In the end they decided on a 60-40 split due to Noel being more important this time because she had acted as a bodyguard of sorts and helped keep Owari safe. As for why Owari got the bigger share, it was because he put more effort into finding the place and doing the surveying. Overall both were satisfied with this split. Though Noel mostly just accepted because she knew Owari would make her. Personally she only came to have fun and kill time while spending time with Owari. She didn’t care about profits. Owari was similar, however it was important so he couldn’t ignore the profits for now.

The ride was otherwise uneventful, the two talked as usual. When they got back to the city they were getting close to separating again. For the first time in a while it wasn’t an unwilling separation. They would certainly miss one another, but they were finally satisfied with the time spent together by this point. They were ready to get back to their normal schedule after their ‘vacation’.

As they arrived back in the city Owari suddenly had a thought. “Hey look this way for a second.” He called out to Noel who was sitting beside him resting against his shoulder as usual.

When she looked towards him curiously he suddenly bent over and kissed her. As he did he lingered for a moment. Just as they were about to take it a step further however Owari suddenly separated from Noel much to her disappointment. However a moment later there came a knocking on the door. Noel pouted a bit before Owari opened the door to leave.

“Let’s get together tomorrow to discuss what we intend to do about the gem and marble deposits we found.” As he exited Owari was slightly surprised to find a man was the one opening the door. He was slightly familiar but Owari didn’t remember who it was so he figured it was unimportant. “Thanks." He said as he left. What he didn’t know was this was Erikson, the butler who had almost left him to die. The man himself, while much more professional, still ground his teeth at Owari’s lack of recognition of him.

Owari made his way home and soon enough started to do some paperwork to get all of the information in order and plan for various situations with the negotiations. It took him the rest of the day to be satisfied. He also fixed his Haori during this time. When night came he meditated instead of sleeping. His mana reserves were starting to really rise. Ever since he discovered his breathing method helped speed up his growth his mana had swiftly grown. Currently he had 20% more than he had when he first arrived in the city. Of that almost all of it was from the last month.

Overall it was a good growth rate in Owari’s opinion, he had average mana reserves before so this would allow him to catch up to the true geniuses. Owari wasn’t a genius by nature, he didn’t grow fast from talent and his mana reserves were earned from years of meditation. However through his own effort he discovered ways to overcome these limits on his talent and force his way into the realm of geniuses. It was quite gratifying for him, after years of practice he finally had it all pay off.

After exiting meditation Owari made his way to Noel’s place and the two made their way inside to talk. “So what do you think?” Owari asked as soon as they sat down.

“I think we should wait for a response from my family before making a decision. However we should also go and check on other deals. This time there is no reason to go through the Orion Tradecenter exclusively.” Noel said pragmatically.

“Alright but for the sake of our relationship with them we should allow for more leeway.” Owari decided to favor them as a way of paying them back for their aide so far.

“That should be fine. Of course that’s under the assumption that they do indeed give us a fair price. How about we go to the Amber and Sapphire Agencies first to see if they are interested. As for the Amber agency we will probably have to wait before we get a response. Let’s give them a week since that’s about how long it will take before I get a response.” Noel suggested.

“Let’s go to the Sapphire Agency first then. We can go to the Amber Agency once Lance is available.” Owari recommended.

“Alright.” Noel didn’t see any problem with that.

The two slowly made their way to the Sapphire Agency, walking instead of riding in the car. It was still early so there was a chill to the air. It was well into winter and spring was coming so the air was starting to get humid making the cold even more biting. Owari was fine since he was tough and his haori was insulated. But Noel seemed less okay.

“Why don’t you wear a thicker coat?” Owari asked as Noel shivered.

“I don’t need it. I’m not cold.” Noel managed to say through gritted teeth.

“Just confess. I already know you aren’t good with the cold. When we were camping you practically slept in the fire.” Owari chuckled.

“I just need to get walking and I’ll be fine.” Noel didn’t give an inch.

“Well that’s true. You didn’t seem cold while we were moving around during the day.” Owari gave her some face here.

“See?” She said smugly, however she shivered once again.

“Alright.” Owari took off his haori suddenly and pulled off Noel’s hat before tossing his haori over her head in one swift motion. “There you go.”

Noel was shocked by this. Of course with her reflexes she could have dodged out of the way but she had been curious what he was doing. She grabbed hold of his coat and wondered whether she should just give it back and refuse it. But feeling the warmth leftover from Owari and the cold air she decided against it and chose to leave it on. Though it did drag across the ground. Noel felt a little bad, and then suddenly recalled something. One time Owari told her that it was more important than his life. Feeling the warmth of the coat and realizing how important it was to him she couldn’t help but step closer to him. As she did it was more than her body that was warmed by his act of kindness.

The two soon arrived at the agency and Noel handed his coat back and he handed her the straw hat back. It would be a little unprofessional to go inside like that. Not that Owari cared about that based on his attire. Noel felt much colder without the coat but she sucked it up and the two walked inside. Noel and Owari walked over to the appointment counter.

“What can I help you with?” The woman behind the counter asked.

“We would like to schedule an appointment with the representative of the Sapphire Agency.” Noel said confidently.

“Might I know your names?” The woman asked carefully.

“I am Noel Silverblood, and this is Owari.” Noel didn’t bother giving his last name. Nobody knew it anyway. He never really used it.

“Let me check.” The woman opened a book. After seeing the two of their names as high priority she suddenly shifted a bit and was noticeably more respectful. She checked another smaller book a moment later. “She has an opening in two hours. I can send someone to check if that’s alright.”

“That’s fine.” Noel replied.

The woman sent someone to go check as she said and soon they came back. “They said to write you in. Will that be all?”

“Yes, thank you.” Noel and Owari left. This was one reason they chose to come here first.

“It seems they value us highly to take us in on the same day we came to schedule an appointment.” Noel noted.

“Well you are a major representative in town. As for me they’ve been dying to recruit me or at least set up ties between us so they wouldn’t just ignore me. At least they would get me in within a few days. They would be a bit at a disadvantage if they waited to see us.” Owari carefully considered the situation.

“Right. Especially if we come on business.” Noel wished they had forced them to wait as it would mean they could push harder for more favorable terms.

“This way they have the advantage though. Luckily we hold all the cards.” Owari chuckled lightly.

The two continued to talk like this as they walked. As they did Morgana, who was off to the side, was smiling all the while. She was quite impressed with Owari and had felt gratified for her previous judgement. If she had wrongly judged him back then she was quite afraid of what would happen. It had to be known that at this rate he would have a hold on major sources of magic metals, gems, and even marble which was considered high-class material. All of these things have one thing in common, the Silverblood family was interested in them. Not to mention the hot spring resort he has shares in.

Owari and Noel who had no idea what Morgana was thinking just continued on their way until they reached the Orion Trandecenter. They entered and scheduled an appointment at lunch time. The three of them would be going to lunch together on behalf of Tristain who would pay for their meals. It was a cunning move to put him in the more beneficial position. It seemed his business sense was telling him this was an opportunity.

After that the two went back to Noel’s home and lazed around for the next few hours. When the time came they got up and made their way to the Sapphire agency where they were finally able to get a meeting. When they arrived at the meeting room Owari wasn’t at all surprised to find the same man and woman he had talked to when setting up his contract for the expedition from before.

“So it seems you have returned. To what do I owe the honor?” The woman spoke up.

“We have a proposition for you.” Owari spoke as he sat down.

“Oh? What kind of proposition?” She was curious what he could offer them.

“We have the locations of a gem deposit as well as a marble deposit.” Owari spoke calmly.

“I see. So you were hoping to sell said locations to us?” She was intrigued.

“We were thinking more of a joint partnership. In exchange for shares in the mines we won’t be asking for any compensation.” Owari smiled as he replied.

“A tantalizing opportunity indeed. How good are these potential mines?” She didn’t refuse right away.

“Here are some details.” Owari passed a few sheets to her

“Hm…” She seemed to think as she read the papers. “What were you thinking in terms of shares?”

“16% for her, 24% for me.” Owari answered back.

“So you aren’t doing this jointly?” She asked curiously.

“We don’t share assets. Legally speaking we are two separate individuals and thus we need to set boundaries.” Owari explained.

“Legally speaking?” She asked curiously. “You wouldn’t have such troubles if you were married.” She smiled.

“If you think you’ll fluster us like other children by pointing out our relationship then you chose the wrong pair.” Owari also smiled. “We can discuss our respective relationships over lunch one day, for now let’s get back to business.”

“Spoilsport.” The woman shook her head. “As for shares, that’s too much to hand over.”

“Then what do you think?” Owari gave her the initiative this time.

“8% for her 12% for you.” She offered an amount with the same distribution as theirs.

“We also have a meeting with the Orion Tradecenter at lunch.” Owari said offhandedly. “How about 14% for her and 21% for me?”

“Hm…” She seemed to think. As she did Owari began to drum his fingers against the armrest of his chair. “No can do, how about 16% for you and 11% for her?”

“I also intend to give out maps for the area, detailed ones at that. But because we still have others to discuss with we can assent a little bit. How about 18% for me and 12% for her?” Owari continued to drum his fingers across the armrest.

“Alright, we can agree to such terms under the conditions you stated.” As soon as she heard about the maps she was much more cooperative. She knew Owari’s maps also detailed ecology so it would mean they knew what kinds of magical beasts to expect and at what level.

“Alright. Remember this is for each of them though. 18% in both for me and 12% in both for her.” Owari reminded.

“Of course.” The woman nodded.

“Then we shall take our leave.” Owari stood up as did Noel and the two made to leave.

“See you again next time. Hopefully in a more casual setting so we can discuss your relationship more. Budding romance is always the sweetest.” The woman called after them.

The two just smiled and made their way out to loiter around town until lunch. When lunch did come around they made their way to the Orion Tradecenter and met Tristain there. “Punctual as usual.” He smiled at Owari and Noel.

“Better to be early then late.” Owari smiled back.

“We should head out.” He got to the point and the group of four made their way through town to a familiar restaurant. That being the one owned by the retired Sapphire Agency member. “I always find this place is good for business talk.”

“It was made with that purpose in mind after all.” Noel shared from the side.

“I expected as much.” Tristan laughed as the group got a room to eat in.

“I shall act as the intermediary.” Morgana waited outside.

“Such a serious and respectable maid.” Tristain was surprised. Maids were mostly people who cared for houses now, the days of personal maids were mostly passed.

“She is really my head of security. But she also works as my aide in all things.” Noel explained.

“Ah I see.” Tristan wondered how strong Morgana must be to be the personal guard of a Silverblood, not to mention Noel was at least silver rank.

“No need to be nervous. She is meant as a deterrent to street thugs and shameless trash.” Noel and Owari sat down casually as she spoke.

“Right.” Tristan didn’t believe her at all.

“So as I’m sure you guessed we have business today.” Owari got to the point.

“I assumed as much. What kind of business?” Tristain was intrigued.

Owari handed some papers to him. “This business.” There was less need to explain things to Tristain. As soon as he read the report he figured it all out.

“More mines huh? Soon we’ll become a mining company.” Tristain joked. “What’s the price?”

“24% shares for me 16% for her.” Owari gave the same starting price as with the Sapphire Agency.

“A bit much. How about 15% for you and 10% for her?” He proposed.

“21% for me and 14% for her sounds more fair.” Owari replied.

“Would 18% for you and 12% for her work out fine?” Tristain was confident in this number since it was the usual that Owari asked for.

“We have already talked to the Sapphire Agency about this matter. We also need to check with the Silverblood family as well. After all they are Noel’s family, and I think they learned their lesson after last time.” Owari chuckled as he saw Tristain’s smile freeze for a moment.

“Don’t forget you need our resources to mine the materials?” Tristan fired back.

“Do I?” Owari thought as he drummed his fingers against his armrest. “I could always buy the land with my current funds and contract it out to a mining company in exchange for a majority of the profits. That way I own 100% instead of only a fraction.” Owari considered doing this actually.

“Of course.” Tristain sighed. “So why do you deal with us then?” He couldn’t help but ask.

“Before it was because I needed the contact and I didn’t have the funds. Now it’s to maintain a good relationship and to bind our interests together.” Owari answered honestly.

“Alright, I can offer 19% for you and 13% for her.” Tristan offered because of Owari’s goodwill from his honesty.

“How about we give you a week to think on it while we wait for the Silverblood family to respond?” Owari gave him an out for now. However the truth was it would just make him nervous and more likely to slip up in their next deal as he worried over whether he was offering enough.

“That sounds good.” Tristan nodded.

“Then let’s just enjoy the meal for now. The server is about to come take our order.” Owari chuckled as the door knocked a moment later much to Tristain's surprise.

They all ordered some food and ate happily. Owari and Noel were kind on his wallet and ordered some of the cheaper meals much to his relief. Some people are the opposite, however Owari and Noel were used to being thrifty. Soon the lunch was over and it was time to leave.

“We may not be back in town in exactly a week. It should be closer to eight to nine days.” Owari said before they split up.

“That’s fine.” Tristain was curious but didn’t ask.

After that Noel and Owari made their way to her home and as soon as they were inside Noel spoke up. “So are we going to that party?”

“Seems like it. We will need to take an express train though. That’ll cost a pretty penny.” It was currently the 26th, if they left today they would have four days to arrive and the next day would be the party. Since it was in the territory to the north they would need over two weeks to get there by normal train. In fact Lance had already left and was probably almost there.

“I hate trains.” Noel sighed.

“It’ll be fine. It will only be a few days.” Owari grabbed her hand and gently held it.

“I can do it, I just don’t like them.” Noel smiled as she held Owari’s hand.

“I like trains. If it wasn’t for trains I wouldn’t have met you after all.” He smiled calmly as he spoke, but Noel couldn’t be nearly as composed.

“When I think about it that way…” She tried to stay calm as her face turned red.

Owari led her to the couch where they sat down close together. “The train will be going quite a lot faster than any car, I wonder what the landscape will look like going so fast.”

“With how fast you are it’ll probably look still.” Noel joked.

“Maybe it will.” Owari laughed along with her.

“I’m also a bit curious.” Noel started to grow absentminded as she thought about it.

Looking at her like that Owari couldn’t help but smile. “You’re cute when you daydream.”

“Huh?” Noel was suddenly brought back to reality with that and couldn’t help but lose her train of thought.

“Nothing.” Owari smiled wider and kissed her head.

“You’re just teasing me now.” She pouted.

“It’s been a stressful day.” Owari chuckled.

“I’m used to it.” Although she said that she snuggled closer to Owari with a contented sigh.

“Just think, it wasn’t too long ago that you flailed around in my arms trying to escape. Yet now you can’t wait to get back in them.” Owari held her closely.

“We don’t need to talk about that. That was embarrassing. You even got hurt because of it. You probably would have been able to escape had I not done that.” Noel sighed.

“Probably. But I learned a valuable lesson because of it so it’s fine.” Owari didn’t feel all that bothered by it.

“As long as you’re happy then I’m happy.” Noel decided not to worry about it too much. If she did there would be no end to it.

“Same here.” Owari responded.

The two of them enjoyed the sweet atmosphere as they chatted. It wasn’t until very late in the night that they separated much later than usual. When Owari got home he went straight to sleep. The next day he woke up early as usual and prepared for the trip. Preparing essentially amounted to grabbing his haori and swords. He didn’t really need clothes or anything since he’d only be there for a day.

Owari went to Noel’s shortly after since they would be leaving early. When the two of them met up Morgana handed Owari his ticket. Ever the dutiful maid she had went out the night before to purchase their morning tickets. As for payment obviously Owari paid for his own ticket. Noel already had her ticket and was packed almost as lightly as Owari was. She only had a single bag with her.

“So what’s in the bag?” Owari asked curiously after they got in the car.

“My outfit for the party.” Noel answered.

“Can I see?” Owari was curious.

“You’ll have to wait like everyone else.” Noel smiled mischievously. “Morgana picked it out.”

“Knowing her taste it’ll be modest but show your good points.” Owari immediately made a guess.

“Who knows?” She played ignorant. ‘Is that what you intend to wear?” She looked at Owari’s outfit with some disappointment.

“I planned on it yes. Why? Do I not look good in it?” He joked.

“That’s not the point. It’s a party for the geniuses of the world. You’ll be looked down on if you wear something so casual.” Noel warned.

“Fine, I’ll let Morgana pick out something when we get there. I’m sure she’d be delighted at the chance to pick out my clothes after spending so much time pretending my outfit doesn’t bother her.” Owari chuckled.

“If you know then why don’t you dress better? We both know you could fix up your coat perfectly if you wanted.” Noel didn’t take her own recommendation seriously. After all his coat was very symbolic so of course he wouldn’t change how he handles it.

“I like the way it looks all tattered. Like a scarred warrior.” Owari looked at his orange flame colored sleeve and the numerous grayish silver cuts through the brown base material.

“So it matches you?” Noel chuckled.

“I do have a lot of scars.” Owari nodded.

“Let me see some.” Noel suddenly said.

“Alright.” Owari wrapped his arm around her and pulled up his sleeve showing the scars along his left arm. “I get a lot on this arm. Maybe not as much in the future after getting that arm guard.”

“There certainly are a lot.” Noel traced her finger over some of them.

“That tickles.” Owari couldn’t help but laugh a little.

“You’re ticklish?” Noel was surprised.

“Not normally, but my scars are sensitive.” Owari answered.

“Interesting.” Noel smirked.

“If you tickle me I’ll tickle you back.” Owari warned.

“I’ll end up hitting you.” Noel smiled.

“What about my wound? It’s almost healed but it still needs to set after I removed the stitches.” Owari tried something else.

“Let me see it.” Noel was curious what it looked like now that he was mostly healed.

“If you want, just be prepared.” Owari lifted his shirt showing a massive inch thick scar cutting from his shoulder to his hip on his right side.

“How did you even survive that?” Noel was shocked when she saw it properly.

“Willpower.” Owari joked. “My earth affinity made it a mostly superficial wound. My mud affinity from Fang helped increase my vitality and let me survive the subsequent bleeding.”

“Maybe you should try to get water affinity next.” Noel laughed.

“I was planning on going to some places with water next. It might be a good idea.” Owari didn’t think it was a bad idea.

“Well I probably won’t be able to come. I have to stay in the city and deal with some stuff.” Noel was a bit disappointed but she had responsibilities to her family.

“That’s fine. I’ll try not to find anything too valuable out there.” Owari laughed. He wasn’t planning on going to find anything. It was just going to be a normal hunt this time.

The two arrived at the express train station and boarded the train. It wasn’t actually too different from a normal train. In fact they looked the same from the outside. The only difference was that the mana crystals powering it were more plentiful and the engines were able to handle more stress allowing them to go faster than a car or train. Soon enough the two were speeding along the countryside in the lowest class available. It was still much nicer than the one on the normal train. After all only people with some money could afford to buy a ticket on this train. Luckily Owari made a lot from his various trips and all the materials he sold. Especially those drake scales. This allowed him to easily afford the ticket and so here he was.