Profession, Merchant Volume 10 Chapter 2 (Patreon)

Chapter 2 – Demon Lord, II

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A girl, cute as a little animal, burst into the room.


The girl possessed a lovely face with a hint of innocence, but she also had horns similar in shape to those growing on the demon lord’s head. Her small but full breasts swayed in a dignified manner through the fabric of her costume, which resembled a school swimsuit.


“Mm. Can’t you see I’m busy right now?”


“But Your Majesty, with all due respect, you can always have your semen tasting some other day. This one I have here is a more important matter.”


“Fool! Is there anything more important than tasting semen?”


The demon lord’s threat echoed through the chamber, so loud it seemed to shake the earth.


But the new entrant was unfazed.


“Your Majesty. You are the ruler of a hundred beasts, a thousand devils, and tens of thousands of demons. The other day, you went alone into the enemy territory of Andersen for your personal reasons. Do you know how much trouble Newland was in at the time? Please, have a little self-awareness.”


“T-That’s… guh…”


It was a shocking sight. The demon lord, feared by many, was giving in easily.


Indeed, it is as you thought. The only person who could admonish the Demon Lord was that girl – the demon lord’s secretary. Although her title is ‘secretary,’ she is, in fact, the de facto head of the country, and is so powerful that she is referred to here as the ‘Brain of Newland’ in terms of authority.


“Besides, this is not a matter that can just be put aside. I’m talking about that merchant and his cronies.”


“Oh? Then let’s hear it. If it’s him, then I can’t really put it aside. After all, his semen is delicious and has the perfect thickness and richness to boot.”


“Yes, his semen is perfect… but that’s not the point. It’s about whether or not we should leave them alone this time.”


Hearing this, the demon lord squints her delicate-looking eyelids a little and tilts her gaze, as if a question mark has appeared above her head.


“That’s strange, coming from you. Weren’t you the one who said that we need a mining machine that can mine magic ores efficiently, so we should get along well with that merchant and meet his demands?”


“That is true, but…”


Magic ore, as its name implies, is an ore that is used as the primary source of magic power in this world. Even though the utilization of this magic power has advanced by leaps and bounds, it still requires the magic power of this ‘magic ore’ as a power source. For this reason, magic ore has become an indispensable mineral resource in all aspects of national activities, including military, industry, and daily life.


Fortunately, the mountains surrounding Newland contain large deposits of the magical ore. But there is just one problem. Newland does not have the technology and ability to build a mining machine to mine it efficiently.


In that case, why don’t they just buy the necessary mining machines somewhere else? This was easier said than done, as careless public trade with human countries would easily expose their weaknesses. And showing them weakness when you have valuable resources they desperately need is an invitation to only one thing – invasion. There was also the fact that the differences in business practices between their species were simply too significant for them to find common ground.


So it was decided that they would hire a middleman, and not only that, but a middleman with no ties to any country, and get him to lease the mining equipment to their country secretly.


At first glance, there seemed to be nothing wrong with this, as they had been informed that this move had led to a dramatic increase in their mining efficiency.


“In case you don’t remember, in exchange for leasing the mining equipment, we were going to give him the mining rights to a portion of the Magic Ore Mine.”


“Yes. But isn’t that just a small part of the mine? Or is there a problem with the contract we just made? Or is he going out of bounds and digging in other parts as well?”


“No, there is no problem with the contract, and the magic ores were being mined as normal in their assigned places. The only problem is that the workers he’s brought in from elsewhere are starting to form their own communities there.”


“So what if they form communities over there? I don’t see the problem.”


The secretary sighs and drops her eyes when she hears the demon lord speak this.


“Your Majesty. People with different cultures can’t just live together in one place. Well, it was I who took advantage of that and rented them the living quarters, thinking it would bring us more goods and money, but there are some dubious neighbourhoods that have formed because of this. I think they need to be regulated and sanctioned accordingly.”


“Dodgy neighborhoods, you say?”


“Yes, it seems that even some of our country’s demons are frequenting them, and I fear that this could have a negative effect on us in the long run.”


“They have a new source of fun without telling me? This is inexcusable! I will personally investigate the situation!”


The wine glass the demon lord was holding shattered in her hand.


〇●〇●


As the moonlight faded into thin clouds, the demon lord made her way out of the center of Newland, into the suburbs, and further out into the desolate, remote countryside. Once out this far, the demon lord was able to see the magic ore mine up close.


The demon lord has abandoned her usual sexy attire and is now dressed in a black robe with a hood pulled over her eyes. She is in disguise because it would cause a stir if she were to walk around town in her usual attire.


Now, as she and her secretary walked on, they came to an area where they had leased a piece of land to the merchant.


Earlier, the demon lord had predicted how shabby the settlement would be, but to her surprise, she found that the area, which until recently had been nothing but sand and rock, was now lined with fairly solid buildings. The solid appearance of the facilities indicated that each had been carefully constructed on a wooden foundation.


The streets were clean, free of rubbish, and did not look unsafe. It would not be an exaggeration to say that this is already a proper city.


So what is suspicious about it?


The answer lies a little further into the town.


Between the houses that look like dwellings, a street suddenly appears with neon signs covered in lewd epithets glistening in the light. It is not a large entertainment district, but the road is quite crowded with humans and demons.


“This is more than I expected.”


“Yes, and it seems that many of our country’s demons come here as well. Oh, and that thing over there. That one over there is particularly well known.”


The secretary pointed to a pink and purple-edged sign that read ‘Doujin Shunpon,’ which gave off a rather disreputable vibe.


“I see, it’s dodgy alright. But what does it mean? This ‘Doujin Shunpon’ thing.”


“According to the information I have, doujin means ‘a group of like-minded people’, and shunpon means ‘erotic book.’“


“So, in other words, it means that these are like-minded people who get together to buy and sell sexually suggestive books?”


“Yes. I’m afraid that’s what it means.”


“How preposterous!”


The corners of the demon lord’s eyes narrowed.


“We can’t leave this behind! This is a raid! We’ll be getting through!”


And just like that, the demon lord and her secretary burst into the shop.


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