Chapter 80 - The Breakthrough

Given that his business revolved around human pleasure, Ahmed Hashim was one of the wealthiest men on the continent.

His first impression was so good that one wouldn't think he was the lord of such an entertainment district.

His tanned body was firm without an ounce of fat, and his eyes seemed to gleam.

He was the complete opposite of the dull-eyed nobles commonly seen in Halim.

Ahmed personally handed over the tea prepared by a waitress and spoke.

"It's Assam tea. I heard rumors that you enjoy tea, so I brought this instead of alcohol."

"I will drink it gratefully."

"It's an honor to host you in such a private setting. Although I didn't attend the Grand Council, I heard you made a very impressive statement. I sincerely wish for the development of the far east."

Who couldn't say as much?

"I am grateful for your words alone."

"Words alone, you say? Would I, Ahmed Hashim, do something that would anger Seth?"

Seth was the god of the southern desert.

Ahmed stroked his long beard and said.

"It would be nice if there was a gift I could give directly to you, Regent. Ah."

Ahmed snapped his fingers.

"I have a good idea."

Ahmed whispered something to the female servant fanning him from the side.

The female servant understood and stepped out the door.

Ahmed looked at Ferda and smiled.

"You know that the people who visit our city enjoy gambling, right?"

"Of course. I also gambled here once."

"We have something prepared for those who feel regretful leaving after finishing their games with only the money they brought."

"You mean pawnshops?"

Ahmed nodded his head.

Although Ahmed is called the lord of Halim, only 2 out of the 12 casinos are operated under him.

Instead, all pawnshops are operated under Ahmed's subordinates.

Through that alone, he is currently earning three times more profit than the combined revenue of the other 10 casinos.

"We take collateral and give them 6 months. After 6 months, I can dispose of the item however I please."

"So you're saying you'll give me one of those items."

"That is correct. You can look forward to it."

The auction taking place after this exhibition was also likely planned around items gathered from Ahmed's pawnshops.

The reason he mentioned it was to hand over an item from the pawnshop.

'It goes beyond the level of a simple pawnshop.'

Most of the clients in Halim are nobles and wealthy merchants.

From simple jewels to rare items that, depending on the situation, are used as family heirlooms.

'Of course, most of those are retrieved by their families, even if they have to go into debt.'

Putting up a family heirloom is no different from loan sharking.

In reality, any remaining treasures would likely just be jewels or magic items with mediocre effects.

But on the other hand, he was excited to see what kind of item it would be.

Since Ahmed told him to look forward to it like that, it was worth anticipating.

A moment later, four female servants wearing dancer outfits carefully carried a palanquin inside.

Being brought in with such care meant it was undoubtedly a valuable item that no one was allowed to touch.

Ferda couldn't help but be excited as well.

Placed on top of the palanquin was a single elongated box.

It was the size of something that could fit a single dagger.

Ahmed personally took out the item and laid it out on the table.

"This is..."

Ferda ended up opening his eyes wide.

Having lived a life pursuing strength as a mage, he could easily recognize it.

"Can you tell what it is?"

"Isn't it... a branch of the World Tree struck by heaven-defying lightning?"

Ahmed was surprised after hearing Ferda's guess.

"Exactly. You recognized it at a glance. It's not something one can usually tell..."

The World Tree branch holds pure mana until it's snapped off, but if struck by lightning, it transforms to have an effect that amplifies that power.

It was one of the staff materials that a mage who primarily handled lightning had to obtain.

However, since there were over 1,000 World Tree branches that had simply fallen after being struck by ordinary lightning, its rarity was quite low.

But heaven-defying lightning is different.

'The lightning that only the first witch, Lucy Philiaz, could wield.'

Lucy Philiaz, the witch who possessed the only power capable of defying providence and opposing the gods.

The most representative of that was heaven-defying lightning.

Unlike lightning that has a blue hue, it bears a red hue and pierces the sky.

There are a total of 7 World Tree branches struck by that heaven-defying lightning.

One is with Erdes,

one is in the Blue Eye Magic Tower,

and the remaining 5 were said to be divided among famous mage families.

However, 2 of those famous mage families disappeared along with their downfall.

'Is this the one whose whereabouts were unknown?'

There are various possibilities.

Whether a mage's child, addicted to gambling and unable to control themselves, stole the family heirloom and handed it over, then claimed to have lost it out of embarrassment,

or a thief genuinely stole it, squandered their money on gambling, and pawned it here.

Regardless of the process, it's nothing compared to the shock the existence of this branch brings.

'1.2 million Golden.'

It was an amount that even most kings would find difficult to offer.

Because it was such a historically unprecedented price, Ferda remembered it.

It was a very precious material of which few existed for mages who handled lightning magic.

"I have a question."

"Yes, yes. Please speak."

"How much was this branch pawned for?"

Ahmed smirked as if he had asked a good question.

"10,000 Golden."

A whopping 120 times less.

He felt like he was realizing anew just how much gambling ruined people.

To think they handed over something worth 1.2 million Golden for such a cheap price.

That wasn't the important part.

'Ahmed knows this item is important.'

Even if not 1.2 million Golden, he must have thought he could get at least 500,000 Golden for it.

It was too burdensome of an item to just lightly hand over as a gift.

That meant that Ferda was worth more than that huge sum of money.

Ahmed must have finished his own calculations.

"Is it really okay for you to give me such a precious item?"

"An item naturally finds its proper owner. Wouldn't it be right to gift lightning to one who handles lightning?"

The magic spells he used during the wolf monster incident were Lightning Spear and Lightning Bolt.

Because of that, it seemed Ahmed thought he was a lightning mage.

'Still, if I have a staff made from this, it will be helpful.'

It would only ever be helpful; it was a material that would never hold him back.

Ferda accepted Ahmed's gift.

"I will accept it gratefully. Seeing as I've received such a gift, I don't know if it's right for me to just sit still."

"You don't need to worry too much. Shouldn't comrades in the same situation help each other out?"

"Same situation?"

"Yes, aren't we both in a position where we have to build things up from the ground up?"

Ahmed got up from his seat and headed toward the window.

Ferda moved to follow him.

Looking out the window, what he saw was a wasteland situated under the scorching sun.

"This Halim was once just one of the many common cities failing upon the barren earth. When mages were spreading their ambitions, our city was also one of their targets."

Interference in internal affairs by mages was a common occurrence in the south.

Water is always precious in the south.

Because of that, if one had the power to handle the water element, they were treated well.

If they could handle ice on top of water, they could name their price.

"So my grandfather worked hard to revive this Halim. He devoted everything to this land that mages plotted against and that people believed the gods had abandoned."

Ahmed's eyes welled with tears.

He had an expression full of deep sorrow, as if he had experienced that grief himself.

"Everyone cursed that it would fall to ruin, but look at the result! Everyone called this an unholy land, a place abandoned by the gods, but we have grown so solidly that no one can ignore us. This is what was built with human strength!"

A prosperous city far removed from the attributes of a wasteland.

Although there are many small cities adapted to the southern desert, there is no land as luxurious and civilized as Halim.

"And my father, Abdul Hashim, told me to never hesitate to help a brother in the same situation. The far east is our brother. It is a brother nation that walks the same path and deserves to enjoy the same prosperity!"

Ahmed displayed a passion that seemed like it could burn down the world.

It was impressive enough that anyone would be moved by the passion he poured out.

However, Ferda did not take it at face value.

To protect this insane land, one had to remain sane 365 days a year.

That wasn't a choice but a necessity.

Offering such a favor simply out of gratitude didn't make logical sense.

'It seems Burnel made quite the impression on him.'

He must have realized the value of magical engineering.

An opportunity to get his hands on an item that could kill a monster in one shot.

Ahmed did not dare to miss that opportunity.

Having made his judgment, Ferda spoke.

"As it happens, we are currently constructing a town under the jurisdiction of Valdrova Castle for the subjugation of the far east."

"I heard about that as well. I believe manpower and materials must be severely lacking. When did you say the expected completion date was?"

"I was told it will take 1 year for the foundation work and water and sewage systems, and even by a conservative estimate, it's planned to take 5 years to fully build the walls around it."

"5 years!"

Ahmed stroked his beard as he thought.

Then, suddenly spreading two fingers, he said this.

"2 years."

"Pardon?"

"We will support you with the materials and manpower so that the construction plan can be reduced to 2 years."

It was so unprecedented that he couldn't even grasp if it was realistic.

He was claiming they could reduce the time by a whopping 3 years.

The only things lacking were materials and manpower.

If Ahmed filled in those gaps, the city's construction would accelerate.

"For such a city plan, you'll naturally need to clear a direct road to Valdrova Castle. We will support you in that aspect as well."

"Aren't there roads already?"

"That's a path passing through the Empire, not a direct route, isn't it? Traveling like that is cumbersome. More than anything..."

Ahmed spoke while mimicking a sycophant, pretending to check his surroundings out of nowhere.

"Those from the imperial capital cannot be trusted."

Ferda quietly agreed with his words.

Compared to his exaggerated gestures, the depth of his thoughts was beyond imagination.

'Anyway, is it really okay for him to make such an unprecedented proposal?'

Offering to build roads on top of shaving three years off the completion time was a level far surpassing just 'cooperating in development' among nobles.

'Just as they say all roads lead through the Empire. All roads in the south lead through Halim.'

As much as Halim was known as an entertainment district, it was the place where commerce was most active.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the south's finest goods all came here to be sold to the nobles gathering from various regions.

In other words, Ferda was directly succeeding in establishing relations with the south.

'Burnel was really more helpful than I thought.'

An opportunity that never could have been created if he hadn't managed to set up a meeting like this.

The progress brought about by the winds of innovation naturally made Ferda smile.

However, Ferda did not let his guard down until the very end.

Ahmed's true intentions came out right after.

"That was meant to show what we can provide, and from now on, I will make you a proposal."

Ahmed reached out his hand.

"How about forming a partnership with our Halim?"

* * *

After finishing his conversation with Ahmed, Ferda returned to Stephan.

"Bwahahaha!!!"

Meanwhile, Stephan was laughing like a maniac while holding Burnel's hands.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Bwahaha! We hit the jackpot! The jackpot!"

"Pardon? Pardon?"

"Look at this here!"

The stack of papers Stephan pulled out and placed on the desk were all investment proposals.

From 100 Golden to 10,000 Golden, and the most expensive ones went up to 100,000 Golden.

"Not just merchants but nobles as well; the nobles spread out all over the continent are paying attention to our product!"

"Is that a good thing?"

"The fact that they gave us these documents alone means we hold the upper hand! Throwing out such unprecedented numbers to the point of not even making half-hearted offers is very meaningful!"

"So you're saying we have the initiative."

"Yes!"

Pushed to the sidelines, Ferda quietly watched the scene before opening his mouth.

"So what are you going to do?"

"Ah, Regent, you're here. How could I! They want it this badly, so accepting right away is something only fools would do! I have some good strategies for this current situation, would you like to hear them?"

Excited, Stephan handed a business model proposal to Ferda.

"The big players want us right now! First of all, since various places are showing interest in the weapon of the magical engineering sector, I will consult with the newly arrived administrator to formulate a strategy regarding real estate auctions and investments!"

All he talked about was money, money, money.

They were the means to fill the funds that Administrator Isabella had been most concerned about.

"With this much money, we could even establish a new merchant company. Making the far east our actual headquarters, and—"

"A new merchant company?"

Ferda cut off his words and asked.

"Yes. Instead of the existing Pascal trading company, we would plan a completely autonomous merchant company in the east. The shares would be 31% for the Grand Duchess, 20% for Mr. Burnel, 20% for me, and the remaining 29% would be brought in from the investors."

"It's our merchant company, so why are outsiders needed?"

"To establish trade conditions with large merchant companies, they usually demand a certain percentage of the company's shares. In return, we would also buy a certain percentage of their company, so it's closer to an exchange and won't be much of an issue."

Our side was a professional merchant, and the people we were dealing with were also professional merchants, so it was a complicated matter.

Therefore, Ferda did not try to delve deeply into the matter.

"What do you think?"

"I have no objections since it's a direction that revitalizes the town... but I don't understand why you like it so much."

Ferda once again looked over the contents Stephan had given him.

However, there was more than just one or two strange things among the strategies Stephan had introduced.

Even though he wasn't an expert in economics, he could at least catch that sort of feeling.

"Many of the things you proposed are full of the feeling that we have to start from the very beginning."

It felt like insisting on digging a new well when there was already a well right next to them.

It was as if they were starting everything anew from the ground up.

Ferda's premonition was correct.

"Yes. There are parts we will have to start from the beginning."

"Why?"

"Because we can seize a merchant company without relying on the Pascal trading company."

"So you're saying..."

At those words, Ferda's gaze sharpened.

Stephan ended up getting nervous for no reason at that gaze.

"My question is why aren't you relying on Pascal."

"That company... isn't mine yet; it's my father's. And..."

Words he couldn't easily spit out.

However, Ferda's gaze forced him to spill the truth.

"There's no real need for that company to become mine."

"I see."

SMACK!

Ferda threw the documents he had been looking at for a while onto the table.

To Stephan, it sounded as if his own cheek had been slapped.

His blue eyes seemed to gleam even more coldly.

"Then you are of no use."