"My Lord!" Clement immediately bowed respectfully and greeted the figure who appeared before him.
"Has something happened? Why did you summon me so suddenly?" The Silver Spear who suddenly appeared did not waste words with Clement and asked concisely.
"I am truly sorry. I do have an important situation that requires me to report to you, which is why I disturbed you so presumptuously." Clement, knowing the style of the person before him, immediately repeated all the information he had discussed with Alan earlier, word for word.
"Silver Lightning Trading Company?" The Silver Spear murmured to himself. "You mean he is willing to sign an agency agreement with your magic supply store?"
"That's right. This time, Alan, the owner of Silver Lightning Trading Company, personally came to Germany to establish a long-term trade agreement. I was the one who negotiated with him personally. Although he clearly stated that he could not sell those XXX-level tactical pieces, their current products and upcoming new products are of great value to us," Clement nodded in response.
"This Silver Lightning Trading Company has indeed been very prominent recently." The Silver Spear nodded upon hearing this, then looked at Clement again. "But with them expanding so aggressively now, won't there be any risks?"
The Silver Spear understood Clement's meaning; he simply wanted the club to pay for him. However, facing this suddenly appearing Silver Lightning Trading Company, he thought it would be better to be more cautious. After all, so many Galleons don't just fall from the sky, and this Silver Lightning Trading Company is still just a new company. If such a large sum of money goes down the drain, it would affect the club's development.
When Clement heard that the person before him had the intention to refuse, he couldn't help but feel anxious. People are like this: when there is no personal interest involved, their stance tends to be objective, and their attitude is relatively indifferent. But now, Clement already had a large sum of money tied up with Alan. If this deal didn't go through, it would be troublesome, so all he could think about was how to speak up for Silver Lightning Trading Company.
"My Lord, you have seen this Silver Lightning Trading Company before. We ourselves have purchased a large amount of equipment from them. The quality and craftsmanship of their products can achieve a high degree of consistency, which many other alchemy companies cannot achieve."
"Furthermore, they also have the British Ministry of Magic as their backing. Currently, in Britain, Alan's Silver Flash Alchemy Development Company has reached a scale similar to the flying broom industry there, almost becoming half of Britain's trade exports!"
"Moreover, they don't just have business with us; they also have corresponding trade agreements with countries including Egypt, France, Italy, and Romania, and their reputation is very good."
"According to the information I've gathered, this time, in addition to Germany, Alan will also visit several other European countries along the way, all for the purpose of signing long-term cooperation agreements."
"I boldly predict that after just three to five years, the business of this Silver Lightning Trading Company might spread throughout Europe, and perhaps even reach more distant countries. So, this opportunity is very rare for us. Seize the day, for opportunities lost do not return!"
As Clement spoke, as if to strengthen his conviction, his tone involuntarily rose quite a bit, and he became extremely excited.
"What? Do you owe this company a lot of money? Why are you trying so hard to speak well of it?" The Silver Spear glanced at Clement, somewhat speechless, wondering why it seemed as if Silver Lightning Trading Company was his superior.
"No, I wouldn't dare, Your Lordship." Clement realized he was a bit too agitated and immediately lowered his head to apologize, but then emphasized, "However, I am entirely considering the future development of the club, and with the equipment provided by the other party, the work in the park will also progress more smoothly."
"It seems you have a lot of confidence in this company." The Silver Spear snorted coldly, then asked, "What do you think of Alan? Is he trustworthy?"
"As for Alan…" Clement couldn't help but recall the scene of his conversation with Alan that morning. To be honest, the young man put a lot of pressure on him, but this, in turn, became a footnote confirming the other party's trustworthiness. "After my brief observation of Alan, I found him to be ambitious, determined, talented, and highly emotionally intelligent. His business negotiation skills are extremely superb; he's a very seasoned individual, not at all like a young man under twenty."
Clement admitted somewhat awkwardly, "To be honest, when negotiating with him, he maintained the initiative from beginning to end. Moreover, this person is very greedy and extremely eager for money."
"A greedy fellow, eh." The Silver Spear nodded. No wonder Clement spoke so highly of him; people with distinct personalities are indeed more likely to be deemed trustworthy. Then the Silver Spear looked at Clement again, "Are his new products really that helpful to the park? Show me the badge you mentioned."
"Yes, My Lord." Clement quickly unfastened the badge from his chest and respectfully handed it forward.
At this moment, the Silver Spear, who had originally merged into the pitch-black mirror surface, stepped out lightly, directly emerging from the mirror, as if the mirror before him was not a mirror at all, but a corridor, a real tunnel. The Silver Spear reached out and took the badge, observing it briefly in his palm before throwing it back into Clement's hand.
Then, the Silver Spear casually raised a hand and pointed, and a pitch-black spell projectile shot out rapidly from his fingertip, striking heavily onto the materialized Humanoid Iron Armor Curse. At the same time, this spell did not dissipate or spread out after impact like other magic projectiles; instead, it stuck directly to the magic armor like sticky toffee. This was precisely the Silver Spears' signature spell, the Corrosion Curse.
However, the guardian badge in Clement's hand was not ordinary cheap goods after all. The materialized Humanoid Armor firmly blocked the Corrosion Curse from advancing, though the spell remained firmly attached to the magic armor, continuously emitting a sizzling sound. After waiting for a while, the Corrosion Curse, which had been continuously eroding inward, finally exhausted all its magic and completely dissipated. The magic armor in front of Clement still stood firm, though a large section in the center of the armor had been corroded away. However, it was not pierced through by the spell in the end.
"Hmm, it can actually withstand the Corrosion Curse head-on? The strength is indeed quite good." The Silver Spear was also very surprised by the performance of this badge. He had used fifty percent of his power just now. A shield of this strength could already play a role in battles of his level.
On the other side, Clement was startled by the Silver Spear's action. Fortunately, the badge in his hand was powerful enough; otherwise, he would have been injured. At the same time, Clement also felt some dissatisfaction towards the lords of the club. These guys almost treated them as tools; their actions just now showed no regard for his life whatsoever. He was, after all, managing a large magical animal park for them, so was their existence truly that worthless?
However, the Silver Spear in front of him did not feel that his recent actions were inappropriate. After a moment of contemplation, he replied to Clement, "If they can truly provide us with such badges long-term, then cooperation with Silver Lightning Trading Company can be achieved. How much is your current funding shortfall?"
Clement immediately became excited, no longer having the mind to grumble inwardly. He quickly replied, "They require an upfront agency fee of 1,000, a reserve fund of 5,000, and also 5,000 Galleons for the first batch of orders. However, only 20% needs to be paid upfront, which is one thousand Galleons. So the total upfront cost is 7,000 Galleons. I have already paid them a deposit of 2,000 Galleons, therefore…"
"That much?" The Silver Spear couldn't help but frown. He had to help cover a 5,000 Galleon shortfall for the other party? Wasn't this a bit too exaggerated? The Silver Spear finally realized why Clement said Alan was extremely greedy. This was beyond greedy; it was more outrageous than robbery.
The Silver Spear decisively shook his head. "5,000 Galleons is too much. The club also has projects requiring expenditure recently. At most, I can approve providing you with 3,000 Galleons; you'll have to figure out the rest yourself."
At this point, the Silver Spear specifically added, "Oh, and after securing the agency contract, the club will not only have priority in disposing of all equipment but also a 50% hidden stake."
Only 3,000 Galleons? And 50%? Clement couldn't help but want to curse inwardly. These guys were simply too exploitative. This was clearly a business he had negotiated, yet they weren't willing to provide enough money and now wanted to take half of the profits from him. But no matter how dissatisfied Clement was inwardly, he couldn't show it on the surface. He could only respond respectfully, "Yes, My Lord."
Even after agreeing, he still felt a bit unwilling, so he tentatively asked, "My Lord, although the initial investment for securing this business is quite large, the subsequent returns will certainly be substantial. So, do you think I could, based on this contribution… officially join the club?"