187 CLXXXVII. | 'Temper thine ambition...'

Her office in the Book Tower was more spacious than she needed, quite frankly, but with all these new guests running around and knowing what she did of her young Lord Goffe, Amelia Carthrace had a dreadful and exciting feeling that she might actually have need of all this space, someday.

When the Queen had offered her this position, Amelia had not been able to tell if it had been offered out of pity or punishment or something else entirely. Working for the most infamous teenager in the nation? It was hardly a job that anyone was pining for.

But now, with the economy the way it was, she could think of several, very high profile financiers who would have killed to be in her shoes--especially because some of those people were currently out of a job.

With so many banks folding up so suddenly, there was a profound surplus of financial talent out there, just waiting to be scooped up. The problem was, of course, that there was almost no one in Atreya who could scoop them up. Which meant they would not be staying in Atreya for much longer. They would have to act soon, lest the cream of their nation's crop would head off to Intar or Steccat or Vantalay, maybe. And if they really did leave, then, well...

Then Atreya would see a real financial crisis.

To say that she was antsy about this meeting with Hector today would have been an understatement. Truthfully, she had wanted to talk to him the very second he had gotten back, but for something like this, she knew she couldn't come off as too eager or pushy. In all likelihood, the young lord wouldn't understand what an incredible opportunity this was and would therefore probably be rather off-put by too much enthusiasm for the situation. Millions of people were going bankrupt, after all.

And besides, such behavior was unbecoming of a woman her age. She had to maintain her dignity, if nothing else.

Still, never would she have expected to feel so excited about working with money again. After thirty grueling years in the business, working for banks, an insurance agency, an accounting firm, a hedge fund, and even the Lord High Treasurer himself, she'd thought that she had lost all taste for this sort of thing. And this job wasn't even supposed to be like any of those. She had only been supposed to help the young lord manage his assets and hopefully grow them.

What a curious world it was, that all of this would fall into her lap now, seven years after her supposed retirement.

No doubt, if things went even remotely as she expected them to, her family would come knocking on her door in the very near future. There may have been no love lost between her and them, but money? They weren't ones to abide losses like that.

She planned to have insulation in place for the young lord by then, though. Hell, she would be insulation, if he needed her to. There was absolutely no way that she was going to sit by and let them sink their claws into him.

Ah, but she was getting ahead of herself. The present problems were still far from dealt with, she knew, and her hand stopped in the middle of signing a document as she realized that she'd allowed her mind to wander so much that she'd hardly even bothered to read the damn thing first.

True, it was just a simple shipment order for white Lysten marble, but still, it was a bad habit to get into--and one that had cost her dearly in the past.

"Anything you put your name to, you read," her mentor had once told her. "If you don't have time to read it, you shouldn't be signing it. You should be hiring someone else to read it, sign it, and take the blame if it goes badly, instead."

A shrewd bastard--that had been Henry Vollier in a nutshell, though she certainly knew that there had been more to him than what most people ever got to see. Even to this day, she had never met anyone who could be so heartless in one breath and yet so generous in the next.

Her affair with him may have been what caused so much strife between the Carthraces and the Volliers, but she'd long since stopped regretting it. He may have been almost thirty years older than her, but she'd loved him more deeply and truly than anyone else in her life, and he deserved better than that bitter shell-of-a-woman he'd been forced to marry. That callous witch hadn't even been there on his deathbed.

For a while after that, she truly would not have minded if both of their families had ended up in ruins. If not for some of those wonderful nieces and nephews, the brightness and hope of the future, she might never have returned from that place of resentment in her heart.

It was a shame that that brightness had not lasted. Instead, it had merely transferred to the next generation of children. As it probably would again, she'd often thought.

When the knock on her door arrived, she stopped reading. "Come in."

Hector entered, and Amelia set her pen down.

Wow. What a difference one month made. Had he gotten taller? Probably. The vitality of young people still amazed her, sometimes. Those clothes certainly made an impact, too. He hadn't been wearing things like that very much before, probably because the boy had so frequently been assisting with the reconstruction effort. No sense in dressing up for manual labor.

It must have been the effect of these Rainlords on him, she figured. Either he was imitating their behavior, or he simply wanted to look dignified in their presence. Or both, perhaps.

She certainly knew what that was like.

"It is good to finally see you again," said Amelia.

"Thanks," said Hector as he took a seat on the other side of her desk. "It's, uh, it's good to see you, too."

A part of her wanted to just launch into her proposal straight away, but again, she controlled herself. It wouldn't do to overwhelm the young man. She had to work up to it slowly and clearly if she wanted to get his approval.

He may have been young, but that didn't mean he was going to do whatever she told him. Meek and mild as he may act, she did not think that he had earned his reputation as the Darksteel Soldier by accident. And she'd spoken to Prince David about this boy, too. This was not someone she should treat like a child, she felt.

"Are you sure you have rested enough?" she made herself say. "I heard that you looked rather exhausted upon your arrival."

"I'm still pretty tired, but I'll catch up on sleep later," said Hector. "I wanted to ask... ah... how have things been going while I was gone?"

"Here at Warrenhold? Fairly well, I suppose. The reconstruction has been progressing, albeit slowly. If you are asking about the country as a whole, however, well..."

"I heard about the, er, economic crisis or whatever..."

"Y-yes." Amelia straightened in her chair. Was it too soon to go into it? She wasn't quite sure. "Truthfully... I was hoping to talk to you about that."

Hector tilted his head at her. "Why's that? Do you think there's something we can do to help?"

Oh, sweet Cocora.

Calm. She had to look calm.

"Yes," she said slowly, "I believe there is. However... perhaps you would like to table that discussion for the moment and talk about your Rainlord friends or... some such thing?"

"...Why?" said Hector. "Does the order matter?"

"Ah... w-well..." Agh. This wasn't going how she expected. It was too fast. She dared not hope that it might actually be going better than she expected.

"Is something wrong?" said Hector.

"N-no," she said, taking a breath. If she kept this up, he was going to get the completely wrong impression. "Very well. Allow me to speak quite plainly with you. The current economic crisis, terrible though it may be, presents us--presents you, I should say--with an opportunity. And a rather remarkable one, at that."

"...Okay," said Hector slowly, keeping his eyes fixed upon her. "I'm listening."

"With both Atreya National and Longrun collapsing, virtually everyone who worked for them is now out of a job."

"You're... talking about banks?" said Hector.

"Yes. Atreya National Bank and Longrun Banking. With them suddenly out of the picture, you could say that there is quite a large gap in the market. People need their funds protected. And now that there is an absolutely ungodly amount of insoluble debt floating around this country, what will happen now is--"

"Ah, uh, sorry, you're kinda losing me here," said Hector. "In... insoluble debt? What does that mean, exactly?"

"Debt that cannot be repaid. More than a million people have just declared bankruptcy in this country, because they no longer have access to any of their funds due to the banks collapsing, because the banks are the very institutions which are supposed to secure these things for them. This means that any debt that these people previously owed is now insoluble. There is essentially no hope of it ever being paid back. Understand?"

"I think so, yeah..."

"So what will probably happen now," Amelia went on, "is that someone with a LOT of money will come in and buy up all of that insoluble debt at a fraction of the cost, because it is functionally worthless now. And then, since they now 'own' the debt, they can 'forgive' it or otherwise shrink it down to a 'soluble' level--and then try to collect it. Or they could simply resell the debt elsewhere, but the fact of the matter is that because they didn't spend very much money to acquire it, that debt has the potential to earn them an absolute killing. Financially speaking, of course."

"Hmm..."

Amelia placed her hands on the table. "Now, this may all sound horrible, and... well... in a way, it is, but it is also mostly good. In the end, it will probably prevent Atreya's economy from collapsing completely. Almost everyone who declared bankruptcy will have a way to move forward without having their entire lives ruined. For the most part."

"But?" said the young lord, apparently sensing where she was going with this.

"But... a very large problem could arise, based on who it is that buys up all of that debt. Atreya is quite a small country, so in all likelihood, it is going to be a foreign bank. Domestic banks are no doubt attempting to get in on the action as we speak, but they simply won't have the funds to spare. Tens of thousands of people--if not hundreds of thousands of people--have already been flocking to them simply to avoid bankruptcy, and in order to accommodate all of those new customers, most of their reserve funds--assuming they even had that much to begin with--will likely now be in active circulation."

"Uh... huh."

"Of course," Amelia continued, "the domestic banks could use money which they do not technically own in order to start buying up the debt, but that would be incredibly ill-advised--and indeed, illegal. For good reason, might I add. Such practices are extremely dangerous and could potentially make matters significantly worse than they already are.

"However, I am digressing. The point is that domestic banks will, in all likelihood, simply be unable to 'pick up the slack,' so to speak, which means that foreign banks will. Either them, or foreign companies which specialize in this sort of thing. Regardless, the reason this is bad is because it presents an extreme threat to the economic independence of the nation. Foreign powers would likely be able to develop more influence over our country than even the Queen herself possesses."

"Ah..."

"She understands this as well, because I--and no doubt others--have advised her on it. But the Queen is also in a very difficult position right now. In order to prevent this from coming to pass, she has to hold back the tide of foreign influence with very little support from the people. As I said before, this debt buyout can be considered mostly good. All of the currently bankrupt citizens of Atreya will want that foreign influence. And justifiably so."

"O-okay," said Hector, holding up a hand. "This is all... really complicated, and I think I understand, but, uh... I mean... what do you want me to do about it? Are you seriously suggesting that I buy up all the debt? Because, er...?"

"Well... yes and no," said Amelia. "Frankly speaking, you don't have enough money for that. Even your billionaire friend, Roman Fullister, doesn't have enough money--though, that is mostly because his assets are tied up in about a million different ways."

"Whoa, how do you know that?"

She couldn't help smiling a little. "Money is my life, Lord Goffe. And I have made many like-minded friends over the course of it."

Hector didn't look entirely satisfied by that answer, but he didn't press her further on it. Instead, he returned to his previous question. "So... if I can't buy the debt, then what are you asking of me?"

It was time to lay all her cards on the table, she supposed. "I feel that there is still considerably more that I should explain, but... if you would like to cut right to the heart of the matter first, then, well... put simply, I would like to open a bank in your name."

Hector just sat there for a moment, blinking at her. He opened his mouth but no words came out. Then he leaned back in his chair, folded his arms, and took a long, deep breath.

Huh.

That was not quite the reaction that she had been expecting. Though, if she thought about it, she wasn't entirely sure what a more appropriate response would have been.

Hector's gaze went to the empty space to his right. Talking to his invisible companion, Amelia supposed. She couldn't say that she fully understood this business about reapers, and if she was being completely honest, a small part of her still worried that it might just be some form of psychosis that the boy was suffering from. That explanation might've even made sense, as a terrible side effect of his supernatural powers.

But of course, she'd never dared say any of that aloud. Strange as it was, this "Garovel" being real or not was almost a moot point, as far as Amelia was concerned. The reaper was obviously real to Hector.

And that was the main reason why she had been so concerned about this meeting. If she couldn't get this Garovel's approval, then she doubted she would be able to get Hector's.

"So let me make sure I've got this right," Hector finally said. "You want to open a bank in my name. Not a bank account. A bank."

"Yes," said Amelia.

Hector just gave her a look like she was crazy.

"I understand that is... a highly unconventional proposition," said Amelia, "and probably not one that you expected to hear when you walked into this office, but I assure you, I am not recommending it impulsively. I have given the matter considerable thought."

"Then... I assume you've thought about how we're going to fund this? The Queen only gave us three million to work with, and you're talking about starting a bank that would be big enough to rescue the whole country. Garovel doesn't think that three million will be nearly enough for that."

"Indeed, it is true that this would be a very costly endeavor. Currently, you have around 1.2 million troa at your disposal, and to get the ball rolling on this--"

"Whoa, whoa." Hector held up a hand. "We've already burned through 1.8 million troa? In like, what, four months?"

She nodded. "I am afraid so. However, the vast majority of those expenses fell upon the hydroelectric generator. That alone cost us 1.4 million."

"Holy sh--" Hector stopped himself, perhaps out of consideration for her, which Amelia appreciated. "I... knew it was expensive, but I didn't think it was that much."

"Believe it or not, that was actually quite a good deal," said Amelia. "The amount of power that it generates is rather impressive given that cost." She might've expected the boy to sigh, but he didn't. "We could have negotiated a staggered payment plan over several years, but it would have cost us nearly three times as much in the long run. I thought it would be better to pay it all off at once, since we actually could. The manufacturer's representative was quite surprised by that decision."

"I see..."

"And of course, we also required furniture to even begin living here, so much of that lost capital was due to one-time purchases, if that makes you feel any better. Renovations moving forward should be a considerably slower drain on your funds."

"That's... good to hear," said Hector, "but the renovations aren't even halfway through the Entry Tower yet."

"Yes, and that is another reason why I believe this bank is a good idea. With our current resources, renovating all eight towers properly is impossible, much less building new ones on the surface and attending to the sunken structures in the lake. A bank, however, would provide us with a valuable source of income."

Hector fell quiet for a moment again, obviously thinking. Then he looked at her. "I interrupted you. What were you going to say about getting the ball rolling?"

"Ah. Yes. In order to get started on this bank, we will require considerably more capital than we currently possess. I could go into excruciating detail, but the short of it is that we will need a loan."

"A loan?" said Hector. "You mean, like, from another bank? Wouldn't they be opposed to the idea of, uh, funding their rivals or something?"

"Indeed. Which is why the loan would have to come from somewhere else."

"You have somewhere in mind?"

"I would recommend multiple sources, actually," she said. "In the event that one of them turns us down or ends up having difficulties of their own in the future, it would be best if we did not have all of our eggs in one basket, as they say."

"Okay... but what sources are you thinking of?"

She almost didn't want to say. "The government would be one."

"...You want me to ask the Queen for even more money?" said Hector.

"Well... yes. It could not hurt to ask at least, no?"

Hector rubbed his face with both hands. Amelia was beginning to see that tiredness he mentioned earlier.

"I admit, it may be a bad idea to take more money from the government. No doubt, they have dire need of it, at the moment. Assuming they even have any left to lend. However, the point remains that you would be working to help them resolve the current economic crisis, and I imagine the Queen would be interested in helping you to speed your work along."

Hector put his hands down again. "...Hold on. You just said, 'assuming they even have any money left?' Why wouldn't they have any money left?"

"Ah, well... because there are some rather unsavory rumors about, regarding the true cause of this crisis. Some are saying that the government's coffers are empty, and so the entire reason Atreya National and Longrun collapsed first was because they were so deeply connected with the state treasury."

Hector's brow lowered. "You're saying the Queen's broke?"

"I am only saying what I have heard. But such rumors, even if they are untrue, are terrible for business."

"Wouldn't something like that already be all over the news if it were true?"

"Perhaps. Or perhaps the Queen believes that such news would be so damaging to the nation that she has been suppressing it."

"Hmm," said Hector. "But you're, like, an insider or something, right? Do you really think she'd be able to keep that kind of gigantic news from even people like you?"

Amelia bobbed her head to the side a little. "No, I do not. Eventually, we will find out, but for the time being, there remains quite a bit of chatter regarding the subject, and different people are offering conflicting information. I imagine for the next month or two, it will continue to be difficult to discern the genuine truth of the matter."

Her young lord's gaze went to the floor, then back to the empty air beside him.

Amelia just waited, and when Hector looked at her again, she braced herself for his next question.

"...How much money do we need to get from this loan, exactly?" he said.

Now there was a question that he would probably not like the answer to, Amelia felt. She tried to give him a smile, though it probably came across as more pitying than encouraging. "There are various methods for starting, but if we are to begin here, on domestic soil, then we will require seven million troa as the barest minimum."

Hector's mouth hung open as he looked at her.

Unfortunately, she was still far from done. "And when I say 'barest minimum,' I do mean that. Barring some sort of royal decree or other government action, proof that we possess seven million troa is required before we may even be legally recognized as a bank. There are several other qualifying factors, of course, but that is the big one, you might say."

"So... you're saying seven million isn't even enough. Because we need more than just the barest minimum, right?"

"Indeed. Seven million would allow us to get started, so if that is all we are able to acquire, then at least we would be able to do something, but the difficult truth, in my estimation, is that we would require a loan in the neighborhood of... one hundred million troa."

Hector's hand slowly found his forehead, and he stared blankly at Amelia's rosewood desk. "A hundred million..."

Amelia had no words of comfort for him. "And even that would only make for a good start. It would still be far from enough to resolve the economic crisis overnight, in case that was what you were thinking."

Hector took some more time to gather his thoughts and perhaps consult his imaginary friend another time. "Somehow," he eventually said with a sigh, "I don't think the Queen is going to lend me a hundred million troa."

"Yes, I do not think she will, either," said Amelia. "However, we do not necessarily need her to. There are many other members of the aristocracy whom we could call upon. And there is your friend Mr. Fullister, of course. I have high hopes for his assistance. And... the Rainlords, perhaps. I would caution you against accepting too much help from them, however."

Hector looked at her again. "Why?"

"Our entire purpose in opening this bank is to prevent foreign powers from taking over our country, and, well... to be blunt, the Rainlords are exactly that. A foreign power."

"Hmm."

"I do not mean to say that you should refuse any and all help they may offer," said Amelia, "and I am sure that you understand these people better than I do, but all the same, I am advising caution. If you do decide to enter into any kind of financial negotiations with them, I hope you will include me. Truthfully, I would like to be present for such negotiations with anyone, but them in particular, should the need arise."

Hector just looked at her for a moment longer, perhaps thinking on her words, and then he said, "...Of course."

The tone of that response was a bit more reserved than Amelia might have preferred, but such was the nature of her young lord, she'd come to realize. Bright-eyed reassurance and enthusiasm was not something she should ever expect from him, she supposed.

"...There's something else I'm wondering about," said Hector. "With all this... stuff about needing a loan... I mean... why me?"

Amelia tilted her head at him. "I am sorry. I am not certain I understand. Why you?"

Hector stood up and walked over to the side of the room while rubbing his neck. "It's just... if I don't even have the money to pull this off in the first place, then why don't we just let someone else do it?"

"You do not wish to save the country?" said Amelia.

Hector gave her a flat look. "Obviously, I do. I'm just saying, wouldn't it be better to leave it to someone more suited to the task? Someone like... my friend you already mentioned? Mr. Fullister? Just as one example."

Amelia frowned. "And the potential here to make an enormous amount of money and restore Warrenhold to its former glory? You do not find that motivating?"

"...Would it really be like that?" said Hector. "Because this bank sounds like a lot of responsibility and headaches. And I have enough of those, already. Besides, there are other ways we can make money, aren't there?"

Amelia took a breath and leaned back her in chair. She'd thought that she had already convinced him that this was a good idea. It seemed fairly self-evident, but now it appeared as though he wasn't going to be swayed by appeals to future prosperity or self-interest.

Which was very strange.

No doubt, he had many other things on his mind. She supposed it was understandable that he wouldn't want yet another. But there was something he wasn't seeing, and it seemed as though she would have to be the one to explain it to him.

"It has to be you," she said, interlocking her fingers and resting them on her lap. "I can tell you now that, yes, several other people in this country will likely attempt this very same tactic. However, I earnestly believe that you are the only one who might be able to pull it off before foreign intervention squirms its way around the Queen's regulations."

"Why?"

"Because you are a national hero. Most of Atreya adores the Darksteel Soldier. And yes, some still do not, but everyone at least knows who you are. Aside from perhaps the Queen herself, you have better brand recognition than anyone else in this country."

"I have better what?"

"Brand recognition," she reiterated. "People know who you are. They trust you. If we put the word Darksteel in the name of your bank, people will instantly associate it with you and everything that you have done. And that is very good. That is why I think this will work."

Hector made no response. His gaze went to the floor again, and he paced toward the other side of the room now.

"It is safe to say that the Atreyan people have very little faith in banks, at the moment, so the trust that the public has in you will be absolutely crucial for this plan to succeed. Your friend Mr. Fullister, who I am sure is a wonderful man, would simply not be able to make up for that difference in public trust, regardless of how much money he may possess."

Hector stopped pacing and just looked at her again.

"It has to be you, Lord Goffe," she said.

Hector did not look pleased to hear that, but if he had any complaints, he kept them to himself. He returned to his chair and sat down.

Amelia didn't know what else she could say to convince him, however, so she merely waited.

"...Alright," he finally said. "Let's just... let's suppose all of this works out. Hypothetically. Everything goes smoothly or whatever." He leveled a stare at her. "If that were to happen, and this bank were to become as big and important as you're suggesting, then... you would have a lot more power and influence, wouldn't you?"

Amelia's head reared back a little, and she blinked.

Hector's gaze didn't budge, though. He was watching her carefully, probably wanting to gauge her reaction.

Amelia fidgeted in her seat, abruptly uncomfortable. "Yes... I suppose I would..."

"Convince me you wouldn't abuse that power," he said plainly.

Oh, goodness. She hadn't felt like this since she was a schoolgirl on the verge of being given detention, some fifty years ago.

How was he doing that?

No time to think about it. She just maintained her composure. "How would you suggest I go about doing that?"

"I don't know," said Hector. "You seem to be pretty persuasive, though."

She managed a weak smile. "I appreciate the compliment, assuming it was one."

"It was," said Hector. "And... look, I'm grateful for everything you've been doing here. For me. And I think... it's fairly obvious at this point that I... value your opinion. And I definitely want to trust you. But the simple truth is that you and I still barely know each other."

"You are not wrong," she said. "But I do not know how I can convince you to trust me. I doubt words alone will suffice for an undertaking of this magnitude, no? Trusting me with your own money isn't quite the same as trusting me with everyone's money, is it?"

"No, it is not," was all Hector said.

Amelia tried to think. Honestly, she hadn't given much thought to the issue of how to earn the young lord's trust. Mostly because she'd thought that she'd already had it.

And perhaps that was strange. Why had she thought that? She was having difficulty thinking of the reason, but there must have been one. She couldn't have been so naive as to overlook something like that, right?

What an odd thing to be asking herself. Where was her head, right now?

Ah. There was a reason, she realized.

"The Queen," said Amelia. "If you are finding yourself uncertain with regard to trusting me, then perhaps you should ask those who know me better for a character reference. And I can think of none more appropriate than the Queen, considering she was the one who offered me this position in the first place. Have you spoken to her yet?"

"Not since getting back, no," said Hector.

"Perfect, then. I imagine she will be wanting to hear from you, if for no other reason than to know that you have returned safely. Perhaps you can take that opportunity to ask about me."

Hector was quiet again.

Hmm. Perhaps her young lord had already been planning to do that.

"...I'd like to meet your family," said Hector.

Amelia pressed her lips together flatly as she thought about that. "If we move forward with the bank, then I am sure that they will like to meet you, too."

"I mean before that."

"Yes, I thought you did. And perhaps that would be for the best. Meeting them before we give them every reason in the world to ingratiate themselves toward you might give you a clearer picture of their true characters."

The young lord looked abruptly remorseful. "...I don't mean to reopen old wounds or anything like that. I just need to know more about you before we commit to... all of this."

"I understand," said Amelia. "Caution is an admirable quality in a lord. And I have nothing to hide, though you should be forewarned that my family is not likely to speak very fondly of me."

"Yeah, I figured they wouldn't," said Hector. "I remember you calling yourself a black sheep."

"Ah. Well, I shall attempt to arrange a meeting, but in the meantime, might I have your permission to begin preliminary hiring proceedings?"

"...What does that mean, exactly?"

"With the banks collapsing, there are a number of highly skilled individuals who are now looking for a new job--so skilled, in fact, that I imagine some of them have already found one. The rest will likely not remain unemployed for long, so I would like to, at the very least, send them... an expression of our interest, let's say. Hopefully, that will give them a reason to stay in the country while you and I... figure things out."

"You think they'll leave Atreya?" said Hector.

"They will go wherever opportunity leads them," said Amelia. "And Atreya is rather short on opportunity at the moment, so yes, I think they will have their pick of the many foreign companies that are no doubt observing the economic situation here."

"...Who are these 'skilled individuals' you're talking about?"

"Various people whom I have come to know and respect over the years. Some of them, I do not know personally, but I do know of their work and of their professionalism. I could go over each and every one of them with you right now, but there are quite a few, and I imagine you probably have more important things to do."

"...Alright. I'll leave it to your, ah... discretion." He looked like he had more to say, however.

Amelia waited.

"...I'd like to meet these people, too," said Hector. "Before you hire them."

She smiled, then nodded. "Of course."

Perhaps she didn't have to worry so much about her family sinking their claws into this boy, after all.