“Yes, indeed. I made things go in that direction. Approach the isolated Saliashe, and become a connection for the other gods. And now, I am considered important to all of you.”
“Hehe. Perhaps if I was as sly as you, I would not be facing this problem.”
“They do say that cunning is a stronger power than military might. Otherwise, a weakling like me would have been blown away by the wind. But more importantly…”
The rat separated the large and small grapes, and then he took the small ones and put the large grapes in front of Salia.
“The second part of negotiating is to understand what it is that the other person desires.”
“…When it comes to what gods want, it is always territory and faith.”
“That is the root of it. However, it is not something quickly acquired. After all, your grape is large, and mine is small.”
The rat scratched his chin. He looked like a teacher who was teaching an especially difficult student.
“It will not be a fair transaction as they are different sizes. But if I give you two of mine for one of yours, I will have lost.”
“So the one with the smaller grape must find something else to trade?”
“Exactly. And what do you think that might be?”
Salia thought for a moment, and then her face darkened.
“I…apologize if this upsets you… But you have taken on the role of plague god…”
“Yes. As embarrassing as it is.”
“By doing it, you create connections, which results in being able to cooperate or have truces during the games.”
“On top of that, even plague gods have worshippers. Even if I lose in the games, I can offer them up in order to prevent my ruin.”
Indeed, if one did what Evacus did, they could participate in the games in spite of being a weak, lesser god. And they might even accomplish something. And even if you lost, it was easy to retrieve the name of a mere plague god.
“Currently, the other gods are focused on taking your territories. However, they cannot beat you with a head-on attack. In other words, what they want right now, is not your ‘territories,’ but a ‘method of taking your territories.’”
“And you can sell that to them. Offer them another fruit that will help them take the grape.”
“The third principle of negotiation is to assess gains and losses. Using the information gained through ‘trust,’ and observing others’ desires, you determine what constitutes ‘gains and losses’ for yourself. This simple process is the essence of negotiating.”
“So for you, the name of plague god is not a disadvantage.”
“Of course, I still see it as quite ominous.”
Evacus looked a little proud.
He had probably dirtied his hands more than she could ever imagine. Still, he was slowly making his way up, and dealing with those above him.
“When I look at you, I feel ashamed. For I am just one who has only grown in terms of my name.”
“Well, I had no other choice. Besides, your negotiations with your older brother were quite impressive.”
“That was…”
She thought back on how desperate she had been. However, she had received so much for her efforts, but had not thought of what it would mean.
Indeed, there was surely more that she could still do.
“Evacus, if you don’t mind, I would like to know your name.’
“‘Harbinger of Corruption,’ ‘Shadow’s Finger,’ ‘East Wind of Decay’ …There are many.”
“No.”
As he said, the first principle of negotiation is trust.
She had one way to show that now.
“Not one of your plague god names.”
The rat seemed taken aback at first, but then he nodded with a smile.
“Keeper of the Golden Vault… Though, it has long been unused as a title.”
“Thank you for the guidance, Keeper of the Golden Vault.”
“If it comes to such matters, there is a lot that I can tell you. Ah, I know…”
Evacus stood up and opened the entrance to the cave.
“Why don’t we form an alliance as well?”
“If you gain my trust, then your information may be more important. So you will have more to sell.”
“Not just that. If you were to continue winning, I want to be prepared to switch sides.”
He really was a sly one. She wasn’t sure what he was hiding.
“In that case, if you want to be my ally, you should tell me what the other gods are doing.”
“Yes, yes. In negotiations, you should make your move when the other person expresses their desires. And if they don’t say it, guiding them to do so is also a good approach.”
As she left, the rat god looked at her with a mysterious expression.
“Very soon, the ‘Sage’ will be leading an eastern expedition. In response, the gods who have joined the game under the banners of ‘Conqueror’s Majesty’ and ‘Weaver of the Waves’ are gearing up for a campaign against the evil god. Do what you will with that information.”
“You know what the Sage is doing… What are you?”
“Well, rats can fit in small places… Now, please excuse me.”
He went away, and the cave was silent.
Salia remained and thought back on what had been said.
There were four gods, high-ranking pillars who had absolute authority within the games.
The Sage, Furukamuto, would be leading a great army of Heroes. They would swallow up the lands left by Zephalis, and increase their power.
Obviously, Salia’s territory would not go untouched. And so the lesser gods would surely wish to defeat Sheto before that happened.
“The situation is becoming even more desperate.”
Still, Salia walked out of the cave without hesitation.
“Cunning is stronger than military might…”
She could not act like the rat, but those were words for someone like her to live by.
She did not know what to do exactly, but unless she thought of something, it would be difficult to get out of this situation.
Still, the words had a strange ring to them for her.
As if she had heard them before.
Somehow wrong, but also right.
“No, I have to think about what is right in front of me now.”
She brushed away her doubts and headed towards her own god seat.
‘Salia.”
She heard the weak voice, and after pausing for a moment, she rushed towards the gate.
“What is it, Sheto? What happened!”
There was no answer. It seemed like he was distracted by something. She had a bad feeling about it. Salia flew into her god seat and looked into the mirror with horror.
In the center of a dark road, she saw the kobold, whose head was lowered. Around him there were goblin corpses, and a wound human stood in front of him.
“What happened! Sheto!”