Chapter 175 175: Borrowing Money
The Succubus's Dream Headquarters.
Hans the Merchant stood before the pink-and-purple three-story building, momentarily at a loss for words.
The architecture was overtly flamboyant, with a massive, animated magical signboard at the entrance. It displayed a chibi succubus, constantly winking at passersby, her tiny horns blinking with a faint glow.
Hans remembered clearly the first time he encountered these succubi. They had nothing but a dilapidated shed and a charcoal-scrawled sign, its shaky script resembling some arcane curse. How much time had truly passed since then?
Now, in Iron Fortress Territory, Leaffall City, and even small towns like Orlando, branches of The Succubus's Dream were ubiquitous. Each branch boasted a different theme. Some specialized in adventure dreams, others in gourmet fantasies, and there was even a high-end establishment dedicated to dreams of becoming the wealthiest individual. Prices ranged from a single silver coin to ten gold coins, honest dealings, impeccable service, and business booming beyond imagination.
Hans pushed open the door and stepped inside. The hall was fragrant, its walls adorned with promotional artwork for various dreams. Behind the counter, an unfamiliar young succubus was engrossed in organizing appointment slips.
"Welcome to The Succubus's Dream, what kind of appointment do you require—"
The succubus looked up, spotted Hans, and froze.
"Mr. Hans!"
She immediately stood, her face alight with undisguised delight. "Why, what brings you here? Are you here to experience our newly launched Gold Tsunami dream theme? I guarantee you'll swim in gold coins until your heart's content!"
Hans felt a twitch in his eye. "No, thank you. I'm looking for Scarlett."
"Our Guild Leader is upstairs! I'll take you right away!"
Just as the succubus receptionist prepared to round the counter, a figure, arms laden with a towering stack of documents, stumbled precariously down the stairs. The papers were piled so high they almost entirely obscured her vision.
"Damn Scarlett, it was Mona's turn, that lazy oaf, to sort this month's accounts, and she's pushed it all onto me again. Once I get paid, I swear I'll buy ten roasted chickens and eat them right by her pillow while she sleeps, not a single piece for her."
"Kura."
Hans called out.
The stumbling figure halted. From behind the mountain of documents, a small head with tiny horns peeked out. Upon seeing Hans, Kura's eyes instantly brightened.
"Hans!" she exclaimed excitedly, her hands loosening their grip, and the documents in her arms tumbled to the floor with a clatter. "Oh, blast it!" Kura cried out in despair, immediately squatting down, fumbling to gather the scattered papers.
Hans sighed, bending down to help her. "Your business has grown so vast, yet you're still so clumsy?"
"Hehe... it's a habit, you know." Kura scratched one of her small horns sheepishly, flashing a goofy smile. "You're looking for Scarlett, aren't you? She's probably up in her office, dreaming up some absurd 'Hundred-Store Expansion' scheme. I'll take you up!"
The two reorganized the documents on the floor. Kura, cradling the stack of papers taller than her head, led Hans to the third floor. In the corridor, several succubi were huddled together, chattering animatedly. Upon seeing Hans approach, they immediately fell silent, then bowed in unison.
"Good day, Mr. Hans!"
Hans nodded to them, following Kura onward to a door at the end of the corridor. As the two walked away, the succubi immediately huddled back together, lowering their voices for a fresh round of discussion. A new, young succubus stretched her neck curiously.
"Is that Mr. Hans? Our major shareholder?"
"That's him! I heard that back when the Guild Leader and the others were practically starving, it was Mr. Hans who gave them their very first silver coin!"
"Wow... he looks so young, and he's human! I thought he'd be some stern old man."
"Shhh! Keep your voice down! He's also the Guild Leader of The Sunflower Merchant Guild, and a favorite of Skele-Greed!"
"In short, his word here is as good as the Guild Leader's!"
Hans now stood before the door, gazing at the exquisite small wooden sign hanging upon it—Guild Leader's Office. Kura freed a hand and knocked firmly.
"Scarlett! Stop fiddling with your ridiculous plans! Hans is here!"
"Come in!" Scarlett's clear, slightly impatient voice called from within.
Hans pushed open the door. The Guild Leader's office was far more spartan than he'd imagined. No opulent decorations, no expensive furniture, just a large desk, a few chairs, and account books and documents piled everywhere. Scarlett sat behind the desk, a quill in hand, writing on a piece of paper. She looked up, saw Hans, and smiled.
"A rare guest, Guild Leader Hans."
Hans stepped in and took a seat in the chair opposite her. "Please, don't call me Guild Leader. It sounds... odd."
"Then I'll just call you Hans." Scarlett put down her quill, leaned back in her chair, and crossed her arms over her chest. "Out with it. You're not here today to experience our Gold Tsunami, are you?"
Hans paused for a moment, then spoke directly. "I need to borrow money."
Scarlett blinked, then erupted into peals of laughter, bending forward and backward, even pounding on the desk.
"You? Borrowing money from me?"
"Hans, have you been working too hard lately? Is your mind playing tricks on you? Coming here to joke with me?"
"Everyone in The Evernight Empire knows that The Sunflower Merchant Guild is the Empire's sole officially designated merchant guild."
"The funds flowing through your hands are probably more than the combined total assets of The Succubus's Dream, aren't they?"
Hans shook his head, his expression serious. "It's for a personal matter." He pulled out the orphanage proposal from his pocket, placed it on the desk, and pushed it across. "I want to build orphanages. Many of them."
"The preliminary estimate is at least twenty thousand gold coins."
Scarlett's laughter faded. She picked up the proposal, flipping through it page by page. Her expression gradually grew serious.
"Twenty thousand gold coins..." She looked up, meeting Hans's gaze directly. "How much support did the Empire give you?"
"Five thousand."
"How much savings do you have yourself?"
"Ten thousand."
"So you're still short five thousand?"
Hans nodded.
Scarlett put down the proposal, leaned back in her chair, her fingers unconsciously tapping the tabletop. She didn't answer immediately, instead turning to look at Kura, who was still standing foolishly in the doorway, clutching her documents.
"Go, call Mona, Chloe, and Iris."
"Oh, right!" Kura immediately set her documents on an empty chair nearby and scurried out.
In less than five minutes, Mona, Chloe, and Iris entered. They gathered around the desk, and Scarlett handed them the proposal.
"Hans wants to build orphanages and is short five thousand gold coins. He wants to borrow from us."
Mona skimmed the proposal, then yawned. "Five thousand gold coins, huh... Do we even have that much in our accounts?"
Iris, responsible for finances, immediately shook her head, her expression grim. "Our liquid assets are less than two thousand gold coins. The rest is tied up in the operation of our various branches and the expansion of new ones. We can't possibly pull that much out."
Chloe asked softly, a hint of hesitation in her eyes. "Then... we're not lending it?"
Scarlett didn't answer them, her gaze returning to Hans. "Hans, you must know, a merchant guild isn't a charity organization."
"The liquid funds we can spare are only two thousand gold coins."
"And even if we wanted to lend it to you, we'd have to consider the risk." She paused, then continued, "A project like an orphanage will not turn a profit in the short term, and might never turn a profit."
"How will you repay it?"
Hans opened his mouth, but found himself unable to utter a single word. He understood Scarlett's concerns, of course. If he were in her position, he would absolutely never lend all his liquid assets to a project with an infinitely long return period, one that might never yield any return at all. This wasn't doing business; this was doing charity. And merchants, by nature, rarely engaged in charity.
Hans stood up. "My apologies, I hadn't considered this thoroughly enough." He picked up the proposal from the desk and turned to leave.
"Wait." Scarlett's voice came from behind him.
Hans stopped, but didn't turn around. He heard a faint rustling sound, and Scarlett pulled a heavy coin pouch from a drawer, placing it on the desk with a dull thud.
"But..." She looked at her sisters beside her.
Mona, who had been half-asleep, reached into her pocket and pulled out an equally bulging small coin pouch, placing it on the desk. Shy Chloe hesitated for a moment, then also pulled her own coin pouch from her dress pocket. Iris, who had been silent, sighed and unfastened her savings from her waist, adding it to the pile. Kura was last; she rushed to the shoe rack by the door. She pulled a well-hidden coin pouch from her long boot, ran back, and slammed it onto the table with force.
"Including our personal savings, my sisters and I..." Scarlett pushed the coin pouches together. "Five thousand gold coins is the absolute limit we can give you."
Hans was stunned. He slowly turned around, staring incredulously at the pile of coin pouches on the table, then at them. "You..."
Scarlett stood, walked around the table, and approached Hans. "Once, The Succubus's Dream had nothing, needing your investment to survive."
"And now, you, too, need The Succubus's Dream's investment." She continued with a smile, "Our ambition is small; we just want to live peacefully, with roasted chicken to eat and soft beds to sleep in every day."
"But our ambition is also vast..." She looked back at her sisters. "We hope that all succubi, all our sisters, can live peacefully, just like us."
Scarlett turned back to the desk, picked up a blank piece of paper and a quill, and began writing furiously. "So, I have a proposal here, or rather, an investment agreement."
"These five thousand gold coins, I can lend to you interest-free, for a term of three years."
"But as a condition..." She finished her last stroke, looked up, and met Hans's gaze. "All the orphanages you establish must unconditionally accept orphans of all races."
"Including succubi."
Hans was silent for a moment, then he couldn't help but laugh. "You're imitating what I used to say, aren't you?"
Scarlett, caught red-handed, didn't seem annoyed, only scratching her head a little shyly. "Hehe, you saw right through me."
Hans's smile faded, and he looked at her seriously. "I accept this investment."
"And this agreement..." He picked up the paper with the conditions and glanced at it. "I intended to do so anyway."
Scarlett extended her hand. "Then, a pleasure doing business?"
Hans gripped her hand, returning the firm shake. "A pleasure doing business."
Kura was the first to cheer. "This is great! Now we succubi will have our own orphanages! No more sisters having to live on the streets!"
Mona yawned, leaning lazily against Iris. "Then can I apply to be an administrator at the orphanage? Playing with children all day sounds much easier than organizing accounts here..."
Scarlett immediately turned and glared at her. "Don't even think about it! Get back to work!"
A wave of lighthearted laughter filled the room. Hans looked at these succubi, each with their distinct personality, and a warmth he couldn't quite describe welled up within him. He remembered the past, his first investment in them. Back then, they were just a few pathetic souls with a tattered stall on a street corner, unsure of where their next meal would come from. And now... They had grown into influential merchants, capable of standing as his equals, even extending a helping hand in his most desperate hour.
Hans turned and walked towards the door.
"Hans." Scarlett's voice called from behind him.
"Hm?"
"Remember to repay us on time! We can waive the interest, but the principal can't be short! We're very poor, you know!"
Hans waved his hand without looking back, his footsteps unwavering. "Don't worry, in three years, I'll return it all, principal and interest."
"I said interest-free!"
"Then consider it a thank you fee." Hans pushed open the door and walked out.
Behind him, Scarlett's voice called out again.
"Hans!"
"Something else?"
"Next time, remember to bring Lily and the others to visit! We've developed a new dream theme about adventuring with small animals. Kids will love it! Free trial!"
A genuine smile spread across Hans's face.
"Alright."
He stepped out of The Succubus's Dream's headquarters, the warm sunlight bathing his face. Hans took a deep breath, adjusted his clothes, and headed towards his next destination.
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