episode_0183

“Hmm…”

I gently stroked my chin and narrowed my eyes.

It was a request bordering on unreasonable, but no matter how detached from civilization nomads may be, they are still people who form groups.

If they form groups and produce something, they barter, and they know that things have value.

Even intangible values like knowledge deserve a return if one receives help—it’s basic for anyone in a group.

Which means these people can do something for me…

Money is definitely out.

It’s already failed so spectacularly that I wouldn’t mind giving it away for free, but that would make the tailors’ guild look like fools, since I made a deal with them.

Even at the lowest price, it would still be a burden for the nomads.

I wonder if I can get something else instead…

“Tsk…”

It’s ambiguous.

Should I say it’s difficult?

No, I’m reluctant to just let go of this ‘group’ that showed interest for the first time.

“I have one question. Isn’t this outfit not very suitable for the northern regions? It seems quite thin for that place.”

“Ah~ I’m planning to wear it in the summer. I usually don’t care what I wear, but this is cool!”

“Cool, you say…”

My favorability went up by about 5 points.

“Specifically, what aspects?”

“It looks sturdy, and I like how it uses a lot of leather. It’s sleek and charismatic. How about wearing this with a cigarette in my mouth, riding a horse or reindeer?”

“Silhouetted against the sunset on a hill, perhaps?”

“Wow! You know your stuff! I could tell from your eye for choosing a wife, but you have a unique sense for finding pretty and cool things even though you’re young?”

“Hahaha.”

As expected, they are the brave residents of the prairie who once rivaled our family, the shield of the empire, so they are full of romance and have excellent aesthetic sense.

With people like this, I can’t help but wonder if it would be okay to just take a few pieces of leather and be done with it, but I feel like I can hear the tailors’ guild leader wailing in my ears, so I immediately shook my head and pulled myself together.

“You’ve evaluated the clothes so positively that I’d like to just give you the information, but I’m not a charity, am I?”

“Ah, right.”

“So, if I’m going to tell you the production methods and materials and give you samples, I’ll need something in return. I’m not sure what I should receive from you, or what I can receive.”

“Hmm~ we can give you some money, reindeer, and deer hides.”

“Ah… that’s ambiguous.”

I sighed and frowned.

Reindeer hides are expensive and rare, but they’re a bit ambiguous for my use.

They’re too seasonal. Most areas of the empire aren’t that cold.

You can easily withstand the cold of the imperial capital in the center with just a coat and scarf. Reindeer?

It’s too much.

Giving it to someone else is a hassle too…

“If those two aren’t enough, we can’t do anything except physical labor.”

“Hmm…”

Labor…

I lightly scanned the three elves.

Elves.

They have sharper impressions than Katerina, but they are elves nonetheless.

The best way to make clothes trendy is to have a pretty and beautiful group or a famous and noble group wear them.

Individual elves rarely come into contact with the empire, but considering the tens of thousands of nomadic elves in the prairie and the hundreds of thousands of multi-ethnic nomads there, contact with humans is not uncommon.

If I can spread it to the entire prairie, starting with these elves, I can make this outfit a minor but highly sought-after item that takes root as a culture.

With very little effort.

“I guess it’s going to be difficult?”

“Well…”

As I got lost in thought, the eldest-looking elf gave an awkward smile and scratched the back of his head.

It seems that my father has been worried since other noble families started trying to get a piece of the pie in the prairie a few years ago. Should I take a gamble?

If I treat the prairie elves well here, their control over the nomads will increase, and in order to properly implement the attire, I’ll need to get some materials through the empire, so our family can put a spoon in here…

“Hmm…”

It’s not as bad as I thought.

Since this was something I was able to start because I received a lot of investment from my father and mother, it’s only right that I share some of the pie with my parents.

“For the material aspects, I’ll only take the cost of the clothes as a sample. A few reindeer hides and a few silvers should be enough.”

“Huh? Then what about the rest? You’re not just going to tell us, are you? I know city folk never give anything for free… What more are you trying to squeeze out of poor people like us? If you like robbing so much, Butcher Hume will come for you?”

“Cough…”

“Pfft…!”

I and Emily couldn’t help but burst out laughing at the unexpected timing of the blunder.

It may be like a proverb from the elf’s perspective, but why say that in front of me?

“Uh… what, don’t you know how scary Hume is?”

The elf, looking bewildered, glanced around at us and tilted his head.

Could it be that these people don’t know who I am?

This is getting interesting.

“Ah, yes, I know very well. I’ve met them a few times.”

I shook my head and agreed with the elf’s words.

The elf’s expression brightened slightly, and he nodded and continued excitedly.

“Right? They say they used to chop off human heads a few decades ago. You guys be careful! Even my great-grandfather had his arm chopped off by Butcher Hume, you know? Of course, we attacked first, so we can’t say anything, but anyway, if you have bad intentions like our ancestors, you’ll get that karma back.”

“Haha, yes, I’ll keep that in mind. Don’t worry, I have no intention of making unreasonable demands.”

I nodded with a smile and slowly started writing the contract on the spot.

“One, please use the materials as we tell you. Leather should be cow or deer, pants should be dark blue denim, shirts and scarves should be cotton. If you keep these things, I won’t touch any slight modifications.”

“Hmm… all of them are hard to get in the prairie… Can’t we use reindeer or horse for at least the leather?”

“Then the unique style will die a bit. Cow leather brings out that feeling the best, and deer is the next best thing as a substitute.”

“The style will die… Hmph, then I can’t help it. Then, can you help us get the materials to make clothes? If possible, a little cheaper…”

“When you occasionally come down to where the settled people live, how far can you come out?”

“We use the towns and cities around the prairie for urgent things, and if we can move a little leisurely like in the summer, we’ll spend a day or two moving to Hume’s land.”

“Hmm~ I see.”

If so, there’s no problem even if I pass it on to my father and mother.

What are you going to do about the person who recommended it to match the convenience of the nomads?

If you’re a family interested in nomads, this much is common sense, but hearing it from the person in question and recommending it carries a different weight.

“You can talk to my acquaintance who lives in an area close to the prairie about that part. If you say you came with my introduction, you’ll be able to have a positive conversation.”

“Okay.”

This is how I naturally finished delivering the benefits to my mother and father.

I wrote the first condition in the contract and moved on to the next.

“Two, please spread this outfit to other nomads as well. I don’t care what method you use, as long as it’s clear that I made it first.”

“Oh? Isn’t that too advantageous for us? You said you’re not a charity.”

“Isn’t reputation also an important value?”

“Still, it’s too advantageous… Well, I’ll do my best to spread it.”

“Yes.”

The second was also easily accepted.

I wrote this down in the contract as well, and then I spoke the third with a very cautious attitude.

“Finally… I want to learn some leather craft skills from the people of the prairie. Is that possible? I’m asking this just in case.”

The elves’ eyes sharpen.

It’s a bit of a heavy price to pay for just one way to make clothes.

And since these are people who have to return for nomadic life when the weather warms up, there was no guarantee that I could learn properly, but I tried it anyway.

No matter what, there is no group that can match the skill of the prairie elves in handling leather.

If you introduce the cheat called magic, I don’t know, but if you use magic on the results of someone who makes it well without it, the value increases exponentially.

“To what extent?”

The elf, with a serious face, stared at me and asked.

“I don’t care if there’s only one trivial thing I can get.”

It’s better to learn even one trivial thing for sure than to risk learning it strangely by being stubborn.

I left the specification of the range to the other party.

“I see… Everyone, listen up…”

The elves’ expressions soften slightly.

Then they brought their faces close to each other and discussed in a very small voice for a while, then looked at me with a gentle expression.

“We have to make a living too, so we’ll accept it if you’re the only one who knows, and you let us watch you when you make the sample.”

“Is there any reason why you have to do that?”

“I need to know your level to avoid giving dangerous advice. I can’t help what you find out on your own, but I need to avoid spoon-feeding you the key points.”

“If that’s the reason…”

It’s a bit of an ambiguous method, but it’s okay since I can see even a glimpse of the technology.

Watching from the side helps a lot too.

I wrote down the third condition as well.

After that, I wrote down the conditions I had to do for the other party, and specified the disadvantages and performance period when the conditions were not met.

“Sorry for the wait.”

“I know city folk are picky, so it’s okay.”

The two contracts were completed in that way.

It took a long time because they were written together in the imperial language and the nomadic language, so there were a lot of letters compared to the content, but the elf took it lightly, received a contract, and read it.

“Oh? When did you learn our language?”

“Due to the nature of our family, there was something that needed to be done…”

Since we are a family that has a lot of contact with prairie elves, everyone who has the possibility of succession learns the nomadic language.

Otherwise, you won’t know even if they curse at you with a smile in an important meeting.

If the other party curses at you and you don’t know and laugh, only we will be fools.

A nobleman can’t suffer such shame, so all noble people who can aim for the title of count learn it.

I thought it was useless since I had no interest in succession, but it helped in an unexpected moment.

“Hmm~ it doesn’t seem like there are any tricks in the wording, and the period is not bad if it’s until April. I’ll accept it.”

“Thank you.”

The elves, who read the contract simultaneously, reached out to me as if asking for a pen.

“Here it is.”

We immediately wrote each other’s names on the contract, slightly overlapped the paper, stamped the contrasting stamps in various places, and then divided them one by one.

“Okay, then please take care of me in the future… Uh…”

“Please call me William.”

“Okay, William, please take care of me. I’m Stefan from the Ice Moss Tribe.”

“Yes, please take care of me, Mr. Stefan from the Ice Moss Tribe.”

After completely signing, we smiled and made eye contact, reached out our hands, and shook hands, exchanging introductions later than the contract.

It was a bit of a strange sequence, but it’s a minor happening since we made a deal that satisfied each other.