Chief Leo and Chief Kent were merchants. As such, they wanted nothing more than to see their shelves become empty, their wares translated into spirit stones, just not like that.
Since the clients were making the purchases, the two Chiefs were powerless to oppose the ploy. It was a power move that put Grace clearly above them, and things only worsened.
Grace soon publicly announced the most popular alchemical products' requirements, meaning the clients never purchased ingredients by mistake.
Every single spirit stone, be it loaned, spent on the two merchants, or directly to Grace, would ultimately end up in her hands one way or another.
So, Leo and Kent could only swallow the blood they wanted to puke, smiling while basically fueling Grace's business, silently praying to the Heavens for retribution.
It would take one failure, just one, to tip the scales slightly, to fill the crowd with some reasonable hesitation. It would be even better if it happened with Philip's request.
