Apocalypse Architect: A Tower Defense LitRPG

Chapter 105: Forced Employment

Victor blinked, clearly caught off guard by Jax’s curveball. He hesitated, his gaze shifting uncertainly toward Hazel.

“This… this business barely has any profit margins as it is! If we add Miss Hazel into the mix, isn’t that a bit too…”

Jax waved a hand dismissively, cutting him off. “Chief Victor, you know the numbers better than I do. I don’t need to remind you how many Kilometers the outer Wall of Redrock Bastion spans, do I? If you corner the market with this reinforcement technology, you won’t just be wealthy—you’ll be the undisputed tycoon of the inner city.”

Victor frowned, his brow furrowing deep with concern. “That may be true, but I don’t like working with partners. Besides, Miss Hazel is currently at odds with her family. Dragging her into this… wouldn’t that bring unnecessary trouble?”

“Chief Victor, relax,” Jax said smoothly. “I’m not talking about carving up your construction profits. Every Credit earned from the Wall goes into your pocket. I’m only interested in a small cut of the interest.”

Victor paused, confused. “Then what are you getting at? Didn’t you just say you wanted Miss Hazel to be part of the collaboration?”

“Hah! Chief, have you forgotten what business Miss Hazel’s family specializes in?”

Victor’s eyes widened as the realization hit him. “You mean… you want me to procure the raw materials through Miss Hazel?”

“Bingo. Exactly.”

Standing beside them, Hazel looked completely lost. She tugged frantically on Jax’s sleeve, whispering urgently, “Hey, hey! How can you just make decisions for me like that?”

Jax turned to her, his expression calm. “Don’t you want your own territory? Your own industry? Don’t you want to break the shackles The Sterling Syndicate has on you?”

Hazel’s face fell, frustration bubbling to the surface. “Of course I do! I dream of having my own assets and leaving The Sterling Syndicate behind! But I don’t have the capital for that!”

Jax grinned. “That’s fine. Just follow my lead. I’ll handle the rest.”

“You could at least tell me the plan!” she hissed.

“Patience. You’ll see soon enough. Let’s lock this deal down first.” Jax turned back to the businessman. “So, Chief Victor, what do you think of my proposal?”

Victor rubbed his chin, falling into deep thought before raising a concern. “Honestly, I don’t mind who I work with. But I need to know one thing: Is Miss Hazel representing The Sterling Syndicate, or is she representing herself? And if we do this, can you actually supply the materials I need? We’re talking about a massive quantity here.”

“Don’t worry about supply,” Jax assured him. “When the time comes, I guarantee enough material to keep your crews busy. We won’t delay your schedule by a single second.”

“Good! That’s what I wanted to hear!” Victor slammed his hand on the table decisively. “Since that’s settled, let’s talk about the profit split.”

“What number do you think is appropriate?” Jax asked.

Victor hesitated. “Shall we stick to the market price?”

Hazel immediately stepped in, her business instincts kicking in. “That’s a solid proposal. Market price is fair for both sides.” She glanced at Jax, nodding earnestly. “I mean it.”

Jax nodded. “Alright then. You two hash out the details. Come find me when you’re done.”

With that, Jax stood up, dusted off his pants, and looked at Victor. “Chief, you can discuss the specifics with Miss Hazel. I’m not really a details guy.”

Victor stared at him, dumbfounded. “You… isn’t this a bit too…”

Hazel’s face went dark. “Hey! Are you seriously planning to be a totally hands-off boss? And what am I to you, exactly? Are we partners, or what?”

Jax smiled, a mischievous glint in his eye. “Look, you have no resources right now, correct?”

Hazel nodded slowly. “Mm. Correct.”

“And you can’t rely on The Sterling Syndicate, right?”

“Right.”

“So, what do you think our relationship should be?”

“I…” Hazel pointed a finger at herself, then at him. “You… you want me to work for you?”

“Bingo! Give the lady a prize.” Jax leaned in slightly. “You’re not going to refuse, are you?”

Hazel looked at him in total shock. “What the hell? When did I agree to be your assistant?”

“Haha! Don’t overthink it! Follow me, and I guarantee you’ll achieve everything you’ve ever wanted. In fact, I’m handing full control of the mineral extraction business over to you. I won’t interfere. Total autonomy. How does that sound?”

Hazel was taken aback. She had never met a boss who delegated power so casually.

Even Victor was staring at Jax like he was an alien. “Brother, isn’t this a bit improper? This is a massive business deal we’re talking about.”

Jax just shrugged, his smile unwavering. “My apologies, Chief Victor. I’m not an expert in this field, so having my trusted assistant negotiate on my behalf is the smartest play, don’t you think?”

Victor blinked, then sighed, resigning himself to the oddity of the situation. “Alright, fine. I’ll discuss terms with Miss Hazel. But you have to guarantee that you’ll honor whatever she agrees to.”

“Of course. She has my full authorization.”

“Very well. Miss Hazel, let’s begin.”

Victor looked at Hazel with a helpless expression. Hazel, still reeling from the fact that she had somehow become Jax’s subordinate in the span of five minutes, swallowed her complaints.

Despite the unwillingness in her heart, she couldn’t deny that Jax possessed terrifying Potential. First, he secured a deal with Sawyer, and now he had Victor eating out of his hand. He was no ordinary man.

She steeled herself, pushed aside her confusion, and entered negotiation mode. Though she started off a bit rocky due to the lack of preparation, her background with The Sterling Syndicate quickly kicked in. Within minutes, she was debating terms like a seasoned pro.

Jax sat on a nearby sofa, listening quietly but not interfering. In reality, he was busy conversing with the system in his mind.

System, you mentioned before that the local mineral deposits might contain Refined Iron and Stardust Stones, right?

[Affirmative, User. Although the concentration of Stardust Stones and Refined Iron is relatively low, they do exist.]

Haha! Perfect. By the way, can you scan the ores to identify which ones contain the rare materials?

[This function requires the User to have complete ownership of the mineral deposits before analysis can be performed.]

Excellent. I’ll take the job.

Jax mentally selected the new Bounty Protocol that had just refreshed.

[Ding! B-Grade Task Accepted.] [Task: Possess two mineral deposits and extract Stardust Stone x100, Refined Iron x100.] [Time Limit: 30 Days.] [Reward: Stardust Stone Mine x1, Refined Iron Mine x1.]

After accepting the task, Jax glanced over at Hazel, who was currently “arguing with reason” against Victor.

Looks like I picked the right person. Doing this myself would have been a nightmare.

About half an hour later, Victor stood up, looking thoroughly exhausted. He sighed at Hazel. “Fine! We’ll settle on those terms!”

He walked over to Jax, shaking his head with a bitter smile. “Sir Jax, you really played a hell of a hand here.”

“Haha! You flatter me, Chief Victor. Alright, since everything is settled, we’ll be heading out.”

“Mhm. I’ll see you out. It’s getting late, so I won’t keep you for dinner.”

Jax laughed heartily at the subtle dismissal.

Inside the elevator, once the doors slid shut, Jax turned to Hazel. “So! What was the final verdict?”

“We agreed on a fifty-fifty split,” Hazel said, brushing a stray hair from her forehead. “We only need to provide that special ore of yours. He handles the rest of the materials and labor. I left him enough profit margin to keep him happy.”

Jax shot her a thumbs-up. “Impressive! Bringing you along was the best decision I made today.”

“Wait a second.” Hazel grabbed his arm before he could step out of the elevator. “What about the mines? We don’t actually own any mineral deposits right now!”

Jax grinned. “I do. I have a batch of deposits on hand, but I’m going to need you to do some work.”

Hazel straightened up. “Name it.”

“It’s like this: while I have some deposits, we’re short on volume. So, we need to finalize the purchase of some new mines.”

“Huh? You already signed the deal with him! If we can’t produce the ore on time, the penalty fees will bankrupt us!” Hazel looked at him in disbelief. How could he be this unreliable?

Jax waved his hand airily. “Relax. The initial demand isn’t high. Even if he hires 10,000 workers tomorrow, the ore I have in my inventory is enough to keep him supplied for a week.”

Seeing his absolute confidence, Hazel could only sigh and nod. “Alright. Where to now?”

“We’re leaving. You have your car, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Let’s go. Be my driver one more time. I need to go pick up two people.”