395 I Have a Friend... (1/2)

”Commercial crisis?”

Sherlock sat opposite Nicholas, his hand on his knees as he frowned and repeated what Nicholas had said.

”Yes, Lord Sherlock. We encountered the first commercial crisis!”

Nicholas crossed his arms on the table. His brows were tightly knit, and he looked haggard, as though he hadn't slept for many days. He wasn't even interested in the cup of bloody chrysanthemum tea placed before him.

That was abnormal. Nobody could possibly dislike bloody chrysanthemum tea, with the exception of Lilo. Sherlock had the impression that the Fallen Angel preferred green tea.

Beast preferred drowsy red tea? No, he wasn't a creature.

”I didn't believe that taking over Winterfell would be a simple affair, but I didn't expect it to be this complicated.”

Nicholas took out a document from his drawer, then passed the document to Sherlock.

Sherlock found many photographs, one of which depicted a dead creature. He looked grotesque and was covered with mosaic.

Following the photographs was a report filled with words.

”Robbing Incident of the Black Volcano Merchant Band”

”Respectable Winterfell Dungeon Lord Onionhead:

We are sorry to inform you that the Merchant Band under you has been attacked at Black Volcano. Their goods vanished. We found a sole survivor, but he died soon after. There were no other survivors. We suspect that they were poisoned by the gas emitted from the lava.

As the Black Volcano is an active one, eruptions are more frequent. We are short of resources. For safety's sake, we hope that Winterfell can send a dedicated investigation team. As you know, the goods are important to Winterfell and the Merchant Alliance. They are very sensitive items!”

The subsequent contents were about the onsite investigation, the identities of the dead, and their numbers.

Sherlock was surprised by their identities and numbers.

”There were 2,500 Merchant Band guards? The report says that there are no survivors…”

”That's right. They were annihilated, and no traces of their corpses were discovered…” Nicholas said gravely. ”Besides paying a large sum for death compensation, we have to answer to the Labor Union, though they are easy to manage since the Merchant Alliance has a standard set of procedures. The only headache is the lost materials.”

”Hmm, I understand your predicament. But why are you concerned about it? Isn't Dungeon Lord Onionhead the one who sent out the Merchant Band? Though he's now the Region Judge, shouldn't he be responsible?”

Sherlock put down the documents, and Nicholas nodded as he said, ”Under normal circumstances, that's the case, but this isn't part of the Merchant Alliance's internal affairs. This is a commerce activity between the Merchant Alliance and the Northern Dukedom. The item was a Dungeon Core that was entrusted to us for transport. If the item was lost, Judge Onionhead has to be responsible. But as the Winterfell Dungeon Lord, I can't wash my hands of it. If I do, my enemies will use this reason to remove me.”

”Oh, it sounds tricky. Wait, I remember that the Black Volcano is the Northern Underworld's most famous tourist attraction. Isn't the trade route safe?”

Sherlock sipped his bloody chrysanthemum tea and leaned back in the chair. His eyes were observing the picture in front of him.