City of Desire [Kingdom Building]

Proofread by Thomas F

Eliyen Saelion

“Brinas Varnell wants the table for four on the top floor of Velvet Blue on the 12th evening and entry into the exclusive floor of the casino,” said Latar, one of three mages.

“Brinas Varnell is on the fourth VIP list. Four star,” stated Rona.

Hearing that, Madam Danielle turned to me.

I am in the reservation office, where a staff of twelve works and takes reservations for the casino, as well as Velvet Red, Velvet Blue, Velvet Spa, Velvet Theatre, and everything else.

It falls under the responsibilities of Madam Danielle.

As a trainee, I have been working here for a week and a half. Before that, I worked in the food and drinks industry.

They sent trainees to every department to determine where they fit best and also to analyse their performance. Those who meet the criteria will be promoted to madam.

I want to be a madam, but it’s tough, as there are many people to impress.

The department heads, including the head of training, Madam Senar, the Triumvirate, and most importantly, Master Silver.

The accent of all isn’t needed to become a madam, aside from Master Silver’s, of course, but it increases the chances.

I felt Madam Danielle’s gaze, and I know I have to answer soon.

“We can give him entry to the exclusive floor of the casino, but not the table on the top floor of the blue. We can give him a table, on the second exclusive floor of the Blue,” I replied after a moment of silence.

Getting a table depends on several factors; anyone can get a table on any floor of the tower, but the question is when.

Common people take years, unless they get a lottery, but if one is Brinas Varnell. From the powerful merchant house and the nephew of its leader, you could get it in a day.

We also looked at the favor list, which is the list compiled by the girls. He had only four stars on it.

Which is not that good. If he had eight or above. I might have thought about giving him a table on the top floor.

It would have happened if he had substantial investments in the Greltheaven or had a personal relationship with Master Silver or the Trimvirate.

There are a few additional factors that determine when you will be assigned a table and at which floor or location on the floor.

“Good,” she replied and turned to Binil, who quickly noted down.

She left a few minutes later; the reservation department isn’t the only thing that falls within her responsibilities. All Grade II madams have too many responsibilities.

The fact that we need more Madams is an open secret, but despite that, they are not blindly promoting anyone.

Especially after that incident on the store floors.

“The reservations request had slowed down in the past two days,” said Rona, and immediately, the whole hall quieted down; a few had even glared at her.

She understood what she said and turned to me with apparent fear in her eyes.

Currently, I have the highest authority here. However, I do not have the power to finalise the reservation. That authority belongs to Madam Danielle.

Still, these people are scared.

Of the twelve people here, nine are civilians. There are three girls of the Velvet Garden. All of them could be fired from this job.

It is a place where people could be bribed. They had already fired a couple of people from this department. These individuals are very meticulous about every action.

“It’s the battle; it made people uncertain about the Velvet Garden,” I replied to their surprise.

One thing I learned in Velvet Garden was that speaking didn’t get you punished. One can speak freely, but caution is necessary when discussing sensitive and confidential subjects.

I looked at the clock; there are two more hours before my shift ends.

I love the job and usually didn’t count every minute to end, but today was important. Madis had called; he had found what I had been looking for.

Minutes passed painfully before, finally, it was twelve and the shift was over.

“Lorle,” I greeted the fellow trainee as I handed her the charge before walking out of the reservation office.

It is underground, like many other offices of the Velvet Garden. Above us is a park, actually, a lake.

I walked fast and soon reached the underground parking.

I activated Always Fresh, and immediately, any dirt, dust, and anything else began to flow off my body.

My skin became vibrant, and my hair fixed. The changes also affected my dress; the creases vanished, and the dirt. It looked like it had been freshly ironed, like it was when I wore it at midnight.

The shifts are twelve hours long, sometimes longer. It wasn’t the case when I was working in Velvet Red; I only needed to work for six to ten hours.

The trainees needed to work long shifts, as we had a lot to learn.

Soon, I arrived at the place, and a driver was waiting with the carriage. He is a middle-aged man wearing a black driver’s uniform with the emblem of his agency.

After I received a message from Madis earlier, I booked the carriage.

“Miss Saelion?” he asked, and I could feel the skill with his eyes. “Yes,” I replied.

“I hope you will be satisfied with our service, ma’am,” he said as he opened the door. I nodded and stepped inside.

The carriage moved, and soon, it emerged from the underground parking.

I looked at the park and saw that there were people there, but their numbers didn’t seem as numerous as they used to be, and there was a sense of heaviness.

The battle had affected many things.

Now, everyone is thinking about the future and discussing whether the undead will come again, and whether we will be able to stop them when they do.

I tried not to think too much about those things. Focus more on myself and the things I want to do.

Minutes passed, and soon, the carriage entered the bustling market. It’s a clothing market, and it is crowded as ever; it is the only place that didn’t seem to be affected by the undead.

Click!

Soon, the carriage came to a stop, and the driver opened the door. I thanked him and looked at the person, waiting not far away from me.

He is a man in his forties, short with thick raven hair and dark eyes. He is clean-shaven and wearing a black business suit as always.

“Miss Saelion,” he greeted. “Mr. Madis,” I replied, and turned to the store behind him.

I was a little surprised because I had visited this store a couple of times to buy my supplies.

“This is one I want to show you,” he said, looking at the store.

It is a single-story store called Hartman’s Embroidery. They sell embroidered items, such as pillows, handkerchiefs, and other related products.

It’s a chain of stores from the merchant states. They have quite a good collection.

 “I don’t think I will be able to afford it,” I replied, looking at the store. Yes, I am considering buying the store, but my preference is for a smaller one.

I could buy any type of store, but I chose the embroidery store since I am the embroiderer myself.

This one is neither big nor small. The store occupies approximately a thousand square feet and is well-decorated, but its customer service requires improvement.

“Yes, it is a little over your budget, but they are selling it cheap due to current conditions,” he replied.

The battle had started to affect everything, including businesses. They want to sell and leave the city.

“How much?” I asked. “Let’s look at the store first,” he replied with a smile. I want to say that I already knew the store, but I followed him into it.

“It’s an embroidery store, belonging to the well-known chain of stores from Merchant States. It sells everything embroidered, from towels to handkerchiefs to bed sheets.”

“It occupies around twelve hundred square feet of area, and has a five-year lease, of which only five months have elapsed,” he explained.

“On top of that, one of your madams is interested in the land, and the deal might happen,” he added to my surprise.

“Who is it?” I asked, but the man smiled.

Madams are wealthy; every one of them has significant investments made. It is the same for the old girls; they had bought the land when it was dirt cheap.

Many don’t even need to work anymore, given the size of their investments, but still do.

It is why I decided to take the risk. I could have bought the apartment, like I did last time, but I wanted a business.

Many madams and the girls have it.

Business is much better than plots and apartments. It has the potential to grow without limits.

“I have looked at the financials of the store, and they are solid. If we ignore geopolitical risks, this place has a lot of future,” he said.

I didn’t say anything and walked around the store with him. Looking at everything.

It is the same as the last time I was here.

Fifteen minutes later, we finished looking at every part of the store.

“How much?” I asked again. He smiled, but he also handed me a file. I opened the listing and looked at the price, and it made my eyes widen.

“You said, a little out of my budget. It is more than double my budget,” I said, glaring at him. “It’s a business with a bright future, Miss Saelion,” he replied.

I glared at it once more before looking at the file.

Madis is a consultant and broker; he is among the trusted, with Madam Carla herself suggesting his name. Many girls in the Velvet Garden use his services.

If he had been slimy, they would have banned him already; instead, girls praise his acumen and advice.

“It’s a great deal, Miss Saelion. If I were in your place, I would not let it go,” he said with a serious voice.

It isn’t just the price of this place that worries me, but also the other expenses that will come later. I might not think about it, but I know that geopolitical conditions will significantly impact the business.

‘I will have to sell the gifts and might even have to take a loan,’ I thought, as I finished reading it.

I have money, but that won’t be enough. I have gifts from patrons, many of which I hadn’t sold.

“Give me some time to think about it,” I replied finally.

“Don’t take too much time thinking about it, Miss Saelion. I will be showing this to a couple more of your friends in the Velvet Garden,” he said.

“You are a bastard, Madis,” I cursed, but the man smiled,

I wanted to ask their names, but I knew he wouldn’t tell me. Last time, I had even used my charm skills, but the man didn’t budge.

He opened the door of the carriage for me, and I stepped inside. A moment later, it began to move through the crowded street.

…

Harth Oakford

“Follow,”

I ordered the driver to follow behind Eliyen Saelion.

When she left the legacy, I was alerted immediately. My job is to recruit madams, and I don’t think I’m the only one in the city for this purpose.

We have been provided with the information on the madams and were alerted the moment they left the legacy.

I wanted to talk to her when she came out of her carriage, but that man was there, and also his guards. I could have slipped into the carriage, but it would have been troublesome.

Silver had been throwing the recruiters out of the city the moment he found them.

The bastard seemed to have some skills as well.

As we would be immediately found when we enter his city again. It didn’t matter if we wore disguises; within an hour of entering the city, the guards would be at our door.

Sending us to jail before throwing us out of the city.

I need to recruit at least one madam. The bonus is massive enough that I won’t need to work again for a year.

Ophelia Glynrieth is offering a considerable amount to the madams; this one is not even a true madam, but she is still willing to pay a massive amount to recruit her.

She isn’t the only one; I heard, other people are also moving for the whores of Velvet Garden.

I need to speak with her and am even thinking about using the skill.

I could sneak into her carriage without being detected, but that would raise the stake even higher, and it would definitely send me to jail.

Silver’s people have proven themselves to be very good at finding people.

It might ban me from the city, but it will be worth it if I can recruit her.

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