Better Gardening 13 (Patreon)

Commissioned by Kejmur

Better Gardening

Chapter 13

-VB-

I wasn’t sure if I was being extreme with taking people and their animal companions prisoners on a world where I had no stake in (kind of). 

But then again, maybe they shouldn’t have attacked me. 

Besides, I wasn’t going to ask for anything ridiculous, just information that should be easy to compile, even if the locals did not use any form of digital media.

Giovanni, the man who tried to impress me into service, behaved far more cautiously and courteously after Umma’s little show of relitatory force. He stood ready to run and had all of his companions out to fight if it came down to it. However, he also didn’t try anything with me anymore. 

That was good.

The problem now was that all of the fighting, explosions, and weird attacks - oh, and the flare - had drawn the attention of the defenders in the town further up the road, and they had come swarming down to help defend. 

Except Giovanni must have been higher up on the local military’s hierarchy than I anticipated because the man was easily able to calm his comrades down when they encountered me.

But what he was not able to do was stopping them from insisting that the “Johtonians” were their prisoners, not mine. 

After half-heartedly trying to stop them, he stepped back and allowed his comrades to argue with me.

He knew that I knew that he was attempting to let them wear me down verbally. This was also a way to gauge just how well or poorly I would react to people. I could see his brain chugging away in his eyes. I wanted to know what he was thinking, if only to know how I could avoid the troubles I might run into. 

“Are you listening?” 

Standing on the ground, I turned back to face Giovanni’s superior, a balding short man dressed in a military outfit. He was Kato something-something. I didn’t care to listen, mostly because he was not the civilian leader and also because he was not polite at all.

Politeness might not matter if he was overwhelming more powerful than I was, but the truth was the opposite.

Also, being polite didn’t hurt, you know? 

But being rude and authoritarian definitely did. 

Hurt them, that was. 

“Not really,” I replied while yawning. This world was really violent. A big bird attacked me right off the bat. Next, Givoanni over there demanded my service. Then I got attacked by the Johtonians. Finally, Giovanni’s superior was being a dick and threatening jail time.

If it wasn’t for this world’s exemplar bioecology, then I would have opened a portal back home already. 

“You brat…!” 

“Brat?” I asked with a raised eyebrow. “I’m probably older than you, buddy.”

“And now a liar, huh?” the old guy drawled. 

“There are more things in heaven and earth, boy, than are dreamt of in your philosophy,” I quoted. “You will do a better job of securing anything from me if you bring a civilian diplomat to come meet with me,” I sighed. “But you’re just a headstrong kind of guy who can’t even think critically think, aren’t you?” 

His moustached lips twitched and he sauntered three steps toward me. 

Then he raised his hand up to strike.

I raised an eyebrow as clicks rang behind me, and the bald guy glanced up to see Umma pointing her machineguns at him.

“If I see even a single hint of aggression from you or your fellows again, then you bet your ass I will reduce you and them all into smears. Understood, boy?”

Before he could respond, one of the soldiers who came with the bald guy turned to the right to look toward the town and saw a bunch of people without weapons running toward us.

I waited for them to come to a stop next to the soldiers. Quick and quiet words got exchanged between the second-in-command and the guy who looked like he had some authority. In seconds, the new guy in charge stomped up to us and turned to bald Kato. 

“Captain Shimazu. You are dismissed. Go.”

The bald guy gritted his teeth and stomped away. 

The guy who took charge in an effective and decisive manner stood as tall as I did. He wore a black business suit with white shirt underneath but he also had a green and red sash around his waist he used to carry those companion balls. 

“My name is Ueda Toshiya,” he introduced himself. “Thank you for helping Giovanni defend Viridian City.”

“... My name is Daniel Dulent. I am the Administrator of NLS-9 Station.”

“An administrator?” he repeatedbefore catching himself. “I am the Prefect of Kanagawa County.” He paused and licked his lips not in greed but with a stressed and anticipatory feel. “What are your demands for the Johtonian prisoners?”

I smiled. This guy finally got it. Now, how was I going to ransom them? Should I go strong? Should I let them decide the price? 

“I am interested in the local bioecology. How much information can you provide me?” 

He looked suitably confused as did Giovanni, other soldiers, and the retinue the prefect brought with him.

“Bio…ecology?”

“Yes. Plants, animals, and the like.”

“So like … information on our pokemon…?” he asked guardedly. 

“Is that what you call them?” I hummed. “Yes. Information on what pokemon can be found. Things that your own civilian researchers should be easily access and use.”

He opened and closed his mouth a few times. 

“Who exactly are you? What do you do?” he asked me. “I’ve heard that you were a foreigner…”

I nodded, acknowledging what he heard. “I am a foreigner, yes, but not in a manner that you might think.” I wasn’t going to show off, though. “Regardless, how agreeable are you to such a deal?”

“... Very agreeable. Would you be fine with textbooks?”

“As long as the information I receive covers at least 90% of your region’s bioecology, then I will be fine. No one can record everything, after all.”

He didn’t respond for a moment. “Please give me a moment.”

“Sure.”

Mr. Toshiya went off to talk to … Giovanni. Huh. I glanced at the “captain,” and saw how he didn’t seem upset.

After a quick talk which involved Giovanni looking at me funnily, the prefect came back.

“I accept on behalf of the Kanto Conference.”

Easy information, get!