“Chief, village chief!”
Zenya, who turned around, jumped in surprise.
“…Chief?”
Yulia’s expression, as if questioning whether such a position existed in the Empire, was quite something.
Of course, it was probably just because it was her first time seeing it. Lloyd trusted in the knowledge and intelligence of his superior. She was quite a smart woman after all.
‘Anyway.’
In a village like this, the chief is like a king.
No, considering the insular nature of rural villages, the chief might have even more authority than a king.
Lloyd was quite surprised when he turned around.
‘…Isn’t that a thug?’
There’s a stereotypical image that comes to mind when thinking of a chief.
An old man with a hunched back and a frail appearance. But the ‘chief’ Lloyd saw now was different.
He appeared to be at least 180 cm tall.
With a straight back.
Well-developed and visibly muscular.
And a long scar across his face.
‘…Is he a mercenary?’
The man, in his late forties, had a posture and balanced physique that could make one think he was a mercenary.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Lloyd…”
“Zenya! Are you saying that this chief’s words are like water to you? Outsiders have no interest in the village and are always like vultures trying to devour it!”
“It’s Lloyd from the Royal Social Sciences Research Institute…”
“No way! You’re under house arrest for a week—no, two weeks!”
“Lloyd…”
“Know this: If you bring in another outsider, don’t expect any food!”
What kind of person is so brazen as to ignore us completely?
Looking beside him, Princess Yulia also had a look of bewilderment. Perhaps even that expression seemed old-fashioned. No, that’s not it.
‘What should we do?’
She whispered as if she were experiencing this for the first time.
After all, who would dare ignore a princess? Even if it’s the Third Princess, ignoring her would be expected, but they would at least show some acknowledgment like “Yes, yes.” This experience of being outright ignored was likely new to her.
‘Don’t worry.’
‘It seems he has no intention of listening, so wouldn’t it be better to just leave?’
‘No. There’s something here.’
‘…Something? No. Whatever it is, the other party needs to understand it…! We aren’t getting paid much, so let’s just leave!’
Money? I don’t think so.
Besides, I don’t need to worry about indifference.
Provoking people is my specialty.
“We should just leave now.”
Lloyd said loudly on purpose.
The chief continued to ignore them.
Zenya’s whimpering was pitiful, but let’s ignore it for a moment.
Of course, the chief didn’t even show a sign of acknowledging the barking dogs outside and pretended not to hear.
After walking for a while towards the carriage.
Lloyd shouted.
“Thief! Crop thief!”
“Huh, where! Where’s the crop thief!”
The chief came running as if flying, shouting.
Lloyd grinned.
“Perhaps I made a mistake.”
“You little brat!!!”
“Oh, it seems you see it now. I’m Lloyd from the Royal Social Sciences Research Institute.”
“…”
The chief immediately entered ignore mode.
A formidable opponent.
Lloyd shook his head.
Then, he tripped the chief as he was turning to leave.
– Thud.
The chief fell face-first into the dirt, like in a cartoon.
Beyond that, the astonished expressions of Yulia and Zenya flashed briefly.
“What the hell are you doing…!”
Smiling at them, a huge shadow loomed over him.
A long scar that narrowly missed his left eye.
The chief glared at him with a fierce look.
“I was trying to overlook you as a kid…!”
A growling sound came from deep within his body.
The energy contained in the sound was extraordinary.
‘What is his identity?’
Regardless of his thoughts, Lloyd raised both hands to the sky.
“No, I just kicked to see if you were a ghost since you weren’t answering. I had no other bad intentions.”
“Is that how you apologize?”
“Apologize? Isn’t that something you should be doing?”
“What!”
Thud.
With each step the chief took, the ground shook roughly.
Lloyd staggered but responded calmly.
“It’s the one who ignores others who should apologize.”
“You little brat!”
Snatch.
“Eek! Chief, no!”
The chief grabbed Lloyd by the collar and yanked him.
Dangle.
Lloyd, lifted into the air by the chief, tried to calm the women behind him. The chief growled.
“This isn’t ignoring; it’s giving you a chance. A chance to leave the village peacefully!”
“What a truly honorable opportunity.”
“Get out now. This will be the last warning given verbally.”
Thud.
The chief let go of the collar and turned away.
There was a clear hostility towards outsiders.
‘Normally, I would leave by now, but…’
That’s why this village had a strong smell of something.
A smell like a honey pot.
That hostility was probably due to outsiders who came smelling that scent.
Instead of falling, Lloyd landed smoothly and began to speak.
He was confident in his persuasion.
“I understand how much you love this village.”
The chief’s steps slowed with empathy.
“Then you must face reality. Are you going to just watch the fields turn black like that?”
The provocative presentation of facts was enough to make him turn around.
“Zenya loves this village just as much as you do. That’s why she knocked on the doors of dozens of guilds in Easton and even came to us. Now, a girl who isn’t even fifteen has more initiative than the chief. Who are the grown-ups of this village?”
And it stirred a sense of responsibility.
It was demanding a choice.
The chief’s face flushed with anger.
Then, he clenched his teeth and muttered.
“You insolent brat.”
“Regardless, the choice is yours. If you want us to leave, we will. Miss Yulia, are you ready to depart?”
“…Oh? Yes.”
Princess Yulia, caught off guard, got onto the carriage.
Just as Lloyd was about to step up.
“… I see. I acknowledge that you need our help.”
The chief mumbled quietly.
“Come this way.”
Step, step.
The chief walked ahead. Zenya, delighted, hopped along behind.
Yulia looked back at Lloyd with a puzzled expression.
“How did you do it? He seemed even more stubborn than the Commander of Father’s knights.”
Lloyd shrugged lightly.
“The more stubborn a person is, the easier it is to persuade them.”
Empathize, present facts, stimulate a sense of responsibility, point out problems, and offer alternatives.
Lloyd knew that such obstinate people were susceptible to this method.
“Let’s go then.”
◆
The chief guided Lloyd and the woman who seemed to be his superior to his home.
It was a modest but tidy house.
As tea and refreshments were brought out, the boy named Lloyd’s eyes narrowed.
– He didn’t poison them, did he?
His expression clearly showed his suspicion.
‘Hah.’
The chief sighed and took a sip of the tea and a bite of the refreshments.
“You seemed like a man just a moment ago, but now you look quite sly.”
“Thank you for the compliment.”
“… Hah.”
Zenya and Yulia fidgeted uncomfortably.
They looked at Lloyd as if he were a ticking bomb ready to explode.
‘This will make things a bit more complicated.’
The boy who was smirking in front of him.
It was hard to tell whether he had a pure or dark heart, but his abilities were clearly evident.
The fact that he knew how to handle people well was proof of that.
Lloyd, still grinning, began to speak.
“I’ve heard that the village’s key crop, the potatoes, are dying. From what I’ve gathered, these potatoes are considered quite high-quality here, aren’t they? It must be a great concern that you can’t save them.”
This was an attempt at negotiation.
He inflated the severity of the situation and acted as though he could solve it with his confidence.
‘Impressive.’
The chief was amazed.
The boy’s manner of speaking was reminiscent of a seasoned diplomat who had been in negotiations for decades.
He was like a slippery snake.
‘He might be a con artist.’
Skilled individuals often have a knack for trickery.
The chief, contemplating briefly, proposed a compensation plan.
“Our village currently has no money. It’s all being spent on food.”
“I see.”
“However, here’s the deal: If you can solve the potato issue, I’ll give you 10% of the net profits from potato sales.”
“… You’re offering more money? Oh, no. Of course. Thank you.”
Lloyd, who had seemed flustered for a moment, then broke into a broad smile.
The chief clicked his tongue.
Not only was the boy skilled at negotiating, but he was also quite cunning.
‘Well, since they aren’t giving a lump sum… there’s nothing to lose. In fact, if he can save the potato fields with his abilities, it will be beneficial for us.’
The chief swallowed hard.
…Wait a minute.
Is he actually nervous right now?
“Hahaha…”
How could you be nervous in front of a boy who looked to be about 15?
The village chief let out a hollow laugh without realizing it.
◆
‘What’s with this benefit?’
Lloyd grinned at the chief’s offer of royalties. He hadn’t even considered such a thing.
Instead, Lloyd’s real goal was to deal with the ones who had caused the problem in the first place.
To him, they were like a honey pot.
‘Seems like he’s mistaken about our negotiation.’
Even better.
Though it was a village, the size of the fields was considerable.
The net profit may not be huge compared to sales figures, but given that the potatoes were treated as high-quality, it would certainly amount to a significant sum.
‘Hehe.’
Lloyd smiled, pleased with the unexpected gain. It had been a while since he had a reason to be this cheerful.
Now, let’s get to work.
Lloyd watched the chief bring over a basket of potatoes.
“Here. These are the problematic potatoes. As you can see, the tops are turning black relative to the main body. This is a type of infection I’ve never seen before. No medicines seem to work, despite various attempts…”
The potatoes were sick.
It was a natural assumption that the potatoes were afflicted with a disease.
However.
“I’ve seen enough.”
Clatter.
Lloyd pushed his chair back and stood up.
“Let’s head to the fields.”
The chief looked startled.
“It’s the middle of the night. You won’t see anything; we should go tomorrow…”
“No. There are things that are only visible at night.”
Especially with a plot as sinisterly crafted as this one.
