Chapter 146 - The Fuse (1)
A few days after Syred left the mansion with the Pink Swamp 2, several nobles who had never visited Ten’s mansion before started showing up. They were from none other than the Central Aristocratic Association.
Like Syred, they, too, couldn’t overcome the withdrawal symptoms of the Pink Swamp and ended up going to Ten’s mansion thanks to Oscar and Terion.
Of course, not all of them arrived at the mansion together.
Once they found out where Henry's mansion was, they sent their subordinates to get the Pink Swamp.
However, Henry refused to sell the Pink Swamp to underlings. Instead, he kicked them out with a cold look on his face.
The reason was simple. Even the Etherwether family’s second son had come to get the Pink Swamp himself. Henry found it distasteful that those of lower status than Syred had sent their subordinates instead of coming themselves.
‘Rude bastards. How dare they send their subordinates?’
Perhaps Henry could be criticized for having guts to do such a thing, but he had created the Million Merchant in the first place for revenge, not money.
In addition, Henry was the only vassal of the newly influential Marquis Eisen. Anyone who was aware of Eisen’s old-fashioned and violent nature could directly show their dissatisfaction with Henry.
“Ughh! That brat!”
Thud!
Count Rowling heard the situation from his empty-handed servant and, in his anger, he swept everything off the table.
He was in great pain, as he was suffering from the Pink Swamp withdrawal.
Everyone around him held their breath. Count Rowling's servants knew that at times like this, they had to stay out of his way. It was the only way they would survive.
Gulp! Gulp! Gulp!
Still angry, he grabbed a bottle of whiskey and chugged it aggressively. He could only alleviate the lingering taste of the Pink Swamp on his tongue with strong alcohol. Because of this, most of the nobles suffering from withdrawal were always half-drunk and irritable.
Thud!
Count Rowling slammed the empty bottle of whiskey on the table and said, “Fine! I’ll go myself to buy the cigarettes as you wish! Get ready to leave for Vivaldi right now!”
All the other nobles suffering from withdrawal had the same thought. Many of the highest-level nobles in the empire soon gathered in front of Ten’s mansion, forming a large crowd with their servants, guards, and massive carriages. They had brought each of their entourage in order to show their pride.
Henry clucked his tongue as he watched the scene through a window.
‘Tsk tsk. They lack the courage to openly express their dissatisfaction, so they resort to showing up with numerous servants as a means to assert dominance.’
It was a useless strategy.
Von appeared with a surprised expression and looked at the crowd of nobles.
“Huh? I heard there was a crowd, but I didn’t expect it to be this big. Whoa, Rowling’s here too?”
Von was familiar with all of them. During Von’s time at the imperial palace, these nobles were the ones who tried to get on the good side of the Central Aristocrats before they became the Three Great Families.
“I heard that they joined together to form a gathering called the Central Aristocratic Association, continuing the legacy of the former Central Aristocrats,” said Henry.
“Central Aristocratic Association? What a joke.”
Von frowned as soon as he heard the name Central Aristocrats.
Henry smirked and said, “Still, isn’t it proof that my plan is working? They’re here like a swarm of ants?”
“So? What are you planning to do with the Central Aristocratic Association?”
“They came to purchase the product, so of course I’ll have to sell it.”
“What?”
“I told them to come, didn’t I? And since they’ve honored that, the right thing to do would be to sell it, though, of course, not that easily.”
They were precious customers here to purchase from the Million Merchant despite such humiliation. Therefore, Henry had no choice but to cater to their needs.
* * *
“Hurry and open the door!”
The soldiers under Henry’s orders had to defend the door in spite of the intense pressure from the nobles.
Cold sweat soaked the soldiers.
Up to this point, guarding the mansion entrance meant their tasks consisted of verifying the identity of the visitors. However, the soldiers had to defend the entrance against nobles, who were usually an extremely rare sight.
“I can’t. He said you have to wait outside no matter what.”
“How dare you! Do you even know who’s waiting outside?”
“...I still can’t let you in.”
What was the Young Master doing leaving them alone for so long? They were put in such a difficult position that they almost resented Henry.
Just then, the gate of the mansion started to open with a creak and everyone became quiet.
“Y-Young Master…!”
At Henry’s appearance, the soldiers felt emotional, their sweat drying up completely.
“Good work, everyone.”
Henry flashed them a bright smile in acknowledgment of their troubles and stood before the crowd of nobles.
He was dressed neatly, as usual.
His dignified appearance and confident expression were enough to calm the servants who were arguing with the soldiers.
“Thank you for coming all the way here. Nice to meet you. My name is Henry, the one and only vassal of Marquis Eisen,” said Henry.
He bowed slightly as he introduced himself. However, the actual meaning behind his words was that he had the authority to do what he wanted.
‘T-that bastard…!’
The nobles were furious. They were already irritable from withdrawal and humiliated from being refused, and angry about waiting so long. However, Henry had no intention of giving in to them and intimidated them by calling himself “the one and only vassal of Marquis Eisen.”
‘Look at them glaring.’
The nobles were already at their maximum stress level due to Henry. However, what really mattered was the next step of his plan.
Just then, Count Rowling couldn't contain his anger and shouted in an irritated voice.
“Cut the crap and bring out the goods already! How much longer are you planning to make us wait?”
There was urgency on his face, and everyone else had the same expression. As far as Henry was concerned, the more they made that urgent face, the more tempting it was to mock them.
‘Ha, look at this guy.’
Henry thought that he had put them in their place, but it hadn’t worked for Count Rowling at all, since he was now speaking so impolitely to Henry.
‘I’ll need to teach him some basic manners.’
Even though Count Rowling’s status was lower than Syred’s second son, he spoke too casually to Henry. Of course, Count Rowling’s status was higher than Henry’s, but unless his head was just a decorative piece for his neck, there was no way he thought that he could get away with something like that.
Henry thought it would be a good opportunity to provoke him. He would use Rowling as an example to the rest of the nobles.
“The goods are all ready, but… Count Rowling, I think I can smell alcohol on you. Did you drink before coming here?” asked Henry.
“Isn’t it obvious? I don’t even have the Pink Swamp to smoke, so how am I supposed to get by if I can’t even drink?”
“...Unbelievable.”
“...What?”
“Didn’t you come to trade with me?” said Henry in a low tone, with the same cold gaze in his eyes that had frightened even the emperor as he’d watched Henry's execution.
These were enough to make Rowling sober up.
“Am I wrong? Didn’t you come all the way here to my mansion to buy the Pink Swamp?”
“S-so? What about it?”
Count Rowling quickly softened his tone as he sensed the tense atmosphere, but it was already too late.
“What do you mean by ‘so’? I’m running the merchant company on behalf of Marquis Eisen. Thanks to the relationship between the Marquis and the king of Shahatra, the Pink Swamp will finally be distributed in the empire! How could you lack awareness so much that you drank before coming here?”
Henry was technically right, but even beyond that, the meaning behind his words finally became clear to Count Rowling. He broke into a cold sweat as he realized his mistake, but it was already too late to take back the things he had said.
With even colder eyes, Henry said, “I’ll make sure to report this to Marquis Eisen and let me make this clear once more for everyone else.”
Ignoring Rowling’s attempt to make excuses, Henry turned to the other nobles who were silently watching the situation.
“If anyone wants to trade with our merchant company in the future, you will have to show us good character. Otherwise, we’ll never trade the Pink Swamp again.”
“...!”
It was a shocking statement. How could he not trade the most popular item his company offered?
Naturally, there was a lot of hidden meaning behind that statement.
Some of the nobles crept back, covering their mouths that reeked of alcohol as soon as Henry issued his warning.
He took out a small cigarette holder that contained the Pink Swamp and a matchbox. He then struck the match and lit one of the Pink Swamp cigarettes.
“Ha…”
Pink smoke diffused in the air, and with a pleased expression, Henry quietly said, “Now, let’s start talking about the Pink Swamp.”
He had established who was in power.
It was the start of the trade.
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