Unbothered, the woman continued with her inquiries.
"Show me your business license."
"Who are you people? Why would I show anything to random strangers?"
"We're part of the water management association. You better obey if you don't want to get into trouble."
I knew who they were. To be exact, there wasn't anyone who didn't know about them in the inner world. The name might have been created to be purposely confusing, but their organization had nothing to do with the official government. They were a large association of water mages monopolizing water and its trade inside the domes. Since everybody's livelihood depended on them, they held great power, allowing them to inflate the prices however they wanted. This was the reason the cost of water was so high in the first place. They controlled the amount they created to supply just enough that the prices stayed high forever. Basically, they were water mafia. Everyone hated them but no one could do anything since it was a fact that they would die without their water.
I knew they would come to see me at some point since I was hindering their monopoly but their response speed was much faster than I expected. My stall was located on the border of the city and I didn't even sell my water to twenty people so far. Yet, they already found out about me.
Since I knew they would be bothering me at some point, I already had some preparations done to handle them.
"I'm not doing any kind of business here."
"Are you taking us for fools? You're trying to illegally sell doubtful water to people."
"Not at all. I'm just donating my water for free. This is volunteering work."
"Hah! We've got testimony of people paying for your water!"
"There were grateful people who donated some money to my cause. It has nothing to do with any kind of business."
"Hahaha. Bullshit. You're good with words, kid, I'll give you that. But that won't work on us. You only have two options. Either join our water management association together with the water mage who's providing your water or cease your activities at once."
"You have no authority to order me around. Get lost, now. You're hindering my volunteering work."
These last words shocked the group of women. They looked at me like I was insane. Then, the older woman gave a strange, forced laugh.
"I've never seen someone so fearless before in my life. But you know, kid, you're going a bit too far. There are people you shouldn't cross in life. We can order you around because we have that much power. What about you? You're just a rank 0 nobody. See, we can even do that and no one will complain about it."
She gathered sel into her hand and prepared a spell that I recognized. Her sel manipulation was crude and slow. It looked amateurish to me. Still, it was a spell from a rank 3 water mage. The damage was guaranteed. For a moment, I hesitated on how to react to it. Were I a hot-blooded fighter who didn't care about consequences, I could easily block that spell and make them pay the full price for attacking me.
However, not only was I a trader, but I also feared the consequences. Not that much for me but more for Suuru. I could always flee to the outer world and live there but that would leave Suuru defenseless here. If they learned about my relationship with her, she could get into danger. Plus, my current business plan involved both the inner and the outer world to maximize profits in a short amount of time, something that only I could do.
In the end, I had no choice but to accept I was the weaker party here. I let the older woman release her water blade, which cut through my stall and destroyed my whole setup. The "precious" water became irrigation for the ground, creating a dark patch under me. Annoyed, I scowled at her.
"I demand compensation for the damage, both physical and mental."
"Hah! Mental damage? How funny. Sure thing. You can go to our office and claim reparation."
She clearly felt no guilt about what she did and her mocking smile implied that I would never get anything even if I went there. She wasn't done, though.
"Do you understand the reality of the world now, brat? Stop doing stupid stuff and go find a different job. This is your last warning."
She turned around with her goons and left, her steps full of pride. I wanted nothing more than to send a good old space cutter to their haughty leaving figures but held myself back. I wouldn't forget about this and they would pay in due time. For now, I was just a single person without any backing or real power. I could kill them easily but that would only get me into trouble without accomplishing anything. Plus, I didn't like fighting anyway. I just wanted to do business and grow rich. That was where the real fun was. I could simply switch my mind around and consider this as a small setback toward my glorious eventual success.
When I looked around, I saw a few of the surrounding inhabitants turning their heads away as my eyes met with theirs. As expected, everyone was afraid of going against the gangster-like water association.
After taking a few minutes to calm myself down and save anything that remained of my stall, I decided to stop here for the day. I would need to think about my plans for the inner world but that could wait for later.
For now, I still had the profits I obtained through the day and bought some more fans and batteries at the market while keeping some money to rebuild my losses. I then teleported to Geola and readied myself for my second shift.
But first, I wanted to relax a bit more by talking to my merchant friend Giya. I had come to the market a bit earlier than the previous day and still had some time before the night market started.
I soon reached his fruit and vegetable booth and he looked at me with a serious expression when he noticed me.
"You're here, Tila. I think there's something you need to see."
I suddenly had a bad feeling about this. Could my day get even worse than it already was?