Chapter 181: How About It? I Found It Quickly! (1)
The entire Ruthania Kingdom was suffering from drought, but the North was in a much worse situation than the other regions.
Raybold and Desmond, sitting on the largest granary zone in the North, had completely banned food exports.
It was a barren and poor region to begin with, so the damage was even greater. The central nobles were too busy taking care of themselves this time, making it hard to expect any support.
As starvation became rampant, the Lords were racking their brains for a solution when a certain rumor began to spread quickly.
“I heard there’s so much food in Penris Territory.”
“I heard that the immigrants have swept it all away, driving the prices up.”
“With that much, they must surely have some leftovers. We need to get our hands on that!”
All eyes in the North turned toward Penris Territory.
The Lord of Penris was a young brat with poor military strength, making it difficult to resist the temptation.
If they could just take that place, they could get through this tough time immediately.
However, even if they wanted Penris Territory, the Lords couldn’t declare war.
“Damn it! That brat has Marquis Branford backing him!”
“What a lucky bastard! Getting the favor of such a big shot because of cosmetics!”
“Why on earth did the Crown Prince Faction accept such a loser?”
It was because Marquis Branford and the Crown Prince Faction stood behind Ghislaine. Attacking Penris would practically turn them into enemies as well.
There were no Lords in the North willing to bear that risk.
It was clear that starting a war would lead to self-destruction, so the Lords decided to propose a deal instead.
For Lords who acted like might makes right, this response was surprisingly peaceful.
Thus, envoys were sent to Penris from various regions and countless organizations.
Naturally, they thought they could easily secure food.
“They will have no choice but to treat us lavishly, thinking of our father. Once the drought ends, they’ll need our support again.”
“Exactly! The North has always been bound by strong loyalty! Honestly, Perdium has survived thanks to us.”
“If they had any conscience, they would bow down to us! Ahem!”
Supporting Perdium was just a natural price for protecting them from the barbarians, yet the Lords were acting as if they had generously helped.
Even though their support was barely enough to let them catch their breath.
In fact, during the last war, they had completely ignored Perdium’s requests for help, but all of that had already been erased from their minds.
However, their arrogant assumptions began to shatter as soon as they arrived at Penris.
Claude greeted the envoys and first sought their understanding.
As they welcomed the envoys, they first sought understanding.
“Unfortunately, we have too many guests, and there are no accommodations available.”
“There’s…no lodging?”
“Yes. However, we do have a very large, magnificent tent that will leave you in awe. Would you like to stay there?”
At Claude’s words, the envoys couldn’t hide their anger.
“How dare you treat envoys like this! I am someone who has received full authority from the Lord!”
“This is against all laws and courtesies!”
“What kind of rudeness is this! Are you ignoring our territory?”
Despite the fierce protests, Claude simply rolled his eyes with an expression of annoyance. What did they expect him to do when there was literally no place to stay?
With the small castle overflowing with envoys, there was no chance of spare rooms.
At first, Claude had tried to offer even the shabby servants’ quarters, but Ghislaine opposed.
— We can’t make our people suffer because of these sinister outsiders. If there’s no room to build rapport, set up a tent outside for them.
What could he do with the lord saying that? But as the protests continued, he was reaching the point of irritation.
“Ah, I don’t want to do it like this either, but there’s truly no space! Too many guests have come in! It’s not like this is some famous restaurant; why are so many of you here? Ugh, this is so annoying!”
With the chief officer giving off such a nonchalant attitude, the envoys had no other recourse.
“Fine… let’s just do it that way.”
The envoys who arrived a bit late had to really stay in a tent outside.
Staying in a tent that was only big but contained nothing but air led to nothing but complaints rather than admiration.
Thanks to uncomfortable sleeping arrangements, their bodies were sore, and Ghislaine didn’t meet with them right away, making them wait. They were infuriated by the treatment they had never expected.
“Look at this brat thinking they’re on cloud nine just because they stocked up some food!”
“What a reckless fool who doesn’t even know how to behave like a noble! Let’s see how much more arrogant they get!”
Though complaints bubbled up, not a single soul turned back.
There was nowhere else to procure food other than the Penris Territory.
The ones in a tight spot had no choice but to endure with clenched teeth.
As time passed and it felt like enough people had gathered, Ghislaine called them all to one place.
The main hall was so cramped that the envoys could barely fit in, leaving their attendants outside. Nevertheless, the hall bustled like a marketplace.
The envoys were extremely displeased, but they concealed their emotions as best they could.
Ghislaine surveyed them with a relaxed smile and opened his mouth.
“How much have you gathered?”
“……???”
At Ghislaine’s merchant-like question, the envoys were left speechless.
Originally, their plan was to somehow extort a ton of food from this brat by using a mix of persuasion and threats.
‘No, how can we negotiate in a situation like this?’
‘Damn! How much should we ask for? Others must be eyeing the food too!’
‘I’m going crazy. We have to compete on prices now.’
Transactions between territories are usually conducted in secrecy to avoid second-guessing later on when dealing with other territories, saying things like “they offered this condition.”
But with so many people from different territories gathered together, negotiation became a moot point.
The one who called the highest price would be first in line.
After a moment of panic, a few of the envoys exchanged glances and stepped forward.
A few exchanged glances and stepped forward.
It was an appropriate response from those who had lived off their tongues in the harsh North.
“Ahem, we come from the Jimbard Territory. We formally request food support from the Penris Territory.”
“Request?”
“That’s right. We have provided significant support to Perdium for a long time now. I’m sure you can’t deny that thanks to us, even the Baron has been able to grow this much. Now that our circumstances have become difficult, wouldn’t it be reasonable to consider the goodwill we’ve shown…”
The envoy rambled on about how much they had contributed to Perdium over the years. Long-winded as it was, the gist was essentially, “We’ve fed you till now, so hand over some food already.”
Other envoys began to pressure Ghislaine in chorus.
“The North has always shared its pains together. It’s only because Perdium stood with us that you could endure the hardships until now.”
“Now it’s time for the Baron to extend his hand.”
The envoys competed to say, “In any case, you’re responsible for this.”
Their attitude was so audacious it was hard to believe they were there to request food.
It was just their nature to assume dominance over Perdium for so long.
Even though the situation had shifted slightly now, eventually, they would have to regain their upper hand.
Poor Perdium would have to rely on their support to survive.
So, considering their future relationship, Ghislaine couldn’t afford to come on too strong, or so they thought.
However, that assumption was completely shattered by Ghislaine’s chilling smile and remark.
“You should be telling that to my father. Why are you asking me for a reward? I’m not even the one receiving support.”
The envoys, momentarily taken aback by Ghislaine’s words, quickly regained their aggression.
“But, Baron, you are the heir there, aren’t you? You will need our support in the future regardless.”
“Exactly. Droughts are temporary, but what will you do afterward? Don’t pretend to ignore the ties of the alliance we’ve formed over the years. We are longstanding allies, after all.”
“Are you saying you don’t need support? If the support were to cut off, it wouldn’t just be a problem for you, Baron; it would also be troublesome for Count Perdium.”
The envoys had talked themselves back into confidence.
Yeah, even if this brat thinks he can hold the upper hand with food for now, it’s just temporary.
What happens once the drought is resolved? Does he really think he can fend off the North alone without our support? With such a puny production capacity and troop numbers?
Not a chance. If that were possible, Perdium wouldn’t be struggling as it is.
As Ghislaine glared at the confidently smug envoys, he spoke in a cold voice.
“Those emphasizing alliances and loyalty just ignored us during the war, didn’t they?”
“…”
At that, the envoys shut their mouths tight.
Honestly, who cared who seized Perdium? No one was foolish enough to waste troops and resources getting involved in such wars.
That’s how politics works. This brat still doesn’t know that and is sulking over the past.
As the envoys were about to refute, Ghislaine casually tossed out, “Twenty thousand gold.”
“Excuse me? Twenty thousand gold? Is that the price of food?”
“No, it’s unrelated to food. From now on, the support territories of Perdium will each have to pay me twenty thousand gold a year for defense costs. Any territory that fails to pay or falls behind will be opened up to allow barbarians to come in.”
Count Perdium would never allow such a thing, but the people of the other territories didn’t know what kind of person the Count truly was.
Count Perdium would never allow something like that, but the people from the other territories didn’t know exactly what kind of person the count was.
So everyone was understandably shocked by Ghislaine’s declaration.
“W-what are you saying?!”
A 20,000 gold defense fee was ridiculous enough, but threatening to clear a path? He was completely insane!
‘Wait, shouldn’t the defense fee be collected from Perdium? Why does he think he can just take it? Who does he think he is?’
The envoys immediately protested with mixed expressions of confusion and humiliation.
“That’s unacceptable! We are already providing sufficient support!”
“Count Perdium is a marquess and must uphold local customs. It’s an obligation!”
“That’s stated in the kingdom’s laws! That’s why we receive so many benefits, isn’t it!”
Despite the vehement protests from the envoys, Ghislaine didn’t even blink.
“Benefits? You all turned a blind eye when we were in danger.”
“Well, at that time, there were extenuating circumstances…”
“A mere mercenary expects to be paid for his work. From now on, I intend to receive a fair price for sacrifices made, so don’t question it. I’m tired of your pathetic support dictating our territory.”
“How dare you speak so rudely…!”
“Enough! If you keep talking, I’ll end the food transactions and kick you out. I don’t have the patience for this. Oh, I’ve really become nice. Despite all this chatter, I’m still dealing with you.”
“W-what about profits!”
Threatened with expulsion, the envoys fell silent. Securing food was far more important at the moment.
However, they were boiling with anger inside and couldn’t contain themselves. Some exchanged glances, grinding their teeth.
‘Just wait until this drought is resolved; I won’t let this slide.’
‘This brat is getting too cocky, thinking he has the Crown Prince Faction backing him. Defense fees? Do they really think we’ll pay that trash?’
‘If we join forces, it wouldn’t take much to slowly grind him down.’
They could think like this only because they were unaware of how quickly Penris was developing.
With a weak military and an unremarkable territory, they only believed they were lucky because food reserves had built up due to the influx of immigrants.
The other envoys remained silent, witnessing their humiliation.
Even those who could at least blame Perdium were being treated that way; they knew stepping in would only lead to their own embarrassment.
Ghislaine smiled wickedly as he looked around the quiet conference hall.
“Now, shall we start the transaction?”
As soon as he said that, one of the envoys quickly raised his hand.
“I’ll offer 10 silver for a sack of wheat!”
Before the famine, a sack of wheat averaged around 3 silver. After the harvest, it could drop to as low as 1 silver.
10 silver was an outrageous price.
Then others jumped in, shouting.
“I’ll offer 11 silver!”
“We’ll give 12 silver!”
“I’ll offer 13 silver!”
Everyone was in a hurry, raising their bids.
Rumors about food reserves in Penris territory were rampant, but just how much surplus there actually was remained unknown.
They feared that if someone else bought first, they might end up with no food at all, leading them to shout louder.
In the midst of the bustling conference hall, someone quietly spoke up.
“1 gold.”
“……!”
At the astonishing price, everyone turned in shock.
There stood a middle-aged man in a robe, exuding an arrogant demeanor.
Ghislaine flashed a chilling smile as he looked at him.
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