Chapter : 49
The National Foundation Festival is one of the most important holidays in the empire.
Because of the long holiday, it’s the season when the citizens travel the most actively, so those in the tourism industry paid close attention to this period.
Naturally, Tadibna and other resorts planned to open in time for this peak season.
“But they’re running a discount event at the Quend Hotel right at this time…”
Of course, discount events targeting the National Foundation Festival were common for most businesses.
Still, the fact that the discount rate at the Weina branch was the highest—
“It’s clearly a targeted move to challenge our resort.”
The day after the banquet.
I entered the conference room at our resort headquarters, which had just finished construction.
Inside, the heads of each department were already seated, their expressions grim.
“Welcome, Lady Eani,” they greeted me as they stood.
I returned their greetings lightly and sat at the seat prepared for me at the head of the table.
Then I quickly opened the meeting.
“First, everyone has likely reviewed the urgent information I shared last night.”
They all nodded solemnly in response.
“The Quend Hotel’s discount is clearly intended to counter our resort. They also plan to promote it much more aggressively than usual.”
“Moreover, now that there’s a direct route to Weina, many will head straight to the Quend Hotel’s Weina branch.”
“Ugh… we might end up serving all the soup we’ve made to someone else. The direct route to Weina is a double-edged sword.”
“Should we increase our discount rate as well? The opening period is crucial, so at least matching or exceeding the Weina branch’s discount could be considered…”
“That would be too costly. Besides, if we start off with too high a discount, it could harm the resort’s image.”
Many opinions and suggestions were exchanged, showing how much everyone had been thinking about this overnight.
Of course, the common thread running through their words was one thing:
“The Quend Hotel’s discount event poses a major threat to our newly opening resort…”
If we didn’t respond properly, we could fail to attract customers from the very beginning.
Conversely, if we responded aggressively and raised our discount too high, it could negatively impact long-term resort operations.
Listening to the divided opinions of the executives, I quietly raised the corner of my mouth.
“Yes, this is how business should be~.”
It’s no fun if there’s no competition~.
The only small disappointment…
“For someone like me, who’s used to sensational modern marketing, Quend Hotel’s provocation is a bit dull.”
Then—
“Lady Eani, what will you do?”
Just as the executives all looked at me at once.
I slowly surveyed them and smiled slyly.
“Shall we fire back properly on our side as well?”
Meanwhile, in Harten’s office, it was another hectic day.
His chief aide, Marcus, collapsed onto the desk, completely drained.
‘Finally, a break…!’
He had spent hours working without even taking a lunch break—a grueling workload.
Marcus adjusted his crooked glasses and let out a deep sigh.
‘If it’s this hard for me, how does he not get tired?’
He thought of his superior, Harten, whom he had just faced.
Harten was quietly processing a mountain of documents, an amount that would intimidate even someone as hardened as Marcus.
‘He’s relentless.’
Harten was usually busiest around this time, as the National Foundation Festival was approaching—the period when citizens used steam trains the most.
‘Even so, he’s unusually focused this time…’
It seemed as though he wanted to erase all other thoughts from his mind.
Even during the short breaks he allowed himself, Harten furrowed his brow and appeared lost in deep thought.
As a result, the aides following him closely suffered greatly.
‘Did he fight with Lady Nasel…?’
The only time this meticulous man ever showed any lapse was when it concerned Lady Eani Nasel.
Marcus let out a heavy sigh.
‘Well, there’s nothing I can do about it.’
Still, at least things wouldn’t worsen as they had before Lady Nasel lost her memory.
Marcus pushed aside the worst-case scenario and sipped his now-cold coffee while flipping through the newspapers on his desk.
He had set them aside in the morning to read, but hadn’t had time all day.
‘The Aleph newspaper has published negative news about the Quend Hotel again today.’
Ever since the Quend Hotel advertised a massive discount for the National Foundation Festival, the newspaper had been relentlessly criticizing it in the guise of interviews.
For example:
- “The atmosphere was so strict that even a slightly raised voice drew attention from those around.”
- “Even when a child was injured on the slippery hotel floor, proper measures were not taken.”
- “Even if room facilities were broken, they didn’t fix them immediately because the wizard’s schedule didn’t allow it, making guests wait a long time.”
In fact, the Aleph newspaper was known for sensational and provocative articles, so most people didn’t take repeated Quend Hotel stories too seriously.
They assumed the hotel was just trying to capitalize on the issue with heavy advertising.
Besides, the articles weren’t entirely exaggerated or false.
‘I’ve seen cases like this too,’ Marcus thought.
He had stayed at the Quend Hotel last year during the National Foundation Festival with his family.
During the trip, everything went smoothly, but on the day of checkout, a minor incident occurred.
A child had fallen in the lobby, bleeding from the knee.
The parents complained, but the hotel dismissed it, saying the child had been careless.
Marcus clicked his tongue at the memory.
‘Foolish. At least apologizing to the parents first would have been wise.’
It was true that the child had been running and fell, but Marcus had noticed the hotel floor was indeed slippery. He also knew that such accidents at Quend Hotel had been increasing each year.
Being a father of two, Marcus naturally developed a negative perception when recalling these incidents and the hotel’s response.
‘Hmm… maybe I should book somewhere other than Quend Hotel for this year’s National Foundation Festival.’
Yet, the Quend Hotel was the most convenient.
Other accommodations with easy access to magical facilities were quite expensive.
As Marcus pondered, he turned the page of the newspaper—and his eyes widened.
“Let’s go—where the blue waves and white sands sing!”
A full-page advertisement displayed a stunning photograph of the ocean.
The emerald sea was so clear it seemed to refresh the soul.
White sands like freshly fallen snow.
Green palm trees swaying gently in the wind.
The sound of waves almost seemed to echo from the image.
Seeing the vivid colors in the photograph, Marcus muttered to himself.
“This… this isn’t a painting, is it?”
Even on closer inspection, it was indeed a photograph.
But it was unbelievable—how could a photo have this much color?
‘With current technology, we can only take black-and-white photos…’
Flustered, Marcus removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes.
When he looked again, the massive, full-color photo was still right in front of him.
“Marcus, what are you looking at?”
“Isn’t this the Aleph newspaper? O-oh?!”
“Wow! The photo has color?!”
“The paper I brought too! I didn’t even have time to open it all day…!”
“Amazing! The photo has color!”
“When did photography get this advanced?”
The aides, who had been resting, rushed over to Marcus.
They looked at the advertisement and each muttered in astonishment.
“The colors really make it come alive.”
“Wow, this scenery is incredible! Where is this?”
“It says here… Tadibna Resort, Grand Opening… Wait, Tadibna?”
“Tadibna?!”
“Tadibna?!”
The familiar island name shocked the aides.
