Chapter One Hundred and Sixteen: Apology Negotiations 2
“Do you realize how precious the items Mr. Eugene has prepared?! They should all be inappropriate for an E-rank alchemist!”
“Vice guildmaster, it’s fine. Ms. Karen must have some request.”
Just as Lucas raised his voice in anger, Harald entered the reception room carrying tea and stood frozen at the door, so Karen beckoned to him.
“Please serve the tea.”
“Y-Yes.”
Harald nodded and served tea to Eugene and Lucas. Karen moistened her dry mouth while drinking some herself as a poison test.
“I’m grateful for your understanding, President of the Gubert Trading Company. If you seek forgiveness, in exchange, I have something else I wish to request.”
“Let me hear it, Ms. Karen.”
“I demand that the Gubert Trading Company issue a public apology statement.”
“An apology statement… Do you want to humiliate and shame Isaac?”
“That’s not it. I simply want an apology—and I want it declared in Gubert Trading Company’s name as proof that the apology isn’t just lip service.”
“How is that different from humiliating him?”
“Even if it ends up looking like humiliation, what I want isn’t to humiliate Isaac.”
“Your wish is an apology… Obstructing those who fight for national defense is a crime. Since my foolish son’s actions were deemed to obstruct national defense, I naturally have the readiness to apologize, but is it your wish for the Gubert Trading Company to declare this? I think our intent to apologize to you is already obvious from our actions.”
Seeing Eugene’s puzzled expression as if he didn’t understand, Karen realized her intent wasn’t getting through.
“There seems to be a misunderstanding. I don’t want you to apologize for obstructing my alchemy. What I want you to apologize for is having my alchemy workshop attacked—the children working there.”
“Children? Ms. Karen, you look young, but do you already have children?”
“I don’t have any children! They’re orphans from the orphanage that I employ!”
“Orphans?”
Eugene’s brow, which had looked stern but honest, furrowed.
“—Ah, I’ve heard that one of your employed orphans apparently has promising abilities for the future. Are you saying to apologize for harming that person? For the future’s sake, I can understand that reasoning.”
“I’d like you to apologize to the other child as well.”
“…I’ve heard one of them is a talentless with no magical power. What exactly are we supposed to apologize for?”
Karen had known from the start that it wouldn’t get through at all. It didn’t even get through to Natalia and Sara—but even so, Karen made a rare stern expression and said:
“Regardless of ability, I’m asking you to apologize for the cruelty of trying to take children’s lives.”
“Hmm… Very well. No matter how insignificant children may be, they are undoubtedly your property. Since Isaac tried to destroy that, an apology would be necessary.”
“I don’t want you to apologize to me! Don’t you really understand what I’m trying to say? I’m asking you to acknowledge your actions as evil and apologize to Harald and Tim! Apologize for trying to take their precious lives regardless of their abilities!”
When Karen raised her voice because it wasn’t getting through at all, the sound of Lucas grinding his teeth could be heard. Next to the vice guildmaster of the Merchants’ Guild, who couldn’t suppress his irritation, Eugene’s expression remained perfectly calm.
“…Interpreting your argument, are you saying that the Gubert should apologize for the sake of orphans with no abilities? That the Gubert Trading Company, which conducts business for the nation’s sake, should bend its pride and bow its head to children whose death would mean no loss whatsoever?”
“That’s what I’m saying. I don’t think it’s something that would compromise your pride.”
“It’s incomprehensible.”
“Then the negotiations have broken down.”
When Karen said that, Lucas stood up while kicking the desk.
“An E-rank alchemist getting carried away! Eugene! The historic Gubert Trading Company must not comply with such ridiculous demands! I’m leaving!”
After seeing off Lucas, who left snorting angrily, Eugene sighed.
“I apologize, Ms. Karen. That person loves commerce and looks out for our Gubert Trading Company, so he forced himself to come along this time. Since he’s a vice guildmaster, I couldn’t refuse even if I wanted to. But please don’t close the window for negotiations because you’re angry at the vice guildmaster’s attitude. I came here purely to apologize to you, Ms. Karen. However, your demand is incomprehensible and difficult to fulfill.”
“That’s unfortunate.”
“But I’ll try to make an effort to understand.”
Those should have been positive words, yet they sounded strangely hollow. Karen answered carefully:
“…I would be grateful if you would do so.”
“I should take my leave as well. Let’s meet again.”
After seeing Eugene leave Karen’s alchemy workshop, Harald said:
“Lady Karen, there’s no need to fight with such a huge trading company or the Merchants’ Guild for my sake. Setting aside the Merchants’ Guild’s vice guildmaster, the president of Gubert seems like a reasonable person, doesn’t he?”
“Hmm…”
Karen twisted her mouth and tilted her head.
“Do you know about ‘good cop, bad cop’? Or the North Wind and the Sun would work too.”
“What do military police and weather have to do with anything?”
“For example, when they want to get a confession from an arrested criminal, one officer scares the criminal while the other, a gentle officer, becomes the criminal’s ally and calms down the scary officer. Then the criminal feels like the gentle officer might be on their side and lets their guard down. They end up saying things they intended to keep quiet. It’s a technique for manipulating psychology. It’s good to remember.”
“Are you saying that technique was just used on us?”
“Well… In reality, there might have just happened to be a rude vice guildmaster there, and Mr. Eugene, who was calming him down, just seemed like an understanding person, but don’t let your guard down thinking he’s reasonable.”
“Understood.”
“Also, this isn’t for your sake, Harald.”
To the puzzled Harald, Karen explained matter-of-factly:
“It’s for my own ethics, Harald. While you are certainly involved in this incident, I would have done the same thing even if it hadn’t been you who was harmed.”
“Lady Karen…”
“Well, maybe you don’t fully understand that yourself, Harald.”
As Karen smiled wryly at Harald’s bewildered face, Tim’s voice came from the front entrance. She had always had him enter through the back door, but since he wasn’t with Harald, perhaps he had forgotten. Thinking this as she went out, Karen gasped.
“It’s been a while, Karen.”
“M-Master Julius…”
“I ran into him while escorting the little ones who wanted to gather herbs in the dungeon, so we came together!”
Tim’s excuse about why he was late didn’t reach Karen’s ears. At Julius, who frowned with a pained expression, Karen’s throat trembled.
“Karen, I heard you almost faced danger… I was worried.”
“Thank you for your concern, Master Julius.”
“Karen?”
At Karen’s strangely smooth response, Julius looked puzzled. To such Julius, Karen put on a mask-like smile.
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