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First week, and the book has been well received.
Thank you for the support.
This chapter is dedicated to:
Meysam865
Baelor_dayo
lucas_daniel_9743
Eric_Taylor_7433
Anbesa
Wyald_dog
Daoist_Sparkling
bonebag
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Two weeks passed quickly.
In the time that passed, Septimus bought a large quantity of construction materials, dedicating a great part of the clones' work to building and reinforcing the villa.
The news about the pardon of Septimus' crimes and his marriage to a lady of the Scipio family spread quickly in the city of Capua thanks to Lady Cornelia Minor.
Many nobles and merchants sought the opportunity to contact Septimus with the intention of ingratiating themselves.
The upper class of Capua considered Septimus as a rising star in the political arena.
Unfortunately, Septimus did not pay attention to them; he had the intention of looting the city of Capua and allying with Sulla in the future.
Septimus considered the upper class of Capua as lambs that would go to the slaughterhouse in a few years.
Conquering the entire region of Campania was an unchanging objective for Septimus, and it was necessary to purge the upper class of the region.
It was early in the morning, and the clones organized the carriages to go to Rome.
Septimus planned to bring 100 clone guards and 200 clones who would disguise themselves as service slaves and, in case of emergency, serve as soldiers.
Suddenly, Septimus diverted his attention to one of the carriages in the line, from which the screams of an angry woman insulting like a harpy could be heard.
It was one of the beautifully decorated, large carriages, big enough to accommodate eight people, which could only be pulled by four robust horses.
The woman's screams belonged to Fausta.
In his past life, Septimus used to hear couples say that the true test of love is only achieved if they manage to live many years together tolerating each other.
Since Fausta stayed with Septimus, her true vain and arrogant nature had been gradually revealed.
Fausta, as a high-level noble young woman, deep down was very disdainful of Septimus' humble origins, but she did not show it directly. She only dared to shout and attempt to humiliate the clones she considered slaves.
All the clones and Septimus were one, and Fausta's actions could cost her life.
"After the ceremony, I will lock you in a dark cell," Septimus thought to himself with an expressionless face.
Meanwhile, inside the carriage, Fausta threw a jug of wine at one of the clones she thought was a slave.
When Fausta realized that she would marry a young man without great important family background but with military talent and immense fortune, she was pleased with her good luck. Her husband would be someone promising, and her condition as a member of the Scipio family would help him greatly.
Fausta was arrogant by nature and considered that Septimus should treat her as an equal if he wanted to benefit from the political influence of the Scipio family.
After spending time in the villa, Fausta assumed that she was the Domina of the villa, with great authority in the household.
Fausta's first action was motivated by curiosity, heading toward the places within the wooden walls that were located inside the villa.
Unfortunately, the clone guards stopped Fausta from entering, causing her to explode in fury.
Septimus, upon knowing the situation, did not pay much attention to it; after all, a fragile pampered woman of the upper class was not a threat to two robust men.
After shouting threatening words for a long time without being paid attention to, the young Fausta left very upset.
Fausta felt irritated by the indifference of the guards and planned to take revenge in the future.
The second incident that almost cost Fausta her life occurred with the slaves.
After the delegation left, Septimus resumed the normal life of the slaves as personal lovers and those in charge of daily tasks.
As a consequence, Fausta felt insulted and annoyed; that afternoon she ordered a clone in charge of the household to call a slave trader.
Fausta intended to sell the slaves without Septimus noticing. Even if she sold the slaves, as the official wife and a noble of the Scipio family, there would be no consequences in Fausta's opinion.
But she did not realize that Septimus would find out quickly at the moment she revealed the matter to the clone she considered a slave.
That same day, Septimus superficially revealed the matter to Fausta, giving her a warning.
From that day on, the young lady Fausta, feeling betrayed, changed her behavior and became more irritable, only longing for the days to return near her familiar environment in Rome.
Returning to the present, Septimus ignored the harpy Fausta and ordered the carriages to move forward.
While Septimus headed toward Rome, in the city of Capua a crowd of people gathered in front of a new shop.
The shop was located near the square of Capua, and four imposing guards watched over it.
The crowd observed with curiosity the different style and distinctive clothing of the employees of this new shop.
If a person from the modern era were present, they would know that the employees were dressed like 21st-century pastry chefs.
Septimus had the idea of changing his approach to the sale of white sugar. With that objective, he dedicated part of his time to buying a well-established shop in Capua to open a pastry shop where he could sell white sugar and beautifully decorated cakes.
Using flour, various fruits, and other ingredients, together with the creativity of a modern person, Septimus had the confidence to inspire the upper class about new methods of consuming white sugar at high-class banquets.
The pastry shop that Septimus opened in Capua only allowed entry to elites and nobles of Rome.
Amid the noise, a fat man in elegant clothes, accompanied by two slaves, made his way through the crowd.
"What is happening? Why are there so many people gathered?" said the fat man with curiosity.
"This is the opening of the new white sugar shop, esteemed great customer," said one of the clones dressed as a pastry worker.
"For the first week, as a promotion, the pound of sugar will lower its price from 40 denarii to only 30," said another of the clones with a smile on his face.
"How interesting, I will buy some," said the fat man, heading toward the shop with curiosity.
"Esteemed customer, your slaves cannot enter; access is only permitted to important people," said one of the clones in charge of service.
"Slaves are not allowed? Do you not have slaves in the shop?" said the fat man, frowning.
"There are no slaves; all of us who work here are Roman citizens, and access is only permitted to elite-class customers and nobles," said the clone in charge of service kindly.
The ego of the fat man was fed upon hearing the response.
"Very well, you two wait outside," said the fat man as he entered the shop, leaving his two slaves behind.
The shop was luxuriously decorated with fine wooden shelves, and a person dressed in white stood behind each wooden shelf.
The fat man observed the place with curiosity, approaching one of the nearest wooden shelves.
"What is that?" asked the fat man with curiosity, pointing at the shelf.
"They are called cakes, esteemed customer; they are made of flour, grapes, white sugar, and other ingredients. On this shelf you can find various flavors," said the clone behind the shelf while offering a sample of cake courteously.
The fat man hesitated when he saw small signs where the price of those small cakes was written, costing 10 denarii per unit, a very high price for a grape bread that could be finished in less than ten bites.
Upon feeling on his taste buds the grape bread called cake, the fat man's eyes lit up; it was a delicacy worthy of a great high-class banquet.
"It is delicious, give me ten," said the fat man, forgetting the slight complaint he had about the price.
The clone in charge of the shelf, with a smile, took out a clean cloth bag and, with wooden tongs, began to place the cakes carefully inside.
The fat man, upon observing the scene, was slightly surprised by the novel use of wooden tongs to touch the bread. Food hygiene was not the strength of food merchants in Capua or in all of Rome.
"You may pay when leaving the shop, heading to the red tables," said the clone kindly, pointing to a place.
Feeling novelty from the experience, the fat man began to wander among other shelves while tasting various desserts with different ingredients.
At the end of his walk, the fat man had a beautifully crafted wicker basket with a unique style, in which he had several white cloth bags. When he went to pay, a clone in charge of collecting began to calculate the total he had to pay.
The fat man received as a gift a set of papyri describing recipes for different cakes, feeling satisfied with the novel experience. It was the first time he received that level of service and detail when buying.
Septimus adapted the business model of modern-era supermarkets to his white sugar shop. By selling desserts made with white sugar, demand increases, generating more money for Septimus' pockets.