Chapter 560 An Eventful Day
By the time Daneel got back after making a few special…arrangements, the meetings regarding Angarian Express were just coming to a close.
As a graceful host, Daneel joined in and thanked everyone for watching and coming before closing off the show.
After that, he made a flying platform which he used to personally take Helena and Dalia back, as they stared out at the clouds in the night sky in awe.
Daneel kept the speed moderate, so that they wouldn't get motion sickness. If he had to be frank, he would admit that he, too, liked flying in the moonlight, staring at the stars as they winked at those below.
After coming to Angaria, Daneel realized that he hadn't even paused and appreciated the sheer beauty that lay in flying by oneself through the sky, unbridled and free, with the feeling that nothing could stop them.
It was every child's, and even many adults' dream on Earth, and he had obtained it by just training for a few years.
So, Daneel used this moment of silence between them to close his eyes and feel the night wind blow into his face, lifting his hair while, at the same time, lifting up his spirit which had become slightly bogged down in confusion due to all the information he had just obtained.
This allowed him to calm down and smile, and in the process regain his confidence.
He knew that what he had chosen was right, and he would follow through with it no matter what anyone said.
Looking over his shoulder, he saw that Helena was being held by Dalia while she had fun with a few clouds that passed them: she would reach out and let her hand run through them, causing long swathes of blankness to appear which looked pretty as they passed them by.
Smiling, Daneel got to the reason why he had opted to fly these two back.
"So, Helena. How did you feel when you saw the effectiveness of splitting the service in three according to who used it? You must have listened to all those who came gossiping among themselves while discussing the Express. Let little Dalia play, she won't be able to hear us."
That last part made Helena smile, before she stepped forward while letting Dalia stay where she was, so that the little girl was only able to see her back, and, hence didn't know that this joy trip had turned into a business one.
She didn't have to know, which was something that both Daneel and Helena felt.
After thinking for a moment, Helena finally said, "I did see the kind of reach that wasn't there in our products. The rich were avid to show their opulence by purchasing tickets for the Premium Express, as you called it, and the poorer folk were just happy to have an affordable means of travel. Of course, us business folk are the happiest. We are your biggest consumers, right?"
Raising an eyebrow at the astute observation of the woman, Daneel smiled and said, "Yes, apart from the rich. As for the poor, the margins are low and the profits are almost nil, but I don't mind because I just want to provide them with the service. In a way, like I suggested it for you, I am using the extra money I'm receiving from you and the rich to fund the poor's expense."
This made Helena nod to herself, as if she had expected that the King would answer in this way.
First, she once again sank into deep depth, before finally giving her answer.
"All right, King Daneel. I'll work out a way to segment them accordingly. You are right, using the rich to pay for the poor is really a great idea. And the poor will also have something to work toward."
The answer made Daneel clap and beam with joy.
As someone from Earth, he knew the importance of a brand name. Now, he was going to create a premium one which the whole continent would clamor for.
"Good! Now that you've agreed, maybe we can make simple enchanted clothes available for the poor, too? Think about it. A farmer's clothes, if enchanted with the ability to keep off dust, will save the farmer from enduring coughing fits due to the dust and dirt they have to be near. A blacksmith can have cooling clothes to help them work for longer without heating up due to the flames. A roadside seller can have self-cleaning clothes so that they can use the same and decrease costs in washing clothes and having to buy multiple sets of them. All in all, citizens will be happy to live in a place where all these things are available."
Daneel said this with a smile. Of course, the last part was all about satisfaction level, which would definitely grow if what he said became possible.
"Indeed, King Daneel! I've thought about that, too. But the problem is that we would never be able to create enough, as there are too few-"
"You forget our alliance with the elves, By tomorrow, a team of Amateur Enchanters will be at your factory. Use them well."
Helena was startled.
Right, they had the elves now!
She had almost forgotten, and as she heard the King give that statement, she smiled and bowed before stepping back to join Dalia.
Meanwhile, with the matter settled, Daneel was looking forward to the trip he would make soon.
Earlier, before his visit to that underground lair, Daneel had felt that it was unfortunate that he had to leave behind his schemes to leave on that journey.
Yet, he wasn't concerned now, due to the arrangement he had made over there.
…
Meanwhile, in the wooden house in the middle of nowhere that had been designated as the official meeting place for all those involved in the plan to profit from the King of Lanthanor's schemes.
Jordan was walking around in the mostly empty house with one hand behind his back.
In his other hand was a duster, which he was using to clean all the tables and chairs that had been used in the meeting.
As he was doing so, a maid appeared at the door and looked at him before saying, "Oh, someone's already here? I'll clean the other areas, then."
She had been sent by the official butler in charge of this area to clean the main meeting room, but as soon as she came, she had seen a man wearing the plain clothes of a worker carefully cleaning everything with his back turned to her.
The man only nodded in response, which led her to leave.
However, it was only after getting to the butler to tell her about this did the woman find out that she had made a blunder.
That…was actually supposed to be the most powerful person among those gathering, and she had mistaken him for a cleaner.
The woman ran back to apologize and beg that she not be punished, but when she returned to the room, she found it empty as Jordan had already left back to his own room.
Unlike the others who had gone back to their bases to handle their various businesses, he was someone who only needed communication trinkets to manage his empire.
Yes, an empire- one which dwarfed all the enterprises of all the others in size.
He had a hand in almost every business, as he controlled the wishes of the main, common workforce that all those other businessmen employed.
In a way, if they didn't pay him his due, he would incite movements for pay raises, or revolutions that would see thousands of Ether blocks worth materials lost.
And how had he done it all? By shrewdly building his network over decades while being a simple cleaner in various places.
No matter where he went, he would gather support from the working class, thereby increasing the size of his network, until he had a sizeable force to call on in all the Kingdoms except Axelor.
If things hadn't gotten dire for the people he took money from, he might not have stepped out, at all, but he had done so because he had recognized that all these people needed guidance to protect their interests, and his.
The plan had all been his doing, and he would also gain a lot when it succeeded.
Yet, right now, a voice inside his head was repeatedly telling him that this was an opportunity like no other.
He already had an idea in mind, and although it was risky, he realized that this risk might set him up for life.
As the voice got louder and louder, Jordan finally listened to it.
With a smile, he sat on the table in his small room and took out a data trinket which had a record of all the money that each businessperson was putting into this endeavor.
The agreement had been that they would reap profits proportionally.
But…what if he showed them the allure of fake profits, and kept squeezing them dry?
Yes, they trusted him, so it would work. All he would have to do was make edits in the records here and there to entice these hoarders to take out everything they had leeched from the continent over all these years.
Their 'inspired' plans would move faster and obtain more market share, while they would keep thinking that they would someday acquire limitless profits as reported by the records.
Yet, there would be none.
Wait…what did he gain from all this?
The voice kept promising him that he would gain more than anyone, and it was so strong that Jordan believed it. Yes, he would definitely gain a lot. All he would have to do was go along with this plan.
So, as the system kept watch, Jordan began the King's operation, which had aptly been named 'Squeeze 'em dry'.
…
Meanwhile, the Head and Rayen had just recovered from the shock of abruptly being interrupted by that Giant Head outside the window, but by the time they looked to that window again, a giant figure could already be seen scrambling away on all fours through that hole it had made.
With frustration, Rayen exclaimed, "Well, there go almost all my other formations. Head, couldn't you have just responded?"
To this, the Head shook his head with frustration, too.
"Listen to the message he sent.", he said, before raising a hand with the ring which he had used as a communication trinket earlier and making sound appear.
"Shed, shi want Zshelanev doo. Shend both or we closh."
It was practically gibberish.
"I thought he sent it by mistake!"
Indeed, the message had been spoken out by someone whose mouth was stuffed.
This made Rayen realize that the Head couldn't be blamed, but he was still pretty disgruntled as his master plan to get rid of the man had been ruined.
In the brief absence of the Head, Rayen had purposefully traveled to Lanthanor in his main body so that the Head would notice.
When stopped, he would come back to the house with the Head, and launch into a speech about how that was the last-ditch desperate attempt, and that he would now enter a closed-door training/mourning period.
This would be an ample excuse, and he would behave after that, which would make the Head leave so that he could uphold his end of the bargain with that devilish King so that his son would stay alive.
Only, the moment was gone, and he would have to think of a better plan.
Meanwhile, as he watched, the Head shrugged and took out a communication trinket to send a message.
…
Daneel had just gotten back to the Palace after dropping after the mother and daughter duo.
As soon as he was about to hit the sack, exhausted and dream about simply banging his enemies heads with hammers to make them faint, the ring given by the Head, which he had kept on his body after checking that it wasn't an eavesdropping trinket, vibrated.
As Daneel heard the message, he was puzzled and had to make it repeat, but when it did, he immediately called for Elanev.
A minute later, his elder brother staggered into the room, looking bone-tired and weary.
"What is it, Daneel? This damn old man only allows me 4 hours of sleep…", he said while yawning, which made Daneel raise an eyebrow and say, "Well, this will wake you right up. A Sect of the Big 4 is calling for you, because they say you will fit right in with their teachings. Know anything about that?"
The next moment, Daneel received his answer, but it wasn't from his elder brother, who looked as bewildered as he had been when he received the message.
No, it was the old man, who appeared beside Elanev and whooped before saying, "Finally! My disciple, your master is incredible! Long ago, I set up a plan to infiltrate the sect in the Big 4 which is solely made up of Fighters so that he can put in place a plan for me to access all the top-notch Fighter techniques and training areas, in case I needed them to train a special disciple. You are that disciple, boy. Get ready to see real hell! Haha!"