"And it's not like we met only yesterday."
Ariella said grumpily. She subconsciously caressed her stomach as she spoke.
"We fought in the Edinnica Arena battle, Eren. Sage Edgar told me to pretend to fight you. So that's what I did. But you... you took things too far."
Ariella gave Eren another light shock. He looked at her face for a moment, but nothing came to his mind. To be frank, Eren was too preoccupied with hatching up schemes to care about anyone he fought with. After all, blowing up Sansara World and allowing Maya to escape with him was his priority at the time.
He went into autopilot while he was battling with Ariella. So he didn't remember her much. But then he remembered kicking someone in the gut and looked down to see Ariella caressing her tummy.
"Oh! You are that girl that I kicked… errr… hmm... let's just say I remember you now."
It could be said that Eren and Ariella did not have the most impressive of starts. Their first and second meetings were disastrous for the poor half-blood. She would have left the venue earlier without the business deal if it wasn't so significant.
'This man infuriates me without reason. But I have to admit that he is not at fault. It's just circumstances.'
Ariella sighed and looked at Eren's business-friendly smile. She forced herself to smile before offering.
"Eren, House Lowin would like to place a custom wearable artifact manufacturing order. It's synthetic skin armor specially made for half-bloods like us."
Eren straightened himself up and stopped flirting with Ariella. When it came to business, he didn't like to fuck around. He scratched his chin before speaking honestly, something he rarely did with clients.
"It would be an honor to serve in House Lowin, Ariella. But I must confess that I don't have any prior experience or expertise related to manufacturing half-blood-specific gear and artifacts."
Ariella nodded in understanding before clearing up the matter.
"That's not an issue, Eren. We know that half-blood-related knowledge is not known to those outside the Last Blood Bastion. Therefore, we will provide you with the required alchemy techniques, array setups, and other nuances involved in manufacturing.
It's just that it is difficult for us to manufacture these things in mass because we can't procure the necessary ingredients in bulk. That's where your guild comes in. We figured it would be wise to outsource the manufacturing entirely rather than investing time and efforts in establishing a set process."
'Damn! That's what I needed. Maybe I can use their information as a reference point to make some stuff for my bloodline.'
A tinge of greed was evident in Eren's eyes as he looked at Ariella. The latter coughed before speaking further.
"Of course, you'd have to sign a binding contract with us not to use our information for reverse engineering. We trust you. But we still need to play it safe when it comes to the unwanted spread of information.
House Lowin might get targeted or its gears become less effective after information about them spreads to unwanted people. We want to be especially cautious about the Anfang Alliance. So I hope you understand our extreme measures."
'No, I don't. I'll just find a way around to get what I want.'
Eren thought to himself. But outwardly, he nodded at Ariella before agreeing with her.
"I completely understand, Ariella. Clients' well-being and satisfaction are our top priority. Plus, I have to respect House Lowin's wishes because of Sage Edgar. His heroic actions at the Edinnica Arena battle inspire all half-bloods."
'Hehehe. Eren, Edgar ran away from Garos. How someone could say something like that with a straight face is beyond my comprehension.
Alephee spoke into Eren's mind. She was not with Eren at the time. He had told her to give him some alone time yesterday. So she remained at his villa. However, she kept tabs on him and his conversation with Ariella anyway.
'Haah! People have blind spots for those they admire, Alephee. I know what I'm doing.'
Eren replied to Alephee's comment in his head as he observed Ariella. The latter was indeed glad he looked up to Sage Edgar. She decided to proceed to a formal agreement.
The two discussed manufacturing scope at length along with other details. The more Ariella explained the manufacturing process and functions of the required gear, the more curious Eren got about it.
'Hmm. It sounds like Hex gear specifically meant for half-bloods.'
Eren drew a primary conclusion as he listened to Ariella's explanations. Of course, she only knew the basics behind the half-blood-specific gear and artifacts. He needed to hold the actual documents and process scrolls to validate his assumption.
Eren already planned to create Hex gear sets, which he could pair with multiple classes. Hex gear dedicated to each class. This would allow him to enhance each class's usability and bolster his offensive and defensive capabilities. It would also allow him to transition into various classes easily.
Grimdawn immediately understood that gaining this type of information from House Lowin was crucial for him. He could also use House Lowin as a foundation to form deeper ties with other Houses in the Last Blood Bastion. If he could get other Houses to sign the same type of deal with him, he would benefit financially and enrich his database related to Hex gears.
'Hmm. I'll have to offer her a competitive price to set an example for other Houses who might be looking at this deal from the sidelines. A small compromise now would help me in the long run.'
Eren thought to himself before coming up with a rough cost for each consignment. Even though she tried to hide her surprise and glee, Eren could tell that Ariella was tempted to accept the offer right away.
The promise of a drop of honey to bee in exchange for lifetime servitude. One could say that Eren knew how to run a successful business.
Hours passed by quickly by the time the duo finished their talk. Ariella and Eren finally came to a formal agreement. She needed to contact Agatha for further escalation.
Ariella was very happy to stick with Eren until he made sense to her. She got up and was about to bid him farewell. But the butcher's next words made her freeze.
"Ariella, I wanted to discuss something with you. It's regarding Demonmir. Won't you sit back and listen to what I have to say?"
AN: Ariella Lowin was introduced in chapter 1082. Hex magic and Hex gear are described in chapter 878.
Also, I forgot to add footnotes in the s, which might have confused some readers. But Eren and Alephee had made a plan to leave the land of Anfang in chapter 629 after his successful breakthrough into the B-Rank. Of course, leaving doesn't mean he will never come back. ;)
