Chrysalis Chapter 1605: 1713 - Re-negotiate

"Ah, look who it is—my favorite citizen of Green Mountain. It is a pleasure to see you once more, Ms. Alice. Or should I say Mrs.?"

Back on the boat again, Alice found herself greeted by the same servile yet mockingly arrogant merchant, forced to endure another meeting with this infuriating creature.

"I am a married woman," she answered curtly, taking her place.

"How lovely. I must admit," the Merchant chuckled, "the concept of limiting one’s personal connections in such a way is quite beyond my grasp as a terrifying and frightful monster. Not that I lack a family—I possess the largest family in all of Pangera—but the thought of starting one entirely on my own is... rather horrifying."

"How could a mere monster comprehend the life of a sentient being?" Alice retorted with a cold stare. "A creature born of the Dungeon can't possibly understand what a genuine family is."

If Alice had hoped to provoke the ant, she was disappointed. Merchant simply brushed the comment aside, removing her glasses to clean them.

"Oh, nonsense. I have a mother and millions upon millions of sisters. From my perspective, your version of a family is entirely insufficient."

Resting her glasses back atop her head, Merchant reached out and grasped the cup sitting on the table. After taking a sip of tea, she clacked her mandibles with a look of satisfaction before setting the cup down.

"Regardless, we aren't here to talk about family; we are here for a transaction. That is my favorite subject. Currently, we have three hundred of your delvers in our custody. Are you interested in buying them back?"

Had they truly captured three hundred delvers? It felt impossible, yet not a single word had come from the tunnels in days. Initially, the Union hadn't been concerned, but that confident facade was beginning to crumble with every passing hour.

Hundreds of delvers remained within the city walls, but they were becoming increasingly hesitant to venture out. In a remarkably short period, the ants had completely reversed the situation; now, it was Green Mountain that huddled in fear behind its fortifications, terrified to step outside.

"I demand proof that they are actually in your custody," she stated in a sharp, professional tone. "Without such evidence, there is no basis for a conversation."

"But of course!"

Merchant reached beneath the table, retrieved a sheet of paper, and slid it onto the surface.

"It is no trouble at all. We have collected a list of signatures from every captive we’ve taken. With the exception of the Priests, naturally."

Supplying a measured reaction, Alice calmly took the paper and scanned the names. Having consulted with the Union just days prior, the names were familiar to her. When her eyes fell upon Frederick Armon, she couldn't stop a sharp intake of breath. He was the most experienced Union member in the field. She had held onto the hope that he had escaped to bring back intel, but that hope seemed to have been extinguished.

"There are thousands of delvers currently in the tunnels, but we are rounding them up at quite a remarkable pace, wouldn't you agree? After all, it’s only been a few days since my last visit."

The ant flicked the ash from her cigar, her mandibles clacking in amusement.

"How long will it take us to get them all? I hate to be pushy, but I must remind you that the temporal flow severely limits this specific offer."

"The what?"

"It is a limited-time deal."

Once more, a small, folded piece of paper was pushed across the table. Alice wondered what the ant’s obsession was with these small scraps of paper.

"This is the current asking price. It hasn't increased too much from the last one."

Alice opened the page and immediately turned pale.

"It has doubled!" she cried out.

"Well, who can truly put a price on a human life? As it turns out, I can. The cost will only continue to rise if you keep hesitating, so I suggest you take advantage of this early-aphid special to avoid future heartbreak."

"I cannot simply agree to such a sum without Council approval," Alice said, regaining her composure. "Securing that approval takes time. We have budgets to manage and strict rules on public spending. The Council cannot simply manifest this much coin on such short notice. If the Colony wants a serious negotiation, we need a realistic timeframe and a sensible price. Up until now, these talks have been nothing but childish bullying and bluster."

Merchant burst into laughter, her mandibles clacking in a rhythmic beat.

"That's a lovely attempt to reframe our dialogue, but I'm afraid you are the one failing to understand the nature of this deal."

Merchant polished her glasses before putting them back on, a predatory intelligence shining in every facet of her eyes.

"Price is dictated by demand. Demand is driven by scarcity. Your supply of delvers is set to drop quite sharply over the coming days. Naturally, that decrease in supply will trigger a price hike. The more Green Mountain desires its delvers back, the more we shall charge."

How in the name of Pangera was it possible? Despite having no eyelids, the monster somehow gave the distinct impression of a cheeky wink. Was it some form of magic? A trick of the light?

"That is simply fundamental economics. As for the time you need to gather the funds, I’m afraid that isn't our concern."

"It is if you actually want your filthy money," Alice pointed out sharply.

"You have it backwards," Merchant grinned, somehow. "It isn't that we want money; it's that you want your delvers. What you should really ask yourself is: can you afford to wait? Imagine the number that will be on that paper once every single delver in Green Mountain is behind our bars."

Merchant rubbed her front claws together greedily.

"It’s going to be wonderful."