Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Gunfire thundered through the palace reception room, shaking the very air. Merchants gasped, eyes wide, as they saw the skinny merchant Clover McCauley and his four knightly guards collapse where they stood. Each of them bore a neat, smoking hole through the skull. Blood and fragments sprayed the marble floor before their bodies crumpled into twitching heaps.
In mere seconds, five lives had been erased.
The chamber fell silent, save for the faint hiss of smoke curling from the barrel of King Gavin Ward's pistol.
"Businessman Clover McCauley," Gavin declared coldly, "betraying national interests, conspiring with Nord, sentenced to capital punishment. Execution carried out immediately."
He holstered the pistol with calm precision, his expression unreadable as he scanned the remaining merchants.
---
Shock in the Chamber
The other businessmen could barely breathe. Their hearts pounded with terror, their eyes fixed on the corpses being dragged away by soldiers of the German Guard. They had just watched four knights—men who had trained for over a decade to earn their rank—slaughtered in an instant, as effortlessly as swatting flies.
None of them had ever seen such weapons before: Gavin's pistol, or the strange submachine guns slung across his soldiers' chests. They now understood what might have destroyed Nord's mighty 50,000-strong army.
"Never oppose him," one merchant thought, sweat dripping down his temples. "Never…"
A middle-aged merchant whispered hoarsely, "I… I fear the world itself is changing. With such weapons, a decade of knightly training is meaningless. An ordinary man could kill a seasoned knight in seconds."
The others avoided his eyes. None dared continue that line of thought, for it was too terrifying. If Gavin's weapons spread, the entire foundation of Loriland—the knightly order, the aristocracy—would crumble.
---
Returning to Business
Gavin brushed his hands together as if nothing unusual had happened and sat on the ornate throne-like chair at the head of the chamber. "Now that the vermin have been dealt with, let us proceed to business."
The remaining merchants stiffened but forced themselves to smile. Business was their refuge.
One plump, bearded merchant, his robes straining over his round belly, leaned forward eagerly. "Your Majesty, say the word. How much do you require of us?"
He raised five fingers nervously. "I will donate five thousand gold coins to the treasury. It is but a small gesture of my loyalty."
Gavin smirked. "How generous. You made fifteen thousand in profit off me just today, and now you return five thousand. Truly patriotic."
The fat merchant's face reddened, sweat soaking his collar. Only moments ago, he had mocked the king in this very room. Now, with Clover McCauley's brains still staining the tiles, he could only grovel.
"I donate two thousand," another blurted.
"Three thousand!" said a third quickly.
In short order, the remaining businessmen pledged around fifty thousand gold coins.
It was a start, though Gavin's appetite was far larger. He leaned back, smiling faintly. "Gentlemen, I have something to show you."
---
The King's Demonstration
The merchants froze. The last time Gavin had invited them to "see something," it had been the severed head of King Ragnor IV of Nord. And after that, Clover's corpse had decorated the floor.
This time, when Gavin clapped his hands, their blood ran cold. Two guards entered—one pushing a small cart, the other carrying a strange object with glass fixtures.
The merchants tensed, preparing themselves for horror. But what they saw was not blood, not severed limbs. Instead, the contraption looked bizarre, fragile, with glass bulbs and wires.
Confused, they leaned closer.
"Gentlemen," Gavin said, resting his hand upon it, "behold."
He flicked a switch.
Light exploded.
The room blazed with brilliance, so sudden and powerful that the merchants recoiled, shielding their eyes. For a moment, it was as if daylight itself had been captured and released indoors.
Gasps filled the chamber.
"By the gods…"
"What sorcery is this?!"
Gavin chuckled. "No sorcery. This is called electric light. At night, it illuminates the world as brightly as day. Unlike magical creations, it requires no rare gems, no expensive rituals. It can be produced cheaply, in bulk."
---
Merchants Smell Profit
The merchants stared, awe-struck. But slowly, their awe twisted into something else—greed.
If this "electric light" could be mass-produced at low cost yet sold at the prices of magical devices, the profit would be staggering.
One merchant whispered the old saying: "At twenty percent profit, capital stirs. At fifty, it takes risks. At a hundred, it tramples laws. At three hundred percent… it dares anything."
And this was far more than three hundred percent.
Gavin watched their expressions darken with hunger and smiled inwardly. He had them.
---
The Frenzy Begins
"I am willing to purchase the rights to sell this invention!" the fat, bearded merchant cried suddenly, his face red with desperation. "Your Majesty, name your price. I'll pay one hundred thousand gold coins!"
The others erupted.
"Absurd! One hundred thousand is nothing compared to its worth. Do you know how much a single lighting magic crystal costs? Nearly a thousand gold! And this—this can be made in bulk!"
"Your Majesty, I offer two hundred thousand!" shouted another, nearly tripping over his robes as he surged to his feet.
A third banged the table so hard the goblets rattled. "Half a million! Five hundred thousand gold coins, all of my family's wealth, if only you grant me the rights!"
The chamber dissolved into chaos. Merchants shouted over one another like gamblers in a frenzy, each desperate not to be left behind. Their eyes gleamed with madness; the prospect of profit had stripped away all dignity.
"Greedy fools," one muttered under his breath, though he too could not resist the lure.
---
The King's Control
Gavin raised a hand, and silence reluctantly followed. His eyes swept across them like a predator among prey.
"Gentlemen," he said softly, "I will not grant this treasure to a single hand. It will not be monopolized. Ross will control the core. But you may share in the wealth—if you cooperate with me."
Relief and disappointment mingled in their eyes. At least the opportunity was not gone.
"Tomorrow," Gavin continued, "we will discuss contracts—monopolies in neighboring countries, your stakes, and your dividends. For now, know this: betrayal will end like McCauley. Loyalty will be rewarded with riches beyond imagining."
He gestured toward the second contraption on the cart, smiling faintly. "And I still have another surprise to show you."
---
[End of Chapter 10]
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