—

After hearing the conversation between Mayor Lowe and this unknown person, Kieran leaned against the wall and awaited the end of the conversation.

Although his favorability with Mayor Lowe was maxed, Kieran felt it was impolite to barge into his office when occupied.

However, despite Kieran's intentions to remain still, Mayor Lowe's beckoned for him. "Is someone there? There's no reason to wait outside. You're free to come inside."

Kieran glanced at the door in slight surprise. 'Is the visitor inside the office not important?'

Generally, one wouldn't permit a foreign party's entry into a meeting until the discussion was concluded. If someone allowed an additional party into the room, it meant one of two things.

Either the meeting reached its end, so there was no threat of crucial information leaking, or the attending party wasn't too important.

Kieran wasn't sure which scenario his current situation fell under, but he nonetheless entered Mayor Lowe's private office.

Mayor Lowe's eyes lit up the moment Kieran entered the room. "Speak of the devil! This is precisely who I referred to when I said the issue plaguing the Aeredale Kingdom had been resolved. The person before you is responsible for our ease of mind."

After rejoicing over Kieran's actions, Mayor Lowe stood up and shook Kieran's hand before guiding him to sit beside the other person in attendance. It was a well-kept man with light brown eyes and brown hair dressed in a tidied suit.

Aside from this suit, Kieran noticed a distinct badge pinned to the individual's breast pocket. 'A member of the Merchant Association, more importantly, it's a Manager-level character.'

Kieran silently sized up the male Merchant Association Manager who extended their hand with a warm smile. "Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Dillon Coventry, Manager of the Merchant Association's Aeredale Branch."

Although unfamiliar with the individual, Kieran returned a greeting with narrowed eyes. "Aatrox, Gold Adventurer and a nominal member of the War Deity Council."

Kieran purposely added an extra description of himself because he didn't forget Dusvim's claims.

It appeared that one of the Merchant Association's Managers approached him, and even though Dillon relied upon Aeredale for success, Kieran couldn't rule out anyone.

'One of the objectives is that I obtain proof of wrongdoings. However, until I obtain that proof, every Manager I come in contact with is a possible suspect.'

Dillon wasn't the only Manager-level staff present within the Aeredale Branch of the Merchant Association. He was simply the highest Manager.

So while he was a suspect, he wasn't the only recipient of Kieran's suspicions.

Upon hearing Kieran's introduction, Dillon's expression filled with astonishment. "Wow. You must be one of the War Deity Council's young members. Mayor Lowe has raved about you nonstop, and after learning of your identity, I understand why."

Dillon paused for a moment before his smile brightened. "I would like to extend my deepest gratitude. While Mayor Lowe and I were unsuccessful in bolstering Aeredale's defenses, you went on and uprooted the issue entirely. For that, you have my complete respect."

Kieran wasn't too longwinded with his response, giving a terse nod befitting of his current wild appearance. He had to uphold a certain level of distance if he was going to find a mastermind.

In the end, it wasn't uncommon for Managers to speak amongst themselves. It was possible word would get to those involved if Kieran wasn't too inconspicuous with his suspicions.

After speaking for a few extra minutes, Dillon rose to his feet and shook Mayor Lowe's hand with a respectful bow. "I've taken up enough of your time. I need to prepare for the auction scheduled to take place soon."

"Don't let me keep me. Again, I appreciate you orchestrating this auction to help Aeredale."

"It's my lifeline. My journey through the association's ranks ends if I let this city suffer its demise," Dillon said.

To increase one's rank within the Merchant Association, one had to prove their worth. One way to do so was to accept the challenge of managing a community befitting the member's rank.

A Manager should have no issues bolstering a kingdom's finances before thinking of receiving a promotion.

Thus, letting Aeredale's financial situation implode was akin to Dillon committing suicide.

A few thoughts surfaced in Kieran's mind after learning of Dillon's aspirations, but he didn't voice them. Instead, he kept them to himself and waited for Dillon's departure before looking at Mayor Lowe.

"What brings you here, Aatrox? Is there something I can help you with?" Mayor Lowe asked.

Before speaking, Kieran closed his eyes and extended his senses before waving his hand. A few wisps of crimson blood closed the door while Kieran confirmed there was no one nearby.

"On the contrary, Mayor Lowe, I think I can help you," Kieran stated, leaving his intentions a slight mystery.

After witnessing his reliability, Kieran's tone interested Mayor Lowe, so he inched closer to his desk. "What is it, Aatrox? Do you have a grand proposal to get Aeredale back on track?"

"What if I said all hope isn't lost for Aeredale? That you can regain stability in a minimal amount of time."

Mayor Lowe's stomach clenched, and his eyes widened when listening to Kieran's hypothetical question. "If that's true, then I'd say you'd be more than just Aeredale's savior; you'd be its great benefactor!"

"I see," Kieran nodded.

Afterward, he waved his hand and summoned numerous empty wooden chests. But after a few seconds, the open chests began filling with insane amounts of Gold.

Mayor Lowe staggered and fell out of his chair, frozen in utter disbelief after witnessing the several chests fill rapidly. Each trunk could hold up to 1 million Gold, and there were six of them.

"My team recently cleared the Desertborn Brigands' hidden hideout before destroying it. This is what we earned. It came to my mind that this would help revive Aeredale on a large scale."

Kieran made up a light excuse as to why he only now produced this Gold. But, shockingly, Mayor Lowe wasn't the slightest bit interested in the delay.

The only emotion surging through his mind was happiness—delight that this wondrous opportunity fell upon Aeredale City!

Muah!

Mayor Lowe hurried to his feet and kissed Kieran's forehead, which left him stupefied. 'D-did this man kiss my forehead?! Never in a thousand years would I have guessed Mayor Lowe would do such a thing...'

"Aatrox, you have been blessed by the gods above to be our ray of brilliantly shining light! From this day forward, you are truly Aeredale's Great Benefactor!"

Ding!

〈System: Your Title ?Aeredale's Savior? has upgraded to ?Aeredale's Great Benefactor?!〉

Out of curiosity, Kieran brought up the title's details to see how useful this status was.

「 Title Name: Aeredale's Great Benefactor

Title Rank: *Special

Effect(s):

All effects apply within the territorial limits of the Aeredale Kingdom:

-Permits a 50% price reduction when using Teleportation Halls. (Free if traveling within the kingdom's territories.)

-Enables property ownership. (Limited to the restriction of your World Fame.)

-Increases property ownership limit by one.

-Property owned by the user incurs 0% sales tax for 12 months.

-Property tax is reduced to a fixed rate of 5% of the lot's projected value.

Description: A title rewarded to an individual who performed extraordinary acts of benevolence for the Kingdom of Aeredale.」

historical

Kieran gawked at the title information. 'These effects are amazing!'

From an adventurer standpoint, this title wasn't beneficial. However, this title was invaluable when it came to someone like Kieran, who intended to own property and begin building his legacy!

Even if players outgrew kingdoms, it didn't mean purchasing real estate in a kingdom was useless. Why? Because Zenith Online experienced a constant influx of players.

Those new players would bring new sources of income to several kingdoms while elite players moved up.

Besides, players weren't the only ones who purchased items; NPCs could also contribute to the earnings of a player-owned business.

Thus, even if Kieran eventually outgrew this place, its worth was immense. Not to mention, an early headstart on land ownership was just what Kieran required.

'My wealth on Earth isn't that great, but if I can generate enough friction with a property, I may be able to spark the update of the Universal Currency Exchange Trading System.'

The current Universal Currency Exchange Trading System was limited to player-to-player currency selling. The small amount of currency compared to the many gaming organizations seeking to purchase it created a currency vacuum.

But, what would happen if globally renowned banks assumed control of the system and turned it into a financial engine? The limitation on the system would shift, and that's what Kieran desired.

Owning property, or at least the rumors of this possibility, would pull financial goliaths into the game.

After reading the effects of this title, Kieran no longer minded the fact Mayor Lowe kissed his forehead. The title's third effect alone justified the action. As a Lord, he was permitted to own one property within a capital city.

But, with this title, that increased to two.

As much as Kieran wanted to purchase a property, it was too early. Before he could begin acquiring property, he required people to carry out production. Aspaira alone wasn't enough.