Episode 39
Delgain’s messenger brought 400 gold in cash and a pledge. The pledge had ‘600G’ written in his own handwriting, and Delgain’s seal was stamped underneath. It was a 600 gold bill.
400 gold was Hebron’s share. It was the price for subduing the Bebe bandits. In other words, 600 gold was the reward for the captives.
In Hebron, the knight Histon and 47 Delgain soldiers were taken prisoner. Baron Delgain shamelessly claimed that all this was the work of his nephew, Rustic de Nurha, and demanded the return of the captured soldiers for a mere 600 gold.
“You are deceiving me.”
Jeeeeek!
The promissory note was torn. A promissory note with the seal of a family was only effective when the family’s wealth or power remained.
Although Delgain was not destroyed, it was safe to say that their fate depended on my decision. If I were to behead all of Delgain’s knights and soldiers, Delgain would lose the power to defend its territory and would even have to sell its position.
But it was only 600 gold, and I was amazed at Delgain’s pettiness.
“The knights and soldiers of the Delgain family were fooled into starting a war by a young boy who was even rejected from entering the Royal Academy? Are you asking me to believe that ridiculous story? No, you brought me a promissory note worth 600 gold while telling me to believe that? Is Delgain’s tongue worth only 600 gold? I’ll give you a week. Exactly 1,000 gold in cash. Bring it to me.”
The messenger trembled as he watched me.
“Oh, if the Baron is not satisfied, give him this… … .”
“Did Spiel order you to do that?”
“Oh, no. It was Baron Delgaine’s order.”
What the messenger handed over was another piece of paper. It contained a bit more content than the one he had previously handed over.
‘Land document… … .’
If it had been any other nobleman, he would have accepted it with open arms.
But I wasn’t.
‘Whoever wins the war between families gets everything. However, the process is a bit complicated and you have to pay taxes to the royal family. Considering that, this land document may actually be beneficial.’
A snicker escaped my lips.
I became curious about the human being named Spiel who could foresee this situation.
‘Spiel… … Did you really read my and Amy’s thoughts?’
It was clear that the land document had also come from Schpil’s head. Since the land would be taken away anyway, he intended to reduce the loss by donating it in advance. To a lord, the land was second only to the title, so there was a justification for it.
I didn’t tear up the land document.
Instead, he threw it to the messenger.
“Cash. If even one copper is short of one thousand gold, I will weigh Baron Delgain and take the amount of flesh that is short.”
When I let go of the sword, the messenger became lost in thought and retreated.
Delgain must have understood what I was saying since I had pressed him this hard. No, he had no other choice.
“I think Serpent would like it.”
The upper part of Serpens was externally neutral. They also helped Delgain and Biskin prepare for war. They made huge profits in the process, and they were still waiting in Delgain territory with cash in hand. They were waiting for Delgain’s hidden treasure to pour out.
As expected, Baron Delgain sold the heirlooms to raise cash. It was probably an inevitable choice, as holding on to them would have ruined his family.
* * *
The top of the serpentine chair seemed to have a smile engraved on its lips. He faced me, trying hard to suppress his bursting laughter.
“How much did you earn?”
“It’s a secret from above, my lord.”
“You earned two thousand.”
“It’s difficult to reach 2,000. Considering the cost of the product and logistics, it’s less than half of that.”
The biggest beneficiary of this war was the upper tier of serpens.
“It’s over 1,500.”
The Serpens Merchant sold war supplies to the two families, and also bought the goods that Baron Delgain was putting up for sale at a low price. The Serpens Merchant Merchant is not in a hurry, so they can wait until someone comes along who will pay a fair price and make a big profit.
As the size of the Serpens increased, so did Hebron. They provided information to Hebron and took charge of the trade route from the Jayleson Viscounty through Hebron to Nurha.
Moreover, the territory will now be expanded to Biskin and Delgain.
“Do you have a usable sword?”
“I do have one of Delgain’s heirlooms, but can I take off the jewel and give it to you?”
“It doesn’t matter. What I need is a sword.”
The top of the serpent ordered his subordinate to bring a sword.
“It’s a pretty good sword, but… … it’s a shame.”
The famous sword that Viscount Zielson had gifted had the ability to evenly release aura. On the other hand, the sword that Serpens had brought was nothing more than a well-balanced long sword.
“Isn’t there a long sword from Uruzu?”
“yes?”
“If Uruzu’s long sword is difficult, Charlieon’s weapon will do.”
Uruzu was a 6th class wizard and a renowned artifact crafter. His weapons were sold to high-ranking noble families, including the Duke of Braio, and orders for weapons had to wait at least a year.
Charlieon was Uruz’s partner blacksmith. There were quite a few who bought Charlieon’s weapons that didn’t have any magic engraved on them and asked him to engrave magic on the magic tower.
The Knights of Breyo were all armed with the Longsword of Uruz, and the apprentice knights were given the Longsword of Charion.
“I’ve only heard of such dark rumors, I’ve never actually seen it.”
At times like these, I felt strongly that I was a lower-class noble from the outskirts. Unless I mobilized my connections, I wouldn’t even be able to see a decent weapon.
“Are you going to go on an expedition?”
“I haven’t received the money yet.”
The top stockholder nodded.
He seemed to interpret what I said as, ‘I’ll invade if I get paid.’
It wasn’t a wrong interpretation. The priority was to completely rob Baron Delgain of his emergency funds.
After conquering Biskin, the profits were surprisingly small. The treasure of the Biskin Baron family had disappeared. Some of the slush funds were recovered by robbing the servants who worked for the Baron family, but it was estimated that the Baron had hidden quite a bit of money.
Based on that experience, Amy and I came up with a way to make more money.
-Let’s take the money first and slowly collect the land.
That was how it all began. As planned, Baron Delgain began to collect all the slush funds and give them to me, and now the treasury in Hebron was about to be filled with gold coins.
* * *
Baron Delgain, Spiel, and the last knight of the Baron’s family, Sniff, gathered together. They had sullen expressions and their mouths were tightly shut. The tea had long since gone cold, but none of them had taken a sip.
Spiel, who habitually picked off the hangnails on his fingers, opened his mouth with a determined expression.
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“It would be better to surrender to the Baron of Hebron.”
“What nonsense is that!”
“Unfortunately… … Delgain’s fate has come to an end. Hebron must have anticipated this situation. I’ve heard rumors that the Serpens Merchant is close to Baron Hebron, and judging by the Merchant’s actions this time, it seems like those rumors are true.”
Spiel belatedly realized the connection between the top of the serpent and Hebron. It was because he underestimated Hebron, who was eating grass.
“The Serpense Lord is in league with Baron Hebron! Sir Sniff, go and capture the Serpense Lord immediately! If he is not there, capture everyone in the Lords’ Chamber!”
Sniff stood up and saluted Delgain.
“insect.”
As the knight sniff left the conference room, Spiel quenched his thirst with the cold tea.
“Sir Sniff may have left.”
“What?”
“The maid told me yesterday that Sir Sniff had put his house up for sale for a pittance.”
Sniff’s mansion was a gift from Delgain.
Delgain was not shocked. He knew full well that Sniff had been captured while going to subdue the Bebe Bandits, and his sword had been broken along with them.
Baron Delgain thought of a fiefdom without a single regular soldier left.
‘… … I’m screwed.’
Although he had a standing army guard his territory, there was a possibility that they would turn into bandits and invade the castle.
“… … Are you leaving too?”
Delgain glared at Spiel.
My feelings of resentment towards him arose, but soon cooled.
The one who followed Spiel’s will was Lord Delgain.
Delgain imagined selling off his lands, castles, and titles and living out the rest of his life in the wilderness.
His breathing became ragged. He felt resentful at the thought of living such a loser’s life.
Spiel read her earnest heart. He, too, had no intention of backing down.
I didn’t want to admit that I had been defeated so miserably.
“There is one last option left.”
“Speak.”
“If you use this method, you will have to give up your title regardless of success or failure.”
“good night.”
Delgain looked out the window. It was a view so familiar that he could recall it even with his eyes closed. He took it in again and again, trying not to forget it.
“Rumor has it that Viscount Jailson is friendly to Baron Hebron.”
“so?”
“The Jailson Viscounty borders the Slane Viscounty. The two houses are said to be preparing for war, and no one knows when fighting will start.”
Delgain winked at Spiel.
It meant to tell me to keep talking.
“Try to persuade Viscount Srein. If you can only get his forces to Delgain, Hebron will fall along with Zaison.”
“What if the Baron of Hebron comes before then?”
“We have to use a last resort to prevent such a situation.”
Spiel took off his jacket. The black suit was like a layer of skin to him. Even in the middle of summer, he never took off his full-body uniform.
Delgain bought Spiel from a slave trader. He was clever and literate, so he was put in charge of the administration of the estate, but within three days, he gathered evidence of the embezzlement by his steward and brought it to the baron.
After that, Spiel continued to display wisdom that could be used against Delgain, and Delgain employed Spiel in high positions.
But he was still a slave.
“What is the last resort?”
“I will call in the dogs of the wasteland.”
“They… … still exist?”
“I am sorry, my master.”
Delgaine’s eyes shook.
He couldn’t shake off the fear that was creeping up on him.
A slave could not lie to his master. But Spiel said several times, ‘All the dogs of the wasteland are dead.’
This raised the possibility that Spiel was not Delgain’s slave.
“You’re going to call them in?”
“Dogs of the wasteland cannot abandon their brothers. That is their way of survival. Instead, they will know my place, and I will devote the rest of my life to their cause. Master, I must return home as soon as I finish this task. I will not forget the kindness you have shown me.”
The southern borders of Hebron, Nurha, and Delgain were determined by the wasteland. It was said that if you crossed the vast wasteland endlessly, you would come across the ‘old site of the kingdom of Antaria’.
This is what is generally known.
-The dogs of the wasteland live in the southern wasteland.
It was a fairy tale that the adults of Hebron told their children.
It was a story that adults also heard from their parents when they were young.
– A wild dog that devoted its life to a hunter was abandoned in its later years and driven out to the wasteland. The wild dog cries every night, missing its hunter, and their cries cause sandstorms in the wasteland. So don’t cry in the dark of night. The cries of the night are the cries of a wild dog. The sandstorms may swallow you up.
