Divine Luck: SSS-Rank Battle Maid Harem

"Derot, please! You have to get your production up again. You know my clients!" Tareeq, one of Derot's retailers was almost on his knees, pleading.

Derot shook his head with regret.

"Since you never stop gossiping about old men and women acting like horny teenagers, thanks to these potions, I might know your clients better than they know themselves by now. And I sympathize with you since I'm also suffering from this. But what can I do? You know the pressure I'm under," Derot lamented.

Tareeq sighed.

"I know. I'm just barely managing to rely on the influence of my clients to keep selling. I can't imagine what it's like for you. I'll…I'll ask around. See if there's something I can do."

"There's no need for that. The trouble this time isn't something your clients can do anything about. Just keep yourself and your business safe."

"Thanks for worrying about me, but are you sure?"

"Yes. All you need to do is be patient. Sooner or later, this will be dealt with as well."

"If you say so…" Tareeq sighed again and stood up. The potions coming from Derot's business were like bottles of miracles. Tareeq considered himself lucky to have landed such a good deal with Derot in the early days of the business. He could hardly count the money he had made through retailing the potions to the higher-class citizens of the capital.

But more than that, Derot was a genuine merchant. He was sly and tricky. But he wasn't unnecessarily cruel or deceptive. He didn't trick anyone and everyone he met to gain some far-fetched benefits. He was generous and warm-hearted.

His type was a rare sight in the cruel market of the capital.

Tareeq was sad to see such a bright youth suffer at the hands of their peers. So, while Derot had asked him not to, Tareeq resolved to at least try and do something about it. He didn't have any real backing to protect him in case he asked questions best left unasked.

But many customers that were important in other areas of the capital's high society valued his store and the exclusive goods that only he could bring them, whether they were rare gems or miracle potions that restored hair growth and vitality or cleared skin and washed away wrinkles.

If Tareeq disappeared, many of his customers would be upset.

That protected him. It would take a lot for someone to decide it was worth getting rid of him.

However, that was the limit of his backing. He was not in a position to ask for favors from his customers. He was the one who should be doing them favors. That was the reality of his situation.

Still, he had to do something. It was a matter of prioritizing what really mattered in this world.

Derot smiled after seeing the resolve on Tareeq's face.

It was a wonder Tareeq had gotten as far as he had in the world of business with such an easy-to-read face.

But that made it easier for Derot.

Tareeq asking around would put some pressure on his opponents. It wasn't much, but the tiniest bit would help since it would make it easier to localize the kidnappers who were threatening his alchemists' families.

Hopefully, that would also lead to an opportunity for Derot to strike back.

He was thankful to Zach. Without him, he wouldn't have been able to secure the families, even if he found them. And without securing the families, there was no way he could retaliate against the Kadricke Coalition and the rest of the merchants silently working together to freeze him and his business.

Fortunately, most merchants were easy to deal with.

Derot looked at his wristwatch before getting up and entering the back of his street-level office. After going through a few hallways, taking a few twists and turns, and entering a store room, Derot moved a few boxes to the side and entered the trapdoor, which brought him to the underground lab with all the alchemists.

It was the guild's best kept secret to the point where only two of the alchemists knew about the entrance. They had been skeptical at first, but after hearing about all the trouble the business was going through, they were relieved to know how safe they were.

The hostile merchants could only target their resources and families but not them.

However, somehow, messages kept slipping inside the lab. The best-kept secret of the guild was no longer a secret.

Derot looked out over the alchemists and workers producing and moving potions of all kinds.

There was a traitor in their midst.

Derot sighed lightly before returning to the surface through his office.

It wasn't unexpected, considering the means at the Kadricke Coalition's disposal. It was just a shame.

He could forgive being blackmailed. It was an impossible situation, and between alchemists who prioritized their families and those who would forsake them for the sake of potions, he preferred the ones with kind hearts.

But whoever was bringing in the messages to the vulnerable alchemists and leaking their identities to the outside world had gone too far. Even while being blackmailed, there was a limit.

They hadn't just tried to sabotage the operation. They had risked everything and everyone's lives.
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"Baxter," Derot called out as he left his office. A shadow separated from the corner of the office and followed behind him as he stepped onto the night street.

The spy's identity was a priority, but Derot already had a few ideas of who it might be and what to do with that. So, now he focused on what he had to do right now.

It was time to make a few house calls. If he wanted to strike back, he had to do it in a way the other merchants wouldn't expect or wouldn't be able to do anything about.

It would take some negotiating.

Fortunately, Derot knew exactly what merchants wanted. It was, after all, the reason why he was working so hard right now.