An Extra’s POV

"My subordinate was approached by an 'Affiliate' of yours who ran the transaction while he waited outside."
The moment Aldred heard this, he was stunned.
'An Affiliate? Did his subordinate fall prey to one of those com-artists?'
There was no way this esteemed man did not know who this 'Affiliate' he spoke of was, yet he still referred to him as that.
Why?
'It's not our establishment's fault that his subordinate didn't exercise due caution in his trade. Nothing in the Unspoken Rules
covers such a thing as that.'
In essence, it was his loss.
However, Aldred could not even dare to think—talkless of speak—such a thing.
"I-I see..." Was all he could say.
"It came as a surprise to me. I thought your establishment perhaps was unaware of the transaction, so I decided to forgive you
and personally came to give you a second chance."
In essence, he was pushing the responsibility and blame for the scammer on them, while also seeming like a benevolent person.
'This man is too shrewd!' Aldred respected and feared him even more for that.
"Thank you for your patience with us. The matter was not known to us, so we'll investigate it."
"Hmm. That is good to hear."
Aldred already knew he was going out of his way. That was why the man called this a 'Favor.'
Normally, the KariBlanc Group would ignore such a thing, as it was just a part of business. But now... now things were different.
"I will personally see to it that all parties involved in this transaction are properly investigated... including this 'Affiliate' of ours."
There was no need for too many details. The two parties already had an understanding.
'And since I'm already going out of my way, I might as well throw in a bonus.'

"Of course, we'll also compensate you for the loss you encountered due to the disservice done to you. It'll be at the previous cost
price of 4 Gold Coins, so I hope that is fine by you."
Aldred hoped this was enough to satisfy the masked man.
Fortunately, he was right.
"It is. Thank you very much."
"Haha! What are you saying? This much is only natural for someone who's getting into such a relationship with us."
"Hmm. Indeed.
"Hahaha!"
"Hahahaha!"
Both men laughed together, their voices echoing to the furthest recesses of the room.
It was already clear at that point that they had a deal.
********
'Whew! Looks like the deal is sealed!'
Rey exhaled heavily as he and Noah stepped out of the KariBlanc Group's building.
He had no idea things would go so well, and he was overjoyed by just how good the bargain was. However, he was also very
exhausted.
'The tension... it was a lot!'
Breaking character even once would have cost him something, so Rey had constantly remained in his very draining persona.
'Still... to think we got such a sweet deal.'
Rey could not pinpoint how exactly he had been able to score so many good points with the man known as Aldred Winsley.

'Could it be because I initially addressed him with respect?' Rey remembered how he chose to call him Mr. Winsley rather than
the casual 'Aldred.'
'He might have taken offense if I addressed him too casually...'
As the conversation went on, and Rey got more of a footing, he had become more confident.
In the end, he even got more benefits than he could have imagined.
'I signed an exclusive contract with them, which means I already have a reliable place to sell my Monster Cores.'
That certainty put Rey's heart at ease.
'The total number of Monster Cores ended up being 16,590. With the total price of 7 Gold Coins per piece, that's 116,130 Gold
Coins.'
In essence... 1,161.3 Platinum Coins.
'I'm fucking rich!' Rey could not believe just how stinkingly rich he had become in such a short period.
It was too absurd.
'I initially had a goal of 4 Gold Coins and approximated the amount of Monster Cores to 16,000.'
That was a total of 640 Platinum Coins.
'Not only did I get nearly twice that amount, but I got sweet deals as well.'
Discounts on Enchanted and Luxury Products, as well as First Priority.
He could also make Custom Orders, which was an exclusive privilege given only to clients who belonged in the upper echelon of
the Group's priority list.
Rey felt like a god!
'This trip was totally worth it! Hehehe!'
He was so glad he didn't leave everything to Noah. The boy would have fumbled everything!

'At this point, I don't even care about those few Platinum Coins I lost to that scammer.'
Not only did he get them back, but he got so much more.
It was too unbelievable!
'Hehehe! Hehehehehehe!! Hahahahahaahaha!!!'
"U-um... what now?"
Noah's voice woke Rey from his deep thoughts. Of course, the only deep thing about those thoughts was how deep his pockets
had become.
He was filthy rich!
"What now? Well, first of all we go back to my place and discuss how we'll be arranging things going forward."
Rey already had a good idea of what he wanted to do, but he just didn't feel comfortable discussing it out in the opening.
'I would have thought you'd get that, Noah. Tsk tsk...'
His current plan was simple.
'I'll have Noah deliver the sacs of Monster Cores using a Spatial Ring. We'll only deliver one sac a day, considering how the
value will reduce if we oversaturate the market.'
It wasn't like Rey was desperate for money, and he wasn't in a hurry to make any more than he already had.
Besides, if he wanted to, he could always increase the rate.
'Right now, I hold all the cards. I should dispense it slowly...'
Rey doubted the KariBlanc Group would keep buying Grade 6 Monster Cores from him forever.
It wasn't that he doubted their wealth.
No, not at all.
In fact, he was sure they would be able to make immense profits from every sac they bought from him.

The problem was greed.
'Eventually, they'll try to bypass me and get the Cores from their source.'
That was always the way business went.
'That's why I should be as loosely involved with this as possible.'
At least, until he found a more sustainable alternative, Rey had to maintain this relationship he already had.
'This is the Black Market. I can't forget that.'
The reason these people existed was because they weren't satisfied with trade under the governance of the laws of the land.
They didn't like being regulated, or taxed, or restricted.
This was all driven by greed.
'Soon that greed will make them turn on me. That's why I have to be prepared...'
To make sure Noah remained compliant to him, he would need to constantly give him his share of the money.
That was not a problem.
'But even that should also have its expiration date.'
Rey knew the one person he could rely on was himself.
'That's why no one can know my secret.'
No one could know the source of his wealth, and the depth of his strength.
He would leave them to speculate.
'That should delay whatever plans they have...'
For now, there were more important things to focus on.
'I have to get stronger.'

*
*
*