Chương 623: Chapter 622: You want to resign?

Click! The door opened, and I walked inside the conference room, which was filled with people. Everyone is there: Locke, Amellus, Valentina, and the older man, along with Mr. Faris from the synod and four people from the Nehdis. A middle-aged man with blond hair is in charge of them. He is one of the people who has a smiling face, and he is smiling.

"Lord Silver," they greeted.

"Everyone," I replied and sat down.

"We had discussed everything; the only thing that remained was a signing," said Locke. I nodded and turned to the middle-aged man.

"Mr. Hardman, I hope Nehdis will be quick with the work," I told the middle-aged man.

"Of course. We will be quick but also the best. I am sure Mr. Amellus would have told you how good we are with the projects we have," he replied, looking at him from the corner of his eyes. He didn't react. His only reaction was a faint twitch when the man spoke his name.

"He did," I replied, turning to the contracts before me. Amellus has a burning hatred toward them but also praises their work. I had already read the contract, but I read it again before taking a pen and signing it. When I finished signing the contract on the last page, I felt the contract click.

"With this, our relationship began, and I hope it will last as long as the city remains standing," said the man, clinging to the misty glass with me.

"It will be," I replied with a smile. However, a moment later, I turned my expression serious.

"I hope we can start designing as soon as possible. We already have designs for the academy. I hope Nehdis will accept them so we can begin building it." I requested. The smile on the man's face didn't change, but he shook his head.

"Nehdis had taken the contract for designing the academy, Lord Silver. Our designs will be much better than what you already have," he replied politely. I genuinely wanted to punch the jerk. If Nehdis accepted our designs, it would save us a lot of time. I wanted the synod to remove the design contract, but they didn't. Nehdis could still accept the designs, but they are unwilling to do that. I wish I could force them, but I couldn't.

"We will be sending our design team to Greltheaven in the next week to ten days. Our design department is excellent, mentored by Lord Nehdis himself," he said, and I wish I could have beaten him to death.

"Can they not come sooner, Mr. Hardman? We want to start with the academy as soon as possible," asked Locke, and a man turned to him without changing his expression.

"Your city is getting the services of Nehdis, Chief Locke. It might seem a little slow, but we are going as fast as possible."

"We want this project to be the best and need to be as meticulous about every detail," he replied. I am angry, not at this man, but at myself. If I hadn't been desperate, I would have kicked this bastard out. I left the conference a few minutes later but didn't go to my office. Instead, I walked toward the exit. As I walked, I couldn't help but notice the city hall was getting crowded. We are hiring more people, expanding, and opening more departments. Another problem has raised its head.

There seemed to be no end to them. Soon, I walked out of the city hall and into the carriage. A second later, it began to move toward the legacy.

"A message from Madam Jenna and Lord Rutto; the negotiations are successful," informed Zela.

"Congratulate her from me," I replied. They had gone to Mok's, one of the legacies I had successfully auctioned in the first bit. Now, we will have to send the people there. A Tier III madam and key bar staff will lead it. I would have preferred to send the Tier II, madam, but I have only a few of them. Barb and Gloria were sent to Oton, while Jenna and Rutto will move on to their other task. There are only four Tier II madams in the tower. Gloria left with Barb, leaving only Cath, Danielle, and Senar.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Those three are handling everything since Caena is busy with witchcraft. She has a lot on her plate, including the spells for the legacies we were planning to swallow and take the first bite of, along with upgrading the establishment's witchcraft charms. I had advised her to slow down on them since we would not reach Grade IV so quickly or ever, but she wanted to be done with them.

That leaves me with no choice but to give this responsibility to Tier III madams. It is a massive responsibility for them, but if they do well enough, I will promote them to Tier II. Sometimes, I wish to call Andrea, Varza, and Onaz back, but I can't. They are essential to where they are. I need more girls in leadership, but I can't just wave and make it happen. It is a long process, and incidents like store floors happen if I don't do due diligence. So, I become more careful with the new trainees.

Soon, the carriage turned and entered the park, a place that never fails to impress. As always, it was alive with people—citizens and tourists alike. No matter the time, the park remained a vibrant hub, a testament to the city's charm and appeal. Their numbers are increasing each day, and so is the capacity of the hotels. The problem isn't as severe as it was and will become manageable as more hotels open up. Even now, new hotels are opening, easing the situation little by little.

It made me feel relieved because tourism provides good revenue. I am using this money to build more roads, gardens, hospitals, and, of course, the army. It is a beast, and it is only getting bigger every month. Finally, the carriage stopped. I got out and entered the legacy, feeling its power and the smell. Most importantly, I had absolute power here.

"Master Silver," The girls at the reception greeted me. I nodded and took a step into the elevator. Lorle used to work here, but she has now been accepted as a trainee. She's doing well—actually, she's with Carla. Carla informed me of her decision to take the madams and trainees on trips to give them experience and test their skills. As the door closed, the elevator began to rise. Moments later, the store floors came into view.

As always, the area was bustling with a large crowd, but I noticed many eyes drifting toward the closed stores. They wouldn't stay closed for long. I had already selected two stores in the city, and their owners had been notified. Miss Rolgath will arrive at night, and the people who specialize in creating the interiors of specific stores will take over those places. The selected stores can't just move their goods here. A lot of preparation is needed before that could happen.

Take Hayden's Ceramics, the ceramic shop I had chosen. The kiln is one of the most critical parts, but we can't use the bulky one they have in their store. The space is limited, and the shop needs to be both a workshop and a store. Most importantly, they must create a show for patrons to see. The equipment they will use will be top-of-the-line, and the tower will finance it. So, even if we want to reopen those spaces quickly, it will take some time, but I will ask them to make it quicker.

Thankfully, when the master of a legacy tells them, they do it. Still, it might take this whole month before the stores open. Carla has already confirmed the store in Owlspring. She will visit Inam to see another store and then go to Namdar, where she will see several before choosing one. Let's hope they are what we want them to be, or we will find someone else.

'I am in the office with Senar. She wants to talk to you about something important,' informed Caena as I stepped out of the elevator.

'I hope it's not something important.' I thought. I don't want to deal with important stuff; I have enough of them already on my plate. I walked toward my office, looking at patrons enjoying themselves. It gives me great joy to see them like this, and it validates the work I am doing. Click! Soon, I reached my office, and as Caena had said, she and Senar were there. When I looked at them, I couldn't help but sigh internally. I know it's important. It's clearly written on both of the women's faces.

"So, Caena said there is something you want to discuss?" I asked as I sat down. I would have talked about something else if it wasn't important, but whatever it was, I wanted to get on with it.

"Yes. I want you to relieve me of my floor duties," Senar replied. Shocking me.

"You want to resign?" I asked. I really hope she isn't saying that. We already had too few Tier II madams, and she has proven herself. In a short time, she has ascended to Tier II.

"No," she replied, shaking her head, making me relieved.

"Then?" I asked.

"I want to focus on trainees full-time. I want them to be the best leaders. I want to instill the values and principles of Velvet Garden. So that incidents like on the store floors do not happen," she replied. The incident had shaken everyone, but it shook the girls the most.

"I know I may not have as much experience as the other madams, but I have no doubt that I can do the job," she declared with unwavering confidence.

"I will train the finest future leaders of Velvet Garden," she made her case. I have to give it to her guts. The woman is intelligent enough to understand that what she asks for is risky. Right now, she is split between the floor and the training but wants to focus solely on it. This means she will bear full responsibility for any mistakes they make. Previously, managing the floors served as a shield, but now she stands on her own. I looked at Caena before turning to the woman in front of me.

"Give me some time to think about it," I told her.

"Thank you for your consideration, Master Silver," she thanked and bowed before leaving the office.

"She is a brave girl. Taking a job with massive responsibility and risk," said Caena.

"I think it is necessary. We need a structured training for the trainees. Following around madams isn't good enough," I replied. It's not like I haven't thought about it. I have thought about it a lot. Too much, actually.

"I agree, but that will leave only Cath and Danielle, Tier II, madam's, handling things in the tower, and they already have too much on their plates," she replied.

"I think it's time to give Stavad the big responsibility. The whole of Velvet Blue," I stated.

"I am also thinking about hiring other people with extensive experience in their fields," I added. Our girls have too many responsibilities, and we need experts to handle them. I have hired a few, but we need more. We can't always give every responsibility to the girls.

"The girls should be responsible for the floors," she said before sighing.

"But you are right; there is too much responsibility on the girls," she replied.

"Stavad?" I asked. I understand her desire to keep the girls in all critical positions. They worked hard for it and deserved it, but so did the others. They had proved themselves and deserved to be promoted for it.

"He will do a good job at Velvet Blue," she replied finally. She may want the girls, but she understands they can't do all the jobs, and Stavad deserves it.