Vesia knew that her work would change with her sudden promotion.

She didn't think she would be working under the supervision of Head Clerk Ebmond, who was practically the vice-manager of the company.

It was three days of running around the city doing errands that she was too over-qualified to do, she had finally forcibly brought herself out of the wounded daze she had fallen in after her last talk with Madame Caria, who she had regarded as a mentor, nearly a second mother.

The thought that she was shaming her newly acquired position and not properly taking care of her friend Defi, who was counting on her to take care of his account, was a lance that broke her out of her stupor.

Her heart was still in pain from Madame Caria's betrayal, but she set her teeth and endured the tasks that the head clerk sent her on.

Vesia knew he was testing her.

She had not even reached twenty-five years in age yet. Her promotion to senior clerk was premature, when most of the other senior clerks were promoted in their late twenties or their thirties and they had been junior clerks for at least six years.

The youngest to achieve senior clerk in Bluzand history was Head Clerk Ebmond, who was promoted at the age of twenty-two. But then he'd been with the company since the beginning and had started working for the lady owner and Manager Tennar when he was aged fourteen.

Vesia was not that much a fool as she portrayed. She knew her promotion came because she had been in the wrong place at the right time.

There were people in the company who thought she'd gained her promotion through unsavoury means. The only reason it was not the entire company that thought so was that she was subtly credited for having a part in taking down Ramad Degaine who was discovered to be stealing from Bluzand.

Still, most of the company thought she was too green for the promotion and Head Clerk Ebmond's actions of sending her scurrying to and fro across Ecthys bore out that theory.

Even Vesia didn't think she was ready.

But the lady herself had promoted her, and now she had a client depending on her.

How could she do anything but her best?

And now, Head Clerk Ebmond had invited her into a meeting that Vesia herself had made possible. The head clerk said to gain an audience with Telomberne Company, which Vesia had only managed after a week of concerted ambushing the Telomberne Company officers.

Politely, of course.

She'd finally succeeded and triumphantly reported to Head Clerk Ebmond happily. Then the man smiled and said her reward was getting to see the meeting happen.

It was an opportunity seldom handed to a newly promoted senior clerk, much less her.

Anyone would be elated. Vesia was, in fact, over the moon to be able to witness a negotiation on her own. She was confused however, why it was allocated to her when a more experienced clerk would be able to get more out of the negotiation.

It was only when she saw the delegates that Bluzand put together that she knew this 'reward' was not all it seemed.

It was, once again, a particular place and a particular time to learn something that would get her in trouble if it got out.

There had been much gossip on the reason Manager Tennar would not promote Head Clerk Ebmond directly to vice-manager.

Vesia never thought it was because the owner of the company liked to disguise herself as a Bluzand Company officer. The only one who would think that was a crazy person, right?

In negotiations, the more powerful the delegates the more they could get out of the other party, right?

Why hide your influence in these kinds of negotiations?

My lady, are you playing the hidden heir to the kingdom who was secretly fighting against evildoers to protect the common people?

She sighed inwardly.

Why did the company she joined have such eccentric higher-ups?

Just yesterday, she heard out that Head Clerk Vodren had resigned.

But then she found that he didn't leave the company after resigning and was going around the place staring at random employees with a stern, silent, evaluating gaze that was entirely unlike his normal screechy persona.

Normally when people resigned, they left their place of employment, didn't they?

Not haunt the headquarters and do their best to turn all the other employees into paranoid wrecks.

There was even a rumour going around that the former Head Clerk Vodren had died of a shocked heart and was now a ghost who wafted through the halls of his former employment unable to speak until his murderer was brought to justice.

Really, if he collapsed from a shocked heart, who would be his murderer? Himself?

It didn't help that Manager Tennar sometimes acted like he didn't see the former Head Clerk Vodren while they were in full view of everyone.

Vesia despaired.

Surely other companies did not have troubles like these?

She sighed again, as many times in the past, she had heard people saying that Bluzand must not be that profitable as they refused to pay for a vice-manager who actually did the job of a proper vice-manager.

Are all senior clerks so imperturbable because they learn shocks like these just after promotion?

It was not that the Bluzand Company didn't have a vice-manager, it was because said vice-manager officially liked to travel around in search of new spices.

Unofficially, the constantly absent vice-manager was retired.

She tried not to stare disbelievingly at the strictly-dressed 'vice-manager' who sported a serene smile on her face as she pitched a cooperative effort to the representatives of a company named Telomberne that specialized in personal grooming products.

The lady was so very different from the casually intimidating woman who generally sported cool expressions and sharp smiles.

Vesia felt the admiration in her heart for the lady owner increase, but did her vice-manager persona really have to smile like that?

She glanced at Head Clerk Ebmond, who shuffled the appropriate documents and arranged them before the 'vice-manager' in the order that she needed them. The way they worked together was so smooth as to make no doubts that they had been doing this for a long time.

Her glance was greeted with the head clerk's stern look.

Vesia immediately stepped forward and distributed several papers before the Telomberne representatives. She had been part of the research team that gathered and put together the information.

She stepped back again and watched, heart pounding in anticipation even while she struggled to keep her face passive, as the representatives sent by Telomberne, a man and a woman, read the papers in their hands.

The woman, Delaen Grugair put down the papers after she'd read through them. There was a slight frown on her face.

"We have heard of this mysterious extract," she stated. "I thought it nothing but the winds of rumor. You will understand, of course, that we must test it ourselves, Vice-manager Sarel? A collaboration between our two companies; it is not a small thing after all."

Vesia tried not to stiffen in anticipation. That meant that they were thinking about it favourably, right?

"Certainly. Our findings have much potential, I think you'll find." The vice-manager glanced at Vesia.

It took a moment for her limbs to come out of the stiffness but Vesia was once again sliding papers toward the Telomberne representatives.

In addition, she gave the satchel containing samples of what was only labelled as 'DS extract' to the clerk who was also standing behind the Telomberne representatives.

The clerk took it expressionlessly, only a nod to acknowledge her. He placed it on the table before the representatives and took out a sample bottle.

Looking at the clear viscous liquid in the glass bottle, Vesia had an uneasy premonition of why precisely she was invited to see this particular negotiation.

After examining the bottle, the male representative stated pleasantly, with a faint smile. "We will look forward to seeing whether our businesses can work together."

They stood. The woman nodded politely. "Then, we'll be leaving first."

The serene expression on the lady's face did not waver, but her smile widened by an increment. "Of course."

Vesia waited until they left the foodhall and were back in the carriage, a proper closed carriage. "That..didn't seem to go well?"

"Better than expected."

"It was?!" After that travesty of a negotiation? There was barely negotiation as the two representatives obviously didn't want to work with them.

After Vesia worked so hard to set it up, this was the result? She didn't feel accomplished at all.

The serene smile was turned on her. Vesia tried not to shudder at the expression that was incongruous to the personality of the lady owner that she met before.

"They sent excellent representatives. You don't do that unless you're hopeful, or you want to make the other side believe that you are interested."

"They left so quickly though."

The smile curled up gently. "They got what they wanted."

Vesia went through the negotiations again, as much to find what the lady meant as to not look at that smile. She frowned. "The samples?"

"I think they'll find they cannot do as they wished." Head Clerk Ebmond said softly.

Vesia looked between the two people, her immediate superior and her ultimate superior. "We're still going to collaborate with them aren't we."

They were trying to steal Bluzand's resources. If she was right, Defi was the supplier of the mysterious extract. What kind of account manager would she be, if she allowed her client's work to be stolen?

Head Clerk Ebmond nodded at her. "This meeting, consider it a success."

He tapped the front wall of the carriage and the carriage slowed. Vesia caught a glimpse of the Tesorium through the curtains, as she gaped at him.

They wanted Telomberne to steal Defi's work?

The lady bestowed her smile on Vesia. "That child cannot be stolen from easily."