Chapter 61 – Alex’s wealth 1

In the dining room, the King was peacefully drinking his tea with his daughter and the lady’s maid, while glancing at a thrilled Pearl Pearson, who was being mouth fed by a giggling Wenammy. On the other end of the table, Bethany Mathews was doing the same with James McDonald, and Ghar had her mouth open, waiting for another slice of bread from the smiling Gabriel Dawson.
King Otto faced the doors at the sound of the opening, and Alex entered with Anika at his side, rubbing her eyes and yawning.

The King frowned a little and asked, “You look very happy, Alex, but Anika looks like she didn’t sleep.”

Anika sat on the chair that Alex had pulled for her, but as soon as she sat, she jumped up with a pained expression. She slowly sat down again, but the King noticed she was a little sideway. “What’s the matter, Anika? Are you feeling alright?”

Anika slowly tried to adjust her body, but she felt the pain in her lower half again and remained sideways. She made a slight smile with redness on her cheeks and answered, “I guess we had too much fun last night… I may need to rest today, but lucky for me, it’s Pearl and Wenammy’s turn. I am not sure if I would manage another treatment...”

The Princess choked, and her lady’s maid turned completely red. The King gulped and punched Alex in the head. “I am starting to hate you so much, you brat!”

Alex felt an acute pain in his head, not only because of the light punch the King gave him. “Ouch… Don’t do that, my head is still spinning… I may have done something a little too much last night. Where is Suijin? I need some of his Healing Magic. I am in no condition to use my Magic…”

The King stopped another punch in mid-air and said, “He is in the back garden with Viscount Tom, Viscount Finley, Okami, Shinatobe, and Kagu. They are teaching a few things to Sara. She woke up very early and was already here when we all arrived. She was excited to show Viscount Tom how she learned and practised the exercises he taught her yesterday after dinner. When they finish, Sara will stay in the back garden practising with Okami, Shinatobe, and Kagu, and the Viscounts will come to have a meeting with you. Viscount Tom already sent a messenger to Sara’s parents, telling them she will return to them after lunch. I also want to talk to you about a few things, mostly about what I did and saw in the countries that I went to visit in the last few months. I wasn’t only representing Beliersia, I was also taking care of your businesses.”

Alex nodded and took a sip of his tea. “Thanks for that. I hope it was not too much of a bother.”

“It was fun, actually. It would be better if we leave the rest of the talk for the meeting, don’t you agree?”

Alex noticed the King was signalling him with his eyes to the people at the table, and he nodded. It was indeed better to leave the rest for the meeting because many things could be too difficult to explain to the others.
When Alex was eating a piece of bread and almost finished his tea, the two Viscounts entered the dining room, laughing their hearts out.

Alex wondered why they seemed so happy, and then Viscount Tom West said, “That little girl is a prodigy, Alex! Guess what she is doing in the back garden?”

“I don’t know, practising?”

Viscount Tom shook his head. “No, she is doing way more than that! There is a line of Mages waiting to duel her! She has already defeated five, tied two and lost one. But I think she lost because she was getting tired.”

Alex covered his face with both hands. “You crazy Rabbit-kind... Didn’t I tell you not to torture her? You want to make her faint of tiredness?”

“Nonsense! She has more stamina than you ever had at her age! Shinatobe has already checked the amount of Magic that Sara has. If she uses her Magic wisely, she can keep on duelling for the entire morning before fainting of exhaustion! I got myself an amazing disciple! She will be my pride and joy in a few years!”

Alex frowned and stopped munching the bread. “I thought I was your pride and joy!”

“No, you were just lucky, because even with you being completely inapt with Magic, you were still able to become a powerful Mage Summoner!”

Alex swallowed the last bit of his tea and got up. “It’s better if we go to our meeting, or I might throw this cup at your head for mocking me so much. Miss Olive, do you mind joining us? Mister Gabriel, can you keep Ghar company? I know it will be difficult to understand Ghar without Miss Olive translating, but...”

Gabriel Dawson raised his right hand to stop him and said with a smile, “We understand each other more or less, even without Miss Olive. With growls and gestures, we get our message through.”

“That’s good to know. Anika, Pearl, and Wenammy, do you want to join us, considering you said you wanted to learn more about me? This will be a good opportunity.”

The three women got up, with Anika biting her lip because of the pain in her lower half. The Princess tried to get up as well, but the King placed one hand over her shoulder. “Not you, Ebell. It could bring a lot of trouble for you if you inadvertently said anything in the court of Bouria about what we are going to discuss.”

Princess Ebell sat again and asked, “You are going to discuss some national secret?”

“Almost, considering the severe implications for the peace amongst countries. There are a few people out there that are envious of everything that Alex has accomplished so far, and they don’t know half of it. He has already suffered two assassination attempts since we came. Imagine what could happen if the wrong people found out how Alex’s influence had already spread.”

The King followed Alex to the meeting room, leaving behind a puzzled Princess. James Macdonald noticed the Princess didn’t look very happy about being left out, and he asked, “Princess Ebell, are you ready to travel to Bouria? Do you have everything you need?”

“Everything is already inside a carriage, but my father told me that Earl Alex asked his servants to change my luggage to one of his carriages, but I don’t know why. The carriage we brought was very simple; no one would know that I was travelling inside. I also brought a change of simple clothes, and I am going to change after lunch.”

James Macdonald nodded and continued on eating, glancing at the Princess occasionally, thinking that she didn’t sound as rude as on the first day they met her.
In the meeting room, Alex was seated on a chair at the round table, with Anika seated on top of a cushion that Alex asked a servant to bring for her.

While the King was opening a book, Pearl asked with a serious face, while Wenammy was almost bursting into laughter. “What’s the matter with your butt, Anika? Did you fall from the bed last night?”

Anika turned bright red and looked at her with an angry look. “Laugh all you want, but let’s see if you can seat tomorrow! And for the record, it’s not only my butt that hurts! It’s... Oh, shut up, Wenammy, stop laughing!”

Wenammy said, in between her laughter, “Ahahah! If I knew that for you to be quiet, all that was needed was for Alex to be with you just for one night, I would have helped ages ago to conquer him!”

The King looked up from his book and grumbled, “You lucky bastard... I hate you so much...”

While the King was thinking about whether he should throw his book at Alex’s head or not, Miss Olive gently pushed her book towards him. “Look at mine first. As you know, I am in charge of your interests in the ‘Imamah of Sanstan’. In the first twenty pages of that book, there are the expenses for buying ingredients for the products we make, the houses, warehouses, and shops that I bought on your behalf, and the money paid to the workers on them. The next twenty pages detail the profits of the warehouses and shops. After that, the taxes paid to the ‘Imamah of Sanstan’. Finally, on the last few pages, is the total of your money and Magical Orbs in your safe houses already deducted the payments for your workers for the next year. Like you asked me to do, I have a safe room in a heavily guarded cellar with the money to pay your workers in the ‘Imamah of Sanstan’ for one year if something happens, and you lose everything.”

Alex glanced through the pages and stopped on the last page. He frowned at the total of his profit and asked. “Is this accurate? Because it’s absurd! What am I going to do with all this money?”

Miss Olive gave a slight smile. “Look to the next page. There is a list of the donations for the Orphanages and Churches in the ‘Imamah of Sanstan’ for this year, and a list of new shops to be bought, and warehouses to be converted into facilities, together with the money needed. Even with those next expenses, there will be a lot of money left.”

Alex looked at the list and nodded in approval. “It seems everything is in order, but there’s still a lot of money... too much...”

Miss Olive grabbed the book that Alex returned to her and said, “As usual, only I know the contents of this book. I will put it next to the others in the safe room of this Castle.”

Viscount Finley Henderson gave his book to Alex. “My turn. I am in charge of your interests in Belliersia, and together with Miss Olive, we take care of your lands and the deceased Earl Kayden’s lands. My book has the accounting related to your lands, the shops, shipping yards, warehouses, and the Merchants that work for you. Like Miss Olive, my book is divided into topics, with taxes, expenses, profits, and future projects.”

Alex looked at the last pages of the projects and gave a slight smile. He then looked at the previous page with the total of his Magical Orbs and the money and went pale. He looked at Viscount Finley and stuttered, “T-this can’t be r-right! Only one year has gone by since we held the last meeting to check the books! How in the World did I gain so much money and Magical Orbs?”

“Your products sell themselves, that’s how. We also do an excellent job, you know that!”

Anika looked at the book that Alex quickly closed and asked, “I can’t look at that?”

Alex tapped the book a few times, thinking. He then pointed with his open hand to his keepers at the table. “Better not. There is a reason they don’t look at each other’s books; only I can do that. I wouldn’t mind if they also knew how much I have, but they convinced me it would be better for security reasons that only I know. If by any chance an enemy captures and tortures them, or gets his hands on one book, he won’t be able to find out all that I have and where it is hidden. Even if I lose a bunch of things, there will still be enough left for me to continue my work.”

Anika crossed her arms and pouted. “How are we supposed to help you if we don’t know what you have?”

Alex glanced at the King, who was slowly nodding, and he opened the book and gave it to Anika. “I suppose you are right. Look with Pearl and Wenammy. Don’t say a thing and remember that this is the book with more things. The other books also have a lot, but there is less money in my safe houses in other countries.”

Anika looked at the pages one by one, with Wenammy and Pearl leaning on her shoulders. They gasped a few times, and on the last few pages, they went completely silent. Anika slowly closed the book and delivered it back to Alex without saying a word.

He noticed the paleness on her face and said, “Do you now understand? This is why I am so careful about everyone that approaches me. I don’t care if they are Humans, Mermaids, Fairies, or Elfians. I can’t trust anyone immediately, because all this money would be enough to tempt a lot of good people.”

Wenammy and Anika slowly nodded, and Pearl shrugged. “Money means nothing to me; I just like Magical Orbs. Or used to, because you completely ruined for me the beauty of a Magical Orb filled with Magic. If I am understanding everything correctly, every one of them, the King, the Viscounts, and Miss Olive, are in charge of a country and your several interests in it, correct? And you also have a tonne of money in a safe room in those countries, like you have in your manor and this Castle, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct. You are thinking about the total, aren’t you?”

“Well... it seems to me that you have more money than most countries, and that’s just wrong.”

Alex nodded. “I also think the same. That’s why I want to teach my methods for the land to other countries so that they don’t need to worry about food or money for their people and country. I also have a lot of projects to spend my money on, and I am constantly donating money to Orphanages, Churches, and families in need. I don’t give a lot of money at a time, because it would cause more harm than good, and I never do it in my name, because I don’t want anyone to know it was me. Except in some special cases with whom I have a good relationship, like the Priest in the border City of Haukagil.”