"Is that going to be okay, Guildmaster?"
Thegis stood beside Fuze, watching Suzuki confidently stride out of the guild hall. The grizzled veteran had a helpless, deeply suspicious expression. He just knew there was something profoundly terrifying about that rookie.
"It's fine," Fuze waved his hand dismissively. "There's nothing we can do about it anyway. As long as he stays here in Blumund, it's a net positive."
Yes, as long as Suzuki operated within their borders, Fuze was content. Instead of immediately leaving the kingdom for greener pastures, Suzuki had decided to liquidate the massive haul of monster materials he had brought with him and establish a local business. As long as the impossibly strong Otherworlder made Blumund his home base, the kingdom gained a massive, unstated deterrent.
"But, Guildmaster..." Thegis frowned.
"Hmm?"
"How strong is he, truly?"
"You'd better not do anything stupid," Fuze warned sharply. "Just go about your own life. Mind your business, and everything will be fine."
As long as everyone minded their own business, the world kept turning. Fuze knew better than anyone that Blumund wasn't a pristine, peaceful utopia. The kingdom was crawling with criminal syndicates, foreign spies, and other unsavory elements. Yet, as long as they didn't actively try to destroy the nation, Fuze tolerated them.
In truth, he had to. Blumund was the only human nation that allowed such morally questionable activities to thrive because it was simply too politically weak to enforce strict laws. Sandwiched between the monster-infested Jura Forest and the terrifying Eastern Empire, Blumund was a geopolitical stepping stone.
While the threat of national extinction constantly loomed over them, Fuze knew there was nothing he could do to stop an Imperial invasion. All he could do was generate as much national wealth as possible so they could hire mercenaries to protect the kingdom until the bitter end.
Though, even with all our intelligence trading, the money still isn't enough, Fuze sighed inwardly.
Shaking his head, he decided it would be prudent to send a highly classified report to the Free Guild Headquarters in Ingrassia. Suzuki was, without a doubt, a high-value Otherworlder.
"What are you going to do now?"
As Suzuki walked out into the bustling streets of Blumund, Treyni's soft voice echoed telepathically in his mind. She wasn't some weak, low-tier monster; as a high-ranking Dryad, maintaining a long-distance telepathic link with him was effortless.
"I'm going to build a business empire," Suzuki replied simply.
"Really?"
"Yes."
What else was he supposed to do in a place like Blumund?
The kingdom was small, militarily weak, and politically lax. Because of those exact factors, it was the absolute perfect staging ground for aggressive capitalist expansion. If he started causing economic trouble, who would dare mess with him? Officially, he was a highly competent B+ Rank adventurer. Unofficially, he was a walking calamity.
But what kind of business should he start?
As he walked around the muddy, bustling merchant district, the idea crystallized. But before he could launch a hostile economic takeover, he needed to establish a fierce, unshakeable local reputation.
Without a moment's hesitation, he spun around and walked right back into the Free Guild.
"..." Fuze and Thegis stared at him.
"Is there something wrong?" Fuze asked cautiously.
"Give me the quest board," Suzuki demanded. "I'll handle them all right now. Give me every single monster-hunting bounty you have."
"...Okay?"
Fuze, utterly baffled, didn't argue. He handed over a massive stack of subjugation requests. Suzuki took them, walked out the door, and spent the next few days systematically eradicating every local monster threat with terrifying efficiency.
Meanwhile, along the borders of the Jura Forest, the global factions that had sensed Suzuki's Enlightened evolution were completely losing their minds.
They couldn't feel his presence. It was as if he had simply vanished from the face of the earth.
Naturally, this was the terrifying power of his [Etymologist] skill. The Tensura world was fundamentally defined by the concept of "Names." Just as monsters like Rimuru's subordinates evolved and gained immense power by receiving a Name, names and titles held absolute conceptual weight.
So, when Suzuki used Semantic Camouflage to officially redefine himself as [A Normal Human Merchant], the very laws of reality bent to enforce that truth. It became conceptually impossible for anyone relying on magical sensing to connect this "average" merchant to the terrifying Sage who had achieved Enlightenment by sleeping with a Dryad.
"Damn it! Where is that guy?!" a frustrated Holy Church Crusader barked, scanning a magical map.
"Guy? How can you be so sure it's a man?!" another argued.
"Because how could a woman have sex with a monster to evolve?!"
"That's sexism! There are plenty of female perverts out there!"
"But... the fact that someone can actually force an evolution into an Enlightened just by having sex with a high-tier monster... that's real, right?"
"..."
Gulp.
A sudden, incredibly dangerous silence fell over the Crusader squad.
What was the most important currency in this brutal world? Power.
It might be a grim truth, but living in Tortus or the Tensura world was tough. Unless you were handed a cheat ability or born with immense talent, life was a brutal grind. Power came in many forms—authority, wealth, raw magical strength—and everyone desperately wanted it.
The Otherworlders were prized precisely because they possessed unique skills. But what about the native inhabitants? They longed for power more than anyone else. So, when the rumor leaked that someone had successfully achieved the legendary Sage evolution simply by sleeping with a monster...
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU IDIOTS THINKING?!" the squad captain roared, snapping them out of their daze. "DO YOU WANT TO BE EXECUTED FOR HERESY?! HURRY UP AND DO YOUR JOBS!"
"Y-Yes, sir!"
The Crusaders quickly scattered, desperately trying to focus on their patrol routes while suppressing the incredibly blasphemous thoughts invading their minds.
What the hell were they thinking?!
For a brief, terrifying moment, they actually thought that sleeping with a monster might be a brilliant career move. Sure, the Church would brutally execute them for heresy if they were caught, but the temptation of instant Enlightened power was overwhelmingly seductive. As long as no one found out... it would be fine, right?
Suzuki had no idea, but he had inadvertently planted a deeply corrupting, highly degenerate seed of thought across the entire world.
While Suzuki was busy establishing his reputation and business in Blumund, a certain blue slime was having a much rougher time.
Rimuru had just encountered a pathetic, starving group of Goblins. After casually naming them (and nearly draining his own magicules dry in the process), he was immediately forced into a brutal turf war against a pack of Direwolves. After securing their loyalty and naming them as well, Rimuru sat in the dirt of the Goblin village, looking at the ragged, helpless state of his new monster subordinates.
"Man... that Japanese guy must be living the dream right now," Rimuru sighed, thinking about the mysterious transmigrator who had evolved by sleeping with a Dryad.
"Must be nice..."
Native inhabitants might view what Suzuki did as a disgusting, pagan heresy, but as a former Japanese salaryman, Rimuru deeply respected the man's unmatched romantic hustle.
"Dammit!" Rimuru cursed his slime biology for the hundredth time.
Back in Blumund, Suzuki's business venture was a staggering success. In fact, it was so successful that he quickly realized the kingdom was simply too small to contain his ambitions.
The local economy was stagnant and impoverished. To truly build an empire, he needed to expand.
So, what kind of business had he established?
Pawnshops and predatory loans.
Yep. Using the massive influx of cash he acquired from liquidating Treyni's ultra-rare materials, he bought prime real estate, secured a merchant's license, and opened a high-end pawnshop. Desperate nobles and struggling adventurers brought their heirlooms to him for quick cash. Naturally, he also opened a highly lucrative, high-interest loan business.
And, of course, every single borrower was forced to sign his signature [Absolute Contract].
Suzuki knew it was ruthless, but he didn't care. He knew exactly how corrupt, cunning, and desperate the nobility of this world could be. If they tried to cross him, he didn't hesitate to strip them of everything they owned. And because he was an absolute powerhouse disguised as a B+ Rank adventurer, no one could physically stop him.
He had already hired a robust staff—accountants for the books, and heavy-hitting mercenaries for debt collection. He could have collected the debts himself, but to truly stimulate the economy and gain massive political influence, he couldn't just hoard the money. He needed to make a large percentage of the kingdom economically dependent on his payroll.
Still, controlling Blumund's agriculture, pawnshops, and property loans was too slow for his liking!
To truly monopolize the market, Suzuki needed access to premium, mass-produced goods. And to get those, he intended to travel to a very specific kingdom.
"Boss, where are you heading?" one of his mercenary captains asked as Suzuki packed his bags.
"The Armed Nation of Dwargon."
It was the only logical destination. Suzuki knew doing high-level industrial business with human nations was a bureaucratic nightmare. The Dwarven Kingdom, however, was globally renowned as the absolute epicenter of industrial economics. They handled everything from premium clothing and advanced medicine to master-class smithing, architecture, and international coinage.
"This strategic business expansion will generate massive, exponential income for our company," Suzuki declared solemnly, standing before his assembled employees. "Because the negotiations will be highly complex, I must handle this expedition personally!"
Yes! It was strictly for business! It definitely had absolutely nothing to do with the legendary Elven Hostess Clubs!
"Boss..."
"President...!"
His employees were deeply moved by his relentless dedication. They watched their stoic President's broad back as he walked away, completely missing the intensely degenerate, highly motivated gleam in his eyes.
"I will secure our future!" Suzuki declared.
And with that grand, entirely self-serving ambition, Suzuki set off on his journey to the Armed Nation of Dwargon!
---
Thank you for your patience!
I succeeded in my thesis proposal today!
Thank you!