Chapter 453: Rewarding Merit

Margaret had just pushed open the door and stepped out when she saw Dwight Payton of Nathan Sports Group walking toward her from across the way, accompanied by the old man's assistant, Diamond.

Her eyes instantly narrowed, her breath sinking cold as ice, a grim and fierce glare fixed unwaveringly on Dwight Payton.

The latter, upon seeing them, was momentarily taken aback, then smiled and greeted, “Greetings, Lady Margaret, and the two Mr. Wiltons.”

Margaret managed to remain composed, but behind her, Cleo Wiltonstein could not help but sneer sarcastically: “Look, who do I see? A badger-rat branded with the Nathan logo, here to collect your fee, AH?”

In America, there is a creature called the badger, which often cooperates with coyotes in hunting. They have a keen sense of smell and are good at digging holes. However, they are short and stout, with a bloated body, making it difficult to chase down prey. So the two animals often work together, with the badger digging holes and the coyote doing the hunting.

This was undoubtedly an insult, but Dwight pretended not to hear it and smiled magnanimously: "Yeah, I dug a few rat holes, so I've come to collect my reward."

After that, he paid no further attention to the three men and walked straight into Consigliere's office.

"Make yourself at home, Mr. Payton."

Consigliere Wiltonstein was still relatively warm toward him. He greeted him at the door, shook Dwight's hand with a firm grip, and then returned to sit behind his desk.

"You already know why I asked to see you, don't you?"

"In any case, it can't really be what your son said, to collect my reward."

Dwight Payton smiled and sat down opposite Consulius: "It's only been a short time since you signed the contract with His Highness Philip I. Even if you intended to give me a reward, it couldn't be this soon. Of course, I'm not in a hurry either."

"Actually, there is something I need your help with."

Consulius's expression was solemn: "I need you to help me persuade your Nathan Military Industries to sell the Crimson Dragon Armor."

"The Crimson Dragon Armor, that cursed armor?"

Dwight keenly sensed Consulius's purpose and fell into thought: "That's a bit difficult, Mr. Wiltonstein. That armor, cursed by three popes, is of little value in terms of equipment itself. However, its manufacturing process and its magical energy array—our grand alchemists have yet to fully decipher them. Those scientific madmen won't easily let go until they completely understand its structure. The management of Nathan Military Industries cannot ignore their opinions."

Consulius was not surprised: "What if I add the Stone Fortress as a bonus? Let Andre take over your fortress. That would save your group the annual maintenance cost of over a billion gold shields for that fortress."

"Are you serious?"

Dwight was startled, his eyes puzzled: "Mr. Wiltonstein, Nathan Group would naturally be happy to see someone take over Stone Fortress. But if you plan to let Andre take over that fortress as his starting point in the dark world, that's really not a good choice. And at this time, it might not be appropriate, right?"

He said this, of course, for a reason.

Twenty years ago, the management of the Nathan Group had originally believed that the super-large tungsten mine near that fortress, along with the accompanying Shadowmoon ore veins, Firegold ore veins, and so on, would bring substantial profits to the conglomerate. Thus, they spared no expense, investing over twenty billion gold shields to build a medium-sized permanent military base there.

However, the treacherous environment nearby, along with two dark demigods who regarded the place as their territory, dealt them a heavy blow, gradually exhausting the Nathan Group in the years that followed.

Worse still, the tentacles of the 'Black Magic Empire' were also extending in this direction. If it weren't for the newly built Magic City of Anthony Braden, which had attracted most of the empire's attention in recent years, this Holy Stone Fortress might have been easily destroyed by this empire composed of numerous dark races.

Moreover, Dwight did not understand why Consulius would have Li Mochen distracted by other matters when there was a decisive battle half a year later.

Was it for the Crimson Dragon Armor? Was it worth paying such a price for this cursed, divine-level armor left by the Barbarossa Emperor?

That legendary divine armor, which allowed the most powerful emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, Barbarossa, to contend with numerous divine angels, had long been unusable.

And its key component, the 'Blood Crown' hidden in the Teutonic Museum, had not found a suitable owner for over a thousand years.

"I naturally have my reasons."

Consulius's expression was inscrutable: "Dwight, I need your help."

"Alright, if you insist, I will do my best to facilitate this matter. If I'm not mistaken, the Crimson Dragon Armor is also being sold to Andre, right?"

Dwight Payton spread his hands, a glint flashing in his eyes: "Then what do I get out of this deal?"

Seeing this, Consulius couldn't help but shake his head with a smile: "Come on, you rascal. The Nathan Group has long wanted to offload this heavy burden. If not for pressure from the military and the contracts with the original immigrants, they would have loved to just blow up this fortress. If you, Dwight, can make this happen, the board of the Nathan Group will reward you handsomely. But—"

Consulius paused here, took out a document, and placed it in front of Dwight: "This is to thank you for your help to Andre."

Dwight Payton's expression turned serious as he picked up the document. As he expected, it was an equipment procurement contract. However, the numbers and amounts on it left him somewhat stunned.

A total of 28,000 sets of 10A-grade magical armor with配套 weapons, firearms, rocket launchers, etc., along with maintenance and repair of various equipment—the total value of the contract exceeded twenty-two billion gold shields.

"From today onward, the Wiltonshire Group will select your Nathan Group as the preferred supplier of individual weapons. Additionally, I will give you whatever support I can within the Nathan Group's board. Although we hold no shares in the Nathan Group, I have a good relationship with your two major shareholders."

Dwight Payton took a deep breath and carefully placed the contract into his magic ring: "You flatter me, Mr. Wiltonshire. This is truly a generous move."

"You deserve it, Mr. Payton. Wiltonshire is never stingy with its friends."

Consulius said with a smile: "But I guess you never expected this day to come so early, did you?"

"Of course, I saw Andre's talent and believed he would eventually realize it."

Dwight sighed: "But back then, I could never have imagined that the little guy living in a shabby apartment would, half a year later, have numerous demigods and legends fighting for him. The height he stands at now is something I can only look up to, Mr. Wiltonshire."