Parallel Vol. 4 [LEGACY EDITION]

Chapter 13: The Bank

13th Banem 1092

It was the dead of night by the time Kashi and Larsial pulled up near the outskirts of Meilfour's territory. Even under the cloudy, moonless night, Meilfour's splendor shone through for miles, its colorful lights a magnificent beacon to adventurers far and wide. Warriors and merchants laughed and chatted amicably as they walked, or galloped past Kashi and Larsial, either on their way to or from some glorious adventure.

Larsial in particular, stared in wonder as the female warriors passed by in stylish garments and colorful accessories. She could tell just from looking, that despite their beauty, these outfits were created for practicality, and would provide more than adequate protection. Even the men had stepped up their fashion game. Form fitting clothing and strategic armor placement emphasized their handsomeness without sacrificing protection.

Even heavy knights with full plate armor were not spared the aesthetic treatment. Gone were the plain iron plating. Immaculate, unique designs were carved onto each plating, which were then dyed with imaginative color combinations. This led to a situation where the vain Summoned were no longer satisfied with just the higher stats weapon or armor.

This was one of the effects of VR. Since gamers could actually see and interact with each other, fashion took on a whole new importance.

Kashi knew this, hence why he pushed for the rapid reform of Meilfour. As the capital of art on the continent, there was no other place on the continent with such a high density of skilled artists eager to ply their trade. The Hopeful Maggots took full advantage of this to scoop up this large piece of pie before anyone else saw the potential. Now, merchants from far and wide were eager to get their hands on the new designs coming out of Meilfour so they could sell them at a significant mark-up to eager customers at their various towns and cities.

Unbeknownst to Kashi, Miote had gone a step further to ensure their monopoly continued for a long time. The chesch introduced the concept of brands to the artists and adamantly demanded they place a brand on any and all products they sold to the public. These branded clothes would ensure the populace would continue to buy from the 'original' makers instead of those who wanted to copy the styles.

Miote did not just stop there though. To ensure that the populace 'knew' that only products bought from Meilfour were those worth buying, he took advantage of the Merchant Alliance that was recently formed. When Joanna Frye's mercenaries escorted the merchants and their transported goods to cities, they wore clothes and armor made in Meilfour. These mercenaries would then brag to colleagues from other companies, who would in turn spread the word to the populace, further emphasizing the point that the clothes made in Meilfour were those worth buying. Of course, in return, the merchants escorted by the mercenaries would tell other merchants that Frye's mercenaries were the best in the business, thereby boosting her revenue too.

With the excavation of the mines, Marlo Coop's precious stone business also experienced a major revival. Coop's company already had artisans experienced with jewelry work, so, with a number of designs from Miote, his company began to process precious stones excavated from the mines into beautiful jewelry. It soon became a thing among women to wear a Meilfour produced outfit with jewelry from Coop. The outfits had become a symbol of status just as Miote intended, which in turn highly boosted sales.

Kashi was not privy to all these details, but he just had to take a look at the busy roads to know that Miote had outdone himself.

"It's beautiful," Larsial accidentally muttered as they approached the city's gates. Unlike the bland gates of other cities, these emerald-green gates had a number of artists and instruments carved onto them. Larsial forced herself to look away as she recalled the once beautiful and majestic halls and roads of her hometown before they lost the war.