Chishiya stepped forward and dropped a document onto the table.

"This time, I came to bring you free trade."

Free… trade?

The nobles stared blankly.

Was this… a chance to turn things around?

Otherwise, what else could "free trade" possibly mean?

Chishiya continued, "On behalf of Lapris, I demand that you submit and become a tributary state. From now on, your entire country will fall under our administration."

"We'll be taking control of your agriculture, industry, trade—every production sector. You'll be required to provide a set amount of resources annually."

"All military forces will be disbanded. Our forces will be stationed in your territory."

"And here are the rest of the terms…"

The nobles stared, frozen.

What the hell?!

This was "free trade"?

The lead noble flipped through the first two pages of the document. The tribute breakdown was exhaustive—magic crystal ore, lumber, textiles, agricultural goods.

Tribute ranged from one-fifth to one-half of national output.

Clearly, the other party had an intimate understanding of this world's economic productivity and social infrastructure.

The stripped resources wouldn't cause starvation… but would wipe out their ability to accumulate capital or develop further.

"This… This is a completely unequal treaty!" one noble finally shouted.

Chishiya nodded. "Isn't that what I just said? It's an unequal treaty."

"We won't accept such outrageous terms!"

Chishiya smiled. Genuinely.

That was adorable.

They still thought he was here to negotiate.

The lead noble's face turned pale.

He suddenly wanted to strangle the idiot who just spoke.

Can't you read the room?!

If you want to die, at least don't drag us all with you!

Bang!

A second later, a shockwave blasted out—silent and invisible.

The noble who had just objected had his head reduced to mist on the spot.

His body collapsed backward onto the floor.

Chishiya casually brushed the dust off his sleeve.

He smiled warmly. "It's fine if you don't accept it. I'm a very easygoing person."

"Just… be more cautious in your next life."

The nobles stared, paralyzed. Cold sweat poured down their backs.

The situation was clear now.

If you don't say yes… you die.

"..."

"…We accept your terms, Chishiya-sama…"

The lead noble finally spoke, his voice trembling.

He signed and stamped the treaty.

"Falmuth agrees to become a tributary of Lapris and will comply with all future arrangements as dictated by the suzerain."

"Excellent. You have a good attitude."

Chishiya tucked the document away.

He spoke lightly. The nobles nodded frantically, praying he'd just leave.

But instead, Chishiya spoke again.

"Now that trade is settled, let's move on to… liquidation."

…???

Liquidation?

The temperature in the room seemed to drop.

Everyone's blood ran cold.

Chishiya gestured toward Razen's body.

"That guy put a 1,000-gold bounty on my head."

"You know, I'm a very chill person."

"So I'll give you a discount. You can buy your lives back for 10,000 gold coins each."

"The first person pays 10,000. The second, 20,000. And it keeps doubling."

"Simple math, right?"

He smiled again.

The nobles slapped themselves across the face to snap out of it.

How much?! 10,000 gold?!

Take it up with Razen! This had nothing to do with them!

Ten thousand gold… that was equivalent to the annual tax revenue of a small country!

They'd have to liquidate everything just to scrape that much together!

If he wanted them dead, he could've just said so. Why bother with the theatrics?

What now?

They glanced around nervously.

They were nobles. They had pride.

Agreeing to this? Unthinkable. Better to die with dignity.

Yes… they would never give in.

Everyone turned away dramatically, refusing to look at one another.

"…"

After a brief pause—

"I'LL PAY THE 10,000 GOLD!!!"

"ME TOO! TEN THOUSAND!"

"Bullshit! I called it first!"

"Screw you, I was ahead!"

"You had all that backbone a second ago. Where'd it go?!"

"Shut up! What can backbone buy, huh?! Chishiya-sama, I was wrong!"

"No honor among nobles, huh?! You all switch sides like it's a sale day!"

"Hah! Everyone's the same. No shame left in the room."

"We're just trying to stay alive, alright?! Nobody outlives me!"

The entire chamber descended into chaos.

Nobles tripped over each other, scrambling to throw money at Chishiya.

As if the whole "we'll never surrender" moment had never happened.

And as the frenzy escalated—

Thud!

One noble dropped to his knees before Chishiya, kowtowing like mad.

It was the same guy who had led negotiations.

"Chishiya-sama! I'll sell off my estate immediately! I'll flee Falmuth tonight and never return! Please spare me!"

Was he joking?

Chishiya had killed Razen. Twenty thousand elite troops were wiped out like they were nothing.

Who would dare resist?

Crushing a noble like him was probably easier than stepping on a bug.

Money meant nothing now.

If you could live, that was divine mercy.

Revenge? Who had the guts to even think about it?

As the noble knelt shamelessly—

The others glared at him with undisguised hatred.

Damn it! He beat us to it!

They were just about to kneel!

If only they hadn't hesitated!

The first price was just 10,000 gold. Still painful, but doable.

Now it'd just get worse.

Regret hit them hard.

They never should've provoked Chishiya.

This whole war had been a monumental screw-up.

If they didn't seize the chance now, it'd be too late.

Chishiya clapped once.

"Well, that gentleman got us off to a great start."

"You all better hurry. The longer you wait, the more expensive it gets."

"And I'm not joking. If you can't pay… I will kill you~"

A bright smile spread across his face.

Everyone felt their scalps go numb.

Panic set in.

They scrambled to contact servants, offload assets, and beg for loans.

It was a frenzy.

No matter what it took—sell property, sell family heirlooms, beg relatives—they had to get that money.

Chishiya leaned back in his chair, totally uninterested in the chaos around him.

Let them fight it out.

He was already thinking ahead.

This country needed a new manager.

Preferably someone powerful with administrative skills.

He already had a candidate in mind.

Didn't he still have 20,000 fresh corpses in storage?

Perfect opportunity to summon a demon.

Now that he had Vanir recruited, he also had the Demon Affinity buff.

If he summoned the Primordial Black, that'd be pure profit.

The Primordial Black was summoned when Rimuru became a Demon Lord.

One of the original seven primordials.

He wasn't sure who was stronger—Vanir or Primordial Black—but they were probably close.

(To be continued.)

***

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