Chapter 19: Negotiations Begin
Although this was an extremely unpleasant first meeting for both sides, the three of them eventually sat down in the loot warehouse.
Though no one knew why, Old Man Rom remained cautious.
Subaru, meanwhile, began to survey the interior of the warehouse.
Various stolen goods were placed around without any order—one couldn't tell if it was randomly thrown together or had once been organized.
Noticing Subaru's gaze, Rom's wary expression eased slightly, replaced with a knowing look.
"Hey, kid—interested in the loot?"
The question cut straight to the core.
Standing behind the counter, Rom chuckled lightly as he looked at Subaru's face, finally setting down the club in his hand.
He picked up a bottle of alcohol and poured it into a dirty glass.
"Hmph, the people who come here only have two reasons: either they're bringing loot to sell, or they're here to find something. Which one are you?"
"I'm here for the latter."
"Then what kind of item are you looking for?"
"I'm looking for an Insigna inlaid with a gemstone. I'd like you to hand it over to me."
Seeing Rom's serious expression, Subaru stated his intention directly.
But Rom wore a troubled look.
"An Insigna with a gemstone, huh? That's unfortunate. From what I remember, no one's brought something like that here."
"I know. I heard on the way that Felt stole it from a certain silver-haired girl, so I came here early to wait."
"Let me ask—what are you offering in return?"
"I'm offering this rare 'Meteor' as a trade."
Subaru said as he reached into his pocket and pulled something out.
"What is that? Never seen it before."
After some persuasive talk from Subaru, Rom came to believe in the value of the smartphone and obediently returned it to Subaru.
"This thing's value is immeasurable. I've worked in this warehouse a long time, and this is the first time I've ever handled a 'Meteor'... it must be incredibly valuable."
Even in the world of illicit goods, encountering a rare item sparks enthusiasm.
Rom began to excitedly discuss its worth, but then seemed to realize something, stroking his chin as he looked down at Subaru.
"Thinking about it, even if it's an Insigna with a gemstone, trading a 'Meteor' for a mere decorative item is a big loss for you.
This thing could fetch a far higher price—no, it shouldn't even be placed among these fakes and stolen goods."
For a criminal dealing in stolen goods, it was an unexpectedly sincere piece of advice.
Subaru gave a wry smile in the face of Rom's charming warning.
It was true—from an outsider's perspective, what he was doing seemed incredibly foolish.
But he didn't mind.
"It's fine. I'll make the trade. I'll use this 'Meteor' to exchange for the Insigna that Felt brought. But I want to do the trade immediately."
"Why go this far? Is the Insigna more valuable than the 'Meteor'? Or are you going to tell me it's priceless?"
Rom's tone was filled with confusion.
If Subaru were in his shoes, he'd likely feel the same way.
"To be honest, I haven't even seen the Insigna yet. Even if it were exchanged for money, it wouldn't be worth more than this phone. So for me, without a doubt, this is a huge loss."
"Then why do it, if you know that?"
"You don't even have to ask—it's because I want to take the loss on purpose."
Rom rolled his eyes for the third time.
Subaru looked at him with delight, then secretly glanced at Reinhild in the corner, still nibbling on fruit, and smiled.
Yeah, that's the answer.
"I want to repay a favor. If I owe someone, I repay them double.
I'm a neurotic modern kid—if I don't, my conscience won't let me sleep at night.
So even if I lose out big time, I want to get that Insigna."
"Hmm… from the way you're talking, that Insigna doesn't even belong to you, huh?"
"It belongs to Emilia-chan. I don't know the full reason, but it's something very important to her."
!!!
"Sorry for interrupting—I just got a little excited hearing a familiar name."
The two looked confusedly at Reinhild, who had suddenly emitted a low-pressure aura.
Reinhild offered a polite smile and took a sip of the milk in front of him.
But both Rom and Subaru silently dropped the topic.
To ease the awkward atmosphere, Subaru brought out some convenience store snacks to share.
He and Rom began chatting about high-tech gadgets.
Most of the snacks ended up in Rom's mouth.
Seeing this, Subaru—who had hoped to use the opportunity to get closer to Reinhild—could only look on with teary eyes, reluctantly stuffing the now-empty wrappers into a plastic convenience store bag before continuing the conversation.
Eventually, as evening fell and darkness approached, there was a knock at the warehouse door.
Subaru, who had been dozing by the counter, lifted his head.
Rom's massive body responded to the knock with surprising agility, gliding over to the door like a feather.
Wearing a mysterious expression, he placed his ear against the door and asked:
"To deal with big rats?"
"Use poison."
"To deal with the white whale?"
"Use a fishhook."
Rom hesitated for a moment, then opened the door. Felt strolled in like she owned the place, walking right to the counter and pouring herself a glass of milk.
"Geez, Rom! At least tell me when you change the password!"
Felt noticed Subaru standing to the side—eyes still teary and hands trembling slightly.
Seemingly just realizing he was there, she flinched, then immediately put on a guarded expression.
"Ahem, what was the old password again?"
Subaru quickly changed the subject.
"'To deal with our noble dragon?' 'Go eat shit.'"
Smash
"Felt, you have a guest."
Three voices spoke almost simultaneously.
"Sorry, I accidentally broke this cup. I'll pay full price to compensate."
Reinhild apologized sincerely.
Rom had already picked up his club.
Feeling the rising tension, Subaru cleared his throat and tried to steer the conversation back on track.
"Alright, let's restart the negotiation. So, Felt—you brought the Insigna with you, right?"
"I've got it. Relax, Rom. As for you, I don't care what you're plotting, but personally, I'm only interested in money. So let's get down to business."
Felt raised an eyebrow, clearly still highly alert toward both Subaru and Reinhild. Seeing this, Subaru raised both hands to show he meant no harm.
"I won't use my hands or feet—only my mouth. In other words, let's negotiate."
He pointed with one finger toward the small table beside the counter.
"This won't cost either of us anything. My goal is a win-win situation."
Seeing his willingness to talk, Felt quickly nodded and sat across from him in the indicated seat.
Understanding the mood, Rom poured a glass of milk and placed it in front of her.