Kays Translations

Chapter 47 - The Neighboring Country's Trading Company

Three days after registering the magic circle, two men arrived at Viscount Klaufeldt’s House.

Both men were dressed in high-quality attire, and judging by the luxury of the carriage parked in front of the mansion, they appeared to be either nobles or prominent merchants.

However, for some reason, one of the men had a tired expression with disheveled hair, and even his lavish clothing was wrinkled and in a pitiable condition. The viscount and his wife looked slightly surprised when they saw them.

"I apologize for this sudden visit and for our rather shabby appearance. I am Silvio Zambrotta, the branch manager of Zambrotta Trading company, Stalen branch. This is Guido, who I believe you are familiar with; he serves as our workshop manager in this town," 

Introduced Silvio, the fatigued-looking man.

According to Silvio, Zambrotta Company was headquartered in the neighboring Purrazzo Kingdom. They had a substantial presence in their home country, and around five years ago, they expanded into the Stalen Kingdom in search of more business opportunities. A few years ago, they also established a workshop in Klaufendamm.

Silvio explained that they had requested a meeting at the earliest convenience and had received an invitation for today's afternoon meeting.

"Despite the obvious exhaustion, are you sure you're alright?" 

Nicolette asked with concern.

"Yes, there's no problem. I apologize for my unkempt appearance; I hurried here from the capital, and I didn't have much time to freshen up," 

Silvio replied, bowing.

"If you're okay, that's good. Now, why did you come here in such a hurry?" 

Nicolette got straight to the point, as their communication had only mentioned the need for a rushed meeting.

"Three days ago, a new magic circle was registered in the name of Klaufeldt-sama at the magic circle research facility. Furthermore, it was reported that magic tools using this circle were already developed. We heard this information, and that's why I rushed here to meet you," 

Indeed, it had been three days since the registration of the magic circle, and the journey from the capital to Klaufendamm typically took about five days by carriage.

 It was no wonder that he looked tired and his hairstyle was disheveled, as the only thing you could cut down on during a rush was sleep.

“I see… If you came from the royal capital in three days, you must be tired. Well, it's true that we registered a magic circle three days ago, but what does that have to do with you?”

Selfers replied with a slight smile, imagining the relentless journey.

"Oh no, what are you saying? The registration was done in such a matter-of-fact way, describing it as 'a new magic circle created by combining a newly excavated magic circle with an existing one.' That's a valuable original magic circle, isn't it? As someone dealing with magic tools, we can't simply overlook it. Typically, if something like this was created, it should have been declared as an original magic circle right away. I must say, Your Lordship, you seem to lack discernment," 

Silvio retorted in response to Selfers' question, as if wondering what he was talking about.

As Silvio rightly pointed out, the circle's matter-of-fact registration was a deliberate choice to avoid drawing too much attention. Moreover, it wasn't possible for everyone to follow the registration status daily, and even if they had noticed, they wouldn't have paid much attention to it.

Despite these circumstances, Silvio had discovered the registration quickly and rushed to meet them. This indicated impressive information-gathering capabilities.

"Indeed, that may be an original magic circle, but... What's the point?" 

Selfers continued to evade the issue.

Without flinching, Silvio looked him in the eye and responded directly.

"Allow me to be frank. Would you consider entering into an exclusive contract with our company, Zambrotta? If my intuition is correct, it could be advantageous for the Lord as well."

"Oh... Could you share your reasoning?" 

"Thank you. There are two main reasons for this proposal. Firstly, it was our company that first requested a meeting with you. It's inexcusable to ignore what you're unaware of, but even if you were aware, not acting immediately shows a lack of discernment. An original magic circle holds significant value. It would be unacceptable to let someone who lacks the vision to handle it," 

Silvio continued passionately without averting his gaze.

"Hmm…Very well... Continue," 

Selfers encouraged him with a slight smile.

"Yes. The second reason is that we are not a company from this country. To be precise, it's not about our origin, but rather that we don't have any ties to any noble family in this country. As I mentioned earlier, if you could create an original magic circle, it would be standard practice to declare it openly. However, you didn't do that... Normally, failing to announce something like this wouldn't be due to ignorance. It's safe to assume that you have a reason for not wanting it to be widely known… And if I may be so bold as to say so...”

Silvio paused and looked at Selfers.

Selfers gave a slight nod and began speaking.

"If I may speak frankly, in a place like Klauffendam, where there are only non-attribute magic stones and financial resources are tight, you would have certainly made a grand announcement to sell those. However, you didn't declare it, even though it was a chance to make a significant amount of money. Is it possible that there is a reason you don't want to draw attention to it? Given that the Klaufeldt family are not commoners but nobles, you tend to be cautious, so the other party is probably of the same noble class... I don't know what you’re being cautious about, but I observed that there might be some circumstances you don't want other nobles to know. As I mentioned earlier, fortunately or unfortunately, we don't have the backing of the nobility in this country yet, so we won't leak any secrets. I thought this might be convenient for Your Excellency."

A brief silence filled the room. Selfers, who had closed his eyes midway through the conversation, remained silent. Sweat appeared on Silvio's forehead. After a few seconds or minutes of what seemed like a long silence, Selfers slowly began to speak.

"Your speed in information gathering, accuracy, and the analytical ability for the gathered information all seem satisfactory," 

"Yes, especially the speed is commendable. There hasn't been a new magic circle registration for nearly a decade, so the confirmation intervals have become quite long. To notice it on the same day is impressive. I think the accuracy and analytical ability are also sufficient... but we should hold off on a final evaluation until we receive reactions from others since nobody has commented on it yet,"

 Nicolette added with a nod.

"Silvio, does your company have any dealings with the Kalenberg family?" 

Selfers asked unexpectedly.

"The Kalenberg family? Yes, we have some small dealings with them. We've procured a few magic tools." 

Silvio replied, surprised by the question.

"I see. What do you think?" 

After hearing the response, Nicolette turned to Selfers.

"Well, I'm concerned about the impact on the Purrazzo Kingdom, but I suppose that's a luxury. More importantly, I was surprised that they immediately proposed an exclusive contract. This should satisfy Isamu-dono, don't you think?"

"So, it's settled then. We've researched various companies, but none of them seemed convincing. We hadn't reached out beyond the borders of our country yet, so this is a good opportunity," 

Nicolette concluded.

"Yeah."

"So, Silvio. Let's accept your proposal. Should we discuss the specific terms right away?"

"Huh? What? Really?"

In the face of the rapid turn of events, Silvio was taken aback and responded with a bewildered tone.

"That's right. Your company is Zambrotta, correct? We're saying that we'll establish an exclusive contract with you," 

Nicolette clarified.

"Huh? Is that true?"

"It's not a 'Huh?' It was you who proposed this just a moment ago. Hmm, I guess it's better to put it on hold for now and say,”

 “No, no, no, thank you so much!”

“... Oh, really?" 

Disbelieving of Silvio's reaction, Nicolette hinted at putting the offer on hold, to which Silvio quickly stood up in a panic.

"Thank you very much!! I will wholeheartedly and with all my might commit to this!!"

With great enthusiasm, he bent over more than 90 degrees, offering a deep and sincere bow as he declared his commitment.

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