Apocalypse Landlord: My Tenants Are All Beautiful Heroines.-Chapter 20: Unexpected Guest

Given that Aiden had only managed to raise the affection and loyalty of his tenants, he assumed the system only kept track of the feelings of the tenants.

However, that wasn’t the case, as he managed to pull at Karina’s heartstrings too.

[It seems to be a glitch formed during the host’s reverse-migration to Earth.]

If that’s the case, then why can’t I manipulate that old fool?

[Apologies, but the specifics of the matter are yet to be determined.]

Aiden didn’t pay much thought to it. Since the system had been made aware of the issue, he was sure she would investigate the cause herself.

Besides, doesn’t it mean my pathetic words worked like a charm?

In over two centuries of being a demon lord, he had encountered his fair share of heroic yappers. They all wanted him to see the light and whatnot. It went without saying that every single one of them died a miserable death.

Who would have thought that learning talk-no-jutsu from them would help me out this much?

Meanwhile, Karina was lost in her thoughts. Usually dependent on her beastly senses, she was completely flabbergasted as she just couldn’t get a grip on Aiden.

He seemed more dangerous than a horde of orcs, yet his naivety seemed far more astounding.

If she had awoken an ability like his, she wouldn’t even think of the others. Not even her uncle. And that’s saying something because as a policewoman, she had been trained to serve and protect others.

"You’re stranger than I ever imagined," Karina chuckled, shaking her head. "That said, I do not believe that restoring the world is a possibility."

Hearing Karina’s words, Old Joe let out the breath he had been holding. For a moment, he thought Karina was seriously considering the proposal.

No matter how noble Aiden’s thought process was, at the end of the day, they were there to make a deal. A deal that would give the rich access to unimaginable things.

Old Joe was planning on selling Aiden’s goods at a high markup. If he could get exclusive access to the items, then it would be even better! With that money, he would expand his influence and take over the nearby survivor camps.

The fool was dreaming of being a capitalist in the apocalypse, but thought Aiden’s plan was unrealistic.

"I understand," Aiden mumbled, cursing why his talk-no-jutsu failed. "Then we can discuss—"

"However, I can’t deny that it’s an intriguing proposal," Karina said, cutting him off. "Even if we failed, wouldn’t we have fun trying to achieve the impossible?"

The old man choked on the water, but no one paid him attention. Karina got up and extended her hand towards Aiden.

"A brave new world... it doesn’t sound too bad."

It is as that ninja hero claimed. Talk-no-jutsu never fails!

Aiden thought and offered a hand to Karina. However, trouble arrived before the hands could touch.

"I object!" Old Joe yelled, grabbing Aiden’s arm with all the strength his body could muster.

Eh? Why won’t you budge!?

Old Joe cursed in his heart as he applied his entire body weight just to lower Aiden’s arm.

He assumed that since Aiden had been living inside the apartment all the time, he would be weak.

Despite Aiden’s moving words, he knew Karina appreciated strength more than anything. As long as he proved the guy was weak, Karina would rethink the partnership.

Unfortunately, even as he hung himself entirely off Aiden’s arm, it didn’t budge an inch.

"Uncle... what are you doing?" Karina mumbled through gritted teeth.

Although she was smiling, the bulging vein on her forehead told another story.

"Uh... haha! I was just testing the young fellow’s strength!" Old Joe laughed, standing on his tippy-toes to pat Aiden’s back. "Such firm shoulders. If anyone can carry the burden of healing this world, it has to be you, young man! Hehe... he... he..."

After thoroughly embarrassing himself, Old Joe sat back down and didn’t dare utter another word. He could talk about the deal with Karina later at the camp, without any strangely strong guy influencing her decision.

"It’s a good thing you acted on your doubts," Aiden said, gripping the old man’s shoulders. "One shouldn’t have any doubts when it comes to their partners, right, sir?"

"O-Of course!"

"Then, shall we discuss the terms of our partnership, or you want to conduct more tests?"

Although Aiden’s words didn’t hold any malice, Old Joe felt like if he took the offer, he would regret it dearly.

With things calmed down, the group finalized the trade agreement. Aiden would provide them MREs and sealed water in exchange for Evo-Gear, normal weapons, and some Bullets and Caps.

Each week, the items would be placed near the entry point James brought them in through. The collection and transportation would be the camp’s responsibility.

Old Joe wanted to know where Aiden would procure the things. In response, Aiden raised the price of the goods by twenty percent.

Just because he was acting like a savior didn’t mean he would let anyone walk over him. Besides, Aiden hadn’t forgotten how that bastard looked at Alisha first. In time, he would teach him a lesson for that, too.

Meanwhile, Karina, instead of arguing about the raised prices, glared at old Joe, who remained silent for the rest of the trade talks.

Just as things were about to wrap up, Karina made another suggestion.

"I think we should have a representative from the camp here," she said. "Since we have long-range radios, it would be convenient to arrange deals and help each other if the need arises."

"That’s an excellent Idea!" Aiden readily agreed, after all, he needed more tenants to upgrade his class. "You should send two people instead. It’s a new place, so it will be easier to adjust if two familiar people live together."

"Oh, no need for that!" Karina replied, waving her hand dismissively. "I’m not afraid of you lot."

"You don’t mean...?" Alisha asked, frowning at the thought of another woman living under the same roof as Aiden.

"Of course, I’ll be the one to stay here!" Karina announced, eyeing the shower from the corner of her eye.