City of Desire-Chapter 619: Store Scandal II

They put them into the police carriages while people watched as the carriages moved away.

I didn't watch any further and opened my eyes.

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I am glad Carla isn't here. She would have been hurt seeing her friend in cuffs. Rena is her friend; both have known each other for two decades.

"I still remember the day when your father found out his accountant was embezzling the money."

"It had hurt him very badly, but he always said he had learned a lesson through it," said Hendriks as he returned with Caena.

He told me that story many times. It hurt him, not because of the money, but because the accountant was his friend, the man he trusted.

In the same way, I had trusted the girls.

Now, they will face the consequences of their crimes.

I already told the police and judges to treat this case like any other—no special treatment just because they are from the Velvet Garden.

"It's hard to believe how deeply it went in such a short time," said Caena. Even now, she is having a hard time believing. So am I.

The scheme was too elaborate. Even with professional guidance, it went too deep and spread too fast.

"It was fast, alright, but nothing special when they had help. It is making me so damn angry that it took me so long to find it out!" replied Hendriks, fisting his hands angrily.

The scheme was complex and running at different levels. It started from underreporting the sale of goods.

They'll be able to save on taxes and bypass the establishment, but as the stores grew quickly, thanks to their fame in the Velvet Garden and my encouragement, the amount only widened further.

I helped some of them get a loan from the bank.

I had crafted rules to avoid exploitation, but they broke through them.

They took kickbacks from their employees, at least half of their salaries, and some even took whole salaries. Saying working in a legacy is a privilege enough.

There is also the smuggling of mist-crafted goods.

This wouldn't be possible without a Madam; their influence had made it possible.

Its Landen, the store owner, and his friend with Swindler Class, who guided them. His guidance made it difficult to catch them sooner.

The one who is most responsible is me. I forgot the girls are people, like everyone else.

They can be greedy, influenced, and do bad things. So, from today onward, I will treat them like people.

Three of the two-floor leaders had been caught up in it. The third one, Revina, was the one who noticed the strangeness and alerted Hendricks.

When I was alerted, I handed the investigation over to the police.

Based on what I see, Rena is likely headed to jail. Esther, on the other hand, will probably avoid it thanks to her cooperation and the names she's provided.

"Seven stores; we are going to need to replace them and fast," said Hendriks.

We are shutting down seven stores, which means we will have to replace them. This time, I have a coherent concept about the kind of stores I want.

"I already have a person working on it," I replied to their surprise.

That is why I called Reed to my office. I gave him the task of finding the type of stores I wanted.

A few minutes later, I walked away to my office. I had a few things to do before I went to sleep.

"I sent the drafts for newspapers," informed Lola. The news will be in tomorrow's papers. I could have kept everything silent and had been advised to do that, but I declined.

I want the rule of law to be the same for everyone, even for the legacy—at least the perception of it.

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Soon, I went to sleep and woke up at dawn.

I usually sleep for five hours when I am in Legacy, which is like ten hours of sleep. So, even after four hours of sleep, I felt just as good.

However, my mood had only improved slightly since last night.

Still, that didn't stop me from doing everything I usually do daily. I will not let the incident change me.

Click!

After training, I showered and ate breakfast before entering my office. Lola is there with Zela, who is reading a book in the corner.

It's the latest one we have gotten from Rutto after he leveled up.

Every level-up provides him with a new book. I wonder what will happen after he reaches Lv. 30. He is leveling up fast, but Lv. 3o is a big deal.

It might take him years, or he may never reach it, but I could dream.

"The newspapers," said Lola, handing me the three newspapers. All three had big headlines about last night's incident.

There are also a few opinion pieces. They are in the direction we wanted. I finished with them and focused on the other work.

'Master Silver, Miss Eva is here,' informed Jill. 'Should I send her back?' she asked. I stopped and looked at the clock.

'Let her in,' I replied. I know why she is here, and the woman wasted no time.

She came in, looking as beautiful as always.

"Lord Silver," she greeted. "No," I stated. She didn't even say anything; she smiled and sat before me.

"You should at least look at my proposal," she said, making her face cute. "You have the whole damn floor, Eva, and you still want more," I replied.

"I just want one more. One would be more than enough for me; I just need a place for my enchanters to work," she requested.

"No," I replied.

"Can you at least think about it?" she asked. "No," I replied. I am not going to give her more space. I already know what kind of stores I want.

She could help me with some, but I will not give it to her. She has a whole floor; others deserve a chance.

"Please think about it," she said, placing a file before me before walking away. I opened the file; when I read it, I wanted to curse and kiss her.

I had discussed some of my ideas with her, and that woman crafted a proposal based on them.

It is very detailed. It is not a single night's work; it took her days or even weeks.

I read through it, and it is good. That's why I will steal some of the ideas Eva has written here.

"They have gathered," informed Lola, bringing me out of my thoughts.

I nodded and walked out before taking the stairs to the roof.

It's the only place left that's free. All the rooms are reserved, and the store floors are packed with people. So, the roof it is.

…

Eltson

"We could see the whole city from here," I said. Looking at the city around me.

It has grown tremendously over the years, especially this year, and is growing even faster. Every day, I see more people coming into the city.

"What do you think will happen?" asked Gagarin. Ignoring the question, which I tried not to focus on.

"I am trying not to think about it," I replied. Focusing on the city in front of me.

Despite that, the memories of last night flashed in front of me. It was a terrible shock when I saw the police entering the stores and bringing out Landen and other store owners and staff in cuffs.

"I still can't believe it happened. Maran did something like that; I had talked to that man a few minutes before police descended," said Gagarin.

It's shocking, but when I think back about it. I felt that many conversations with Landen and Madam Rena had been strange.

I now feel like they were testing me. I am delighted I didn't respond to it, or I would have been in jail with them.

I don't want to be in jail. My business is growing; I have opened a large workshop to support the store, and we are about to open a big store in the city.

My investors are even pushing me to open the store in the merchant states.

Gagarin is in the process of doing that.

I don't want to go that fast. I was a simple cobbler with simple dreams. I may now have big dreams, but I need to be careful about how I achieve them.

Especially after last night.

Click!

I was in my thoughts when the door opened, and Lord Silver walked onto the roof.

"Lord Silver,"

We greeted him. The man looked around but didn't say anything. He just kept looking at us, and when I felt his eyes, I couldn't help but shudder.

"After last night, things will need to be changed," said Lord Silver. Many nodded affirmatively; we need to because there is no choice.

We will have to do what he says.

"From today, I am giving all the stores access to the mist," he stated to the shock of us all.

I thought he would impose strict rules, but here, he is giving us what we have wanted for months. I have access to the mist, but many don't.

"You will also gain access to the night's plots," he added, another good news.

The night's plots are open spaces in the store. There, we would work and craft mist goods until the floors opened.

"I am giving you the privileges, but they are coming with new rules," he said, and our expressions turned serious.

"From today, your books will be audited every month. There will be an increase in unannounced inspections and mandatory seminars that you and your staff will need to attend,"

"You all …"

He stated nine new rules; hearing them, my heart couldn't help but tighten. We did not want to hear these things, but we knew they were coming.

"Most importantly, we will start the creative checks. We have noticed many stores lagging in creativity, and Velvet Garden will not accept it."

I was not feeling good already hearing the rules, but these words made me feel even worse.

"Creativity fuels emotions; that is the food of legacy, and I will have nothing come in its way,"

"So, be creative; hire people if you are not. If your store doesn't elicit enough emotions from the patrons, your store will be expelled from the tower without any exception," he stated.

His voice was soft, but it felt like thunder to my ear.

Creativity is subjective, and usually, there is no way to measure it, but here. In the legacy, it is. It's not the perfect measurement, but it is for the legacy.

I could say it is what scares people the most. Some, including me, are already thinking of a solution.

I cannot lose the store in the tower.

Because of it, I got investment, and people visit my store. I would be destroyed within a day if I didn't have it.