Chapter 347 - 168: "It’s Sean Again

"Not many. Just around two hundred."

"...?"

’Over two hundred isn’t many?’

’That’s almost as much as I’ve signed all year!’

Sean saw Pulente looked like he wanted to complain and raised an eyebrow. "What? Too much trouble?"

"Weren’t you the one who just said it was your greatest honor to serve me?"

"Ahahaha, not at all, not at all!" Pulente’s expression immediately switched to a smile. "How could it be any trouble? I was just worried that Mr. Sean might have tired himself out, preparing so many contracts overnight. Next time, just say the word. I can draft and sign them myself!"

Elise, who was standing to the side, could barely stifle her laughter.

’As expected of the Governor,’ she thought. ’He changes his tune in the blink of an eye. It’s like he’s terrified Sean is going to settle old scores with him again. He can’t take a good scare at all. In reality, the Master isn’t that fierce. Once you get to know him, you realize he’s quite gentle most of the time.’

Sean tossed a pen to Pulente. "This is just a small portion, and you know what that means."

These contracts were all legal transfer documents and profit-sharing agreements for the remaining assets of the Florist Family. There were 265 in total. That number might sound like a lot, but in reality, the Florist Family’s holdings were far greater. The 265 companies on the table were simply the ones in which the Florist Family was the sole owner or held a majority stake. Sean couldn’t be bothered with the rest, leaving them for Pulente to handle himself.

"Y-yes, I understand," Pulente quickly replied, then began to sign and add his thumbprint to the documents.

He didn’t even bother to read what the contracts said. After all, Her Highness the Saintess had already assigned *him* to Sean. Even if Sean wanted to screw him over, he had no choice but to accept his fate. Better to just get it over with. Maybe he could even salvage the situation from their previous misunderstanding and make a better second impression on his new leader.

So he simply shut his eyes, flourished his pen, and signed away without a second thought. The pages rustled loudly as he flipped through them. In less than ten minutes, he was already halfway through the huge stack of documents.

Sean appreciated Pulente’s willingness to correct his mistakes. He said with satisfaction, "It seems you genuinely do want to serve me."

Pulente: "Absolutely!"

"Oh, right. There’s one more thing. I might have to trouble you to make a call for me, Mr. Governor," Sean said.

"It’s no trouble at all," Pulente said as he continued to sign. "Tell me what it is, Mr. Sean. As long as I can do it, I will."

"I want the plot of land in Holkaydo where the Florist Family was building a hospital," Sean said.

Pulente froze for a moment. "The hospital that was attacked by Miss Flame Crow and her people in the middle of the night?"

Sean nodded. "That’s the one."

Pulente hesitated for a moment, then asked tentatively, "May I ask what you want the land for?"

Sean: "No."

Pulente: "..."

’Right.’

"That’s not my call. It’s mainly a matter of money," Pulente said bluntly. "You must be aware of Siracle State’s regulations regarding land use rights. Land in each city is managed by its own local government. My reach doesn’t extend that far."

Although he was the Governor, and the mayor of Holkaydo would certainly show him deference, it wouldn’t go so far as to hand over such a large plot of land for free. Due to government policy, a large portion of local government revenue came from land leases. They needed that money to keep the government running, so...

"The best I can do is get a better price for Mr. Sean," Pulente said.

It was a very practical statement.

Getting it for free was unlikely, but it probably wouldn’t be a problem to get the Holkaydo government to give Sean a discount.

As he spoke, Pulente’s lips twitched as if he wanted to say more, but after a moment of hesitation, he held his tongue.

He looked like he was holding something back.

Sean smiled and patted his shoulder. "It’s alright, Mr. Governor. If there’s an issue, just say it."

Pulente watched him cautiously. "Really?"

"Of course," Sean said. "I’m a very reasonable leader. Don’t believe me? Ask them."

Elise nodded eagerly. "That’s right, that’s right! The Master is very good to us. If anyone bullies us, he stands up for us."

Only then did Pulente say, "Mr. Sean, you might not believe this, but the government of Holkaydo is actually very poor."

It wasn’t just Holkaydo, or even just Siracle State—local governments throughout the Empire were poor. The vast majority of their revenue was snatched up by the powerful families behind them. At best, they got to keep the scraps. Sometimes, they couldn’t even get that and had to pay out of their own pockets instead.

Take the recent Day of Abstinence, for example.

During that month, police departments everywhere were on 24-hour rotating shifts. There were no holidays, only mandatory overtime. To get police to work overtime, you naturally have to pay them for it. The Witch Hunter Families couldn’t care less about that expense; the police departments had to cover it themselves. When a department ran out of money, it would ask the local government. If the local government was also broke, they had no choice but to come to him, the Governor.

Pulente himself had actually earned quite a bit over the past few years.

He had transitioned from business to politics, but he never gave up his business ventures. However, much of that money had been used to subsidize local governments, so now he didn’t have much cash on hand. Unless it was a true emergency, he was even reluctant to use his private jet.

Something about this sounded off to Sean. He took a wary half-step back. "You’re not trying to say that you’re poor too and want to ask me for money, are you?"

"That’s not it," Pulente said earnestly. "I wanted to speak up for the Holkaydo government. If their asking price is outrageous, please don’t blame them, Mr. Sean. I can help you negotiate it down to a reasonable range."

Sean raised an eyebrow. "I’m surprised, Mr. Governor. I didn’t realize you were so loyal to your people."