Birth Of The Crafts-God

Chapter 172 Finding A Solution

*Ding*

The entrance door of the Seven Sparks Forge opened as a silhouette walked in.

Kelvin lifted his head and glanced at the direction of the door, taking a look at the newcomer. Slight signs of surprise appeared on his face as he said,

"Oh, it's you. I'll call him now."

"Is he busy?" The newcomer asked.

"...well, he is. But the matter is too important. I think he will be able to free up sometime." Kelvin said, unsure of his statement.

"Okay then."

Kelvin walked towards the door of the workstation and pressed on a switch that was fitted by the frame. Lucas had installed it to be used to alert him in case of any emergencies.

Inside the workstation, Lucas was still studying the blueprint he had laid out on the work-bench. Since he was planning to cooperate with the Legacy Crafts dealership and seize control of the vestige market, he could only do so with top class vestiges. As such, Lucas had to put quite a bit of effort into the design and development of the new set of vestiges.

*Ping*

The sound of a unique system notification theme buzzed in his ears, calling Lucas' attention.

Lucas frowned slightly at the sound. The tone was different from the typical system notification sound, and it was used to alert him regarding emergencies in the real world. The only way this could be done was within the store, and the most likely person to do so was Kelvin.

Previously, Lucas had cautioned him not to use the bell unless deemed necessary, otherwise, Kelvin would lose his job. While this might sound harsh, it was to prevent Kelvin from abusing it and to avoid accidents. Although he made it look easy, vestige-smithing required a lot of focus and care, with any small lapse in concentration affecting the final quality of the vestige, or even resulting in a failure.

Due to the severe warning from Lucas, Kelvin had never used it before until today.

'Since he dared to do so, it could only mean it's very important. I'm guessing some government agent came over to visit or it's her.' Lucas thought.

'If it's the former, there's no issue in keeping them waiting, but if it's the latter, I need to show some sincerity.'

Lucas sighed before turning to leave the workstation.

"It's been a while." The newcomer greeted Lucas with a smile.

"It's not really been that long though, Lucy." Lucas said.

Lucy smiled at him as she brushed her hair.

"True, but the situation calls for it."

The two then sat down in the lounge area and began the main conversation.

"How did you go about for so long without even registering?" Lucy couldn't help but ask.

"I forgot." Lucas calmly answered as he took a sip from the cup of tea made by Kelvin.

'How does one even forget something like that??' Lucy's lips twitched.

"Forget about it. It's nothing serious, to be honest." Lucy sighed.

"Really?" Lucas was surprised and confused at the same time.

"If I'm correct, your store hasn't been open for half a year, correct?"

"Indeed." Lucas responded.

Counting from the time he transmigrated into this world, it had been roughly four and a half months or so. What's more, Lucas didn't open the store right as soon as he was transmigrated, so it definitely hasn't been up to six months.

"The regulations give a six-month pardon period for businesses. However, you would still have to pay the incurred fines for the six months duration. If after six months and you still fail to register, you would be sent to prison. In summary, the notice from the Baylands City-state Commission for Technology isn't a problem since we can just solve that with money." Lucy explained as she stared at Lucas.

"The notice from the Baylands City Tax Commission is also the same. Six months is the maximum limit before the culprit would be penalised with an arrest. During this period, you can't leave Baylands city-state, otherwise, an arrest warrant would be issued. But you're safe."

Lucas couldn't help but feel relieved, but also curse inwardly. He had dealt with the city lord's office and the city-state government a couple of times, but there was no such notification given to him about this. Despite the current era being one of advanced technology, the government didn't give him a monthly warning or something.

If they had done so, Lucas would have realised that he had broken a rule and tried to take care of it. That would have made his current enemies unable to use the government agencies to their advantage. It was almost as if the government agencies wanted someone to default past the six months period, so they could not only arrest the individual but also seize their assets.

"I know what you're thinking and it's as you suspect." Lucy sighed.

"The agencies don't give out a monthly notice on this for those exact reasons."

Lucas frowned. He couldn't believe that there was such a practice here.

It was a sly way for the government to be able to seize assets and enrich themselves.

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"Has no one complained about this?"

"A few have, but nothing has been done about it." Lucy said.

She then glanced around carefully before leaning over the table and whispering to Lucas.

"The reason this is most likely is because of the greed of the top families in the government, especially the top two, but don't say I told you anything."

After the exceptional basis exam, where he had encountered multiple individuals from significant backgrounds, Lucas had done some digging on the top families and powers in Baylands City.

The most powerful were four families known as the top four, and they were the Ross family, the Mertens family, the Dufour family and the Bergs family. The top two —Dufour and Bergs— were said to have ties to the Oklo Dynasty, and the number one power, the Bergs, was actually the family of the current city lord. In fact, the last three generations of city lords had come from precisely this family, hence, they had the nickname, City Lord family.

'If it's a matter with the Dufour family and the Bergs at the helm, then I understand why nothing has been done about it.' Lucas shook his head.

No matter which world it was, greed was always a common factor in powerful factions.

"Back to the issue at hand. The main problem is the EVL's statement and the Allied factions message. We can simply ignore the latter, no matter how much they try to force our hands, but for the EVL's notice, we would have to invite your master." Lucy said, studying every single one of Lucas' body expressions.

Nonetheless, she was unable to find any sign of worry or anxiety on Lucas. Lucas was master at hiding his emotions and keeping a blank expression even with a knife on his neck.

"My master isn't one who likes to be pressured. I doubt he would make a statement even at this point, so it's best we figure out a way to solve it ourselves." Lucas replied.

Lucy sighed.

"Then what do you suggest? I don't want to say this, but this matter affects you the most. You should try to think up something."

"Of course I know. And in fact, I already have a perfect plan."