Note: As a thank you for reaching 400+ followers, here's the extra chapter I promised!
CHAPTER TWENTY
Griffins to Dollars
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Two days after the breakfast club’s first brainstorming session, Hajime Hideo Miyamoto—officially named the loom’s lead developer—went on a kind of solo quest of his own. One that caused his back to be coated in sweat.
“Don’t get all fidgety,” whispered Chris who spoke to Hajime via the earpiece in his left ear. “You’ll do fine.”
Hajime frowned from behind the black medical mask covering the lower half of his face. “Chris-senpai, why aren’t you doing this again…?”
“Because I did crypto. And we’re spreading the money jobs so the Feds don’t catch wind of what we’re up to. On that note, good luck!”
Hajime sighed.
It would have been better if Bridget was the one in his ear, but she was already back on Aarde and busy with the job Bram had given her.
“Hey, Bud, you good?” asked the voice in Hajime’s ear. “You’ve been standing around for a while now.”
“I-I’m okay!” Underneath his black baseball cap, Hajime’s eyes darted left and right to make sure Chris hadn’t followed him from the car park where he waited in what the Texan had dubbed the getaway car. “I’m going!”
“Yeah, maybe don’t yell too much. Security might think you’re here to rob the place… Hell, you’re dressed like you might.”
Chris wasn’t wrong.
Apart from the baseball cap and face mask that covered most of his face, Hajime was decked in a black coat and black slacks to go with his black trainers. Combined with how anxious he was, the Japanese man looked like a shady character from an anime. It wasn’t the impression one might want to give before entering a bank.
Hajime looked up at the sign above the door…
BANK OF MANHATTAN
Reading it reminded him of another sign he’d seen recently. One that Rowan had left intact despite having altered the cave entrance with long-lost sorcery.
HOPE DIES HERE WHERE ONLY FOOLS DARE TO TREAD
“Bud, we don’t have all day,” Chris’ voice drew Hajime out of his musings. “I’ve got to check out office spaces and you—”
“Have to help with the job system’s integration and continue my training with Rowan-sama,” Hajime finished for him.
Besides learning from a sorceress as powerful as the rebel trickster of legend, the thought of witnessing new sorcery from the few experts of Bram’s household was a comfort to Hajime. It instilled in him the kind of courage that allowed one to bravely enter even a cave that was home to a monstrous beast. Or in Hajime’s case, a den full of hungry bankers.
“Chris-senpai,” Hajime whispered, “I don’t have to talk to a teller?”
“According to the Loom, all you need to do is log into your account from inside the bank,” replied Chris’ voice.
After they’d woken up inside Hajime’s living room yesterday afternoon, the three Earthers had attempted to connect the Loom with Chris’ custodial wallet, the app managing the Texan’s digital assets, including his cryptocurrency. Chris had logged into his custodial wallet like usual—and that’s when something otherworldly happened; his smartphone’s screen had frozen up like it was glitching and then numbers and letters appeared like lines of code moving in random directions across the screen.
Since only Chris could see this strange phenomenon, he had described the scene to his friends as if he’d suddenly glimpsed the ‘Matrixes’ in reality, although the numbers and letters moving around on his smartphone’s screen had been pale blue instead of the iconic green of that popular movie franchise.
Sometime after they’d first appeared, the neon blue numbers and letters had melded together to form a familiar shape, the ghostly blue window of the Loom of Ill Fates.
CONGRATULATIONS! The Loom is now connected to your custodial wallet [Binancier]. You may access your digital assets the next time you arrive on Aarde via the Loom’s new system [Finance] which now includes a [Currency Exchange] tool.
A day later, Chris still hadn’t forgotten his otherworldly experience or the spine-tingling sensation it gave him.
“I’m telling you, Bud, I was so spooked seeing that blue screen on our world that I almost don’t want to return to Aarde…”
Hajime, who’d just walked in through the Bank of Manhattan’s glass front door, avoided the gaze of a security guard while whispering, “But you are going back, right?”
“There ain’t no way I’m missing history get made…nor all the fun shit that’ll happen to us from now on,” Chris chuckled in Hajime’s ear. “But I’m telling you, seeing the Loom on Earth, that was mighty stranger than my first meeting with a teenage prince and his freaky magic girlfriend.”
“But Bram-sama doesn’t look like a kid.”
‘No, he doesn’t,” Chris agreed. “Seriously, I work out like a plow horse at the start of harvest but that kid’s got muscles I’ll never have.’
Hajime crossed the lobby’s parquet floor while avoiding eyes that couldn’t help turning his way. He didn’t know it, but the all-black attire he thought would make him less noticeable was doing the opposite. Indeed, Hajime reached his destination without much fuss only because people moved to avoid the sketchy-looking man making a beeline for one of the bank’s ATMs.
Hajime whispered, “I’m at the ATM…what now?”
“Stick your debit card in there and see what happens.”
Hajime frowned.
“What if nothing happens…?”
“Trust me, Bud, something’s gonna happen.”
Truthfully, this was what Hajime was worried about. He wasn’t sure he was ready to see the ‘Matrixes’ for himself.
“Are you sure we can’t try connecting with the app again…?”
“Rowan said that wouldn’t work, remember?”
Flush with the success of integrating the Loom to Chris’ custodial wallet, the Earthers had attempted the same tactic with his banking app, but the integration failed. So, sticking to their eight PM schedule, the Earth trio returned to Aarde last night, and the Texan shared the results of their experiment with Bram and Rowan, prompting the trickster to explain a possible reason for the varying results of the two experiments.
“There is great power in symbolism, and having you physically present inside a place where wealth is stored and distributed might be necessary for the Loom’s sorcery to integrate successfully with an Earth bank,” she’d deduced. “However, this wouldn’t be the case for your…”
Rowan’s face had turned contemplative like it did whenever she tried speaking Earth words.
“…Digital assets.” She’d grinned triumphantly at how she’d spoken the alien words without stuttering. “As you’ve explained, such a tool exists only on your device, and therefore wouldn’t require your physical self for a first-time trade.”
Hajime had been recalling last night’s gathering when he felt a tap on his shoulder.
“Can I help you, Sir?” asked a breathy, soprano-like voice.
An athletic-looking female security guard with light caramel skin and a pixie cut arrived behind Hajime without him noticing. She’d given him a pointed look as if she was expecting him to cause trouble.
“N-No,” Hajime bowed nervously, “thank you.”
The security guard nodded back, though she kept eyeing him as she stepped away, and not very far either. Close enough that she could tackle Hajime if he proved her suspicions right.
“Chris-Senpai…I think she’s on to us…”
“Relax, Bud. It’s not like you’re there to rob the place. Just do what you need to do and then walk out.”
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
“If something happens…”
“Worst case, you get fined for breaking an ATM. It happens.”
Hajime’s brow creased. He wasn’t sure such things happened outside of TV.
“Okay…” He took a deep breath. “I can do this…”
Surprisingly, Chris’ guess wasn’t far off.
As Hajime slipped his debit card into the ATM’s slot, he felt a sudden chill flow through him like an ice cube was sliding down his back, and not in a fun way. A moment later, the ATM screen showing a Bank of Manhattan ad froze like it was experiencing a computer glitch.
“Eh…maji?”
Then things happened just like Chris had described it yesterday.
Neon blue numbers and letters danced across the ATM’s screen, prompting Hajime to whisper, “I think I just took the red pill…”
“Congrats, Bud, now you’ll see how deep the rabbit hole goes.”
CONGRATULATIONS! The Loom is now connected to your personal bank account in the [Bank of Manhattan]. You may access it the next time you arrive on Aarde via the Loom’s Finance tool.
Contrary to Chris’ anxiety-building experience, Hajime’s worries were washed away at the sight of the system message. Instead of fear, he felt excitement.
Hajime didn’t know this yet, but he and Bram were alike. Despite their many worries, both men dreamed of pushing the envelope and trailblazing the future. It’s why Hajime couldn’t help but pump his fists into the air and yell, “Yatta!”
That’s when the entire bank lost power and the building went dark.
“Eh…?”
A second later, the pixie-haired security guard tackled Hajime to the ground, ensuring he would miss today’s return to Aarde.
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“Enter,” Bram said distractedly.
Atlan’s seventh prince didn’t look up from his desk when the door to his study opened because there was a mountain of paperwork to keep him occupied.
“Hey, Boss,” Chris called. “You look busy.”
“Who knew managing an entire kingdom would be so hectic,” Bram replied wryly, adding, “I saw the Loom’s message earlier in the day. Hajime succeeded then?”
“He did.” Chris sat on one of the two plush chairs opposite Bram’s stately-looking wooden desk. “But he’s not going to make his appointment with Rowan.”
“Why not?” Bram asked.
“Because he’s been arrested by Earth’s version of a city guard,” answered the redhead who walked into the study after Chris.
Hearing this, Bram couldn’t help but look up. “Arrested?”
“We call them police,” Chris corrected, adding, “And yeah, he’s been detained for the night. There was more of a show to the integration than we expected.”
“Is it serious?” Bram asked.
“It’s fine. Feds won’t be able to prove anything.” Chris leaned into his chair. “They’ll chalk it up to coincidence and an eccentric foreigner getting excited about money and let Hajime go in a few hours.”
“A few hours…” Rowan took a seat on the couch near the fireplace. “And I planned such an interesting training session for him.”
Glancing over his shoulder, Chris gave her a wry look. “You were going to give him a hard time, weren’t you?”
“Training is supposed to be challenging,” Rowan picked up a teacup from the small table between her and the fireplace. “What about you, Chris…have you considered Ser Anthony’s offer to train you so that you might become our prince’s newest knight?”
“Didn’t he offer you the same thing?”
“He did. I accepted.”
“Good for you… I don’t know if the chivalric path is the one for me. Still holding out for something more…” Chris’ face turned contemplative. “…Flavorful.”
The Texan eyed the prince whose nose was buried in the pages of a thick ledger.
Bram, who could feel Chris’ eyes on him, absentmindedly said, “If you’re curious about other jobs then you should go to the training hall.”
“Bridget’s still in there cataloging your soldiers’ jobs?” Chris confirmed.
Bram nodded.
Still sensing the Texan’s gaze, he looked up from his work. “Was there anything else?”
“Yeah.” Chris took out a folded parchment from his leather jacket’s breast pocket and passed it to Bram. “Now that the Loom’s Finance feature is up and running, the bean counters on both sides of the veil have come up with an estimated conversion rate for griffins and dollars.”
Bram inspected the parchment.
“You’ve already talked with the bastion’s bookkeepers about this?” he confirmed.
“First thing I did after Rowan summoned me back here,” Chris reported. “I also went ahead and met with an accountant I’m thinking of hiring for the studio. I based my conversation with Ser Anthony’s guys on her suggestions.”
“What was the basis of conversion?”
“Something both worlds got plenty of…a pint of beer and a loaf of bread, though y’all call it grog over here.”
“Grog,” Bram repeated, his eyes narrowing slightly.
Based on the estimates of his household’s bookkeepers along with the input of the accountant Chris wanted to hire, a single gold griffin was worth a hundred of the ‘US Dollars’ Chris assured Bram was the most used currency on Earth.
“The Loom seems to agree with you. It’s already accepted the exchange rate,” Bram revealed.
“Yeah, I saw that too,” Chris replied. “That said, I thought I’d try the currency exchange tool here so y’all can get a look-see with me.”
“Interesting.” Neither Chris nor Bram had noticed when she moved, but Rowan was now seated on the other chair opposite the table. “Well, shall we begin?”
At her prompting, the Texan pulled up the Loom’s menu and selected [Finance].
“Just so y’all know, there ain’t any other game on Earth that gives players an option to manage their finances while they play,” he said, his brow furrowing slightly. “Not sure it’s legal, to be honest. We may need to tweak the feature a bit before we launch.”
As Chris fiddled with the options, Bram, who was using his administrator access to watch, caught the moment when the Texan used the currency exchange tool to trade a thousand US dollars from his bank account for an equivalent amount of imperial griffins as determined by the exchange rate both sides had agreed upon from a comparison of costs for a ‘pint of beer’ and ‘loaf of bread’ in both worlds.
Proceed with this transaction?
As soon as Chris tapped on [Yes], the magic inside him began to stir and telltale sparks of sorcery exploded out of his hand. A second later, a golden ticket lay on his palm.
Chris frowned. “I thought y’all still used coins for currency?”
“That’s a promissory note given by the Bank of Steel. It’s used to exchange for griffins from one branch to another,” Bram explained.
“I’m assuming y’all get it made with magic because this one cost me five MP to generate,” Chris revealed.
“May I see it?” Bram asked.
A quick inspection of the item showed it was exactly like the promissory notes the Bank of Steel gave its clients down to the paper and ink used in its making.
“The Bank of Steel has magical protections against forgery, but this ten-gold griffin note could pass their tests with flying colors,” Bram observed.
A further inspection caused a curious look to appear on the prince’s face.
“This promissory note…it’s credited to me.”
Chris’ name was on the promissory note’s recipient line, while the account used to exchange the dollars into griffins belonged to Bram.
“So, if I got the griffins from you, where’d my dollars go?”
As if it were waiting for them to ask, a new message arrived from the system.
ALERT! For this monetary exchange to be processed properly, a corresponding banking account from both Earth and Aarde must be created to act as the system’s financial foundations. Furthermore, these two accounts should maintain a sizable amount of funds to ensure a smooth transaction process whenever the Finance tool is used.
“So, until we get these financial hubs set, I won’t be able to get my money?”
Yes…
“Well, ain’t that a pickle… And you’ve used Prince Bram’s bank account as the default setting for Aarde’s finance needs?”
This option can be changed using the administrator’s access.
Learning this caused Bram’s brow to furrow.
As a prince of Atlan, Bram’s personal wealth was considerable, though it wouldn’t be enough to fulfill the system’s needs, particularly if transactions between Earth and Aarde became the norm. Of course, as Lotharin’s governor, he had the kingdom’s wealth to use as an option, but Bram was loathe to abuse his authority by misappropriating the griffins needed for the kingdom’s restoration efforts. The great undertaking might be for Lotharin’s sake, but this was a secret task that couldn’t be written into the kingdom’s ledgers.
After reflecting on his choices, Bram said, “I’ll have Ser Anthony set up a new account with the Bank of Steel using a portion of my wealth… We’ll call it the Lotharin Investment Fund.”
“Then I’ll take care of creating the bank account on Earth’s side with my savings for now,” Chris said, adding, “Maybe Hajime and Bridget can chip in too.”
Bram couldn’t help but smile at the man he’d chosen to be Loom’s co-executive producer, a man who was willing to share his life’s savings to help the great undertaking succeed.
“Your wealth will be returned to you as soon as I’m able to transfer assets to the Earth account,” he assured Chris.
“I know you’re good for it, Boss.” As he said this, Chris’ gaze drifted around the room to home in on obvious signs of prosperity; a gold lamp by the prince’s desk, piles of gold griffins stacked on a side table, and even the plush chair he was sitting on. “We’ll be needing your investment to open our studio ASAP.”
“We’ll get it done,” Bram grinned excitedly.
Chris shared Bram’s enthusiasm. “Yeah, we will.”
Both men knew that by tomorrow, they would have done something that had never been achieved before; a proper trade between two worlds.
“Not to dampen your spirits,” Rowan cut in, “but I expect such a large undertaking will quickly drain the well that is the prince’s wealth…”
Her prince’s smile hadn’t vanished though.
“You already have a plan,” she guessed.
Bram took an unfurled scroll from the top of the pile and showed it to his companions. On its header was the title; A Report of the Troubles of Bellen and the Growing Dangers of the Red Forest.
Grinning, Bram asked, “Well, are you both ready for our first adventure?”