Chapter 150: 150
Soon enough, the core members of Umbra assembled within Draco's super mini small world room . They all gazed at the standalone small realm with awe, as they had never encountered something as magnificent as this .
Super mini small worlds weren't like cabbage by the roadside . Draco had only 2 of them and they were present on the top floors of his Rank 7 buildings . It was clear that their value was not low at all .
Therefore, the Etz Chaim Seedling was an especially great and welcome reward . It would allow him to grow his own super mini small world within his body that could evolve .
Draco wasn't too sure about what it took the level up such small worlds though, so he would have to discover it on his own at that time . It would definitely be an uphill task, but for someone with his resources, it should be doable .
Draco gazed at Boyd, Uno, Rina, Cobra, Kiran, Sublime Notion, Rambunctious Buttlover, Warm Spring, Slim Fatty, Dreary Traveler, Happy Saint, Silent Walker, Loving Aunt, Jada, Jade, Akainu and Sanji .
Beside him were Riveting Night and Hikari too .
In a relatively short time, Umbra had grown to possess a respectable top brass .
While most of them were only known to be Umbra's core members, it was only a question of time before each one of them would leave behind their own legacy .
Draco gave them a nod full of appreciation and they left the Guild Hall on foot, as he couldn't blink so many people at once .
They did not walk through the streets . Not only would it take far too long to get to their destination, but it would also be foolish when considering Draco's reputation .
He was a noble with high standing in the Sturgehaven Kingdom . He naturally had a top-grade carriage sent over to pick him and his people up .
This carriage also had magical space within and Draco immediately knew that this was a feat of his new Tradeskill, Magical Engineering . Just because it was an Epic Tradeskill and as such especially rare, did not mean no one had it .
The number might be abysmally low, but at least NPCs with it still existed . Draco was surprised to note that the inner workings of the caravan seemed to be vaguely comprehensible to him .
Still, he didn't bother to activate the Magical Engineering Tradeskill at the moment . There was a better time and place for that . Today was already planned full with a much more important agenda .
Soon enough, the carriage arrived at the Business District, where the largest building in the whole area stood out greatly .
It was the Rank 7 Shop!
Or it would more appropriate to call it a medieval mall . It was designed like a modern mall, just without any tech . It had been named Umbra Mall by Riveting Night not just for simplicity's sake, but also because the name 'Umbra' had already established itself as standing for the highest quality .
The core members of Umbra gazed at the Rank 7 Shop with smiles on their faces . After all, they had long been introduced to this wondrous mall and had even browsed its wares .
There was a terrifying amount of human traffic coming in and out of the mall . As had been explained earlier, Boundless was a game that was very, very expansive . The size of Stagnant Moss town was almost as great as a big city from Earth .
As for the cities, they were slightly larger than provinces in the real world . The number of humans in this world easily exceeded those in the real world . And this was not even accounting all the other kinds of sentient races, so even if everyone and their mother joined in, the Immortal Adventurers would never be able to outnumber NPCs .
However, the difference between NPCs and Immortal Adventurers was that one group could die permanently while the other could respawn infinitely, assuming that they weren't hit with potent Destruction Energy .
Draco walked through the crowds with his entourage . Even with their unique disposition and a great reputation, it took a while for the crowd to realize some big shots were passing through .
The noisy area eventually died down as everyone gazed at the 20-man party with their notable emblems pinned to their chests . Many people made way without being asked when they passed through, giving them looks of reverence, worry or awe .
Draco ignored them and surveyed the first floor of the mall . Soon enough, one of the players who had taken a serf quest to manage the properties of Umbra rushed up to Draco with excitement and fear .
"I humbly welcome the Guildmaster, Vice-Guildmasters and the Core Members!" The short and slightly chubby girl greeted with a curtsy .
She was quite plump and had round, rosy cheeks . She seemed to be a member of the mage class if her robes were anything to go, but she naturally did not have a staff or wand out as she was doing commercial work .
Draco smiled lightly at her and nodded . "Nice to meet you . Please update us on the situation on the first floor of the shop . Are you the overseer?"
"No sir, that would be Forest Water . He is one of the few core serf players of the guild . " She answered carefully .
Draco pondered for a bit before shaking his head . "No need to summon him, unless you do not have all the answers I seek . Do you?"
"I do, sir! Please follow me while I show you the state of the first floor!" She replied with excitement .
Of course, she was excited . If she put on a good performance, she might get promoted to a better rank . Like every serf player, she had naively believed this game would be fair to everyone and try to pander or please every player who bought the expensive Virtua Helmet .
How was she supposed to know, that the developers and AI didn't give a rat's ass about how they felt? Whoever designed it knew that with the way the game was structured, many would flock to it no matter the hardsh . i . p . s and difficulties which awaited them .
What, you don't want to work yourself to the bone? No problem, send in the next guy who will!
Still, she was smitten by the game and its realism . There was also the fact that the laws and customs she had to be wary of and observe in the real world meant dogshit here, so she felt free and unconstrained .
Naturally, the downside was that others felt the same way too, so unscrupulous acts were being committed every day in the hundreds .
"The first floor has a 100 available shop rooms of which everyone has been rented out . 25 of them are reserved for Umbra at all times, and we have some expert rank serf players managing them . "
"Items below the Rare rank acquired by the guild members during their quests as well as some of the creations of the Guild's Tradeskill players are sold here . "
"25 of the other shops were rented by the other guilds . 5 of them belong to Kamisuo, while another 5 were rented by Desecrators . 3 were taken by Lorebinders and 2 belong to Myriad Cards . The remainder were rented out to notable guilds in Sturgehaven Kingdom and the other two neighboring Kingdoms, Fallenyer and Koriam . "
"The last 50 were rented out to the highest bidding NPC merchants, who form the basis of our income . The player guilds did not have enough to pay upfront . As such, we took deposits and had them sign a binding contract to pay the rest after their rental term was over . "
Draco listened to this and wasn't surprised . The divisions they had worked out were exactly how he expected them to be with how meticulous Sublime Notion and Riveting Night were . They wouldn't make mistakes at all .
"Cancel the payment requirement with Kamisuo and Desecrators and free up their shops for rent to other paying guilds . Assign those two guilds shops on the third or fourth floor, whichever they prefer . As for Lorebinders and Myriad Cards, nullify the contracts and kick them out . They are our enemies . There is no need to be scrupulous with them . "
Draco's words were like a divine decree and the chubby girl couldn't help but feel her breath hike . Being able to decide the commercial fates of entire guilds, especially those Legendary-tier ones, like that was truly moving .
After all, the benefits of selling in a Rank 7 Shop were immeasurable . The building alone provided so many quality, pricing and advertis . e . m . e . nt benefits to shops within, that it had become the hottest cake among players and NPCs .
Half of the reason why Kamisuo, Myriad Cards, Desecrators, and Lorebinders could afford to manage so many members this early in the game was due to the funds generated by their shops here .
To cut off the flow was no different from strangling their necks . Likewise, to send Kamisuo and Desecrators up would boost their income so much that they would be making thousands of gold per week!
"Of course, sir . I'm going to inform my overseer about your orders . " The serf player said . She bowed once again before scurrying off .
Draco shook his head and nodded to the silent core members . They mostly knew everything about the shop since they had helped it grow or had been briefed extensively when they joined .
It was Draco - who had been away - that knew only bits and pieces from what Riveting Night shared with him .
The overseer of the first floor had been private messaged by the chubby serf girl of Draco's words, so he decided to let her handle it . He also promised her a promotion and raise within her job rank, so that was why she scurried off so happily .
"Let's go up . "
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