Be Careful When Agreeing to Terms and Conditions - Chapter 92



8. Phalaenopsis Dream (1)

It was common knowledge that a few glasses of alcohol were being passed around somewhere as the languid sunlight of the afternoon subsided. This was especially true in Liyue. There are three countries that are always mentioned when discussing the capital of the Tivat continent, and one of them is Liyue.

The Mond people love alcohol, the Snezhnaya people fight against alcohol, but the Liyue people regard drinking as a matter of etiquette. The rule that important guests should be served with tea during the day and with alcohol at night was a universally accepted law in Liyue.

South Korea, where I lived, was also one of the countries famous for its love of alcohol. So, a famous poet even wrote an article called ‘Judo Yudan (酒道有段),’ but even I, who was familiar with the drinking culture of Korea, was at a level where I had to give up in Liyue. First of all, in Liyue, ‘alcohol’ basically meant hard liquor (鯒酒) of 40 percent or higher.

I, who could drink even 20 percent alcohol, thought it was too strong, and I had no way of defeating the people of Liyue. At least it was okay in Mond, but after coming to Liyue, if I didn’t control my speed, I was always the one to fall first. In particular, it was because many of the people around me were drunkards.

It was the same today. I was slowly getting drunk and my face was getting hot, but the two men drinking with me didn’t change much except their voices became a little stronger.

Mr. Jongryeo, a tall handsome man with black hair and golden eyes. And Tartaglia, a handsome man of Northern descent with reddish-brown hair and impressive blue eyes. It was a gathering called the ‘Three Young master of Liyue’ along with me.

“…… So? What happened with Jesu in the end?”

Tartalia asked that with a wide smile as always. She was such a consistent person. I wondered why there was so much interest in other people’s love stories, but I quickly sighed.

If you think about it, Tartaglia had a debt. She allowed Lumine to take refuge for a while, and she also acted as a bridge to deliver news to me. It’s shameful that she distorted the story of her conversation with Eung-gwang to Rumine, but thanks to her, she was even able to kiss Rumine.

More than anything, I was in a position to stab Tartaglia in the back. Tartaglia already knew this, and although she had benefited greatly from her alliance with me, the fact that she was only looking for an opportunity for me to oust the Uindan did not change.

Although both Tartaglia and I were of the position of separating public and private life, she could not help but feel a sense of debt. If you think about it, I’m breaking the alliance I requested with my own hands. No matter how much she informed Tartaglia of the fact in advance, she couldn’t help but feel sorry.

So I opened my mouth as if I was being generous. It wasn’t that difficult to get involved in a few awkward love stories.

“Well, the atmosphere is good these days. Especially every morning, he subtly shows that he is looking forward to something… Wow, how cute. And ‘sister-in-law’, dude.”

Tar Taglia laughed lightly as if it was amusing at my little bragging about borrowing the alcohol, and Palm Seed closed her eyes and nodded her head as if she was happy. In their own way, they both seemed to be supporting my dating venture. However, if the warm atmosphere continues like this, it was not a drinking party with Tartaglia.

Tartaglia took a swig of her drink, then, with a sigh, set her glass down on the table. And she suddenly asked:

“Besides, it seems like relationships with women are complicated?”

I flinched at those words and closed my mouth. And without saying a word, I took a sip of my drink. The refreshing scent of ‘dandelion liquor,’ which I absolutely love, ascended her esophagus and pierced the tip of her nose.

I tried to escape reality with alcohol for a little while, but even after I finished drinking, Tartaglia and Mr. Palm’s eyes were still fixed on me. Tartaglia had an interesting look in his eyes, and Palm Seed had a somewhat complicated face.

In the end, I had no choice but to sigh. Then he raised his hands and expressed his intention to surrender.

“…… Yes, that’s right. Complex. “It’s also very complicated, okay?”

“That’s just the rumor going around.”

As soon as I expressed my intention to surrender, Mr. Palm opened his mouth as if he had been waiting. I was already anticipating that afterword, so I poured a drink into my glass with a groan. The pounding headache made me frown.

But whatever my situation was, Mr. Jongryeo’s questions continued. It was a clear question that was simple and got to the point.

“I heard that Okseongseong and Wolhaejeong’s general secretary are fighting over a man these days… ….”

I cleared my throat, hmm, and interrupted Mr. Palm. The palm seed’s golden eyes turned towards me.

“Let’s stop talking about my relationship with women. “It’s not a very interesting story.”

“…… “Am I having fun?”

I glared at Tartaglia, but Tartaglia just smiled and shook her glass.

“The country is in shambles because of one man… “Is there a more interesting story than this?”

“It’s precisely because I messed with Lumine, otherwise I wouldn’t have done that.”

And then I picked up the glass and naturally raised it high. It was a signal to have a drink each. Tartaglia took a sip of his drink with an interested look in his eyes, and Palm Seed couldn’t help but take a drink as well.

And when the glass fell on the table with a thud, I said, as if there was no misunderstanding.

“…… And if you had touched my person, you would have done so even if it wasn’t Lumine.”

It was a sincere statement, but Tartagliana Palm did not seem to believe it at all. Well, I also felt like I got angrier by messing with Lumine. Because the first one for me was Lumine.

Nevertheless, as I said to Mona before, even if I had touched Mona, she would have reacted that way. Of course, it was the same with Fissle. Although both of them were of lower priority than Lumine, they were equally important people to me.

The only thing is that all of those precious people were beautiful women, but that was unavoidable. Because it just happened to be like that. The voice of conscience was deceived, but it was Palm Seed that broke it.

He asked me as if he truly did not understand.

“If relationships with women are that complicated, shouldn’t I just not get close to women anymore?”

It was a general point. I nodded as if I greatly agreed with that statement.

“Of course it is, but… “There are some issues with that.”

Palm and Tartaglia looked at me without saying a word, as if asking me to say something. I decided to gladly comply with the request.

“First of all, I am a merchant. Since personal connections are also one of the assets of a merchant, it is not his position to choose whether to keep someone close or distant. “Among the women around me right now, who is there that I would stay away from?”

Hmm, Palm Seed and Tartaglia looked a little shaken. However, he seemed to think that there was some truth to what I was saying, so he nodded. That wasn’t wrong.

Lumine was an exceptional relationship to begin with, and Fissle and Mona were people I needed at the time. I could tell just by looking at that it was still playing a pivotal role in my upper management. Sister Kamu and Gakcheong were big figures in Liyue politics, so there was no need to say anything.

Of course, there was no need to get close. But that didn’t mean they weren’t people worth pushing out. This was a merchant’s basic management technique. Even so, it would be disqualifying as a human being before a merchant to only devise ways to take advantage of others, but it was also the duty of a merchant to cherish human relationships.

Somehow, the distance became too close, and they became very precious to me as a human being, and so they became inseparable. Of course, this may have been because I left room for it, but it was almost impossible to draw a line and have a business-like conversation with the other person before that.

What charm can there be in someone who only has business-related conversations? Public and private relationships are not clearly distinguished. Even at work, when working with close people, the atmosphere was good and work efficiency was high. It wasn’t for nothing that young people in the company hated it and held a union meeting or something like that.

Of course, such relationships often gave rise to various ills, and in the modern society of meritocracy with advanced division of labor, this trend was gradually disappearing. However, this was not modern times, but the Tivat continent, which was closer to a pre-modern society.

In a place like this, do we draw a line between ourselves and others like we do in modern society? Even though I was told that this was rude, I had nothing to say.

“And secondly, I have the belief that sincerity is necessary in human relationships. If you meet someone you can’t push away with the idea of utility, it’s no different than committing a sin against them. So, of course, human exchanges are inevitable.”

This statement was also a continuation of the previous statement. If you can’t push it away, it gets closer. However, if you treat it with the idea of getting closer for profit, it is a great disrespect to the other person.

So show sincerity and share human interactions. As a result, we started to become closer to each other. Human relationships should be a goal, not a tool. This is my belief, which Palmseed and Tartaglia would also know well.

If I had met these two with the intention of using them, would we have been able to become this close? At my words, Palm Seed and Tartaglia had no choice but to nod their heads again. The two of them looked like they understood my situation to some extent.

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And then I opened my mouth for the last time.

“And, this is the last reason… ….”

Then, as I showed some hesitation, Mr. Palm and Tartaglia looked at me with slightly puzzled eyes. This was because his attitude was contradictory to when he mentioned the previous two reasons.

I avoided my gaze for a moment and eventually closed my eyes with a sigh. And confessed.

“…… “It’s pretty, isn’t it?”

Silence. At my one word, sound and movement stopped momentarily. Mr. Palm and Tartaglia, who had not said anything or moved for a moment, turned to me again.

His gaze suddenly lowered, and I spoke as if I felt unfair.

“No, you all don’t understand? It’s pretty! “Is there a man in the world who isn’t kind to pretty women?”

However, even at my riverside, the reactions of palm seeds and tartaglia were quite shocking. The two raised their drinks and shook their heads. He said he couldn’t stop him.

“I don’t really think so… ….”

“Me too… Well, if she’s a strong woman, I’d like to meet her at least once.”

I was frustrated and pounded my chest, but there was no one here who could understand my feelings. It was just unfair. One is a stone-faced person who doesn’t know if he is interested in women, and the other is a battle fanatic who is filled with fighting spirit instead of love.

So, the conclusion they reached could only be the same. Mr. Palm eventually closed his eyes and nodded his head. A sighing voice came out of his mouth.

“I almost was persuaded a little… “In the end, it’s your fault.”

I was a little moved, but I had no choice but to keep my mouth shut due to Tartaglia’s tittering words.

“I think ‘Golden Young master’ would be more appropriate than ‘Golden Young master’. Or, ‘Young master Nanfeng’?”

Yes, it’s my fault.

Thinking like that, I poured a drink into my glass. And without hesitation, I took a gulp of alcohol. I drank a lot today.

Liyue’s day was coming to an end again. It was still a peaceful day.

**

Morning has come again. Li Yue had been through many hardships since the sudden death of Emperor Amwang, but he seemed to be gradually regaining stability recently. I could already hear bustling noises from afar. It was probably the noise made by people in Liyue heading to their respective workplaces.

As usual, I woke up a little early, prepared a meal, and looked at some documents for a while. This morning, an important customer was scheduled to visit, so I delayed my departure to work a little. A customer decided to visit the top in the afternoon as well, and it was a pretty busy day.

After looking at the documents for a while, I felt like I was popular. The sound of footsteps coming from inside, not from outside. As I followed the sound of laughter, the living room suddenly became brighter.

Light golden hair, and scarlet eyes with a profound light like molten gold bars. With her hair decorated with pure white flowers, she was as beautiful as a single flower.

She was chatting with the silver-haired guide flying next to her, and as soon as she saw me, her eyes widened. As if my existence was surprising.

It was worth it. Normally, I would have already gone to work. I put down the document I was looking at and sipped my tea. And then he smiled.

“…… “Did you sleep well, Lumine?”

Lumine, who had a momentary look of confusion at my morning greeting, soon smiled softly. It was a beautiful, soft, warm smile.

“Yes, Siwoo, did you sleep well too? “I’m pretty late going to work today.”

“An important guest is coming to visit… “And it’s a shame to leave without even hearing someone say good morning.”

When I joked, Lumine responded with a chuckle. The thing that broke out in our world alone was an unidentified being whose existence had been erased. She flew over to me and crossed her arms, making a huffing sound as if she was upset.

The way she turned her head with her sulky face made it seem like she was quite dissatisfied with her recent cold eating situation.

“Hmph, Siwoo… “I guess I can’t even see at all?”

I burst out laughing, as if I was dumbfounded by that sight. The name of this little guide was ‘Paimon’, and he was always with Lumine. Recently, as the atmosphere between me and Lumine has improved, Paimon has found it increasingly difficult to come between us, and there were many days when he felt sad.

Anyway, he was a guy who resembled a kid in everything he did. The good news was that Paymon was quite easy to deal with.

“I made honey carrot grill for breakfast.”

“…… Honey carrot grill?!”

Paimon’s voice began to get excited, as if he was intrigued by my words. She even seemed upset and stamped her feet in the air. It meant she was excited.

Before she got upset again, I took out the honey carrot grill that I had prepared for her. It was cut into pieces so that it could be eaten outside and placed in a container with warming magic added. Since my cooking had a strengthening effect, I would cook it in a portable way every morning and hand it to Lumine.

This was also one of them. And this was enough to relieve Paimon’s anger.

“It looks delicious! hehehe, it’s Siwoo as expected!”

Paimon seemed to like the Honey Carat Grill that hugged his small body, hugging him tightly and kissing his cheek. Anyway, that gluttonous instinct had to be recognized.

Lumine just stared at her like he couldn’t stop her. After dealing with Paimon’s complaint, I stood up and slowly approached Lumine.

And without saying a word, he hugged Lumine. Lumine obediently fell into my arms as if she was used to it by now. Rather, she even snuggled into my arms.

In recent years, our morning greeting has always been like this. As if to make up for the time we had been apart, Lumine clung to me even more, and I also felt her warmth more keenly.

“…… “Are you going to go out now?”

“Yes.”

As she answered my quiet question, Lumine hugged me tighter. It was as if he didn’t want to leave.

I looked down at her with a wry smile. Lumine and I met our eyes, and I could feel their breath coming from a short distance away. It was a sweet breath.

“Take care today as well.”

“…… Siwoo too.”

Because we always said what we wanted to say around evening, there wasn’t much left to say between us. Because we were sharing the latest news with each other. Lumine had to go out as well, and her eyes strangely looked like she was expecting something from her.

At that somewhat sad look, I smiled bitterly as if there was nothing I could do. It was cute to see Lumine like that, but it also reminded me of my complicated relationships with women. It shouldn’t be like this.

While thinking that, I quietly grabbed Lumine’s chin, slightly lowered her head, and kissed her. Lumine closed her eyes and returned her kiss. Good morning kiss, a morning greeting from lovers.

The heartbeats overlap, and each other’s breaths mingle. Just for a moment, but the feeling of a world stopping.

After a while, when the distance between us grew, there was no word between us for a while. Lumine, who was hesitant, spoke with her face slightly blushing.

“Okay, then I’ll come back.”

Then, seeing her walking stiffly, I burst out laughing.

I was the one who insisted on skinship and was actually embarrassed. I welcomed two of my precious people, including Paimon, who was smiling evilly.

“…… Bye! “Again, be careful!”

I waved my hand in front of the door until I could no longer see the two, and then quietly looked at the corner of the road where they had disappeared.

It was a peaceful time. I thought so. Of course, before the ancestors came, it was just a peace like a wind lamp. Nevertheless, I really liked this peaceful daily life, so I was praying to myself.

I hope this time lasts for a long time. But as always, in life, nothing goes as planned.

The sign appeared immediately after Lumine left. The important guest I was waiting for was a girl whose identity there were a lot of rumors about.

Her brown hair, braided into pigtails, was neatly arranged behind her back. The lively red eyes and small figure reminded me of a mischievous boy. And the outfit is predominantly black, with a hat that feels a bit old-fashioned.

She was a girl with a lovely appearance. Her name is ‘Walnut’.

The young head of the Wangsaeng family whom Mr. Jong-ryeo said he would introduce to you earlier. The first words she said to me when she came with Palm seeds were enough to catch me off guard.

“Are you Siwoo Sangdan, who has been losing a lot of employees due to convoy work recently?”

I was speechless at those words. Of course, there was no mistake in what he said. Mond’s distribution network was still shattered, and her security was deteriorating accordingly.

The increased number of monsters and treasure hunters’ attacks inevitably led to the increase and sacrifice of convoy personnel. No matter how much safety was emphasized, it was common for several people to die a month while traveling uphill.

This has been a problem for me recently. Although the dead are treated with the utmost respect and compensation, there is no one who does not know that the best thing to do is to avoid creating any victims at all. This was because the dead would not come back no matter how much money was given.

However, knowing that the words were true and saying the truth out loud were two different issues. This was a huge disrespect. There was no business owner who did not care about the sacrifices of his employees. The same was true even for merchant owners who treated their employees like mere parts.

But this girl’s head suddenly brought up that issue. And that too from her first meeting.

I couldn’t believe that, so I blinked at her and looked at the walnut, but her face was just calm. It was as if he had said what he had to say.

“How about forming a partnership with Wangsaengdang? If you partner now, you will also receive a 30% discount coupon!”

“…… What partnership do you mean?”

In response to my question, which was so dazed that I could not even express my displeasure, Hodu tilted her head as if to ask me what I was talking about. She spoke as if conveying her solid facts.

“Since so many employees are dying, wouldn’t we need that many coffins? Oh, if you sign up now, you can get a free upgrade to the pine tree coffin or the fir tree coffin…… !”

“Wait a minute.”

I felt dizzy, feeling like my common sense was collapsing, so I touched my forehead. Walnut was tilting her head again as if she had no idea what my attitude was.

“…… So, are you saying you came to sell coffins because a lot of my employees died at the top?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Even though I said it was absurd, the walnut did not give in and answered. She looked confused at my hesitant attitude. She muttered in a low voice.

“Oh, that’s strange…” She certainly thought it was a reasonable offer… Mmm, aha!”

The walnut muttered like that, and as if she realized something, she slammed her fist into the palm of her hand. She took out a thin wooden paddle from her bosom.

“Now that I think about it, you said relationships with women are complicated, right?”

And she handed me a wooden paddle. I suddenly received the wooden plaque. The word ‘Ho (胡)’ was engraved on the wooden tablet.

The walnut smiled brightly at me, who was looking at me with her questioning eyes.

“This is Wangsaengdang’s highest-grade guest card. “It also functions as a 50% discount coupon.”

Then she placed her hand on her heart and spoke as if she was doing him a great favor.

“…… “If we get into a passionate fight, someone might get stabbed to death, right?”

And silence. A cold silence fell, with no one speaking.

I was now keenly realizing that there is nothing to say when rudeness goes too far. I feel like I’ve gone too far beyond the line, and now I’m even thinking that it might be a good idea.

My gaze shifted towards Mr. Jongryeo, who was standing behind Wangsaengdangju. Mr. Jongryeo sighed and placed his hand on his forehead, as if he knew this would happen. Even he seemed to have a headache.

Whether it was or not, I had no choice but to ask him sincerely.

“…… “What is this crazy b*tch?”

That was the first meeting between me and Hodu. It was a moment when a small crack appeared in my peaceful daily life.