Chapter 127: Millions of Dollars
"We aren’t going to be talking for long. Just keep in mind that this conversation is going to go one of two ways. One; our deal falls short after you refuse my offer and I walk out that door without another word. Or you accept my deal as well as all the terms that come with it, and I make you and your company into the single largest dealership of Magic Crystals and Magic Beast parts in the world."
As Jason spoke, Juliet’s eyes slowly grew wider and wider, until she was staring at Jason in pure shock. Jason’s confidence and sheer charisma drew her in like nothing she had ever felt before! If she had been invested in this conversation before, now she was even more so. Juliet sat straighter in her seat and she stapled her hands in front of her. There was a seriousness in Jason’s eyes at that moment that told Juliet this wasn’t just some newbie telling her they would bring her some good fortune. This was a much larger deal than Juliet could have predicted.
Juliet was still skeptical about Jason’s offer, but now that she was actually seeing Jason’s seriousness, there was a bit of hope in her heart. This might actually be it. This might be what saves her company.
"What did you have in mind?"
Juliet spoke with narrowed eyes and Jason began to speak while taking out a pen and grabbing a serviette from the side to write on.
"Your company, Tenet, runs independently from the government. They deal in all Magical Artefacts, beast parts, and crystals and they’ve been experiencing a significant economic and financial strain due to the monopoly of the SMD. You can’t make things easier for yourself since the SMD has a vice grip on the trust of other superhumans, so you have no way to draw in customers. But you see, I don’t care about the SMD or the government. What I care about right now, is anonymity. I am currently in possession of just over three hundred Magical Crystals and I will get hundreds more very soon, and I am willing to sell all those crystals, along with any other artifact that I acquire to Tenet if you refrain from telling any government or private institution where you got them from."
Juliet swallowed again as she heard the number. It was absurd to think that a single person would have that many crystals on them and she was finding it hard to believe it. But what really drew her attention right now was what Jason was asking her to do. He wanted her to hide information from the SMD for him? Why?
"I apologise if this comes off as rude, but before anything else, I’d like to ensure that you didn’t acquire these crystals through any... nefarious means."
Jason waved his hand as he finished writing on the serviette and smiled.
"Nothing like that. You can be certain that no crime was committed while getting these."
Juliet took in another breath and she thought for a few seconds before responding.
"It will be difficult for us to accept your terms. Hiding information from the SMD is very difficult because of how well-informed they are. They audit us on a regular basis."
"Those are my terms, Ms. Juliet. I will not be changing them. But if you are still skeptical, then take a look at this. These are the prices I am willing to sell for."
Jason slid the serviette forward to Juliet and she blinked in surprise before looking down at it. The serviette held a few lines written down in a neat font and Juliet read through it quickly with intense concentration.
The offer basically said that Jason would make Tenet his exclusive dealership for all Magic-Based artefacts, and in exchange, he would receive 80% of all profits made from the sale of those Magic Artefacts as well as complete discretion from the company about his real identity. Juliet felt her eyes widen once she read the percentage and she looked up at Jason in shock!
What in the world did Jason think he was doing here? Did he even know what it meant to get eighty percent of the profit!? That was insane!
The deal that the SMD gave to any superhuman who sold their artefact to them was basically something similar to what Jason had written down. The SMD pays the superhumans a percentage of what they would sell the artefact for later on and that was the profit the superhuman would make. But the amount paid to superhumans was only 45% to 50% of what the SMD would make in the long run. After selling the crystal to the government or private institutions, the SMD makes more than double what they pay the superhumans!
Most private companies followed the same patterns and offered a similar price as the SMD, but there were others that offered just a little more, around 50 to 55% so that they would draw in more customers. Tenet actually offered the highest payout with 55%, but there was nothing they could do against the immense influence of the SMD. People just trusted the SMD more.
So for Jason to be telling her to give him eighty percent of the total amount made, it was highway robbery! She would only be making twenty percent, and her company would also have to bear the full weight of selling the magical item!
Juliet felt some anger rising from inside her when she finished reading through the paper, but she took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. This was a business deal that they were conducting, so it was only normal that the other party would try to strike a deal that would be beneficial to them. It was her job as a businesswoman to turn things around!
Juliet looked Jason in the eye and spoke in a calm voice.
"Mr. Jason. I apologise, but this will not be possible. Not only is the percentage greatly skewed in your favour, but the possibility that the SMD will audit us and force us to reveal your identity is also high. I feel insulted that you would ask us to accept such unfair terms."
Jason smiled. Did they really think it was unfair? That was amusing.
"I don’t think you understand what I’m offering you here, so I’ll try to lay it out properly. The price the SMD pays for a small, medium, and large magic crystal from a Red Gate are ten, thirty, and one hundred and fifty thousand dollars respectively. We all know they’re ripping us off, so let’s say the actual prices are twenty, sixty, and three hundred dollars. Right now, the crystals I have are from an Orange Gate, which means the smallest crystal would cost about one hundred and twenty thousand dollars, the medium would cost close to six hundred thousand dollars and the largest would be almost a million dollars. Unfortunately, I already used the largest crystal for other matters, so I can’t sell that to you. But I still have over two hundred of the smaller crystals and just under a hundred of the medium-sized crystals. If we calculate that, it will come down to a total of twenty-four million dollars for the smaller crystals and sixty million dollars for the medium-sized ones. That’s eighty-four million altogether, after taxes. Twenty percent of that will be –"
"Seventeen million dollars."
Juliet finished Jason’s sentence for him with a shocked tone.