Episode 85 I’ll negotiate. (4)
Zwalter’s eyes were full of emotion and faith.
‘You’ve become so successful without me knowing. I never imagined you’d look this great.’
“Thank you for your hard work. You really worked hard.”
He patted Giselle on the shoulder and encouraged her.
Homer, who had been watching the two from the side, coughed a few times and then dispersed the people who had gathered.
The people of Yeongji cheered Jiselle’s name for a long time, paying no attention to the words telling them to go back.
Only after the soldiers came out and took their families home did things become quiet.
Jisel also sent the mercenaries back to the garrison and entered the castle.
As he was about to return to his room to rest, Zwalter grabbed him from behind.
“How did the surrender negotiations go? Let me see the draft you brought.”
Soon, the awards for meritorious deeds had to be given out.
Although appropriate compensation has already been determined based on merit, the amount of leeway will vary depending on how much compensation is received.
Giselle smiled brightly and answered the question Zwalter asked with half worry and half anticipation.
“doesn’t exist.”
“There is no negotiation proposal? Why?”
“I killed him.”
Zwalter blinked for a while, trying to interpret the meaning.
Jiselle’s attitude was so confident that I asked if I had misheard.
“What? You killed him? Really?”
“yes.”
Zwalter’s expression hardened.
“… … Have you forgotten what I said?”
“I didn’t forget. I just thought it would be better to go and see for myself and sort it out quickly.”
“What do you mean, tidy up quickly?”
“If you accept my surrender, I will come after this place again. I want to prevent any trouble in advance.”
Zwalter sighed.
I had asked my son, who was like a scoundrel, to be careful so that he wouldn’t cause an accident, and as expected, when he did, he did it in a big way.
He was about to scold Giselle, but he swallowed his words when he saw his son’s appearance covered in dirt.
“… … .”
What can I do if he’s already dead?
It wasn’t something I had completely expected, and it wasn’t urgent enough to hold onto my son who hadn’t been able to rest since the war.
“Let’s take a rest for now and talk again later.”
Zwalter shook his head, patted his son’s shoulder, and walked away.
Somehow his shoulders and back were slumped.
* * *
The next day, many people gathered in Daejeon regardless of their social status. It was a place to reward meritorious deeds.
“Get started.”
At Zwalter’s words, Homer stepped forward.
He began his speech, spitting out spit, about how glorious this victory was.
As the conversation continued, people’s expressions gradually became deader.
Zwalter cut off Homer’s words abruptly at the bored expressions.
“That’s enough. Now I’ll give out the rewards.”
The awards ceremony proceeded quickly as the people who had made majors and their achievements had been listed while Jiselle was away.
The awards began with the lowest-ranking soldiers.
Next came the administrators who were responsible for managing the military and lands so that the war could continue.
Then, even the knights who could be considered the main force of the territory received appropriate money and positions according to their merits.
“I will announce the second-class meritorious subject. Knight Commander Randolph! Knight Commander William… … .”
The commanders were awarded second-class merit.
The names of people who would have been given the highest honors in other times were also called out, but no one seemed puzzled or dissatisfied.
Even after the award ceremony for the second-class meritorious subject was over, people remained in their seats with faces filled with anticipation.
The most important figure still remained.
Everyone’s eyes turned to Giselle.
The true hero of this war, who led Ferdium to victory.
Everyone wondered how big a reward he would receive.
“Archangel Giselle, come forward!”
As Homer shouted, Giselle stepped forward and knelt on one knee.
People kept their mouths shut and focused their attention on the lord and the grand duke.
Silence fell over Daejeon in an instant. Zwalter enjoyed the silence and stood up.
“The number one contributor, unanimously agreed upon by all the vassals, is only one person: Giselle Ferdium. It is no exaggeration to say that this victory is all thanks to Giselle.”
The knights and soldiers who had been watching Giselle’s performance on the battlefield nodded in agreement.
Some of those who had gone still frowned in disbelief, but they could not go against the trend.
“Therefore, I grant two thousand gold to Giselle.”
The following words were met with cheers throughout Daejeon.
“Wow, that’s amazing! Two thousand gold? That’s a lot!”
“That’s enough money to live off of for the rest of your life!”
“If you are the Grand Duke, you deserve that much!”
Everyone was talking loudly and making a fuss.
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This time, the total rewards received by other people does not even amount to 2,000 gold.
It was an amount of money that most people would never be able to touch in their entire lives.
The people gathered in Daejeon could not help but be surprised at the news that such a large sum of money would be given to one person.
But Belinda, Gillian, and Kaor, who had retreated to one side of the battlefield, looked puzzled.
“… … .”
Giselle looked at the triumphant Zwalter with a sad expression.
How poor must the estate have been, with only 2,000 gold… … .
* * *
A person who has lived frugally his entire life cannot help but spend little.
Jiselle, who knew that, did not refuse or argue in Daejeon about the small reward.
Because you can receive the real reward separately.
The awards ceremony has ended, but the post-war processing has not yet ended.
At a gathering of only the main vassals after dismissing the people who had gathered in Daejeon, Zwalter asked Giselle with a complicated expression.
“Was it really necessary to kill Count Digald? They must have been struggling while fighting the war, and their troops had already been annihilated… … .”
“Do you really think so?”
“… … .”
Zwalter was unable to answer Giselle’s question, which suddenly interrupted his conversation.
“Digald couldn’t prepare that many troops in the first place. He reached out from somewhere else. In fact, don’t you know that too, Father? Why Count Rogers couldn’t come?”
“… … Yeah, I know.”
Zwalter let out a heavy voice. Giselle continued speaking firmly.
“That’s why they were killed. Even if they were manipulated, the Digald Counts have a reason to attack us. If they were alive, those who actually invaded us would use them to invade again soon. Only by completely destroying the Digald Counties can we buy some time.”
“That’s true, but… … .”
“Also, the North is mostly made up of independent counties rather than fiefdoms. This is an opportunity to expand your territory without any hassle.”
“Ahem… … .”
Zwalter coughed in vain, not hiding his discomfort.
My son always pursues extreme efficiency.
That’s not a bad thing, but… …I couldn’t ignore the long-standing customs.
My head was already spinning as I thought about the future when letters of protest would pour in from other nobles.
“… … We could have just ended it by receiving compensation or putting them in jail. In the first place, aren’t we lacking the capacity to govern that far?”
How could Zwalter not want to expand his territory?
It was just reality that was the problem.
Ferdium is already poor, but adding poor Digald to it just makes it twice as poor.
The interior of Ferdium is also in poor condition, so we are just waiting for the compensation we will receive from Digald, and there is no way we will be able to manage the Digald territory.
To stabilize that place, we would have to pour out all the remaining supplies in Digald.
“Don’t worry. We still have the runestones, so we’ll help both territories return to normal as quickly as possible.”
“Hmm, is that amount enough?”
“That’s enough.”
“… … Okay, actually, what you said is not wrong. If we can just digest Digald, we will become stronger. Since this has already happened, there is nothing we can do about it, so let’s move on… … .”
Zwalter looked worried.
“Honestly, I’m worried. His actions are becoming more and more extreme.”
“… … .”
“Cut yourself down a little. You should know how scary the nobles and other lords are.”
If you only pursue efficiency, you will inevitably continue to face opposition from those around you.
In the long run, that would actually be a big loss.
That’s how scary vested rights are.
Rather than turning everyone into enemies, it would be better to make some concessions.
Zwalter made a point of it.
Jiselle, who knew the habits of the nobles, also nodded in agreement.
Because my father doesn’t know the future, he just acts realistically.
“I will try.”
“Ugh… … .”
Zwalter groaned. From the way he spoke, it seemed like he would continue to act as he pleased.
But even if I wanted to yell at him, I couldn’t do it carelessly anymore.
Jiselle’s powers are now beyond his influence.
‘Hehe, how did it end up like this?’
It was hard to respond because it suddenly grew so much. It was hard to keep up with the lightning-quick changes.
Although my head was complicated, on the other hand, I was also proud of it.
What parent wouldn’t be happy to see their child grow up and break free from their comfort zone?
‘Yeah, it’s a bit extreme, but I guess that’s because he’s still young.’
What’s already happened can’t be helped.
To be honest, I was happier and prouder than anyone else.
I just nagged him a bit because I was worried as a father.
“I just said it because I was worried, so don’t be upset. Anyway, thank you for your hard work. You did a great job. Now, I have to deal with the aftermath, so rest for a while. We’ll have a victory banquet soon.”
Zwalter, who was thinking about a way to stabilize the territory, suddenly remembered something he had forgotten.
‘Wait a minute… … If that happens, I won’t be able to receive compensation right away?’
Suddenly a new problem arose.
The Ferdium estate is pitifully short of money.
Originally, the plan was to divide the reward money with the money received from Digald.
However, since Digald’s territory was annexed by Ferdium, it was not possible to raise much money to run it.
“Albert… … How much money do we have left?”
When Zwalter asked, Albert, the finance minister, answered with a look of confusion on his face.
“We don’t have money.”
“doesn’t exist?”
“Yes, I don’t have a single penny. Why are you saying this now? Because of the war, we used up all the supplies we had. We’ve always had no money.”
“… … Then what about the reward?”
“Didn’t you say that you would cover that with the compensation you received from Digald?”
“… … Yeah, that’s right.”
The joy of victory has cooled down.
The vassals could be given a little later, but the knights and soldiers could not.
The longer they delay giving out the bounty, the lower their morale will be.
The belief that dedication will be rewarded is the foundation of loyalty. The major award was one of the representative ‘rewards’.
“Huh, shouldn’t we reward those who have achieved great things?”
Zwalter clicked his tongue and looked around at his followers. It was an unspoken pressure to think of a way to make money.
But their eyes were all turned towards Giselle.
It seemed like everyone had something they wanted to say, but couldn’t bring themselves to say it.
The richest man in the land and the one who promised to give you the rune stone.
And, the one and only number one contributor.
“Ahem, ahem! Ah, my throat hurts a little.”
Zwalter coughed slightly and smiled slightly embarrassedly.
“Excuse me… Giselle? Could you give me the rune stone first?”
Rather than awarding the top contributor, they had to borrow money.
