Chapter 77

“Hmm…” 

“What is it, my lord Baron?” 

“Ah, Vicente.”

At Vicente’s words, Raleigh seemed to snap out of a trance, setting down the tablet he had been fiddling with. A bonfire crackled between them, and the bark walls and ceiling of the wigwam enveloped them in a cozy embrace.

“No, it’s just… I’m in awe.”

Raleigh couldn’t take his eyes off the tablet he had just set down. A long list was written within it. The names of numerous tribes, confederacies of tribes, their chiefs and great chiefs, were all listed out. That’s right. Their names and their ‘ranks.’

“It’s truly astonishing. How in the world could our leader have conceived of such an idea…?” 

“Is he not one whose wisdom transcends that of ordinary men? Surely, one who stands beside the throne of the Lord sees what man cannot see, and knows what man cannot know.” 

“Even so, is it not truly marvelous?”

Raleigh still couldn’t forget the amazing words He had spoken, one by one.

—“Remember this. Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum.” 

—”Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum.” 

—“Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, Diamond.” 

—”Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, Diamond.”

After listing the names of all sorts of precious metals and gems, He had said:

—“From now on, these will be the marks that follow the names of the tribes.”

Ah.

—“Those who have worked to make the Lord’s authority prosper in this land shall earn a higher name, and those who have served this holy community shall earn a higher name.”

Aaaah.

In his own limited wisdom, Raleigh had wondered what use it could possibly be. It was beautiful, but was it not just a name? Yet, the moment he put His wisdom into practice, a miracle occurred. Countless peoples came of their own accord to entrust themselves to the holy and blessed Virginia community, offering gifts. And those countless people, in turn, brought even more people to the community, encouraging them to participate in the gift exchange.

Raleigh looked at Vicente and said, “This… is like a parable from the Bible.” 

“Indeed, it is.”

For so many tribes to submit on their own. As Raleigh and Vicente were talking, a young man who had only recently become the great chief of this place entered the wigwam. “I have kept you waiting long. I apologize for inconveniencing my guests. There was a tribal matter I had to resolve.”

“Not at all, Great Chief. For us, it is an honor to have been invited.”

At Raleigh’s words, the Great Chief, Nanepashemet, spoke. “…So, what exactly is this proposal of yours?”

At his question, Raleigh and Vicente swallowed hard and slowly… opened their mouths.

“You are… very fortunate. If you start now, this tribe can begin immediately at the Gold tier.” 

“Yes. And if you bring in other tribes, it will be a simple matter to upgrade to the Ruby tier in no time.” 

“…Hrmmm.”

That’s right. They were in the middle of attempting the world’s first multi-level marketing scheme.

***

—“Sang-ah, what Mom is doing isn’t a pyramid scheme. Hmm? Network marketing? I’m telling you, it’s not that either! 

—“…They used to call it network marketing, but there are so many low-quality, trashy scammers in the industry that our company doesn’t use that term anymore.” 

—“Really, I’m telling you, it’s not one of those illegal pyramid schemes. So next time you talk about it, you need to call it by its proper name: ‘business recommendation marketing’.” 

—“That’s right, Sang-ah’s mom, this is a really great business model. People who aren’t greedy can just buy and use their own products and get it back in commissions, right? The company saves on marketing costs, and the customer gets to use good products cheaply…”

“Aaaaaaaaargh! N-no, I’m telling you! You can’t make money from that…!” 

“Uh, S-Sir Nemo? What’s wrong?” 

“…It’s nothing, Eleanor.”

Ah… a bad memory surfaced. Mother, p-please, please… Don’t buy that weird shampoo-like stuff. It’s not cheap, and the quality isn’t even good, so why are you stockpiling it… It’s because you’re so gullible that you fell for that nonsense about making easy money farming Shine Muscats…

…Hooooo. I blew the bad memories away with the wind. Some people suffer from their trauma, and some people are consumed by it. But I devoured my trauma.

If you can’t avoid a pyramid scheme, you just have to become the pyramid scheme yourself. Multi-level marketing, network marketing, business recommendation transactions… whatever you call it, the essence is the same.

A ‘recommends the business’ to B, asking if they would like to try using and selling this product. B accepts, and B makes the same proposal to C and D, and C to E, F, and G, forming a ‘network.’ The one who proposed it first takes a portion of the profits from the ones they introduced, forming multiple classes, ‘multiple levels,’ in a pyramid structure. That is multi-level marketing.

Add a few clauses here and there, and it becomes as evil as a blatant Ponzi scheme. Tone down the spiciness a bit, and it becomes like those Kakao games that were popular in the early to mid-2010s.

Yes. If I’ve had a lot of frustrating experiences because of pyramid schemes, and if I’ve been stressed out a lot because of them… I become the pyramid scheme. …Of course, I have no intention of ruining anyone’s life, so I didn’t make it like a Ponzi scheme. I mixed a bit of MLM with a bit of Kakao Games and took out the spice.

***

“This… isn’t this a structure where we can never surpass those who started before us? This will surely bring disaster…” 

“Ah, you are truly wise. Many people have such concerns. It is clearly a structure where those who start first have an advantage over the latecomers.”

Raleigh cut Nanepashemet off at the perfect moment. Before the chief could recover from his surprise, Vicente continued. “That is correct, Great Chief. But is it not the natural order of things that the one who starts running first is ahead of the one who starts running later?” 

“…Well, that’s true.”

Vicente threw the Great Chief’s mind off with a similar, yet slightly off-topic, analogy. In the meantime, Raleigh, pretending to adjust his uncomfortable posture, subtly shifted his position toward the wigwam’s entrance. Nanepashemet’s escape route was now naturally blocked. But he didn’t even realize the sophisticated pincer formation, honed by the MLM peddlers of the 21st century.

“Furthermore, our Great Chief, Sir Nemo, has indeed taken all of that into consideration.” 

“Look. Any tribe can raise their tier as long as they bring in a large number of new tribes, can they not?” 

“Hmm…” 

“Those who start first may reach the higher tiers more easily, but it is a matter of difficulty, not a matter of possibility!”

***

That’s right. Basically, if you have a large number of ‘members’ you’ve brought in, you can climb from Bronze tier to Diamond tier on your own. How rational is that! I had abolished the malicious practices in many MLMs that made it impossible for latecomers to ever catch up to the early birds. This was the first feature of my ‘Good MLM.’

***

“S-so, if I later receive gifts from others and then offer those gifts to Sir Nemo in turn…” 

“Correct. You may take a portion in the name of a distribution fee.” 

“I-is that really alright? This was not done in the sacred custom.” 

“Customs and traditions, too, have changed over long periods of time.” 

“If that makes you uncomfortable, you may request a service fee from us.” 

“Hrmmm.” 

“Look. Our holy Great Chief commands tens of thousands of subjects and requires a great deal of goods!” 

“…” 

“And do you and your tribe not alleviate that burden? You can think of it as us adding a ‘little’ extra as a token of our gratitude!”

***

And the second key point of my ‘Good MLM.’ The upper ranks do not exploit the gifts of the lower ranks! At most, they only receive a small ‘service fee’! In the first place, the core of the native gift exchange is the constant circulation of goods. There is no possibility of someone’s livelihood being threatened by the hoarding or forced purchasing of goods, as happens in MLMs.

***

“But, I still don’t see what the exact benefit of starting now is…” 

“…Is that so?” 

“If that’s the case…”

The original ‘justification’ for pushing MLM is to reduce marketing and sales costs, thereby supplying good quality products at a low price. But in this era, the concept of marketing doesn’t really exist yet. Naturally, Vicente and Raleigh couldn’t use cost reduction as a persuasive point. Nor could they emphasize the aspect of a distribution method where one earns income through consumption. After all, they weren’t ‘buying and selling’ goods, but exchanging them.

Therefore.

“If you sign up now, we will give you these glass beads for free, as a start.” 

“…M-my heavens! How can they be so beautiful…!” 

“Please be careful, as they are as fragile as shell beads.”

Here, the concept of a ‘bait product’ makes its appearance.

“As your tier increases, you will be able to receive such special gifts more often. Also, to tribes of Platinum tier and above, we provide such excellent…”

Rustle. Rustle.

“…steel axes.” 

“Th-this is, is this not the tool you were using to cut down trees earlier? Good heavens, up close, its sharpness is incomparable to a stone axe!” 

“The efficiency of logging with this will also be incomparable to a stone axe.” 

“And… while it is not a recommended use, when you need to cut off the heads of your enemies…”

“Aaaah…! Incredible! Truly incredible!”

***

The more ‘members’ you bring in, the more ‘special’ gifts you can receive, and as the number of introduced members accumulates, the tier of the gifts also goes up. And all of this…

***

“You must start right now!”

Slightly startled by Raleigh’s shout, Nanepashemet flinched. “R-right now…?” 

“The Wampanoag Confederacy is probably already moving swiftly. Their subordinate tribes are likely going through the sign-up process as we speak.” 

“What? They’ve already joined?” 

“It was quite some time ago. I believe they are already close to Diamond tier…” 

“I-I’ll do it! I can’t be left behind by them!”

***

You have to start right now. Because otherwise, you’ll lose out. That sense of urgency would squeeze them tight. Isn’t that… the true charm of multi-level marketing? …It’s not a Ponzi scheme. Really, our MLM is a good MLM.

***

Anyway, it is what it is.

***

“Try recommending it to the surrounding tribes, whether they are hostile or on good terms. A variety of treasures and all sorts of beneficial goods you have never imagined will pour in.”

“…Thanks to you, I have obtained some truly fine treasures. Walter, Vicente, I will not forget my friendship with you.” 

“Hahaha! Thank you, Great Chief! We will strive even harder to offer you more treasures! For Virginia! For Sir Nemo!” 

“For Sir Nemo!” 

“Hahahaha!” 

“Hahahaha!”

Regardless of what Nemo himself thought, the Great Chief of the Pennacook people, the Pennacook Confederacy… whatever you called them, had been completely won over by Virginia.

“What were we to say as a warning if other Europeans come?” 

“That we will absolutely not hand over furs or other resources. That we will not permit them to settle in this land. This is the land of the great Emperor.” 

“Excellent.”

After shaking hands, attending a welcome banquet, and distributing various gifts to the tribe members to firmly seal their PR, the two men returned to the Nautilus.

“Hooo… now we just have to head north again.” 

“Indeed. Let’s see how friendly the other unfamiliar tribes will be to this ‘MLM’.” 

“Did He not say that this method would be effective? They will surely be friendly.”

And so, the fleet led by Raleigh and Vicente headed north. Their goal was to contact and win over the tribes near the Great Lakes and the Labrador Peninsula. If they could do that, they would be able to block over ninety percent of European infiltration.

And.

“We are already vassals of Sir Nemo… Ah, a man with wings holding a spiky club? Are you the people of Virginia?” 

“…’Already’ vassals of Sir Nemo? How is that?” 

“Well, the nearby tribes kept recommending something, so we accepted, and they brought all sorts of amazing things… Weren’t we supposed to say this?”

The Cowasuck tribe.

“Nemo? Virginia? We’ve already heard about that from the Cowasuck. By the way, if we report that we’ve gathered other tribes, our tier goes up, right? We’ve already brought over several tribes from the Arosaguntacook side…”

The Kennebec tribe.

“Ah, if we sign up twice, do we get gifts twice?”

The Penobscot tribe.

“…” 

“…”

Walter Raleigh and Vicente Gonzalez looked at each other, a cold sweat breaking out.

“…Why?”

The exact question Raleigh had wanted to ask was, ‘Why have places we’ve never even been to become our territory?’

“…”

And that was a question Vicente could not answer. It could only be called… the power of ‘network marketing.’