Fate finished his first tour of Bloomspire Academy. He left with a very impressive list of improvents that he needed to make on Shadow Spire Citadel.
While walking back ho, Fate thought about Hope Ends Academy again and decided to tell Ruby his interesting idea.
"Ruby, as far as the decoration for Hope Ends Academy—where hope goes to die—in keeping with this the, we should make the school cold and oppressive to convey to the students: don’t get your hopes up about going to school here or dare to enjoy it. You are here to learn, not to have fun."
Ruby heard Fate’s words and considered them carefully. They could incorporate all of Fate’s previous ideas for Hope Ends Academy but, at the sa ti, make it extrely oppressive and cold to wear down the will and minds of those who resist their education.
"That’s a brilliant idea, Fate. I will make sure the new look is implented imdiately. I’m planning for the opening of your academy to be around the sa ti that Bloomspire Academy opens for classes."
Fate nodded his head. That was after the gathering of lords being held in several months’ ti. Fate was excited to see the outco of that eting.
But as excited as Fate was, Ruby was even more excited. The poison was ready, and her troops were training around the clock to beco half as capable as the Blood Maidens.
Fate returned ho with a smile at the surprise he arranged for so leisure fun. Fate’s now gold-plated indoor pool happened to have a small leak in the wall that fell several hundred feet to the ground, creating a moat around Shadow Spire Citadel.
Ruby was kind enough to show him so Carnival Fish, which is this world’s na for extrely aggressive piranhas. These Carnival Fish are two inches long with tough outer hides and dozens of razor-sharp teeth in their mouths. The best part is that there are thousands of them.
Fate looked at Ruby and said, "Ruby, it’s ti to feed the Carnival Fish. They look hungry from all the spots of red that I see in the water."
Ruby nodded her head and waved her hand, signaling for their toy to be loaded. Then Fate walked over to the man-made cow catapult and pulled the handle down.
*Pull*
*Moooh!*
Fate put his hand above his eyes to block the sun and get a better look.
*Splash*
While Fate watched the cow, he said to Ruby, "Damn, Ruby! That cow got so serious air on that shot. But now there are even more red spots in the water than before. Did you already use the new cow catapult earlier?"
Ruby shook her head with a knowing smile and said, "Of course not, Fate. This is the maiden voyage of the cow catapult, so how could I go before you?"
Then Ruby went to take her turn and pulled the lever down.
*Pull*
"Mooh!"
Fate looked at the cow and then said with a smile, "Damn, Ruby, you got more air than . I guess I lose this round. Well, it’s ti for your reward. Follow to the pool room; the walls look like mirrors in there now. I have a secret ten-foot pole to show you how to fish with."
Ruby played ignorant and said naively to Fate, "What? You have a new toy to show in the pool room, my lord? Oh, we better go and explore the depths of the pool together."
Then Fate chased Ruby to the pool room. They both ignored all the non-cow-related blood in the moat.
After an afternoon of teaching Ruby the basics of the backstroke, Fate was looking at his treasury deep in the heart of Shadow Spire Citadel. Fate sighed and looked at Ruby by his side. She had a noticeable limp in her step again.
"Ruby, the burden I must bear to spend this vast amount of wealth is not sothing a normal person can comprehend. I keep having to co up with ways to spend it. Now my damn treasury is full again after all those rchant bribes ca into the treasury for ignoring their price gouging of the nobles. You have to love being a lord in this day and age. rchants are always eager to pay off as long as I don’t make them pay taxes to King Samuel Bloodsworn. I can tell that most of them still want dead though."
Ruby nodded her head and said, "I don’t understand why they don’t like you, Fate. You don’t make them pay any taxes to the crown, but they still hate you just because you ask for three tis the normal tax rate from them. They make at least a few gold crowns a day after paying their taxes to you."
Fate nodded his head in happiness and said, "Oh, Ruby, don’t let those sly bastards fool you. They are making at least three to five tis the taxes they pay to daily back from all the noble kids in this city. That’s why I ca up with the idea of a transaction tax. I will make those sly bastards pay a tax every ti they sell sothing. I would like to see them cheat since they pay my tax at the end of every business day now."
Ruby nodded her head and complinted Fate. "Yes, Fate, you really live up to your reputation as a just and generous ruler."
Fate nodded his head, saying, "It’s true, it’s true, I’m too kind sotis."
anwhile, the various rchants of Valoria were cursing Fate’s existence and the creation of his inco tax, which is charged per transaction and collected daily.
One rchant in particular was very unhappy since he is close to Prince Nimrod Bloodsworn as one of his main financial backers. Bruno Pringle now not only has to maintain appearances by paying taxes to the king, but he can’t take advantage of the fact that Duke Fate Grimsever is not making the other rchants not close to the king pay the national inco tax. Instead, he is collecting it all for himself. Doing it this way still cuts those bastards’ taxes in half since they don’t have to pay twice.
So instead of paying the king and Duke Fate, now they only have to pay the Duke. Everyone thought this was so kind of miracle until the city guard started to show up daily to look at their accounting books.
Due to the creation of the daily transaction tax, now not only are the rchants stuck paying inco tax to Duke Fate, they are stuck with a second tax in the form of a transaction tax. But honest rchants like Bruno were bleeding gold crowns by paying the king and Duke Fate at the sa ti.
Bruno looked at his accounting books and the sexy female guard that just left his shop with a very heavy burlap sack full of gold crowns, then he said, "Dammit, how am I supposed to embezzle any money for myself if I’m forced to be an honest rchant and pay more taxes than those bastards that are sucking up to the Duke’s household. Lately, all of them seed to enjoy wearing red for so reason as well. But who cares about fashion at a ti like this? That bastard Fate Grimsever is affecting my bottom line. He needs to be dealt with harshly. If he continues to tax even more than the king, how am I supposed to support my three wives and fifteen mistresses, not to ntion my two dozen useless kids?"
Bruno finished looking at his account books for the day, so he put them away. Then, getting up from his chair, his fat belly got in his way as he put on his dress coat.
"Damn, I really need to stop buying those donuts to eat all the ti. But those mysterious rchants in red outfits that showed up the last couple of days sell such good food and coffee."
That’s right, Bruno is not aware that the forces of Phoenix Rising are not just made up of soldiers anymore. Ruby has expanded her influence into the rchants and retail side of Valoria.
After his coat was on, Bruno walked out of his room and saw his useless son, Dimwit Pringle. Bruno hated this child because his only redeeming quality was his ability to suck up to people in important positions.
It’s lucky for Bruno that his son, Dimwit, has sohow found himself in the inner circle of Prince Nimrod’s friends.
Dimwit saw his dad, Bruno, leave the accounting room and ran up to him to ask, "Dad, I have so great news! Prince Nimrod has given the opportunity to pay for his dical treatnt at the church again. This ans our family is sure to be given a title of nobility for this ager financial support once Prince Nimrod becos king."
When Bruno heard this, he smiled at his genius of a son. His son may be stupid, but it was this one child that would secure the future of the Pringle family.
Now Bruno just needs to sell a few more items to afford the treatnt for Prince Nimrod.
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