Leaving Annie behind, Lomew immediately headed toward the Eastern Dormitory Area.
It was already past nine or ten in the evening. After a bustling day, the girls who held youthful fantasies about the new semester were all out hunting for their prey.
The architecture of the Eastern Dormitory Area was entirely different from that of the Principality. The eaves curled upward, and dim paper lanterns hung by the doors, swaying gently in the night breeze.
Moving stealthily all the way, Lomew found Ibuki Mio’s room number.
He had just raised his hand and hadn’t even touched the door.
“Creak—”
The wooden door was silently pulled open from the inside.
A figure stood quietly in the shadow behind the door.
“Sir Lomew.”
Ibuki Mio’s voice came, as calm as ever, yet tinged with unusual solemnity.
Lomew’s gaze fell on her, and the words he’d prepared swirled in his throat.
“Oh my, this is… quite a formal outfit.”
He chose a relatively tactful way of putting it.
The girl before him had taken off her usual martial attire.
She had changed into a lavish and complex traditional Eastern formal dress, the black fabric embroidered with gold and silver thread depicting cranes in flight and blooming chrysanthemum patterns. The wide sleeves almost brushed the ground.
Her jet-black hair was coiled up, secured with an exquisite silver hairpin. Light makeup highlighted the striking crimson of her eyes.
This attire was as intricate as the dolls enshrined at festivals.
Except…
In the dead of night, under a dim corridor, such a perfectly made-up, black-haired, red-eyed, fair-skinned girl stood there motionless and straight…
She even lit candles!
Where did this ghostly maiden come from?
“To see you entangled with another merchant association lady—if I couldn’t even read such signs and prepare proper manners, wouldn’t I be disgracing our partnership?”
It seemed Ibuki Mio had long anticipated Lomew’s visit.
“As expected of you.”
Lomew praised, took off his shoes, and put on traditional Eastern indoor wooden sandals.
“Sorry to intrude, but this is urgent—it can’t wait at all.”
“Please, come with me.”
Ibuki Mio led the way. The two entered the room and sat at the stone table in the courtyard.
The sakura tree, enchanted by magic, bloomed year-round. Petals drifted down, scattering across the courtyard—a scene of gentle charm.
But at the table, neither of them had the heart to admire the view.
“For certain reasons, I can’t say directly what I’ve done.”
Lomew got straight to the point.
“For maximum benefit, I need a collaborator right now. You’re the best choice.”
“If I’m not mistaken, you’re aiming to take down Senior Sylvia, aren’t you?”
Lomew tried to speak, but no sound came out.
He realized it was a contract’s restriction, forbidding him to reveal the details, so he tapped the table twice.
The gesture was meaningless and not discussed beforehand, but it was enough for Ibuki Mio to “hear” its meaning.
“This is part of the plan as well?”
Ibuki Mio cared about the promise Lomew had made to her.
He wanted her to “blossom,” even surpass her past, surpass the entire merchant association that had abandoned and treated her as a tool.
Ultimately, to become someone useful to him, or to Kafnir.
What exactly was this plan? Ibuki Mio did not know, but she had a hunch that Lomew had already begun to act.
Tap, tap.
Part of the plan…
Was it about the Credit Loan plan? Yes, it could be seen that way.
Lomew double tapped again.
“How deep does your plan go, sir? I can’t see through it for now. Since there’s a restriction, does that mean you trust me to handle this?”
Lomew double tapped.
Otherwise, why would I go through so much trouble to rescue you from a plot kill, if not to have you run errands… work for me!
“I see. Are there any specific times or events I should watch out for?”
Lomew double tapped, then removed his own brooch, set the amount, and transferred it to Ibuki Mio.
[Credits 300]
“Silver Bell Marrow, buy all in by tomorrow afternoon.”
“Sell all out twelve days later.”
Lomew spoke, successfully conveying this key information.
So as long as he didn’t mention transaction details and only issued commands, there was no restriction.
He just couldn’t reveal the purpose—no harm done to the overall plan.
“Silver Bell Marrow, a second-tier material. It’s not produced near the Academy and must be transported from afar…”
After some quick calculations, Ibuki Mio roughly understood Lomew’s idea.
Today was the first day. Quite a few teams were already looking to boost their strength for the next Academy event.
Especially the teams who’d been relegated to second and third place after the Black and White “Queens.”
They now saw the top team as a thorn in their side, determined to redeem themselves.
At this time, as a key second-tier card refining material, Silver Bell Marrow’s importance became exceptionally prominent.
Large demand, non-renewable, long-distance transport.
All these factors combined made it a perfect target for speculation.
“Can I request Lord Kafnir’s assistance?”
“…”
Lomew hesitated slightly, then nodded.
“Just say it’s my request.”
Although he didn’t know what Ibuki Mio’s plan was, he had already given specific buy and sell times for the item.
“With her intelligence, she’ll have no problem handling such a small matter.”
Lomew didn’t think anything could go wrong here.
According to the game’s main story, the protagonist’s group had once suffered a credit extortion incident, all because of a key card-making material.
The merchant convoy at the Russell border had been attacked, causing the material’s price to skyrocket.
For a time, all the shops on campus were bought out by various groups, and secondhand dealers were everywhere in the Academy.
Therefore, Lomew’s role was clear.
Become the earliest and fastest batch of secondhand dealers—he could even use his memories to pick the optimal entry time!
As for the leftover three hundred and fifty credits…
That was bait to lure someone in, to waste their resources.
“Understood.”
Ibuki Mio’s thoughts were careful.
To allow contact with Kafnir?
She had always suspected that Lomew somehow led Kafnir’s actions, and now… it truly seemed so!
“Sir, if I exceed your expectations, would you be more willing to collaborate in the future?”
“Of course.” Lomew raised an eyebrow.
“If you do well, things in the future will be much easier to handle.”
“Let me see what kind of pillar the Higan Merchant Association let slip away.”
How much could she do?
Even with precise information and a three-hundred credit stake, could she take down Sylvia nine to one?
Lomew wasn’t concerned. His tool here was indeed SSR grade, but the opponent was the heir of the Valentin family.
All he wanted was a solid eighty-twenty victory, to securely win the bet.
If he pushed the opponent to the edge, triggering a “Young Master’s Dragon Maid” situation, that would be a classic villain plot-kill flag.
“Just go and do your best.”
To keep this top-tier worker motivated, Lomew gave his greatest encouragement.
You have to give some emotional value—otherwise, how would a subordinate… teammate be motivated to work, right?
“Understood!”
Go all out!
Ibuki Mio trembled all over!
Since that woman named Sylvia was the famous merchant noble’s daughter from the Principality, and this was clearly about credits…
That meant a business showdown or even a sabotage was about to happen?
It was like an all-out battle between armies, yet Lomew only gave her three hundred credits… and told her to do her best…
So his real intention couldn’t be something as boring as testing loyalty—it had to be a much deeper trial!
Had he set his sights on this critical time when everyone was desperately trying to improve?
But in any case…
Ibuki Mio secretly looked up at Lomew, at his indescribably perfect face under the drifting sakura petals.
To go a step further… Just thinking about it nearly unsettled her martial heart.
She was truly looking forward to it… No, this was training!