The early morning in Baklund opened with its signature heavy fog, even the radiant strands of golden light struggled to pierce through the suffocating armor.
Elias despite himself was an early bird today, after just finishing his breakfast; he proceeded with his now formal routine of tea session while browsing through the newspaper.
"Knock, Knock, Knock"
A firm but unhurried knock sounded from the door, Elias didn't rush to answer, he took the leisure to take another sip, before carefully folding the newspaper and moving towards the door. He opened it to find no one, but a single envelope at his feet.
The envelope was plain, yet the seal and the quality of the paper made it obvious that the contents were meant for someone accustomed to formal arrangements rather than casual business. Elias broke the seal at the door before going inside to his desk and unfolded the letter with measured care. The handwriting was neat, the phrasing polite, and the tone entirely in keeping with a man who understood the difference between courtesy and familiarity.
It was a reply from Macht conveying that he would be pleased to discuss the matter of investment further, and that if Elias was indeed serious about investing, he could attend a private club reserved for former military personnel. The invitation was phrased as a polite invitation, but it had the firmness of an arrangement already moving forward.
Elias read it once, then again, and folded it back into the envelope while considering the simple truth behind it. This was not some elaborate test, nor a hidden challenge waiting to spring shut on the unwary. It was business, and business often advanced in precisely this sort of measured way, with men of influence exchanging polite words before deciding whether their money should be placed where their mouths had already gone.
He put the letter down and sat for a moment without moving. If one was going to attend such a place, then one could not dress carelessly and expect the room to treat him with respect. Elias rose, opened his wardrobe, and examined the options with the same attention a man might give to the cut of a blade. In his experience, clothing was never entirely superficial. One was what one wore after all, at least in the sense that a person's exterior announced whether he understood where he stood in the world. He selected a restrained but well-cut coat, dark enough to remain understated yet refined enough to suit a meeting among people who valued formality. He adjusted the sleeves, checked the line of the shoulders, and made sure that nothing about him looked hurried or improvised.
The journey to the meeting destination was uneventful, the carriage moved almost smoothly through the streets; this allowed him to think of a few thinks regarding his current situation.
'The first step of becoming a beyonder had gone without complications, now I need to find ways to increase my wealth and social status, hopefully this meeting proves fortunate enough for a first step in that direction.
I also need to start my acting process to digest the potion fast' when the thought accurd, his squinted his eyes in deep thought 'The acting method's entire purpose revolves around deciving the residual mental imprint of the original creator in the characteristics, and slowly digesting it.'
'If we go by that principal I shouldn't need to act at all, since there's no mental emprint to decieve and digest in the first place'
'But I guess that's wishful thinking, the Celestial Spire, at my level of control, could never truly erase the mental imprint of the original creator, all it did was miniaturize the imprint; that left a void gap in the characteristics, which was then refilled with the information of the new potion provided by the Spire, and I'm guessing a new imprint already fused with that information settled in'
He closed his eyes at the thought, his face remained calm as his mind went back to the moment after he created and scattered the three Uniqnesses.
"The imprint is weak, so I should be able to digest it like any normal potion at this level, and the same must apply to future potions, but I should still prepare accordingly. I believe their influence would only grow further as time goes, and this would change things in ways unknown"
Despite the supposed inconvenience brought by the potential change in plot, an expectant smile couldn't help but creep up his face "This should be interesting"
...
The club turned out to be what he had expected and slightly more. It was exclusive without being ostentatious, guarded without looking like a fortress, and maintained with the kind of discretion that suggested the people entering its doors preferred their affairs private not because they were shameful, but because they were valuable.
Elias noticed the range before anything else, the careful arrangement of shooting lanes and the presence of men who seemed to regard firearms and discipline as natural companions rather than decorative accessories. There were also quiet sitting rooms, a lounge with low tables and dark polished wood, and corridors wide enough for groups to pass without crowding one another. The air inside carried a faint, dry scent of gun oil, tobacco, leather, and old paper.
The members themselves differed from the nobles Elias had been observing recently. They still carried themselves with confidence, but it was not the empty sort that often came from inheritance and habit alone. These men had the pride of those who had once stood in conditions where pride had to be backed by practice.
Their shoulders were straight, their movements efficient, and even in conversation they tended to project a stubborn self-possession, as though they had long since learned that one did not survive by bowing to every breeze. Some of them wore civilian clothes that had clearly been chosen with care, while others retained enough military bearing in their posture to make the distinction irrelevant.
Elias found the contrast useful. Nobles often performed importance. These men had earned enough of it to remain quiet.
Macht himself was waiting in one of the private rooms, and Elias understood at once why the invitation had come through him. Macht was in his forties, with black hair and brown eyes. His face had a long, thin shape that gave him a somewhat severe appearance, and the lines around his features suggested a man who had spent enough years managing practical affairs to stop expecting the world to reward optimism. His hairline had receded slightly, though not enough to make him look old, only the sort of middle-aged man whose best qualities had settled into an expression of competent austerity. He stood with the posture of someone accustomed to being listened to.
When Elias entered, Macht rose and greeted him with a directness that still retained courtesy. There was no unnecessary display in his manner. He offered a hand, Elias accepted, and the handshake was firm in the way that signaled both honesty and caution.
Macht spoke as men in business often did, politely and without frills, but not in a way that felt cold. He was the sort of man who could enter a room and make it clear that the conversation would be efficient before anyone had the chance to waste time pretending otherwise.
"You came," Macht said, and the remark contained neither surprise nor flattery, only acknowledgement.
"It would have been rude not to," Elias replied.
Macht nodded once, as if satisfied with the answer, and gestured toward the seat opposite him. A third man was already present, though he had not spoken yet. Elias noticed him almost immediately, not because he was loud or conspicuous, but because he was too composed to be overlooked.
"Mr Vessal, I want you to meet Elias Nova, he exprissed his interest in investing in our upcoming projet" Macht took the lead in introducing both parties.
"A pleasure to make your acquaintance mr Nova, I hope you find value in our meeting today"
Vessal had the face of someone who understood presentation as a tool and used it accordingly. His silver glasses were fitted with thin chains that hung neatly beside his cheeks, and his smile was professional to the point of near perfection. The expression looked polished enough to pass as pleasant from any angle, yet Elias had the distinct impression that it had been refined until all softness had been removed.
Vessal sat straight-backed, with the kind of calm that suggested either a man who had absolute confidence in the situation or one who had long ago learned to look that way regardless of what was happening.
Macht did most of the initial guiding, explaining the general shape of the project with the practiced patience of someone who had already invested his own money and now needed others to understand why their participation would be worth the trouble.
He described the newly discovered mine, its prospective value, the logistics of beginning work, and the need for additional capital before operations could expand. Elias listened carefully, but he also kept half his attention on the two men's behavior as they spoke. Macht remained straightforward throughout, often leaning slightly forward when he emphasized a point, his expression serious and practical.
Vessal, on the other hand, rarely interrupted unless the conversation turned toward the mine itself, at which point his interest sharpened immediately, to the point that he would even cut off Macht sometimes to explain it himself. The change was subtle, but Elias noticed the eagerness with which he answered anything directly related to the site.
Macht handled the broader structure of the discussion as though he were directing a well-organized meeting, but it was Vessal who seemed eager to step in whenever the actual details of the mine came up. Elias viewed that as quite the interesting dynamic.
According to Vessal, the mine was a coal mine, nothing more and nothing less. The location lay outside the capital, in an area that had enough industrial potential to justify the excavation and enough distance from the city to keep the work discreet. No unusual phenomena had been discovered. No strange reports had been filed. The mine had been found by Vessal's company, the initial exploration had already been paid for, and the current problem was expansion. They needed investors willing to provide capital so that the work could begin on a proper scale.
Macht, as Elias understood it, was the second partner in the broader sense of the project. He had already invested a substantial amount of money and was now working to secure other backers. Vessal, meanwhile, was the one actually handling the mine through his company that had discovered it, and that arrangement explained why he seemed so attentive whenever the operational side of the business was discussed.
The conversation unfolded in a way that made Macht appear to be guiding the exchange while Vessal filled in the relevant details as needed. Elias had no difficulty seeing the structure. Macht represented capital and connections, while Vessal represented ownership and execution. Together they were looking for someone else to bring in capital without complicating the arrangement.
Elias had already made up his mind, but he still asked a few questions, for reasons known to him only, not enough to appear suspicious, but enough to gauge a few extra details.
The answers were all reasonable. The mine was expected to produce coal, the initial costs had been calculated, and the profit-sharing proposal was already prepared. Other investors were involved, though most of them were connected to Macht's broader network, while a few others to Vessal's company.
The arrangement was built on practical interests rather than any grand ambition. By the end of the explanation, Elias had a fair grasp of the deal. He would contribute a total of 1200 pounds and receive ten percent of the project's profits in return. The money he decided to invested here was quite the significant loss in the short term for the current him, but based on his judgement it was worth it, not because it was without risk.
Quite the opposite, Elias understood throughout their meeting that this investment would take him way beyond the world of business, and if this storm was sailed with caution, he was in for more than just financial gain.
Elias compared the opportunity against the current state of his funds, the value of securing a foothold in this circle, and the ordinary logic of resource investment. Ignoring the deeper waters of the situation and solely focusing on the surface; That alone was worth something.
"I can invest," he said at last, and the words seemed to settle the matter with little fuss. "Ten percent of the profits is acceptable."
Macht nodded, unsurprised. Vessal's smile did not change, though Elias thought he noticed a slight quickening in his eyes, a brief flash of satisfaction that vanished almost immediately beneath the same polished expression. The details were discussed a little further, but the agreement itself had already been made.
They agreed to meet up again later for the collection of the money and further discussion on the project. There was no reason to rush. The project appeared legitimate enough on the surface, and the terms were reasonable if one was willing to accept a modest share of future profit in exchange for immediate capital exposure.
When the conversation finally came to an end, Elias rose with the same smooth control he had maintained throughout. He thanked them both, his smile perfect in the way all carefully managed smiles ought to be. Macht returned the courtesy with the calm satisfaction of a man who had achieved part of his objective. Vessal did the same, his own smile unchanged and professional from first greeting to last.
Elias turned to leave, then paused for only a moment as though remembering something. He cast a discreet glance back at Vessal, who still wore that same impeccable expression, silver glasses catching the light just enough to make his face appear almost too composed to be ordinary.