Steel Empire
Entertains

Over the next few days, Arethas spent his time touring Kufstein City and learning about its rapid progress. To think that less than a year ago, Kufstein could at most be considered an agricultural town. Although many areas of the City are still undergoing construction, the fact that a wall has been built and decent housing has been provided to the residents of the area is astounding to the likes of Arethas. 

The overall layout of the city was built in a way that not only took into account the security status but also made certain districts in places that allowed for organized living. By far, the Industrial District was the largest of these districts, but the Commerce district was second. The biggest part of Kufstein's design is that the wall extends far beyond the area of the city currently inhabited, allowing potentially tens of thousands more residents to live within the city in the future. Of course, another set of walls could always be built, if the City grew beyond its current limits.

Although the Industrial area is mostly closed to visitors, seeing so much smoke in the air makes Arethas believe that there must be a massive industrial result made in the city. Although, of course, he would not believe the amount of steel produced each month in Kufstein if he heard the exact amount.

Arethas had originally come to Kufstein to secure an exclusive trade agreement with silk; after all, his personal territory grew a large amount of material, and he knew Berengar spent a lot of money to obtain it. However, seeing how complete the Berengar garrison was, Arethas believed that he might be able to import a lot of iron into the Empire from Tyrol, which would greatly help the imperial army. He had no way of knowing that the blackened half-plate armor that Berengar's forces wore was actually made of quenched and forged steel. After three days, the Byzantine nobility returned to Berengar's castle and once again stood before him in the Great Hall. Berengar was the first to have a conversation.

"I am Count Berengar von Kufstein; you are here in my territory and have arrived unannounced, grateful for my kindness, because I've given you an audience even though you've shown disrespect to me."

Just because Arethas was a man with a position similar to that of a Duke does not mean Berengar will step down; therefore, he decided to emphasize that this meeting was solely due to his kind nature and forgiveness. However, Arethas did not seem to be affected by Berengar's attitude and reintroduced himself confidently.

"I am Strategos Arethas Maniakes. I've traveled a very long way to establish trade with your territory. I know that you have a great desire for silk, and I have such a large supply of materials that I am willing to trade. I promise You that if You make Me Your exclusive trading partner in this regard, I will give You a decent discount on the material and will be able to meet Your request. I've even brought a large amount of raw silk for you to browse through and see if the quality is up to your standards." 

Berengar smiled after hearing the news that the other party had a large amount of silk to sell; acquiring silk for the needs of his ever-increasing textile industry became more difficult, though, incurs increased costs and lower profit margins. Therefore, he was more than happy to negotiate a price with the man. So Berengar got up from his seat and walked down the stairs from the platform where his seat of power was placed before standing in front of the man face to face.

Berengar was much higher than Arethas, and because of that, he could look down on the man with a satisfied expression on his face. After arriving in front of the man, Berengar began to negotiate while pacing around Arethas.

"Assuming you can meet your word and meet the ever-increasing demand for silk, I'd be willing to deal exclusively with you on the condition that I receive a fifteen percent discount. However, I'd really like to see your product before I reach any agreement."

"Such a requirement I can accept; if you want to browse my merchandise, please, we can go to the trading district in your city where I have left my supplies under the protection of my housekeeper."

So Berengar gestured for a group of his guards to stand up to follow him and Arethas to the City below, where they strolled for a while, attracting the attention of the citizens who started gossiping about the incident. There were many rumors made about a fancy-clothed eastern man talking to Berengar, the Prince of Tyrol. 

Berengar was very used to such chatter, it was a common occurrence for the locals to gossip about him every time he walked around the city, and therefore, did not care about him. Finally, Arethas and Berengar reached his cart, which contained a large supply of raw silk cloth. Berengar carefully inspected the ingredients to see the obvious flaws; after a long time, he finally smiled and nodded his hands. 

"If you can provide the quantity and quality of this silk periodically, I'm sure we can agree."

Arethas returned Berengar's smile and declared confidently that he would be able to meet his demands.

“I can supply all this and more every month. My merchant fleet could travel from Ionia to the Adriatic Sea, where they would then travel by caravan to Kufstein. As long as proper protection was afforded to them when they entered through Austria, they would definitely arrive at Kufstein within that timeframe."

Berengar was immediately pleased with this news. Eventually, he was able to expand the more luxurious textile trade and for a decent markup. His profit margin will increase with this deal, and he is happy with that. After shaking the man's hand, Berengar invited Arethas to eat with him at his castle.

"How about you stay at my Castle for dinner tonight, I promise, that you won't regret the delicious Tyrol Cuisine!"

Upon hearing the young Count's offer, Arethas nodded in agreement. After all, the more friendly he was with Berengar, the more likely he was to be able to obtain a portion of his iron. Thus, silk shipments were brought to the Berengar textile factory, where the silk would be turned into velvet and designed into fashionable clothing. Gold exchanged hands between Strategos and the young Count. Finally, they returned to the Castle to share a meal to celebrate the new lucrative trade between their two territories. Unwittingly this trade agreement would have an important effect on the future of this world and the relationship between the Risen German Empire and Byzantium in the East.