A Bug In Fate

"And in return..."

"I only want fifteen percent of the profit."

Alden stated his condition calmly.

Silence filled the room as everyone fell into thought.

Their eyes drifted toward the chocolate resting on the table, and the lingering sweetness still on their tongues only made their expressions grow more complicated.

However, one person’s attention drifted to Alden.

Natasha’s eyes remained fixed on Alden.

It wasn’t every day that a young man walked into the Adventurers’ Guild with a business proposal.

After a few moments, a faint smile appeared on her lips.

"Alright."

"We accept your proposal."

She spoke in an amused tone before casually picking up another piece of chocolate in front of everyone.

"Huh?"

"Huh?"

Two confused voices echoed through the room at the same time.

One belonged to Alden.

He hadn’t expected her to agree so easily.

Instead of feeling relieved, his mind immediately started racing.

...Should I have asked for thirty percent instead?

A hint of regret surfaced in his heart.

The other voice came from the Branch Manager.

He looked at the woman in surprise before speaking.

"Arbiter Ravenna..."

"Isn’t fifteen percent too much for just a recipe?"

In his opinion, the simplest solution would have been to give Alden a generous amount of gold coins and end the matter there.

Arbiter Ravenna slowly turned her gaze toward him.

"Are you questioning my decision, Branch Manager Hilton?"

Her voice remained calm, almost gentle.

Then, without the slightest warning, a faint aura spread from her body.

It wasn’t violent or explosive.

It simply descended upon the room like an invisible mountain.

Thud!

Hilton’s legs buckled beneath him, forcing him to his knees.

The color drained from his face as horror filled his eyes.

Meanwhile, Alden and Boren instinctively held their breath.

Even though neither of them was the target of the pressure, the mere aftermath was enough to make their bodies feel unbearably heavy. Their breathing turned uneven as cold sweat slowly formed on their foreheads.

"I... I’m sorry..."

"It was a slip of the tongue..."

Hilton struggled to draw breath as he apologized in a hoarse voice. It looked as though he might lose consciousness at any moment.

"And what exactly do you mean by ’just a recipe’?"

Ravenna asked, still wearing the same soft smile.

"If it’s just a recipe..."

"Why don’t you create one yourself?"

Her gentle tone only made the words more terrifying.

"I... I’m sorry."

Hilton apologized once again without daring to raise his head.

As for creating a new recipe...

The man couldn’t even be bothered to make his own tea.

Expecting him to invent something that had never existed before was no different from asking someone to find fresh water in the middle of the ocean.

*...Is this the so-called déjà vu?*

Covered in cold sweat and pretending he wasn’t even there, Alden thought to himself as a familiar scene resurfaced in his mind. It hadn’t even been that long since he had witnessed someone getting crushed by an overwhelming aura.

Standing beside him, Boren wisely kept his mouth shut.

Inside, however, he was cursing Alden nonstop.

*I specifically told him not to cause any trouble... so how did things end up like this anyway?*

"Don’t repeat the same mistake."

"And don’t be so shameless that you try to rob a young man who came to the guild in good faith."

Arbiter Ravenna spoke calmly before withdrawing her aura as though nothing had happened.

The crushing pressure vanished instantly.

Hilton greedily drew in several breaths before slowly forcing himself back to his feet. His face was still pale, and he no longer dared to meet Ravenna’s eyes.

Only after making sure he had learned his lesson did Ravenna shift her attention back to Alden.

The coldness in her eyes disappeared, replaced by the same gentle smile as before.

"So..."

"Where were we?"

"Umm..."

Alden hesitated.

Everything had happened so suddenly that he had no idea how they were supposed to continue the conversation as if nothing had occurred.

After taking a few deep breaths to calm himself, he finally met Ravenna’s gaze once more.

"As I was saying..."

"I’m willing to give the guild the complete recipe for this chocolate in exchange for fifteen percent of the profit it earns."

He spoke calmly, carefully observing their reactions before continuing.

"Of course..."

"There are a few other conditions as well."

"First, the guild receives the exclusive right to produce and sell chocolate throughout the Human Empire."

Alden raised a finger as he spoke, wearing the most confident smile he could manage.

Before he could continue, however, Arbiter Ravenna gently raised a hand, signaling him to stop.

"You’re thinking too small."

Her smile never changed, yet her words caught Alden completely off guard.

"The Human Empire alone has one hundred and thirty-three cities, and the Adventurers’ Guild has established branches in one hundred and eleven of them."

Alden’s eyes widened.

It wasn’t just the number of cities that surprised him, but the sheer reach of the guild.

"If chocolate is as valuable as I believe it is," Ravenna continued as she leaned back in her chair, "limiting its distribution to a single empire would only reduce both your profits and ours."

She folded her hands infront of her.

"Instead, grant us the exclusive right to distribute it through every branch under the Adventurers’ Guild’s control."

She paused for a brief moment before adding,

"In return, your fifteen percent will apply to every sale made by the guild, regardless of which empire or continent it comes from."

Alden fell silent.

Only then did he realize he had been looking at the Adventurers’ Guild from the perspective of Ravenhold alone.

It wasn’t merely an organization within the Human Empire.

It was one of the few powers whose influence stretched across the entire world.

"I agree."

He answered without the slightest hesitation before raising a second finger.

"Second, I receive fifteen percent of the profit."

Ravenna smiled.

"’Profit’ is too vague."

Seeing the confusion on Alden’s face, she patiently explained,

"A single word can carry many meanings. One person may calculate profit after deducting only the cost of production, while another may also subtract transportation, salaries, taxes, security, storage, and countless other expenses. Both could claim they are calculating ’profit.’"

She tapped the table lightly.

"If we leave it undefined, the contract becomes open to interpretation, and whenever money is involved, interpretation eventually becomes dispute."

Her gaze met Alden’s.

"The guild has been negotiating commercial agreements for centuries. Our legal department will define every financial term precisely, including what counts as profit, which expenses may be deducted, and how your share will be calculated."

Her voice was calm yet gentle and her smile widened as she looked at Alden.

"A good contract doesn’t favor one side."

"It protects both."

Alden fell silent after she finished her explanation.

He was genuinely surprised by the woman’s intelligence.

*She is experienced.*

Alden thought to himself, but there was one thing he simply couldn’t ignore as his mind searched for an answer.

*Why is she helping me so much?*

He couldn’t understand the reason, and he wasn’t the only one who was confused. Behind her, Boren and the Branch Manager were thinking the exact same thing.

*Are they perhaps siblings?*

Boren’s mind came up with countless similar possibilities, each one somehow connecting the two of them.

But he didn’t dare voice any of those thoughts. He loved his life far too much to lose it over nothing more than mere speculation.

"Thank you for your suggestion. Third, the recipe must remain confidential and cannot be shared outside the guild without my permission."

"No problem."

Alden had expected another long explanation about possible loopholes, but to his surprise, Ravenna simply nodded at him this time.

"Third, this agreement applies only to the chocolate recipe presented today. Any future improvements, variations, or entirely new recipes will be subject to separate negotiations."

Alden stated his third condition, and for the first time, Ravenna didn’t agree immediately.

"For example?"

she asked. Beside her, Boren and Branch Manager Hilton also looked at him, waiting for him to elaborate.

"In simple terms..."

"If I create a new recipe in the future, even if it uses chocolate as one of its ingredients, it won’t be included in this agreement."

He paused for a moment before continuing.

"For example, if one day I create something like a chocolate cake or another dessert, that recipe will belong to me. If the guild wants to produce and sell it as well, we’ll negotiate a separate contract."

He smiled lightly.

"This agreement is only for the chocolate recipe sitting on this table."

"That’s an interesting... and rather restrictive condition."

Ravenna said thoughtfully, her fingers lightly tapping against the table as she considered his proposal.

Boren and Hilton remained silent, their eyes shifting toward her as they waited for her decision, while Alden sat across from them with calm patience.

A invisible tension seems to built up in the room as the conversation has reached it’s peak point.

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