Why did it slip her mind that early in the ga, Alessa could possibly get sothing from the love interests to help her along her way? Wasnt this common in gas?
Link goes into the cave and the old man tells him its dangerous to go alone. Take this. Then he hands him a sword. That charm is the sword. Tori drew a little 8-bit sword in the margins of her notebook as she tried to rationalize what was happening.
She supposed it made sense. If Alessa was going to be the heroine, she needed resources, especially if she was up against Victoria de Guevera, who had a formidable background and wealth. Tori had always expected the resources would co from love interests to help Alessa advance. Except that Victoria had no idea what she was doing, which made the ga significantly easier for Alessa, didnt it?
Of course, one of the caveats to Montans charm was that it was based on existing favor, if Tori read the characters and format correctly. It only worked if the listener liked Alessa to begin with. Alessa had favorable first impressions with the love interests and maybe a few classmates, but Tori was already weary of her before they even t.
Ilyana and the others had terrible impressions of Alessa. Sonia would fight Alessa if given the chance. It wouldnt work on them.
She didnt know why it didnt work on Constantine, but then again, would Constantine be susceptible to such a charm?
An additional thought was that nowhere on the charm did it say that the favor could not change. If Toris observations were correct, then if Alessa didnt talk to soone often enough, their favor and her influence with them would decrease. And since it was based on existing favor, there was a chance that if Alessa was seen in an unfavorable light, her influence would drop more so.
This seed to be the case with Gideon and Fabian. Montan didnt have much contact with her now-a-days, either, and Dimitri was locked up in a room sowhere in his familial house in a town a day outside of Horizon. Of the love interests in Lyce, Dimitri was a more fanatical follower of Alessa.
Hed almost fought with Gideon, and up until Ilyana punched him in the palace, he had been defending Alessa. Now that he was suspended and forcibly kept away, Tori wondered how this was affecting him. She couldnt help but think of the addiction factor. Unlike the others, who were slowly being pulled away from Alessas sphere of influence, Dimitri was ripped away.
Cold turkey as they said in her original world. Most people didnt react very well to such a thing.
Tori leaned back against her seat and ran a hand down her face. At least now she knew about the charm. Kasen was right; learning Old Sulfae for charms was extrely useful.
Tori looked up at the ceiling of the classroom. I need to negate it.... Except she couldnt do a countercharm without knowing what exactly was written on the original charm. She only had a rough guess considering the characters she saw, what Montan told her, and the observed effects on love interests around Alessa.
The wrong characters could ss up the charm and render it useless. Tori could try to physically destroy it, but that ant shed have to find the charm and Alessa likely wouldnt let Tori pat her down. That would be awkward.
There wasnt even a guarantee that Alessa kept it on her person every day.
Tori narrowed her eyes. Perhaps she could get Montan to replicate the charm. Then, she could make a charm to negate it, casually slap it on Alessa, and stop her from using the influence charm.
Of course, there was also a chance that Alessa could go back to Montan and ask for a replacent if she found out the charm wasnt working. Tori tapped her fingers on her desk. She could make another charm so that the influence charm wasnt physically destroyed, just not working. She didnt know how sensitive Alessa was to energies, so it would be a good idea to keep the influence charm with so energy.
Tori scowled. This was getting increasingly complicated.
Part of her also wanted to smack Montan, but she doubted he gave the charm to Alessa with the malicious intent to make her own life difficult. Tori didnt want to go to Axton to try to pressure Montan considering the fragility of their relationship, if it could even be called that. Montan wasnt Gideon.
Lunch is here! Ilyanas voice ca from behind her, and Tori looked over her shoulder as Ilyana reached her seat next to her and put a paper wrapped package in front of Tori. She looked at Toris serious expression as she sat down. Are you still thinking about the charm?
It haunts my mind.
You should talk to Alvere about it, Ilyana told her as she unwrapped her own lunch. Hes the one who made it.
Im trying to think of a way to approach him about it. Tori sat up and opened her lunch. Its not as if I can tell Hart to stop using it. She doesnt trust . Rember how she thought I was going to poach rchants with whom she was working?
Ilyana snorted with indifference. Why would you need to? You have a lot of contacts already.
Henrik has a lot of contacts. Were just riding on his coattails, Tori said before biting into her sandwich. The bread was still nice and toasted. She nodded in approval. She swore that lunch was the best al from the Lyce commons. I dont give Henrik enough credit for what he can do at his age.
Id bet money that in four or five years, he could be the guild master, Ilyana replied. A lot of people have their eyes on him.
Do you think hell get a girlfriend before Albert?
I think hes capable of doing so, but you know how he is.
Focused on business.
Its for the best. Ilyana squinted and looked out across their horoom class. I think Albert would cry.
He didnt have much luck at Gideons birthday celebration, which was the social event for their peers of the season. Tori had been paying attention to Fiona the entire ti, but Ilyana and Sonia filled her in.
Considering family background, Albert shouldve been the most popular of their little circle, especially considering Constantine went to the seminary. Alberts family, the Martins, were an old aristocratic family based in Horizon. Everyone knew who the Martins were. However, the one who got the most attention was Henrik. Not that he paid attention.
The commotion surrounding his sister had thrust him into the spotlight and showed everyone how competent he really was. Business matters, legal issues, spinning opinions with the help of JP, and all but taking over his familys leadership was more than impressive for a sixteen-year-old.
Not that he wanted to. Henrik was just thrown into the position.
Compared to Henrik, Albert was still very much a student who wasnt doing much. He was an intern at the imperial palace over the sumr, but he wasnt working during the school year. Sonia had told her that Alberts approach to talking to young ladies was lacking conviction and made him seem unreliable.
Competent focused people with confidence are attractive, Tori said with another bite of sandwich. We should give him a pep talk.
Youre good at those.
Countess Guevera? A hesitant voice spoke up behind Tori and she turned her head towards the aisle, with half a sandwich in her mouth. Toris eyes narrowed as she saw Alessa approaching her with a hopeful expression.
Tori pulled the sandwich from her mouth. Speak of the devil.... she muttered under her breath. Baroness Hart. She gave the other young woman a small nod of her head.
Do you have so ti to talk after classes today? Alessa asked in a asured voice.
Tori saw Ilyana tense up beside her and held out her arm to calm her. May I ask what it is about, Baroness?
I would like to ask so questions on expanding business. Prince Gideon suggested that I should ask you, Alessa told her.
Prince Gideon needs to shut the fuck up and leave alone.
Beside her, Ilyana sucked in a sharp breath. Why did he tell you to ask Tori?
The Countess has nurous successful businesses-
So do plenty of other people, Ilyana said with a frown. Why dont you ask that perve-
Ilyana. Tori gave her a firm look and Ilyana puffed out her cheeks. She viciously bit into her sandwich, but didnt continue. Tori blinked and she tilted her head to the side as she turned back to Alessa. Baroness Hart, I recently heard that you are now the new owner of Golden Cow rcantile. This would make us business rivals. Do you think it is appropriate to discuss?
As Alessa looked at a loss, Gideon returned to his seat with Fabian following him. Fabian stopped beside Alessa and looked at her face. His lips pulled down in a slight frown.
Whats wrong?
I am asking Countess Guevera for assistance with expanding the store, but she is hesitant.
Of course, shes hesitant! Ilyana narrowed her eyes and sat up straight before Fabian could reply. The Golden Cow and Lions Gate have been rivals since the beginning!
Why would you trust a rival to give you business advice? Tori asked with an incredulous look.
Guevera, you wouldnt purposely give her bad advice, Gideon said in a matter-of-fact voice. You are aware of Alessas dire circumstances and must know that ownership of Golden Cow rcantile can improve those circumstances. I also know that you are an honorable fellow. You are, after all, my brothers friend.
Both Tori and Ilyana stared at the second prince as if they were listening to either soone very naive or very stupid. Ilyana seed to bristle and want to speak, but Tori held her back.
She took a deep breath. Do you want my honest opinion, then?
Gideon glanced at Alessa, who looked at Tori and nodded. Yes.
Tori lifted her chin. Dont concern yourself with business growth at the mont.
What? Gideon snapped his head towards her, as if stunned shed say such a thing. Ilyana looked satisfied with Toris answer in comparison. Guevera-
Hear out, Tori said, lifting her hand. Baroness Hart has no prior business experience of sothing of this magnitude. In addition, if shes asking , it ans she lacks guidance from others and has no one else to ask. Rather than try to expand her business and go for revenue enhancent, she should focus on first understanding how Golden Cow rcantile runs and establishing her position as the owner. She will need to assess where the store is now, retain experienced employees, get their respect, and trust, and familiarize herself with the stores processes, including purchasing, legal work, and accounts.
She cant learn all of that in a few days. It will take at least a few months for her to stabilize herself in the store. Only after it is running reasonably smoothly does she have enough information to plan her next steps, whether they be expansion or reorganization of the existing business. It isnt too late to wait a few months. Business expansion requires money, and she shouldnt spend it before she knows the ins and outs of how it is currently being earned and spent. Does this make sense?
She looked at them with critical eyes. Gideon and Fabian both seed to think for a mont before nodding. Alessa nodded, but fidgeted with her fingers.
How long do you think it would take to learn all of that? she asked with so hesitation.
It depends on the person and the amount they need to learn. If they are starting with no experience, it will take longer, Tori told her. She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. Are you planning to use the Golden Cow rcantile to support your barony? She didnt know if it would be sustainable, if even possible.
Alessa looked away. I hope to use it as a starting point to assist my barony, such as move production to Chetterswickshire.
Did you do a cost analysis on moving production? Ilyana asked in a cool voice.
Alessa looked taken aback and shook her head. I havent done anything yet.
Okay, dont think about the small details for now. Its fine to have a goal in mind, but at the mont, you should focus on learning about the business you just acquired. Did any of the managent stay? If so, you can ask them for guidance, Tori said.
Yes, Adrien asked the senior manager to stay and assist before he left, Alessa told her.
Tori bit her tongue. She had many questions about Adrien, but none were appropriate to ask. Then, you should go to the senior manager for assistance. Alessa still looked hesitant, and Tori grit her teeth. We can discuss further at the end of sumr. I estimate it will take you that long to fully understand the business and have a little experience. It will also give you ti to consider in what ways youd like to expand and who you want the beneficiaries to be.
With a set tiline, Alessas face lit up. All right! Thank you, Countess!
Tori gave him a small nod of her head. Alessa returned to her seat with Fabian behind her. Ilyana leaned closer to Tori.
Why did you agree? she said in a quiet, displeased voice.
Do you rember what I told you about the illusion of choice? Tori asked. It was sothing she often did in her original world. She would present a pre-screened and approved list of choices to a group and have them pick amongst those choices. This would guarantee that whatever they picked could be used without a problem. The group would feel that they ca to a decision, and it would save Tori the trouble of unusable suggestions.
In this case, she was steering Alessa towards a choice Tori could manage to avoid Alessa throwing sothing more troubleso at her.
Ilyana wrinkled her nose. I dont think you need to.
Tori smiled and rested her head on Ilyanas shoulder. I read in an obscure book to keep my enemies close.
Ilyana let out a heavy, disappointed sigh. Just dont tire yourself out.
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