Chapter 22

Basic Investment (2)

Concerned that the buyer might not come, Kleio asked the hotel staff to organize a list of performances to be held in the city. Then, he used the Memory function of Promise to check the name and compared it with their list.

'There!'

The ballet innovator, Count Prochorus, and his ballet team were in charge of the final special performance before the end of the season in the resort city. According to the manuscript, the Count, interested in musical instruments, would come to the auction for a violin and end up buying the Lira.

'There were a lot of music lovers on the last day of the auction, so the price of the instrument went up sharply.'

Putting down his sandwich with two bites out of it, Kleio called out to Dione. Dione was distracted by Lira resting on the folded bedsheets and responded a beat late.

"Ah, did you call me, young master?"

"Do you like the Lira that much? You can't even hear me."

"It's not that it's a musical instrument- it's a relic. Thinking about it now, you already knew about this!"

"That's right."

Dione's eyes narrowed as she stared at Kleio before quieting down. Since this relic's value was so great, she decided he wouldn't tell her about his information source even if asked. Just hearing the relic's name in -Prince of the Albion Kingdom- made it seem like it would have a great function, but it didn't at all. Items with no special features other than they didn't rot or disappear over time were classified as relics. Most of the relics were musical instruments, and every time they appeared on the market, music lovers and relic collectors purchased them for exorbitant prices.

'I don't know art well, but if they pay the price, that's it. Even back in my world, how much would violins sell for?'

"You're indeed a mysterious person. In addition to the intelligence that found this, you knew that the strings and opal were the components... Did you use analysis or prediction?"

Dione, the successor of the Grayer family and a research wizard, couldn't calm her excitement. The seventeen-year-old wizard who found and restored a relic piqued her curiosity.

"That's a business secret. Let's say I have a bit better information and analysis power than others."

"Ugh! You have no desire to tell me."

"Yes, for now."

"For now... Does this mean that would change if I no longer worked for your father?"

"The lady is truly brilliant."

"I asked you why you were curious if your father was attending. You have a rather cool temperament, unlike your appearance."

"Do you hate it?"

Her eyes were chilling as she searched him. He stared back at her in a relaxed position, feeling like an entirely different person than the one who had run away from home.

"No, it's good. So Kleio Asel, what do you want me to do?"

Dione had called him for the first time since they met. It meant she saw him as a person named Kleio, no longer as the second son of Baronet Asel. Kleio continued as he filled his empty teacup.

"I would like to present this Lira on the last day of the auction. The order doesn't matter; I need to be able to show off my performance in advance."

"It would be simple to use the name of Baronet Asel..."

Kleio shook his head. He had no intention of using his father's name.

"It will be difficult for private sellers to submit entries tomorrow. It's not even in the catalog, and processing will take time."

"You saw the restoration process and finished the analysis, right? Then you, Dione, can guarantee it. You are a graduate of the Royal Capital Defense University with a research wizard license."

Dione looked like she had been struck in the back of the head.

"You were planning to use me from the start!"

"Let's call it a collaboration."

Dione set her cup back down on the table. Now, she acted as if she was no longer a tutor but as the Grayer company's successor. Kleio smiled inwardly at the change. Before leaving for Novantes, Kleio had also been busy. Mrs. Canton had been quite up-to-date on the capital's circumstances, so she knew a bit about Dione Grayer. She had been secretly participating in the family business since she was a student and took over the actual commerce management. As soon as she debuted in the social world, she built a vast network. Thus, a young woman who wasn't in charge of any office moved the capital defense knights to catch one runaway student. Dione had embraced those connections, though he thought she might've dropped them because she worked for his father.

appearance. The results were "Well, what do you think about the fees?" movements, combined with her high-level

"The appraisal fee is usually 2,000 dinars, but since it's an express issuance, how about 4,000 dinars?"

Negotiations weren't difficult for Kleio, who had read the auction rule guide to the end. Dione had already stepped over to his side the moment his [Restoration] magic succeeded.

"Well, that sounds like fun."

"The Trinity Auction Company also has its HQ in the capital. They have a preferential treatment fee for members of the Capital Merchant Association, right? If you submit this as a member of the Grayer Chamber of Commerce, we will pay 2% of the winning bid as a commission."

Dione, her arms folded after she had put down her fan, was fiercely measuring him.

'I brought him the auction rule guide yesterday, but he already understands the contents. What sort of late learner is this kid?'

Finally, Dione made her decision.

"Good. But is there anyone who can play this Lira?"

"I'll find them."

"3%. I am responsible for everything, from the performance to adding it to the auction list and promoting it."

"Will it be that much?"

"My motto is to work as much as I receive."

"If so, let's write the contract first."

"Mr. Kleio is also thorough."

The two wrote a simple contract and added the [Commitment] magic formula at the bottom by hand, each injecting ether into it to engrave it. It wasn't possible to give a penalty like death to a formal contract like that, but it was sufficiently effective. After the ether faded away, Dione added a requirement.

"Apart from this, I will also order a dress. The cost will be included in the contract."

"How much?"

***

Dione Grayer was a natural at playing the Lira. She wore a white dress with a drape and a gilded laurel wreath upon her head like a goddess of old.

'It's a skill I learned when I was young. It's not a common instrument, so I should play it myself than find a player in a hurry.'

Kleio was dubious, but even if Dione's performance didn't meet expectations, he thought she would gather enough attention solely on her more than expected, though. Dione's fairy-like Lira skills and clear voice, enraptured people's emotions and made familiar songs sound like classical poetry. Count Prochorus cried out and clapped as he stood. Following him, everyone around him stood and applauded. After a fierce bidding war, the Lira was sold to the Count for 5.95 million dinars, a full 950,000 dinars higher than the original price in the manuscript.

'Even counting the fees, it's 5.5 million dinars. I can proceed with the next job.'

Before coming to Novantes, he had informed the auction company of his newly opened Aurel bank account and directed them to deposit the payment to it. He had stopped doing business with the bank his father used. That evening, Dione was paid her fee of 275,500 dinars. She smiled like a peony in bloom after receiving the deposit confirmation.

"And here; the appraisal fee of 4,000 dinars in cash."

"It's nice that Mr. Kleio is willful and bright. Yes, the commission is paid fast."

"I received the help of high-end personnel like Lady Dione, but is it not natural?"

Dione removed the laurel from her head with a serious expression.

"Now, I see. Do you hate the idea of becoming a politician or a bureaucrat? You didn't want to do what your father wanted, so you started raising money."

Kleio only smiled.

"If you think that way, I understand why you had to run away from home. Even I wouldn't be able to bear it if someone else guided my life."

"Thank you for understanding. Had I told you earlier, would you have helped me so tremendously?"

"No, that's that, and this is this. I signed a contract with your father to take care of you. Shouldn't we keep that trust?"

"Then, how?"

"Baronet Asel had paid me a lot of money. Now is the time to write a new contract."

'Done. I got it.'

"Honestly, it would be fun to be a puppet for your father and be active in politics. We make money. Isn't it attractive that the distribution of magic tools is an area that even your father can't touch?"

Dione was also not present in the original manuscript. He didn't know how she would move, but no one in the world hated money.

'I didn't know it would be like this, though.'

"It can't be a coincidence that you found this relic. It makes me think you have some ability that you cannot reveal."

"It's an honor that you think so."

"I'll set it up so that you can use your information and restoration skills well. There are quite a few magic tools in our storehouse that haven't been restored, but I couldn't get my hands on them because I specialize in mana stone processing. I think you can fix them, so how is it?"

"I'm available."

Dione seemed impressed by his short but convincing answer. It was welcome news for Kleio. If he restored the magic tools in Grayer's warehouses, he would receive a considerable fee. He didn't have great analytical skills, but instead, he had the Understanding function of Promise and his memories of the manuscript. Vasco, who loved to talk, described how he collected materials and restored magic tools in detail in the manuscript. Based on that, it was worth a try.

'I didn't know she would make an offer like this right away. This girl seemed to be enthusiastic about business management.'

"But you have a pretty practical business sense, Lady Dione, not like an aristocratic son who grew up in abundance."

Dione, who stowed the 4,000 dinars in her handbag swiftly, raised her chin slightly with a strange expression.

"Aristocratic? The thing you don't seem to know, young master, is that poor nobility is more miserable than poor commoners. Even after starving for three days, I couldn't even eat."

"...!"

"Originally, my father was a man named Grayer. A noble who never earned a dinar in his life, and if he hadn't died, wouldn't I have starved?"

It was a background he couldn't even imagine. Dione looked like she hadn't held anything heavier than a teacup and only ate white bread.

"My foster father, Vasco, took me in after he came back from a ten-year expedition. He educated and supported me. It is money above all else that gives people a place and makes them human. How could you neglect it?"

"There's something that you and I relate to in that regard."

"It seems strange that the children of Baronet Asel know that urgency."

Their eyes met, and the smiles of accomplices and business partners bloomed on their faces.

"Let's discuss the details later. I have to go buy some evening papers."

"Don't you read the newspaper in the morning?"

"The hotel doesn't prepare them. If you're tired, take a break first."

"What break? You have to get ready for the banquet!"

"Isn't there a while left until nine?"

"It'll be hard to prepare in four hours. I'll prepare first, so please be quick."

He left the hotel with Dione's request to return in thirty minutes. He had been scrutinized by the major national newspapers every day. It was in vain so far, but he patiently read each one. After buying all five of the daily newspapers at a kiosk, he sat on a bench and read them. Finally, the article he searched for was there.

-Abnormal phenomenon in the King's Forest in the Pintos Mountains.-

-Inhabitants attribute damage to due movement of wild animals-

-Investigation team has been dispatched from the capital-

'It's returning as expected.'

That was the precursor to the discovery of a tiplaum mine. As the facts he knew became a reality, he felt refreshed.

'That tiplaum mine will completely change the continent's future.'

Tiplaum, as described in the manuscript, was an essential material for improving Albion's military power.

'But the mine is found on the royal estate. The royal family will conduct the development, so I can't have fun with stocks.'

His money lay somewhere else.

'Even in this world, real-estate seems to be undefeated!'

To lay the foundation for that, Kleio had come to Novantes.