Chapter 44: The Smell of Money (4)
The sound of a wine glass sliding across the table didn’t catch Yukhar’s attention. Instead, he quickly replied to Isaac’s question.
“Someone will definitely kick the bucket.”
It was a vague statement. Was he hinting that Isaac would meet his end, or was he referring to himself?
Thinking that his comment might have been too bold, Yukhar continued.
“Do you have any clue how many big shots, traders, and knights are tied up with Loracus? Even farmers have jumped on board. Just imagine breaking the news to those folks who are thrilled about their supposed treasure turning out to be garbage. What do you think they’d do?”
Yukhar remained cool as a cucumber as he conversed with Isaac.
“Do you reckon they’d take your advice? When their entire fortunes are on the line? They might brush you off, or maybe they’d take extreme measures to avoid prices plummeting.”
Isaac realized why Yukhar wasn’t worried. He wasn’t bothered about the Shepherd’s Crook being exposed.
So many were already caught up in the Lorocus mess.
Even without the Shepherd’s Crook stirring things up, the whole of Seor was charging forward driven by desire. Despite knowing it would end in disaster, nobody could put a stop to it.
“Now that things have escalated to this point, Holy Grail Knight, may I speak?”
“Fire away.”
“I don’t know if you know, but the Golden Idol top brass has no paladins among them.”
That was unexpected. Why bring up the Golden Idol top brass and paladins out of the blue? Yukhar didn’t wait for Isaac’s response and continued,
“No priests or angels either. Only followers are part of the Golden Idol top brass.”
The absence of priests, paladins, and angels was why the Golden Idol top brass could blend in with other faiths’ districts without heavy protection from the nine faiths.
Some even questioned the existence of the Golden Idol as a deity.
But merchants had felt the deity’s grace on their travels, escaped bankruptcy through blessings, and experienced unexpected wealth and profits. The faith of these merchants has kept the Golden Idol top brass influential among them.
“Why is that?”
“If they had priests and paladins, they’d have conflicting roles, sparking disputes. Disagreements would disrupt merchants moving between different faiths and engaging in trade.”
That would hinder them from following their key doctrine: the pursuit of profit. Isaac, who had foreseen the Golden Idol top brass’s fate, knew this well.
“Paladins and priests may be missing. Even angels. But tell me, does the Golden Idol as a deity truly exist?”
“Are we suddenly delving into theology?”
“Other faiths connect with their deity through priests. But in the Golden Idol top brass, there are no priests. Meaning, there’s no direct line to the deity. It’s uncertain if he even exists.”
“I get where you’re coming from. Do you follow the Golden Idol top brass?”
“Yes.”
Isaac seemed to grasp the setup. Soer had two branch managers: Caitlin, who pursued legitimate trade in the light, and Yukhar, who didn’t shy away from any means to turn a profit in the shadows.
It wouldn’t be weird if Caitlin, working in the shadows, had no clue about what Yukhar was up to. Their jobs were totally different, and from the beginning, Yukhar’s opinions among the bigwigs at Golden Idol seemed to be pushing boundaries.
“Does it bug you that a paladin from a different faith is bossing you around?”
“Not wrong.”
Yukhar shot a glare at Isaac as he spoke.
“If there was a paladin at the top of the golden idol, you wouldn’t have been able to make such a scene here. A priest could jinx your pockets to leak.”
“A potent jinx, huh.”
Isaac scoffed.
“May I say something?”
“Go ahead.”
“Get me a shepherd’s crook by tomorrow. If you pass it off smoothly, the commotion over the Loracus will also settle down quietly. But if you choose to kick up a fuss when I return, it won’t just be a chat we’ll have if you cooperate.”
“…”
Yukhar just glared at Isaac in silence. He knew he was in a bind. Even as a high-ranking member of Golden Idol, offing a paladin of the Codex of Light within the White Empire was practically social suicide.
If such a situation unfolded, the top brass at Golden Idol might even go as far as eliminating Yukhar to cover their tracks.
Isaac picked up the bottle of alcohol Yukhar had offered.
“Despite something fishy in it, this seems like decent alcohol. I’ll be taking this.”
***
“Lord Isaac!”
As Isaac left Yukhar’s mansion heading back to his place, he heard someone calling out to him. Caitlin leaned out of the carriage, calling his name.
She nearly jumped down from the carriage and walked up to Isaac.
“What’s going on? Why were you at Count of Reben’s place…”
“Did you know that guy is the boss of a shady gang?”
Caitlin furrowed her brows but didn’t deny the knowledge.
“I’ve heard rumors about Count Reben’s criminal ties. But we can’t afford to cut ties with him. If we get on the wrong side of the biggest underworld figure in Seor, it could ruin our business easily.”
Isaac didn’t fault her for her viewpoint. Caitlin was a businesswoman, not a judge or a hero. To her, as long as her people were safe and her goods sold well, that was good enough.
“Did you also know he’s been scamming people with Loracus, raking in money?”
“We did have business dealings frequently. But as far as I’m aware, he wasn’t stockpiling a lot of Loracus. It was at par with other big companies, and about one-tenth of what we handled.”
Isaac looked at Caitlin with a tinge of pity.
Caitlin might have fallen for the Loracus wine and the shepherd’s figure. Knowing how the top brass of Golden Idol played a role in the Loracus price hike, she was also being manipulated.
‘If it wasn’t for the shepherd’s figure, would she have stayed away from the trend?’
Doubtful. In the end, she might have had to team up with Yukhar, whether she liked it or not.
Isaac finally spoke up.
“Yukhar’s been pulling the strings all along.”
Isaac briefed Caitlin on what he had uncovered. The surge in Loracus prices was artificially engineered by Yukhar using the shepherd’s crook. He had been serving Loracus wine to the elites and influential figures of Seor, stoking their greed.
There was absolutely no legitimate reason for the spike in Loracus prices.
Caitlin’s face darkened as she listened, especially upon learning the Loracus price spike had no solid reason. She absentmindedly touched her cheek a few times.
“I thought maybe some hidden Loracus effect had surfaced or it was related to war readiness…”
“Not everything is straightforward,” Caitlin sighed.
“So, tracking where the Loracus is heading is pointless now. It seems like people are just hoping for its price to go up,” she remarked.
“Yeah, that seems about right,” Caitlin responded thoughtfully before turning to Isaac.
“Does this wrap up our deal then?”
“What’s the plan for Yukhar?” she inquired.
“He’ll be handled within our group. Even though he brought in Barbarians, we prefer to deal with our internal matters. We believe in respecting each other’s territories, and I didn’t expect him to take it this far…”
Isaac suggested introducing Caitlin to Jacquette. Since the Barbarians lacked faith, they might confess easily, and Yukhar might meet his end through Jacquette’s involvement.
“Are we continuing with the usual contract? I could pay in cash right now if you prefer,” Caitlin proposed, her main concern showing.
Having heard Isaac’s words, Caitlin anticipated a drop in Loracus prices. Although it might not plummet as Yukhar predicted, with Seor driven by greed, any decrease would still impact them. Settling the contract now might be the wiser choice.
“How much?” she asked.
Isaac was surprised by the substantial amount Caitlin suggested—enough to buy Yukhar’s mansion.
“That’s quite a sum,” he remarked.
“We need to prevent potential losses to our group,” Caitlin justified, looking relieved.
Although being the first to predict the Loracus price drop would help the Golden Idol Guild lessen their losses, Isaac hesitated.
“We are bound by the Golden Idol security contract, so it’s best to wait. Let’s reassess in a month. Despite our differing beliefs, a god is a god…”
Isaac paused, thinking over his words.
“You mentioned the Guild has no paladins?”
“True,” Caitlin affirmed.
“…Is that really the case?” he questioned.
In other faiths, breaking an oath could result in dire consequences, but the Golden Idol lacked such enforcement. Yukhar’s desire for priests and paladins hinted at deeper longing for what he lacked.
Isaac sensed a paladin from the Golden Idol might pursue Yukhar.
***
As night fell, a thick fog enveloped Seor. Isaac was housed in a lavish establishment provided by Caitlin, offering top-notch facilities and hospitality, even by modern standards.
This also meant that a lot of folks were working at the accommodation. Back in the good ol’ days without fancy machines, running things smoothly required manpower like nobody’s business.
So, it was pretty easy for a stranger to blend in unnoticed. I mean, who would bat an eye at a woman dressed as a plain ol’ maid?
Off she went, the maid, strolling through the crowd with a laundry basket in tow, just minding her own business. She checked the register, swiped a master key, and made her way to her destination, no problemo.
Finally, she reached a room, unlocked the door with the master key, but found it empty.
She took a quick look around, then walked up to the bed. And then, out of nowhere, she thrust her hand up, a red spear shooting through the ceiling with a bang.
But here’s the kicker – the maid’s face twitched. No sensation of piercing through flesh and bone like she expected.
Amidst the dust settling, she transformed into red mist and floated upward, oozing through the hole she’d made in the ceiling. After turning back to her normal self, she scanned the room, but her mark was nowhere to be found.
“A Wallachia human hunter? You again?” she muttered.
She snapped her head around to find Isaac, armed to the teeth, staring right back at her.
“It was you, the maid. Your glare’s scarier than most knights,” he commented.
