Victor Milvanius III

Chairman Victor Milvanus, III

Haideri dropped the package in front of her. "Mail for you, straight from Ebensberg. Was important enough so that the Justicar-General put her own seal on it." He had a half-hidden smile on his face, Thanie noted, which meant that on anyone else, they'd be grinning like a cad. She put her sandwich down and broke the seal on the package, revealing a wooden latchbox, 'V.M.III' inscribed on the cover. 
"Oh no." Thanie flipped the latch and opened it, then leaned back heavily, tilting her chair. "I *told* them not to submit me for this!"
The Magistrate picked up the letter in the box. "I see. You've been selected for the Milvanius Scholarship. Why are you apprehensive? This is a great honor for anyone."
"No it isn't. Victor Milvanius was a dickhead!" Thanie pushed the box away before putting a hand on her chin. "There's all sorts of stuff in the curriculum at the Longhall about Milvanius and his lack of ethics and treatment of others. It's supposed to be an example of Progress, done poorly."
Haideri shook his head. "The Scholarship is distinct from the history, Thanie. It's why Magistrates can even accept the award - it's not as if the UTC has up and decided to bribe you with fifty thousand Florin. You've been recognized as one of the shining lights of your generation, so I don't see the harm."
The apprentice cocked an eye at him before quickly rifling through the contents of the box. Her fingers found a slim tome. "It can't be that distinct from the history, if 'Quotations from Milvanius' is part of the welcome package." She flipped through the quotebook casually. "'There is nothing I wouldn't do to ensure my own victory.' 'A hard heart is required for the furtherance of Progress.' 'The meek and the soft must have no place in the Etoile of the future.' The man is vile!"
The Magistrate was tapping on the table with his thumb. "He was a veteran of the War of Unification, and a product of his time. It doesn't taint the award. If you prefer to believe the optimistic interpretation, he's funding your own ability to stand above his ruthlessness and help craft an Etoile in your image."
Thanie sighed. "Well, it would cause trouble for the Magistrates if I declined the award, right? It's fine. As long as I don't have to pay supplication to his portrait at the UTC office in the Capital."

Mental characteristics

Personal history

Born in the Kingdom of Nasse, the third Victor Milvanius was a middle son of a lesser noble family of the Kingdom, but earned great acclaim in The War of Unification as a 23-year-old infantry captain in the 2nd Ground Division, choosing to lead his men of the 14th Company on foot into the fray rather than command one of the new cavalry or launcher Power-Wagons. His most notable act on the field was a defensive maneuver; during the waning days of the war, a desperate attack by a brigade of revanchists separated Milvanius's column from their cavalry support in a night-time ambush. Quickly rallying his soldiers into a fighting square, dawn found most of the attackers killed or scattered, with the heavy shields of Milvanius's infantry locked tight; Milvanius had held a company of 140 men against an onslaught of close to a thousand, and had kept his company from routing or fleeing before reinforcement.
While a notable deed in of itself, his military achievements served merely as a launching pad for his later commercial ambitions. All war veterans of Unification were granted victor's purses by the First Princeps - Milvanus and the soldiers formerly under his command chose to pool their resources, forming one of the earliest Consortiums, the unimaginatively named 14th Company Consortium in 638, specializing in the new, privatized production of Power components and machinery.
It was in commerce where Milvanius found his calling - he was both fiercely protective of his partners and investors, and utterly ruthless to his competitors and business enemies. In the twenty year 'Early' phase of the Power revolution in industry, the 14th Company Consortium maintained a decisive technological advantage over their competitors, with superior, more efficient, and cheaper components, machinery, and plans available for purchase and construction. Competitors that attempted to outcompete on quality found themselves buried under price pressure; Milvanius scaled his lines to crush the industry on a per-unit pricing basis, and each auto-weaver and mechanized assembly unit shipped to a client was at least a full generation ahead of other manufactory capabilities. This was not entirely done on the level, however; the 14th Company was routinely fined and held to legal repercussions for extensive industrial espionage and indirect sabotage of its competition, though Milvanius himself escaped serious repercussions.
By the time of his death in 693, the 14th Company Consortium had become the wealthiest and most powerful private corporate interest in the Principality of Etoile, and upon his death, it was renamed to the Unified Trade Consortium, as the original 14th Company business lines had been eclipsed by his limitless appetite for competitor acquisition. The 14th Company of one hundred and forty line infantrymen of Nasse had become the richest men in the world, under Milvanius's leadership.

Education

Victor Milvanius was given an ordinary nobleman's education within Nasse, being trained in classics and arms and showing no great proclivity to either. It was through nine months of training as a Nassean officer that revealed his unique talents for leadership, and it was that leadership quality that brought him great acclaim over his life.
While not himself extensively formally educated, his will directed his estate to provide for the Milvanius Scholarship, a fund that pays for the education of select young individuals of Etoile, handpicked for their future potential across a variety of tasks and applications.

Employment

After the completion of his military service, Milvanius served as the chairman of the 14th Company Consortium, a title he held unceasingly until his death, though he also served in the roles of executive and operations manager of the consortium, as necessary. Towards the end of his life, he became known simply as 'The Chairman', even outside the context of his own consortium.

Accomplishments & Achievements

Victor Milvanius III passed away in the Etoile Capital City having been the wealthiest private individual in the Principality of Etoile for over twenty years. The consortium revolution that swept Saibh after Unification upended the ordinary methods of doing business, and Milvanius's methodology and consortium management practices became required reading for any hoping to found or lead a consortium of their own.

Failures & Embarrassments

Notably, in the year 674, Milvanius was discovered to be a regular of both the Scarlet Block (as revealed in The Scarlet Journal), as well as the most frequent patron of Outer Haven, with rumors that he bankrolled Outer Haven's initial construction. This proved quite scandalous, with his extended divorce from his wife being fodder for the journals. Darker rumors, such as his involvement with the Red Spades Social Club, have never been confirmed.

Morality & Philosophy

Through his life, Milvanius made no secret of the core principle that guided his actions - his unceasing loyalty to both his lord (the King of Nasse, later the First Princeps) and the men under his command. The 14th Company Consortium was, in his words, a way for him to provide for the men that fought for and with him, for the rest of their lives. To that end, Milvanius brooked no compromise and held no reservations, routinely skirting the boundaries of the law and common decency to ensure that his interests won out at the end of the day. This was, of course, self-serving, and led to a number of discussions with the State whenever his interests collided with that of the Principality, after the passing of the First Princeps (with whom he was familiar with on personal terms).

Wealth & Financial state

His fortune on death was estimated to be well over 50,000,000,000F, and served as the guarantor of the scholarship named after him.

Life

608 M 693 M 85 years old

Birthplace

Kingdom of Nasse

Place of Death

Etoile Capital City

Pronouns

he

Gender

male

Eyes

Narrow, Brown

Hair

Black

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

Dark

Height

5'11"

Weight

175lb

Quotes & Catchphrases

"There is nothing I wouldn't do to ensure my own victory. If my competitors wish to be successful, they would do well to emulate me in this."
"The era of Unification demanded men of strong will. This era? The era that I helped usher in, with Power and Progress? The young men now seem to be lesser."
"A halberd can kill, but the commander of a hundred halberds is who will claim victory."