The Martial Unity

The presence of such an envelope stirred things up in his office's security. The head of security couldn't help but be extremely ashamed regarding the lacking security measures in the office, and security was immediately doubled. A thorough search of the office had been conducted to ensure that nothing had been stolen or otherwise tampered with. It took a while before Guildmaster Bradt could return to working again under normal circumstances.

Yet, he himself wasn't able to, or rather, chose not to, yet.

"Sir, the security check and the forensic analysis have turned up with nothing. There is no risk or threat from the envelope, and we weren't able to gather any data on the sender or the infiltrator," His secretary, Feliton, informed him about the results of the two processes while handing the related documents to him. "It has been deemed safe to open."

It was a good sign to the guildmaster that the forensic analysis had been unable to derive anything from the envelope regarding the perpetrators. That suggested a good level of care and caution on the side of the sender, which meant there was less of a chance that this was an idiot who wasn't worth his time.

"Hm," Bradt took a good look at the documents before nodding and putting them aside. "Then, I shall take the liberty to read it in private."

"Yes sir," She bowed before the letter was promptly delivered to him, and she left the room.

[To: Guidmaster Bradt Patrick

From: The Voider]

('I truly hope that's true,') He sighed while opening the seal and taking out the letter.

[Dear guildmaster Bradt,

I imagine finding this letter in your office must have come as a shock. And for that, I do apologize. I assure you, my only intention in leaving this envelope in such a conspicuous manner through, admittedly, duplicitous means was to draw your attention, interest, and perhaps even suspicion.

After all, the chances that you would take this letter seriously had it arrived through the post and into your, no doubt, large daily mail arrivals was close to zero. Unfortunately, I couldn't be sure that you would even see such an envelope under normal circumstances, and even if you did, I don't know if you would even pay it any mind.]

Guildmaster Bradt had to admit, that while he certainly disdained and disliked the infiltration of his office, the words of the sender were true. He would not have taken such a letter or that envelope seriously. It seemed nothing short of a silly prank, and at best was someone taking the effort to engage in a scam by pretending to be the person who cleared the second floor.

In that regard, he had a negative impression of the current chain of events that had come from the infiltration and the placement of the envelope on the table. Unless this letter ended up being positive and good news for the guildmaster, he would not be pleased with the choices that the sender made.

[Regardless, I understand that my choices may have led to the souring of your impression of me, still, I believe that may change with the contents of this letter. I urge you to read this letter with an open mind. I believe you will most certainly be interested in what I have to say, what I have to offer, and what can come to be if you decide for it to be.

The reason I have gone through such an effort to gain your attention and perhaps even your interest is simple.

I have a proposal for you. A business proposal.]

Guildmaster Bradt has suspected this, honestly. Now that the possibility of assassination had been dealt with, there were only a few realistic possibilities left. And they all fell into the category of the sender seeking something from him, while most likely offering something in return.

He could imagine what the sender wanted if the sender was really the notorious Voider that had taken the adventuring community in the Shionel Confederation by storm, at least, as far as gossip went.

He wasn't necessarily averse to cooperating with the Voider, however, that doesn't mean he would be open to any trivial arrangement that the Voider proposed.

At the end of the day, the Voider was a criminal, and not just a small one either. As the head of the Shionel merchant Guild, he could not afford for any engagement with such a criminal to be exposed, it would mean the end of everything. He would at the very least lose his position as the Guildmaster of the Shionel Merchant Guild, by law. Even if that didn't happen, he would lose the support of the stakeholders and shareholders of the Merchant Guild, and that was no different from losing the next election to that scoundrel Chairman Deacon.

The matters at stake were not trivial, unless whatever business proposal this individual claiming to be the Voider, something that wasn't even proven yet, truly appealed strongly to his interests, he could not afford to engage in any shady deals at this point in time.

He continued reading, with a mixture of interest, apprehension and even hope.

[Allow me to begin with what I'm offering. I'm aware of your predicament as the current guildmaster of the Shionel Merchant Guild. I am aware that the discovery of the Shionel Dungeon, while generally a very positive event for the Shionel Merchant Guild and the Shionel Confederation, has not boded well for your previously unshakable position as the guildmaster of the Shionel Merchant Guild.

I am aware that the dungeon has benefited your biggest rival and opponent, Chairman Deacon of Deacon Industries, far more than it has benefited you. The sudden and drastic increase in both the availability of esoteric resources as well as the corresponding demand has benefited the esoteric supplier market and the esoteric technology sector, both of which your opponent Chairman Deacon has an unshakable dominant position in. His rate of growth skyrockets, and there is very little you can do about that.

Well, what if I told you that there was something you could do about it? What if I told you that I have the ability to break his dominance in the esoteric supplies market with an unparalleled harvesting capability? Thereby reducing his growth drastically, and allowing you to secure political dominance.]