One copper coin for the Iwami Ginzan?
The air solidified.
Kikkawa Motoharu, the Mōri Clan's fierce general, had his brain completely shut down.
He stared blankly at Roger, then looked at Jack Sparrow, who was clinging to Roger's leg, crying with snot and tears.
He felt that his decades of life experience had been completely overturned tonight.
What kind of joke from hell was this?
"Captain… Boss… Ancestor…"
Jack Sparrow's translation work was exceptionally difficult. He shivered as he repeated Roger's shocking statement in his broken Japanese.
"He… he said… he wants to use one copper coin… to buy everything from you…"
"Baka yarou!"
A samurai, who was close by, finally couldn't bear such extreme humiliation. He let out a beast-like roar, waving his broken katana, and charged forward again.
"Protect the Captain!"
Without Roger needing to speak, Billy's black head had already flown out from the crowd, accurately smashing into the samurai's face.
"Thud!"
With a dull sound, the samurai fell to the ground, instantly knocked unconscious.
Billy's bodiless head rolled twice on the ground, its empty eye sockets even winked at Roger, as if saying, "Boss, how was that header?"
"I already said, we're here to talk sense. Why do some people always like to resort to violence?"
Roger spread his hands helplessly, then turned his gaze back to Kikkawa Motoharu.
"Mr. Kikkawa, right? You see, our company is very humane."
"After the acquisition, your position and benefits can be transferred."
"I've decided to appoint you as the Director of Security for the Iwami Ginzan area, primarily responsible for maintaining internal order in the mining area and preventing employees from slacking off."
"Buck," Roger called back.
"Here, Captain!"
The iron-boned tough guy wearing a woman's kimono immediately puffed out his chest.
"You, from now on, will be the Deputy Director of Security, primarily responsible for supervising the Director's work."
"Got it!"
Buck excitedly slapped his chest, making a "thump, thump" metallic sound.
Kikkawa Motoharu listened to Jack's intermittent translation, and his entire being went numb.
Director of Security?
Supervise me?
He looked at the iron monster in women's clothing, then at Roger's sincere face, and a feeling of utter absurdity made him almost vomit blood.
"Enough!"
Just then, a steady and powerful voice came from the entrance of the banquet hall.
Everyone looked in that direction, only to see an old monk in a kasaya, with a gaunt face, holding a Zen staff, slowly walking in, surrounded by a group of samurai.
He was clearly a monk, but the authority of a long-time superior that he exuded was stronger than any samurai present.
The most peculiar thing was that he saw the mess in the hall, the disheveled samurai, and even Buck and his group of uniquely styled black iron skeletons, yet his face showed no trace of surprise or fear.
He simply walked calmly to Kikkawa Motoharu's side and helped him up.
"Lord Motoharu, you have lost your composure."
"Lord Ankokuji! Why have you come!"
Kikkawa Motoharu, seeing the newcomer, seemed to find his backbone, and the color drained from his face instantly.
"My lord heard that there were distinguished guests visiting here, and specifically ordered me to come and greet them."
The old monk, called Ankokuji Ekei, looked past everyone and directly at Roger.
Those were eyes as still as an ancient well, as if they could see through people's hearts.
"Ding! Host, detecting a high-level NPC!"
The system's voice suddenly rang in Roger's mind, with a hint of gossip.
"Ankokuji Ekei, the Mōri Clan's diplomatic monk. Simply put, he is their clan's chief spokesperson, specifically responsible for talking! This guy is eloquent, he can talk the dead back to life. Be careful not to get entangled by him!"
"Oh? Finally, someone who can speak properly has arrived."
Roger became interested.
He pulled over a cushion, motioning for Ankokuji Ekei to sit down.
"This master, you must be the representative of the Mōri Clan, I presume?"
Ankokuji Ekei did not sit. He simply performed a standard gassho bow to Roger.
"This humble monk, Ankokuji Ekei, greets this… benefactor from the sea."
He spoke Chinese with perfect pronunciation, clearly having put in a lot of effort into learning the Han language.
He had even thoroughly learned the local monk's customs.
"Benefactor's divine soldiers and heavenly generals, this humble monk has already witnessed them."
"Indeed, they are not something ordinary people can contend with."
Ankokuji Ekei's gaze swept over Buck's black iron skeleton, frankly admitting the disparity in individual military strength between the two sides.
"However," he changed the subject.
"Does the benefactor know whose territory this land beneath your feet is? And what this silver mine before your eyes signifies?"
"It is not a solitary mine; it is the lifeblood that supports the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of people across the entire Western Country."
"Every single output from it will turn into food, clothing, and weapons, distributed to every corner under the rule of the Mōri Clan."
"My lord, Mōri Motonari, is hailed by the world as the 'God of Strategy of the Western Country'."
"He used fifty years to expand a small piece of land into a hegemon of the Western Country, strong enough to contend for supremacy under heaven."
"His strategies, like a spiderweb, cover every inch of this land."
"His will is the law of this land."
Ankokuji Ekei's voice was not loud, but it carried a convincing power.
"Benefactor, you are very strong."
"Your subordinates are also truly formidable."
"But in the end, you only have one ship."
"And our enemy is a hundred thousand troops under my lord, ready for battle, and a million common people who share weal and woe with the Mōri Clan."
"You can flatten this manor today, but tomorrow, thousands upon thousands of samurai will surge from all directions, and they will use their flesh and blood to completely drown you on this land."
"You are not facing a single family, but a land that has been operating for fifty years."
"This is Lord Mōri's only answer."
After he finished speaking, the entire banquet hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Kikkawa Motoharu and the Japanese nobles' faces once again showed fanaticism and pride.
That's right, this was the Mōri Clan, Mōri Motonari, who planned everything flawlessly and commanded immense prestige!
Jack Sparrow's legs started to cramp again as he listened to these words.
One hundred thousand troops?
A million common people?
Oh my goodness!
Captain, it seems we've stirred up a hornet's nest!
He nervously looked at Roger, but found that not only did Roger's face show no fear, but instead, it revealed an excitement as if he had discovered a new continent.
Roger listened quietly, then he smiled.
"Are you done speaking?"
Ankokuji Ekei nodded.
"Let me summarize your speech."
Roger extended a finger and slowly said.
"First, your boss is incredibly awesome, with a large territory and many subordinates."
Roger extended a second finger.
"Second, this silver mine is his core asset, and whoever touches it dies."
Finally, the third finger.
"Third, you have many people and want to fight a war of attrition with us, using human wave tactics."
"I understand, right?"
Ankokuji Ekei's pupils slightly contracted.
He found that his words, full of profound meaning and threat, when summarized by the other party in such a crude and direct way, instantly lost their enigmatic charm.
"Benefactor is astute."
"No, it's not that I'm astute, it's that I'm too familiar with your tactics."
Roger waved his hand, stood up, and walked in front of Ankokuji Ekei.
"What war machine, what People are soldiers (everyone is a soldier), to put it plainly, isn't it just a monopoly business that also likes forced bundled sales?"
"This outdated business model has long been eliminated by the market where we come from."
Roger patted Ankokuji Ekei's shoulder, looking at him with an expression that said, "I have high hopes for you."
"Master, I see that you have an unusual bone structure, you're a good prospect for business. Are you interested in switching to our company?"
"I'll offer you double salary, plus stock options. Your position would be Chief Negotiator for the East Asia region, specifically responsible for communicating with old stubborn people like your boss."
Ankokuji Ekei: "…"
A crack appeared on his placid face.
"Alright, no more jokes."
Roger put away his smile.
"Go back and tell your so-called 'God of Strategy'."
"His methods are outdated."
"Relay my message: I give him three days to voluntarily hand over the ownership and management rights of the silver mine, and compensate us for all expenses of this business trip, including emotional distress fees, lost wages, and…"
Roger pointed at Jack Sparrow.
"My company employee's psychological trauma compensation."
"In three days, if I don't see a satisfactory response."
Roger walked to the center of the banquet hall. Behind him, the black iron skeletons stood in a neat row, over a hundred empty eye sockets simultaneously ignited with red flames.
"Then I will personally go to his main city and have a little meeting with him."
"Tell him what the hell… Industrial Revolution… is."
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