With the initial intent settled, they moved on to the next phase—negotiations. "What?! You're telling me that after all the hard work my adventurers will put in, you're only giving me five percent of the profits?!" Loki slammed the table dramatically, putting on a show.
"Mind you, we haven't even officially started yet!"
"There's no guarantee this so-called divine brew—ahem, I mean, this batch of wine—will even sell."
"In this situation, five percent is daylight robbery!" And to be clear, she wasn't talking about a 50-50 split. She meant five percent—half of ten percent. Considering that the Loki Familia was one of Orario's premier factions, that offer left her extremely dissatisfied.
Su Mo nodded, unfazed. "You make a fair point. The future is uncertain, and it's natural to have concerns."
"If things go poorly, you could end up taking a loss." Loki's eyes lit up. Su Mo might have been a powerhouse, but when it came to business... he seemed like a naive rookie. He was agreeing far too easily.
Sensing a chance to drive a better bargain, she leaned in. "In that case, how about thirty percent?" She didn't actually expect him to agree, but negotiations had to start high. Even settling at twenty percent would still be a huge win.
But Su Mo shook his head. "That's still too risky. Even a fifty-fifty split wouldn't protect you from potential losses."
"As your ally, I can't in good conscience let you shoulder such danger." Loki froze.
Was he... upping her share again? To fifty percent? Was this guy serious? She stared at him like he was a fluffy white rabbit wandering through a den of wolves with gold bars in his backpack. How could anyone not be tempted to fleece him? Emboldened, she pushed the boundary further. "Then... how about seventy-thirty? I take seventy?"
Even she found her own suggestion ridiculous—but judging by Su Mo's expression, he was actually considering it? But then he simply shook his head again. "Even a ninety-ten split would still leave you exposed to risk."
"In fact, why don't I just hire your adventurers directly?"
"I'll pay five times the market rate, with weekly payments. How's that sound?"
Su Mo's counteroffer was a tactical checkmate—moving from a profit-sharing model to outright wages. It ensured the Loki Familia would never incur a loss… but also stripped them of any chance to reap windfall profits. What's more, it downgraded them from equal partners to mere hired hands.
Loki panicked immediately. "N-No, absolutely not! We already agreed on a share-based model, remember?" Su Mo responded with the same words she had used earlier. "But you were the one who said this wine might not sell, that there was risk involved."
"Rather than let your familia take such a dangerous gamble, I'll bear the risk myself. You guys just earn your keep safely—win-win, no?" A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. Loki had no idea how to respond. It had been her own argument—risk—that Su Mo was now weaponizing against her. But she knew the wine would sell. After tasting it, there was no doubt in her mind. Her earlier speech was pure bargaining rhetoric—and now it had backfired spectacularly. If she accepted the wage model, she'd be forfeiting a massive profit opportunity.
Swallowing her pride, Loki let out an awkward laugh. "Heh, just kidding, just kidding. How could we let our ally shoulder all the risk alone?"
"Our Loki Familia values loyalty above all. It's not right to think only of profit."
"A little risk is a good thing. Let's stick to the profit-sharing plan!" Inside, she was bleeding. She had completely misjudged Su Mo. He wasn't a naive bunny at all—he was a cunning wolf in disguise.
He had sidestepped every one of her traps and left her with no ground to stand on. If she kept pressing the risk angle, he'd just revert to the wage model again—and that would be the end of negotiations. But Loki wasn't the goddess of mischief for nothing. Her mind quickly shifted gears.
"If it's profit-sharing, then surely, we deserve better than five percent. I mean, we are one of the top familias in Orario."
"Just five percent for a guard duty gig? Come on, adventurers of our caliber are a rare commodity." She wasn't wrong.
The Loki Familia was unmatched in strength and reputation. If the Soma Familia knew they were supervising, any funny business would instantly vanish. In the Loki Familia, even Level 3 adventurers were considered second-string. Offend one of them, and you might find yourself facing a Level 6 warrior the next day. This was part of why Su Mo had chosen them in the first place—not just familiarity, but influence. Reputation mattered.
"You're right," Su Mo said with a nod. "The Loki Familia is definitely my best option—"
Just as Loki's face lit up in joy, he continued.
"—Well, one of the best options, anyway."
Hearing Su Mo's words, Loki's expression suddenly shifted as something seemed to click in her mind. But Su Mo continued as if nothing had happened. "In Orario, there's another familia whose reputation rivals yours, with just as capable adventurers available for hire—the Freya Familia."
Thanks to Ottar, the strongest adventurer in Orario and a Level 7 powerhouse, the Freya Familia's fame even slightly exceeded Loki Familia's. From any rational standpoint, they were just as viable an option for Su Mo. And that wasn't an empty statement. Su Mo hadn't chosen Loki Familia without reason.
The truth was, he avoided Freya Familia for two very specific reasons. First, unlike the Loki Familia which often faced cash flow problems and could be negotiated down, Freya Familia had wealth and power—making them hard to bargain with. Second, Su Mo had leverage over Loki through Ais, which kept Loki from trying any funny business. No such restraint existed with Freya. That alone made them a risk.
It was absolutely not because of any personal dislike for a certain shameless, blind goddess who couldn't see the purity of his soul.
Nope. Absolutely not.
Of course, Loki had no way of knowing Su Mo's real thoughts. But even she couldn't refute his reasoning. After all, she'd been in competition with the Freya Familia for years—without either side managing to gain the upper hand. Whatever advantages her own group had, the Freya Familia could match them. In fact, when it came to providing guards and protection for commerce, Freya's people might even have more experience. Given all that, Loki really didn't have much room to bargain.
With a dispirited sigh, she finally dropped her shoulders and gave in. "Fine, fine. Five percent it is. I'll take the deal." She admitted defeat—not because five percent was a great offer, but because even that was still profit. But just then, Su Mo's voice rang out again, making Loki lift her head in surprise.
"Actually, I wouldn't mind increasing the share to ten percent." Loki's eyes sparkled at the unexpected offer. But Su Mo followed up quickly. "Of course, there's no such thing as free profit. Extra earnings require extra work."
How shameless could he be, saying that when he didn't even break a sweat turning divine wine out of thin air? Still, from Loki's perspective, Su Mo—who was providing the product—was doing the most important and difficult job. So, his words didn't seem out of place.
"What do you mean?" she asked, already guessing his intention.
"I can raise your share to ten percent," Su Mo said with a smile. "But in return, every issue that comes up during the sales process will be your responsibility to resolve. How's that sound?"
Besides overseeing the transactions, there were bound to be all kinds of other headaches—disputes with customers, problems between shop owners and adventurers, rival merchants trying to sabotage the venture. Su Mo had zero interest in dealing with any of it.
All of those annoying complications? He'd much rather someone else handle them.
And the Loki Familia was perfect for the job. With their reputation alone, they could suppress most issues without lifting a weapon. And if it came down to spending money to solve a problem—well, that was hardly a problem at all.
After a brief moment of hesitation, Loki nodded.
While this did mean her familia would have to deal with every logistical mess that popped up, they had plenty of adventurers to throw at the problem. As long as they had the manpower, it wasn't anything they couldn't handle. And to gain another five percent in return? That was a fantastic deal.
With Loki's final approval, the two immediately began drafting the contract. The profits would be split ninety to ten. Loki Familia would be responsible for managing and resolving any issues outside of direct sales. Just as they were about to sign the agreement, Loki suddenly paused, frowning.
"Wait a second… what about the Soma Familia?" Sure, they'd finalized things on their end. But what about the supplier? Where was their contract? The product and security were locked in—but the supplier wasn't.
Su Mo, calm as ever, responded casually. "Oh, that part should be wrapped up soon. If we head over now, we'll probably make it just in time to sign the contract." Loki stared at him, stunned. That's when it hit her: Su Mo had come to her before finalizing anything with the Soma Familia.
Wasn't that... a bit too confident? What if something went wrong on their end? Wouldn't the whole deal collapse? But by now, things were already in motion, and she wasn't about to back out. With no choice but to play along, she followed Su Mo toward the Soma Familia.