The city of Arangar.
Inside a private facility that belonged to the guild Obscure Embers.
A spacious hall and a large round table. Five people could be seen sitting around the table. It could be seen from their sitting arrangements that the four rankers were divided into two groups.
One group contained a young man and a gracious yet seductive-looking lady. The other was made of three men of seemingly different ages.
"Eren, you didn't tell us a Master ranker would be involved in this deal. Then again, whatever makes you comfortable. Hahaha!"
Morty spoke first and broke the silence that had ensued for quite some time. He knew there was a psychological play involved here. Something along the lines of whoever speaks first has to make compromises in the end. But frankly, he was tired. And a bit affected by the deafening silence. He had to speak.
Eren smiled when he heard Morty Derringer's words and responded in a cheerful voice.
"Hehe. My master has always been involved in this deal. Do you think I'm qualified enough to follow through with such deals when the stakes are this high? You flatter me, Morty."
Eren replied and nodded at Morty in a friendly gesture before looking at the two people who were sitting on either side of him. The man on the right was not that much older than Morty and shared his facial characteristics. The man on Morty's left side on the other hand looked old and in his 60s. And yet, his body was firm and his posture was upright.
'Late-stage Adept rank.'
Alephee said in Eren's head when he was looking at the old man. The butcher guessed these guys must have been Derringer's family's fixer summoned from the upper echelon to see if the deal was worth it. The young man who looked a bit like Morty must be his cousin that had been sent here to see what Morty was up to.
"Eren Idril, what is it that you would be doing business with us with? And what kind of deal do you expect from us? I'd suggest we get on with the updates instead of doing formalities. What do you say?"
The old Adept ranker spoke up in a calm voice. Eren didn't have to speak. It was Levine who opened her mouth for the first time.
"Minerva's Utopia. Eren has a plot of land that features its entrance. We are here to make a deal with you about the raw products it will generate in the future. Are you interested?
That is me getting on with the updates instead of doing formalities. How is it?"
Levine spoke with calm dominance in the same stoic manner she treated her students in LA, except Eren. With the butcher around, she could be a bit more relaxed with the way she interacted.
As the knowledgeable old man listened to Levine's passive-aggressive way of making him eat his own words, he frowned. And yet, he could do nothing about it since she was stronger between them.
Then he started processing the actual words and their meanings that Levine had conveyed and his stoic countenance.
He stopped writing in his journal as his pen fell. His face was covered in shock. His next words expressed his disbelief.
"Minerva… Sage Minerva! She was a potioner. Oh my heavens! Are you sure, Master Levine? Eren boy?"
The old man spoke with excitement. Eren imagined his eyes had signs of Eddies and Extols imprinted on them as he spoke. He wanted to lead the conversation and used Levine as a deterrent. But he decided that he should let Levine handle the rest if she wanted to.
Therefore, instead of leading the conversation he just retrieved three brick-like pieces of Andrium and placed them on the table. He then made the surface of the round table spin, making the Andrium bricks available for the Derringers to check on.
Eren and Levine both looked at each other and smiled as they saw the Derringers going silent with their keen eyes all over the bricks. The old man retrieved a small scroll that had a small and intricate array printed on it. He placed the brick in the center of the array. Immediately, the array started exuding pure white light.
"Pure… is too pure. Eren Idril, where did you find this?"
Excitedly, the old man said. Frankly, he was looking forward to dominating Eren when he first heard about the meeting taking place. But Levine's presence had made that a pipedream.
Eren chuckled and replied slowly.
"The same place my master told you about. Minerva's Utopia. There are a lot more from where that came from."
"Suddenly" the Adept ranker realized the conversation had started on the wrong note. And that being a Derringer doesn't mean he will always win every argument. So he cleared his throat and said in a very caring voice.
"Young man, it seems we were a bit hasty in starting our talks. Let's introduce ourselves, shall we?
My name is Roth Derringer. I handle some of the business-related matters our House has with its partners. I am pleased to meet both of you."
Roth then looked at the young man beside Morty and hinted to him with his eyes that he needed to follow his lead. The latter nodded at him seriously before adjusting the collar of his shirt and replying.
"Hello, and nice to meet you. I am Mateo Derringer. You can say that Morty is my younger cousin.
I graduated from Royal Renar three years ago and am currently working under uncle Roth to learn the basics of business from him."
Morty officially introduced himself next even though he knew Eren knew about him. One had to say that Roth's demeanor had changed 360 degrees after learning that Eren and his side represented a gigantic opportunity for House Derringer. Mateo was taking notes.
Eren was looking at Roth and Morty with amused expressions. He spoke up and extended the formality.
"What's up? Name's Eren Elijah Idril. I am a student from LA currently serving in Edinburgh's army as a part of my on-field assignment. My guild White Raven owns the place that features the entrance to Sage Minerva's Utopia."
Eren said while taking out his Sativa stick from his storage. He tried not to smoke in front of his master. But now that they were not alone, he could take some liberties.
The butcher took the first long drag out of his smoke and spoke soon after.
"I'm hoping we can strike a comfortable deal for both of us. I don't want to seek any other party because that would be a hassle.
But… I will look for alternatives if I find that the deal is lacking for me."
