CivCEO

by Andrew Karevik

  “That is true…”

  “And second, you don’t have to lift a finger. I can provide all the credit services with my associates. I’ll open up credit lines with other champions, negotiate rates and ensure payments are made on time. All you literally have to do is finance the operation.”

  This seemed to appeal to Nicos. “It would be cheaper than having to build more vaults to store my own gold. But how can I trust you?”

  “I’d only make money on the loan’s interest, as a banking fee. So, I’d be incentivized to get others to borrow. And besides, the contract making system from the Great Picture makes deals like these easy to agree to.”

  Nicos slowly nodded at that. “So I’m the money lender, you’re the banker. What’s your cut to be?

  “I think twenty percent of the interest collected is fair,” I said.

  “Perhaps in some other fantasy world,” Nicos said. “Five percent, since I’m the one financing the whole thing.”

  “But I’m doing all the work. You really think I’d get out of bed for less than twelve percent?” I asked.

  “With the way these beds are made, you’d get out of bed for any amount. Eight percent, firm.”

  I had underestimated Nicos in some way. Since he was a man so singularly set on conquest, I had assumed that he wouldn’t know much about negotiation, but here he was, keenly aware of what value he was bringing. I could push further, to get a better rate, but if he said no, I’d be out busking in front of Manithor, and I was certainly no musician.

  “Fine, eight percent on the interest collected,” I said.

  “Let’s make it an even ten, to make the math easier,” Nicos said, stretching out an armored glove to shake my hand.

  It appeared that Nicos was a fair enough man to avoid jilting a new business partner. I appreciated that about him. I shook his hand, but recoiled a little as his grip tightened.

  “There are some ground rules, of course,” he said, his grip unrelenting. “First off, you will keep detailed records of everything, paper records, to be sent to me at the end of each business quarter. Second, this arrangement in no way means that we are allies in battle, so do not speak to others as if we were somehow buddies, and third? I was accountant in the old world, so I will know exactly how to detect fraud on those records. And guess what? I also know exactly where Tine is too. It’s not too far from here, is it?”

  Chapter 36

  I left the burning city of Gremvor with a brand new deal as well as the complete and full attention of a brutal warlord. Making a business deal with him might not have been the wisest idea, especially now that I was on his radar. But at the same time, if he did prove to be a problem, it would be later in the future. I needed to deal with the threat of the Tradesmen today.

  One of the small details that I had managed to slip into the deal without any care from Nicos was an option for me to take out loans as well, albeit at a rate of 25% per year. This would solve my own problems for the time being, as I could borrow the rest of the gold that I needed for the wall. This meant that my business further South had been finished, and I could return home.

  Using the Great Picture, I completed the dealings that were necessary to build the wall, putting in the order and paying for it with the money I had raised and borrowed from Nicos. In total, I had borrowed about 400 gold, which was a relatively small sum compared to what was available. Nicos had put up a total of 10,000 gold that could be loaned to anyone I saw fit. My job was to build credit ratings for champions and to ensure that no one took what they couldn’t pay back. Of course, the first thought that crossed my mind was perhaps borrowing a significant amount of gold to bolster my own city, but I decided against it. Nicos was not an investor. If things did not go well for me in my spending and I couldn’t pay him back, I would be in hot water. Rather, it would be better to arrange loans to other champions and collect ten percent of the interest gained.

  I returned home as quickly as possible, my mind filled with thoughts of how I could make use of this newfound source of income. With all these new trading partners and potential deals that could be made, I had a lot of work cut out for me. But, all of this would be for nothing if I could not discourage the Tradesmen from their continued efforts against me.

  Upon arrival, I was greeted by a large wooden gate that prevented me from gaining access to my own city. This gate was connected to the wall that completely cut off not just the Amber Road but also the secondary road the Tradesmen used to send their shipments back and forth to Igithor. The price of building a wall around my own territory had only been a few hundred gold pieces, but to block off the secondary road had cost an extra 500.

  But now, now I had total control of the trade routes to the South. The Tradesmen had committed a grievous error so long ago, one that they would pay for today. In their work to consolidate and control all trade in the region, they didn’t need to worry about creating alternate roads from the North to the South. After all, their trading partners were all located along one route and all roads led to Igithor. But, since they only had a single primary road that led through the middle of the Amber forest, one that was quite close to my territory, all I needed to do was build a single wall that blocked off the entrance and exit of the road. This would effectively shut down their ability to move wagons up and down, since both roads were completely closed off. The only way to get through was to pay a toll to me, but since I was currently embargoed, I would simply turn wagons around.

  Of course, a particularly determined merchant might be tempted to take his wagons off-road, to move through the dark and dense woods, but in doing so, they would be very vulnerable to the bandits who were charged with liberating the supplies of any vessel flying the flag of the Tradesmen. The Tradies had made one fatal mistake in dealing with me: they had become so complacent in their normal state of affairs that they underestimated the danger of someone getting control of the roads. Now, for the villages in the south, the only safe alternative was to take the western road, which certainly did not lead to Igithor.

  I had no doubt that this move would irritate Manithor, Igithor and the village Etherdome. But what would they be able to do about it, short of laying siege to me? These walls were thick and strong, able to withstand just about any major attack. We had plenty of food stored up and, within the week, I would be able to hire a band of mercenaries to defend us, if necessary. The Tradesmen of Igithor had certainly lost this battle, and hopefully, it would put an end to this silly war. I had much more to worry about than some trade guild constantly threatening me. I had been so busy rushing around that my ability to really manage the interior of my village had been limited.

  Leopold had been a godsend in terms of handling trouble within the village. Any problems the villagers had, he was willing to sit down and deal with them, making fair judgments and taking all the heat for unpopular decisions. But I had greater ambitions for Tine; hopefully I would be able to see those ambitions come to life, now that the wall was erected.

  Upon returning to my small bedroom, I promptly collapsed on my bed and slept for what was most likely a full day. Traveling around had been exhausting, and while I had gotten some sleep on the road, it was never as fully relaxing as my own bed. I felt, in a lot of ways, like a general who had returned home from war, having spent almost every waking second focused on achieving one aim.

  The next evening, while I was still in bed, lazily looking over the terms of my agreement with Nicos, a knock came at the door.

  “Sir?” Teresa said. “The leader of the Tradesmen has arrived to speak to you.”

  “Tanders?” I grunted, slowly climbing out of the bed. My legs were quite sore from the endless days of riding a horse, but it felt good to stretch. “How many of them are there?”

  “He is alone, outside the gate,” she replied. “He waves the flag of peace.”

  This was an interesting development. Was this an honest attempt at reconciliation? Or a clever way to get inside of our cit
y and size it up for a fight? I would not allow him in, that was for sure.

  “I fear his intentions, what is the appropriate custom for this?” I asked her as I dressed.

  “They couldn’t hate us any more than they already do,” she curtly replied. “Do as you please.”

  “Great, I’ll be right out,” I said. I finished dressing and took a moment to wash my face in the washroom. I was still greatly exhausted from my travels, but I needed to be fully awake. What I would give for a cup of coffee right now.

  I staggered out of my room and made my way to the northern gate. The gigantic wall that surrounded Tine had changed the overall feel of the village. Once it had been open and free, now it was secure and safe. Warm, almost cozy. The sense of impending danger, the idea of a large horde arriving to attack us out of nowhere, was now gone. All we had to worry about was when to close the wooden gates. Eventually, we’d buy iron to fashion a fancy iron drop gate that would further bolster our defenses, but that was for later.

  I arrived at the top of the castle wall, looking down to see that, sure enough, Tanders was standing by his lonesome, his only companion a white horse. I had no interest in inviting him inside to look around and see that we weren’t armed to the teeth quite yet. I’d rather let his imagination fill in the blanks.

  “Greetings,” I called from atop the wall, staring down at the mustachioed man.

  “Are you serious with this?” Tanders huffed. “You can’t greet me face to face? Have you no sense of decorum?”

  “I can’t say that I do,” I replied. “At least, not when it comes to dealing with people whose sense of business involves violence and coercion.”

  “Come now, we’re all friends here. I simply want to make an offer to you.”

  “Then, by all means, make it,” I replied, leaning forward, against the wall. I wanted to show him that I was in a position of power. By blatantly violating his sense of how a deal should be conducted, it would throw him off his game. If he was being insincere, there was a better chance his temper would flare, letting me see his real position.

  “That was a cunning play, paying the sanction fees we placed upon you, all the while building this wall. Completely caught us off guard,” Tanders said. “But you’ve placed us both in a very precarious position.”

  “Is that so?”

  “By cutting off our trade routes, my payments to the main guild chapter go significantly down. They will deem me to be incompetent and have me removed from my office, especially in the wake of a conflict with one of my subordinates. And once I’m out of the picture, they will solve this wall problem with pure, unadulterated violence.”

  “I can hold my own.”

  Tanders laughed at that. “Against my chapter, for certain. But you have to realize, each chapter exists solely as a way to improve the financial outlook of the main guild. We get to keep a slice of the pie, but they are the ones who have the most to gain from our actions. What makes them so efficient is their ability to keep their trade routes open by any means necessary.”

  I frowned at that. I suspected that this was the case, but was unsure if Tanders was simply bluffing or not. Then again, the fact that he had arrived in the middle of the night, completely alone, indicated that perhaps this deal was not something the others were aware of. I knew the man’s only interest was in himself. If his position was really in danger, perhaps this gave me greater leverage.

  “So what are you proposing then?” I asked.

  “An end to the sanctions, in exchange for you opening the gate on the main road for my wagons. If you don’t, then we’re both done for, that much I can promise.”

  “So, I spend all of this time, energy and money on building an infrastructure that can compete with your chapter, and my reward is something I don’t care about? You’ve got to think more creatively, my good man,” I replied.

  “Your reward is that you don’t get annihilated by the Tradesmen’s main army. Each chapter owes them 5,000 men in total. There are 14 chapters across Liora. At a moment’s notice, the main guild can rally 70,000 men to fight you. I know for a fact you cannot repel that many,” Tanders said. “So, you have a choice. You can keep rubbing my face in your victory, only to lose miserably, or we can agree to peace.”

  “How are you going to make this worth my while?” I asked, pressing him harder. I had all the leverage here, that much I knew. There was no harm in trying to get more than just peace.

  “What do you want?” he asked. “Gold? I can provide you what was agreed upon in our previous arrangement.” He paused for a second and scowled up at me. “You remember that deal, I’m sure.”

  “All too well, and I apologize that I was unable to go through with my end of the bargain,” I said. “Something came up.”

  “I’m sure something came up indeed,” Tanders said. He and I both knew full well of the betrayal that had taken place, but so desperate was this man to keep his position of power that he dared not to bring it up.

  Ten thousand gold had been the original deal. This was quite a bit of money, and it would certainly aid my own village greatly, not to mention pay for the expenses I had incurred in getting everything up and running. But there was no shortage of money in the deals that I had been making. I needed something more than just a few more gold coins in my pocket.

  “I appreciate the offer, but let me counter,” I said. “You and I have become enemies throughout this process, but we are after the same thing, are we not? We want wealth and power, yet our methods and means of gaining such are different. What if we were to join our forces together, for something greater?”

  This caused Tanders to tilt his head and look at me as if I were a madman. “Are you serious? Join forces?”

  “Would you consider it?” I asked. “If so, you may enter into my village. Or else, I suppose we can just agree to peace and be done with this whole affair.”

  Tanders was silent for a moment. By casually floating out the prospect of peace regardless of his decision, I would be able to suss out his truest intentions. Was he simply a lackey for the Tradesmen? Or was he ambitious enough to go for more? “I suppose there’s no harm in hearing you out,” he said.

  “Then wait a moment, if you would be so kind,” I said, leaving the wall. I called down to the guards to open the doors for Tanders and escort him in. A plan was beginning to form in my head, one that would allow for the both of us to get what we wanted.

  I quickly led Tanders into my own office, one that was still incredibly small and modest. Compared to Tanders’ own private office, it was an embarrassment, but at least I had the good leather chair imported from Authos.

  Once we were behind closed doors, it was time for the scheming to begin.

  “Let me ask you this, Tanders,” I said, sinking into my chair as he took his own seat. “What do you really want in life?”

  Tanders stroked his mustache for a moment. “I suppose, if we were to be truly honest with each other, I’d tell you that I want to live like a king. Wealth, power, complete autonomy.”

  “A noble aspiration,” I said. “You desire freedom then?”

  “Who doesn’t? You champions are lucky, for you are beholden only to the gods who have chosen you. The rest of us, on the other hand, we always have to find a boot to lick in order to move upwards.”

  “Why are you with the Tradesmen?” I asked.

  Tanders grinned. “They reward skilled and ruthless men such as myself. Mind you, I’m not as excessive as the others, but I am exacting in my methods.”

  I took in a deep breath and readied my pitch. “We have had a frustrating past, have we not? But, in a lot of ways, it’s purely because we are professionals. I must take care of my own interests, and you yours. But what if we were able to align our interests together? Stop pressing against each other so fiercely and instead work together to make our lives richer?”

  “The Tradesmen have strict rules and laws,” Tanders said. “My job is to enforce th
ose laws and rules.”

  “But to what end?” I asked. “You seem to be wealthy enough as it is. What’s the next step for you?”

  Tanders shrugged. “There is no next step. Running a city chapter is the highest achievement possible. Unless there’s a vacancy on the board, I’ve nowhere else to go.”

  “And you’re satisfied with that?” I asked.

  “I’m open to other offers, if that’s what you’re asking, but mind you, I’m a very expensive asset,” Tanders said. He folded his hands in his lap and assumed a strong position for negotiation, one that would help hide his body language.

  “I’m building my own trade network, as you can see. This involves a new trade route as well as a banking service,” I said. “The only thing stopping me from expanding this operation is the strength and size of the Tradesmen, specifically the Igithor chapter.”

  “Indeed, we hold a very tight fist on commerce in this region,” Tanders said. “But even if you were to somehow steal me away, my replacement would be just as fierce a competitor. Perhaps even more brutal than myself.”

  “Who said you’d be leaving your job?” I asked.

  This elicited a chuckle from Tanders. “What are you getting at?”

  “The Tradesmen are a very large union, one with serious power, but only because all of the chapters are working in harmony. Here is my proposal. What if I was to build my own trade guild, a rival to the Tradesmen? With you on my side, I’d be able to slowly recruit and convert other chapter members to this union, steal workers with better rates and convince villages to trade with me. Over time, their power weakens, and ours builds.”

  “And once you’re strong enough to face them head on, Igithor publicly switches to your side,” Tanders said. “Not a bad idea at all, capturing them from the inside, but what makes you think I’d be willing to switch?”