"Humans must prepare for the resurrection of the Demon Lord in their own way."
"I see."
The Chieftain's Wife sat next to me after talking with the other Dragonewts.
I have a bad feeling.
"Jeanne, you have a grasp of the series of talks, don't you?"
"Uh, only the very general points."
"That's enough. Could you tell our Chieftain about the talk from just now?"
"Me?"
"Yes."
"Uh, just me?"
"Jeanne is the only human who was allowed an audience with the Chieftain in the village. At least, among those currently living. So, it won't work unless Jeanne comes."
It shouldn't matter. The ones who arranged the banquets with the dragons of the four attributes were the Henry Party. Finis was involved too.
To be honest, I don't want to go alone, but I'm the one who proposed the transaction. To be honest, it's hard to refuse. However, if it's alone, that's a different story.
"Is it not okay to be with the Henry Party... like Eleanor-sama?"
"If that happens, we might have to make them wait again. We've been greatly indebted to the Sertoria Royal Family for our daughter. It would be rude to make them wait. It's not that difficult. Those people will go together too."
Saying that, she points to the young Dragonewts. The Dragonewts are active, saying, "We'll go, we'll go." They probably want to jump on this talk.
When I looked at Eleanor-sama, she said, "Please."
I hope she didn't call me anticipating this would happen. and have me explain the transaction?
When I stared into Eleanor-sama's eyes, she looked away.
Dammit, it seems I've been had...
In the end, it was decided to go to the Dragonewt Village the next day. Of course, the Chieftain's Wife is also with us.
On the human side, it's just me, but spirits are okay. So I asked Germana to accompany me. Then, I pleaded with Alex to come along so he could explain the details. I also called out to Gnome to come along. I actually wanted Dune to come, but Dune and Salamander seem to be bad with high places. Since Mel was talking with Wilson-san, I left her alone. So, I asked Gnome again this time.
The Dragonewt Village after a long time was lively, unlike before.
Since the Chieftain's Wife was walking at the front next to Gnome, everyone greeted her, but they also greeted us following from behind. It's quite different from before. Moreover, when the young Dragonewts following behind us introduced me as Jeanne of Sertoria, they greeted me again.
Surprisingly, there were many wearing [Green Marble]. Honestly, this was a surprise. The Dragonewts coming in and out of the exchange base are like that, but I didn't think it would be like this even in the Chieftain's village.
"The Chieftain is wearing it too. Since it's loungewear, it's only when he's at home, though."
According to the Chieftain's Wife, he's wearing purple. I'm sure the Dragonewt version was mainly handled by Shop No. 3, so Mary must have worked hard on the design. She'll be happy to hear it's liked. I'll tell her next time.