Benno/Relationships

Corinna, Benno's sister, was mostly raised by Benno. Benno values his sister and taught her all he knew about the business as well as protecting her from the Guildmaster's attempts to marry her to one of his sons.

Otto, Corinna's husband, used to be a traveling merchant with a close friendship with Benno, often doing business with each other. After Otto married Corinna, Benno allowed him to move in with his sister. Benno and Otto have a good relationship, and Benno trains him to take over the Gilberta Company after he leaves it for the Plantin Company.

Though there are times when Otto's jokes and teasing really get under Benno's nerves, especially when Otto does not consider how his careless words might be misinterpreted in unfavourable ways by people overhearing them, like when Otto teased that Myne was Benno's "Goddess of Water" lead to some people wrongly believing the merchant and the girl had an illicit affair.

Liz is Benno's late fiancée, who died from the Devouring. Benno loved her. Seeing her die slowly in agony is haunting Benno to this day and likely is part of the reason why he become so protective toward Myne, who suffered from the same illness.

Benno has a number of business partners and employees.

Mark is a leherl at Benno's store. Benno relies on him as a right-hand man. Mark helps Benno with all his business enterprises as well as train apprentice merchants. Mark also helped Benno when he first started out, standing behind him through the trials of work. They trust each other and work with each other to support the store. Benno relies on Mark a lot, but recognizes Mark's work and is proud of him.

Lutz was introduced to Benno by Myne. Benno soon recognizes and is impressed his work ethic and skill, as well as high ability to learn and adjust and values him both as an employee and as a connection to Myne. Seeing is potential, Benno attempts to adopt him to help make his dreams come true due to his family not approving of the merchant business. Though Lutz's family later accepts his career, Benno is still close to Lutz and supports him. Benno sees Lutz as his successor and heir, and trains him with that purpose in mind.

Myne is a constant source of both headaches and problems as well as unbridled wealth and power. Due to her ingenious ability to think up and create new products, Benno expands business ventures into all sorts of new areas, including food, plant paper, ink, and the publishing industry. Though Benno realizes Myne is not all that she seems, he does not pry. Benno has a soft spot for Myne, worrying about her when she collapses, protecting her from other merchants by controlling information on her, and scolding her when her lack of common sense gets her in trouble.

He would often try to short-change or trick her, while strewing out hints that he had done so until she figured it out to teach her.

Benno loathes the Guildmaster, Gustav, for his lack of tact and constant attempts to takeover his store. Though the Guildmaster means well, Benno sees him only as a meddler and nuisance. The guildmaster has been known to aggravate the relationship through bureaucracy.

Frieda, the Guildmaster's granddaughter, is a business rival and later associate in the food industry. He respects her business sense.

Benno has a few noble contacts who either work with him or are clients of his.

Rozemyne is both a business associate, as the head of the Rozemyne Workshop and a client as a member of the nobility. As the adopted daughter of the Aub, she carries enormous influence and spearheads the Printing and Publishing Industry. Benno and Rozemyne has a good business relationship, and Benno relies on her for funding and support, as well as her ability to communicate with nobles to lessen his workload.

Benno's relationship with Ferdinand, Rozemyne's guardian, is primarily business oriented, though they bond over Rozemyne and Sylvester related troubles indirectly. Benno sees Ferdinand as a little young and inexperienced in the beginning of their relationship, which he uses to protect the profits of the Rozemyne Workshop.

The two occasionally share their suffering in non-verbal communication, taking comfort in the knowledge that they are not along in their suffering on account of Rozemyne's and Sylvester's rampages.

Elvira is a client as well as a taskmaster, ordering Benno to help create a printing industry in her home giebe of Haldenzel. Benno considers her as scary and unreasonable.

Benno's relationship with Sylvester is nothing but respectful and professional on the surface, though Benno sees him as one of the most unreasonable nobles around, due to his proclivity of wanting stuff now at the expense of everyone around him. Along with Rozemyne, he sees Sylvester as nothing but work.

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