After chatting with Jerel for a few more minutes, Magnus and he settled on a date. Considering the time Jerel would need to make a new mold and practice applying an alloy coating to something like Rokshaata, he estimated around three days. It was quicker than Magnus had expected, likely a testament to Jerel's skill as a blacksmith.
"Thanks for this, Jerel. I was worried you might not be able to do it. I promise next time I visit, I'll pay you properly for your work." Jerel smiled at Magnus's words.
"I'll hold you to that. As good as it is that they're cracking down on the trafficking rings around here, it's got everyone on edge, so business has slowed down." Magnus paused, frowning at the comment, a reaction Jerel didn't miss.
"What's wrong?" Jerel asked.
"Has... Celia visited you recently, or maybe send a letter?" Magnus hesitated, the question seeming a bit random, but Jerel just shook his head.
"No. She doesn't like coming by here, and the last time we talked, it didn't end well." It was the answer Magnus had expected, but it still made him sigh.
"I see." Magnus looked like he was debating whether or not to say something.
It's not really my place to get involved in their relationship. But Jerel is Celia's brother, and he deserves to know what happened, especially since it might involve Zeth, who he's making equipment for.
After a few more seconds of internal debate, Magnus spoke.
"A few days ago, Celia stopped showing up to work. I didn't notice anything until a friend of hers came by and told me she'd vanished—she hadn't even gone home. It turns out she was kidnapped by human traffickers." Jerel's expression, already tense from hearing about Celia, immediately turned to urgent anxiety. He slammed his hands onto the counter in front of him.
"What!" he shouted. Magnus took a step back, raising his hands in a calming gesture.
"Hold on, let me finish. We found her and rescued her; she's fine now. She's taking a break and relaxing at home with her friend, Tola." Jerel, who looked like he was about to run out and search for her himself, let out a sigh of relief as his body relaxed.
"Oh, I see," Jerel muttered, more to himself than to Magnus. A brief silence followed, filled mostly with Jerel's own thoughts. Magnus had a pretty good guess at what he was thinking. Despite their strained relationship, it was obvious Jerel cared about Celia—he was her older brother, after all. But in the end, not only did he fail to notice that she had vanished, but even after she was rescued, she didn't visit him or even send a letter. It served as a painful reminder of just how distant they had become. Still, as always, when talking to or about Celia, Jerel forced a smile onto his face; it was an empty, self-deprecating one.
"Looks like I owe you even more now. Thank you," Jerel said, bowing his head slightly. Magnus rubbed the back of his neck, unsure how to respond, before letting out another sigh.
"No, it's fine. Celia's not just my maid; she's my friend. I would've helped her no matter what. But... I think you should know that the group who kidnapped her is part of the same syndicate Zeth's involved with. In fact, it's because of our rescue that things are so chaotic around here," Magnus explained. Jerel's expression went blank for a moment as his hands, which had been flat on the counter, clenched into fists. Though his face didn't show much, his eyes were filled with anger and worry.
"And Celia was okay, right? When you found her, I mean. Nothing... happened to her?" Jerel's voice trembled slightly. Magnus thought back.
"Well, she was a bit shaken and tired, but that's normal. They weren't feeding her properly. If you're asking if she has any trauma or anything, I don't know. She hasn't told me," Magnus replied thoughtfully. He had been worried about how the ordeal might have affected Celia, but she seemed okay and hadn't said anything, so he hadn't pushed the issue.
"I see... thanks for telling me, Magnus. I'll get to work as soon as I can." Sensing that Jerel wanted to be alone, Magnus nodded.
"Right, I'll see you later then." He turned and left the shop, with Jerel waving him off with a smile. But as soon as Magnus was out of sight, that smile faded, and Jerel's expression darkened.
He muttered under his breath, "Zeth, you bastard, you promised me..."
Outside, walking down the street away from Jerel's Blacksmith, Magnus glanced up at the sky, lost in thought.
Something definitely happened. I don't know what, but Celia knows Zeth, and her brother is working for him, though he clearly isn't happy about it. But what's the connection? Did Celia learn about Zeth because of her brother, or is it the other way around? Either way, there's a lot of bad blood, and it seems to be at the heart of what's going on between them.
He was tempted to just ask Celia about it, but then again, there's a reason people say 'Let sleeping dogs lie.'
Though this isn't really one of those situations, is it? It's clear that whatever's going on between them and Zeth is still causing problems now.
Thinking about it made Magnus groan as he shook his head and ruffled his hair.
Man, it's times like this that I really wish Wendy was here. She was always better at understanding people than I was. Oh well, I'll figure it out later. I still have one last place I need to visit.
It had been much longer than a week since he last went to see Hisel and was supposed to pick up his final batch of clothes. He'd originally planned to get them during the Netherwave Festival, but that idea turned out to be a trick by Celia to get him to go out and celebrate with her. Hisel's shop had been closed during the festival, and after that, the Live Examination began, leaving Magnus with no time to stop by. But now that he was free and already nearby after visiting Jerel, he figured he might as well get it over with.
And so, that's how Magnus found himself outside Hisel's Needle Nook. As he stepped in, the familiar bell chimed, announcing his arrival. Unlike his previous visits, there were actually other people in the shop, browsing through the various clothes on display. Mothers with their children, friends picking outfits for upcoming events, and lovers searching for gifts for their significant others. Hisel was on the first floor, but not behind the counter, and instead mingled with potential customers.
"If you're lookin' for a dress that's easy to clean and doesn't tear easy, you oughta try this one. Not only is it comfy, but the material won't irritate your skin, even though it's real tough," Magnus overheard Hisel say as she stood next to a woman admiring a short-sleeved yellow dress, perfect for a picnic.
"Oh, I do like this one. But I'm not sure about the color. Do you have one in a soft blue instead?" The woman asked.
"Sure do, hon, but it'll cost you a little bit more. Blue dye's pretty rare and hard to come by these days," Hisel explained. The woman thought for a moment before nodding.
"Alright then, I'll take this one in blue then."
"Perfect," Hisel said, clapping her hands together, and gesturing for the woman to follow her to the counter. Watching the interaction, Magnus couldn't help but be surprised at how differently Hisel acted with actual customers compared to when he first met her. As she led the woman to the counter, Hisel glanced at the door and spotted Magnus. She looked momentarily surprised but quickly put a finger to her lips, signaling for him to wait. Magnus nodded and leaned against a nearby wall, letting Hisel finish her work.
After wrapping up the sale with the woman interested in the blue dress, it took Hisel less than an hour to make her rounds through the shop and convince the other customers to buy as well. Watching her work, Magnus couldn't help but admit she was really good at her job, whether it was crafting clothes or selling them. Soon enough, the shop was empty again. Standing behind the counter, Hisel stretched and yawned, casting a look over at Magnus.
"Well, I definitely wasn't expectin' you to drop by today. You know how long a week is, right? I finished your clothes ages ago," Hisel remarked with a hint of sarcasm, clearly teasing him rather than being annoyed.
"Yeah, sorry about that. There was this super long academy event, and I didn't know you weren't open during the Netherwave Festival." Hisel chuckled and shrugged.
"Ah, it's fine. Honestly, if you hadn't come by soon, I was thinking of visiting Jerel to see how I could visit ya. Anyway, hang tight, I'll go grab your stuff," she replied, heading up the stairs to the second floor behind the counter. Magnus listened as she rummaged around for a few minutes before she returned with a stack of papers and a large basket full of clothes, even bigger than the one she'd brought down the last time he stopped by. She set it down with a loud thud, indicating it was pretty heavy, though she didn't seem to struggle carrying it.
Just like before, there were shirts, pants, and another set of pajamas. But this time, there were also some extras, like socks, and what excited Magnus the most—hoodies and jackets that looked exactly how he'd envisioned them when he designed them.
"Oh wow, I almost feel nostalgic just looking at these," Magnus said, picking up one of the folded hoodies. They didn't have any pictures or logos on them, but that was to be expected; no matter how skilled Hisel was, she couldn't replicate something like that in this kind of era. Still, this was more than enough for Magnus. He'd been missing all kinds of comforts of his world, and clothes were high on that list. Everything in this world felt too loose-fitting or uncomfortable, with only the academy uniforms coming close to what he was used to—and he was pretty sure that was only because they were made through magic.
"Well, I'm glad you like them. They were a lot trickier to make than the clothes you showed me the designs for earlier, so it took me a bit longer to get them right." Magnus nodded, placing the hoodie back into the basket.
"They're exactly how I pictured them when I drew the designs, so no complaints here," Magnus replied. Hisel smiled, tapping her finger on the counter thoughtfully.
"Actually, about those designs. Tell me somethin', Magnus—you said these clothes are from where you used to live, right? But you came up with the designs yourself?" Hisel asked.
"Huh? Yeah, I came up with them. Why?" Magnus asked curiously, catching the grin that spread across Hisel's face.
"Well, remember last time you were here? I mentioned I wanted to talk to you about somethin'. It's 'cause I'm interested in workin' with you," Hisel explained, setting the stack of papers she had brought down along with the basket onto the counter and turning them towards Magnus. As he scanned over the documents, he realized it was a contract—one Hisel had likely drafted herself.
"You want to sell my designs," Magnus said, understanding the gist of the contract, to which Hisel nodded.
"That's right. But just to be clear, I'd only be sellin' clothes based on your designs. You'd still own the rights to them. This contract just means I'd be the only one allowed to sell or make clothes from your designs." There was a spark of excitement in Hisel's eyes; she had clearly been thinking about this for a while. She hadn't seen anything like the clothes Magnus asked her to make before, she hadn't even thought of making anything like them. After asking around and realizing no one in her circle had ever seen anything like them, she realized this was a unique opportunity—one that could give her a monopoly in the market.
Huh, I guess I should have seen this coming. You introduce something better than what's already out there, and of course, people are gonna want a piece of it.
Seeing Magnus deep in thought, Hisel spoke up, trying to sweeten the deal as she pointed at a particular section in the contract.
"Look here. For every sale I make, I'm offerin' you a sixty-forty split, sixty in your favor. This covers my costs for materials while still bringing in a decent profit. You won't get a better deal anywhere else, I promise you that. And we can always renegotiate later on; nothin' has to be set in stone." Magnus continued thinking to himself as he listened to her. He had quickly scanned through the contract, but with his memory and reading speed, it only took a few glances for him to grasp and memorize the terms. There was nothing that would put him at a disadvantage, and everything Hisel said was true.
But he did have one question.
"And how many sales are you expecting? You said it yourself—this stuff is expensive. I doubt your usual customers could afford it, and even if they could occasionally splurge, it wouldn't be a lot," Magnus pointed out. Hisel grinned and placed her hand on the basket she had set on the counter.
"You're pretty sharp for someone your age. I actually put a prototype of one of the sets you asked me to make up on display a while ago, and it drew quite a bit of interest. Folks were keen on tryin' it out, so there's definitely a market for it. But you're right—if I tried to sell these here, it'd take a while to see any real sales because of the prices. But that's only if I intended on sellin' your designs here." Magnus gave her a confused look as she continued to explain.
"You probably don't know this since you're not in the clothing business, but there are all kinds of stores out there. You've got big and small ones, like mine, owned by individuals or businesses. But then you have these places that are more like collaborations—a kind of market that lets businesses come together to sell their goods at high prices, using branch stores of a sort, all in exchange for maintaining high quality," Hisel explained. As she spoke, Magnus couldn't help but draw a connection.
Is she talking about something like a mall?
Malls were essentially large buildings filled with various stores, which increased foot traffic and attention for those businesses compared to if they tried standing alone. It was also a prime spot for high-end brands.
Interesting. I wouldn't have thought a world like this would have something similar to malls, though it sounds like Hisel is referring to something more like a fashion mall or district rather than the ones I'm used to, with food courts and the like. Still, this could be a good opportunity for some passive income. And money's one of those things you can never have too much of, right?
With that thought, Magnus made his decision and nodded to himself.
"Alright, you've got yourself a deal," Magnus said, extending his hand.
Hisel's eyes lit up, and she grabbed his hand with a wide smile.
"Great! Trust me, you made the right decision today. This is gonna make us both rich."