"Hmm..." Marah turned her cup on its saucer by the handle. "In your interview with the business magazine that I read, you also explained how you got into your position. You left home at the age of 16 to stand on your own two feet. You managed to get a job as a broker with an important company. You earned a lot and always saved everything, invested wisely and continued your education, and at the age of 19 you were able to set up your first company. It was not the last. Most of them were in financial trading. At the age of 48, you were elected deputy director of the free banks on the basis of your experience. You came from the bottom and climbed to the top on your own. Today you have a fortune of 19 billion fees. It must have been a lot of work to amass so much money?" Marah waited briefly, but there was no reply. "Just that it's all a lie. The job as a broker was with an agency run by an acquaintance of your father. You received 250 million Fee as start-up capital from friends of your parents when you founded the company. The company was running mediocre in the best years and would have gone bankrupt in the long term, but then an inheritance came along that was so big that you couldn't fail anymore. It's always like that. It's always the same lies. It's just self-promotion. You don't have your position because you worked for it. You've inherited it, just like I inherited mine and everyone else inherited theirs. If you want to keep that position, then you will work for me."

"That... I got the job as an estate agent because I was able to meet the quotas." Mr. Jens sounded completely out of it and just said everything to himself. "Part of the start-up capital came from friends of my parents, but not the majority and it wasn't a gift. I used the inheritance for my business, but it wasn't necessary. I would have made it on my own. I always invested my income and my time in further education. I read tons of books. I worked every day and every night. It was my performance that got me to where I am today. You can't understand that. You were put on a throne at the age of five and you're still sitting there today."

"Reyji, why didn't you meet up with friends of your parents so that they could invest in you? Or applied for a job somewhere with your famous name? Or hired a private tutor? Or bought books on how to invest properly? Or just inherited?"

"I have inherited..."

"Then why didn't you invest it? Were you too stupid?"

Reyji leaned against the wall again and crossed her arms.

"I still needed the knife."

"If he says anything stupid again, get a tooth from him."

"Of course."

"Isn't that how you banksmen do it, or is it out of date?"

Mr. Jens remained silent. Marah nodded with satisfaction.

"Very nice. You learn quickly. Surely you know Mr. Turmer, the head of the financial court? He will dictate your every breath in future. My debts to the free banks will be paid by the free banks themselves. That's not delaying bankruptcy. I have the money, but if you don't do what I say, I'll ruin you first and then I'll pay you back. But I'd rather you work for me. Think about it. It would only benefit you personally. After all, your private fortune is also in Fee and besides, I treat my employees far better than the free banks treat theirs. - Reyji, give him the suitcase."

Reyji went behind the palm tree once more and grabbed an aluminum suitcase from behind the bushes.

"Now you want to bribe me?" asked Mr. Jens in a sarcastic tone.

Marah did not answer and preferred to drink tea. Meanwhile, Reyji placed the suitcase on the table in front of Mr. Jens. She opened the latches and unfolded it. When Mr. Jens saw the contents, he was irritated at first, then he looked questioningly at Marah. There was no money in the suitcase. The suitcase was full of bank cards.

The bank cards were white-grey metal cards. There were hundreds of them. The account number was always punched out at the bottom of each card. Otherwise, the cards only had the Free Banks lettering in gold italics with a relief and a swallow. They were nameless accounts.

"That's 90 trillion Fee."

Mr. Jens widened his eyes. Meanwhile, Reyji went back to the parapet wall.

"Yes, you heard right. That's 90 trillion. It's a gift from me. But don't spend it all at once."

In utter disbelief, Mr. Jens picked up a card and looked at it closely. He ran his thumbs over the relief writing. He was probably trying to find out whether the cards were genuine. But it did not matter at all. After all, the accounts could be empty. Maybe it was nevertheless a normal reaction? Reyji was unable to tell.

"Don't worry, it's not a significant sum for me. Unlike you, I didn't have to work for the money. The ordinary citizens of shithole countries will earn it, provided that you spend it. But how do you feel now? You are the richest man in the world by far. Do you feel elevated? Do you feel the freedom?"

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Mr. Jens didn't look as if he felt elevated. He looked more like he was completely depressed.

"Reyji, applaud him. He's the richest man in the world. Surely he deserves a bit of applause for his achievement?"

Reyji had no choice. A little annoyed, she claped slowly.

"Congratulations."

"Look, she's completely beside herself. Normally she never claps. Now you may be the richest man in the world, but what difference does that make? If you use your money wrongly, it quickly dwindles. So what do you say, would you like to work for me or should I push the rest of the world into the abyss? I'd prefer the former, but I win either way."

"Aren't you going to ruin the free banks anyway?"

"Why should I do that? It won't do me any good."

Mr. Jens didn't answer and just nodded several times.

"There's really 90 trillion fee in the accounts?"

"Maybe a few hundred billion more or less. I don't know exactly. Do you think I count that?"

Mr. Jens put the card back and closed the suitcase.

"You could have bought me with that money alone. Everything else was unnecessary."

"Money is the weakest form of power. I don't trust anyone just because I paid him. You can't buy loyalty. Loyalty is a small sprout that you have to nurture and care for, but once it's a tree, it will bear fruit. Reyji gave you the suitcase. Do you think you could buy her?"

After a glance at Reyji and a long exhalation, Mr. Jens straightened up again.

"What are you planning? Or what do you even want? I'm just one vote of the directorate. I can't decide much on my own."

"In fact, you are five votes of the directorate. You were the last two I needed to get a simple majority."

"Ha..." He laughed. "You've already been able to buy three people from us?"

"Let's just say at least three people will always be on their side."

"What about Mr. Sternschreiber? I only have two votes when he's not present. No matter what you're planning, it won't work without him."

"That's not quite right. It is precisely without him that it will work."

Marah smiled and it seemed almost demonic.

"Ah... I see... So I'm being promoted?"

"Do you accept my offer? I would like a clear commitment."

"Yes, I accept. Is that enough for you? Are you satisfied with that?"

"That's enough for me. You know, I actually have the same goal as the free banks. I want to spread the Fee further and suppress other currencies in return. I'm thinking in particular of countries like Paladin, who don't want to trade with us. So be happy that I've decided in favor of the free banks, because anything I can't control, I will ruin. When you return, your first job will be to get Aebien replacement loans with better terms. I don't want to see more than 2%."

"Why are you so interested in Aebien?"

"Because it's mine."

"And how am I supposed to argue that? It doesn't belong to me."

"Do you like bananas, coffee beans, cocoa beans, soybeans or cotton? All that comes from Aebien. They only sell it too cheap at the moment, but prices will rise in the future. In terms of imports, Aebien mainly needs grain, medicines, pesticides and gas. Guess who exports all that? You're probably getting jealous now, but Aebien will get an unlimited free trade agreement with us and in return suspend exports to all other countries. Everything will only be shipped via us. More expensive, of course, but at least still. According to your beliefs, we should not be able to push through higher prices for these goods, but we will. Aebien is due to natural conditions more efficient than us in quite a few crops and with the support of our companies they will become even more efficient. Our domestic production will go down without protectionist measures against Aebien, but the prices of these goods will go down for us as well and our farmers can focus even more on crops that make real money. Aebien will get our domestic market and, thanks to the increase in efficiency and us as negotiators, even more shares of the world market. It may be that some countries are currently shielding themselves with tariffs against cotton or soy from Aebien, but they will rethink if otherwise gas or the pesticides for all plants become more expensive or stop coming at all."

"Just a moment... How are you going to do all of that? These are foreign companies that own everything there."

"What do you do with a plantation or a factory if a war suddenly threatens? You sell it and leave."

"What kind of war?"

"There was a poison gas attack on the capital of Ire. About 2,000 citizens were killed. Among the dead was the president or the child of God, or as he calls himself, then also two of his wives, all his children, his brother and three other people from his circle. After analyzing the initial evidence, it seems clear that the attack was ordered from Aebien. Very soon, the leadership will officially declare war and Dreik will join them. Both will gather their armies and march north."

Mr. Jens became restless. "I haven't heard anything about an attack. When was it?" he asked anxiously.

"After Aebien got new loan agreements from the free banks."

Mr. Jens sank into his chair.

"Should you be telling me this?"

"You are a puppet. A puppet can't speak for itself."

"So Rotkäppchen is producing combat agents in Aebien after all?"

"Like I said, it's pesticides. You kill vermin with it."

"They're people."

"If that were the case, why don't they behave like that?"

"What happens next? Aebien can't win. Will Baele be the savior?"

"No. There won't be a war. It'll just drive the foreigners away. As soon as they hear we're interfering, the armies will turn back."

"Are you sure?"

"Tomorrow morning, a delivery will be waiting for you at the reception desk of your hotel. It will be files proving the trade agreement. That should be enough for you to be successful. If anyone asks you where you got them, tell them you bought them from Ms. Himmelblau when you were here in Rosenberg."

"You know my next appointment?"

Marah just smiled.

"Does Mrs. Himmelblau work for you?"

"Is that important?"

"Yes, because why would the chairwoman of the trade house have such files?"

"If someone investigates, they'll find out that her bodyguard often meets with the bodyguard of Mr. Ferris Erz, then it will be understood how she was able to get the files."

"Do all these people work for you?"

"Is that important?"

Mr. Jens just stared back in silence.

.../ End Part