110 Startup

"We are opening a business," I say, "Would you like to be our first customer?"

"Oh? A business? What kind of business?" Owen asks.

"Take a look at this."

I set the hefty chest down on the ground and flip up the latches, then I turn it around and lift up the lid, exposing the contents under Owen's eyes.

His mouth drops open and inhales sharply.

"Th-Those are Holy Weapons!" He exclaims under his breath and points at the chest.

"That's right. One, two, three… nine of them," I say.

Owen looks around to make sure that no one is listening in, and he whispers, "W-Where in the Goddess's name did you get them?"

"A connection of mine in the Grand Cathedral. Don't worry about the details, do you want one?" I ask.

"I can't afford a Holy Weapon, Kris," he says and holds up his pouch, "I just got two copper slabs from my previous mission, and that's the most I have made in a while."

"I know, but I am not asking for money," I say.

"What?"

"I can lend you a Holy Weapon for free."

"What?!"

"However, for every mission you complete with the Holy Weapon you borrowed, you will have to give me ninety percent of the rewards."

Owen's ecstatic surprise is instantly pulled back down to Earth. I suppose that idiom doesn't work anymore.

"Ninety percent?" He asks.

"That's right."

"That's a little much, isn't it, Kris?" Faye asks.

"Yeah, that means if I used your Holy Weapon for my previous mission, I would have had to pay…"

"Eighteen copper coins," I help him finish his mental calculation.

"Right, eighteen copper coins. I would only make two copper coins from a mission with the reward of two copper slabs," Owen says.

"Yes, but you won't be doing missions rewarding only two copper slabs if you had a Holy Weapon, will you? This gives you a chance to finally fend for yourself in the Pitted Woods. You will be able to do missions of much higher ranks, therefore making much more money. Even if it's just ten percent of the rewards, that would still be considerably more than what you are making."

"Hm…" Owen nods slowly, trying to process the information.

"Think about it. You are making a couple of copper slabs right now, and that's quite a lot for you, but if you have a Holy Weapon and accept a mission of say… exterminate a pack of ogres, you can expect a gold coin from that, and ten percent would be one silver slab. That's fifty times what you are making right now."

"That's true…"

"So, at the start, you would be making a little less than you are used to, but you are spending that time to reach a rank impossible to you without the help of my Holy Weapon. Then, you will be making money like you've never seen before."

"Yeah, that's right. Alright then, Kris, I shall be your first customer!" The beaming smile gradually returns to his expression.

So easy. Well, it's not like I am deceiving him or anything. Everything I've said is true. This business model benefits everyone, and it's all thanks to the broken class system in place.

"Perfect, please take your pick. Oh, by the way, can you help me spread the word in the shrine? The more people that know about this, the better," I say.

"Of course, but I am sure you don't need me to advertise. Such a service you are providing seems too good to be true. People will flock to you in no time," he says and bends down to take out a sword.

Owen gently runs his finger down the mirror blade and mutters something that I didn't catch. He stares at the prayer stone as if it was some sort of mesmerizing art piece.

"Oh, and what happens if I lose this sword? Will I have to pay for it?" Owen asks and lifts his eyes up.

"No, actually. Watch this."

I raise my hand above my head and close my eyes.

O courageous spirits, fetch me my blade of divinity from the City of Silver to strike down the vile.

"What in the world is happening?" Owen asks.

"K-Kris, the Holy Weapon is disappearing," Faye says.

"Just hold on a second," I say.

The sensation of the handle covers my open palm.

"Kris, how are you supposed to explain this?" Astra's voice asks from inside my head.

I figured it shouldn't be too hard. If there has never been a Divine Blade in this world, the action I am performing right now shouldn't be related to my status as the Apostle. I can just shake off the suspicion by calling it a blessing of some sort.

"What? How is it…" Owen is tripped up.

Soon, after the whole sword has been transported into my hand, I open my eyes.

"See," I say and drop my hand back down, "I can retrieve the sword from anywhere."

"But… how?" Owen asks.

"A blessing."

"I didn't know you had blessings, Kris," Faye says.

"I didn't either, but it turns out I do."

A look of puzzlement crosses her face.

"That's amazing…" Owen says and takes the sword as I hand it back to him.

It seems to have drawn the attention of other crusaders walking around, as well. I see them stopping in their tracks and looking over to see what we are doing.

"Well, off you go. Have fun with your new toy," I say.

"Thank you so much, Kris. Rest assured, I will get you every crusader as customers," Owen says.

"That'd be great," I give him a wave as he jogs away to the main shrine building.

And… first customer served.

"Did you see that? He just gave away a Holy Weapon." I hear a voice in the distance say.

"No way. No one is dumb enough to do that. He probably just bought it." Another voice answers.

"But he didn't even have armor. How could he have afforded it?"

"Why are you asking me? I don't know."

It seems like buzz is already generating.

The sound of metal clanking approaches us from behind. I turn around to find Chloe struggling with a small wooden desk walking out of the back alley.

I go over to her and take the desk from her hands.

As soon as I put some force into lifting the desk, Chloe lets go of her hands and collapses onto the grass while panting heavily.

"Uh… you have servants, Kris… why did you ask me to do this…" she says and tosses a few scrolls and an ink pen onto the ground in front of her.

"Considering what my servants just went through, I don't feel like putting them to work," I say.

"But you told Lohikaarmi to guard your carriage…"

"She's… different. Whatever, business has already started."

I walk back to Faye and Astra to set the desk down beside them, then I take the Holy Weapons out from the chest and lay them out on the tabletop.

I wave at the two people who were discussing my transaction with Owen earlier. Given the clothes they are wearing, I doubt they can afford Holy Weapons, either.

One of the guys points his thumb to himself, asking if I am waving at him.

I give him a thumbs-up, and the two of them look at each other, and then they come toward us.

And just like that, my first business in Eden takes off.