Charisma 100: My Academy Life As A Heartbreaking Commoner-Chapter 201: The Consortium, Part One

The Valdrian Trade Consortium’s headquarters was the kind of building that wanted you to know it had money. Desperately. It desperately wanted you to guess how much every single individual element it presented cost to buy.

Marble columns. Gilded doorframes. A fountain in the entrance hall that was definitely bigger than it needed to be, with little stone fish spitting water into the air. The whole place screamed "we are very rich and very important and you should feel slightly inadequate, but also proud, for standing here."

Aegis did not feel inadequate. She felt like she was about to make a lot of very rich, very important people remember her name for a long, long time.

"Nervous?" Evelyn asked from beside her.

"Never."

"You’ve adjusted your collar four times since we got out of the carriage."

"It’s itchy."

"Of course, my lady."

Rosalie was trailing behind them, clutching a leather case full of potion samples like it contained her firstborn child. Her usually wild green hair had been somewhat tamed for the occasion, pulled back into something that almost resembled a professional style, and someone, probably Evelyn, had convinced her to wear something nicer than her usual stained work clothes. She still looked like she wanted to bolt for the nearest exit.

"Breathe," Aegis told her. "You’re going to be great." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

"I’m going to throw up."

"Please don’t. These floors look expensive."

"That’s not helping."

"It wasn’t meant to. Come on."

They made their way through the entrance hall and into the main meeting chamber, which was somehow even more aggressively fancy than the rest of the building.

Long tables arranged in a horseshoe shape, plush chairs with embroidered cushions, and windows tall enough that Aegis could have stacked three of herself and still not reached the top. Someone had clearly been compensating for something when they designed this room.

The place was already filling up with representatives from various trading houses. Aegis recognized a few faces from her networking rounds over the past weeks. Lord Harbell near the back, looking bored. Lady Corina chatting with someone in merchant’s robes. A couple of minor nobles she’d met at Lady Roseheart’s salon, whose names she’d already forgotten but whose faces she definitely remembered.

And then there were the ones she’d expected to see.

House Stone’s representative was seated near the head of the horseshoe, because of course they were. Talia didn’t show up, which was slightly disappointing, but some older woman with the same sharp cheekbones and the same general air of superiority. Probably a cousin or an aunt. The resemblance was strong enough to be annoying.

House Goldspire was there too. Not Darius himself, but a man who looked enough like him to be his father or uncle. Same tall build, same carefully styled hair, same vibe of "my family has been important for longer than your family has existed."

[Great. The opposition is here in force. At least I can keep an eye on them.]

She was scanning the room for other familiar faces when someone grabbed her ass.

"ACK!"

"Hello, darling."

Aegis flinched, but as soon as she heard the voice she calmed down.

"Serilla." She turned to find the pink-haired menace standing behind her, grinning like a cat that had just knocked something expensive off a shelf. "Didn’t expect to see you here."

"House Frost has trade interests. We’re very serious about commerce." Serilla’s blue eyes swept down Aegis’s body and back up again, slow and appreciative, particularly over the ass she’d just squeezed. "Besides, I heard a certain ambitious upstart was making her Consortium debut today. Couldn’t miss that."

"Stalker."

"Admirer. There’s a difference." Serilla stepped closer, close enough that Aegis could smell her perfume. Something floral with a hint of something sharper underneath. "You look tense."

"I’m not tense."

"Bullshit. Your jaws all clenched." Serilla reached up and traced a finger along said jaw.

Aegis caught her hand before it could wander anywhere more interesting.

"Well, I need to make a good impression on these people."

"Hm... Actually, you’re not just tense, you’re antsy. Something’s going on." She tilted her head, studying Aegis with those sharp blue eyes. "What are you planning, Starcaller?"

"Who says I’m planning anything?"

"Your face. Your whole... everything." Serilla gestured vaguely at all of Aegis.

[She’s annoyingly good at reading me. That’s either hot or inconvenient. Definitely both.]

"Let’s just say today might be more exciting than your average trade meeting."

"Ooh, cryptic. I love cryptic." Serilla leaned in, her lips brushing against Aegis’s ear, her breath warm. "Whatever you’re doing, I want a front-row seat. And if it goes badly, I want dibs on comforting you afterward."

"It’s not going to go badly."

"That confidence is sexy. I hope you’re right." She pulled back, but not before stealing a quick kiss that left Aegis’s lips tingling. "Good luck, darling."

Serilla sauntered off toward the seating area, her hips swaying in a way that was definitely intentional. Aegis watched her go.

She watched for maybe a little too long.

"My lady." Evelyn’s voice was carefully neutral, which meant she was absolutely judging. "Perhaps we should find our seats."

"Right. Yes. Seats. Those are important."

---

They made their way to the section designated for newer houses, which was predictably located toward the back of the horseshoe. Not the worst position, Aegis could see most of the room from here, but definitely a reminder that House Starcaller was still the new kid on the block.

[For now. Give me an hour and we’ll see how they feel about their seating arrangements.]

Rosalie settled into the chair next to her, still clutching the sample case. Her knuckles were white against the leather.

"Hey." Aegis nudged her with an elbow. "Seriously. You’ve got this. When they call for presentations, you just explain what our products do and why they’re better than everyone else’s. Which they are. Because you made them. And you’re a genius."

"I’m not a genius, I’m just—"

"You’re a genius and you’re going to prove it to a room full of rich idiots who don’t deserve you. Simple."

Rosalie let out a shaky breath.

"Simple. Right. Just talk to a room full of the most powerful merchants in Valdria about alchemy. No pressure at all."

"Exactly. No pressure."

"That was sarcasm, Aegis."

"I know. I’m choosing to ignore it. It’s a coping mechanism."

A chime rang through the chamber, clear and bright, and the murmur of conversation began to die down. People took their seats. Servants closed the main doors with a heavy thunk that echoed through the room.

At the head of the horseshoe, an older man in elaborate robes stood up. The Consortium’s chairman, presumably. He had the look of someone who’d spent decades accumulating wealth and was very pleased with himself about it. His robes probably cost more than most people made in a year.

"Distinguished representatives," he began, his voice carrying easily through the chamber, "welcome to the bi-annual meeting of the Valdrian Trade Consortium. We have much to discuss today, including new trade route proposals, tariff adjustments, and presentations from several houses regarding innovative products and services."

[That’s my cue. Well, eventually. They’ll probably make us sit through three hours of boring stuff first. Trade meetings are the same everywhere, apparently.]

Aegis settled back in her chair and arranged her face into an expression of polite interest.

She was not, in fact, interested.

She was running through her presentation in her head one more time, making sure she had every talking point memorized. Fire Resistance potions, reliable and proven, good profit margins. Advanced aether restoration, better absorption and duration than anything else on the market. And then the showstopper, Rosalie’s Aether Surge, the thing that was going to make people sit up and pay attention.

She was also watching the room.

House Stone’s representative was taking notes, her expression giving nothing away. Professional. House Goldspire’s man was leaning back in his chair, looking bored, which might be genuine or might be an act designed to make people underestimate him. Serilla was a few rows ahead, and she glanced back once to catch Aegis’s eye. She winked. Aegis did not wink back, because she was a professional.

She did smile a little, though.

[Two days until the betrothal ceremony. This is my last real chance to make noise before I have to show my hand. If I’m going to convince anyone that House Starcaller is worth taking seriously, it has to happen today.]