Adam reached the foreign country in the morning.
The na of the country was Kavora.
When he walked out of the arrival gate, he kept his face calm, but his eyes moved over everything around him.
’Kavora.’ Adam thought. ’People say this country has more active businesses than almost any place of its size.’
The airport itself showed that.
Everything looked clean and fast. The floor shone under the white lights. The boards changed quickly. Workers moved with the kind of speed that ca from doing the sa job thousands of tis.
’The infrastructure is almost like a fully developed nation.’ Adam thought. ’But that is not the main reason businesses co here.’
He walked forward with a small bag in one hand.
’The real reason is policy.’ Adam thought. ’This place protects business people. It makes deals easier. It makes company work faster. That is why companies from Kavora have nas all over the world.’
Adam had read enough about this country before coming here.
Kavora was famous for fast business growth. A small company could co here and reach markets that were usually closed.
That was exactly why Darien’s contact had chosen this place.
Adam moved out of the airport building.
Outside, many n were standing with cardboard signs in their hands. So signs had company nas. So had hotel nas. So had nas written in large black letters.
Adam’s eyes moved from one board to another.
Then he saw the na Walter written on one of the boards.
The na was written clearly on a white board.
Adam slowed down.
’Looks like Darien already spoke to him.’ Adam thought. ’He said he would manage everything. At least he did that much.’
Adam walked toward the man holding the board.
The man looked around thirty-five. He wore a light gray shirt and dark trousers. His face was friendly, but his eyes were sharp. Adam could tell at once that this was not a normal driver.
The man saw Adam coming and lowered the board.
"Mr. Walter?" he asked.
Adam held out his hand. "That’s ."
The man shook his hand with a quick smile.
"Elias Kade," he said. "A friend of Darien’s told to expect you. Welco to Kavora."
"Thank you," Adam said.
Elias took one look at Adam’s bag and then pointed toward the parking area.
"Car’s this way."
Adam followed him.
They did not speak much in the car at first. Elias drove smoothly through the airport road and into the city. Tall buildings stood on both sides. So were company offices. So looked like private banks. Everywhere Adam looked, he saw signs of money moving fast.
After so ti, the car stopped in front of a hotel.
Elias helped Adam check in.
Adam took his small bag to the room and placed it near the bed. Elias ca inside too, standing near the table as if he had done this many tis with many different clients.
Elias said, "Do you want to rest first?"
"No," Adam said before Elias could continue. "Let’s start with the work I ca for."
Elias paused.
Then he smiled a little.
"Straight to work. I like that."
He pulled a chair and sat down.
"Then I’ll be direct too," Elias said. "I don’t hide things from people who co through trusted contacts."
Adam sat across from him.
Elias continued, "I move goods through the black market. If sothing cannot go through official channels, people co to ."
Adam listened without changing his face.
"And I am not limited to Kavora," Elias said. "There is a superpower country with better tech. I can pull things from there too."
He smiled lightly.
"Not legally, of course."
Adam did not react much.
Elias leaned back slightly.
"So, what are you looking for?"
Adam looked at him and said, "A chip manufacturing unit. I need to see one."
Elias tapped his finger once on the chair.
"I can arrange that," he said. "But I will say this first. Whatever the real price is, I charge double."
Adam looked at him.
Elias raised one hand. "I am not saying that to scare you. Safe routes cost money."
He tapped the table once.
"People also need to be paid to look away. And the timing is never fixed. It may arrive in a week. It may take longer."
Adam raised his hand and stopped him.
"No, no," Adam said. "You understood it wrong."
Elias frowned. "Then?"
"I only need to see the machine," Adam said.
Elias stared at him.
"See it?"
"Yes."
"You flew all the way here just to look at a machine?"
Adam nodded.
Elias looked at him like he was trying to understand what kind of client he had gotten.
Adam knew what that look ant.
In this world, a man’s ti also had a price. Elias had co to receive him. He had arranged the hotel. He was sitting here because Darien had sent Adam through a trusted route. If Adam only wasted his ti, that would be a problem.
So Adam spoke first.
"Don’t worry," Adam said. "I will pay for your ti."
Elias’s eyes changed.
"How much?"
"One-fourth of the machine’s price," Adam said.
Elias beca silent.
For a few seconds, he only looked at Adam.
"Just to see it?" he asked.
"Just to see it properly."
Elias slowly leaned forward.
"If you only wanted a look, you could have gone to an official company," he said. "They show old models to buyers sotis."
Adam shook his head.
"I don’t want to look from a distance," he said. "I need to inspect it properly."
Elias kept looking at him.
Then his expression changed a little.
In his mind, Adam was probably so engineer. Maybe he wanted to study the machine closely and build sothing similar. Official companies would never let a stranger touch and inspect a machine freely. That made this request strange, but not impossible.
Elias stood up.
"Fine," he said. "If that is what you want, co with ."
Adam also stood.
Elias picked up the car key from the table.
"I have a full set stored away," he said. "If all you want is to see it, then let’s go."
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