5 Hospitality

Two days later, Kenneth saw the island in the distance and started to make his preparations. His new ship now had over one thousand gold coins which was enough to pay any docking fees of the island. It was also enough to pay some of the island's guards to look after his new ship as well.

Smaller islands such as this M-Island which Kenneth was docking his ship in, would usually make a good bit of gold coins by having those who dock their ships, pay for both ship protection and docking.

This did not earn these small islands too much money, however, the larger the island, the higher the docking and protection fees were. For an island such as M-Island, it was enough to consistently pay the guards salaries who were in charge of protecting the island's coastline.

"That is a decent sized ship, I wonder if it is another talent scout from other powers looking to recruit by scouting the participants in the tournament?" one of the guards said to the other guards in the tower.

"If that is the case, M-Island should be receiving many more ships within this next week. Let's stay extra vigilant in case some pirates decide to try and pull a fast one on us." The leader of this tower told the other guards.

"Hello there, how much will it be to dock my ship and to pay the protection fees?" Kenneth asked several guards who had approached his ship near the coastline.

"It will cost about one hundred gold coins to dock your ship here for every month you stay here on this island and fifty gold coins for every month to order protection. Do you accept these terms?" one of the guards asked Kenneth.

"Oh, that's it? In that case, here is one thousand gold coins. Give me some paperwork to sign!" replied Kenneth immediately agreeing and tossing over a large bag full of one thousand gold coins.

"So many gold coins? This must be a VIP!" the leader of this side of the island's coastline shouted out from nearby while rushing over.

"May I know this VIP's name?" asked the leader. He was excited to personally be helpful to a new arrival who was so rich!

"You can call me Kenneth, I am here to deposit some of my gold into a bank. Does this island have one?" asked Kenneth in a very dignified but respectful manner.

"A bank? Yes, one is located within the city. All I need is to take your picture so that we can keep proper track of your ship and some information. After we finish the short process, I will have some of my men escort you into the city!" the leader said.

After giving over all of the basic information and photo of himself and one of his ship, Kenneth was escorted by three guards into the city.

"This city seems very small, but what is up with that arena there?" Kenneth asked one of the guards who was escorting him to the bank.

"Oh? We thought Master Kenneth was here to scout some talents who would be competing in the island wide fighting tournament one week from now?" asked one of the guards.

"If you are looking to hire some talents, it would be wise to purchase a ticket when you are done at the bank for the tournament. Every five years, some of the islands send some of their experts to fight in that arena. We are the hosts every year, and because of the arena, we citizens of this island are able to sustain our island's economy."

"Is that so? I will have to ask you all for some help then after this bank run to bring me over to the arena. Will that be too troubling?" Kenneth asked. With the guards escorting and treating him like a VIP, Kenneth felt that those in charge of the tournament, may even give him a free front row seat!

"That would be no trouble at all!" one of the guards replied. "We have arrived at the bank, we will wait out here until you are ready, and we will bring you over right away."

"Thank you so much for your cooperation. I hope this tip will help you all." Kenneth said as he gave these three guards a small tip of five gold coins before heading into the bank.

"The leader was not mistaken, this must be a VIP with a notable background compared to those who live in this ocean area. You should go to the arena and let them know that we will be arriving with such a figure soon!" one of the guards told another guard.

Inside the bank, Kenneth met with the account handler in a small room. Banks on small islands like this one were able to give out up to two thousand gold coins to the citizens. However, anything above that, would be recorded in their record books to keep tabs on everyone's accounts.

Kenneth casually placed his four gold cards on the table and gave the account handler his account information. Surprised, the account handler put in the proper amounts and thanked Kenneth for his business.

Kenneth chose not to withdraw any funds because if the guards felt that he was a VIP and treated him as such, he could possibly receive a free room from the governor of the island if he played his cards correctly.

Exiting the bank, Kenneth was then escorted to the arena. Upon arriving, the governor just so happened to be present and met Kenneth.

"I have heard that you are a very special VIP, I welcome you to my island and hope that you could even do a favor on my behalf?" asked the governor.

"With such hospitality and respect, it would be an honor to help you with a small matter. Please, speak and tell me what you need from me." replied Kenneth.

"I would like for you to be a special guest concerning the tournament in which my island will be hosting this upcoming week. You will receive free meals and lodging all week before the event." said the governor.

"Personally, I like to keep a low profile. Is it possible for me to just receive a front row seat as you find someone you could dress up that looks very similar? My goal is to recruit some talented fighters, but I want them to want to join by my side, rather than being forced."

"Oh, such a thing can be arranged! If you are willing to recruit even just a single fighter from the tournament, it would be wonderful!" the governor said before giving him an emblem to signify that Kenneth was a guest of his.

"Please allow me to escort you to my estate. Your identity will not be given away, and you will receive several maids and guards who will assist you with anything you need!" the governor told Kenneth as he allowed the guards to escort him to his estate within the city.

At this moment, the governor sent out several vessels to the nearby islands. These vessels held several letter carriers and each letter said the same exact words.

"This year's tournament will have a VIP representative with a great background who is scouting for talent to add to his ranks. It would be wise to send over any strong warriors who wish to be scouted!"

Within the next three days, over twenty of the nearby islands finally received the letter from the governor of M-Island and started to make their arrangements to send over some strong warriors. Even if there was only a slim chance, these islands wanted one of their citizens to be taken with this VIP. If a citizen was able to join the ranks of a VIP, it may help their home islands!

Kenneth only became aware of this, when one day before the tournament, M-Island was bustling with new arrivals. A small island such as M-Island would only have roughly ten thousand citizens, but, right now, it seemed as if this island had many more!

"Little does the governor know, this is working more in my favor, than it is in his." pondered Kenneth as he made his way from inside a bar back to the governor's estate.

After meeting with some guests who were representatives from nearby islands, Kenneth retired to his room to rest. He was now even more eager to watch this tournament and use it as an opportunity to recruit some talents!