The Supermarket System

Chapter 48: 48. Coastal village

Kai watched closely as Keyla strung the black pearls into a necklace and bracelets. All Kai could do was help drill holes in the pearls and hand her the other materials.

Kai also made sure to give her some extra beads so she could get creative.

Kai had quite a lot of black pearls, so he asked Keyla to make a few bracelets out of them.

Black pearls can absorb a great deal of magical energy, which they then use as a defense against dark magic.

That’s why Kai wanted to give these bracelets to the people who were important to him.

"There are three pearls left. Can I use these three for my own bracelet?" Keyla asked.

Kai nodded in agreement, "Of course, use these beautiful beads—uh, just take all of them; I don’t need them anymore. You can make a bracelet for yourself or for your friends later."

"Really? If I resell them, is that okay?"

Kai nodded, "Yes, of course it’s okay... make sure to sell them for a high price. Just say you got this bracelet from me; people will definitely be willing to pay a high price for it."

Keyla smiled, then examined the acrylic beads, which came in various beautiful shapes and sparkled. Some were shaped like flowers, ribbons, leaves, and more. Beads like these were usually only available to the nobility. They were used to make expensive necklaces or attached to their luxurious gowns.

Of course, Keyla was delighted to receive so many beads like that from Kaileon. Keyla herself loved sewing, making clothes, and crafting accessories or decorations from seashells... she was very creative.

That was why Kai asked Keyla to make him a bracelet, so it wouldn’t look slapdash.

"Young Master!"

Suddenly, Kyle came out to the front porch, where Kai and Keyla were sitting. The young man sat down next to Kai and said,

"I really like that Kraken—I didn’t expect it to taste so good—but... does this mean we can eat octopus too? We’ve always thought octopuses looked weird; we’ve only ever eaten squid, and even then, people are confused about how to prepare it. Keith said I should ask you how to cook them," said Kyle.

Kai chuckled and nodded. "Sure, that’s easy, Kyle. Octopuses are edible; you can prepare them just like you did with the Kraken earlier. You can make them into skewers and grill them, or just grill them as it is. I could teach the locals here how to prepare fish, octopus, clams, or squid... that is, if you guys—"

"We want to!" Kyle and Keyla said in unison, surprising Kai, who then burst out laughing.

"Haha, you guys are so enthusiastic... I’ll teach you some easy recipes later. How about I hold a cooking class tomorrow morning, after all the fishermen return with a good catch? Since you need a lot of money, you don’t have to wait for the nobles to buy your fish."

Kai’s words left Kyle and Keyla confused.

Finally, Keyla asked, "How will we make money if we don’t sell it to the nobles, young master?"

Kai smiled broadly upon hearing that. Then he called Keith over so the four of them could talk.

After Keith arrived, Kai finally revealed his plan to them.

"Here’s the thing—I plan to buy some of the locals’ catch, because—"

"Because you already know that Count Verdez’s son is the one causing all this chaos here?" Keith interjected suddenly.

It wasn’t just Kai; Keyla and Kyle had suspected as much too.

"Oh, so... it’s true?" Kai asked.

Keith nodded. "I’ve done a little investigating—by asking some locals, my own father, and also residents who used to work at the restaurant that Count Verdez’s son took over. From what I’ve gathered, that man was angry at the locals here didn’t like him, so he summoned that kraken monster all the way here. He used the same method as Baron Crech’s son—the demon necklace. Some villagers saw that man wearing the demon necklace. It’s possible that it’s the same necklace worn by Baron Crech’s son, because Count Verdez’s son wanted to destroy the evidence that he was the one who summoned the kraken. The proof is that, so far, no help has arrived—which means Count Verdez’s son truly intends to destroy this coastal village. To find out more, I’ll be heading to the city of Verdez later."

Hearing Keith’s explanation and seeing how seriously he took this matter made Kai feel he wanted to help.

Keith had helped him so much, so Kai wanted to help Keith in return.

"In that case, I’m coming along, Keith. I think everything will be easier if I’m come along. We just need to ask Dad to send a letter of introduction so we can visit Count Verdez’s place," said Kai.

Keith was very happy to hear this. "Thank you for taking the trouble with this matter..."

"I love this place, so I want to fight for it with you. I also like the people here; I really love the beach, the ocean water... the underwater scenery is beautiful too, and the lobster is delicious... so, I want this place to be bustling with tourists again."

Kai’s words moved the three siblings so much that Keyla didn’t even realize she was hugging Kai very tightly.

"Thank you, young master!" the girl exclaimed.

Then Keith and Kyle cleared their throats, causing Keyla to realize she was hugging Kaileon. Keyla even knelt down to apologize to Kai.

"Hahaha, relax, I don’t mind being hugged—besides, there’s no one else here but us."

"So, what’s your plan, young master?" Kyle asked impatiently, since their conversation had been interrupted.

"Oh, right. I want to buy a portion of your catch later to sell in my store. Then, you can process the rest into food and sell it yourselves at the market," said Kai.

The three siblings exchanged glances until Keith finally spoke up.

"Do you mean the farmers’ market?" asked Keith.

Kai shook his head, then smiled broadly—so broadly that they were all confused.

"You haven’t forgotten about that large plot of land next to the store, have you, Keith? That land will be cleared, and I’ll turn it into a free marketplace for people who have things to sell. Besides, I can attract a lot of attention by broadcasting my cooking. I’m sure that way, both my store and the new market I’m creating will be bustling with visitors."

Keith had at least begun to understand what Kaileon meant, but his two younger brothers were still confused.

"Wait a minute, young master... how are we supposed to get to the city of Arslan? It’s true that Arslan is closer than Verdez from here, but we’ll still need at least a horse-drawn carriage—and what about the fish and ingredients we’re supposed to deliver to you? They’ll spoil quickly on the way."

Kaileon’s smile didn’t fade at all upon hearing that question. He knew how to keep the fish fresh even on the toughest journeys.

"Don’t worry. Tomorrow, in addition to teaching you how to cook, I’ll also teach you how to preserve the fish with ice. That way, you can deliver everything fresh all the way to Arslan. I’m going to invest heavily in you, so don’t let me down."

Keyla and Kyle exchanged glances.

"Investment?" they asked.

Kai nodded, "Yup! Investment... uh, I’ll explain it in more detail to Keith later. Let Keith explain it to you."

Keith laughed upon hearing this.

Everyone was very grateful for Kaileon’s presence. Because Kaileon was like a breath of fresh air in that neglected coastal village.

The village, which had previously been bustling with tourists, suddenly came to a complete standstill because of the kraken.

Now, they had to start over from scratch, but they weren’t afraid. As long as Kaileon was there, they believed everything would be fine.

However, this actually sparked resentment from those who had suffered losses. To them, Kaileon was meddling too much.

***

"What did you say? The two krakens I summoned have been destroyed? That’s impossible!"

A man around twenty-five years old—the son of Count Verdez—slammed his fist on the table after hearing the news from his men.

"It’s true, sir! Two traveling merchants who are always on the road just arrived from the coastal village, and they even ate Kraken meat with the locals—they said it was delicious!"

Darel, Count Verdez’s son, wrinkled his nose, looking disgusted by what his subordinate had just said.

"They ate that sea monster?"

"I don’t know, but the traveling merchants said so... they’re even spreading this good news to all the townspeople right now, saying the coastal village has started operating as usual. Oh! They were paid by the young master there to share that news with the townspeople. Those two merchants even handed out these strange but beautifully made flyers, young master! Look at this..."

Darel immediately snatched the illustrated paper his subordinate handed him.

The paper contained an invitation to visit a coastal village, complete with very realistic illustrations. Among them was a picture of a defeated kraken and a handsome teenager who was clearly of noble birth. They said that teenager was the one who defeated the kraken; his name was... hmm, wait a minute.

"Kaileon Arslan? Did I read that wrong? There’s no way that idiot Kaileon Arslan could have defeated two krakens! Hahaha, this must just be a joke."

Then Darel’s assistant came rushing in.

"Young master, I’d like to report that Kaileon Arslan will be visiting Verdez shortly; there’s also an official letter of introduction from Duke Arslan."

This left Darel even more confused.

Isn’t Kaileon Arslan that idiot who can’t even read or write? What’s really going on?

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