Prince Liandre's George squinted his eyes as he saw what Abel was holding. He was a crucial member of the Royal Family. Of course, he knew what the card was. It was the identity card of the intermediate wizard, Morton, who was the guardian wizard of this Duchy and the most powerful guardian wizard in the state.
Why would Abel have anything to do with the Morton Magic Tower?
From the intel that Prince Liandre received, Abel was just a wizard apprentice in the Yveline Tower.
And now this. The amount of compensation would have to change because of that. The future king was not too stingy about his money. If anything, he was looking to getting along with Wizard Morton. If Morton could become one of his trusted "friends," he would've needed a lot fewer guards whenever he went outside the palace.
"Pardon me," Prince Liandre George smiled and said to Abel, "About the compensation. There has been a tiny change if you don't mind."
Abel frowned a bit when he heard this. Did the prince really come here to bargain with him for some money? Just how poor was the Duchy becoming?
"Um, you see," prince Liandre George continued, "It's about the vineyard you were meant to receive. I didn't think it's good enough for compensation, so I decided to replace it with the Cotter Winehouse. If you will, the Royal Palace would like to make a more sincere apology."
Abel knew about the Cotter Winehouse. It was one of the best wine houses in the entire Duchy of Carmel. He had a lot of fine wine from there, actually, in his collection in the Triumph Boulevard mansion.
"You are too kind, you Highness," Abel thanked Liandre sincerely.
"As long as you like it, my dear Sir Abel!" Prince George Liandre replied. Judging from the smile on Abel's face, he knew his plan had worked. The cost might be a little higher than expected, but Abel clearly couldn't say no to him.
'Well, then," Prince Liandre reached out his right hand towards Abel, then turned to look at the two judges in court, "Let's settle this in front of the Goddess of Justice and Order. From this point onward, there shall be no conflict between us. I hope we can become good friends, Sir Abel."
'Yes, Your Highness. There will be no more conflicts between us. I'm honored to be your friend!'
As Abel reached out his hand as well, the two shook hands in the air and declared their friendship to the public.
"Very well," the jury said solemnly, "By the goddess of Justice and Order, a contract has been agreed upon!"
A contract was agreed between the two parties. In a society such as this, shaking hands was a common way to resolve conflicts. Once the act was officially acknowledged, neither side would have permission to bring up the conflict in the future.
"You'll have to excuse me, Sir Abel. I have some business to attend to after this," Prince Liandre said. Since the court hearing was settled, there really wasn't a reason for him to stay any longer.
"Yes, Your Highness. I wish you a pleasant day." Abel said and farewelled Prince Liandre with a bow.
While Prince Liandre had left, the middle-aged man who brought Abel here stayed. It was now his turn to have a negotiation with Ken. Since the Cotter Winehouse was handed over to Abel so quickly, a lot of deals had to be arranged.
Abel didn't care too much about the handover. He was a nobleman. He would be laughed at if he joined in a business negotiation like this. Instead, he turned towards the judge and asked, "About the Benson Family, has their compensation arrived yet?"
The judge replied with a smile, 'Yes, Sir Abel. The head of Benson Family has just sent them yesterday!"
The judge didn't know who exactly Abel was. He could make a lot of guesses after seeing how polite Prince Liandre (and the knight commander) was to him, but one thing was certain: "Sir Abel" was not a simple nobody. Even the prince had to show some respect to him.
"All right, then. Let's get everything sorted today," Abel said with satisfaction. He was happy with how things were running so smoothly, especially with how cooperative the Benson Family had been with him.
"Yes, Sir. I shall send someone to your butler about this," The referee replied.
Abel stood for a while as he waited for Ken to handle the transfer. While doing so, one of the court staff passed him a cup of coffee.
Abel did some math while he was waiting for Ken. Honestly, he was quite a wealthy man now. He had two vineyards in Bakong City, two shops at Tian Jin Avenue, and one vineyard at his Triumph Boulevard mansion (the Cotter Winehouse).
"Sorry for keeping you waiting, Loraine," Abel said apologetically to Loraine. He didn't think this court hearing would take so long. Loraine was waiting in the carriage the whole time he was inside the noble arbitral tribunal.
"It's okay, Abel! You didn't keep me waiting for too long," Loraine smiled like always. For reasons she wasn't sure of, she actually liked the feeling of waiting for Abel. Besides, it was already a joy for her to be able to go outside with him.
"Let's go buy a lo~t of pretty clothes now, okay, Loraine?" Abel laughed in a rather exaggerated way.
"A lo~t? Isn't that kind of expensive?" Loraine looked at Abel.
Abel started messing up Lorain's hair with his hand, "I got a lo~t of gold coins just then, do you understand? And since you've come here with me, how can I not share them with you?"
Loraine didn't like Abel messing up her hair. She turned her head away from his hand, but the smile on her face was full of joy.
"What about this one? Do you like this one, Loraine? Let's buy some clothes here."
Abel didn't know much about women's clothing. It was the same for Ken as well, but he did a lot of scouting since he first came to Bakong City. He was a professional butler, after all, so it wasn't hard for him to find the most popular shop here.
"Don't worry about size," Abel said to Ken, "We'll hire a tailor when we head home,"
Abel and Ken were both nobles. That being said, the City they've lived in wasn't exactly in the top tier, and the quality of life was quite different in Bakong City. While it was much more convenient here, Abel didn't know anyone. He didn't know any tailor who could customize clothes for him, and it wasn't like he had the time, either. Thus, it was up to Ken to find the right person for him.
As they entered the best women's clothing shop at Tian Jin Avenue, Abel saw some clothes that he was very familiar with. Actually, it was quite similar to what they had back on Earth. There were fancy dresses, ordinary clothes, some women's underwear, and they were all hung up for display.
"Anything I can help you with, Sir?" a beautiful stewardess bowed and asked.
"Yes," Abel said, "Uh, a lot, actually. Can you help my little sister pick out some clothes? We need every type that you have."
"Yes, you've got it, Sir!" the stewardess said with brightened eyes, and her smile became even more professional towards the rich customers in front of her, "Please, have a seat there while you wait."
Since Abel came here to buy some clothes, he's decided to let all the guards stay outside. While waiting for Loraine to finish, he sat at a resting spot designated for men and enjoyed some drinks.
"Wow, what a fine establishment that you have here! You have very good services here!" Abel said admirably. True. A lot of times, even the shops on Earth wouldn't be so friendly towards its customers.
After ordering a cup of juice, Abel waited for Loraine as she finished picking up her clothes.
Suddenly, the door of the store was slammed open. A team of guards, led by one elite knight, came barging inside. Seeing that there wasn't anyone important here, the elite knight shouted rudely, "Mrs. Daisy will be here soon! Please, everyone, leave this place while she shops here!"
"Who does he think he is?" a young man in suit whimpered. Hard to blame him, to be fair. That "please" didn't sound very polite at all.
Another man replied, "It's Mrs. Daisy. She's the mistress of the eldest prince. Let's just leave. There's nothing we can do."
"Dear Spirit! Have these people no shame at all?" the man complained, yet proceeded to bring his partner out.
Abel shook his head at the sight of this. What an unfair society this was. How could the mistress of the eldest prince be so senseless in the middle of the City?
Even nobles were shouted at like peasants.
"Do you like these ones, Abel?" Loraine came with the stewardess.
"They're good as long as you like them. Let's pack them all up, Loraine. We'll leave the shop now."
Abel didn't want to bring any trouble here. No one knew who he was here. He wasn't exactly losing face here, so he might as well not take the spotlight this time.
"Thank you, Abel!" Loraine handed the clothes to the stewardess.