Chapter 200: Let’s Talk Business
Silence filled the air as they walked, and after over an hour of that, Lukas exhaled, craving conversation.
He turned to look at Melody who was walking beside him, her breath misting in the cold air as her eyes scanned the dark desert ahead on instinct.
"I’ve been thinking about something," he said.
She glanced at him. "What?"
"Businesses." He kept his voice low, making sure it was not loud enough to carry to the front pair. "I was thinking that we could have multiple businesses that we could build over time into something larger."
Melody was quiet for a moment, thinking about it. "Like an empire?"
"Exactly like that." He kept walking, a short silence between them. "From what we can already see, it’s more likely that the higher we climb in this Tower, the more opposition we’re going to face."
"With the one wish waiting at the top, I’m sure there are some powerful Climbers already way ahead of us, looking back and curating who would be allowed to climb up behind them."
"I’m sure there are Sovereignty Climbers out there hunting promising people from places like the Brotherhood to stop them from advancing up the Tower. We have no idea if we could one day become marks like that."
"So what I’m saying is that strength matters, but strength alone isn’t enough. We need influence. We need money that works for us even when we’re on a dungeon floor somewhere and can’t touch it."
"The Le Fay family isn’t just powerful because they have strong fighters. They’re powerful because they have money and influence moving in every direction at once. They have the right connections to make people unwilling to touch them, because there could be retaliation."
Melody nodded slowly. "So what kind of businesses are you thinking of starting?"
"That’s what I want to figure out." He looked ahead at the dark dunes. "What do you think?"
Melody thought about it for a few strides. "Like Karrakas was talking about, how about an inn?" she said.
"We already know how valuable land around spatial gates is. An inn near a busy gate practically runs itself if it’s positioned well. With the three of us pulling our income together, we can reach the goals faster. And in exchange, we get steady income, and low maintenance once it’s established."
"That’s a good one. What else?"
"A pavilion," she said. "Or something like it. A trading post or an auction house. Something that caters to the elite, who would be displeased if we’re removed from the market."
"We’re going to be killing valuable beasts as we climb. Other people are too. If we build a place where they can bring their loot and get a fair price regardless of affiliation, we take a percentage of every transaction."
"We’d need a lot of capital to start that, and it’ll be even harder to break into the market, which seems like every major guild is involved in," Lukas said. "But it’s worth keeping on the list."
He thought for a moment. "What about information brokering? We’ve already seen how valuable current intelligence is out here. A properly run information network, with reliable sources across multiple floors—"
"That would take a long time to build," Melody said.
"Everything worth having takes a long time to build."
She smiled at that. "What about something simpler to start? How about a supply shop? We can sell equipment, rations, and specialized gear for new Adepts arriving on the Second Floor. With new Adepts arriving and the ambitious ones leaving to Tier 3 cities, I’m sure the demand would be constant."
"I like your idea," Lukas returned her smile. "It could work."
"Or we start a car dealership," Melody said, and there was something in her voice that was only half joking.
Lukas laughed quietly. "We’d need significantly more capital for that."
"Eventually."
"Eventually," he agreed.
They walked in silence for a moment, both of them adding another item to the growing mental list.
"Let’s stop here with the ideas for now," Lukas said, looking up at the two in front. "We’ll discuss this fully with Akira present."
Melody nodded. "We’ll discuss it again when we’re back in Salaria, with all three of us at the table."
"Alright," Lukas confirmed.
Up ahead, Akira kept activating the headband, checking the seconds ahead of them.
The world fractured around her, the desert splitting into its familiar broken glass pattern as the next few seconds played out in front of her.
That was when she heard the loud screech, echoing across the night air. Then several more answered it, coming from different directions above them.
Her head snapped upwards, trying to catch a glimpse of what it was, but the time ran out.
The cracks sealed, and the world resumed in its normal state.
She turned to Karrakas immediately. "I heard several large screeches above us."
Karrakas’s head snapped up to the sky. "How many?"
"At least five. I couldn’t get an exact count." She kept her eyes moving across the darkness overhead. "I couldn’t determine their rank either."
Karrakas swore under his breath. "I believe that should be Vampire Vultures. They’re able to mask themselves in darkness, so they love hunting at night."
He turned and raised his voice. "Lukas. Melody. Stay on guard. You have Vampire Vultures in the air above you."
As if on cue, the screeching started.
It came from multiple directions at once, overlapping with each other and filling the cold night air. Then one of the indistinct shapes in the air dropped.
It came down fast and nearly silent, the dark sky making it almost impossible to track until it was already close. It folded its wings against its body as it dived towards Lukas and Melody.
Melody’s eyes widened as she saw it in time, throwing up a [Hex Shield].
The Vulture hit it at full dive speed.
The barrier shattered on impact, the cursed energy breaking apart. The beast staggered in the air, several bones broken and its momentum killed, its wings spreading wide to catch itself.
Lukas raised his hand and fired a [Death Bolt] directly into its head. The rot moved fast, killing it instantly, and the beast dropped to the sand.
[You have killed a D-rank Vampire Vulture.]
Lukas looked up into the dark sky above them.
"Be careful!" He shouted for Akira and Karrakas to hear. "They’re D-rank!"
