City of Desire [Kingdom Building]

Chapter 64: Count Darrow

“Keep calm, be rational as you always are,” said Locke as the carriage moved out of the merchant guild.
 
Usually, I say these words to Locke, but this time he is saying that to me. 
 
Today is a big day, and I am nervous; for the first time, I am going to the briefing at the city lord's mansion. Usually, it is Damon Hardt, Locke, and the old man Oakley goes there, but Damon Hardt is out of the city, so Locke is taking me with him.
 
“Don’t worry too much, Remus; as long as you answered all the queries of Count Darrow, you will be fine,” said the old man, who was also sweating in fear.
 
From what I had heard, Count Darrow is not an easy man.
 
I had met him two days after I returned from the Namdar, where he awarded us medals. It was quite an event that stayed in the papers for a few days.
 
Finally, the carriage walked inside the huge city lord's mansion, and a minute later, we walked out of it.
 
As I stepped out of the carriage, all the nervousness and hesitation had vanished from my face; it was not the first time I was meeting important people. While I am nervous, I am perfectly capable of hiding it well.
 
Even Lock and the old man Oakley seemed surprised by it, but they did not say anything.
 
The city lord's mansion is the biggest in the whole city; it is grand, with guards everywhere. As we walked toward the door, I felt a couple of powerful gazes looking at me.
 
As we reached the door, I found there was already someone waiting for us.
 
“Vice Guild Master Hercule, Mister Silver, Mister Oakley, follow me please,” said the man in butler suit and led us inside.
 
He is not the main butler, that is an old man; this one is his early forties, likely the assistant butler.
 
The mansion is huge but decorated a little gaudily. I heard Count Darrow like these types of showy pieces; not all of them are bad. Some are actually good, but most of them are just shining pieces that look good to the eyes.
 
“Please wait; Lord Count will grace you with his presence soon,” he said, showing us our seats on a white stone table.
 
He did not leave, just stayed by the side with his back straight; quite an unconformable position, if you ask me, but I am sure he has skills like Perfect Poise or something like it, which helps him.
 
We had to wait for over ten minutes in silence before Count Darrow made an entrance. He is a man of medium height and a mousy face that would have had some handsomeness in his youth.
 
He is not alone; beside him is a young man in his mid-twenties and a man in his early fifties. 
 
The young man is his younger son Lancel, and unlike his father, he is tall with deep blue eyes and long grey hair, which makes him look even more handsome.
 
If the rumors were right, then Count Darrow would hand over the city to his younger son and return to his territory, but there are years for that to happen, a decade or more even.
 
“My Lords,” 
 
We greeted the father and son with a bow.
 
“At ease,” he said and took the head seat while his son and advisor sat on his left and right, while we sat opposite him.
 
“You have done great, Hercule; I have looked through all the contracts you have signed with Riverbell, and they are great,” he praised.
 
“Thank you, Lord Count,” said Locke; he smiled, but soon Count’s expression turned serious.
 
“Though I would have preferred if we had not lowered the taxes on the crystals so much, we, too, mine them,” he said and looked at Locke pointedly, instantly making him sweat.
 
“Y..yes, we do, but Riverbell does it in much higher quantity, and since the refinery opens in a month, it would be wise if we have a bigger source of it,” he replied with a little stumble.
 
Locke is a great businessman but a little weak in policy, and while I am advising him, it will take some time before he becomes good enough for his current post.
 
“Yes, but we produce more than four times than we would be able to refine, so there are no questions of getting more crystals from other cities,” he said, and Locke opened his mouth, but no answer seemed to come out.
 
So, he looked at me, like he did every time when he faced a problem during the negotiations.
 
“You are right Lord Count; we produce more than we would be able to refine, but refined crystals are strategic resources.” 
 
“So, even if there is an abundance of them, we should at least have the capacity to fulfill our need and the need of surrounding cities in case of disruptions of supply lines,” I said, while using Lawful Suggestions.
 
“I had read your letter, Silver; you were saying we should increase the capacity of the crystal refinery we are building,” he said, talking about the letter I had sent him two weeks ago.
 
“Building a refinery is a waste of money; we could not break even with it,” added Lancel, his son, before I could even reply.
 
“Yes, it is a loss-making business, my lord, but a strategic one in which the city should invest, as coming years won’t be easy,” I said, and silence descended.
 
The refined crystals are the lifeblood of this magical civilization; they are used everywhere, from magic lamps to enchantments to cannon balls. If the supply of them had stopped, it would make the whole city stop.
 
“Your proposal does say some fair points; I will think about it,” said Count Darrow, and I could see Locke taking a sigh of relief, but it was only for a few seconds.
 
At the next second, Count turned to him and began asking questions, and Locke answered. I would only open my mouth when Locke asked for it; otherwise, I would remain silent, even when I think I could explain much better than him.
 
People have an ego, and I don’t want to undermine that, so I will only speak when he asks. I had done this from our first negotiations since Locke took over the position of vice-Guildmaster.
 
The meeting had lasted over one and a half an hour, and it was stressful, not only for Locke but also me and old man Oakley.
 
“These meetings are the reason why I want to resign sometimes,” said Locke as we sat back into the carriage.
 
“You loved it too much to resign from it,” I said back, to which he grinned. “Yes, I really liked the responsibility and the things I am learning,” he said.
 
Soon we reached the merchant guild and got out of the carriage; Oakley went inside the guild while Locke turned to me.
 
“Thank you, once again, Remus; without you, the meeting would have been very difficult,” he thanked. 
 
“You are doing good; in a few months, you won't even need my help,” I said, to which he smiled.
 
I talked to him for a few minutes before sitting in the carriage, and fifteen minutes later, carriages had walked into the gates of the establishment.
 
Now, the mist is not covering the building, but the whole plot, hiding everything that is happening inside.
 
This is the fourth day of me closing the establishment, and they have made enormous progress. Normal workers have almost disappeared, and now only artisans, enchanters, and people of other specialized classes have remained.
 
The big work had been completed, and now only delicate ones had remained; I saw people working in complete focus, and I did not disturb them.
 
Though I had asked to change some things I didn’t like, those were very minute, and they did that immediately. 
 
I stayed there for two hours before leaving for my house.
 
I am not staying in my house all day, as most of my time passed between the guild and the establishment, which I would visit three times a day. I already visited morning and afternoon just now and will come again at night.
 
Soon, the carriage stepped inside the gates of my small house, and I went inside.
 
“Jill, had anything come for me,” I asked the young girl, who was sitting on the desk outside of my office. 
 
“Yes, these three letters have come for you, Master Silver,” she said and handed me the letters. 
 
“Thank you,” I said and took the letters before walking inside.
 
Since Carla is in the spa, Jill is my assistant and receptionist, and a young girl is good. Carla had wanted to stay, but I had asked her to stay in the spa not only to get treatments but also to keep an eye on everything.
 
While Margaux is good, there are a lot of girls, and poaching always happens.
 
No other than two girls have left, but many have been approached, including Carla and Margaux, and their offer is becoming irresistible by the day.
 
They have copied my way of business and saw some success in it, and now they want my girls. 
 
It is not just brothels of the city that are poaching them, but also from outside, as far as Namdar and Meldhorn of merchant cities.
 
It won't be long before their offers become irresistible to some.
 
There is not much I could do about it, poaching is common, and it won’t be stopped. The only thing I could do about it did not suffer loss, and I have taken the measure against it.
 
Click!
 
I was working when the door opened, and Jill walked, “Master Silver, Eudo had arrived,” she informed me.
 
“Send him in,” I said with a smile. 
 
Three months are over, and I have to renegotiate his employment contract. I have prepared a sweet deal for him; I have to, as I did not want to lose him.
 
The girls are not the only ones who have been approached; he has also been approached.
 
“Eudo, take a seat,” I said to the beautiful man as he entered my office. “Thank you, Remus,” he said and sat down.
 
“How are the girls doing?” I asked. “Great, rejuvenating treatments of spa making them beautiful every day,” he replied with a smile.
 
I had not gone to meet them; I had given that responsibility to him and Carla.
 
“So, your contract,” I said, coming directly to the point when I saw he didn’t have anything to add about the spa.
 
“I want you to triple my salary; I deserve it,” he said directly and looking into his eyes, I know he would not take a crown less.
 
My expression did not change upon hearing that, and I slowly slid the contract toward him. “Then you will not have any problem with this,” I said
 
He took the contract in his hand and began to read it, and within second seconds, a surprise couldn’t help but appear on his face.
 
He was asking for three times of his current salary, but I have quadrupled it. He is important, and I don’t want to lose him, and as for the salary I am giving him, he totally deserves it.
 
He is high-level, a Level 30+; such people are extremely hard to find.
 
“Thank you,” he said a little emotionally, and to that, I smiled.
 
“I guess you are satisfied with your contract?” I asked, to which he nodded. “Yes, except for one small thing, everything is perfect,” he said.
 
That one small thing is for which we negotiated for over ten minutes; it is the duration of his contract. 
 
I wanted it one year long, and he wasn’t willing to go over three months; it took a while before we finally decided on the six months.
 
I have to say; he is very intelligent, knows the business will keep growing, and shorter contracts give him a better chance of getting a higher salary. 
 
I do not mind it; I know as long as I keep paying him, what he deserves, he will not leave.

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