"The licence is my problem," he said. "Say we sign. The Spire spends three years building campaigns, products, the whole shopfront, around our name. Then we leave. We get the trademark back — grand — and their approved material keeps earning through the run-out period, off a name they no longer represent. We'd be renting them our future and paying to move out."
"The Spire can't build infrastructure for free." Marcus's voice stayed level. "Lawyers bill hours. Security teams require salaries. Analysts don't work for exposure. The percentage is how the machine gets paid."
"Then charge us for those services," James said.
"Direct fees for that machine would be brutal, and you'd be paying full price for something the Spire has no stake in." Marcus met his eyes. "The percentage means we win when you win. If Team Zero's value multiplies after we invest in it, the guild that financed the growth shares in the growth. That's not a trick. That's the only reason any guild builds anything."
