Upon hearing John's hesitation, Raizel realized he had been somewhat inconsiderate by failing to take John's financial feelings into account.
Raizel understood business logic well enough, while merchant caravans were profitable, if Cain and his group had absurdly large appetites, John couldn't afford to run a business at a loss.
Snapping his fingers, Raizel said, "Alright, after we retrieve the cheated goods, we can discuss the hiring logistics separately. Send a minotaur to place the goods at the agreed location as promised, and I'll have Natsu assist you."
Raizel then turned to Natsu and Lucy with a stern instruction.
"Natsu, Lucy, your job is just to confirm the target, so even if you see something, do not make a sound."
Cain dispatched the scout with keen hearing to place the bait goods under the rock, having Natsu, Lucy, and Happy wait nearby.
...
In the evening, a slightly hunched man with explosive curly black hair, around thirty years old, lifted the rock and smiled greedily as he saw the goods.
"There really was a man who lifted the rock and took the goods," Natsu and Lucy reported to Raizel upon their return.
Raizel pinched his chin and nodded, asking, "Cain, what time will you meet him tomorrow?"
"I'm not sure about the time you mentioned, but it's probably just after sunrise," Cain explained, noting they handed over one cartload at a time over several days to avoid being seen.
'For fuck sake, a one-in-a-million physical talent but unfortunately no intelligence added into him,' Raizel thought, suppressing a sigh.
"Natsu, did you remember his scent?" Raizel asked, having instructed Natsu to memorize the man's scent as a precaution.
"Don't worry, I remember it," Natsu said, patting his chest with a grin.
Raizel only wanted an extra layer of insurance in case the man pulled a disappearing act. "Tomorrow, remember not to make a sound, just follow him to see where he takes the goods."
Lucy, Natsu, and Cain all nodded to show they understood.
...
The Next Morning—
Raizel had sent Cain and his main group back to the forest to wait, as their targets were simply too large to conceal in town.
Originally, Raizel didn't even want to bring President John along, as his build wasn't small either—he was about the same height as Raizel but twice as burly—but since these were John's goods, he insisted on being a witness.
Before dawn, one of Cain's minotaurs pulled a cart of goods to the location, and as the rooster crowed and the sun slowly rose, the silhouette of the hunched, explosive-haired man appeared against the light.
The minotaur lifted the covering cloth to reveal a variety of goods.
"Everything is here. I need to see the food tomorrow, and there will be another batch of goods then."
To make the act convincing, Raizel had instructed President John to prepare a batch of real, high-value goods as bait.
Hiding nearby, President John lowered his voice and whispered furiously, "I know this man! He's a notorious troublemaker in our town whose parents died from the shame of his antics, and he's been loafing around ever since. I never thought he'd actually have the guts to strike deals with Minotaurs."
"No wonder he could live lavishly while being idle," John muttered, suddenly recalling seeing the man drinking at his tavern and realizing the thief had been spending John's own money all along.
The hunchbacked man's eyes gleamed as he rubbed his hands together, smiling obsequiously at the beast. "Yes, yes, yes! I'll definitely deliver the provisions tomorrow!"
"Mhm, now scram," the minotaur waved impatiently before turning to leave.
"Go back to find Cain first, and I'll come find you all when matters are settled," Raizel whispered to the beast before winding through the alleys to find Natsu.
After the Minotaur left, Raizel signaled the team.
Natsu and John stealthily trailed the hunchbacked man as he pulled the cart toward a secluded property on the edge of town.
...
The man's home stood in complete isolation, a solitary courtyard surrounded by a fence.
After skillfully parking the cart, he entered a storage shed to retrieve a shovel and quickly began digging at a specific spot in the yard.
"Hahaha, those Minotaurs are truly fools!" the man chuckled while digging, claiming they were just paving the way for his benefit.
"So what if they can fight and rob? They work for me!"
"That's enough evidence, caught red-handed," Raizel announced, stepping out.
"Who's there?!" the hunchbacked man startled, brandishing his shovel as he spun around.
"Don't you recognize who I am?" President John stepped out, glaring furiously at the thief.
"G-Guild Master John..." the man stammered, instinctively retreating several steps before tripping over loose soil and falling backward.
Resistance was impossible. Not only were there Mages present, but John's physique alone overwhelmed the thief's skinny body.
He couldn't use magic, having relied solely on lies, and against John's massive build, mere bluff was useless.
John personally trussed up the hunchbacked man, venting his rage with several kicks before Raizel quickly intervened and said.
"Guild Master John, no more kicking, you'll kill him."
"Natsu, go summon Cain and the others to help dig," Raizel instructed, examining the soil and noting numerous disturbed patches indicating substantial hidden goods.
Cain's team arrived swiftly, and with Natsu's help, they soon turned the entire courtyard upside down.
"Ev-everything's here... I sold some, but most remains," the thief whimpered. "Since they're all your goods, I could only sell small amounts in neighboring towns, waiting for your guild to collapse before liquidating everything."
Raizel glanced at the Truth Detection Lacrima John had brought, seeing no reaction.
"Seems like he's telling the truth."
"The total value here could feed Cain's group for twenty years," John noted, realizing that while Cain's consumption exceeded norms, the profit from securing these goods made hiring them feasible.
Raizel raised an eyebrow at the numbers, realizing that business truly was profitable, though he had no talent for it himself.
"For Cain and the others, I can vouch for them as a Mage of Fairy Tail, allowing them to live in the town or take on other jobs to earn income," Raizel proposed.
"Cain, I need your promise: to live in a human town, you must abide by human rules and follow the law. Can you do that?"