City of Desire-Chapter 629: New Stores

Meryl Rove

"Ms. Rove, the pieces are absolutely gorgeous," a blond, middle-aged man praised. Looking at the abstract painting with a faint human outline in it.

It's a beautiful painting that shows the longing for a parental figure who was never present in life despite being present.

"Thank you, Mr. Yales," I replied.

"Then I hope you will sell me this painting," he asked. I sighed in regret.

"Unfortunately, I can't sell it to you directly. Like the rest, you will have to bid," I replied to the man with a smile.

He is a merchant and a prominent collector from Namdar. He also owns a gallery. I have often requested him to show the pieces from my collective, but he has never accepted.

Now, he wants to buy the pieces, like so many others.

"It's a regret, but I hope. It will be enough," he replied, showing the folded paper the man inserted into the box.

I walked away from him and looked over this ample space. It is space for two stores they have given us.

They have never given it to others. Eva Charles is the only person with a larger space than us.

The space serves as both a gallery and a workshop, where completed pieces are displayed while new creations take shape.

Saranil stands at her easel, brush in hand, bringing color to the canvas with careful strokes. Nearby, Voren carves into a block of wood—not with chisels but with his sword, each precise cut shaping the raw material into something extraordinary.

Both of them are working in a privacy cube. It is made of enchantments and is fully transparent, allowing those watching to see in but not allowing the artists to see out. To them, it is a small private room where they can focus without distraction.

It took them some time to get used to it. Velvet Garden wants the show, and my artists are giving it to them.

However, not all want privacy. Matis delights in attention.

He is painting a monster skeleton while talking with all who approach him. He likes attention, and his work often gets him in trouble.

People don't take kindly to working with a skeleton. It is taboo; those scars on his body are proof of that.

Even Namdar, with its creative freedom, required a lot of permissions, which he would need to renew with every new piece he worked on.

Here, there were no restrictions.

When we asked Madam Revina who could procure a complete monster skeleton for us, she asked what type we wanted.

Hearing our requirement, she sent Matis to Lauryl. When he came back, there was a big smile on his face.

The skeletons he brought were not only complete but also undrained. This means there is magic in the bones of the skeleton.

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In Namdar, there were strict conditions for using skeletons. One of them was that the skeleton needed to be drained.

So, it can't be raised as undead.

I saw him talk to people while his brush moved gently on the skeleton, which was covered in paint and mist.

After the inspection and background checks were completed, the artist had access to the mist within ten days of arriving. The other store owners and staff taught them the basics.

I wasn't granted access; I am not an artist. Still, a hint of jealousy lingers whenever I see them wield the mist.

It enhances their art, drawing out deeper emotions, memories, and imagination in ways I can only admire from a distance.

As I walked through the beautiful space, I spoke with people, taking in the energy of creation around me. This place wasn't easy to bring to life—there had been countless clashes of opinion with the interior designer. Yet, in the end, it became something remarkable.

Thankfully, it's over, but she isn't leaving.

I heard they are turning the lower floor of the spa into a bathhouse; she will be working on that, with architects coming from Oton in a few days.

"I knew you would do great things, but my god. This is incredible," I heard a familiar voice and turned. I saw a woman with whom I shared many features.

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Though, I wish I had her height. She is a head taller than me.

"I thought you would never come," I said, turning to the woman. "We wanted to come sooner, but there was work," she replied before hugging me.

"It had been only a month since you left, but I missed you," she said.

"I miss you too, Aunt Belis," I replied and turned to my uncle and teen cousin; he looked at everything with enamored eyes.

Just like I had done on my first day in Greltheaven.

"Your parents would be proud when they see this," she said as she looked at the space.

She still thinks they are alive. I have hope, too, but I have tried to find them. Still using every bit of money, I have to find them.

They have disappeared after Edruin captured Kelgir. There was no sign of them.

It was a bloody battle to capture the city, and many had died. People suggested my parents might have died in it as well, and they likely are, but I won't stop searching for them until I do.

"I hope they will see this," I replied with hope.

I opened the collective in their memory; they used to run one in Kelgir. However, unlike me, both of them were outstanding artists.

She didn't say anything and hugged me tighter before letting go.

I showed them around but could only give them a few minutes before I had to mingle with the guests.

The legacy is enormous; they could have a good time without me. I have booked them a spa and a table at Velvet Blue and got them tickets for tonight's play.

A theatre company from Taurus Theatre is performing today. It is their first show in Greltheaven.

It is not easy to get an appointment and ticket here, but I asked Chief Salt for a favor, and the woman made it possible instantly.

I would have liked to show them the tower myself; it is a beautiful place, but I have to be here.

It is a special showing; many important people from the empire and merchant states have come. It isn't only for the gallery. It is also for the other five stores.

All five stores are amazing and so different. Each one of them is an artist at their core.

There is a ceramicist, a glass smith, a light smith, a weaver, and a carpenter in the five stores. I wonder what other store they would have chosen if they hadn't given us the two spaces.

"How are you doing?" I asked Matis as I walked away from the guest. "Very good. It is the first time people aren't cursing me and want to buy my art," he replied.

I couldn't help but smile at that.

The art world is different. It is filled with snobs and connoisseurs, who are usually the same.

It is hard to make them change their minds and words, but it could happen if the artist works in legacy and uses mist.

Till the last month, nobody was willing to buy his pieces.

I needed to find the peculiar ones willing to take it for their secret collection, but now everybody wants it. It's not a taboo anymore.

Here, people didn't just want their pieces but also them. Matis is also working with the ivory store on the floor below.

Three of my artists had been hired by Miss Eva, two by the lightsmith and carpenter each—a few more different stores, including ceramicist.

It made me very happy as these people were outcasts of society. Many could barely follow their passion and used to do other jobs to support themselves. Not anymore.

"I am glad," I said before returning to mingling with the guests.

'Master Silver is coming to the store with important people,' a familiar voice said in my mind. It was Madam Revina who was responsible for the store floors.

"Please enjoy the gallery, Mr. Kalv, Mrs. Kalv," I said to the guests I was talking to and excused myself.

The boss is coming, and I have to welcome him.

He is my boss, more than the other store owners. As the gallery or workshop, whatever one calls it, is not my collective.

It had been dissolved. Instead, this is a venture of the city's department of art.

Any artist who is good enough can come here. I and two others from the art department and I will choose them.

I am the head of the venture, but I have less control than I did when I was the leader of the collective. I don't mind it, and I am very happy with it.

I founded the collective to give the artists a chance—especially the non-conventional ones. Looking around, I felt I had achieved something important today.

I cleared my thoughts as I saw Lord Silver coming toward the store. He isn't alone; there are a lot of people with him.

Chief Salt, Madam Revina, and important people from the other cities that Madam Revina informed me about.

"Welcome, Lord Silver," I greeted the young man as he appeared in front of me before greeting others.

"Miss Rove," he replied politely, as he usually does, before entering inside with me.

…

Carla Salt

I sat down on the chair. Feeling a little tired, the day had been a long one.

A lot of important people had come—not the lords, but important ones from many cities—and all of them wanted the pieces.

They could not pressure Remus about it too much, but they could pressure me.

We had prepared the whole collection for them, but they still wanted more. Everybody wants more. In the past few months, I hadn't visited a place that didn't desire the mist goods.

They are incredible, and most importantly, they are crafted with the mist.

The six new stores have been specifically chosen and are already a hit.

'Chief, he is here,' informed my assistant, bringing me out of my thoughts. Hearing that, I took a deep breath and controlled my expression.

'Send him in,' I replied. This is a very important meeting with far-reaching consequences.

Click!

The door opened, and the older man walked inside. Lord Nathil, the adviser of the Lord of Owlspring.

"Lord Nathil," I greeted, getting up from my chair. "Chief Carla," he replied and sat in front of me.

"So, what is the important business?" asked the man. We had invited him to the city, and the opening of the stores was not a big enough reason for him to come here.

I didn't reply to his question.

Instead, I tapped on the desk. Immediately, over a thousand vials of the emotion essence appeared on the desk, surprising him.

"I am listening," he said with his expressions turning serious.

"We want the standard rate and a promise that this will directly go to vaults and won't come out for at least three years. We also want nobody to be aware of this deal besides you and your lord," I stated.

We need to build the academy and tower but don't have the money, so we are selling them.

We were saving them for the city's expansion, but now we must use them.

It is only part of what we had saved, but we didn't want to sell any because the purpose for which they were saved would need a lot of them.

"And?" he asked, and I smiled.

Of course, we are not idiots to sell the emotion essence just for money. If that were the case, we would sell it to some prosperous merchant at a greater price.

No, we want other things. Things that only the Lord of Owlspring could provide.