ushernet Chapter 319 – Business Meeting
Chapter 319 – Business Meeting
Chapter 319 – Business Meeting
“Chairman Alvor,” I greeted, inviting him not to the throne room but into the dining room, where we would have a business meeting... and lunch. “Hopefully, you will enjoy a good meal with me, and we can talk leisurely about our dealings.”
“Thank you, Sovereign Leon.” He bowed, followed by three of his people, one of whom was a young man. Based on their similarities, I would say he was either a brother or a son. Looking at them, I watched as their group was masking their nervousness well, but I could notice it when it slipped. Right when glancing at the black armored soldier standing guard close by, wearing his skull-like helmet.
“Today, my third wife, Luna, will accompany us,” I continued, watching as she walked in, wearing her usual maid outfit, while she directed the others to place the first course on the table as we took our seats.
“It is our pleasure!” Alvor bowed towards her, not daring to show any less respect than towards me, even if she was acting as a maid. “Let me introduce my colleagues; I have been working with them for two decades now. To my left is Morkath. He is in charge of my finances as he is a wonder with numbers. Next to him is Lucial, the head of security in my organization. To my right is my son, Orin, and I brought him with me so he could gain some experience. He would take over after me if something happened to me.”
“Which hopefully won’t,” I added, smiling at them. "I value your straightforwardness, Chairman Alvor."
“The world is unpredictable,” he answered with a half-smile, making me nod in agreement.
“It is. Well met, my friends. I know you are business first, so while we eat our soup, we can start whenever you wish.” I added with a chuckle, starting to eat.
“Then, I’d like to go over some of the exchanges that happened between our countries in the past few months.”
When he began, I watched as he exchanged glances with his aides multiple times, affirming that his numbers were correct. I nodded along, recalling the exact details and checking whether he was nudging the numbers or not. He wasn’t. It matched what was within my own reports, maintaining his honesty. Of course, that was expected because both of us knew we could simply confirm it through our people. He could have left out some or misrepresented a few for bargaining purposes to put themselves in a better position, but he didn’t. Atuvia was still importing food through us as if there was no tomorrow, so if he made a mistake, it could be explained by some simple error on his part, reciting it from memory.
Yet he didn't take advantage of it. I was starting to feel a bit guilty about what I was planning to do. I know that I had already sent multiple trains of grain over, selling it to them in exchange for materials I had no way of mining myself, coming from faraway countries. Was it already a clean robbery? Probably. But maybe not. Because of this, they were finally stabilizing, and the two regions, under the control of their two cities, were settling back to normalcy. Which prompted me to ask after Alvor fell silent.
“What about the other parts of the old Atuvia?”
“It is... There is a possibility of conflict. They are catching on, and although they are still vying to take control of their own regions, they are realizing that we are slipping away and becoming nonresponsive to their messages. And caravans.”
“I didn’t think you would stop trading with them.” I chuckled because I honestly did not.
“We can’t let them copy what we purchased at such a high price.” Ah, there it was, a little jab. Maybe he realized it because he quickly cleared his throat, but I did not mind. “We were expecting it, and as it is our common interest to not let them take it away, we thought––“Nôv(el)B\\jnn
“It isn’t.” I interrupted him, finishing my soup, leaning back, licking my lips, and watching the surprise on his face. “I never said that what I sold you, like my tractors, is something I am concerned about. It is a technology I am willing to let be spread far and wide; otherwise, I would have been complaining that you had begun dismantling and copying it.”
“...”
“Don’t look at me like that, Chairman Alvor. We both knew it would happen as soon as it crossed our borders. And just so you know, I am on the same level with the technology behind the train. I want it to spread because it would benefit me in the long run anyway. Plus, competition keeps my people pushing, keeping us on the edge!”
“But...” He muttered, probably forgoing a few of his plans on how to ask me about whatever he was thinking of.
“If the rest of Atuvia gets their own versions, steals your plans, or takes away a tractor that you bought from me, it is none of my concerns. It is yours, Chairman.”
“I... understand...” He mumbled, his lips trembling.
“Also, I can’t spare you any manpower either, to stop it from happening. After we finish building the last of the railways connecting your two cities with Avalon, I will pull out all of my soldiers and workers.”
“For you? Or any other power around us? Useless. For me? I can do without it.” I explained, leaning forward, looking straight into his eyes, “But I’d like to have it if possible.”
“It... is possible...” He muttered, finally blinking, thinking fast, trying to get a feel for what it really meant. What type of importance was it? What kind of treasure was lying under their territory? What was its actual price? “We can expand the speed in which we extract it, and if you have ideas on how to run its production up, we are willing to pay for those plans.”
“But you are not willing to sell them to me,” I said, watching him nod, and before he could make up an excuse, I continued. “Fair. I expected as much. Also, I do have plans that you could use, but their price is my authority over the extracted oil.”
“Authority?”
“You could also say it is me who gets priority. It is me who can use it, and it is me who will buy it from you. Even if, in the future, others also get ideas and want to buy from you, I get it first. As for how much... you can go over that with my ministers tomorrow.”
“This is just like if you would still control it, only from afar,” Orin murmured, making his father flinch, but I simply smiled.
“In my hands, it can turn it into something useful.” I looked at him, consciously letting it slip that I indeed managed to transform it, something they for sure thought about already. “Without me, it remains a black sludge that you can not turn into either gold or grain. I can.”
“It is... a hard thing to ask for. This is not much different from us giving the land to you...” Alvor spoke, his voice a bit gruff, reaching towards his own wineglass.
“It is what it is.” I shrugged, tilting my head. “You can mine it yourself and set up the necessary industry in extracting, storing, and transporting, all of that remaining in your hands. And please, don't misunderstand me: I am not about to tell you that you can not sell it to others. I just want it on paper that you satisfy my needs first before selling to others.”
“There are no other buyers.” Orin shrugged, making me chuckle once again.
“And there won’t be if you don’t sell it to me. As I said, I can do without it, but I can also have a place for that resource in my Avalon. Just like my trains, that invention will spread one day, and then, it will be too late to scramble to set up the necessary infrastructure.”
“Can we at least know what it is that you use it for?” Alvor asked, rubbing his forehead.
“Fuel,” I answered simply.
“...” With watching my face, his mind began racing once again, probably thinking about the train, the tractors, and my mechs. “I need to think about it.”
“Of course.” I agreed, keeping my smile and changing the topic to something else.
We engaged in simple talks, showing that it was indeed not as crucial for me. Otherwise, I would have backed down and not kept such a hard stance. Well, I will back down, but only as much as necessary to secure the deal. I am already in a winning position, and they also know it... They just want not to lose too much on the deal.
“Call up my ministers.” I turned to Luna after Alvor and his entourage left, “Tell them when they meet with Alvor, drop hints about having good relations or feelings about their Eira Shastan. Try not to drop her by her exact name. Simple suggestions and passing remarks are enough, implicating her organization.”
“You want an Ishillian spy to get her grubby hands on our oil?” She asked, raising her eyebrows.
“Yeah, preferably before exposing her.” I grinned, feeling a bit evil by doing it this way, “When that happens, I can once again lay claim to their oil fields. It would be a horrible stunt for Atuvia that their ranks were compromised so much by Ishillia in so little time...”
“You can be evil, huh? Fufufu, Yuri would say something perverted about this now!”
“Well,” I chuckled, rubbing her head, “I never said I was a saint. And our Avalon takes priority. Over Atuvia, over Ishillia, over anybody else. That will never change.”