World Sphere - 179 - High Mage Headmaster (Patreon)

Chapter 179 Guildmaster High Mage

Talking with Loriel was always a game. We had come to an agreement that she would be open with me, and for the most part, she was. Skyholme was thriving under her rule. I was sure they were still buried under a mountain of debt, but at least the budgets were balanced, or maybe I was assuming too much. I landed the Maelstrom at the Citadel docks and stepped off alone. A familiar Captain met me. “Are you still in charge of the docks?”

He nodded with a fabricated smile, “Yes, High Mage. It is my pleasure to welcome you once again. Will you be storming in to talk with Ruler Loriel and Prince Consort Antioch, or should I send word of your arrival?” He was joking, referencing my tendency to confront Loriel, arriving unannounced and without waiting for introductions before rushing to confront her.

I pretended to give it some thought, “You can announce me this time. If I stormed in every time, it loses its gravitas.”

“Thank you,” he sounded genuinely relieved. I followed him on a steady walk into the fortress while a servant raced ahead. The Citadel needed extensive work after the Mauraders’ attack, and you could only tell now by the new stone. We went deeper into the structure than before, and I realized I was being taken to the private apartments.

Two guards opened the doors, and Loriel and Antioch were seated on a couch with space on a chair across from them. Loriel smiled a politician’s smile, “You changed your mind so soon? I am guessing you thought of something only I can give you?” It was said with a note of humor and no mirth. I was going to disappoint them because I had no plans to escort Bylura on the trade mission.

I moved across from them and poured myself some wine on the low table between us. I started by asking how Skyholme was faring after the Mauraders rebuild. It was partly to remind them that I had played a major role in the victory and also because I was genuinely interested. Prince Antioch was affable as he described the merchant companies and goods entering Skyholme. Most traders were assigning Skyholme as a safe port to exchange goods. Skyship traffic was up 25% weekly, and he estimated that four hundred foreign skyships would soon arrive daily at Skyholme. This would make it one of the largest ports in the region.

Loriel added that this increase made protecting ships coming and going all the more important. The capital island was still off-limits to foreign trade, but the other islands were building trade docks and warehouses as fast as the material arrived. In a decade, she estimated that Skyholme could be the largest trading hub in three hundred thousand miles. Even large enough to match the massive cities that stood at the access ports to the Outer Sphere, where the large-scale trade occurred.

I needed to turn the conversation to why I was here. “I have been having some difficulty with the new Guildmaster.”

Loriel’s eyebrows arched, and she smirked knowingly, “He was in here two days ago pressuring us to levy the same tax on the Progenitor Dungeon that we levy on all the other dungeons in the islands.”

I didn’t make an effort to understand the new tax system. That was Remy’s job. The old method had Delvers paying for access to dungeons and being forced to sell any dungeon essences found to the Trivumervirate at a standard rate. Now, the Adventurers Guild controlled access to the dungeons, but there was a Skyholme tax and an Adventurers Guild tax for harvests coming out of the dungeons. This only targeted harvested goods and not items found in the reward chests.

“Our agreement places complete control of the dungeon in my hands, and I will not be surrendering any control back,” I stated flatly but without any anger.

Loriel nodded, smiling, “We do not expect you to. We tax the Duskhunters’ harvest if they sell it in Skyholme and yours as well. If you transport it outside of Skyhoolme,” she raised her hands to indicate her helplessness, “no tax.” I assumed that was what Remy was doing with our excess.

Prince Antioch added helpfully, “We have also excluded the Shiny Platinum from the new restaurant tax.” I looked confused. “It is a way to capture more of the coin of the visiting sailors and merchants.” These two were going to scare away merchants with all these taxes.

I decided it was time to make my request, “I wish to take over the Aegis City Dungeon Academy.” The two looked at each other, slightly confused, before looking back at me.

“Why?” Loriel asked. “There is not much profit in an Academy, and it is becoming obsolete with the Delve Teams visiting from the lowlands.”

Catching them off-guard with my request made me feel good. “I heard the Adventurers Guild has taken over the Dungron Academy in the Capital and was going to construct its own in Aegis City to compete with the one in Aegis City,” I explained, sipping my wine. It was a hearty red with strong floral scents and probably extremely expensive.

Prince Antioch made to answer as he seemed to understand the situation better than Loriel, “The Dungeon Academy in Skyhold just has several new instructors from the Adventurers Guild. It is still under Skyholme’s control. But yes, the influence of the instructors is imparting and putting the Guild in more prominence. The Academy in Aegis City refused their instructors, so there is talk of them building a new Academy to compete with them, but that would be an Adventurers Academy and not specifically tailored to delving alone.”

Loriel seemed to be getting the information for the first time to form a picture. She eventually came to a decision. “Storme, I can’t anger the Adventurers Guild. They are just too important to Skyholme. What would you even do with the Academy? Shiny Platinum Delving is saturated unless you plan to expand to the lowland dungeons?”

“It is more to check the influence of the Adventurers Guildmaster. As we discussed, he is targeting the Progenitor Dungeon. He has blocked my access to the Frost Vault, causing me supply headaches. The Dungeon Academy has a number of guaranteed slots for delving into the two dungeons in Aegis City. So I could use those training delves to cover my supply.” Price Antioch started nodding at my logic. Of course, my economic math would make absolutely no sense.

Antioch excitedly turned to Loriel, “I have a devious idea. Competition spurs growth. What if we sell the Dungeon Academy in the Capital to the Adventurers Guild and the other in Aegis City to our High Mage.”

Loriel frowned, clearly not liking the idea as presented. She voiced her thoughts, “That would allow more powerful individuals into the Capital under the influence of the Guildmaster. The migration would also limit the number of locals who could enroll in the Dungeon Academy in the Capital.”

Prince Antioch winked at me out of Loriel’s line of sight. He went on, “We could sell the Dungeon Academy for a steep price, say 250,000 gold, and then make the Adventurer’s Guild still pay rent for the buildings on top of that. If they accept, we could close two of our smaller loans to my father. The High Mage here can purchase the lesser of the two Academies in Aegis City for a little less.”

Loriel looked at Antioch and then me, “No, it is best they both sell for the same price. We don’t want to appear to be doing favors for one over the other.” Loriel was a greedy woman. “But,” she added, “We can transfer the buildings of the Academy to his ownership.” I nodded at the concession.

I was also fingering out how the Dungeon Academy was worth 250,000 gold. The most valuable asset they had was their libraries. I had never seen the Academy’s library in the Capital, but I guessed the Aegis city library would be valued at half that. I pretended to think on it, “That sounds reasonable. As long as the footprint of the Academies assets doesn’t change.” I knew the Academy had a lot of land in Aegis City. Not only did they have essentially three small Academies, but they owned a number of apartments for the students who wished to pay for them.

I had to wait while someone retrieved the documentation of both Dungeon Academies assets for Loriel and Antioch. They clearly had not been aware of how much land the Academy accounted for in the city. Nearly three blocks in total. Loriel was frowning the entire time she was reading it. “Storme, just the buildings are worth more than 250,000 gold. Prices have soared in the last year.”

Prince Antioch winked and stepped in, “I think it is a good investment for Skyholme. The High Mage is one of the most popular figures in the Islands.” I think he was wary of saying I was the most popular. With all the free healing I had done and almost single-handedly saving Skyholme from the Bricios and then the Mauraders, I could have been voted ruler of the islands had this been a democracy.

Antioch continued, “Maybe we should put some stipulations on the transfer. Perhaps only citizens of Skyholme can attend the Aegis Dungeon Academy. And the High Mage still pays city taxes on the buildings.”

Loriel added quickly, “And Storme brings the delegation to Sandmire.”

“No, I am not going to Sandmire.” I took out the tier-six crystal I had claimed from the pirate wreck and placed it on the table next to the empty wine bottle. “This crystal should be enough payment to cover the 250,000 and a little extra. It will also allow Skyholme to get another Harbinger into the skies.” I was glad I hadn’t offered the crystal to Remy for the dungeon skyship he was designing.

Loriel started to tap her fingers, clearly weighing the offer. Prince Antioch sat back on the sofa, clearly showing that he was more of an advisor than the ultimate decision-maker. The aether crystal was a huge selling point as platinum and aether crystals were the two biggest shortfalls for the Skyholme Navy at the moment, and this was an excellent crystal.

I could see the indecision on her face as Loriel was not getting what she wanted: the escort mission for Bylura. But the aether crystal would be a huge boon for Skyholme’s Navy. “Fine,” she finally said. “But you also do the artificing work on the Harbinger. The Thundercloud is due to be finished in two months.”

“As with all my work on the Naval ships, I expect to be paid a fair wage and have it applied to future property taxes,” I said while grinning.

“That only applies to the Black Spire estate,” Loriel said unhappily.

“No, I believe that language was changed when I bought the warehouses in Solaris City.” I smiled. It had been such a minor detail at the time, but it could now save me thousands of gold.

Loriel looked unhappy as she had missed this detail, “I am too distracted and slipping. Perhaps it will be in the evening next time we bargain High Mage. There is a ball coming for…”

“I think I will pass, but I know you will invite Aelyn, and she will drag me to it anyway. So, I will see you there.” I stood to make my leave, taking one small glance at the aether crystal. Once I started hunting the Black Mauraders in earnest, I would have aether crystals aplenty.

I returned to the Maelstrom and the Black Spire. I was surprised to find a small party going on. Relik Fadrae and his delve team were mingling with my delvers, and it looked like several other Duskhunters were also there. Aelyn approached me smiling, “We thought we would have a bit of celebration to open negotiations. It was Sana’s idea.”

Sana was in deep conversation with Relik, so I approached. “Storme, it is good to see you. We were tasked with evaluating some recruits in your dungeon. Sana has been telling me an interesting story about you wanting to seed your dungeon and force evolutions.”

Jasper, one of Relik’s scouts, appeared next to me, “It is easy. Just drop a few large aether crystals and run for the exit, High Mage. Works every time.”

Sana scoffed, “That would destroy most small dungeons, and the dungeon would reform completely differently.”

Relik laughed, “Don’t listen to Jasper. The old man is just looking for some excitement.”

I asked the group, “So, you have already discussed how this might affect my contract with the Duskhunters for access?”

“No,” Relik said, sipping his goblet. “Our access rights wouldn’t change. However, a bigger and more diverse dungeon would be of value to the Guild. I would have to consult Gaeleron, but I think he would be amenable to seeding and even willing to participate.”

“That would be amazing!” I said. The Duskhunters were a powerful guild, and seeding required you to leave items behind in dungeons created completely from other dungeons. Giving the dungeon a blueprint of sorts. “I just hired a new delver,” I pointed to Maerlyn. “She is going to help bring in creatures from other dungeons.

The conversation quickly discussed details, and Relik had his own idea of what creatures he wanted imported. None of them sounded very friendly to beginners. Still, I was happy to hand off this project to him and his experienced delve team. “There is one risk, Storme,” Relik said seriously. “When a dungeon evolves, it cuts off all access, and people can be trapped inside.”

“I know. My mentor’s son met such a fate.” I replied heavily.

“The dungeon may not reopen for days or years. Sometimes, it never reopens and moves its entrance elsewhere, but that is rare.” I nodded, but it showed me how little I knew. If my dungeon closed, it could cause me a major headache in terms of revenue.

“I understand.” I asked Sana, “So, do you want to be the Headmaster of a Dungeon Academy?”

“You work fast, High Mage,” Sana said with a chuckle. “I told you six months. I will give you six months and help start the process of seeding as well.” The Spire shook. “Don’t worry, Toblin is just mapping the wards. The Spire shakes every hour on the hour. I will talk with instructor Neelan tomorrow.”

I moved to enjoy the impromptu party and mingled. Freya was playing with Lorae’s cats and I was glad to see her happy. On seeing some of my guards, one thing I had forgotten to consider was the Wolfsguard. The Progenitor Dungeon was their access to the having offspring. If I evolved the dungeon, then they could lose it. I must travel to Wolfhaven village tomorrow to talk with Asger and Jaesmin.

In the middle of the party, Remy brought me some more detailed sketches of his renderings of the dungeon mini-skyship. It was good, and I told him he could start working with Rippon on building a demo. 

Later that evening, my cats were unhappy that they were not allowed to attend. They had been locked up in the apartment below by Aelyn. I made it up to them by playing with them for an hour and ignoring the intoxicated Aelyn. I wondered how my Beast Tamer was getting along. I hadn’t heard from him yet but hoped he would arrive with the specialist soon.

Before getting some rest, I worked on some enchanting. I needed to get more adamantine for the long-distance communication rings for Freya and me and also to complete the other aether cannon on the Maelstrom. I had seen the stiff Captain Delilah at the party. Hopefully, King Nirhaan will need my services again in the near future.

In the morning, I traveled out to Wolfshaven. The small village had grown in the number of residents and appeared to be an idyllic place. Ullmark was still serving his perceived penance among the people, and I admired him for it. I spent an hour talking with Asger, the Wolfsguard leader, and Jaesminm the wolfkin leader.

Asger supported my decision, “High Mage, we understand. You have given us all a chance and restored the crippled among us. Just serving as guards of your estate is barely enough to repay your generosity.”

Jaesmin was more tempered in her support of me, “If you lose your dungeon, will you transport those interested in having children to another dungeon?”

“Of course,” I said without hesitation.

Jaesmin nodded, “Then you also have my blessing to proceed with your seeding quest.” Even though I did not require their permission, including them in the process still felt good. I left the meeting to find a young Wolfsguard riding Adrial, who seemed to be enjoying it. Kiara, on the other hand, gave me a pitiful look at two young Wolfsguards climbed over furry body, using her ears as grips.

I helped her out, picking a small girl and telling her, “The white one doesn’t like play. Go bother the black one.” The young Wolfsguard raced off to mount the six-legged cat. In the old Skyholme, these children would already be beginning their training to be warriors. Now, they had a chance at a childhood.

I let the kids play with Adrial while I walked the village with Asger and Jaesmin, who were talking the entire loop. They just wanted to show off the village I had built for them and the improvements they had made. The biggest improvement was the training ground. Asger explained, “We plan to train the best of us to help guard your estate and crew your skyships, High Mage.”

“As long as it is by their choice, Asger,” I stated.

“It is, High Mage. We have farmers, crafters, soldiers, and teachers. Everyone is choosing the path best suited for them,” Jaesmin added. I nodded and left the village with the cats chasing after me. Kiara was happy to be free of the Wolfsguard.

Back at the Spire, I found a representative from Loriel with a huge stack of paperwork I needed to sign. Loriel certainly worked quickly, but I suppose the aether crystal was a good motivation. After the paperwork was done, I went to find Sana to come with me to look at my new Academy.