Tower of Karma
Vol. 1 - Ch. 10 - Interlude: The ABCs of Business

"By the way, William. I have some work that I need your help with, if you're free right now. Of course, the pay will be good."

That was the first thing Roland said when he came to William's room. William had just returned to the Taylor mansion in Arcus after suppressing a civil war of some scale. By the way, Carl was out on some errands for his squad.

"Work, you say?"

William doubted that there was any work that he could do, since he had only average knowledge of jewels and no expertise. He raised a question.

"Anyone can do it if they can read, write, and use an abacus. And surprisingly, there aren't many people who can do that in Arcus."

William was free right now. He was thinking of going out and visiting Kyle’s or Favela's house, but that was just killing time. It was natural for William to go where he could learn more.

"Then I'll be happy to help you."

It was a great opportunity to absorb the know-how of the rich's work.

"First of all, how do we make money?"

On the way to the workplace by carriage, Roland asked William.

"Do you mean we, as in the trading company?"

"No, I mean anything that applies to business in general."

Anything that applies to business in general. It was a question that William, who had some work experience, could answer within his range of knowledge.

"The most primitive way to make money is to exchange what you've collected for gold, and the next is to sell what you've produced, which is the agricultural way of making money. For import and export, you use the difference in value to make money. For example, you import water from a region where water is abundant and sell it to a region where water is scarce. And then there's adding value. You process plain iron into pots or swords. By adding such uses, you can sell it for more than plain iron."

Roland nodded with satisfaction.

"That's right. Business is nothing but one of those things you said, or a combination of them. The basics are the same for any industry. Buy low, sell high. That's all there is to it."

Roland paused for a beat.

"Then why can our trading company buy cheaply? Can we recover the money that includes various costs such as labor and transportation? Do you know?"

He asked William. This was also the basics of business.

"Difference in value, added value, and bulk purchase, I suppose."

"Wonderful. Especially the third one, which isn’t easy to see. Difference in value and added value are as you said earlier; we buy jewels as cheaply as possible from regions where they are abundant, and sell them with added value such as cutting and decoration. The gross profit minus the costs such as labor and transportation is the profit. This is the basic flow. The Taylor family's trading company goes further and bargains the unit price when buying, in exchange for buying everything in bulk. This increases the profit even more."

"But can you really bargain that much?"

Roland answered William's question with a smile.

"You'll see when you do the clerical work I'm going to have you do. You'll see the basics of business, and how much we're making."

Roland was confident. He was probably making a lot of money.

"There's something you don't need to know yet, but there's something you should never do, and a flow you should never get on, when you're in the jewel business."

Roland stared at William. He had to know this if he was going to join the business. Roland's eyes said that he was going to open up a little bit. William also tightened his expression a little.

"That is to lower the price. Rather, raise it. They want stones with high value, not cheap shiny stones. What we deal with is not something that is necessary for clothing, food, or shelter. It's just a luxury. It's meaningless if it's not valuable, and it's over if it's thought to be worthless. The jewel you're hanging around your neck, we have to give it value, or it's the same as a roadside stone. Keep that in mind."

Don't damage the value. That's an order, Roland said. William didn’t have the power to do anything about it right now. But if he helped Roland, he might be given such a position someday. He invited William to work with him because he was planning to do just that. Starting with the clerical work that taught him the flow of business was also proof of that.

"Well, it's about time."

The carriage stopped and the two got out. The prime location in Arcus where the first-class citizens ruled the land. People were restricted from entering the noble district, so the best place to do business was in this place. This was the place where the most money flowed in Arcus.

Here, money speaks louder than status. That's why the moment Lord Taylor stepped down, the atmosphere changed completely. Eyes pierced him.

"Good morning, Lord Taylor."

"Ah, good morning."

He greeted the people around him lightly and beckoned William.

"Come on, William."

When they entered the building, they saw a simple and organized space. There was no need for unnecessary extravagance in the workplace. The surroundings were devoid of anything that would make it difficult for the clerks to work.

"Teach him the job."

"Understood."

He left William's guidance to a man who seemed to be one of the clerks.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you. I'm thinking of making him the chairman of a trading company under the Taylor family. Teach him with that in mind."

The workplace was in an uproar. Everyone's eyes were on William. He hadn't heard anything and looked at Roland.

"Someday Carl will take over after me. You, his sword, also need to be in a position that suits him, right? Don't worry, it's not that hard. You just have to make money. If you have a profitable idea, consult me. You can be the chairman of that business from the next day."

Roland was sweet to William. Too sweet, almost. But this sweetness was clearly a trap. And he couldn't avoid this trap. He had chosen the path of rising as Carl's sword. Therefore, if he continued like this, he would be stuck in it. The position of Carl von Taylor's sword. He might realize that the chain was binding William tightly.

"Good luck. While doing the clerical work, feel and think about what the Taylor family needs, what would be a plus for them, and do your job accordingly."

William finally realized Lord Taylor's aim. William had intended to cut off Carl when he had some power. He didn't need to be a shadow if he had money and status. He had a plan to surpass Carl and stand above him.

'But Lord Taylor’s trying to make me indebted to him and make it impossible for me to cut Carl off. If I become the head of a trading company under the Taylor family, the relationship between Carl and I will appear close to the public. By the time I have the power to do something, the public won't approve of me cutting off Carl. I see, there's such a move after all.'

And he couldn't refuse this offer. Even if he sensed something, the current power relationship was clear. If he refused a good offer, it would be like saying he had some ulterior motive, which was clearly a minus for him now. In the end, the best thing to do in the current situation was to go with the flow.

'Damn... I can't get results with just one move.'

Lord Taylor was different. The leader of the trading company. He had built up such a fortune. It was obvious that he wasn’t ordinary.

'Well, I'll go along with it for now. It's more convenient for me.'

He was still at the mercy of the flow. He just chose the best option on top of that. When he had the power to create the flow, he would do something about it. Rather, he was looking forward to it from now on.

"First, I'll teach you how to keep the books."

"Thank you."

For that, he needed to absorb everything he could. There was no loss in having knowledge.

༺༻

"...How much are these guys making…?"

William was astonished as he kept the books. How could they make so much money, and was the cost of raw stones really that low?

William looked at the ruby around his neck.

'You're surprisingly cheap if you don't hit the market.'

He realized the value of creating value. The jewel business was a producer, and people paid for the brand. He felt it anew.