A corner of Duolun City, in front of a two-story wooden house, a brown-haired cat-eared girl dressed in brown wiped the sweat from her face.
She was Miffy Fland, the daughter of the head of Rusted Gold, the largest supplier of materials and props in Duolun, a city bustling with adventurers.
Just turned twenty-two, she had already begun taking over her father’s work and had become somewhat well-known in the city.
Today, as usual, she led her employees in unloading the goods delivered by the convoy into the warehouse and carried out the inventory check.
“I’m really becoming something respectable, huh.”
Looking at her somewhat dirty work clothes and then at the neatly arranged array of goods inside the house, the young cat-eared girl couldn’t help but puff out her chest proudly, thinking that soon all of these would be transformed into gold and silver.
This was to be Miffy Fland’s first order fully handled personally from start to finish.
It meant she had become a truly qualified supplier, capable of taking on more orders from her father.
This was definitely worth commemorating as a milestone.
【After I finish this, maybe take a bath and invite some friends for a few drinks?】
She thought to herself, her tail swaying happily in response.
For a supplier like her, growing bigger and stronger, friends—or rather, connections—were indispensable.
Unlike her father, she preferred to use her excellent social skills to obtain goods directly from young adventurers.
Though her supply sources weren’t as stable as the veteran suppliers’, she could easily get materials and props that others couldn’t.
She owed much of this to a healer she had met six years ago named Fros Camille.
She never imagined that the young man she helped back then out of kindness would repay her so greatly now.
Naturally, the friend she planned to call for a drink was none other than him.
She wondered if, now that he was a member of a top-tier adventurer group, he would be willing to grace her with his presence.
【He definitely will. I even brought his favorite wine.】
The cat-eared girl thought with anticipation.
“Miffy, did all the goods arrive this week?”
A male voice slightly snapped her out of her daydream.
Turning around, she saw a middle-aged man dressed in the same brown work clothes standing behind her.
She immediately smiled sweetly:
“Ah, um, Father, everything’s here.”
Father Fland glanced over the stacked wooden crates with a calm expression.
After dismissing the other employees, he asked his daughter:
“Is something missing?”
“What?”
Miffy’s smile vanished immediately.
She pulled out the inventory list from her pocket and checked off each item once more, then shook her head.
“No, everything’s complete.”
“You’re missing the healing medicine. I mean the special anti-frostbite medicine for Frostflame Beasts. I remember instructing you to stock up on that, but there isn’t a single pack this time.”
Her father never joked about work, a fact Miffy was well aware of.
Thus, she never let her guard down on business matters.
【Anti-frostbite medicine? I remember it prevents large-scale skin decay caused by combined burns, frostbite, and poison wounds, which severely weakens magic defense. That’s Flos’s exclusive supply, isn’t it?】
Searching her mind quickly, confirming the details, Miffy said firmly:
“That shipment should have arrived at the warehouse three days ago.”
For such a crucial item, which she was explicitly instructed to stock abundantly, she always prepared in advance.
But Father Fland’s answer was a flat denial.
“No. If it had been delivered, I wouldn’t be asking you this.”
He frowned deeply.
No one here would dare to intercept the goods he managed, nor would anyone skip on deliveries.
This could only mean one thing—the supplier had run into trouble.
“I’ve been wondering where this batch of high-quality medicine, which we treat as hard currency, actually comes from. You’ve never told me. Now, can you?”
Hearing this, Miffy was momentarily stunned.
She pursed her lips, her cat ears twitching twice.
After some hesitation, she decided to be honest.
“It’s supplied by the healer from the Emerald Heart team. We have quite a few medicines in the warehouse that he makes. This anti-frostbite medicine is his exclusive product. He doesn’t provide much else. That squad wouldn’t just disappear on us, and…”
Fros had a strong sense of contract and wouldn’t be careless about such matters.
But Father Fland’s response only made Miffy more baffled.
“Alright, let’s drop it here. I’ll handle it from now on. Consider this loss on the books.”
“Father?”
“Cut him off from our supply sources. There’s competition among adventurer teams. If someone tampers with supplies, who knows what could happen? From now on, report all similar sources directly to me.”
His serious demeanor made Miffy swallow her words.
Though she couldn’t understand the drastic change in her father’s attitude, she knew she still had much to learn from him about doing business.
Their father-daughter relationship was uniquely compartmentalized.
When conducting business, Miffy never asked questions she shouldn’t, and they strictly maintained the leader-subordinate relationship.
But when business was out of the way, they could return to a warm familial bond.
After Father Fland finished his instructions, Miffy took off her sun hat and playfully tapped it on his head.
“Since that’s settled, I’m going out for a stroll? Old man~”
This time, however, her father didn’t respond with his usual cheerful smile.
He just nodded and turned away with a dark expression.
“Eh…”
Such a reaction was rare.
Miffy, who had intended to put the matter aside, couldn’t help but feel concerned.
【Dad’s been doing business for so many years, and this is one of the few times he’s looked this on edge. Even his favorite daughter gets the cold shoulder.】
Not pleased.
“Get home early.”
After taking a few steps, Father Fland looked back and gave her a word of warning before quickly disappearing into the house.
“Really?”
Miffy crossed her arms, snorted, then rolled her eyes and laughed as she headed toward her home.
Soon, dressed in casual clothes, she happily bounced off toward the Adventurers’ Association.
【The rule is: no work attitude outside of work. Old man, you broke the rule first, so I’m going to investigate properly. Fros is an important partner of mine, after all.】
Merchants value profit, so they value partners.
Partners are the best and most valuable channels to acquire benefits.
If Fros was in trouble, she had to step in.
Not to mention she always thought of this capable young man as a potential marriage prospect to achieve a profitable business alliance.
There was no way she would give up just because her old man said so casually.
But when she arrived at the Association headquarters in the center of Duolun City and asked the receptionist about Fros Camille, the healer of the Emerald Heart team, the reply was baffling.
“Do you mean Mr. Fros Camille, the healer of the Emerald Heart team, currently wanted with a bounty?”
“Wanted?”
This news shocked Miffy deeply.
Only now did she realize something was seriously wrong.
At the most prominent spot on the Association’s bounty board was a wanted poster featuring Fros’s portrait.
“Yes. He embezzled the team’s funds and defected during the Emerald Heart’s assault on Behemoth. This has long been known. That top-tier adventurer group nearly disbanded because of his actions.”
The receptionist showed a face full of confusion and regret, then finally wore an indignant expression.
“No one understands why such an honest-looking person would do this. It’s true what they say about not knowing what’s in a person’s heart.
However, Lady Moliyaer and the others didn’t blame him and insisted on capturing him alive.
It’s probably because he was influenced by the Demon Race.
But no matter what, they were too merciful.
Such a grave offense deserves to be shot on sight.”
Just by asking around, Miffy could hear similar stories, all filled with disdain and condemnation for the ungrateful, despicable healer, as well as admiration for the mercy shown by the Emerald Heart team.
Stepping out of the Association, Miffy felt dazed.
Something about all this was off.
She only knew one thing: this matter was definitely not simple.
The Fros she knew was not capable of such vileness.
A man who could make a fortune just from special medicines would never steal from his own team.
Her eyes fell on a flyer once more.
It was an invitation to a gala held in the name of the Emerald Heart team.
The attendees were all nobles and upper-class figures, as if some plan was quietly being brewed.
Miffy pressed her lips together and made up her mind.
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