Clovis smiled. "Don't worry. It's not that harsh. There are three conditions. First, the research should have been finished, so you can immediately test and even produce it. However, I wish that you would wait for me first.
"I'm planning to leave this city one year after my awakening, so there are still about nine to ten months. I want you to wait until that time before announcing it. Of course, I would like my members to get it first."
"It's easy. We still need to test it, which will take a few months. Because the price of beast souls will skyrocket, it's better if we stock as many beast souls as possible before launching it. Let alone a year, I can even wait for three years."
Clovis shook his head. "A year is enough. The second condition is that you have to hide our name. We don't want to get into trouble with this information. You can claim that it's yours, but respect the name of the author. Give him the credit he deserves."
"Are you sure about this? If you are known because of this, there will be a lot of fame and money opportunity."
"Yeah. The trouble that will follow is simply not worth all that." Clovis sighed. He certainly had a headache just thinking about the mess he had to clean up, especially since he had a group.
"Alright. I can fulfill the second condition. What is the last condition?"
"We want a priority for it. I mean, do you think we won't use it?"
"If that's your condition, it's easy. In fact, you deserve shares or a portion of revenue just by providing the information alone."
Clovis pointed at Kanaria. "As for the details of the contract and shares, she will handle it."
"Okay." Hana agreed without hesitation. She never thought that the conditions were easy to fulfill.
This made Clovis look generous or even foolish. But she felt things weren't so simple. With how easily he revealed this information, he might have something even more terrifying on his sleeve.
The Hacfield were known for their craziness, not their foolishness after all.
"I will need your contact information later so that you know the progress." Hana smiled, feeling excited. It was no wonder why Clovis sounded confident earlier.
"That's all. Since I have asked two questions, it's your turn right now. I don't think I have any other questions, so we can end it after this."
"No. I don't have any more questions either. Or if you feel it's unfair, then how about answering this… Do you mind if I stay with your group for the night? I will go back tomorrow morning."
Clovis glanced at the others. Since they didn't raise any objections, Clovis nodded his head. "Sure. You can discuss the agreement with Kanaria and our group can learn a lot from your experiences as an explorer."
"Alright. I'm done here." Clovis stood up, grabbed his clothes, and walked away with only a towel covering his lower body. Jay did the same since they had bathed for more than thirty minutes.
"I think I will go in next. Gotta grab some towels first. Hahaha…" Melody let out a hollow laugh and escaped, leaving Kanaria and Hana alone to discuss the business.
However, both of them looked at each other with different intentions. It felt like they exchanged a lot of words without even opening their mouths.
"Are you his girlfriend?" Hana asked. After seeing all their reactions, only Kanaria looked extremely hostile when she invited Clovis with words easy to misunderstand.
Kanaria didn't answer, or more like, she couldn't. She wasn't his girlfriend yet, even though their relationship was already pretty close. There was still a thin barrier that isolated him. Considering what he had gone through and his family, she decided to respect his boundaries for the time being and wait until he was ready.
But that changed when Hana invited him. It was no wonder why her mother was so proactive toward Clovis's grandfather.
However, Hana simply waved her hand, gesturing that she had misunderstood her. "Don't worry. I'm not going to steal him from you. First of all, I'm too greedy. I don't think I will do something that makes me potentially lose money… for example, divorce.
"And even if I marry someone, I'm going to be a horrible wife and mother. I won't have time to do much for my significant other since I'm going to bury myself either in business or exploration. The same applies to the child. Instead of being irresponsible, I will just not do it.
I'd rather use that money to make a foundation for homeless children and train them so that they can change their future… if I can be so kind.
"So, don't worry, Miss." Hana winked her right eye.
"…" Kanaria remained silent for a minute, making the atmosphere awkward.
"Mhmm… If you're not going to say anything, I will leave… I have soaked for too long."
Kanaria finally opened her mouth. "My goal is city reconstruction, taking the world back from the beasts. It definitely requires a lot of money."
Hana raised her eyebrows, starting to understand the meaning of that agreement. It seemed that Clovis cared for her dearly.
"While I'm good at logistics, I'm not someone who can generate a stable cash flow. That's why he answered it that way and even brought up this collaboration.
"He has sacrificed a lot of things and planned to do more in the future. I feel like I'm unable to repay him no matter how hard I try.
"Hence, the least I can do is to sacrifice a part of myself… Though, I'm not even sure why I even tell you about this." Kanaria let out a long sigh as she walked to the edge of the hot spring while extending her hand. "Let's discuss the agreement later."
Hana looked astonished for a moment before taking her hand. "I might have underestimated you a little bit. The reason why I came here was purely business, so you don't have to worry for now. I've told you earlier, right? Money will always be my priority."