( Meanwhile, Wade's POV )
Wade sat anxiously in his luxurious office, as he awaited a report from his assistant regarding the White Tiger Group's newest product launch.
*Creek*
"Mr. Wade, we have urgent news about the White Tiger Group's grand opening," she said, looking pale and anxious as she handed over a detailed report to Wade.
Wade quickly skimmed through the document, his eyes narrowing with each passing line.
The report highlighted the extraordinary success of the launch, detailing how the store was flooded with customers and how the products were flying off the shelves.
"Extraordinary products, you say?" Wade murmured, his mind racing as he seemed to have underestimated the potential impact of Leo's creations.
The healing liquid and the insecticide were unlike anything currently available, and the customers' reactions were overwhelmingly positive.
Before he could delve deeper into his thoughts, his assistant continued, "Sir, we had a spy infiltrate the store. They managed to purchase a variety of the new products and observed the reactions of the customers firsthand. The reports confirm that the products are indeed miraculous."
Wade felt a knot tighten in his stomach as he felt his worst fears be realized.
The White Tiger Group's new product line was a genuine game changer and the spy's report detailed how adventurers, farmers, and common citizens alike were all thrilled with their purchases, with some even proclaiming that they had never seen anything like it before.
"I had the chance to close the deal with Leo Skyshard, if only I had not been intimidated by Ben Faulkner back then…." Wade muttered longingly, as his mind wandered to the lost opportunity, which he deeply regretted at this moment.
"And there's more," the assistant said, her voice trembling. "The other major group leaders are in a panic. They've called emergency meetings and are desperately trying to come up with strategies to counter the White Tiger Group's new market dominance."
Wade immediately scoffed at this news, as he understood how the market worked.
"They are all going to suffer losses in the tens of millions of gold coin range.
When us and the White Tiger Group stopped the purchase of traditional alchemical products, those five groups bought them en-masse at cheap prices hoping to make the most of the price drop and are now sitting on a huge stock of inferior products with many more being on the way.
For them to sell their inferior products in the market now, they will have to take a loss, or sit on slow moving dead stock that occupies shelf space for months.
This is a full blown crisis for them" Wade said, as he could already imagine the long faces that the other Merchant Group Leaders must be making at this moment.
*******
( Balthazar's POV )
Balthazar, the head of the Purple Springs Group, paced back and forth in his office, with his mind being in grave turmoil.
The news of the White Tiger Group's launch had reached him just moments ago, and the implications were staggering.
"How could this happen?" he muttered to himself. "How did Shane get his hands on such revolutionary products?"
His assistant entered, her face mirroring his anxiety.
"Sir, we have just received confirmation that the products are indeed as extraordinary as reported. Customers are flocking to the White Tiger stores, and as per reports their products are much superior to ours.
Many adventurers who usually buy from our shop have rushed to the White Tiger Group Stores to check out the new hype, and although our daily sales are not down by too much today, if we don't solve this problem soon, they will be down significantly" She said, as her words caused Balthazar to frown even deeper.
Balthazar felt a wave of panic. The Purple Springs Group had always prided itself on being innovative, but this was a level of disruption that they hadn't even anticipated in their wildest dreams.
"We need to find out more about Leo Skyshard," he said. "And we need to accelerate our own product development that knocks off the White Tiger products.
For if we don't act quickly, we'll be left in the dust…" Balthazar said, as he understood just how grave the situation really was.
********
( Cassandra's POV )
Cassandra, the leader of the Black Tortoise Group, stared at the report in her hand in utter disbelief.
Her normally composed demeanor was replaced with visible tension. "This can't be true," she whispered, her voice trembling. "How did the White Tiger Group manage to pull this off?"
Her marketing director stepped forward, trying to offer some solace. "We are already working on a plan, ma'am. But the speed and efficiency with which they've launched these products is unprecedented. It's causing a ripple effect across the entire market."
Cassandra clenched her fists. The Black Tortoise Group had always been a formidable competitor to the White Tiger Group, but this new development threatened to undermine everything they had built.
"We need a comprehensive response," she said firmly.
"Call an emergency meeting with all department heads. We need to regroup and strategize, or we risk losing everything.
But first and foremost we need to find out who the hell this Leo Skyshard is, and find his location." She instructed, as the whole Black tortoise group went into a full blown crisis management mode.
However, it wasn't just the Black Tortoise Group who were feeling anxious, as the panic and urgency among the leaders of all major merchant groups were palpable.
The White Tiger Group's successful launch had not only disrupted the market but had also instilled a sense of fear and uncertainty among its competitors as they scrambled to find a response.
Today, the business landscape of StrongHaven and the Unity Empire had undergone a big shift and at the center of this disruption were 'Leo Skyshard' and 'White Tiger Group', both of whom had now become the talk of the town.
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/// A/N - Apologies for the late chapter upload. It took longer than usual for me to edit it today. ///