I Became a Ruined Character in a Dark Fantasy

Chapter 271

Chapter 271

"Disarm...? What do you mean? Why disarm?" Fael asked with wide eyes.

The official continued without a hint of expression, "Our lord granted permission for a gathering of merchants from various cities, not a meeting of armed factions. From what I’ve heard, six trading companies are gathering. How many armed guards do you think that adds up to when they all meet?"

"...." Fael’s mouth hung open in surprise.

The official calmly added, "I don’t know the exact number, but I’m sure it exceeds the legal limit quite a bit."

Ian let out a faint chuckle. He hadn’t expected such a reasonable explanation. Perhaps it was because they were in the central region, where the rules were stricter.

If I remember correctly, Imperial law allows each trading company to bring around a dozen guards. Mercenaries can only be hired when traveling outside the city.

Ian wasn’t fully versed in the details of imperial law, but he knew enough. Even if each merchant brought only ten guards, that would amount to sixty heavily armed fighters gathering in one place. Add in the porters and drivers, and that number could easily double. If there were malicious intent, it would be more than enough to cause chaos in the city.

The official added, "It would be a different story if you were just passing through. However, since you have a purpose for visiting the city, you need to comply with the law. If you disarm, your guards won’t be considered armed personnel, and we’ll return all weapons when you leave."

"That’s perfectly reasonable, but... there are a lot of valuable goods in the carriages that we brought for trade. How are we supposed to protect them without being armed?" Fael asked.

"Are you saying that Basmut’s security is unreliable?" the official’s voice turned cold.

Fael quickly shook his head. "No, no, not at all. If I didn’t trust the city’s excellent security, I wouldn’t have requested the meeting here in the first place. Not only is this city a key hub with both land and river routes, but its excellent security was also a major factor in our choice."

"Then you understand there won’t be any issues. Of course, we’re not asking for a full disarmament of all guards. The previous companies were allowed one personal guard to remain armed. For your company..." The official glanced down at the bottle of wine in his hand before adding, "We’ll allow two."

Acting like he’s being generous while sticking to the legal limit.

As Ian pondered the situation, Fael released a sigh of relief. At a minimum, Ian and Philip wouldn't have to disarm. Ian had no problem keeping his weapons in his pocket dimension, but Fael didn't know about it.

"Thank you for your generosity," Fael said, motioning to the driver to have all the guards, except for the two personal ones, surrender their weapons. Soon, the trading company’s guards and porters came forward, loading their arms onto the supply wagon.

Fael suddenly asked, "By the way, how many other trading companies have arrived?"

"Yours is the fourth."

"Four?"

"Yes. Is there a problem?"

"No, no problem. Could you tell me how many arrived by land and how many by water?"

"Three by land, one by water."

Nodding, Fael thanked the official with a smile. By then, all the weapons had been loaded into the supply wagon. Fael spread his hands and looked at the official. The official nodded his head slightly to the side, signaling that they could proceed.

"You can now enter. The meeting hall you requested is located in a mansion on the southwestern outskirts of the city, which our lord uses as a villa. I trust you will use it with care."

"Of course. Have a good day," Fael responded, gesturing for the drivers to move ahead. He then began walking through the gate, evidently planning to walk the rest of the way.

Ian, watching the official smiling at the wine bottle, shrugged and trudged after Fael. As they passed through the city walls, Ian loosened his helmet slightly.

"Could there be an issue with the ship's schedule...?" Fael mumbled ahead.

Taking in the city's view, Ian asked casually, "Is there another problem?"

Fael turned and smiled. "It’s nothing. Just that we’re almost at the agreed time, and I thought we’d be the last to arrive. Delayed departures aren’t unusual, though. At worst, they’ll be an hour or two late."

Ian chuckled, glancing at the old castle tower that seemed to overlook the river. "From what I’ve seen so far, I wouldn’t trust your intuition all that much."

"You sound like Bor," Fael replied with a chuckle. "You saw for yourself, didn’t you? The lord here is incredibly strict. I even sent a heap of gold with the request, and look how cautious he still is. I guess it’s no surprise—too many outsiders come through, so he’s bound to be suspicious."

Shrugging his shoulders, Fael added, "Still, it’s reassuring. At least now we know why the city’s security is so tight."

"Well, let’s hope your intuition is right this time," Ian said dryly, before briefly meeting Fael’s gaze and adding, "If I were you, I’d still be prepared for the worst."

"You're quite the worrier, aren't you?" Fael laughed heartily, turning onto a wide road leading to the outskirts.

They had only taken a few steps when he hesitated.

"... But what exactly is this worst you're talking about?" Fael asked in a whisper, glancing back to ensure the wagons were still following.

Despite his confident words earlier, Ian's response seemed to have unsettled him, especially with their weapons surrendered. One of Fael's strengths, despite his stubbornness and lack of intuition, was that he ultimately listened to advice.

"You're asking the obvious..." Ian replied with a low chuckle. "The worst-case scenario would be getting attacked here tonight, wouldn't it?"

"No one would be crazy enough to do that, right?"

"I don’t know about that. If I were them, even if I couldn’t kill you all, I could make sure the blame falls entirely on you."

Elia noticed Ian watching and waved her arm high in the air.

Ian smiled quietly at her lack of tension, just as Fael’s voice broke the moment.

"Once things are settled, wouldn’t it be better to send the guards and porters outside?" Fael asked.

Ian looked forward again. The heads of the various trading companies were now focused on Fael, who shot another quick glance at Ian. This was the plan Ian had suggested earlier. If the dark mage attacked or had placed a spy among them, the unarmed guards would be vulnerable.

"By the way, I see you’ve changed your guard. Did the Northern one who usually accompanied you quit?" a Vantruian merchant asked, steering the conversation in a different direction. Judging by his gaze, he was considering hiring Bor himself.

Fael waved his hand dismissively. "Bor is dealing with a bout of illness. For this trip, I’ve asked two skilled freelance knights I know to handle the security."

"Ah, knights, I see... no wonder," the merchant replied.

Fael quickly steered the conversation back on track. "But what do you think? Without weapons, they’ll just sit around talking. Wouldn’t it be better to send them into the city to relax a bit? The lord would appreciate it, and it’d lift their spirits."

The Imperial merchant snorted. "We can’t just leave the wagons unattended, can we? The goods we’ve brought here are worth quite a bit."

The Vantruian merchant nodded in agreement. "No matter how safe this place is, leaving everything unattended isn’t an option. Well, if the discussion drags on, everyone will end up getting tired, though."

"How about we take turns, sending half of them out on shifts?" the Vantruian merchant suggested. The others nodded in agreement, and they each gave orders to their personal guards.

"We’ll send all of ours out. I doubt we’ll be stealing from each other," Fael added with a smile, glancing at Ian and licking his lips.

"I’ve done my best, but as you said, it wasn’t easy," Fael admitted.

Ian shrugged. Truthfully, even getting half of the guards sent out was a success. Turning to leave, Ian responded, "I’ll relay the message."

"Understood. Oh, and... I’ve decided not to trust my instincts anymore," Fael added sheepishly.

Ian smirked. "That might be your best decision today."

Ian walked over to meet Philip and Elia, who were approaching. Philip’s voice came through the gap in his visor.

"Is there a message to relay?"

"Send out all the Ark Trading Company’s men. Tell them to have a drink and rest up. Don’t let them overdo it, though. I’ll call them if needed. Also...," Ian’s voice lowered as he stepped closer, "it seems this might be our battlefield."

"Is that your intuition speaking?" Philip asked.

"I sense nothing yet. It’s just a feeling."

"Based on experience, that’s usually the most accurate," Philip murmured, his eyes darkening behind the visor.

"Indeed. It’s a perfect place to spread a curse," he added.

Elia whispered, "Then shouldn't we try to get everyone out of here?"

Ian shrugged. "Unless you’re planning to break up the meeting entirely, this is the best we can do. Whatever happens, as long as we do our part, the rest of the responsibility falls on them."

At that moment, the iron gate of the mansion creaked open with a loud noise. Another group of carriages was entering—it was probably the Swift Trading Company.

Ian glanced at the incoming procession briefly before turning to Elia and adding, "So, prepare yourself as well, Elie."

***

As expected, all the trading companies gathered shortly before sunset. The meeting took place in a second-floor conference room of the mansion. Once the windows were shut and the curtains drawn, the space felt entirely cut off from the outside world.

"Then, we’ve decided that the name of our alliance will be the Hexagonal League," one of the merchants declared.

The six heads of the trading companies, seated around a large round table, continued their discussions. It had taken them over an hour just to agree on the name of the alliance. Typical of merchants—they always had to haggle over every little detail.

"Now, let’s discuss whether there are any additional rules to add beyond the three we agreed on beforehand," Fael suggested.

Standing by the wall in the hallway behind Fael, Ian couldn’t help but feel a twinge of impatience.

This is painfully boring...

If this were a game, it would have been over in a matter of minutes as a cut scene. But in reality, he had to stand here, listening to a tedious conversation that neither interested nor entertained him. Philip, standing next to him, and Elia, between them, looked equally uninterested.

Elia’s presence at the meeting had been Fael’s decision. The other merchants had initially objected to an outsider attending, but Fael had appeased them by mentioning that there would be a proposal involving her after the meeting. It was likely about sponsoring her research under the alliance’s name.

While this hadn’t been agreed upon in advance, Ian didn’t object. After all, he didn’t expect the meeting to go smoothly, anyway. If anything, he found it hard to believe they would make it through the night with no incident.

"..."

And it became clear that his instincts had been right about an hour later.