Episode 168 Let’s do our best! (2)
Giselle grumbled at the news of the dwarves’ arrival, though she was delighted.
“You’re finally here! Let’s see how many you brought to make it so late.”
Lately, the schedule has been slightly delayed due to various minor issues.
I had deliberately planned it tightly from the beginning, taking such things into account, but I couldn’t like the situation where obstacles kept piling up when time was tight.
Jiselle immediately moved to greet the slave traders.
“It’s been a while, my lord.”
The slave trader greeted Giselle with a tired face.
Because the price of slaves was the price, I was so nervous that I couldn’t even sleep properly the whole time I was moving.
Meanwhile, Jiselle kept urging me to come back, and it was driving me crazy as the one being pressured.
‘Oh, how much harder will I have to push myself next time?’
This deal wasn’t over with just this one time. I felt dizzy thinking that the lord would continue to nag me when moving the remaining slaves.
After briefly greeting the slave trader, Giselle immediately checked on the dwarves.
“oh…….”
There are a whopping hundred or so dwarf slaves.
They were short but had stocky physiques and looked around with glum expressions.
The slave trader asked with a slightly worried tone.
“But can you really control it? Dwarves don’t just use hammers for smelting. It would be dangerous if there were so many of them.”
Now they are all in handcuffs and shackles, but if they are to be made to work, eventually they will have to be freed from their restraints.
The slave trader took issue with that part.
If this many dwarves took up arms and rebelled at the same time, the damage would be significant.
But Jiselle waved her hand as if it was no big deal.
“It’s okay, it’s okay. We’ll take care of everything.”
At the leisurely answer, the slave trader looked around.
‘Is it possible to control it with the territory’s forces?’
However, the appearance of the Fenris knights that caught the slave trader’s eye was extremely bizarre.
“Cough! Cough!”
“Ugh… … .”
Their bones were so close together that it was questionable whether they could even hold a weapon, and they looked like skeletons.
Some people coughed so hard that their noses bled from the shock.
They all looked like they were sick. It was more like a group of sick people rather than a group of armed people.
‘The lord here is… … a necromancer?’
If you took the corpses out of the grave and brought them back to life, it would look just like this.
At this point, I was confident that it would be possible to occupy the territory with just the troops from above.
‘I don’t know if I’ll get paid properly for this. Isn’t this going to go out of business soon?’
The anxious slave trader asked urgently.
“Your Majesty, is the money ready?”
“Oh, everything is ready. I won’t steal your money.”
Giselle spoke leisurely and gestured to Claude.
When Claude opened the huge chest, it was full of gold coins.
The slave trader quickly took out a few coins, checked that they were real gold coins, and then loaded the chest onto the wagon.
“That’s great. Then I’ll go now.”
“Yeah, it’s not that far. I hope you’ll come sooner next time.”
“Oh, of course. I’ll come as soon as I can.”
The slave trader answered in a sincere tone.
‘Looking at the state of the people he’s bringing as knights, this territory will soon fall apart. I’m sure of it. Even the Marquis of Branford can’t protect a territory like this. I have to collect the remaining amount and settle things as quickly as possible before it’s taken over by another territory.’
Still, since he was a big customer, I gave him one piece of advice before he left.
“Dwarves have a very strong sense of pride. You know that they are just slaves, so you shouldn’t treat them carelessly, right?”
Jiselle nodded and answered.
“I know. It’s really hard to handle.”
“You have to pay attention to the quality of their food and also provide them with alcohol regularly. They are very picky, so they don’t move around much.”
Dwarves are slaves only in legal status. Even nobles cannot treat them carelessly.
There are some who take families hostage and treat them viciously, but most of them are easygoing.
It’s not only because the ransom is high, but also because dwarves don’t make things properly when they’re offended.
Weapons and crafts made by dwarves are extremely expensive, and workshops led by dwarves work at an incredibly fast rate.
So, it was actually more beneficial to treat them well and receive the goods in return.
“Then let’s really go. The next delivery will probably take about five or six months.”
“What? Why is it taking so long?”
“That’s also the shortest it’s been. There are many people who are after elf slaves. We’re cautious about transferring even one person from the branch right now. You know that, right?”
“Ugh, try to do this as quickly as possible. I’m going to be out of the office soon, so I’d like to have everyone back by the time I get back.”
“… … When do you plan on coming back?”
“Well… … I don’t know what will happen. But I’ll know when the time comes. I’ll hear some surprising news then.”
‘What’s the surprising news… …? News of the downfall of Yeongji?’
The slave trader laughed inwardly and bowed his head deeply. After hearing Jiselle’s words, he felt even stronger that he had to go back and finish the work as soon as possible.
That way, I can get the balance back before the estate is destroyed.
Giselle was amazed at the sight of the slave merchant hurriedly returning.
“Look at that hurry. Do you think we’re planning on taking over the Cavaldi territory? Those who make a lot of money are quick to catch on.”
“I don’t think that’s the reason… … .”
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Claude looked around as the slave trader had done. There were blood-spitting skeletons all around him.
“My lord, you haven’t forgotten the bet, have you? We agreed that if the apprentice knights don’t use mana, we won’t fight.”
“Oh, I get it. Stop talking and get to work. You promised to work hard until the results came out.”
Jiselle gestured towards the dwarves with an irritated voice.
“Release those guys from their bonds quickly. They have a mountain of work to do.”
The dwarves were puzzled when their restraints were released, but they slowly relaxed.
The bearded dwarf standing in front said mockingly.
“Is it because the lord is young? He is fearless. His troops look insignificant, so is it okay for him to let them all go like this?”
Giselle tried hard to hide her delight at seeing the dwarf in front of her.
‘It’s been a while, legendary blacksmith. Is it because you’ve lived a long life? Your face is exactly the same as the one I saw in my previous life.’
When fighting the disaster that swept over the continent in his previous life, the dwarf in front of him helped Giselle quite a bit.
Because of his outstanding skills, Giselle strongly urged the slave traders to bring only this dwarf.
But there was no point in showing off my welcome here.
It would be better if you were thought of as a crazy person, but if you were labeled as a fool, it would be difficult to deal with dwarves in the future.
Jiselle laughed and spoke in a sarcastic tone.
“Why, do you want to fight once?”
“Well… … . Given our status as people, it would be best to avoid causing any trouble if possible… … . But since we’ve come all the way to the northernmost part, wouldn’t it be okay to just run away to the mountains? Looking at them, I think I could beat them all up by myself.”
Before Jiselle could answer, the knight next to her stepped forward.
He was the one who took charge of the lord’s escort in place of Gillian and Kaor who were in the training grounds.
“You bastard! How dare you speak like that to the lord, a slave! If you don’t kneel down and apologize right now… … . Cough! Crack!”
The knight who had been a mercenary stopped talking and fell to his knees, spitting out blood. He wanted to try lifting weights since he was a knight, but his body was not in the condition to follow.
“… … .”
The dwarves were speechless. It felt like there was something very strange about this territory.
Jiselle sighed, frowning.
“… … Take him there and let him rest.”
As the article was published, Giselle continued speaking as if nothing had happened.
“You know it’s no use running away anyway, right? If word gets out that a foreign slave has run away, the slave traders will be looking for him with their eyes wide open. Wouldn’t it be better to make yourself at home here?”
“… … .”
There was nothing wrong with what Giselle said. The continent had long since become human-owned.
Although there are rumors that different races live together in some areas, at least the Kingdom of Rutania is an exclusively human domain.
It is impossible to live in hiding in Rutania, avoiding human eyes. Even if you escape to another kingdom, the result would be the same, since no one knows where your people are hiding.
The dwarf clicked his tongue openly and made a face of displeasure.
“It seems like you’re pretty smart. Well, if you run away, it’s our loss. But even so, working hard is a different matter. Quality also changes depending on how you’re treated. But looking at the state of Yeongji, I don’t think you’ll be treated very well.”
It was a proud attitude, as befitting a dwarf.
Jiselle asked him in response to his rambling words.
“Galvarik, are you the representative now?”
“Hmm? How did you get my name… … . Oh, did you get the list in advance? Anyway, I’m the representative for now.”
The way to become a representative of the dwarves is simple. Just be the most skilled.
I expected that Galvarik, who had the nickname of ‘Legendary Blacksmith’ in his previous life, would definitely be chosen as the representative, and my guess was correct.
Giselle said, pointing her index finger at Galvarik.
“10 years.”
“What are you talking about?”
“If you cooperate with me fully for 10 years, I will create an autonomous region for the dwarves within the territory and free them from slavery. You will be able to live freely as citizens of the territory. Doesn’t that give you some motivation?”
It was a radical proposal. It was not an ordinary matter to release a dwarf who had been bought for an enormous ransom.
Even if they only worked for 10 years, they would be released. For dwarves, whose lifespan was much longer than that of humans, 10 years was a very short period of time.
There is no doubt that this is what the dwarves who live as slaves really want.
But Galvarik scoffed at Giselle’s suggestion.
“Are you trying to start a movement to free slaves? Do you think that makes sense now?”
“I am the resident here, so there is nothing that cannot be said.”
“Do you think there was no one who ever spit out such sweet words to us? We won’t fall for such empty words anymore.”
But Giselle ignored the dwarf’s sharp reaction as if it were nothing.
“Even if what I say is false, at best the current situation will be maintained, so there is no harm in believing it. There is also a saying that those who believe are blessed.”
“Huh, what nonsense… … .”
Galvarik, who had been laughing in vain at Giselle’s shameless answer, said through gnashing his teeth.
“Don’t talk nonsense. We are slaves. The law of the kingdom defines us as slaves. The whole kingdom won’t change its perception just because a country lord refuses to treat us like slaves.”
“Oh, the laws of the kingdom. What’s so special about them? They’re all made by people, so if necessary, you can change them. I’ll take care of everything, so don’t worry about it. I’ve never broken a promise.”
It was a statement that could be considered treason if heard by anyone. Galvarik looked around in confusion.
The people next to the lord seemed to be accustomed to his mischief, and they all pretended not to hear him and just looked up at the sky.
‘Isn’t this kid crazy?’
Jiselle shrugged her shoulders as she looked at the bewildered Galvarik.
Since we are fighting the Duke anyway, we have no choice but to turn the kingdom upside down.
It wouldn’t be a problem to take advantage of that gap and change a few minor laws.
“Of course, it doesn’t feel real right now and you can’t believe it. So, I’ll make one more suggestion that will appeal to you right now.”
“What, what?”
“Aren’t you tired of making the same thing every day?”
“That’s true, but… … .”
The nobles forced the dwarves to create only luxury items that would make them stand out.
For the dwarves, who valued practicality as well as artistry, it was nothing short of torture.
There was even talk among the dwarves that it would be better to stay in the workshop and mass-produce equipment for their knights and soldiers.
Since there were no opportunities to create new things, inspiration did not come. Eventually, even the desire to create died down, and most dwarves lived day to day without motivation.
But what can we do? The world just goes around like that.
Jiselle pointed out that part.
“Even those are all useless. They’re just luxury items, so it’s no fun to only make those.”
“So what do you want me to do? You want me to make equipment instead of luxury goods?”
Galvarik looked back at the knights and asked.
“It seems like we need to use good equipment.”
Rather than making useless crafts, it would be better to make weapons and armor.
Because seeing a knight make a name for himself with the weapons he created is one of the joys of being a craftsman.
A bitter smile appeared on the lips of the dwarves who had similar thoughts.
Jiselle nodded several times.
“Of course we’ll be making a lot of weapons. But that’s not all.”
“What if that weren’t the case?”
Jiselle smiled, pointing to her own head.
“There are many interesting things in my head. Things that have never been seen before. You guys will be satisfied when you see them.”
