This is the strangest hentai I've ever seen.
What? You didn't like OMOSHIROI Crown Prince and fat ugly Bast- uh I mean, Merchant? Those are the staples of NTR hentais!
But jokes aside, gotta love that the series is back. Not only it has beautiful artstyle, it also has a nice, logical plot alongside it. MC can't do much against Merchant and his greed but the Merchant himself can't scam MC either. Remember that the chapter started with MC talking about this very situation and the 2nd part is basically MC asking Merchant on behalf of the kingdom to confirm the existence of the high-level equipment. Merchant knows it and is already quite profitable not only from the potential goods he can buy but he also gains incredibly valuable map (as we know from the previous chapters). Not only that, MC also prepares the guards for the caravan so there is potentially near-zero chance for Merchant to scam MC. If he does it, then he's as good as dead as he scammed not the MC but the kingdom behind him. And let's be honest - such Merchant would love to be in good relationship with a young noble who became a hero last stampede and now seems to be a close aide to the Crown Prince (who himself grooms MC into right hand for his son/ future king). Besides both sides have network of informants so they know about the coming danger and would also potentially know if the Merchant did something funny with the equipment.
God, I love the series where everything makes sense!