Chapter : 64

Although I had returned from a long journey, I could not rest.

There was a backlog of work, and now a war was just around the corner. It was time to assess the domain's situation and prepare for war.

I headed straight for the inner castle office and had the servants summon the vassals.

"It's been a while."

"Did you have a good trip, my Lord?"

The faces of the vassals greeting me were all haggard. Anyone could see that they had been suffering from overwork for a long time.

Especially Treasurer Palmer, I was startled when I first saw him.

"Ugh.... My Lord…."

He moved feebly as he looked at me, like a zombie. His once chubby cheeks were now hollowed out, gone somewhere.

'Hmm, but isn't he actually healthier now?'

Slyly ignoring the surging guilt, I said.

"Ahem, thanks to you all, I had a good trip. There were quite a few gains as well. It was worth the long journey."

"That is a relief. Bishop Marco's complexion was so poor, I thought things had gone wrong. Hoho."

At Chamberlain Hamil's words, I let out a dry cough.

Bishop Marco was still sulking.

Unlike his usual self in the council chamber, he was standing sullenly in a corner, pouting and bleating 'meeh~ meeh~'.

'Good grief.'

Did he really like playing that much? A sigh escaped me just looking at that childish goat beastman.

Still, since he's a key vassal, I should probably make an excuse for him....

"Was the journey a bit long? He's traveled a great distance, so he's probably still tired. He especially worked hard at the Holy See."

"Ah, is that so?"

"Well, I suppose that could be it…."

The vassals didn't seem entirely convinced, but what could they do?

I, their lord, said so.

In the end, they just laughed awkwardly and nodded their heads as if in agreement.

"So, is there anything to report? It looks like the domain has changed quite a bit?"

I quickly changed the subject.

Then, Chamberlain Hamil handed over a thick pile of documents and said.

"Most of the tasks you ordered before you left are either in progress or completed. Here, you can see the documents."

"Oh?"

I thought at most one or two would be in progress, but some were even finished?

"Treasurer Palmer suffered quite a lot. Hahaha."

Chamberlain Hamil replied with a laugh, as if he had read my surprised expression.

'This guy.... I thought he was a loafer all this time, but he's finally become a man-!'

I felt a surge of emotion.

Was this the feeling of turning a wayward ruffian into a decent person?

Of course, from Palmer, who was staring at me with a gaunt expression, there seemed to be more resentment than gratitude.

"You told us to investigate the nearby merchant guilds and find out the necessary goods and prices. We were able to finish everything with the active help of the L’Isle-Ponte merchant guild and Baron Pierre."

"Baron Pierre, you say?"

"Yes, my Lord. He said he'll repay it with plenty of interest and looks forward to the next deal, but I'm not sure what that means...."

I smiled bitterly at Chamberlain Hamil, who tilted his head as he spoke.

Baron Pierre.

It seemed he had some shame after all. To think a person who had only been receiving would make the first move.

Well, the amount of pencils I gave him was just enough to solidify his position within his family. He must have made a huge amount of money from this trade.

"It's a personal matter with me. I'll handle the matter of Baron Pierre."

"Ah, is that so?"

"Yes. More importantly, there are a huge number of tents outside that seem to belong to merchant guilds. Where did they come from?"

Then, Chamberlain Hamil said with a proud face, as if boasting.

"The goods produced in the factory are a huge success. The relay market isn't even complete yet, but merchants are coming from all over. From nearby domains to as far as the northern regions of the kingdom and the Kingdom of Aragon."

"Oh.... Is it already establishing itself like that?"

"The help from the city council of Markel and the Dwarf artisans was a great help. After several improvements, both quality and productivity have improved."

"Good, very good."

I was very satisfied with the progress, which was much faster than I had thought.

At this rate, with the help of the newly recruited money changers, accountants, and the L’Isle-Ponte merchant guild, it seemed I could soon be rolling in money.

As was the case in the medieval period, in [Pangea Universalise], the currencies used in the southern and northern regions of the continent were different.

If I used this to run an exchange business at the newly created trade relay, I would make a fortune from commission fees.

"It's great that everything seems to be going smoothly. You've all worked hard. It's thanks to you."

The rosy outlook in my head eased a great deal of my worries.

Now, if I could just successfully navigate the upcoming Southern Heretic Subjugation cum War of the Aragonese Succession and the Great Famine, I would have laid the foundation to become the greatest house.

If I could just finish it well.

"Then, I've heard the internal news well. What are the trends in the surrounding area while I was away? Are there any specific things I should know?"

"Hmm…."

Seeing him hesitate, it seemed something had happened....

Just as I thought.

The words that came out of Chamberlain Hamil's mouth were not good.

"The vigilance of the surrounding lords has become extremely high. I hear they have been hiring mercenaries little by little recently."

"In their situation? They shouldn't have any money because of the recent issue with me, right?"

"It's all because of the Holy See."

"???"

What was this now?

What did the Holy See have to do with the surrounding lords being on guard? Had some problem erupted while I was unaware?

Seeing my expression, Chamberlain Hamil asked cautiously.

"I understand that you went to the Holy See regarding the punishment of heretics, my Lord."

"That's right."

"By any chance, is the heretic punishment the Holy See is talking about the king?"

"The king? The king of the Elang Kingdom? Why does he come up here?"

Then, Chamberlain Hamil let out a sigh.

"Currently, the special envoy of the Holy See is constantly spewing harsh words at the king.

According to rumors, he mentioned excommunicating the king in an official setting."

"Hmm…."

The clear target was the King of Aragon, but they were attacking another king?

'They're trying to divert attention.'

It was a feint, of sorts.

If they were made to believe the King of the Elang Kingdom was the target, the southern heretics and the King of Aragon would surely let their guard down completely.

The king's fiefs and forces were mostly in the north.

While they were off guard like that, the Holy See, having gathered its forces, would rush in like the wind and end the whole situation-!

At the meticulously crafted grand strategy, my wariness of the Holy See rose once again.

Indeed, the Holy See was not to be taken lightly. It wasn't for nothing that they had influenced all the countries on the continent for hundreds of years.

"In that case, you probably haven't been able to buy much food? Is that right? Hmm, looking at the report, that's right. Treasurer Palmer."

"Ah, yes.... The prices suddenly became so expensive...."

When his name was called, Treasurer Palmer broke out in a sweat and spoke as if making an excuse.

"I'm not trying to blame you. In a situation like this, wouldn't that be natural? Since everyone is anticipating war, it's unlikely they would sell precious food."

"That's right, my Lord. Hehehe."

Only then did Treasurer Palmer let out a sigh of relief with a sycophantic laugh.

That slacker, really....

I clicked my tongue inwardly and continued.

"Unlike your worries, the Holy See's target is the heretics in the south of the kingdom and the Kingdom of Aragon. The ultimate goal is to replace the King of Aragon."

"Oh, is that so?"

"Yes, this is the Holy See's grand plan. So there's no need to get caught up in it and act rashly. We just need to worry about the southern region."

At those words, the vassals all let out sighs of relief.

If the king had been the target, the battlefield would have effectively been the Bellua Margraviate, not somewhere else.

That's why they were relieved to hear that the Holy See's target was the Kingdom of Aragon.

No one wanted their own fief to be devastated. They wanted someone else's territory to be destroyed.

"The total number of troops we need to mobilize is 5,000."

"What? 5,000, you say?"

"That's too much of a strain on our domain's situation, my Lord. And there won't be much to gain in return…."

"If that many troops leave, the surrounding lords might not just stand by."

The mobilization of troops was very different from what they had thought, and the scale was far too large, so everyone expressed their concerns.

Well, as I said before, in [Pangea Universalise], even a thousand soldiers was an enormous number.

But 5,000.

It was a very burdensome number for a single lord to mobilize.

If they didn't get a proper reward, the entire domain could fall into debt. Moreover, if the soldiers defending the domain were gone, the surrounding lords with whom they had a bad relationship might take advantage.

But that concern was short-lived.

"I know. I know what you are worried about. But I have been promised a city by the Holy See. The city of Mangtong."

"?!"

As I continued, people's expressions brightened. Obtaining a southern trading port city would be a profitable business.

"But I still know what your concerns are. So I plan to mobilize only 3,000 domain soldiers and fill the rest with mercenaries."

"Hmm, I understand."

"As you wish, my Lord."

Furthermore, when I proposed a compromise for the defense of the domain, they took a step back.

If a proper reward and countermeasures had been thought of, there was no reason to oppose it.

"Good. Now that you understand the situation, prepare well for the goal. The time to mobilize the army is in the spring when the wheat planting begins. Just be ready by then."

With this, the backlog of work from my long business trip was over! I dismissed the vassals and sat alone in my office.

Now all I had to do was prepare and wait for that day to come.

The day the prelude to destruction would be played.

* * *

"Ah-! And there were some people I couldn't introduce the other day."

"What? An introduction?"

"Yes, I made many connections during my visit to the Holy See. I've brought back a precious person."

The next day, I summoned the vassals and said.

"This is the Great Sage of the Forest, Agpiel, with whom I formed a bond on this journey. He will be helping with the affairs of the domain from now on."

"What?"

"A pleasure to meet you. It's quite refreshing to see the people I've only heard about with my own two eyes. Hohoho."

"???"

At the unexpected appearance of a big shot, the vassals were all astonished.

How did our Lord bring back such a person? The Great Sage of the Forest was a famous magician, wasn't he?

"Ha, haha…?!"

In a situation that was hard to comprehend, the vassals let out astonished, hollow laughs.

"And these people are the anatomist and surgeon Vesalius, and the Moorish technicians.

They will establish a university and train future scholars."

"A pleasure. I look forward to working with you."

"???"

And at the following words, the vassals were once again astonished.

A scholar who dissects corpses and black-skinned technicians-!

Thanks to that, the vassals had to once again let out astonished, hollow laughs.

In a very different sense.