46 - Chapter 45 - Day 2123
Rory had spent several minutes deep in thought. He really didn’t know what to do or believe. If he went ahead with the purchase, at the ridiculous price he had quoted and the council looked into him, then he could end up neck deep in trouble. Still, little Adya had not seemed worried about the price. Though where she would get that kind of volume of mana stones remained to be seen. Then there was the issue of actually moving that much mana stones. There was no way she was carrying that kind of volume around. That made sense, she would make the deal and then need to go away to get the actual mana stones. It would also explain the cultivator guarding her. If anyone knew, then they would make a juicy target, as would he, if he accepted the deal. Just how would he deal with that kind of volume of mana stones himself? This was getting very complicated indeed.
Adya was happy to wait patiently. She was also considering the issues of moving that volume of mana stones, and not just the logistical issues. That was going to be annoying enough as it was. Each mana stone was around five grams, that was irrelevant of tier. So a tier 1 mana stone and a tier 2 mana stone was the same size and weight. The only difference from a physical perspective was the slightly darker colour denoting the higher tier. She had no idea why that was the case. It was another thing that she had added to her list of things to investigate. Maybe the elder would have answers for her. That meant that 250,000 tier 1 mana stones would have a total weight of 1,250Kg.
Adya had not bothered to look into the details of how logistics was managed in this world, even though her family was in this very business. She had been too busy in her own studies to look into that facet of the family business. In theory her carriage pulled by a team of horses would be able to pull anywhere between five and ten times their weight. Of course that was dependent on the condition of the horses. The amount of cargo would be reduced by the weight of the people on the carriage, the weight of the carriage itself, the strength of the carriage, and specifically the load bearing axles and wheels and other considerations like the conditions of the roads. It may be easier to just borrow the platinum from her family in the short term.
That actually led Adya to a larger concern. How would she get paid for her artifacts? Also how would she secure and move the mana coins that she would create. The logistics would make it even easier to track the source of her coins and the raw mana stones once she started to convert her stockpiles. She would need to look into what passed for a banking industry in this world and how secure it was.
Also, she would not be able to sell her mana stones, or pass off her converted mana coins in the numbers she had. She could not believe she had missed such a critical weakness as logistics in her plans. That would also impact her ability to dispatch her artefacts far and wide. As she waited for Rory to answer she spoke with Sai about changing her priorities yet again.
She would still contact the elder, and finish this machine. Yet the ability to use her absurd wealth to further her goals still eluded her.
Sai: Yes we were too distracted by creating the product. The artefact can be marketed and sold by the Elder, or her organisation for us. Yet due to the logistical challenges in this world, the ability to move large volumes of mana stones, especially covertly, would be nigh impossible for us.
Adya: Yes, though I think I have a better solution, if we can implement it. It just adds to our work load.
Sai: You are thinking about creating a formation to compress the mana stones and create higher tier mana coins. The volume would reduce, and the profitability could be higher depending on the amount of mana, stamina and willpower it would require to make it work. We would need to create the formation and then test it for up to higher tiers.
Mai: This would actually increase the risk on us. The volume of mana coins we would need to move would be lower, substantially lower, if we can get to very high tiers. Yet that solution would leave us dependent on the Elder to sell our coins. It would be even harder to explain the existence of what would be considered a tactical resource.
Sai: Let me start work on a compression formation and creating the test cases in any case. We can work through the implications later. We need the artifact to ensure we can start the plan in any case. This could be another device we can bring to market, for a substantially higher cost.
As Adya debated the new issue that this conversation had brought to light, Rory had finally reached a decision.
“Miss Adya,” he started, aiming to be polite just in case. “I am happy to accept a reasonable offer, yet I think I may have overestimated the value of my business. It is more likely to be in the region of 75 to 125 platinum. I am happy to let you purchase the business for a small premium.”
“You misunderstood my offer Rory,” replied Adya. “I need you to stay and carry on running the business. I will buy your business and become a silent partner for the most part. I will also become a customer, one whose work would need to take priority. Lastly everything would need to be completely confidential. That would be the reason for the loyalty protection formation. Lastly, in terms of payment I think we would need to pay you in Platinum. The logistics of moving that many mana stones, and then for you to trade them, would not be practical.”
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“So what about the price,” asked Rory. “What are you offering for this arrangement and how long would I be working for you?”
“I am happy to pay you a fair valuation,” replied Adya. “On paper, I would own the whole business. You will be able to retain 15% of the profit and 85% would come to me. In effect, you would become my business partner, as the business grows, so would your profit margin. In light of your valuation, and the profit share that I am offering, I think 85 platinum would be a reasonable price. What do you think?”
“Given that I get to carry on running the business and profiting from it,” replied Rory, “that is not an unreasonable offer. How about a slight adjustment, the percentage changes to 75% to you and 25% to me. Also increase the monetary offer to 100 platinum. Round numbers are so much better don’t you think?”
“Typical business man,” responded Adya, smirking. “Always pushing for more. As you say, round numbers are better. So how about this as the final deal, I own 100% of the business and pay you 100 platinum, and offer you a 10% profit share. Or I can pay you 80 platinum and offer you 20% profit share.”
Rory thought about the deal on offer. It was essentially a now versus later issue. The more money he took upfront the lower the percentage. The less he took upfront, the higher the percentage. The question was did he think the business would increase enough to make the lower payout worthwhile? If Adya could secure enough new business then the higher percentage would definitely be worthwhile. If all he got was the occasional new commission, then taking the larger payout now would be the better option.
“Can you tell me anything more?” asked Rory.
“Not without the formation in place,” replied Adya. “It is as much for your protection as for mine. You could of course agree to the deal and finalise the percentage later. Though that would require you to trust me to negotiate in good faith after the fact.”
That was an option Rory had not even considered. It would leave him in a very weak position and would require him to trust this enigmatic girl to be fair. Rory was feeling very conflicted. In truth he was more an artisan and not a businessman. It was why he usually hid out in his workshop leaving the attendants to manage the shop. He could negotiate, as it was a basic skill that everyone needed, yet it was not something he enjoyed. He was in two minds about which way to proceed. This girl also seemed to be inordinately well versed in the skill, keeping silent and letting him make the decision. Paradoxically, by not applying pressure and leaving the decision on him, she actually increased the pressure on him. Whatever he choose, he would have no one to blame but himself. He did think about simply refusing the deal out right, but just having contact with someone on the council would increase his reputation massively. That thought made the decision for him.
“I will take the deal,” said Rory. “I will agree to the 80 platinum for a 20% profit share.”
“Done,” responded Adya. “Do you have someone who can draw up the contracts for the sale and profit share?”
“I have someone who I use to draw up agreements for my larger clients,” replied Rory. “I would have thought you would want to use your own people.”
“I am happy for your contact to draw the agreement so that you are more comfortable with the details,” said Adya. “Let us get started. Why don’t you make arrangements for the two agreements and I will arrange the payment. Then we can move forward with the formation while we wait for the both to arrive.”
Rory was still a little hesitant to proceed without the paperwork in place, but it seemed like the little miss was in a hurry. “What do you think, Cultivator?” he asked Evelin.
“I can tell you that she sticks to her agreements,” replied an amused Evelin. “But as her retainer, I would have to tell you that in any case. If you want to wait until the agreement is signed, then do that. Miss Adya is looking for a long term partner, and waiting for a few hours would not unduly impact her. She just gets very focused on her goals and doesn’t always think about how others will perceive that.”
As they talked, Adya went back to the front of the shop to speak to Dexter. Still she did not want to advertise her deal in front of everyone, so she decided to write a note.
“Maya,” asked Adya. “May I borrow some parchment and quill?”
Maya nodded her agreement and handed her the items.
Adya wrote a quick note to her mother, explaining what she was doing and that she needed 80 platinum coins. She had just over 500 gold, or around 5 platinum, in her storage from her weekly exchanges of the 100 mana stones with Greg. Yet, she wanted to keep that in reserve for now.
“Dexter,” said Adya once she was done with the note. “Please take this to my mother, and return as soon as you are able. You can read the note to understand the task.”
“Yes Miss Adya,” replied Dexter. “Is it alright to leave you here alone?”
“Evelin and Phillipa are with me,” responded Adya. “I will be perfectly safe. I will stay in the shop until you return.”
“I will take a horse and not the carriage,” said Dexter after reading the note. “I should be back faster that way.”
Dexter then left to gather funds from the estate. He also decided to come back with additional soldiers. He did not want to carry around that kind of wealth without some protection.
Adya made her way back to Rory’s workshop wondering what he had decided. At least things were moving in the right direction.