The Supermarket System

Kai peered out the window of the horse-drawn carriage he was riding in. He gazed at the city in the distance, which was beginning to come into clear view.

The city of Verdez.

This city reminded Kai of big cities with a vibrant nightlife. No wonder, since Verdez is a famous beer-producing city. They have several varieties of fruit beer, but the most famous, of course, is wine. Because of this, along the journey to Verdez, there were vast vineyards.

You could say that Verdez was quite successful as a city that was actually smaller than Arslan.

It was truly disheartening.

Kai was very envious of that city, because Arslan was actually declining little by little due to the actions of the Duchess and other nobles who were far too greedy.

This is because the Count and Countess of Verdez are two people who care deeply about their town’s progress.

In fact, both of them are newly ennobled. They were only recently granted noble titles because they rendered great service to the Kingdom of Nagreize. Both are former heroes who once fought tooth and nail to repel a demon race that was about to attack. Not only that, but they are also the creators of a delicious beer.

Keith recounted that the Duke had once said that, thanks to this couple, a delicious fruit beer had been created.

It could be said that the Count Verdez family was one of the wealthiest noble families, thanks to their successful business. Even though the Verdez family was newly ennobled.

Kai was curious—with such extraordinary parents, how could they have such an irresponsible son?

Kai was very worried about the Verdez territory, because Count Verdez was getting old; it was only a matter of years before he would have to step down from his position.

But, well... Kai shouldn’t be worrying about the fate of another territory when the Arslan territory was in even worse condition.

"We’ve arrived, young master. We’ll head straight to the ruler of this territory’s residence," said Keith, who was standing next to Kyle, who was guiding the horse.

At that moment, Kai set off with Keith and Kyle. So, Kai was alone in the small carriage that he had bought and given to Kyle as a gift.

"All right, I think they’re already waiting for us," Kai replied.

When the carriage finally arrived at the regional ruler’s grand estate, Kai could see an elderly man and woman—who were undoubtedly Count and Countess Verdez—standing there, welcoming Kaileon’s arrival.

Kai stepped out of the carriage and greeted Count and Countess Verdez politely. At first, it was just small talk; Kai didn’t immediately reveal the main reason for his visit.

Since it was already lunchtime, the couple immediately invited Kai to join them for lunch.

The lunch spread was already set out; everything was excellent and not at all excessive. It was completely contrary to Kai’s expectations, since almost everyone disliked him. So, Kai had briefly thought he might be looked down upon, but it seemed his suspicions were unfounded.

Count Verdez and his wife were very kind, making Kai feel at ease with them. They were also very skillful at steering the conversation—careful in their speech, yet never coming across as insincere.

"May I state the purpose of my visit now? I mean, I really don’t want to beat around the bush and waste your valuable time, Count Verdez and Countess Verdez..." said Kai.

The sincere smiles on their faces didn’t fade at all; they nodded, agreeing to Kai’s request to get straight to the heart of the matter.

Kai finally told them about the coastal village and their problems. He didn’t forget to mention their son, the restaurant he’d left behind, and the two Kraken that had been summoned by their son.

Hearing this, the two grew concerned; they exchanged glances and let out heavy sighs.

"Let me answer that," the Countess said afterward.

The woman smiled at Kaileon once more, then continued speaking.

"To be honest, we only found out what was happening when the flyers about the coastal village were distributed. It turns out that some of the residents already knew, but they chose to remain silent because they were afraid of our son, Darel. Darel himself has a physique and strength almost identical to his father’s when his father was young. But we only recently learned that he used those abilities to defraud and loot several successful businesses. We know that Darel has poor emotional control; he’s temperamental and gets angry very easily. We also apologize to the coastal village residents for trusting Darel too much; we didn’t know and just let it slide."

Seeing the parents filled with regret over their son’s actions, while the son himself remained completely oblivious, made Kai feel sorry for them.

But he was the son of a duke; his status was far higher than Darel’s.

"I won’t make an issue of this, Count and Countess Verdez..." said Kai, which seemed to relieve the couple. They had thought Kai would send their son to Arslan Prison or the royal prison.

"So, you’re forgiving Darel? We promise we won’t—"

"Wait a moment, Count Verdez, I’m not finished speaking; I think you should hear me out first." Kai cut off Count Verdez, making the parents anxious once more.

"Actually, there’s someone in Arslan as well—a baron’s son... who also used a demon necklace to control monsters. He was imprisoned for that, too. I won’t mention this to Duke Arslan, but I have a few conditions you need to know," Kai said.

Count Verdez and his wife looked even more anxious, but then they nodded, allowing Kaileon to continue.

"First, you must remove Darel as the heir to this family’s title and give it to one of his other brothers who is far more competent. In addition, there’s compensation for the losses suffered by the coastal village due to your son Darel’s actions. The last condition is my own... namely, I want to become an investor in this city’s beer business—what do you think? But that’s not all; I’m also willing to supply something that’s been causing problems for your business lately: glass bottles. I think this is a good deal for both sides, don’t you agree? If you’re still hesitant, I’m willing to speak privately with your third son, who’s currently managing your business."

Both of them were taken aback by Kaileon’s final remark. He knew a great deal about their business—and he knew exactly what he was doing.

It reminded them of their third son, who was just as sharp when it came to business matters.

"I agree, as long as you don’t report Darel... and yes, I’d like you to discuss business further with our third son, since he’s the one who knows the most about our fruit beer business," said Count Verdez.

Kai nodded with a broad smile. He was very happy because it seemed like everything was going to work out.

That’s what he thought, until suddenly someone he really didn’t want to see showed up to challenge him.

Yep, of course it was Darel.

A twenty-five-year-old man who was the first son of Count Verdez and his wife. Kai knew that Darel was indeed deeply loved by his parents, because after being married for so long without being blessed with children, the countess suddenly became pregnant at the age of 35. Of course they would love Darel.

But excessive love would shape a jerk like Darel.

At that moment, Kai was being escorted by a maid from the count’s house for a stroll through the garden and the vineyard. Kai was doing this to kill time until Count Verdez’s third son arrived.

Suddenly, Darel appeared, accompanied by several men who appeared to be his bodyguards trailing behind him.

"Hey, kid! I’m challenging you right now! A one-on-one duel—you’re not allowed to ask your assistant for help at all. If you lose, forget about your plan to strip me of my right to the title! I’m the heir to this region! You, who can’t even inherit your father’s title, are a nobody to me! Besides, your accusations are unfounded!"

Kai smiled slightly at Darel’s angry expression.

The maids accompanying Kaileon backed away, frightened by Darel.

Meanwhile, Kai wasn’t intimidated in the least; he walked toward Darel, saying,

"That’s a good offer... I like this. You’re still willing to fight for the rights you’re supposed to have as the firstborn... even though you’re actually unworthy."

Darel exploded with rage upon hearing Kaileon’s final words.

Unwilling to wait for Kaileon to reach him, Darel immediately charged forward to attack.

The man drew his sword and was about to slash at Kaileon.

But a split second before the blade struck Kaileon’s body, Kaileon had already dodged by quickly shifting to the side.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Kai immediately struck Darel in the back with his elbow, sending Darel reeling and crashing face-first onto the floor.

"Damn it!" Darel shouted. He quickly got back up, forgetting about his sword, and tried to punch Kaileon.

But unfortunately, Kaileon was able to catch the punch with his hand—which was smaller than Darel’s. With just a slight push using magic, Darel was sent flying backward, crashing into the bushes.

"STOP, DAREL—oh, where’s Darel and... who are you? Where’s Kaileon Arslan?"

Kai looked at the teenage boy who had just arrived, then pointed toward the bushes.

The young man furrowed his brow, then was surprised to see that it was actually Darel who had fallen and was being helped by Darel’s assistant.

"Wait a minute, does that mean you’re Kaileon Arslan?" the young man asked again.

Kai nodded, "Yeah, and are you Count Verdez’s third son?"

The young man was even more surprised upon realizing that the young man standing before him was Kaileon Arslan.