"Wait, Your Majesty!"
"Do not sign the contract right away!"
"Please, we beg you, read the contract first!"
When Gazel raised the enchanted quill, ready to sign Suzuki's absolutely terrifying magic contract, his entire royal court descended into panicked chaos, trying to stop him.
Fortunately, Suzuki was a professional. He smoothly stepped back. "Please, read the contract thoroughly and discuss the geopolitical implications with your cabinet. I can wait. In the meantime, I would very much like to take a tour around your nation—"
Yet, before Suzuki could even pivot toward the exit, Gazel slammed his heavy hand down, stopping him.
"Don't even think about leaving this room! I am signing this contract right here, right now! Or better yet, we are going to start constructing this logistical network of yours immediately!"
"...Are you absolutely sure?" Suzuki asked, trying to mask his disappointment. "You really should have your legal scholars read it first."
"No. I believe in you."
"No, seriously, you should read it."
Suzuki desperately wanted to go to the Elven Hostess Club, but he couldn't just say that out loud in the middle of a royal throne room!
"No! We are launching this plan now! You cannot leave this palace until I see this miraculous sub-dimensional warehouse of yours with my own eyes!"
"..."
Suzuki stared at the Hero King, feeling profoundly speechless. He ground his teeth, suppressing a heavy sigh. "Fine. Where do you want the local branch located? Show me the site now."
"Excellent! Hahaha!" Gazel boomed with laughter. "I will personally escort you. Guards, fetch the Minister of Finance and his entire staff! We are completely overhauling our national import strategy tonight!"
"Y-Yes, My King!"
While Gazel's ministers looked utterly helpless, they obeyed his absolute authority. Suzuki could only sigh as he was practically dragged deeper into the palace, completely surrounded by a royal entourage.
"My King, is this truly wise?" one of the generals whispered as they walked.
"It is." Gazel had zero doubts that this partnership would save his nation. "You all know my Unique Skill, correct?"
"So... you didn't notice anything malicious or strange about him?"
"...Strange?"
Gazel's lips twitched violently as he recalled exactly what he had seen in Suzuki's mind.
What did the Hero King see when he used [Dictator] to read the deepest intentions of this supposedly terrifying merchant?
Aside from an obsessive, hyper-detailed visualization of logistical spreadsheets and overwhelming joy at the prospect of securing massive profit margins... the only other thing occupying Suzuki's mind was an absolute, degenerate obsession with Elven hostesses!
Yes, the driving motivation behind Suzuki crossing a lethal continent and negotiating with a global superpower was simply so he could legally secure the funds and access to sleep with beautiful Elves!
What an absolute headache...
Gazel sighed helplessly. What kind of absolute nutjob would brave the monster-infested Jura Forest, single-handedly conquer a Lesser Dragon, and successfully establish a multinational corporate monopoly, purely because he wanted to visit a hostess club?
Yet, despite Suzuki's intense perversion, Gazel didn't doubt the man's business acumen or his terrifying skills for a second. The logistics were flawless.
Gazel wasn't entirely sure what Suzuki would eventually become. It was his first time encountering a powerhouse who possessed absolutely zero ambition to conquer or destroy. The man merely wished to live in absolute luxury and sleep with all the beautiful races in the world.
But honestly, having an apex predator with such simple, manageable desires is incredibly beneficial. Hmm...
Gazel rubbed his thick beard, quietly debating whether it would be politically advantageous to officially assign a few beautiful Dwarven noblewomen to be Suzuki's "companions."
"..."
Meanwhile, Suzuki, entirely unaware of the King's matchmaking thoughts, focused entirely on the business at hand. There were countless details to finalize, including the immediate hiring of local Dwarven staff.
Naturally, the royal ministers welcomed Suzuki's hiring initiatives. Despite its wealth, Dwargon still suffered from localized poverty and unemployment. If Suzuki's multinational corporation could provide high-paying, secure jobs, the state fully supported it. Furthermore, the ministers felt secure knowing that if Suzuki hired local Dwarves, the kingdom could easily monitor the company's internal operations.
While Gazel's [Dictator] skill confirmed Suzuki wasn't actively plotting treason, it never hurt to have embedded spies, right?
So, how exactly did Suzuki build this "Hub-and-Spoke" system? And how did it actually function in a medieval fantasy setting?
The distribution model resembled a bicycle wheel.
The Hub was a massive, centralized warehouse created conceptually by his [Etymologist] skill. The Spokes were the digital, magical transportation routes connecting the Hub to various regional distribution centers (his branch offices).
In the real world, goods are shipped from a factory to a physical hub, sorted, and then shipped to final destinations. It's efficient, but it requires trucks, fuel, time, and secure roads.
Instead of buying a massive physical warehouse in a city—which would be heavily taxed, require expensive guards, and be vulnerable to arson—his "Hub" did not physically exist in the material plane.
Using [Etymologist], he isolated the linguistic concept of a [Container] and syntactically modified it to create a massive, mathematically perfect Sub-Dimensional Pocket with [Infinite Capacity] and [Time Stasis].
How did it work?
First, because it was a conceptual space rather than a physical one, it possessed zero weight limit and infinite volume.
Second, he programmed the semantic rules of the space so that [Time = 0]. This meant that if he deposited a freshly picked, highly perishable tomato in the Blumund Kingdom office, it would remain perfectly ripe and fresh, even if he left it in the Hub for a thousand years.
Meanwhile, his Spokes were physical office branches located in major cities—currently, a highly secure boutique in Blumund and a newly designated stone vault in Dwargon.
Each of these physical offices contained a specialized, magically encrypted "Terminal" (usually a heavily reinforced vault door or a magical chest) that served as a direct semantic link to his sub-dimensional Hub.
Building the physical and magical infrastructure for these Terminals would have taken months if he only relied on the Dwarven engineers. Fortunately, Suzuki utilized the [Creation Magic] and [Synergist] skills natively copied from the Arifureta Suzuki. Combined with his [Etymologist] programming, the construction was flawless and instantaneous.
To help the Dwarven ministers understand, he provided a practical example of a transaction:
Let's say a Dwarven blacksmith in Dwargon (Spoke A) brought a wholesale shipment of 100 Mythril broadswords to the local branch office. Suzuki's local manager—bound by an unbreakable magic contract preventing theft—placed the swords into the office's "Terminal."
The exact millisecond the swords crossed the threshold of the Terminal, they were digitized into pure magicules, routed through his [Etymologist] network, and deposited instantly into the sub-dimensional Hub.
Five minutes later, a human noble in Blumund (Spoke B) signed a purchase agreement. Suzuki would simply reach into the Terminal at the Blumund office, mentally select the Dwargon inventory, and physically pull the 100 Mythril broadswords out.
It was seamless.
Naturally, with his [Manager] skill overseeing the network algorithms, all complex logistical issues were automated. The system practically ran itself, severely limiting human error and maximizing efficiency.
What would happen when he eventually established branch offices in every major country in the world?
He would completely and utterly monopolize international trade through three absolute, unbreakable advantages. By operating with zero logistics costs—meaning no expenses for wagons, horses, feed, or mercenary escorts—his overhead was reduced to practically zero, allowing him to heavily undercut every competing merchant guild in the world while maintaining astronomical profit margins. Furthermore, this system provided absolute security; since his inventory was stored inside the conceptual fabric of his soul, no one could rob a caravan that didn't physically exist, rendering bandit groups, organized crime syndicates, and Orc raiding parties completely obsolete. Finally, he could engage in perfect tariff bypassing, effectively executing legalized smuggling. Because his merchandise never physically crossed a national border by road, it was never subjected to customs inspections or crippling import taxes, allowing goods to simply "appear" legally inside his branch offices.
By the time the human kings and global merchant lords realized what he had achieved, it would be far too late. He wouldn't just dominate the supply chain; he would be the supply chain. He would successfully transform a harsh, monster-infested medieval world into an instantaneous, modern Amazon Prime delivery network—of which he was the sole, undisputed owner.
When the system was finally active, the Dwarven ministers hesitantly stepped up to the Dwargon Terminal. Suzuki opened the door, instantly pulling out crates of fresh vegetables, crisp fruits, and premium meats he had stockpiled in Blumund days ago.
"I-Is this real?" a minister gasped.
"Look at those vegetables! It's my first time seeing a lettuce leaf that isn't wilted!"
"They look perfectly fresh!"
Everyone hesitated, terrified it was some kind of elaborate illusion. But Gazel didn't wait. The King reached into the crate, grabbed a bright red tomato, and took a massive bite.
"MY KING!" the guards shouted in panic.
Gazel ignored them, chewing the ripe tomato as a booming, joyous laugh echoed through the vault.
"HAHAHAHAHAHA! SUZUKI, YOU MAGNIFICENT BASTARD, THANK YOU! YOU ARE THE GREATEST FRIEND DWARGON HAS EVER KNOWN! NO, YOU ARE MY BEST FRIEND!"
The bruised, semi-rotted produce they usually imported from the Kingdom of Falmuth tasted like absolute garbage compared to Suzuki's pristine stock. With this single logistical pipeline, Dwargon would be permanently freed from the threat of starvation and Falmuth's extortion!
"I'm glad you like it," Suzuki sighed, wiping a bead of sweat from his brow.
He was genuinely exhausted. Establishing a transcontinental "Hub-and-Spoke" conceptual distribution channel was mentally taxing. He might be an Enlightened Sage, but he didn't have unlimited stamina! He just wanted to go back to his Penthouse, take a hot shower, and sleep.
He was about to excuse himself when Gazel suddenly threw a massive, heavily muscled arm over his shoulder.
"...What are you doing? I am going to rest," Suzuki deadpanned. He really didn't like being aggressively hugged by a burly, sweaty man.
Gazel ignored Suzuki's complaint entirely and scoffed loudly. "Resting?! What are you talking about?! This is no time for resting! It is time to go see the Elves!"
"..."
Suzuki froze. In that exact moment, he was profoundly grateful that he had worked so hard, and even more grateful that Gazel possessed the [Dictator] skill!
Without a shred of hesitation, Suzuki threw his arm back around the burly King's shoulder.
"BEST FRIEND!" Suzuki declared passionately.
With the trade routes secured, it was finally time to hit the Hostess Club!