Chapter 85: Logistics II

Damian’s next stop was naturally the Central Lane shop.

He had barely stepped onto the street before realizing business had not slowed whatsoever.

Customers still flowed through the doors in a steady stream, though the chaotic opening-day atmosphere had evolved into something considerably more organized.

Bram and David handled the entrance while Dax moved between the shelves and Jory kept his eyes roaming across customers with the kind of attention one expected from someone who had selected <Observant>.

Inside, Tana was no longer the slightly nervous young secretary Damian had hired a few days ago.

"One customer per marked quantity! If you want a commercial purchase, speak with the office instead of arguing with Lisa about it!" Tana called toward a richly dressed merchant who was attempting to negotiate around the purchase restrictions.

The merchant grumbled.

Lisa did not look remotely intimidated anymore either.

"You heard her, Sir. I can sell you the listed amount, or you can make a formal commercial inquiry. Standing here for another 10 minutes will not create a third option." Lisa explained pleasantly.

Damian almost laughed.

Hoh?

Such growth!

Elsie and Getty were handling separate counters, while Kat appeared to recognize several repeat customers well enough to direct them toward whatever new stock had arrived since their previous visit.

Kevin, meanwhile, had somehow become one with the accounting desk.

The thin young man had several ledgers open simultaneously, and when Damian wandered close enough to glance down, the fellow had color-coded purchase records, delivery schedules and inventory shortages using different inks.

"Lord Damian!" Tana called when she finally noticed him.

That triggered a chain reaction.

Several employees greeted him, though Damian waved them back toward their work before they could start turning his arrival into a ceremonial event.

"Keep going. I only came to look around." Damian instructed.

Kevin immediately rose halfway from his seat anyway.

"Lord Damian, the latest inventory and revenue figures are being consolidated. Lady Vivienne requested the fourth-day statement once today’s afternoon deliveries are confirmed." Kevin reported.

"Good. Don’t let me interrupt you."

Kevin sat back down almost instantly.

Damian spent several more minutes moving through the shop before leaving with a pleased expression.

He had hired young, clueless employees.

Now they were slowly becoming competent, mature employees.

There was a difference.

......

Damian did not need to physically visit Rosewood Academy.

That was the beauty of <Divine Sense>.

Standing several streets away, his perception expanded through buildings and across the academy grounds until 7 familiar little figures entered his awareness.

The children had finally begun school.

More importantly, they appeared to be settling in.

Petra, the little girl who had once told Damian she wanted to become a healer because of Eunice, was seated inside a basic herbal-care practical class.

Her tongue stuck slightly from the corner of her mouth as she tried to tie a bandage around a wooden practice arm, only for the entire thing to come loose when she proudly lifted it for inspection.

The instructor sighed and patiently made her start again.

Finn had somehow migrated toward arts and crafts, where he was enthusiastically carving what appeared to be a wooden Dark Goblin with an axe embedded through its head.

"...Therapy comes in many forms, I suppose." Damian muttered.

Cora, the aspiring merchant, sat near the front of a basic arithmetic class and had already covered half her slate with calculations while the boy beside her quietly tried to copy.

Damian approved of one of those things.

He wasn’t sure which.

Nell had joined an animal-care introductory class near the academy stables and was paying far more attention to a stablemaster explaining hoof maintenance than several older students around her.

Tomas, who had once declared he wanted to become a Fighter, stood only a few meters away watching another stablemaster explain saddle fitting and horse care to students preparing for eventual Knight training.

The boy looked ready to memorize the horse’s blood type if that somehow helped him wear armor sooner.

Anya had surprised Damian by showing interest in magic.

She sat inside a preparatory class where an elderly teacher was explaining mana sensitivity, magical disciplines and why possessing an interest in fire did not automatically mean one should attempt to create some with kitchen flour and enthusiasm.

Anya was taking notes seriously.

Then there was Milo.

The sleepy little bastard who wanted to own an inn where monsters were forbidden from entering had fallen asleep during history.

His cheek rested against an open book while the teacher continued explaining the founding of Rosewood Town perhaps 3 meters away.

Damian slowly shook his head.

"Future businessman."

Clearly.

Well... at least they were safe?

And learning too!

Finally, they were behaving like children again instead of survivors waiting for the next disaster.

That was good enough for Damian.

His Divine Sense moved away from Rosewood Academy and returned toward the Baines residence.

Kellan was exactly where Damian expected him to be.

Cultivating.

The young man had become almost disturbingly single-minded since Damian gave him the <Five Elements Harmonization Art>.

He barely bothered with ordinary meals anymore, simply popping Grain Avoidance Pills whenever necessary before returning to meditation.

Damian originally expected Kellan to struggle for considerably longer before properly entering Body Tempering.

The boy’s initial Fire-Earth compatibility had only been Low Grade, while even Damian himself had required significant comprehension before establishing the first proper circulation.

Yet when Damian’s Divine Sense examined him carefully...

"Huh?"

Body Tempering Realm level 1.

Already?!

Damian’s surprise quickly turned into interest.

Kellan’s circulation was still rough compared to his own perfected method, but it had gained structure.

Apparently, over the last few days the young man had quietly pieced together several details Damian’s earlier guidance had failed to properly communicate.

He had struggled to gain entry, but he had gained it.

Then Damian noticed something else.

Kellan remained seated cross-legged with his hands resting over his knees, his breathing controlled and his mana-guided circulation continuing despite the single line of moisture slipping slowly down one cheek.

"Grandfather..." Kellan murmured.

Damian became silent.

Ah... Right.

There were many motivations capable of pushing someone forward, like greed, ambition, fear, love, and pride.

But loss?

The need to become stronger because someone you loved had died while you were too weak to do anything?

That one burned differently.

Damian withdrew his Divine Sense without disturbing him.

Let the boy cultivate in peace.

......

Marek finally returned later that afternoon.

And he did not come alone.

Damian entered one of the private warehouse rooms attached to the Baines commercial operations and found more than 50 cloaked figures waiting inside.

His eyebrows rose.

Every one of them had reached at least the peak of the Novice Stage, with most already standing at Level 6.

Marek had been busy.

"Lord Damian." Marek bowed.

Damian glanced over the gathered Rogues.

"Explain."

Marek stepped forward.

"They are divided into 2 groups. The first are the Zephyrs, who will form the true core of the intelligence network. The second are the Hounds."

Five figures separated from the rest.

"The Zephyrs have been investigated personally. None are innocent people in the conventional sense, but each possesses acceptable character and circumstances that make long-term loyalty possible. Their contracts are restrictive, but they retain considerably more freedom." Marek explained.

He introduced the first man.

"Corvin, once a simple carpenter. He accumulated impossible debt purchasing magical treatment for his mother after conventional medicine failed. He entered contracted service because imprisonment would have left her without treatment."

Corvin, a tired man somewhere in his late twenties, bowed quietly and lowered his hood.

Damian looked at him deeply, knowing exactly how the man felt more than anyone else in the world.

"Masen, a former dock thief. He accepted responsibility for a robbery committed by his younger brother because the youngster had 2 children. His sentence would have left him in penal labor for 12 years."

Masen gave Damian a crooked smile before thinking better of it.

"Bria, a smuggler and document forger. She spent several years moving refugees and debtors beyond the reach of several predatory lenders before one of her clients betrayed her for a reward."

A brown-haired woman in her early thirties bowed, with a look completely remorseless of regret.

She would definitely do it again if she had the chance!

"Olan, a former private scout. His employer ordered his unit to abandon 3 wounded men during a retreat. Olan refused, brought them back himself and was dismissed without pay. Debt followed afterward."

Olan bowed a bit theatrically, but his easy smile was tinged with a hint of ruthlessness to the wicked.

Then Marek moved to the final figure, another woman.

Damian’s attention lingered on her slightly longer.

She was perhaps 27 or 28, tall for a woman and extremely attractive despite doing everything possible to make herself forgettable.

Straight black hair disappeared beneath her hood, pale grey eyes remained cold and withdrawn, while fitted black leather failed rather spectacularly at hiding a slender yet distinctly feminine figure.

She did not smile the entire time, not even once.

"This is Illya." Marek introduced.

His tone became slightly more emotional as he recounted her origin.

"She was sold into a criminal syndicate by her stepfather at 13, and they discovered her talent for stealth, using her in many grey area operations. Unfortunately, her younger sister was sold a few years later without her knowledge."

Marek glanced at Illya askance. "Unfortunately, her sister was more delicate and less cruel, so her enemies secretly used her to breed with monsters until she died a month ago after years of... sigh."

Marek, a rogue aspiring to be an assassin, was not even able to finish that line.

Damian’s expression became grim as Marek quickly finished up. "Illya eventually slaughtered the entire syndicate and bathed them in blood before escaping, including killing her stepfather after immense and gruesome torture, but was arrested afterward and sentenced to death for murder."

Corvin’s expression shifted with quiet sympathy, recognizing the desperate love that had driven Illya into darkness.

Masen’s crooked smile vanished as he muttered, "Fuck! That bastard deserved far worse than death!"

Bria’s eyes turned cold, her voice flat. "If I had known, I would have helped her burn the syndicate down."

Olan’s easy smile disappeared completely. "That is something I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy."

Damian looked at her, and Illya met his gaze directly.

There was no pleading nor gratitude within her eyes... just death.

She was completely dead inside, a walking corpse that still functioned for reasons she didn’t even know.

Marek continued. "Her sentence was commuted into permanent contracted service under Baines authority."

Damian nodded slowly, breathing out deeply. "As good as Rogues can reasonably get, I suppose."

"That was my assessment as well, Lord." Marek responded with agreement.

Damian glanced toward the remaining cloaked figures. "And the Hounds?"

"Rapists, murderers, extortionists, habitual violent criminals, contract killers and several prisoners who would otherwise be executed. Their contracts are the strongest available. They do not possess any organizational authority nor affinity and exist only as peripheral assets."

Good.

More importantly...

"They don’t know who I am?" Damian asked.

"No. The Hounds are forbidden from seeing your face, hearing your natural voice or receiving identifying details beyond operational requirements. Even if compromised, they cannot directly expose you." Marek replied, glancing back at the 46 figures whose heads were still bowed, their features hidden behind specially crafted hoods that were controlled by Marek himself.

Damian smiled.

Excellent!

Someone had actually understood the assignment!

He reached into his Storage Ring and removed 2 containers.

Marek’s eyes immediately locked onto them.

"25 Condensing Essence Pills and 1 Essence Surge Pill." Damian stated.

"That’s enough to take you straight to Adept with 3 pills remaining." Damian pointed out with a smile.

Marek’s face changed greatly, his normally forgettable composure disappeared completely.

"Lord Damian... this..."

"Your reward. You’ve done good work." Damian stated with a nod.

Marek accepted them with trembling hands, then hesitated.

"The remaining 3 pills... what should I do with them?"

Damian shrugged.

"That’s up to you. Give them to the Zephyrs as rewards if you want. You’re building the organization, so start learning how to reward your own people."

Marek lowered his head deeply. "I understand."

Behind him, the 5 Zephyrs reacted far more strongly than they probably intended.

Interesting.

......

Vivienne had been present throughout the entire exchange.

She had simply remained behind the adjoining doorway and outside ordinary sight.

Unfortunately for her, Damian possessed <Divine Sense>, so yes, he knew exactly where she was.

More importantly, he noticed the moment her breathing changed.

Vivienne had joined the Baines Noble Family with fairly reasonable expectations.

Work hard, manage a rising noble household, earn excellent pay, and grow steadily in her difficult <Steward> Variant Class.

Eventually, perhaps find a decent man, marry, establish a family and live a considerably better life than the one she had possessed before Damian hired her.

That plan had already gone insane.

She now managed a noble estate whose business generated thousands of Gold Coins PER DAY.

Damian had taken her from Novice to Journeyman almost casually despite Variant Classes being notoriously unpleasant to advance.

And now?

Marek was being handed enough medicine to become an Adept.... just like that!

Which meant that... Damian could do the same thing for her!

Vivienne stepped out from behind the doorway, her lips trembling.

"L-Lord Damian, d-does that m-mean—"

Her knees folded.

"Woah!" Damian caught her before she hit the floor.

For one second he thought something had actually happened to her, but the faint sweat covering her forehead, rapid breathing and unfocused expression told a different story.

It was a case of mild shock.

Nothing more serious.

Vivienne clung to the front of Damian’s robes with both hands like someone gripping a raft in the middle of the ocean.

"Easy, easy..." Damian murmured while patting her back.

It took nearly a minute before her breathing calmed.

Vivienne finally regained enough strength to stand properly, immediately realized where her arms were and turned bright red.

"My Lord! I-I apologize! I don’t know what came over me!" Vivienne exclaimed in mortification.

Damian waved it away with a look of amusement.

"You’re fine. Try not to faint before finishing the business report though."

That somehow made her even redder.

......

Roughly 2 more Valorian days had passed through Damian’s continued movement between realms.

The Central Lane shop had now operated for about 4 days.

Yesterday, Damian had restocked it using the roughly 10% of his Shengyuan purchases he had successfully transported back, an amount already around 5 times larger than the inventory used on opening day.

And yet...

"The everyday goods are gone?" Damian asked.

Vivienne nodded. "Essentially all of them."

Purification Talismans, Formation Ink, Spirit Rice, Grain Avoidance Pills, and the other basic consumables were all gone!

The middle-grade products were moving more slowly, but steadily.

Mages and Adventurers bought them constantly whenever finances permitted.

High-end goods moved slowest in individual transactions, and they were also creating the largest headache.

Entire organizations were now sending representatives every day asking for commercial quantities.

Damian leaned back, then sighed.

"Yeah... I was naive."

Vivienne waited.

Damian had imagined he could simply prohibit resale and keep the entire market under one roof.

That was stupid.

Even Earth companies with absurd legal departments could not fully stop valuable goods from entering secondary markets.

Ferrari and Lamborghini could impose purchase conditions, blacklist customers and make resale irritating.

People still resold the damned cars.

Why?

Because if money existed between the official price and what another buyer was willing to pay, somebody would eventually reach for it.

Trying to kill resale completely was pointless.

It was far better to control it.

Better yet...

Use it.

"We’ll be changing our business model from today." Damian decided after tapping his lip.

Vivienne immediately opened her notebook as Damian began his new directives.

"Keep Central Lane stocked and preserve the current no-resale rules for ordinary retail customers. But contact every serious merchant, peddler organization and faction with commercial interests in Rosewood Town."

Vivienne’s writing accelerated.

"We’ll auction resale rights separately for every product. Authorized resellers purchase from us at the MSRP registered through the Trade and Commerce Guild. After that, they can carry those goods anywhere they want on the continent and charge whatever retail price their market can support."

Vivienne slowly looked up.

Damian smiled.

Why fight resellers when they could become his arms and legs?

Let other people provide the carts, the guards, the warehouses, the distant storefronts, the local connections, and the risk.

Damian would own the source and the brand.

Then the Dual-Realm Exchange System, which had remained suspiciously quiet throughout all of this, suddenly came alive.

[New Optional Side Quest Available!]

[Quest Name: Extensive Trade Network (Round 1)

Objective: Sell cross-realm goods in either realm 100 times.

Current Progress: 100/100 Sales.

Reward: System Skill Upgrade — Logistics II.]

Damian paused, and before he could react, another panel appeared.

[New Optional Side Quest Available!]

[Quest Name: Extensive Item Database (Round 1)

Objective: Identify 100 unique cross-realm items.

Current Progress: 34/100 Items.

Reward: System Skill Upgrade — Appraisal II.]

"Oh?"

Hey, these were progressive quests!

Since this was the round 1 version, this obviously meant there would be more!

Then the first quest immediately reacted to the ridiculous amount of commerce Damian had already completed.

[Optional Side Quest Completed!]

[Extensive Trade Network (Round 1)]

[Objective: Sell cross-realm goods in either realm 100 times — Complete.]

[Reward acquired.]

[System Skill Upgrade: Logistics II.]

Damian’s expression changed.

Logistics?

That was one of the original integrated DRES functions he had possessed from the beginning.

Yet until now, the System had never properly explained what the hell it actually did!

Another screen finally answered the question.

[Integrated DRES Skill updated.]

[Logistics I → Logistics II.]

[Function revealed: Logistics increases the maximum capacity of Exchange Storage.]

[Previous Storage Capacity: 1 tonne.]

[Current Storage Capacity: 10 tonnes.]

Damian froze then slowly looked toward the screen again.

1 tonne, that was the original 1,000-kilogram storage limit he had been working with since day 1.

And now, it had increased by ten times?

His lips gradually curved upward.

"...Oh, now we’re cooking."