The next day, Ravina's solution was thrown out the window. Waking up early, she left the comfort of her bed to skim through the documents that Mathus had given her. The soft morning light filtered through her window, casting a gentle glow on the papers as she began reading. With a weary mind and half open eyes, she started with the history of those mines. In reading she found out that while Goldwel was larger, the Venchenci mine had a bigger impact on its residence.
Specifically, it was more of a tourist destination than a mine. All 27 miners could trace their family line to the start of that very mine. Generations of fathers worked in the mines, while their wives managed the renowned resort. Their children would either play around or lend a hand to their mothers when needed. They used to assist their fathers, however a ban was created when two children died in an accident. As the years saw less and less of a profit from the mind, Watch had acknowledged the possibility of laying off some of these legacy miners if they couldn't find a new ore vein. They seemed kind to their people and wanted them to remain employed which is what led to their desperate action.
Meanwhile, the bustling Goldwel mine was expanding its workforce, having recently welcomed three additional miners, raising their total to approximately 300. They pulled a ton of iron from the mine that Ravenshield’s rather large county depended on. In fact, the town of Ironwell only existed because of the mining industry that Goldwel brought. Its fate was precariously tied to the mine's fortunes. It had nothing to do with the incident but now she knew that if the mines ever dried up Ironwell would be an abandoned town.
About 1,300 people would no longer be able to live in their hometown. It shook her core when she thought about the fact that the livelihoods of over a thousand people hinged on this single economic lifeline. That was a lot of people depending on just one mine. On her.
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Meanwhile, Venchenchi’s resort managed hundreds of people daily, including those visiting from other countries. This not only brought substantial revenue to the region but also the entire stretch of the Grey Road. After all, the mine was a famous love spot and the rich loved showing off to their lovers. Ravina didn't have the documents to check what benefited the county more, nor did she have the mind or the temperament. More documents meant understanding the bigger picture and there were a lot more lives in the bigger picture—she could barely deal with the smaller one.
Among those hired by Goldwel was a mage who discovered the new vein. Due to legal reasons, Quil had to make the report public, allowing for the mining companies to be aware of their possible movements. Based on the mage's report, Watch moved to claim the new vein. Unfortunately, this action led to a disastrous result.
As Ravina delved deeper into the documents, the seemingly straightforward task became increasingly complex. Over the next few days, Ravina had immersed herself in the seemingly endless paperwork and wondered why there were such meticulous documents about a simple mine.
The light’s rays reached the small tea table and the young girl took that as a sign to close her eyes and ignore the hard things in life for a time. Just then, however, someone knocked on her door. Her eyes still closed Ravina waved a hand for Siet to see who it was, too mentally exhausted to even mumble.
The young maid smiled at her hard-working mistress and moved to the door as quietly as she could, not wanting to disturb her. After leaving the room, she returned and gave her report. “My lady, Mr. Kelim, from the Ocelot Mining Company has arrived. He is currently waiting in the blue room.”
Ravina humed in recognition. It was nice being rich. Due to the short time frame, she was sure she would have to run over town to meet people for this sudden request. However, instead, Ravinsheld had cut contact with one company for refusing to send a representative to her. She would enjoy it, if the work wasn't so hard. Rising from her seat she nodded and followed her cheery maid out of her room. Hopefully, the expert she sent for would help her figure out what to do. Please, she begged internally.