Chapter 82 82 Elizabeth Family

However there was no denial that she was a femme fatale who could cause wars just by her appearance in the wilderness.

The fact was evident from the fact that just the amount of men who coveted her body could make up an entire city by themselves. And of course these admirers weren't limited to men her age.

The only reason she was yet untouched by those in power was her own family that wielded authority that was higher than any other family in the Elizabeth family as evident from the fact that the entire city was named after her family. The contribution of her family in the development and proliferation of the city infrastructure and economic stabilization was far too great to be ignored after all.

Not to mention lust, people were even afraid to show their deep love openly towards her due to the fear and the difference in the status of her family and theirs.

The Elizabeth family was too high in the power hierarchy to care about a small family like the Luther family that was rising from the ashes after having been destroyed once. The only reason that the Elizabeth family head had developed interest in their sudden comeback was their survival of the S rank magic Thunder Chase which the Luther family had somehow used to their benefit and had ended up destroying their adversary instead.

This kind of power was not something that even the Elizabeth family could ignore considering the degree of unknown and unpredictability in the matter.

Christina had been following around her father these days as he conducted various family meetings to discuss priority of their relations with the newly developing Luther family. Christina and Barry being exceptionally talented were especially called for by their father George to help him decide upon the final verdict regarding the Luther family.

Unlike the other families, Elizabeth family didn't rely on raw power and military strength like the Sosis family to reign over the weaker population. Their specialty didn't lie in the quality and power of mages in their employ. Rather, they were a more business oriented family that controlled the city through their absolute control of the economy and all the trade that took place in and out of the city. The Elizabeth family had stakes in almost all the major businesses and had the capability to demolish the entire economy of Elizabeth city with just a few words. It wasn't for nothing that they had such a great hold over the city politics despite not being as strong as the other families.

In this completely different world, the quality of life couldn't be compared to the European Middle ages of Earth. The reason was that the focus of this civilization lay in military development and establishment of power and authority instead of improvement of the general life of the inhabitants.

Human greed can never be satisfied no matter the era or the world. Therefore, conflicts and disagreements were inevitable. Only after an abundance of conflicts could plenty of resources be accumulated, which could then be used to improve the standard of life at the grassroots level.

But Ordinary people like farmers and peasants who worked on daily wages could hardly think about the luxuries of life and comfort when they could barely make ends meet. Such people could only dream of getting a life full of comfort and the only option available to them was to learn magic. One out of every two families in this isekai dreamed of producing a mage capable enough to drag them out of poverty.

Of course the drums beating in the distance are music to the ears. Only those who can hear them closely can distinguish whether it is music or just plain noise that irritates.

Even after becoming a mage, there was no such guarantee that the person would be able to lead a good life. Some individuals despite succeeding in becoming a mage ended up on the streets anyway either because their magical talent was crap or their magic attribute was too useless to be noticed among the true elemental talents which were suited for battle.

Therefore, such mages did not have the capability to survive by themselves. They needed to rely on the local tyrant families in order to get by despite being a mage themselves.

The ancestors of the Elizabeth families had realized that truth a long time ago unlike the not so bright population that was currently suffering in Elizabeth city for not having the opportunity to shine. Those ancestors put all their energy into the development of their business activities and became merchants instead of a mage which was even then as prestigious a rank as it was now. Thanks to the trees they planted in the past, the current Elizabeth family was still able to enjoy the fruits of their labor. Such a strong foundation even allowed them to pursue whatever goal they wanted to achieve without caring about the consequences.

In this isekai, the trade was more focused towards the coastal cities where the ships had easy access for trade activities. The major port hubs were the centers of trade and commerce. Yet Elizabeth city didn't lose out to any coastal city despite not being a port city and despite not having any access to the inland waterways.

Elizabeth family, especially George the current family head of the Elizabeth family was a genius that came along once in a thousand years. Despite not being a powerful mage like the other family heads, his wits were sharp enough to become the most successful business man in the city at a considerably young age; an age where the heirs of the other powerful families were still playing around with girls and swaggering and showing off in front of their friends.

The recent developments of the city were all carried out in his tenure as the family head. He was also the major driving force behind the economic reforms that were implemented in the city in anticipation of the major changes of the magic community.

Therefore, the elevation of the city's economy to become one of the top ten economies of the country despite lacking in geographical advantage could be attributed to the business genius of George who was behind every business reform in the city and was like the hand that controlled everything from the shadows like a true monarch.

In his long career, George had never hesitated before making a decision. He trusted his gut instinct and played all he wanted and usually the result turned out to be exceptionally in his favor. But that didn't mean that George had it easy due to luck. Luck had no part in business, it was his cunning and farsightedness that brought him loads of wealth at every turn. He had never felt stumped in front of any fork in the road and chose one based on his instinct that he had refined in his business career after meeting several cunning individuals who were just like him but lacking compared to him.

But even that same George found his limitations today. He had a problem that he could not find a solution to no matter how hard he tried. He felt a sense of loss no matter what decision he made because the decision pertained to his children; mainly his eldest daughter Christina who was too talented for her age.

Despite not being a magical strength oriented family, the Elizabeth family had succeeded in producing an exceptional mage in Christina who managed to become an A rank mage before the age of 18. Such a talent was not only rare but also highly sought after all over the country; even in the capital. If it was only that, George might have made his decision very easily but the problem was that she was also the most talented person he had seen in business after himself. Her composed manner while negotiating and the cunning mind that didn't fail to exploit every single opportunity to make profit was something George admired in her; something that his eldest son Barry lacked in compared to his sister.

As was the custom in this isekai, the heir of the family was supposed to be the eldest son of the family. It was his birth right and no one could take it from him.

But George felt that it was too much of a waste to let a talent like Christina rot away just because she was born later. He wasn't able to choose between his children especially because the both of them were exceptional in their own right.

Even though Christina was obviously the better choice, Barry wasn't too lacking either that he could be overlooked without a thought. It was just that in front of the dazzling light of Christina, Barry looked a little dim in comparison. Among his peers he too was one of the brightest diamonds of Elizabeth city.

Thankfully, George didn't have to suffer from conflict and infighting in his family due to the problem of succession. Unlike those royal families where succession and inheritance was more dear compared to the lives of the family members and wars could be fought due to such trivialities, the Elizabeth family could avoid such instances due to the strong bond between the two siblings. Ever since the two were young, Christina and Barry got along with each other too well. Their understanding even exceeded the understanding each of them had with their parents. They shared secrets with each other that no one in the entire family was privy to. So, when George brought up the topic of succession, both his children didn't mind the other becoming the next family head.