"I don't think we have anything to say to each other Uncle." Eric said, coldly, "Good Bye"
"Don't hang up on me! Eric! ERIC!"
The cell phone closed with a click. Behind Eric, the guards had not moved an inch throughout the entire discussion. With a hand gesture, Eric lead them outside t
o the waiting limousine.
His uncle didn't understand. The only thing his partners understood was violence. As soon as they saw a weakness, like an old friend with dangerous enemies, they would pounce like hungry lions.
It had been ten years since his father died. The man built an underground empire with nothing to his name but the clothes on his back and an unlimited supply of charisma. Everyone who met him wanted to help him, without knowing exactly why.
Eric's father was smart, hard working and ambitious, an ideal entrepreneur. If he'd been born in another family, he might have been a legitimate businessman. But, lacking the capital and the education to launch himself, and filled with undeniable fire, he turned his sights to the dark corners of the Mizuma Valley.
Before his father's vision, crime was committed mostly by small gangs. Since the area didn't have any particularly large cities, it wasn't easy to sustain anything larger. Things like the drug trade and prostitution were strictly controlled by the wealthy upper class that frequented them.
The brilliant idea that changed all that was a simple one. In every society, there is a discontented lower class just waiting for some impetus to revolt against their superiors. Eric's father, coming from that lower class, knew only too well the strength of the rage of his people. They were the exploited foundation of the Mizuma Valley, it's fishermen.
So, carefully, over the course of twenty years, his father built his connections among the gangs and also among the fishermen. Soon he had men in every major fishing company in the Mizuma Valley. Not only did this provide him with detailed knowledge of the most lucrative money making industry, but it also provided him with opportunity.
Committing a major crime in a small town isn't easy. In the digital era, any stolen money can be traced. But, if that money were carefully filtered through a legitimate business, the risk of the venture dropped dramatically.
And so, with these advantages, his father had prospered. This plan, however, had
"Don't hang up on me! Eric! ERIC!"
The cell phone closed with a click. Behind Eric, the guards had not moved an inch throughout the entire discussion. With a hand gesture, Eric lead them outside t
o the waiting limousine.
His uncle didn't understand. The only thing his partners understood was violence. As soon as they saw a weakness, like an old friend with dangerous enemies, they would pounce like hungry lions.
It had been ten years since his father died. The man built an underground empire with nothing to his name but the clothes on his back and an unlimited supply of charisma. Everyone who met him wanted to help him, without knowing exactly why.
Eric's father was smart, hard working and ambitious, an ideal entrepreneur. If he'd been born in another family, he might have been a legitimate businessman. But, lacking the capital and the education to launch himself, and filled with undeniable fire, he turned his sights to the dark corners of the Mizuma Valley.
Before his father's vision, crime was committed mostly by small gangs. Since the area didn't have any particularly large cities, it wasn't easy to sustain anything larger. Things like the drug trade and prostitution were strictly controlled by the wealthy upper class that frequented them.
The brilliant idea that changed all that was a simple one. In every society, there is a discontented lower class just waiting for some impetus to revolt against their superiors. Eric's father, coming from that lower class, knew only too well the strength of the rage of his people. They were the exploited foundation of the Mizuma Valley, it's fishermen.
So, carefully, over the course of twenty years, his father built his connections among the gangs and also among the fishermen. Soon he had men in every major fishing company in the Mizuma Valley. Not only did this provide him with detailed knowledge of the most lucrative money making industry, but it also provided him with opportunity.
Committing a major crime in a small town isn't easy. In the digital era, any stolen money can be traced. But, if that money were carefully filtered through a legitimate business, the risk of the venture dropped dramatically.
And so, with these advantages, his father had prospered. This plan, however, had
