Chapter 54: The Ship Pilot
THE Bilva Hotel was completely booked with reservations for the next six months. Most of the guests found out about it through Lady Dalila. Ever since she had become Bertine’s point of contact for the sale of the fabric, the woman’s social circle in the Empire expanded in leaps and bounds.
Moving forward, it was up to Bertine and the rest of the people involved in the hotel’s operation to attract customers beyond those who knew Lady Dalila. If they provided the best service and stays, she knew their satisfied customers would recommend the hotel to members of their own social networks. Many of the guests they had so far enjoyed their time in the hotel so much that they often requested reservations for the same time next year.
“Bertie, Kurt and I decided to partner up on the production of the star fruit liquor,” Bruno told her. “We’ll be using his facilities as well, since ours are no longer enough to meet demand. And if that still proves to be insufficient, I’ll reach out to the chiefs in other regions nearby.”
“Bruno, I’m so sorry for increasing your burden.”
“Now, now, none of that. Let me tell you, we’ve seen a trickle of young folks who went to work in the capital returning home. Thanks to you, I think we’ll see an increase in our population here. Else our villages would have disappeared with only us old folks. So all this production is happy news indeed.”
Then there was the master architect Eckhart and Bruno’s son, Evance. The two had indeed gone off traveling around the Federation. Bertine received a letter from Evance, which noted that “Eckhart wants to build a hotel on a hill overlooking a river for the view. If a hotel isn’t possible, then a community hall or library is fine too.”
Bertine decided to have them work on the next building within the coming year or so. Because right now, she was up to her ears in making various plans a reality.
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BUSY days make time rush by even faster. It wasn’t at all an exaggeration to say that the days just flew by ever since the hotel officially opened. The Bilva Hotel earned money hand over fist, with reservations blocked off for months to come. There was a considerable increase in the number of guests who weren’t here on Lady Dalila’s introduction.
The ivy coiling around the third-floor sunroom grew even more, the scent of its blossoms permeating richly throughout the space. Hummingbirds visited often to sup on the nectar. Naturally, watching this sight became the latest craze for guests.
Sales of stingers continued to soar, especially as their reach steadily extended to other countries as well. Bertine’s shop, the Flower of Krusula, became well-known even in Ybit for its high-quality embroidered goods and accessories. The necklace Isabella made for Diana was safely delivered in the woman’s hands. Not long after, both Bertine and Isabella received letters of thanks from her.
Those letters bore both Diana and Claudio’s names. They had been sealed with a purple wax designated only for the Empire’s ruling family to use. Isabella teared up when she saw the letter addressed to her.
“I never imagined a day would come when I received something like this,” she said joyously.