The large glass in the window of the dark room reflected the twinkling lights of buildings of the darkness that enveloped the city.
The room was filled with the scent of sizzling meat and aged wine. A middle-aged man with a sharp gaze honed by years in the trade, had spared no expense in the feast before him.
Mr. Gracias clenched his jaw into a thin smile as he nodded his head at Yuuta.
He was the man that had become outraged at Yuuta for his delay of the weapons order, thinking he got scammed by a brat, yet he held his temper elegantly in front of the other dealers and heads.
Platters of marbled beef, golden-roasted duck, and caviar-laden canapés adorned the table.
Yet, Yuuta barely spared them a glance, idly twirling his fork between his fingers resting his chin on the palm of his hand as he observed the unfolding discussion.
The other heads were present, each representing factions that made up the underbelly of global markets. There was the masked individual with an orange mask, Mikhail, the Russian with ties to Nuclear energy energy monopolies.
Illegally, he constructed unregistered SMRs in rogue nations, undersea bunkers and isolated wastelands. He purchased stolen uranium and plutonium and illegally enriched isotopes from defunct Russian and Central Asian sources, where he was able to get exempt from taxes, not due to evasion, but due to falsely forging signatures from corrupt politicians that claimed that such materials were used for the nation of America. The documents forged properly, exempting him from tariffs and the surveillance of the IRS, and only paying around 2% of the original cost in crypto.
The one with the red mask with two holes for eyes and a golden star under the left eye who was crossing his legs in an overly exquisite manner was Santiago, an international black construction magnate that got an income from building massive infrastructure using stolen land, a master at creating fake permits, a dealer that sold slaves for toxic slave labor, smuggling them from the depth of countries like Congo, Zambia, and other less developed African countries. He did all this under the pretext of 'Eco-development'.
On the other hand, there was Dietrich who had his eyes closed, an Austrian banking mogul with fingers deep in military contracting; but in reality, he was a well known human trafficker, standing as second only in terms of wealth in this league.
He ran things like illegal organ transplants using kidnapped victims that were normal citizens, orphans, prisoners, and even desperate refugees. His network included things like corrupt hospitals, black market surgeons, and fake travel and tourism agencies, targeting collapsed states, conflict zones, and corrupt regions in Eastern Europe, Africa, and South Asia.
Finally, there was a girl that appeared to be around 20 years old who wore a black beanie hat, with long black hair that flew down her back like an intricate and elegant waterfall, a few strands and the tips of her hair being painted bright natural orange.
Her real name was Ekidna
Her small, bright pink like lips, akin to unbloomed cherries sighed in boredom, as her blue, beautiful aqua eyes akin to the purest of the oceans reflected.
She was the second individual other than the middle aged man who did not wear the masks, as she found the masks to be 'creepy' and that it stopped her 'unparalleled' beauty from radiating throughout the world.
Going on by the nickname given to her 'Angel's scythe', her otherworldly radiating beauty and innocent-like appearance paired up with her ruthlessness and affiliation with illegal gambling dens all around the world, prostitution, cybercrime, and drug dealing in back alley suspicious-looking drugs.
Rumors had it she had an affiliation and was in cahoots with groups like the Chinese 14k group, White Lotus society or Bailianjiao (Chinese illuminati group), as well as the 'Ndrangheta, Camorra, and Russian Mafia.
And this... young lady was busy clicking something on her phone screen in anger while pouting.
They had all gathered under the guise of negotiating trade routes and supplies, yet beneath it all was a contest of influence, a weighing of who controlled what, and at what cost.
Mr. Gracias cleared his throat in awkwardness at the weird mood that had formed in the room, with out protagonist Yuuta playing with his fork, Ekidna having a bulge appear on her forehead staring at her phone, Mikhail staring at the food in hunger, Dietrich having an adventure in the land of dreams basking in gold, and finally Santiago bored out of his wits.
He stole a quick glance of malice towards Yuuta before clapping twice to get everyone's attention.
Upon hearing Mr. Gracias clearing his throat, everyone's attention gathered on him for a moment, before continuing what they were doing.
Embarrassed, he went on speaking.
"We have agreed on the base price for the shipments. The next matter is distribution and risk allocation. Given recent disruptions in the Red Sea routes and increased scrutiny in Southeast Asia, some costs will need to be adjusted."
Dietrich who was supposedly sleeping, his gold-rimmed glasses gleaming under the yellow light, for the first time spoke without moving an inch from his position.
"Adjustments, you say? You mean higher bribes, higher middlemen costs, and more potential risks for us."
Santiago scoffed in annoyance as if he had heard the most ridiculous thing in his life. He swirled his Romanée-Conti Grand Cru 1945 in the wine glass, that costed a whooping $ 558,000 in contemplation before answering.
"You speak like this is new. Risk is the price of control. We all pay for it."
"Not all risks are equal." Mikhail interjected, his voice heavy with a Russian accent which steeped into old KGB influence.
"Coal, oil, and lithium markets built on controlled instability. Governments pretend to regulate, however every embargo is just a reason for redirection. But human resources... let's say has far fewer sanctioned avenues."
Mr. Gracias nodded seriously, his lips pressing into a thin line.
"Then let us settle this fairly. We distribute risk. Each of us pays their share, according to stake."
Yuuta, who had been silent thus far, finally spoke, his voice smooth, almost disinterested.
"Hm... interesting, its a fair proposition on the surface."
Mr. Gracias, who was annoyed by his manner of speaking, asked him directly. "You disagree?"
Yuuta smiled faintly as he shook his head before reaching out with his fork for a shiny, dark and tasty looking piece of steak on a silver plate.
"Not disagree. Merely observing the nature of fairness. What is fair in an unequal system?"
Yuuta became silent for a moment as if he was pondering his own question before continued speaking.
"If coal barons dictate national policies and oil magnates can plunge countries into war, why must we entertain fairness? Is it fairness or just an illusion that is dressed in acceptable terms?"
The table fell silent for a moment, the weight of Yuuta's words settling in.
Mikhail let out a low chuckle at the young man's intriguing remark.
"You argue like an economist, young man. What do you propose in this case?"
Yuuta tapped his temple twice, his expression unreadable as he looked at everyone sitting in the room, especially Mr. Gracias who had a sour expression painted across his face.
"A market operates on perception. The illusion of stability allows commerce. What is stability in our business? In our case, it not simply the absence of danger, but it is the control over it. We do not pay to remove risk, we, in layman's terms, pay to direct it somewhere else."
A dangerous glint shot in Mr. Gracias eye as he growled slowly.
"You mean to shift the burden?"
"Yeah, pretty much" Ignoring the threatening gaze on him, Yuuta inclined his head on the chair as he savored the taste of the tongue-melting steak.
"Why should we absorb the full bribe cost when there are smaller players willing to take on that burden for less? Take the pharmaceutical industry for example."
" Medications are priced higher not because production is expensive, but because the cost of litigation and regulation is transferred downward. They let generic manufacturers in developing nations take on the legal risks. The same principle applies here."
Santiago leaned back, considering the idea as he rubbed his chin.
"That would mean tightening our supply chains. Cutting off weaker suppliers to ensure exclusivity."
Yuuta shrugged in indifference.
"It would technically mean leveraging desperation. The world is full of those willing to take risks we deem excessive. Why would we pay the highest price when a starving man will do it for a few pennies?"
Mr. Gracias frowned.
"That would mean restructuring some existing arrangements. It's.... not impossible, but it will take a lot of time."
"Time is irrelevant to our case" Yuuta said, tilting his head slightly.
"What matters in reality is perception. If our competitors believe we have already secured these methods, they will scramble to match us. That disruption alone is enough to dictate terms."
Mr. Gracias exhaled through his nose, glancing at the other heads.
"It is a bold strategy. But the strategy does not change the immediate costs of this shipment."
Ekidna, who was not seemingly focusing on the argument clicked her tongue in annoyance before she set her phone on the table. Mr. Gracias who was taken aback from her sudden reaction was met with critcism.
"Old man, why the fuck are you trying to contradict lil bro as if he's your sworn enemy?"
At the mention of 'lil bro', all the people present raised an eyebrow as they directed their vision towards Yuuta in interest.
Ignoring the gazes, the young man continued eating the steak indifferently.
"The steak is pretty good, I suppose. It seems the chefs worked pretty hard on the spices, especially the paprika it seems"
Yuuta complimented the chefs before he set the fork on the table for a moment.
"Ah, Dietrich, can you hand me the salt over there? Also, can you get me one of those Gurkha Royal Courtesan cigars if you would?"
A Gurkha Royal Courtesan cigar, created from Fine Himalayan tobacco rolled in gold leaf and watered with water from Mt. Fuji with Dominican, Nicaraguan and Brazilian long-fillers and a Dominican binder are used to complete the blend costed around $ 1.36 million per cigar.
Hearing his request, for the first time Dietrich slowly opened his eyes and smiled in response before responding.
"Why, but of course" He said, slowly and elegantly taking the salt from besides the table of green grapes and setting it aside his plate.
He then proceeded with opening the box containing the expensive cigar and making Yuuta choose one, before he closed it and put it beside him. He threw over a lighter to the little young man.
Deciding to tease him, he continued.
"It seems 'lil bro' has become the El dorado of this era"
Yuuta smirked in response before tilting his head towards Ekidna.
However just as Yuuta took a breath in of the cigar, Ekidna stole it off his lips and took a breath herself.
Puff...
"...."
"...."
"....."
Everyone in the room had their eyes open at the scene. Wasn't this akin to Ekidna having her first indirect kiss ?! And from a brat at that ??
Even Dietrich was not exempt from the shock, as his brain froze and decided to reboot due to a DPC watchdog violation that had occurred in his mind.
(A/N: If you are familiar with the blue screen of death in windows, you probably know what Im talking about)
After taking a few breaths she handed it back to Yuuta who was the only one who had a slight irritated expression on his face.
"lil bro, you shouldn't smoke like that at a young age. Big sis had to make sure that the cigar wasn't poisoned. Otherwise you'll end up like that old geezer. "
She spoke confidently with a smile on her face, as if she had said the most natural thing in the world...
or not.
Mr. Gracias's eyes became moist at the arrow that had pierced his fragile old heart where it hurt the most, before regaining his composure, albeit barely.
"I never said I was your 'lil bro' though, Ekidna"
"...."
Hearing his response, Ekidna pouted and crossed her arms across her chest in feigned anger.
"Hmph! lil bro is no fun. Big sis wanted to help you, and yet this is how you treat her?"
Hearing her response, Yuuta only mustered the power to sigh in tiredness.
He spoke once more.
"Before we continue the talk, let us eat. We cannot leave the food become cold and throw it out. Absolutely unforgivable!"
For the first time since the meeting has started, this was the first time they had seen Yuuta so worked up about something.
Dietrich smiled wryly before he clapped his hands together in a noble manner while nodding his head.
"Very well, everyone I agree with Sir Olympia in this matter. Let us not hold off the food any more. Today is a celebration! Let us put our matters to the side for now."
Akin to a cat that stumbled upon a fat salmon, Ekidna pounced at all the plates she could before she filled her plate to this brim with fried potatoes in butter, roasted turkey wings, rice with eggs, coal-cooked Red salmon, Organic Seasoned & dressed caesar salad, toothpicks stabbed into black and green olives, SSS+ Tier Kobe beef steak, Beluga Caviar, smoked Iberico Ham, ..., ...., ..., --
...Time skip, Time skip, Time Ski-.
Ok, stop lets stop over here.
After Ekidna filled her plate to the brim with food (more like a few plates), everyone gave her an incredulous gaze of astonishment and respect at how much she could eat, yet maintain her slim physique. Of coruse, she couldn't forget her booze.
For once, Ekidna decided to do a good deed, and decided to feed her supposedly 'lil brother'.
Before diving in her food saying the infamous 'itadakimas' despite not being Japanese, she painstakingly stabbed her fork into a piece of smoked Iberico ham and put it on Yuuta's plate who was sitting next to her, deciding what to eat next after finishing the excellent grade steak.
Inwardly, he was crying at the heavenly taste of the food he appreciated so much.
That was, until Ekidna decided to wreck his mood by putting the ham into his plate.
"~Make sure to eat and grow big, lil brother~" Ekidna said cheerfully as she quickly directed her gaze towards the plate while drooling. However, when she heard Yuuta speaking darkly, she froze with a dangerous look on her face.
"Sorry, but I don't eat pork" Yuuta said with a disgusted look before he dumped his plate to the ground and used his spoon to put corned stew into his plate.
"... What ?"
Ekidna, with an extremely dangerous look in her eyes, slowly looked back to Yuuta who was happily enjoying his stew.
Seeing this, Mr. Gracias smiled inwardly at the opportunity that arised from the idiocity of the young man.
'Haha! Now you've done it young man, and you've offended one of the worst people possible! Blame your idiocity for your stupid actions! The gods are truly on my side...'