Cæ had wondered why the old man had wanted to speak with them when the conversations had not been particularly pointed in any direction and had evolved rather organically, but it became evident that he truly appreciated the haven unit.
"Thank you," Cæ replied with a friendly tone. "I believe that I speak for my entire company when we say that we are truly grateful to your eagerness to manufacture our product."
Seliphaz smiled with delight. "Thank you very much!"
The old man nodded simply. "I am also pleased to inform you that we have found suppliers who are able to supply us with the necessary substances for the production of the haven unit. We can sign the contract immediately, and I will have the crew commence production tomorrow or the day after."
Cæ's eyes lit up with a hint of enthusiasm. "That's fast. I really appreciate your speed in this matter. Frankly, we couldn't really afford too many delays in this regard as this particular season is very important to our sales strategy."
The man nodded knowingly. "I can imagine why, it's why I have decided to go ahead with the production of the haven units. After all, your success is now my success. My workers are very competent and dedicated, so they won't need more than a single demonstration of the production process and a single test production run to get a hang of it."
Seliphaz grew more curious at those words. "I did notice that your workers were very invested and dedicated to the manufacturing process. Far more so than I have ever seen in any other manufacturing factory."
"Indeed," the old man smiled endearingly. "I consider them all as family in a way."
Cæ raised an eyebrow. "They are remarkably productive. Usually, there is some degree of reluctance in their productivity."
"Well," the old man stroked his thick, white beard. "I suppose that must be because they each own a stake in this manufacturing company."
Cæ's eyes widened with a hint of surprise on his impassive face. "What?"
The old man directed a gaze at the workers grinding away at the assembly lines. "These men and women collectively now make up about half of the manufacturing company. They have very strong incentives to do as good a job as they possibly can. This increases the quality of the goods that we manufacture, which increases the number of partners, like yourselves, who are interested in working with us. After all…"
He turned towards the two of them. "I'm sure that when you walked in, you were very impressed by the dedication and investment of these workers into the production process, weren't you? You must have been impressed with the productivity that they displayed."
Cæ nodded with a knowing expression. "It certainly made me even more determined about partnering with Marshall's Manufacturing."
The old man nodded with a hint of pride. "That's what that does. I dare say that we are one of the best manufacturers in town."
Cæ could appreciate how much the man dearly regarded his company.
He treated it as a family of which he was the head.
In comparison, Cæ couldn't help but introspect about how he regarded Trinity Housings. While he certainly considered it to be very important and even had a lot of emotional investment in the enterprise, he wasn't sure if he loved it the way that Leland seemed to love Marshall's Manufacturing.
The reason he had started Trinity Housings was that he wanted to make money.
It wasn't a noble desire to help the people of the slums, nor was it out of any other kind of sentimentality. Even after it was created, he didn't regard it with a profoundly different lens.
It made him feel ever so slightly guilty.
He turned his gaze to the beaming Seliphaz, who continued to engage with the CEO of Marshall's Manufacturing.
He didn't even need to ask her if she considered Trinity Housings to be like family or something beyond just a commercial venture.
He could already tell that the answer was yes.
The same was probably true for Feidin, now that he thought of it.
The man had clearly never gotten over the unfortunate collapse of his mini-housing company and regarded the opportunity with Trinity Housings as a second chance at a failed dream. Each day, he spent all his time at the company, doing everything in his power to ensure that the company survived and thrived.
In comparison, Cæ's consideration of the company felt more superficial and greedy.
However, he didn't let it affect him all that much.
There wasn't anything wrong with pursuing money and success. Especially when his ultimate ambition of destroying the current world order was something that absolutely could not be achieved without at least some enormous amount of money.
"So what do you say, young lad and lass," the old man asked, raising an eyebrow. "Interested in signing the contract? The sooner we sign it, the sooner we can get to commencing this partnership."
"Absolutely," Cæ remarked. "We can sign it away."
This was a contract that Feidin had already negotiated and vetted to be perfectly fine and was undoubtedly in consent to pursue. Seliphaz didn't have any compunctions either and was, in fact, extremely eager to partner with Marshall's Manufacturing.
"Good," the old man nodded as he slowly walked away to the study in his office, quickly getting his hands on several sheets of paper stapled together and placing them on the table. "Then let's get to work immediately."
It wasn't too long before Cæ had signed the documents as the CEO of Trinity Housings.
The deal was complete.
"I look forward to working with you for many years to come," the old man smiled with anticipation.
"I look forward to a prosperous partnership," A small smile emerged on Cæ's face.
"I look forward to working with you!" Seliphaz beamed with enthusiasm.
It wasn't too long before their conversation and meeting concluded as the old man saw them off at the gate of the factory in a friendly gesture.
"Feel free to stop by any time," the man remarked. "Our standards are so impeccable at all times for any check-up on the part of our partners, you see."
"I will keep that in mind," Cæ replied calmly. "Then, goodbye, Mr. Leland."
"Bye-bye." Seliphaz waved at him with a friendly smile.
The two of them got into the taxi that they had booked back to Trinity Housings.
"This visit was so amazing," Seliphaz blurted out, turning towards him in a jolt. "I'm so glad I decided to come along with you."
"It was good that you did," Cæ nodded. "I didn't have an answer to any of the technical questions he asked you later on. Not to mention, you are the owner of the company. You are on the board of directors. You are very much within your rights to partake in such meetings. You should exercise your right and your power."
She shied away with a bashful expression. "…It's nerve-wracking. I was so nervous when we ran into him. He's so intimidating on the surface. I feel like…"
Her expression fell. "I feel like I will give the company a bad name if I represent it by myself."
PAT
Cæ gently placed his hands on her shoulder.
"You did great. You earned his respect, as you deserve to for creating a product as remarkable as the Haven unit."
Her cheeks gained a red tint as she turned away from him. "…Thank you."
He shrugged, his gaze returning to his window as he appreciated the gentle evening warmth and glow of the Sun.
"It really wasn't much."
She stole a glance at him from the edge of her eyes, gazing at him deeply as he looked out the window, deep in thought.
He had an air of intensity to him that she didn't quite understand.
Almost as though he had his own field of gravity.
His sharp features, his serious gaze, and his body language drew attention magnetically. His dichromatic gray eyes were unnerving, with the iris of his right eye being such a light tone of gray that it almost blended into the white of his eye.
The prominent scars that ran down his face and neck were also attention-drawing.
She had never asked him how he got those.
In fact, now that she thought of it, she didn't know anything about him.
"Is there anything on my face?"
Cæ's inquisitive voice startled her out of her reverie.
"N-No," she turned away, hiding her embarrassment.
Cæ raised an eyebrow before returning to his own thoughts.
"Do you…" Her hesitating voice drew his attention once more. "Do you want to go somewhere?"
Cæ frowned at her. "What?"
She felt her nervousness tingling away in her nerves.
"I-I was just wondering if you wanted to go somewhere to grab a beverage or something to eat."
Cæ simply gazed at her. "…Right now?"
"…You're right," her expression fell. "We have too much work to do to be sitting around resting."
"No."
His tone was more friendly and firm.
He heaved a deep, relaxing breath. "We can stop by a cafe and grab some cochil. It feels like it has been a long time since I simply relaxed, I suppose. It's a shame Feidin isn't here."
Her expression lit up with a delighted smile. "Then, let's go immediately."
The car changed its route, and before long, they found themselves having arrived at a popular cafe in a street filled with eateries, restaurants, and diners.
CLACK
They got out of the car to be immediately greeted by the cool winds of the evening. A pang of icy, cold stung at their skin as Cæ directed a knowing look at the skies. They were enveloped in a sheet of gray clouds that grew darker and darker as time passed, hiding the setting Sun from Colohen City.
It rained heavily almost every day in Colohen City.
He was sure that the people of the slums were bound to experience yet another harsh day and night within their little huts and shacks in the outer city. His gaze shifted back forward to him as he contrasted the well-furnished, classy, modern cafe that would not only entirely shield him from the impending storm but also keep them warm and comfortable.
"What are you waiting for?" Seliphaz smiled as she turned around and opened the door. "Come in, I found a good table for us."
He stared at her for a moment in the formal suit and skirt that she was still in, as a small smile emerged on his face.
"Coming."
It wasn't long before the two of them found themselves seated before each other with two warm drinks of cochil before them.
The drinks were made from the powdered remains of a roasted bean of the cochil plant, a magical plant that grew in only a handful of places in Elendir despite its immense popularity around the continent.
A wave of warm relief spread through Cæ's body as he took a deep sip of the warm beverage, relishing in its strong, rich taste that suffused itself through his body. He gazed at Seliphaz with an uncharacteristically relaxed expression.
"So this is what you are like outside of work and school," she murmured with a hint of intrigued curiosity.
"I suppose," Cæ remarked. "Although this isn't our first time eating together, remember?"
"A business meeting where you made the offer to me to join your business doesn't count," Seliphaz huffed. "The more I look at you right now, the more I realize that I don't know anything about you outside of work and academics."
Cæ heaved a sigh, shaking his head.
"I am nobody outside of work and academics."
His tone was solemn.