Chapter 21 - Wesley's Enterprise

Around eleven in the morning, Wesley's first day was finally over. He promptly left the Academy grounds and walked back toward his house. Wesley really didn’t want to spend any more time than necessary in the academy.

'From now on, I will attend the light magic and swordsmanship classes daily; the other classes will be once a week.'

Wesley was only interested in light magic and swordsmanship. As for the other classes, he could simply read books to keep up with the studies and not be bothered by them. Wesley was going to take advantage of the light magic studies to improve his dark magic, and he would use the swordsmanship class to improve his Silent Techniques.

It took Wesley a little longer than in the morning to return to the Black Manor, since the streets were more crowded now. When Wesley reached the Manor, he was slightly surprised to find two men standing guard at the front gate.

The two men were both about six and a half feet tall, and each wore jade-green uniforms with a long sword on their hips. The two men stood at attention and exuded a sense of professionalism.

'These must be the new guards Lane hired. They look rather impressive.'

The moment the two men laid eyes on Wesley, they squinted slightly. But as soon as he walked close enough for them to get a better look at his face, they both seemed to realize who he was and spoke in unison:

"Lord."

'Hmm, it seems they recognize me. Lane's work, no doubt'

Wesley didn’t worry about the fact that they called him "lord," because it was easy for them to come to that conclusion, given that the Lane who hired them served him. Wesley simply nodded to the two men and walked in.

As he entered, Wesley noticed that some renovations were still being done on the outer walls. There were also a few people working on the outer facade of the Manor, which had fallen into disrepair over the years. Wesley also noticed that there were two more green-uniformed men standing at the entrance of the house.

Wesley simply walked toward the house, showered by stares from the workers who not only recognized him as the master but were also surprised by the Royal Academy uniform he wore. Wesley just ignored the stares and the whispers that no doubt followed. As soon as he entered the house, he was greeted by the figure of Lane. Lane slightly bowed and spoke in his high-pitched yet serene voice:

"Welcome back, Master. How was school?"

Lane's voice held a hint of excitement, which he tried to mask as he spoke about school.

'Haha, it seems Lane also wants to attend school.'

"It was fine, Lane. How are things progressing?"

Wesley immediately started walking toward the study as soon as he asked his question. Lane simply followed and spoke as they walked:

"The renovations will be completed in two more days. Some guards have also been hired. I have scheduled for the owner of the construction company, as well as the owners of a few more companies, to come meet with us later to discuss some business."

Wesley and Lane reached the study by the time Lane finished his report. Wesley walked in without responding to Lane and headed toward one of the chairs, then simply sat. Wesley then spoke while gesturing for Lane to sit as well.

"Good, good. Tell me about these guards you hired."

"Yes, Master. They are all residents of the Seventh District. They were once soldiers in the service of the city who, for some reason or another, found themselves jobless. I hired ten, six of which will be living in the Manor."

'Former soldiers. That explains their impressive attitudes.'

"How about finances?"

Lane’s face seemed to slightly turn red as Wesley asked him about the finances. He was about to run out of the thousand gold Wesley had given him a few days ago, but he was reluctant to ask Wesley for more.

"Master, I am almost out of gold. From the renovations to the hiring of ten guards, four maids, and buying essentials, uniforms, and furniture, I have spent a total of nine hundred and forty gold."

Lane didn’t ask for more because he knew that a thousand gold was not a small amount. In fact, middle-class families earned a thousand gold in two months, while he had spent it in three days. Wesley noticed Lane’s embarrassment, so he couldn’t help but laugh as he spoke:

"Haha, Lane. Don’t be so shy. It’s only normal to spend such an amount when one is starting out and doing all the things you did. How much do you estimate our monthly expenditure to be from now on, now that we are done with the renovations and hirings?"

Lane’s face lit up as he heard Wesley’s words. He was worried that Wesley would chastise him for spending so much money in such a short period of time. Lane immediately started calculating something in his mind and answered a few seconds later:

"Master, six hundred gold a month should be enough. Adding up the total for the..."

"No need for too many details, Lane. Six hundred gold is good. Now, tell me about these business owners who are coming over."

Lane was momentarily startled by Wesley's sudden interruption, but he didn’t mind it and proceeded to answer the question he was asked:

"Master, I have arranged for us to meet the owners of five businesses that we can potentially invest in. Each of the five businesses is based in the Seventh District and has managed to be successful even under the Shorn Family."

"Hmm, I see. What sort of investing are you planning to conduct with these companies?"

"Master, I have two plans. First, we buy shares in the companies and gain a portion of their profits as partial owners. However, most businesses are not willing to give up shares of their companies easily. So the second option is to lend the companies money and charge them interest."

'Oh, like a bank. Interesting.'

Banks were not a rare thing in the Four Kingdoms and Blackreach County. In fact, the kingdoms themselves had national banks that lent businesses money while charging them interest. Banking was also a favorite of noble families with capital, since they had access to businesses that operated in their lands.

"And how are you planning on determining which businesses we lend money to?"

"Master, I will examine each business’s financial record to see how they fared in the last few years. I will also require a business plan from each of the businesses outlining exactly how they plan to make profits. And just as a safeguard, if one business fails to make payments, we will automatically receive payment in shares that will be worth half their original price."

'What a shrewd mind for business. It’s far more complex than I thought.'

"That is an acceptable plan. Only, I’m sure most of these businesses receive loans from banks. How do you plan to compete with them?"

"Master, there are only two major businesses in Blackreach City, and they do offer substantial loans. However, their interest rates are rather steep. Since we are not a bank that is obligated to pay a portion of their profits back to the people whose money they spend, we can offer lower interest rates."

"Good. Just make sure that we don’t commit to too many businesses. The amount of funds I have is not unlimited."

"Yes, Master. You will only need to pay for these first five companies' loans. We will charge them an interest rate of ten percent and then rotate the profits from the interest we gain back into further investments in the future."

"Good. Is there anything else I need to know?"

"No, Master."

"Good. Go prepare the contracts before the owners arrive. Also, find little Sala and tell her to come see me for her reading lesson."

"Yes, Master."

Lane immediately stood up and left the study, leaving Wesley sitting alone in the room.

'Lane seems to have quite the talent for finances. I should search for a proper school for him to further hone his talent.'

Wesley always knew that Lane was an impressive child, and now that his skills in financial management were apparent, Wesley wanted to further polish him. However, he didn’t want to push him too hard, lest he be unable to handle the stress. After all, he was only eight years old.

A short while later, Sala came for her reading classes. After a short hour, Sala started to get bored, so Wesley let her go back. He then started reading.