“...So, we really should accept this offer, right?”

“Yeah. I mean, with the other party being royalty, there's nothing me or Ruhail can do. The Adventurer’s Guild has some authority, but if royalty gets serious, none of that matters.”

“If it's possible for you, Mr. Tetsuya, I believe it would be best to accept this offer. The King and the royal family of this country are very considerate of the citizens, so I don’t think anything bad will happen even if you refuse… but still…”

Just as Mr. Rizac and Mr. Patrice said, it wouldn’t be wise to ignore the wishes of the royal family in a country governed by a monarchy.

Besides, it's been a while since I started living in this country, and I haven’t heard any bad rumors about the royal family. Rather, I get the impression that they genuinely care about the people, as taxes are said to be lower here than in other nations.

And even though they could easily use their authority, they’ve formally brought the request through the Adventurer’s Guild in the royal capital and our local guild. It would’ve been possible for them to forcefully extract the manufacturing method or supplier information, yet they haven’t tried to do that either.

…Well, I don’t know the manufacturing method either, so all I can say is that I source it from a secret location.

“T-Tetsuya, what are you going to do?”

Lilia asked me with a worried look. Even for a former B-Rank adventurer like her, the authority of royalty must be overwhelming.

“For now, the deal is just to supply a certain amount of dry shampoo to the royal capital, right? Depending on the quantity, I think I’ll accept. Is it possible to have a more detailed discussion?”

Originally, I hadn’t planned on wholesaling any products from our shop to anyone outside the Adventurer’s Guild, but royalty is a different matter. They seem like reasonable people, and for my own protection, it looks like I have no choice but to supply dry shampoo to the royal family.

Of course, if they start demanding full control over my shop or other outrageous things, I’ll need to reconsider.

“Oh, of course, that’s fine. Since the Adventurer’s Guild is acting as a middleman, we won’t let them push anything unreasonable… probably.”

“Yes. We’ll do everything we can to support you.”

“………………”

It’s the first time I’ve seen Mr. Rizac, the Adventurer’s Guild Master, look this hesitant. I guess that’s just how powerful this country’s royal family is...

I don’t want to do this, but considering I could always leave this country and open a shop elsewhere, I doubt the royal family will be that unreasonable—but I can’t be certain, and that’s a bit scary.

Of course, having a connection with the royal family could be beneficial for our store, but the risks feel greater than the rewards.

It really is a delicate matter for me, after all.

◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆

“Thanks to some fortunate events, I no longer have to worry about money, so I’ve decided to go with a custom-built store. So, I’d like you to help me find a plot of land around here that’s roughly this size.”

“Yes, understood, Mr. Tetsuya.”

“Hmm, if it’s just finding a vacant lot, that shouldn’t take long.”

The day after accepting the two offers from the Adventurer’s Guild, I visited the home of the Madret couple, who run the neighboring real estate office.

Thanks to the reward for the compass completed in the royal capital—the “good news” from yesterday—I’ve received quite a large sum. So, I can now afford the custom-built shop I had previously given up on due to cost.

In any case, I still don’t have enough funds to buy the Full Potion to heal Lilia’s right arm, and since this new store will likely be a lifelong establishment, I don’t want to compromise on it. So I decided to prioritize the store for now.

If I’d prioritized the Full Potion over a store that also affects many customers and employees, I doubt Lilia would’ve felt good about it either.

“By the way, Mr. Braimon, does your office also handle custom home construction?”

In addition to buying the land, I’ll need to commission the construction of a new building. I have a bunch of personal preferences—like a veranda or a bath—that I want to include.

“No, our business only deals in land sales and rental of homes and stores.”

“If it’s new housing, I believe the workshop in town might take orders for that. I think you’re on good terms with Mr. Gregor from the Gregor Workshop, aren’t you?”

“Ah, is that so? I’ve gotten along well with Mr. Gregor, so I’ll talk to him about it.”

Apparently, even though they mainly handle weapons and armor, the workshop also takes on building construction. If it’s with Mr. Gregor, I can talk comfortably about a lot of things, which is a huge relief. I’ll visit the workshop later today.

As for the matter of wholesaling dry shampoo to the royal capital, I’ve asked Mr. Rizac to handle the negotiations. Since we already deliver compasses and water purifiers to the royal capital’s Adventurer’s Guild, we can just ship the dry shampoo along with them.

In any case, once the location for the new store is finalized, I was planning to close the shop for a while and head to the royal capital. I’ll probably need to pay a visit to the royal family at that time.

I’m not thrilled about it, but it can’t be helped if I want to maintain good relations moving forward.