Ebisu Town, tea shop.
It was called a tea shop, but it was more like the only place in town that could welcome people, with a set of old tables and chairs that barely worked.
"Crack!"
The wooden chair broke into pieces in Daichi's hands.
Daichi calmly brushed off his hands.
"Sorry, I didn't control my strength well."
"No... no problem," the village chief's smile looked forced, his heart hurting.
This was the only set of furniture left in his home.
"Daichi-sama, please have some tea."
A chipped clay cup was placed on the table. The tea inside was so thin you could see through it, with only a single green leaf floating on top, trying to look proper.
Daichi ignored the tea and looked at the village chief, whose clothes were covered in patches.
If he remembered correctly, the true identity of this village chief was Shimotsuki Yasuie, who once served as the Daimyo of Hakumai region.
But that was all in the past.
He came here not to reveal the other person's past. Killing an old and weak former samurai would not mean much.
Daichi introduced himself.
"Mr. Tonoyasu, I am Daichi, a Headliner of the Beast Pirates. This is Kaido's daughter, Yamato. I'm sure you've heard of her."
"You are the Devil Muscle Man!" Tonoyasu was shocked.
The opening of the hot spring business had already caused quite a stir, and last night's battle had spread throughout Wano Country overnight.
Two hundred loyal samurai all died at the hands of the Devil Muscle Man. Compared to Kaido's daughter, the Devil Muscle Man was getting more attention.
Daichi: "...."
Stay calm, stay calm.
This nickname is quite scary!
Tonoyasu's heart was troubled. The killing of the loyal samurai made him very sad, but he was no longer Shimotsuki Yasuie. He was now just Tonoyasu of Ebisu Town, an old man who had lost his power.
Tonoyasu bowed his hands and forced a smile.
"Sir, why have you come here?"
"I've come to discuss a business deal with you," Daichi spoke calmly.
He had made a huge amount of money by opening the shop, and his first goal was to spend it. Otherwise, too many people would want to take it.
Buying houses to rent out was his first choice.
In Wano Country, valuable properties were all in the Flower Capital, but with his money, he couldn't buy too many properties in the Flower Capital. There weren't that many properties for sale either.
So it was better to find a place where house prices were cheap and make a big move. Of course, the target must have enough potential to grow in value.
"Business?" Tonoyasu was confused.
Doing business in Ebisu Town?
The people in the town were so poor they couldn't even drink clean water. What could interest the other person enough to seek him out specifically?
Tonoyasu's smile looked strained, and he spoke carefully. "Daichi-sama, are you perhaps joking with me?"
"I don't have that much free time," Daichi waved his hand and pointed downward.
"I want to buy the entire Ebisu Town, including the fields outside!"
"What?!" Tonoyasu was stunned.
Buy... Ebisu Town?
Was he still dreaming? It was just a poor little town. What could the other person find appealing about it?
Could it be that there was a gold mine under Ebisu Town?
Impossible! He had never heard of such a thing!
Daichi smiled and drank his tea, giving the other person time to slowly understand the news.
What he truly valued was the land.
This broken-down small town was once the largest city in Hakumai. It only became what it is today because it was destroyed by Orochi.
In terms of location, Ebisu Town is north of the Flower Capital, west of the great river, and has large areas of flat fertile land to the southeast.
It could be said that its potential was excellent.
Next, as long as the town is rebuilt, the water pollution problem is solved, and the houses are rented to those who need them, he can sit back and collect rent.
Of course, there will be a lot of resistance.
But when faced with the temptation of collecting rent, he will solve any obstacles!
Hehehehe~~
Daichi held up one finger.
"I offer ten thousand gold!"
"How much?!" Tonoyasu's eyes widened.
Ten thousand gold!
Twenty years ago, this amount of money was nothing to Ebisu Town, but now, this much money could buy ten Ebisu Towns!
Daichi glanced at Yamato.
If it weren't for this girl, he would have just taken it by force. Why bother sitting down to talk about the deal properly?
"Besides ten thousand gold, I have another proposal on top of that. I will build a new city here..." Daichi described his plan.
In short, after the new city is built, houses will be sold at a price of 100 gold per building, or rented at a price of 1 gold per month.
The fertile fields outside the town will also be rented and sold.
And the original people of Ebisu Town will have first choice for renting, and can apply for a low-interest loan from him to buy a house. They only need to pay a down payment at first.
The conditions were quite good.
"This..." Tonoyasu's breathing became heavier.
The other person's proposal was very tempting. It not only solved their housing problem but also rented fertile land to them.
Ebisu Town was so poor. Besides the lack of workers, the most important problem was that there was no land to farm. If there was land, they might not be able to live comfortably, but at least no one would starve to death.
The most important point among all of this was that the other person wanted to solve the water pollution problem. Only by solving water pollution could the fields become productive again!
This was definitely great news for them.
"Mr. Tonoyasu, you have a month to think about it slowly."
"If you don't want to, then I can only sadly choose other towns."
"Let's go, Yamato."
Daichi left with Yamato.
There was still a month until the Beast Pirates' big battle. After that, he could openly invest in real estate and develop properties.
He wanted to be a real estate king!
At sunset, the evening sun was beautiful.
The two walked on the country path, their shadows stretching long behind them.
Yamato stared at Daichi's back, her head feeling confused. Since leaving Onigashima, she hadn't really understood what she was doing.
It seemed like she had done nothing, yet also a lot.
And how to move forward in the future - she couldn't just keep following Daichi like an obedient follower, could she?
The girl's eyes were full of confusion.
My head hurts so much, I feel like I'm trying to grow a brain!
Just then, Daichi stopped.
"Yamato."
"Mm."
"Look over there."
"Huh?"
Daichi raised his hand and pointed toward the Flower Capital. Yamato immediately raised her hand to shade her eyes, looking in the direction Daichi pointed.
It was the most noticeable building in the Flower Capital.
"Orochi Castle?"
"To be exact, that's the Shogun's Castle!" Daichi turned to face Yamato, his eyes burning like fire. "Yamato, do you know how to save Wano Country?"
"Defeat Father!" Yamato answered without hesitation.
"...."
What a smart little devil.
"You're right, but we can't do that."
Daichi shook his head, staring into the girl's pure eyes. "Besides defeating your father, there's another way to save Wano Country, to keep the people from starving!"
"What way?" Yamato's eyes lit up, her heart beating fast.
Daichi squeezed his fist. "It's simple. As long as we team up to take out Orochi, and then you become the Shogun of Wano Country!"
"What?!" Yamato's mouth dropped open.
Become... the Shogun of Wano Country?
"Father wouldn't allow it!"
"Once it's already done, Kaido will have to agree even if he doesn't want to!" Daichi grinned.
Once Yamato becomes the Shogun, he will instantly become the real ruler of Wano Country. His relationship with Yamato would be like a power behind the throne.
By then, his real estate business will spread throughout Wano Country. He will then cleverly create reasons to collect money, and the people of the entire country will have to pay him rent.
Hehehehe~~ Hahahahaha!