Chapter 71: Investment
Four pairs of eyes widened in utter disbelief as they stared at Shani. All of them knew that just a month ago, Shani was nothing more than an orphan shoveling manure in a barn.
"Shan, where on earth did you get that kind of money?" Mina blurted out.
She hadn’t intended to meddle in adult affairs, but she knew for a fact that Shani didn’t have a single Credit to her name back at the orphanage.
How could she suddenly have a million Credits after not seeing each other for just one month?
"I did something at the academy that earned me some compensation. I can’t go into details because it’s confidential," Shani replied, withholding the full story.
Mina nodded in understanding, as Shani had mentioned receiving compensation to her earlier.
Aster kept quiet as well, remembering that Shani had brought up the stock market with him before. He hadn’t realized she could make that much money from trading.
On the flip side, it made sense why Shani was so eager to invest directly now, tasting the sweet fruits of the stock market had clearly given her the confidence.
What he couldn’t figure out was why Shani refrained from mentioning her stock market profits to the Mortis couple, especially since Aster could tell her brief explanation hadn’t quite satisfied them.
"Mr. Mortis, my background might make you a bit hesitant, but I am a student of Grand Academy now. Our academy is a strict institution, so you can rest assured that I didn’t earn this money through anything shady," Shani explained with quiet confidence.
She was a quick learner. Having only realized yesterday how deeply ordinary folks revered Grand Academy students, she was putting that prestige to good use.
Sure enough, the tension on Toby and Bella’s faces immediately softened.
"There’s no need to be so formal, Shani. Just call me Uncle Toby, and your aunty here, Aunt Bell," Toby said with a warm smile.
"That’s right, dear. Business is business, but that doesn’t mean you’re a stranger to us," Bella added kindly.
"I understand, Uncle Toby, Aunt Bell," Shani replied, flashing a polite smile and adapting smoothly.
With the mood relaxed and the atmosphere warm, Shani steered the conversation back to the investment.
"To be honest, I’m investing this much because I genuinely believe in the potential of Red Worm Jelly. Beyond that, I trust both of your years of business experience," Shani declared confidently, without a trace of arrogance.
Bella smiled broadly. She saw a reflection of her younger self in Shani, confident, ambitious, yet knowing her boundaries. Unconsciously, she felt a sense of kinship growing toward the girl.
"You won’t regret this decision, kid?" Toby asked, taking a more pragmatic approach.
"Not at all, Sir!" Shani answered firmly.
"A million Credits is no small sum, so we need to draft a thorough contract—"
"I’ve already contacted a lawyer and had a sample contract drawn up. You can take a look at it, Uncle Toby," Shani interjected decisively before he could finish.
Toby blinked in surprise, realizing then and there that Shani was dead serious about this venture.
Shani sent the sample contract over to Toby, Bella, and Aster, since Aster, as her appointed representative, needed to be in the loop.
"Oh, right. It also outlines the terms regarding the Red Worm Jelly recipe and the special cultivation method for the Bloodworms..."
The three of them, still skimming the document, hadn’t reached that section yet.
Toby looked up from his screen, glancing at Shani. "Are you really handing full authority over this partnership to your representative?"
He asked casually, leaving Shani unsure of his true underlying meaning.
’Is he disappointed because he hoped to work directly with a Grand Academy student, only to end up dealing with a proxy instead? Or is he just making sure I fully grasp what it means to grant full power of attorney?’
After a brief pause, Shani responded according to her overarching plan.
"Yes. I still have my duties as a student at Grand Academy to attend to. Aster, as my representative, will manage the day-to-day operations on my end. But that doesn’t mean I’ll be in the dark. Aster will report everything back to me."
Toby finally nodded and resumed reading through the section regarding the one-million-Credit investment.
Essentially, everything aligned with what Shani had proposed earlier, formatted in airtight legal phrasing to leave no loopholes for exploitation.
In exchange for her one-million-Credit investment, Shani would receive equity proportional to the total initial capital.
With the starting capital set at five million, her contribution earned her a solid 20% stake in the company.
Toby and Bella certainly had enough funds to finance their company’s initial capital on their own.
But as seasoned business people, whenever an opportunity arose to preserve their capital, they were more than happy to take it, especially since Shani was someone they could trust.
Meanwhile, Aster had read down to the section regarding the product recipe.
In exchange for surrendering one product recipe and a special cultivation technique, Shani hadn’t requested a lump-sum payment nor a royalty percentage per sale.
What she requested instead was a 5% equity stake.
"Shani, I think there’s a typo in this contract," Aster said, looking bewildered. "Why is my name listed here as the recipient of that 5% equity?"
Bella, who had also reached that part of the document, looked up at Shani with an inquiring gaze.
"It’s not a typo. Aster, I’ll explain it to you later," Shani said firmly, leaving no room for argument.
She then turned to Bella and Toby, who had gathered what Aster was questioning. "You two don’t have any issue with this arrangement, right, Uncle Toby, Aunt Bell?"
"If you feel it’s the best decision, as your partners, it’s not our place to interfere," Bella replied supportively. Toby himself remained silent.
The contract was still a rough draft with many fine details left to finalize. "I’ll leave the rest to Aster and my lawyer," Shani said.
Toby and Bella nodded. It was getting quite late, and they couldn’t keep Shani any longer.
Aster gathered his belongings from the guest room, as Shani was taking him straight to the apartment she had rented the day before.
Out in the living room, Toby pulled Shani aside. "Shan, earlier when I asked about your representative, it wasn’t because I disliked your setup."
"But you need to realize that even in the business world, beast energy rank still matters. At the very least, you have your status as a Grand Academy student, but Aster is just an ordinary E-Rank beastman."
Shani nodded solemnly. She was well aware of that reality. She planned to give Aster another energy potion down the line.
’Still, a higher rank won’t mean much if he doesn’t resonate. Should I help Aster find a resonance partner?’
Aster emerged holding his large backpack, with Mina trailing behind him.
After saying their goodbyes to the small family, Shani and Aster departed, carrying two thermal containers filled with abalone soup.
Catching a rideshare, they headed toward the Commerce District.
"Shan, about that 5% equity... I can’t accept it," Aster said once they were settled inside the vehicle.
Shani drew a breath before speaking seriously. "I’m not giving you that 5% stake for free. It’s your compensation as my proxy, since I can’t leave the academy grounds whenever I please."
"You might think I could hire someone with actual experience in the field, but I don’t want to. I’m just an eighteen-year-old girl with no backing in this city. I can’t bring myself to trust anyone other than you."
Hearing Shani’s words, Aster fell silent, lost in thought. He realized then that the root issue was trust, and finding someone truly trustworthy was indeed no easy feat.
Though Aster harbored doubts about his own capabilities, when it came to trust, he was determined never to let Shani down.
Moved by her sincerity, Aster finally accepted his new role as Shani’s representative.
Once they arrived at the apartment, Shani sent over the Red Worm Jelly recipe and handed Aster the detailed cultivation guide for the Bloodworms. She also shared the contact information for the lawyer she had hired.
Shani then returned to the academy. Fresh out of the shower, she, Aster, and the lawyer jumped onto a video call to continue their discussions late into the night.
Over the next few days, the draft contract underwent continuous revisions to ensure both parties’ interests were thoroughly protected.
"Miss Rowan, all the details have been incorporated, including the dividend payouts scheduled annually in the first month. Dividends will be calculated based on net profit after deducting all operational expenses," Lawyer Rivers explained as he went over the final draft.
"As the First Party, Mr. Mortis will not be permitted to arbitrarily reduce reported profits under the guise of product development or any other pretext."
"Should an emergency arise or a genuine need for reinvestment in product development occur, Mr. Mortis is obligated to convene a shareholders’ meeting to provide a transparent explanation."
Satisfied with every clause, Shani nodded and officially signed her name to the document.
...