The Pseudo-Kunoichi from Another World (Part 11): Waterside Negotiations

“Mr. Port, I’d like you to rent your furnace again~!” I sang as stepped into Port’s shop.

“So you’re back at it again, little lady…” Port replied.

After my first taste of the traveling salesman life with the [Shinobi EX Lightning Kitchen Knives], I had spent the past few days making and selling a new batch. I used my [Harvest] skill on the beach to get 30 or so low-quality pearls and used their water-attribute to forge [Water Kitchen Knives], plus some improvements to the original design.

I’d realized now that the original price of 50 silver coins was way too low but even with the bump up in price those 30 knives sold out in no time at all. There seemed to be more demand for magic weapons than I expected, after all.

Money-wise, I’ve got a little over 20 gold coins at the moment with a target of 30.

“Unfortunately, little lady, the guild’s told me I can’t lend you my furnace for a while…” Port said. “Did you happen to do anything recently to catch their attention?”

“… Nope, nothing comes to mind!” I replied.

“Well, it seems that there’s been quite the ruckus in the markets these past few days, due to a lot of high-quality magical knives available at rock-bottom prices…” Port started.

Crap. I’m starting to realize there was something that should have come to mind. 

“… Knives that happen to shoot lightning or streams of water…?” I asked.

“Yeah, and I’m pretty sure I remember your ‘special project’ was making magic knives…”

“But I’ve only gone peddling twice!” I said. “I’m sure the Commerce and Industry guild knows that, too.”

“They said the merchant was an adventurer with dark hair in all black and the knives in question all had ‘Shino’ engraved on them,” Port said. “There’s no question it’s you.”

As a Sengoku Period history nerd, I was compelled to engrave my name on my knives as per Japanese tradition. In my defense, that was also how it was in Sengoku Online.

“Well, it’s a message straight from the Commerce and Industry Guild, I can’t do a thing about it,” Port said. “If you intend to keep at this business, you should probably join the guild and hope for the best.”

“… But I heard that if you’re a peddler, you don’t need to register with the guild,” I said.

“It’s a matter of scale,” Port said. “Before you came along, they didn’t even think there could be someone selling magic weapons on the roadside.”

… And now things are getting harder.

Oh well, since I’m planning to buy land anyway, it might be best to show up at least once. “Alright, I’ll head there myself,” I told Port.

---

I returned to the inn, waited for Nellie to finish cleaning our room, then headed out together to the Commerce and Industry Guild.

Their offices were located at a brick building near the entrance to the market district. When I told the receptionist why I was here, we were immediately taken to a reception room, where a middle-aged man of average height was waiting for us.

“Welcome, I’m Aston, Master of the Commerce and Industry Guild,” he said.

“I’m Shino Kagura, a Kunoichi with the Adventurer’s Guild. Pleased to meet you,” I said. “This young lady is my servant, Nellie.”

“Aah, please don’t feel the need to be so formal… please, sit down,” he said as he gestured at a sofa.

Nellie and I did.

“I really couldn’t believe it, you know,” Aston started.

“Believe what?” I asked.

“That you made those magic weapons…” Aston replied. “For its level, it’s not unusual to have such power but it cannot be mass-produced.”

“…”

“To be frank, some members are worried you might be an agent of a Magic Guild from another country,” Aston said. “Magic Weapon creators are supposed to have been vouched for by a number of other mages. May I please ask you for the truth?”

It seems my crashing the Magic Weapon market wasn’t the only reason they called me in here.

“I don’t believe spies make it a point to flood their enemies with powerful magic weapons,” I said.

“Care to prove it?” Aston asked. “You are a rather powerful magician, after all.”

Well, he was close enough.

“What do you want to see exactly?” I asked.

“We were wondering if you could produce a magical item while we bear witness,” Aston said. “Depending on the quality of the work, we will recognize your claims as legitimate, and if we can make up for our losses in profits by auctioning the item, then we will not charge you for the damages.”

“So one-sided…” Nellie hissed, glaring at Aston. “Lady Shino has not broken any of the guild’s laws!”

Oh, Nellie is so cute defending me like this.

However, I don’t want either us to be on the blacklists of the richest and most influential people of this world, so I decided to negotiate. “I have some conditions,” I said. “Does the guild also handle transactions involving real estate?”

“We do.”

“In that case, if I can deliver sufficient proof… I want you to give me a special consideration for the purchase of some land,” I said. “Specifically, a 30% discount.”

“Do you have any particular property in mind?” Aston asked.

“There’s a collapsed mansion about 500 meters north of the Adventurer’s Guild,” I explained. I was keeping an eye on it for the location but it was a little expensive. 

“Oh, that,” Aston said. “It used to be the residence of some now fallen aristocrats. The land is large but the mansion is already crumbling.”

“I’m only interested in the land,” I replied. “We’ll demolish the mansion ourselves and erect a new building.”

“Understood,” Aston said, nodding.

“So with all that out of the way… can I trust you to arrange for the materials I’ll need?” I asked.

“Certainly,” Aston said. “What do you require?”

“It needs to be of decent quality, so an [Emerald] and the rest…”

“Go on?”

“[Rice Straw], [Bamboo], and [Wood],” I said.

From the look on Aston’s face, he couldn’t seem to comprehend what I was going to do. I just left him with a smile on my face.

---

Three days later, early one morning, Nellie and I were on the deck of a large merchant ship, about 300 meters offshore from Sazan Harbor. Earlier, I had told the Commerce and Industry Guild I was ready to make the proof they wanted but needed a ship, claiming, “The ocean is the best place for it.”

“Nellie, are you ready for the demonstration?” I asked.

“Yes, everything’s proceeding smoothly,” Nellie replied.

In addition to Aston, there are more than a dozen guild executives boarding with us. They were all rather suspicious of me, their expressions ranging from wary, scornful, and amused. I even noticed Coswynn (Nellie’s former master) in the crowd, too.

They all seemed to think I couldn’t amount to much.

Aston spoke on behalf of the group. “Now then, Ms. Shino, we have set a ship out to sail in the ocean as requested, so I assume you will create a Magic Weapon worth our time.”

“But I’m not going to?” I say before I laugh.

The executives started murmuring immediately.

“See, I told you she could only be a distributor…”

“However, there is no doubt that a large number of new and identical magical weapons flooded the market…”

“What an idiotic farce…”

“My profit margins are…”

“… Pardon me, Ms. Shino?” Aston asked.

“Aren’t times peaceful right now?” I said. “To be clear, everyone, I’m not saying I can’t make magical items… only that you specifically stated it had to be a magical item. Nowhere was it specified that it had to be a weapon.”

“Ah… that was the agreement…” Aston muttered.

“My point is, what if the item I provide is more valuable than the damage I’ve done to the Magic Weapon market?”

“… Fair enough,” Aston said. “A magical item doesn’t need to be a weapon to fetch a handsome price… but what on earth are you making instead?”

“Ah, consider it a proof-of-theory,” I said. “Let’s begin. Nellie, if you will.”

“Yes, Lady Shino,” Nellie said as she erected a screen around me.

“Just one moment, what is going on?” Aston asked.

“I’m going to make an original magical tool now, so I can’t divulge the secret of how to make it,” I replied. “Besides, I’m the only one behind this screen, so I assume there’s no problem?”

“… There’s a risk you’ll unveil a finished product made by someone else ahead of time,” Aston said.

“I’ll only bring my materials with me,” I said. “If you’re really so worried, that female guild member can do a physical examination on me.”

Unexpectedly, she refused. “No, no, there is no problem,” she said. “I’ve had no anomalous reactions from my [Detect Magic]. But if it’s truly an ‘original’ product… well, our current magic tool manufacturing techniques rely on replicating established recipes and iterating on the results. If you really have learned this lost technology… then you are an exceptional magician indeed.”

So that woman was a magician? Well, I was expecting someone in the mix to help prevent cheating. Still, I want her to stop raising the bar I’ll need to leap over.

“Then please, hand me the materials the guild has prepared and I’ll take only them with me,” I said.

“Hrm…” Aston said as they were brought out. “We’ve prepared an emerald about a centimeter in size. The bamboo was imported from the East for use in basket-weaving. The straw was from rice paddies and the wood was from a Paulownia tree. That is all.”

“Thank you, it’s all good quality, too…” I said as I carried them off. “I can make something excellent with this.”

“So we expect of you…” I heard Aston mutter behind my back.

I was alone behind the screen, Nellie having to wait with them to ensure I wasn’t cheating. “So then, let’s begin,” I said as I changed my skill set to [Crafting].

[Dexterity +] [Success Rate +] [Advanced Sewing] [Proc. Rate +] [Weight Limit +] [Enchantment +] [Physical Ability +] [Advanced Fashion Sense] [Ninja Tools Creation] [Calm Mind]

I began with [Ninja Tools Creation]. I cut the board and made two oval pieces and eight fan-shaped pieces; next, I scraped the bamboo to make two circular frames; then, I joined them together with ropes… and about a minute later, my creation took shape:

Clogs surrounded by Paulownia-wood boards in a circle, the famed ninja “Water Spider”.

I should mention that something of this size can’t float in open water with the full weight of a person on top of them; rather, they were used in battle to help capture fortifications with moats built around them. 

Good thing it was just the first stage.

I opened my Skills menu and executed my unique skill, [Character Change]. The character selection screen appeared, I touched “Onmyoji LV76” (“Diviner Level 76”)…

Immediately, my hair grew long and straight, my ninja outfit was replaced by flashy, flowing purple robes. There were large slits running up both sides of my legs which might be a problem, but that was just how this armour was designed. 

I immediately changed my skill set to my Onmyoji’s [Crafting].

[Dexterity +] [Advanced Magic Tools Creation] [Imbue Summoned Spirit] [Summoning Item Creation] [Weight Limit +] [Calm Mind] [Enchantment +] [Physical Ability +] [Success Rate +]

I confirmed my skills were active and picked up the last remaining material, the emerald. With [Advanced Magic Tools Creation], I used it to strengthen the water spider’s stats and buoyancy, just in case. And as a finishing touch, I imbued a tool spirit and gave it instructions, much like you would have an AI.

“My work is done,” I said as I came out from behind the screen with the finished product.

Everyone is taken aback. “What? How?” Aston asked. “What happened to your clothes?”

“You told me to make a magic item with you all as witnesses, didn’t you?” I replied. “I changed my clothes because I required them for a necessary spell.”

“Yes, but… we were prepared to be at sea for at least a few hours…” Aston said. “I’m certain it’s been less than ten minutes.”

“The product is completed, are you really going to complain that it was done ahead of schedule?” I asked.

“Mmm, I suppose not,” Aston said. “But what really matters is the value of the item… but whatever is this thing? It looks like you just cut and tied some wooden boards together with rope.”

To be fair to him, there was nothing remotely like this in this fantasy world.

“Allow me to explain,” I said. “This is a water-walking and rescue tool, the [Rescue Water Spider].”

“Water… walking?” Aston asked.

I nodded. If you take this and say, ‘Activate’”–the ropes of the [Rescue Water Spider] become like tentacles as they wrap around my feet, under the direction of the tool spirit–“you can equip it.”  

“Ooooooohhhh…!?” the crowds around me go.

“Did you really craft a magic item in such short time?”

“… This golem, can it act freely?”

“… Please be quiet,” I sigh. “You’ve yet to see the true value of this magic tool.”

I let the people gather around me, climbed onto the rail, then jumped overboard. It was quite the drop to the water, but I landed with barely a splash and standing totally upright, at that. 

I can hear the astonished voices of the executives even from down here.

“Look, she’s actually floating!”

“She’s walking on water without a mage!”

“… Just think of all the many applications here at Port Sazan…”

As instructed, Nellie soon had the ship anchored in place. When I was sure it had stopped moving, I yelled up, “Nellie! Toss me the item you brought onboard!”

“Right away, Lady Shino!” Nellie yells back before she throws down another [Rescue Water Spider], one I had made in advance.

“Now, what she just threw down was a prototype of the [Rescue Water Spider],” I called out. “Let’s use it to demonstrate why it has ‘Rescue’ in the name… Nellie!”

“Understood, I’m on my way down now, Lady Shino!” Nellie said as she took off her maid uniform, to reveal the one-piece swimsuit she was wearing underneath.

The men can’t tear their eyes away. No matter how much they usually despise “half-breed monsters”, there is nothing like the allure of a beautiful girl in a swimsuit.

Nellie quickly jumped overboard to escape their gazes. She landed with a splash and disappeared beneath the water, resurfacing 5-6 meters away from me. Perhaps because she’s a cat-type Beast-man, she can’t swim very well, desperately flailing her limbs to little effect.

“If you have a conscious man overboard, just throw it near them,” I said as I toss it towards her.

Nellie immediately grabs onto it and says, “Activate!” The ropes automatically maneuver through the water and around her feet, before a huge bubble surrounds her and leaves Nellie floating safely on the water.

The executives cheer as one again.

“You can do safe and reliable rescues using this,” I call out. “Of course, since I’m a clever person, I’ve already thought of other applications: repairing ship hulls while out at sea, installing fishing equipment, recovering flotsam and jetsam, responding to attacks by aquatic monsters…”

I pause and looked up. “How’s that, Guildmaster Aston?”

“Well…!” he calls back. “This is certainly an ‘original’ idea quite unlike anything before and the range of applications is wide indeed.”

“So…?” I asked.

“Hrm, we will dismiss your case,” Aston said. “The charges are lifted unless the Magic Weapon market crashes again.”

“Please withhold your judgment!” Coswynn called out, interrupting the smooth negotiations.

“Guildmaster, it’s certainly an incredible magical tool, but we can’t recoup our losses with just one or two!” Coswynn said. “For the purposes of rescues at sea, we have to have a much more reasonable number!”

“Hmm, but I thought your loss was, at worst, one gold coin?” Aston said. “From my appraisal, a single pair would be worth 20.”

“Guh…” Coswynn groaned. “But… but…”

“Compose yourself, Coswynn,” Aston says. “Merchants must also have tact and grace.”

“If I may please interrupt, Guildmaster Aston?” I call out.

“Hrm, what is it, Ms. Shino?” Aston asks.

“Mr. Coswynn has a point,” I call back. “If this is to be used for rescue, at least one ship here in Port Sazan will need to be fully equipped. In that case, I’ll gladly accept production orders exclusively from the guild,” I said.

It was a nicer way of putting, “I’ve honoured my side of the agreement, but if you want more, you better pay up.”

“If you provide the materials, my share will be 50% net, right?” I asked.

“Hrm, that’s an agreement the guild will find less than ideal…” Aston said. “How many could you produce in a month–”

Dooonnnnn…!

The ship groaned as it tilted to one side, cutting negotiations short. The executives on-board rolled down the deck like barrels, with only Aston managing to cling onto the edge and look around.

“Damn it!” he yelled. “What in the world…?”

There are no waves. It’s a gentle breeze today. What could have rocked such a large ship…?

I could see it from my position standing on the water: a huge shadow moving beneath the ship.

The monster quickly swam away and surfaced 10 meters from the bow. It stretched out to its full size, its long neck about 7-8 meters above the water, a dragon-like head at the end, like Nessie the Loch Ness monster except far uglier.

“Sea Dragon!” Aston cries, all the colour draining from his skin. “Why is there a sea dragon this close to port…?”

Upon closer inspection, this “sea dragon” wasn’t a true dragon, just a subspecies. Regardless, it looked powerful enough to sink the ship on its own with barely any effort. To be this afraid of it was just a natural reaction.

Then I noticed it wasn’t alone.

It seemed to have been traveling with “Killer Orca” monsters that were now circling the ship, too.

“Aaah…!” Cosywnn screams. “Port, we need to go back to port!”

“But Shino and the other are still overboard!”

“I don’t care!” Coswynn shouted. “Leave them to the monsters!”

“Why don’t you come down here too, Coswynn,” I thought.

“Settle down, Coswynn!” Aston cried. “If you make any sudden movements, it might attack the ship thinking that you are bait or trying to fight it!”

It’s no use: Coswynn is half-mad, still screaming that we should flee

Well then… I wanted to watch and observe things for a little longer, but too long and my reward would be forfeit. “Guildmaster Aston!” I yell. “We’ll handle things from here, keep the passengers calm and from falling overboard!”

I change my skill set to my Onmyoji’s combat set.

[Auto Barrier] [Magic Staff +] [Total Resistance] [Perfect Barrier] [Five-Point Flame] [Killing Curse]

[Multi-Barrier] [Summon Guardian Spirit] [Multi-Summon] [Scattered Petals] [Spirit Synergy – Staff] [Meteor Shower]

“What are you saying, Ms. Shino?!” Aston yelled. “That’s a sea dragon! It’s not a monster that humans can beat on the water!”

I ignore him as I give directions to Nellie. “Nellie, you deal with the Killer Orcas. Ignore the sea dragon. Don’t let anything get close to the ship.”

“Yes, Lady Shino,” Nellie said.

“[Multi-Barrier],” I say, casting shields on Nellie and myself.

I should mention, Nellie’s swimsuit doubles as armour specifically for underwater and waterside combat, boasting high resistances against water-based monsters like these. It just so happened that its design would be similar to a white swimsuit.

She’s well-armed, too, with her [Shinoichi-type Yamanagi Knife]. With its bonus against water-based monsters, Nellie’s [Household Tools Mastery], and the 15% bonus to magic skills… a killer orca’s not going to stand a chance.

In fact, she’s already killed one.

Yes, Nellie was able to fight well and looked damn cute doing it; my choice of designs and hard work were rewarded once again.

–Then, while I was distracted:

DONG!

The sea serpent whacked me with its tail. Maybe it was annoyed at my ignoring it, but two things were for sure: I was down a barrier and the impact felt like a slap on my cheek.

– A very painful slap on the cheek.

“Lady Shino!” Nellie yelled.

“Ah—I’m okay!” I yell back. “I’ll take care of this right now.

I’d be a terrible boss if I made my subordinate worry about me like this. Then I noticed my reflection in the water.

Oh yeah, I almost completely forgot:

“[Spirit Summoning]!” I yelled as I whipped out a summoning item. [Multi-Summon] activated, two spirits appeared in the air by my sides, looking like two women with long-black hair dressed in kimonos.

“What the… there’s flying women!” 

“Harpies?!”

No, a “Snow Woman” spirit. I pointed at the sea dragon and said, “Your target. Use [Ice Breath].”

((Yes, Mistress,)) they say before they flew off to the sea dragon, blew out freezing gales that froze everything in seconds.

The water dragon sensed danger, tried to use its [Water Breath] to fight back—but by then, it was already too late, every part of it above and below the water was frozen in a giant block of ice.

Hm, seems like it’s time for the big finale.

I tell the Snow Women to move, so we make a magic triangle with the sea dragon in the center. “Guildmaster Aston!” I yell. “This is going to be massive, so please watch out!”

“Wait, what?!” Aston yells. “Just what are you planning to do?!”

I was too busy casting to answer him. “[Six-point Star Barrier] to minimize the collateral damage…” I mutter as the triangle turns into a hexagram and begins to glow with white light, completely trapping the sea dragon.

“[Starfall].”

A shining beam comes down from the heavens and directly onto the sea dragon… moments later, dozens of truck-sized meteors come pouring down, all guided by the light.

DU-DU-DU-DU-DU-DU-DU-DU-DU-DU-DU-DU-DUNN-N…!

Yes, this was the fabled Meteor Shower, Energy Fallout,¹ Comet Strike, Colony Drop, and however else it was called.

Afterward, there’s neither shadow nor shape of the sea dragon within the barrier. Was this overkill?

“Wha… wha… wha…?” the executives sputter as they bore witness to the attack.

“Are you all alright?” I called out. “I tried to limit the collateral damage of [Starfall] as much as possible… Coswynn, how are you?”

“Huh? Haaaa….!” Coswynn cowers.

“I’m glad we were already acquainted, Coswynn…” I said. “I’d hate for one of those meteors to have accidentally fallen on you ♪.”

“Hiiii…!” Coswynn squeals.

---

Afterward…

Negotiations with the now very eager executives (Coswynn especially) went smoothly. To sum it up:

 ・ I’ll produce and deliver 50 sets of [Rescue Water Spiders] within a month,

 ・ The net profit will be split 30% for the guild and 70% for myself,

 ・ The sale price will be kept within 5 gold coins per set,

 ・ [Rescue Water Spiders] will be sold exclusively by the guild,

 ・ I’m allowed to sell magic weapons again, but not in bulk, and

 ・ I was now part of the Commerce and Industry Guild, and exempted from the membership fee plus other expenses.

All in all, a very productive day. We finished the discussions and returned to harbour and parted ways.

It was now just myself and Nellie walking down the docks. “Was it part of your plan to lace the tools with bait?” she whispered.

“Well, it was a good demonstration of their combat applications,” I whispered back.

I didn’t expect to see an A-class monster, though.

Regardless of if the negotiations went well or failed, in the future I’d continue testing my strength like this, to see if I’m still unbeatable. In an emergency, after all, an A-class monster could lay waste to an entire city.

On a related note, by defeating that sea dragon, my level rose for the first time in this world, though only my Onmyoji. I checked my guild card:

 Name Shino Kagura Gender Female Age 21 years old 

 Overall Level 77 Guild Rank C

 Class “Onmyoji” level 77

 status

 HP1590

 MP N/A

 STR 12

 VIT 13  

 DEX 15

 SPD 16

 INT 18

 MID 18

 title

 Mediator of Worlds

 Royal Diviner

 unique skills

 Character Change

 Mana Release

 Mana Transfer

 elemental attributes

 Flame + 40%

 Ice + 30%

 Wind + 10%

 blessings

 The Unnamed Overseer of the world

Additionally, Nellie has reached a total level of 20, and so her skill slots have increased and given her a significant power-up.

 Name Nellie Savant Gender Female Age 14 

 Overall Level 20 Guild Rank D

 Class Main “Luminous Maid” LV14

 Sub “Miscellaneous Slave” LV15

 status

 HP 515

 MP1105

 STR 15

 VIT 14  

 DEX 13

 SPD 15

 INT 13

 MID 12

 title

 Magical Miracle Child

 unique skills

 Part-beast

 Household Tools Mastery

 elemental attributes

 Darkness + 10%

 Light + 20%

 blessing

 Kagura Shino

I also got the loot items from the sea dragon and killer orcas. After I went back to the inn and rested a while, I was going to start on those [Rescue Water Spiders]. 

---

1. Original: エナジーフォールダウン / “Energy Falldown”

Translator’s Note: From this chapter on I’m going to stop manually fixing and prettying up the stats screens. I’m here for the story, not for the game math.

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