第７６２堀：各国会議の様子 (Part1)
Chapter 762: The State of the International Conference
Side: Kagura
"Well, don't push yourself too hard."
"Yes. I'll be fine."
"It will be alright, Yuki-sensei."
"Yes. From here on, it’s just up to the Majesties to hold the talks."
"If anything comes up, contact me. I’ve already decided on the general distribution of supplies, so I’m effectively on break."
"Thank you. I’ll let you know if anything happens."
With that, I cut the connection with Yuki.
If time allowed, I would love to keep talking to him forever, but that’s not how things work.
"Still, I’m envious. Being on break, I mean."
"Yuki-sama is constantly working, too. A little time like this is necessary."
That came from Enora and Princess Stasia.
"So, how do you think today’s international conference will go for the Haire Church and the Findar Empire?"
"Well, I suppose the focus will be on how much trade we can secure with Weed. That’s the main point, isn't it?"
"Indeed. We want to bring in Weed’s—or rather, Earth’s—products and technology at all costs. While exchanges with other nations are important, they will surely prioritize Weed above all else."
As I thought, Weed is the primary negotiation partner.
Even I think of Weed first, and from what I heard yesterday, even Haiden said that Weed is the top priority.
"That said, it’s not as if there won't be negotiations with nations from other continents."
"That goes without saying. There’s no point in trading only with Weed. However, the ability to summon supplies without effort or time through the DP system is incredibly attractive to every nation."
That’s the truth.
Yuki went and made those fine details public during this intercontinental exchange conference.
Knowing Yuki, he probably has some other motive, but it’s only natural that everyone would prioritize negotiations with a country as attractive as Weed.
Ah, I suppose he also realized that since the citizens of Weed already know about DP, hiding it would only breed distrust.
Furthermore, it guarantees that the items they desire will be obtained. If any problems arise in the future, they can receive support in the form of supplies relatively easily.
Well, there are limits to DP, but compared to other countries that have to pour in labor, capital, and time to produce goods, Weed is an excellent negotiation partner.
Therefore, it’s impossible *not* to negotiate with such an appealing country.
However, that doesn't mean we’re asking for free support. We have to pay a proper price in return.
Our resources for payment are finite. And we have trade with other countries to consider as well. Thinking about all that is a real headache.
"For now, we’ll be summarizing the situation. As for the Haire Church, we’re hoping to hold a conference with the nations of our continent as early as this afternoon, or at the latest, tomorrow morning."
"The Findar Empire is the same. From here on, it’s about how we unite within our respective continents to negotiate with other continents and Weed."
"It would be better if Weed were treated as a special category, and we handled negotiations and trade by continent—Rogari, If, and us—so we don't end up stepping on each other's toes. Considering that, we’re at an advantage since we have fewer participating countries."
The true meaning of this intercontinental exchange conference starts now.
We’ve spent the last four days grasping the situation of each continent, and now it’s about how we use our cards to negotiate with the others.
Yes, *by continent*, not by country.
Of course, we don't intend to ignore the requests of individual nations, but since this is an intercontinental exchange, our negotiation partners are the Rogari and If continents.
This requires unity within each continent.
There’s no point in everyone in the same continent offering up wheat, nor is there any point in everyone demanding the same thing.
It would be far more beneficial for each nation if we decided on a division of labor, obtained those goods, and shared them.
Well, that’s assuming we only care about the benefits to the continent as a whole.
"True. The Rogari and If continents probably have things they want on a country-by-country basis, and it affects their future influence, so it’ll be quite difficult for them to keep in step."
"In that sense, it’s easier for us, isn't it, Micos-chan? We’re already friendly nations, and discussing supplies will be simple."
"Yes. There are only three nations, after all."
"Strictly speaking, one is the Haire Church, so it’s not a country, but yes."
Exactly. As Enora and the others say, there are only two countries and one church participating from our continent.
That makes it easy to summarize the conference.
However, the If continent has six countries, and Rogari has five, so there are many participants.
Because of that, we can move quickly.
In exchange, there will be differences in financial power and products.
"Oh, and speaking of the Haire Church, what do you intend to use as trade goods? I assume you’ll cooperate with Weed in investigating the magic depletion phenomenon, but when it comes to other continental nations..."
"Come to think of it, you don't really have anything to export, do you?"
"What will you offer in negotiations?"
The Haire Church is a religion, after all, and has almost no territory to speak of.
The only land they possess is their headquarters, so I find myself wondering, even now, if they have anything to offer in negotiations.
"...You girls. Are you really devout followers of the Haire Church? Well, fine. I’ll tell you. From the Haire Church, we will..."
"Mainly alcohol, perhaps?"
" " "Ah." " "
Hearing Princess Stasia say that, I finally remembered.
The Haire Church does indeed brew alcohol.
Because of their connection to the Haire Church’s recovery mages, it serves as both a recovery potion and is cherished as a high-quality beverage.
"...Princess Stasia. I would have liked to be the one to say that."
"Oh, I’m sorry. It just slipped out."
"Well, as Princess Stasia said, it’s alcohol. Since it’s also a potion, we’ll export that. Every continent likely—or rather, almost certainly—has restrictions on alcohol production, so it should sell well under the brand of Haire Church alcohol."
"I see. But in that case, shouldn't our countries and the Findar Empire include our own local alcohols in our trade items?"
"I don't see why not. But alcohol is—I won't say our only, but our primary—trade good, so I’d prefer you not bring in quantities that would squeeze us out."
"I don't think anyone would do that, but..."
"Alcohol tastes different depending on how it’s made, after all. It’s already on Findar’s list of trade items. Though, since the Haire Church’s alcohol also doubles as a potion, I imagine the significance is different from ours."
Ah, that’s right. It’s not purely alcohol because it also has the meaning of a potion.
Well, compared to Weed’s alcohol, the alcohol from any other country is... well.
Japanese sake, which goes down as smoothly as water, is the best, isn't it?
As I was thinking that, Enora looked at me and nodded.
"That’s right. It’s thanks to Kagura that we realized that possibility."
"Mine?"
"Remember the sacred sake we received during Luna-sama’s haunted house incident? I received two bottles myself, and it was incredible. Thanks to that, I thought that something like that, which doubles as alcohol and a potion, would be welcomed as a trade item."
"Ah, I see. Still, that time was..."
"It was scary, wasn't it?"
"Senior, you were bleeding from your head."
It was definitely traumatic.
During that incident, the Princess even hinted at the possibility of us being fired at worst.