Chapter 10: The Inauguration

“Ok, once more!” I said loudly as I clapped my hands, the girls changed their places, and the actors I had hired walked out the doors before coming inside one by one, with an interval of seconds to minutes.

“I am speechless. I did not think the practice would bring such a change,” said Carla in awe; we had been doing this for five days.

She was quite opposed to it, saying it would be a waste of money, but now she is impressed.

I couldn’t help but feel grateful for the mage Valentina and her guild; she had finished the work five days before the agreed time, which gave me enough time to make the girls practice in my way of business.

All of whom, including Carla, got quite offended when I suggested it, but as they practiced, they understood the reason behind it.

What they are doing now is different from what they have done before; this practice, the teachers, the clothes, and everything else for a reason.

My establishment will not sell just sex; it will sell desires, and the sex will be just part of it.

“Has my suit arrived?” I asked as Carla appeared beside me, “Yes, a few minutes ago,” she replied.

Today is the day of the inauguration, which will be held in the evening, and many important people in the Empire and even people from other kingdoms have arrived. For more than a week, every inn, hotel, and house in the city had been filled with guests, and the businesses, like the brothels, were booming.

Seeing how much my competitors were earning, my heart bled, as I would have too earned a lot if I had opened the establishment a month ago.

While I feel the pain of losing such a massive business, I am not sad. I am perfectly aware that if my business worked as I expected, I would earn what everything I could have in a month within a matter of days.

I sat on the chair and watched the girls practice, and unlike the first three days, I did not have to correct the girls. It is not surprising, with their experience and the help from teachers, they have all the necessary skills; the only thing I did was teach them a different way to use them.

I am glad I have listened to Eudo’s suggestion; initially, I was planning on hiring different actors, low-level ones in higher numbers, but Eudo suggested that I should hire the high-level ones.

The company of actors I had hired had an actor as their base class and each of them being level 15, with seven actors being above level 20.

They have done a wonderful job, far better than I had thought they would.

Three hours passed, and I finally got up from my seat with a smile on my face; “Everyone, stop,” I said, and all of them stopped and turned to me.

“The practice is over,” I declared, bringing a smile to the actors and girls’ faces. “Mr. Keys, your company had done a really good job; if I had any job in the future and money in my pocket, I would definitely hire you and your people again,” I said to the impeccably dressed man in his early fifties.

“Thank you, Mister Silver.” He said with a faint bow.

“It is one of the best jobs I have ever received; the girls have been wonderful company,” He added and made a slight bow toward the girls, who returned it with grace.

A few minutes later, he and his people left, leaving me alone with the girls.

“All of you have done a wonderful job; even with a strict schedule, you have learned everything I have asked you and more,” I said to the girls.

“Thank you, Master Silver,” They replied in unison. “The gates of the establishment will open today in the evening, so rest, as you all won’t be getting any till the morning,” I said, and all their faces cracked in a smile.

I nodded at them and walked toward my office when I suddenly stopped at the stairs and turned to the girls.

“Sex is your choice; if you do not feel like it, you can refuse it,” I said and walked toward the office, leaving them shell-shocked.

What I have said to be self-suicide of this business, but that thing had been eating me for days, and I finally said it. I have come from a place where one had a right to choose, and I wanted to give them that, or my conscience would not let me sleep in peace.

Soon, I reached the office, but I did not work; my nerves were too antsy to let me do anything, so I read. I have made a big list of books I have to read this year and was quite ahead of schedule till the last month, but now, I have fallen behind.

This month I had barely had any time to read the books.

Two hours passed, and I was standing in front of the mirror, adjusting the suit for one last time before walking out of my room.

“Remove the covers at five and open the gates at six,” I said to Carla, even now I have kept every change hidden, from trees to fountain to even the whole mansion covered in clothes; I did not want anybody to get a glimpse of it, before the opening day.

“Yes,” Carla replied.

I looked at cloth covered mansion with expectations; I had worked really hard and taken a huge risk for it, and I hoped it would succeed before is not an option.

To be honest, I really did not want to go to the inauguration and miss the opening of business, but this inauguration is extremely important, not only to make the connections but also because not going there would have consequences.

It will seem like a disrespect to the prince, especially after I have got the invitation, and I want to avoid that in any way possible.

“I hope everything goes well,” I said with a sigh, “It will,” Carla replied with the confidence that I was not feeling in my heart.

“Good luck,” I said to her and walked inside the carriage with George closing the door behind me.

A minute later, the carriage was out of the manors gates toward the grand plaza, where the fourth prince of the Empire, Magnus Grelt Alnwick Mediaen of House Solndam, would inaugurate the city he had built.

Throughout the month, especially the past week, many important people came; their numbers were so huge that all the hotels, inns, and guesthouses had been filled.

Even I had to give my house to someone I used to know in the Redfawn city

Aside from my elder brother, House of Silver had also sent someone officially; it of one of my uncles and the one with whom my father did not have a good relationship.

Thankfully, I would not need to meet him; he had not replied to me, even after I had sent him a letter as a courtesy.

Hun!

I was reading a book; it was a very faint feeling, but I knew it was real and came from my base skill.

It was not the feeling I had ever sensed before, but have been described by my father many times.

The ambassadors of the Emperor had succeeded, not completely, but they achieved success.

Through my mercantile class, I could feel the restrictive effect of the trade war against merchant cities loosened up.

Now there would be trade, and I hope it is the city-state of Meldhorn or Belnin, the chances of them being much higher than others. The Greltheaven city and the whole Renwell province will benefit tremendously if it is Melhorn or Belnin with all the trade from them that will flow through the Trollmouth river.

I shook my head and stopped thinking about it further; things will become clear soon, till then I have to be calm.

It took me more than an hour to reach the central plaza, four times more than what I would need to reach this place. The security was tight, and on top of that, the traffic; all the skills in the world could not prevent it.

I got off the carriage and saw the central plaza packed with people. The whole city seemed to have gathered in the square; there was barely any place to place a foot.

Thankfully, I had an invitation, which gave me a clear path guarded by the fourth prince’s personal guards.

“Invitation,” said the knight at the final checkpoint; there are twelve knights at the final checkpoint, all of them wearing thick-red metallic armor and a sigil of burning rose imprinted on their chest, and beside it is a badge with the fourth prince’s sigil.

These knights belong to the order of burning rose, a powerful knight order that is allied with the fourth prince. Each of these knights is powerful; even the weakest of them could hack me into two without me knowing how.

“You can enter,” he said as he handed my invitation back. I nodded in thanks before I took back the invitation and walked inside.

The place is big, and while the general public has no choice but to stand openly in a crowded space, a special arrangement is made for the important guests and invitees.

A huge stage is made in the square, and in front of it, seating arrangement for more than two thousand people.

The seats on the first row like looked like thrones; I had heard that the four dukes were coming, along with various other nobles and important people, even Marquess Emerald, the commander of the Renwell region, the person who is only loyal to the Emperor, had also come.

Aside from the first five rows, nearly all the seats at the back had been filled with people, so when I went in, I attracted quite a lot of gazes. I had thought I had left early, but it seemed like people had come earlier, and now, I am feeling awkward with all these gazes on me.

My place was quite far behind; I had to cross more than half of the rows before I found my row and went inside.

Soon, I was at my seat, which was beside a fat old man and a couple in their mid-thirties; the woman had an average face but dressed extravagantly, like most women sitting here, and on her lap was a cub of a green-eyed panther with enchanted gemmed collar.

It became alert as it saw me, but the next second closed its eyes languidly as the woman gently patted its head.

“Sirs, madam,” I said politely beside sitting on my seat.

“I did not think I would have the pleasure to sit beside a Silver,” said the old beside me; he is slightly fat but had a pleasure, which looked even pleasant when he smiled.

“My apologies, but you are?” I asked the old man, “This old man is Javier Santos; you probably, have not heard of me,” He said, waving his sand.

“How could I not, Mr. Santos? The carriage I used to own in Redfawn was made your house,” I said. The merchant house this old man is from specializes in making carriages; they are quite expensive, especially the enchanted ones, which I will definitely buy when I have enough money.

“Your house is a big customer of ours; just a few months ago, we completed the big order of enchanted carriages for your grandfather,” he said. To that, I smiled.

We made small talk, and not only an old man but also a couple beside me who were from a small noble house in the kalzan province.

Soon, the important people kept pouring in, from representatives of knight orders and merchant houses to important nobles, each person with great power and wealth.

Finally, when there was half an hour to six when the first duke appeared, Markus Vinwayne, the Duke of Dawhall. He is the small man that has one of those smiling faces, but as he appeared, his aura of authority spread across the plaza, silencing all those who were speaking.

The aura of authority is one of the enviable things of the ruling class; the aura is not special to the ruling classes, but it is very hard for other classes to have it, and even among the ruling class, the aura of authority is rare. The higher level one’s class is, the better chances they have of getting it.

Class or no class, he is Duke and is in control of the vast power whose support the fourth prince will need in his fight for the throne.

Till now, he had not revealed his decision to any prince; his coming here for inauguration could only be seen with a grain of salt.

As this could be a courtesy or a feint or him choosing a side, nothing could be said to be certain.

He stopped his aura when he was welcomed by count Darrow and sat a few minutes later; it was the Duke of Blackwell, and after him was the Duke of Henar.

The last among the Dukes was the Duke of Valeshire, the fourth prince’s maternal uncle and older brother of Count Darrow, who is the only duke who has already taken his side, which is not surprising, seeing the fourth prince is his nephew.

The last one to make the entrance was the Marquess Gats, the commander of the Dustorn fortress; he is effectively the most powerful man in the Rimwell province, more than the Governor of Deerpond, the capital of the province.

He controls the imperial army stationed at Dustorn fortress guarding the border against Tabes, from which the Empire had taken this region from.

He is a man who looks to be in his early fifties; he is neither tall, short, handsome, nor ugly. He looked like any other ordinary man on the street with an easily forgettable face.

He also has his aura of authority active, and it is no less weak than the dukes, which is not surprising; while the Duke is considered higher level title and class, it is not that simple when it comes to classes, not to mention, power of aura depend on many things such as level, stats and even will.

He turned off his authority as he sat down while I focused pocket-watch of mine, which had an hour marked on six.

I had asked Carla to remove all the clothes covering the establishment; She must have started doing that now, and in an hour, she will open the door.

I wish I had been there, I have worked very hard on it for the past month and would have liked to see how it went from the first minutes, but I can’t.

I will have to remain here till this damn function is over.

Ruu Ruu Ruu

I was busy in my thoughts when I heard a sharp bird call and saw dots in the sky, which rapidly started growing bigger and bigger, till I seee them as birds.

Five flaming red huge birds pulled on the golden-violet carriage in the sky; the birds looked dangerous, and the carriage was magnificent.

The carriage is called Visma’s Gale, one of the imperial artifacts given to the prince after his first victory in the battle. This artifact had been in the House of Solndaem for over a thousand years.

Thud!

The carriage circled elegantly in the sky before coming down and landing on the ground with smooth motion, barely making any sound.

A few seconds later, the door opened, and the man in his late thirties walked out of the carriage; the moment he did, all the people got up in unison and bowed. Even the powerful dukes bowed their heads as he appeared.

The herald called out his name, along with the different titles he had been bestowed from the Emperor; aside from the first prince, he had the most titles, and they showed his power.

“At ease,” he said, and we sat down.

It is my first time seeing the fourth prince; I have only seen only one prince before, the first prince. He had come to Redfawn two years ago, and my father had taken me to the banquet that had been thrown in his honor.

Fourth prince Grelt as he likes to be called is a handsome man in his late thirties with fiery blue-red hair that only members of the imperial family have.

“I, Magnus Grelt Alnwick Mediaen of Imperiance House Solndaem, welcome you all to this wonderful city of Greltheaven,” He said in his smooth, cultured voice.

He did not speak loudly or use any artifact, but everyone heard him clearly, like he was speaking in front of them, which was, of course, due to his skills.

“I have built this city to make our Empire even more prosperous; its close proximity to merchant cities will bring immense trade and wealth, and the lion’s share would belong to this great city of Greltheaven and its citizens,” he said, and crowds cheered loudly.

I have to say, he is a great orator and has amazing skills that seemed to imprint every word of his into people’s minds and sway their hearts.

It took quite a lot of effort to understand the things he expertly omitted in his speech, while everything he said was the truth, but not a complete truth. He is right about prosperity, but he smoothly omitted the danger of Navr, whose undead armies could lay waste to the city.

Not to mention Tabes, against which we are constantly fighting; thankfully, the Emperor had placed a huge force here in the Dustorn Fortress under Marquess Gats, who was instrumental in winning this region for the Empire three years ago.

The prince’s speech continued for more than half an hour before it ended; it was then Marquess Gats’ turn, who read out the Emperor’s words and give a little speech of his own before the Dukes took a turn after another. Some took a long time, while others finished early.

The sun had completely gone down, and now there was only moonlight from the three moons lighting the sky, while the ground was lighted up by the lights as the words of powerful people rang out.

It was halfway into the duke of Valeshire’s speech when I looked down at my watch. It is already seven five; Carla would have opened the door by now.

I wonder whether any clients have come; there are still a lot of many people city, friends and family of these people who are not attending the inauguration.

My heart is beating wildly in anticipation and nervousness about how the establishment would do.

On many nights, I thought the changes I made would be too different and that people would reject them; I even had nightmares about the failures.

I shook my head of those thoughts and focused back on speeches; I have done everything, and now everything is beyond my control, and I should not think about it too much.

The Duke of Valeshire had finished his speed before his brother took over.

Count Darrow will be the Lord of Greltheaven; I heard he is quite unhappy about it, given he is a count and controls a much bigger territory than a single city, but Prince Grelt had able to convince his uncle somehow.

This is great news for the city; while count Darrow might be greedy, he is a man with great experience in administration, and under his stable hands, the city will flourish.

Cheer Cheer Cheer

The crowd cheered as Lord Darrow finally finished his speech, which lasted longer than Prince Grelt’s.

Now, there are cultural programs, but I do not have to stay for them, nor will many important people. They will be attending the party that the prince is hosting.

I was not invited to it; only important and powerful people were invited, like my uncle, who came as a representative of the House of Silver.

I was hoping he would take me with him but seeing how he had not even answered my letter, there was no chance. He would likely take my brother, who would be bequeathed the title and the deed tomorrow.

The people sitting begin to leave one after another; not all are leaving; some are staying to watch the performances. The city had spent a lot of money on it, having brought artists from not only the Empire but also from other countries, all humans, of course.

I would have stayed, too, if not for this being the first day of the establishment.

“It was nice to meet your Mister Santos,” I said to an old man as I stood up and turned to the couple, “A pleasure, sir Jacques, madam Serina,” I said and walked out.

The people in charge of security kept everything in order, so there was not much of the crown when I walked out, and soon, I was in my carriage.

“To the establishment, James, and a little faster,” I said as I sat down in the carriage, “Yes, Mister Silver,” he said, and the carriage began to roll through the streets.

The traffic was still there with the people leaving, but it was much less than before, so we were able to reach the establishment within thirty-five minutes.

“James, to the back entrance,” I said after taking a look at the establishment; from what I saw, it is better I enter through the back.

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