章 24: The meeting with Martell

A counter lined with smoky bottles of alcohol on a wooden table. The thick smell of alcohol lingering since daytime.

The sound of glasses being slammed down haphazardly, sighs, and the sound of tapping the floor with impatience. The atmosphere in the tavern of the Martell territory was heavy.

"The atmosphere here is quite unpleasant."

"It's undeniable since, the Martell family's gold mine has been depleted."

Oh, Lorenzo is shotting me a suspicious look again.

"Lord Ryker, you've been gathering information about the Martell territory from merchants for the past few months, haven't you?"

"Yeah, I mentioned it because I heard that the amount of gold transactions was decreasing."

"If gold runs out, there won't be any decent industries left, so when we propose something, they'll jump at it. This is a business opportunity, right?"

"That's right."