Though some found it advantageous to them that Asher was the Arnhaunts' representative, others felt it was an unwise decision.
Tate frowned at the sight, but he didn't say a word. Just like his elder brother, he was very familiar with duke Darius. In his opinion, the duke was a wise and intelligent man who hardly made mistakes. If he had let his son take over the negotiation, there had to have been a reason for such. Others might feel that Darius was paving a way for his son to take over his place and letting Asher gain experience in political dealings, but Tate felt otherwise. Nonetheless, as a close friend of the Arnhaunts, he was still worried about the decision.
"Hmph. What does duke Darius take this to be? To send a 12-year-old to talk with us? How disrespectful!"
Everyone frowned at those words with some even having a scowl on their faces. Although it was true that having a 12-year-old preside over a meeting with middle-aged men could be interpreted as being disrespectful, as it was all advantageous to them, no one said a word about it. However, now that someone did so, it would be wrong of these men to act like all was good as it would be damaging to their prestige if news of this got out. It was for this reason that everyone instantly got dissatisfied with the speaker.
To no one's surprise, the identity of the speaker was easy to guess.
"I object to this arrangement." Old Bronze stood up and huffed, looking as if someone had raided the tomb of his grandparents.
"And what is it that you object to?" Asher acted calmly as he took a sip from the cup of tea provided by Isabella.
Old Bronze was further irritated by Asher's composure as he barked.
"The fact that a kid like you has the gall to sit on the head seat for this gathering!"
The room suddenly chilled.
While it was true that some of the other representatives were dissatisfied with Darius' arrangements, no one spoke so blatantly about their inner thoughts, after all, Asher was the successor of the Arnhaunt family.
Unlike the situation in the various clans and families where there were multiple heirs in the direct line, there was only Asher in the Arnhaunt's main family. For this reason, it was a given that he would inherit the seat of power in the family. Even though it was said that his null body would reduce his achievements in magic, it would not hamper his ability to learn. It was no recent news that Asher had already taken first place in the first test for his division and that showed that he had an above-average level of intelligence. As long as he was taught right, even if he couldn't take the Arnhaunt seat due to his weak constitution, being one of its top elders was not a problem. This was why, despite their slight dissatisfaction, no one spoke up. The power of a top elder in a great family was much more than any of these men; excluding those from one of the great families. However, Old Bronze had done the unthinkable and ignored this fact.
"Old Bronze, take a seat." Lan strongly spoke.
On a normal day, he would ignore Old Bronze's actions, but since a deal was involved, even he couldn't just sit still.
It should be known that the Arnhaunts didn't necessarily have to work with anyone to sell the potion. As a great family, they had the resources and finances to profit off of it alone. However, as the Arnhaunts were not a merchant family, they didn't own a lot of shops. Buying existing ones in the different provinces would cost a lot while building new ones would not only cost them but would also take time. So to ease their transition to trade as well as release the potion into the market as soon as possible, they decided to work with the other families in the various provinces. In other words, while it seemed like the Arnhaunts needed partners, in truth, it was the various families that wanted to partner with them.
Asher was young so even with the accolades behind him, the representatives still treated him as such. As a child, it wouldn't be a surprise if he lost his calm under Old Bronze's comments. If he got offended and lost his temper, deciding to close the deal, the ones who would truly lose would be the clans behind them.
"Stay away from this Lan. Since you seem to not be bothered, that doesn't mean that I won't be. The Great Dawn kingdom is known to value morals and etiquette. It's only right that for this discussion we would be facing someone of equal status or age."
Even Tate had nothing to say to this as Old Bronze was speaking the truth. Unless he could counter the statement, interfering now be tantamount to drawing unnecessary attention from the crowd. While no one else had spoken out, Tate knew that their thoughts aligned with Old Bronze.
"That's enough." The Saunters' dignitary spoke up.
Seeing that it was a neutral figure who spoke up as well as someone from a great family, Old Bronze was forced to be quiet.
Tate finally sighed with relief internally seeing someone else speak up, but before he could properly relax, the dignitary's next words shook him.
"While I'm disappointed with your words and approach, I do agree with your opinion. The Arnhaunts need to offer an apology; especially for keeping us waiting for so long." The man narrowed his eyes as he glanced at Asher.
"Don't go too far." Tate shouted.
"Am I? I'm pretty sure every one of us here, apart from you, would agree with me." The man smiled.
"Hmm. That's true."
"Your excellency is right."
"Yes."
Tate glanced around and noticed that they seemed to agree with the man's words. At that moment, he finally understood what was going on.
'A setup.'
It looked as if the other representatives had allied together in secret with the Saunters' dignitary at the head. As for their goal, they seemed intent on pressuring Asher and looked prepared. It even looked like Old Bronze's ranting was an act in accordance with their plans because everything flowed in place too smoothly.
'Wait, something is wrong.' Tate thought.
If the Arnhaunt's representative was someone else, then there was a chance that none of this would have happened. The personage would have appeared on time and with him being of the same age and status as they were, they would not be able to pressure him so easily. However, Asher was different as he was much younger than they were. From their reactions, it looked as if they had planned everything right from the start, but that would only be possible if they knew who was coming today.
'A leak.' Asher smiled as he reached the same conclusion as Tate, but he wasn't as surprised as the man.
'But it seems like only a few were in the know.' Asher briefly glanced at Old Bronze, the Saunters middle-aged man, and a few other dignitaries.
'If I was an average child, I would have unwittingly fallen into your trap just now. Sadly, you made a mistake.'
In a negotiation, it was a well-known fact that the one who had the upper hand in the conversation before the main talk would be able to reap more from it. As such, businessmen tend to find ways to pressure their opponents before the topic of the negotiations is approached. It was the same now. The group of representatives under the Saunters wanted to pressure Asher to have the upper hand in the forthcoming negotiation. If Asher was an average child, he would become anxious at this moment as the gathering and aura of influential adults standing opposite him were daunting. In his anxiety, he would leave behind loopholes and the flow of the entire conversation would be taken from his hands to the others. At that moment, it would be hard for him to produce a desired result.
Nonetheless, they had underestimated Asher.