Chapter 999: Favor

Proofread by Thomas F

Lawrence Fisk, Inam

"I am loyal to the empire, Prime Minister, and I will defend this city with the last drop of my blood," said Ralis.

I listened, feeling slightly worried. The pressure from the Imperials has been increasing.

They want the city.

We can handle it, but we have to be prepared. In case they did something unexpected. The crown prince could be unpredictable, and the prime minister is a dangerous man.

"You don't have to worry. I am in complete control; that incident happened because of the amalgamation of different factors. It will not be repeated; you have my word on that," he stated firmly.

The opening of the day of the legacy had been a great success, but also our biggest failure.

We captured the thieves and recovered most of the stolen artifacts, except for one. It is a blot on Ralis' record, a crack that Imperials are trying to exploit.

The call lasted for a couple more minutes before he finally let go of his aura.

He glanced at the mage, who bowed and walked out of the door—leaving only the two of us alone.

"You were right. People are moving in the court for my position with much greater force now," he stated.

The former emperor himself personally gave the command to one of the most important cities in the empire to Ralis. He was one of his most trusted men, someone who rose from humble beginnings.

If it had been the emperor who asked Ralis, he wouldn't have hesitated, but he wouldn't listen to his children unless they became emperor.

Both might claim to be one, but it is clear for now they are not.

"We could handle it, but it would be a great burden. If we had more backup and information," he nodded at that.

"What do you have in mind?" he asked, and my expression turned serious.

"Silver, my lord, he had created a wide network in both courts," I replied, and he sighed. Silver had acted incredibly quickly, making full use of his legacy and all the resources it produced.

He had developed a network, but nobody knows how deep it is.

Given that he supplies essences and other things his legacy produces to every powerful person in the empire. It had made him a target, but also created a shield for him.

There are many voices that speak in his favor, and they are only growing.

"He would want the information," said Ralis, his expression becoming sour. He does not like it, and neither do I, but we have to do this.

"We were planning on doing this anyway," I replied with a smile. We have good relations with Viremont and Arenthel, but we don't want any of these to rule Greltheaven.

Especially not Viremont. So, we were planning to give Silver the information he had requested.

"Yes, but we also wanted to get a favor from him."

Given his reach and power, a favor from Silver is valuable, but now it will be an exchange. He will help us, and we will help him.

"This will be another thing I will talk to her about," I said, and he nodded.

"This time, try to get more essence. Our alchemists had been demanding more," he said, and I smiled. He didn't have to tell me; I am the one who met them, a hungry group of them, a few days ago.

"I will try."

I could see the frustration appearing in his eyes. Getting something from Silver's people that they didn't want to give is very hard.

"It was my mistake; I didn't foresee it. That Silver had played us when we signed the contract," I blamed myself for that mistake.

The contract we signed with Silver fixed the amount of essence we would receive. Of which 75% would be pure essence, and 25% would be essence potions.

That was simple enough, but the problem arose from another part.

We insisted that when Legacy produces over a certain amount of essence. We would get a percentage of that. We negotiated hard for it and made them agree to a good percentage.

Ultimately, they agreed, but they added one caveat to it. They could either pay with emotion essence, emotion essence potions, or essence plants.

They had complete freedom.

From the first month, the legacy broke that limit, and since then, they have been paying us with emotion essence potions. Not once have they paid in emotion essence or essence plants.

That means emotion essence potions are forty-seven percent of all the essence they pay us.

"Silver had played us well. We had not expected a small, unstable legacy would become so huge and produce so much essence," he replied.

"We will not be fooled when we renegotiate a few years later," I stated.

That time, we will have all the advantages. As we will have all the knowledge, Silver won't be able to play us as he did.

Soon it was evening, and I stepped into my carriage. It moved toward the legacy.

I looked out the window and was still surprised by the changes that had occurred over the past few months. We knew the legacy would help tremendously when we saw how massive it was.

Still, the changes it brought have taken us by surprise.

It attracted more business, mercenaries, and even nobles. Though if not for that incident, there would have been even more nobles. We are recovering from it as more nobles are showing interest in shifting here.

There will be a challenge in a few months.

Silver's Tower.

I have been briefed about a few things by this person here, and what I have been told has truly shocked me. Silver is ambitious, but it might bite him in the ass.

The nobles are already greedy for it, and if it is as I have been told. It will attract even more nobles.

Worse, it will draw imperials.

We don't want that, because if they get their hands on Greltheaven, then they will also demand Inam.

We are getting powerful, especially after the past few months, when massive amounts of money have been pouring into the city and are essentially helping us strengthen our forces. However, it is still not enough to go against the might of the Imperials.

We are fortunate that several kingdoms are attacking us, and that there is a civil war being fought within.

If not for that, neither Silver nor we would have been able to stay in our positions.

A few minutes passed, and the legacy had come into view. I have seen it hundreds of times, but every time I see it, I can't help but feel in awe of it.

Also proud.

This is one of the world's biggest legacies, and it's in our city. Even Namdar, with all its power, didn't have something of this level.

The carriage passed through the gate, and immediately I smelled the soul-stirring fragrance of the mist plants. It's wonderful, indescribable, that imprint on one's mind.

It is why thousands of people don't mind waiting in that huge garden.

There are beautiful gazebos, benches, fountains, and other things outside. I could see the people walking around, talking and laughing, but not a single one dared to touch the plants.

They shouldn't.

The legacy is massive, but despite that, it is occupied daily by years-long waiting lists.

The city has been given a quota of seats. We have created a small department to manage it. It's a tremendous tool of influence, and Silver's people use it with enchanter's precision.

The carriage stopped, and I stepped out of it before walking toward the massive gates of the Legacy.

"Adviser Fisk," the guards greeted.

They remained stoic to most people, greeting only the important ones. They know who is important. Some nobles and powerful mercenaries came in disguise, but these guards always recognized them.

I stepped into the grand lobby before stepping into the elevator.

It stopped at the top floor, and a few minutes later, I appeared in front of the office with large white wooden doors.

Only Velvet Garden people would use so much space to build grand offices in legacy. Here, every inch is important. If masters keep an office in legacy, they keep it very small.

"Adviser Cass, the overseer is ready for you," said the receptionist sitting by the door.

The next moment, the door opened, and I walked straight into the grand office.

As I did, my eyes fell on the beautiful woman in a green dress. In just a few months, she had become the most desirable woman in the city. Everybody wants her: the nobles, mercenaries, diplomats, and everybody else.

It didn't help that this woman knew how to seduce people. They used to call this woman a 'seductress' in Velvet Garden.

Her beauty and charm aren't the only reasons for it, but also the power she wields. It makes a combination that few could resist.

"Adviser," she greeted without getting up.

Her expressions were composed and businesslike. I am glad she didn't use her skills on me; even for me, it would be hard to resist the charm of the beautiful woman.

"Overseer," I replied as I took a seat in front of her grand desk of rare white wood.

Like many things, it is mist crafted in a beautiful elven style.

They gifted me a grand desk a few months ago on my birthday. It was mist-crafted like this one, in a classic imperial style. I love it; everyone who has seen it has become impressed with it.

She said nothing and tapped on the table with the painted nail of her finger.

Immediately, a box appeared in front of me. It's not big, quite small, but it contains a large number of emotion essences that would make a small noble fight a battle.

They didn't give it to us in small vials, but in bottles. We had asked for such.

"I hope you have given us more essence instead of essence potions this time," I said. To that, she sighed, which almost felt genuine.

"I tried, but could not. The higher-ups couldn't spare a single drop more."

I wanted to curse at this woman.

I know how much power this woman possesses in Velvet Garden. It's quite an easy thing for her to do.

"Then, at least, I hope. You have given us the essence potions crafted from the mist plants," I said. In the past few months, these potions have been produced by Velvet Garden.

Silver had guarded them zealously. Providing them only to the cities of Namdar and Owlspring of the Merchant State.

My contacts in Namdar had raved about them. Saying how light they are and how great the efficacy is.

"That I managed. 5% of the essence potions in there of the mist plant crafted," she replied. 5% is below my threshold, but I can accept it. We could give them to our most important people.

"Thank you."

"We would appreciate it if you could increase the number to at least 25% next time."

"I'll see what I can do," she replied. I am sure that if she tries, she could.

"I think you should, since we are agreeing to your lord's request," I stated, and for the first time, her expression changed. Her lips curved into a small smile.

"But we have a favor to ask in return," I added, and immediately her expression became serious.

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