Ripening (5)

With all my vassals glaring at her, Branne calmly met my gaze. She certainly was a woman.

“This is the promise I can offer you. It is an official document stamped with House Ishtain’s seal.”

I examined the contents of the document.

First, three items were written there, and the first item concerned aid.

It stated that she wished to borrow 3 million great gold coins, and that she needed 10,000 sets of iron defensive gear for her soldiers to use.

It was quite a large amount. On top of that, because of the war, the price of iron had soared, and it had become extremely difficult to obtain iron on the Central Continent. That was not all. There were also rumors that the value of gold coins was rising.

I wondered what Branne must have been feeling while asking for this much in the middle of all this.

Then I examined the second item.

‘It’s the repayment method. Repayment after one year, according to the value at the present point in time…’

No one could know what shape the world would take after one year. First of all, according to the recent news that had come in, a great war named the “Human-Demon War” had broken out.

Both the Demon Tribe’s army and the human army had suffered enormous damage, and it looked as though the war was about to expand. The Demon King who had been coming toward us had gone silent, and just in time, another Demon King in a different region had also begun moving, putting the human forces in an emergency situation.

Recently, I had heard rumors that the Demon Tribe’s forces numbered ten million, but it was not a rumor that could be trusted.

However, the fact that two Demon Kings were moving could be called an unprecedented event in the continent’s history of war.

‘Was it said that the Empire has also become cautious about organizing its army because of the Human-Demon War…?’

The neighboring countries were not looking kindly on the Empire’s actions of waging a civil war right before a major war against the Demon Tribe. If the Ishtain Region could become independent like this without great difficulty, then after one year, it would come back as quite a large sum.

However, the final item did not sit well with me.

‘If repayment is impossible, the Ishtain Region will be handed over to us…’

Strictly speaking, it was only the “Ishtain County,” but just as I was thinking that it still felt rather unpleasant…

“I will repay it without fail. I cannot allow my house to disappear.”

Seeing that my gaze had stopped on the final item, Branne spoke up. She was rather perceptive too.

“The final item… Did you put it in because you thought Ishtain County had that much value?”

“The clause about handing over the county includes me as well, a ‘Master.’ If you can obtain a Master for the value of 3 million and 10,000 sets of iron armor, would that not be a profitable deal?”

“Mm…”

Personally, I thought, “Not really,” but I had no intention of saying that openly. To put it bluntly, I already had more than seven vassals who were Master-class or above.

Going further than that, I had heard that there were also many beastkin whose abilities had not been measured accurately. I had heard from Wijel that they had merely chosen to live ordinary lives with their families and therefore did not step forward.

They could literally be called a race with endless potential.

“One year… Do you think the Imperial Family will simply leave the Ishtain Region alone?”

“I believe Your Majesty is also aware of the Human-Demon War situation. The Empire will not be able to start a war easily. And I intend to negotiate.”

“What kind of negotiation do you mean?”

“In exchange for recognition of our independence, we… intend to be incorporated into the Empire as a duchy.”

That made me wonder what the point of independence was, but after thinking about it carefully, one could say that she would go from being a count to a “duke-prince.”

She would have separate autonomy from the Empire, and the laws would likely be revised into Ishtain laws rather than Imperial laws.

It literally meant that she would become a tributary state.

“Do you think they will accept it?”

“The Empire is in a situation where each and every ‘Master’ has become extremely precious.”

Branne was trying to wield the fact that she was a Master as though it were some kind of treasured blade, but thinking about it carefully, it seemed acceptable to use it that way.

That was because Agnes and the others must have reported the circumstances of Ingrad in detail, and since they would have realized that we were not a group they could ever take lightly, I thought they would struggle to secure even one more strong individual.

Branne had also grasped this and intended to use herself as a commodity.

I also thought she was probably borrowing great gold coins in order to rapidly raise castle walls and show that they were not an easy opponent.

“You made a good judgment.”

Branne’s eyes shone at my words. So, with my fingers interlaced, I asked her.

“If I give you a little more, what more can you do?”

When the sudden offer came in, Branne fell into thought and asked.

“If it were around 5 million great gold coins, I would quickly expand two castles and then enter a siege defense. If we had 20,000 sets of iron equipment, I would form an ironclad infantry unit, and we would be able to block several routes and guide the enemy’s march.”

An ironclad infantry unit. This was a world where “magic” existed. No matter how sturdy a group was, there would absolutely be a way to counter it.

However, seeing how confidently she said it, it seemed that there was something more to it.

“Can you meet the repayment period?”

“I intend to entrust the process of expanding the castle walls itself to the people suffering from hardship. Our goal is to build suitable castles and show them to the enemy rather than perfecting their defensive ability, so we will be able to relieve the starving people and instill wariness in the enemy as well. And if more commoners come to hold money, I believe merchants will naturally see that money and flock in despite knowing the danger. If that happens, the economy will naturally begin to circulate.”

Certainly, if 5 million great gold coins were evenly released among the people of the territory, I thought the atmosphere would change as Branne expected.

On top of that, around 5 million great gold coins was no longer a huge amount of money to me. Furthermore, in the contents recently reported as the national treasury, “my personal funds” alone exceeded 30 million great gold coins.

It was literally “personal funds.” Considering that I normally took around 10% as personal profit, it was right to say that I was earning an enormous amount.

It was an amount so obvious that saying more would only make my mouth hurt.

“You want to let them know you can use the same method as last time?”

“I believe that anything that can threaten them should be used.”

It seemed like she was trying to catch several rabbits at once. In effect, the greatest problem in the current Ishtain Region was “hunger.” It had been a short war, but the rice that should have been growing well had been trampled, and the crops had been burned.

Moreover, because there was the problem of economic isolation, difficulties had arisen with various forms of procurement, so it seemed she had considered this as a breakthrough measure.

Furthermore, if not for the blockade order, the Ishtain Region was located in a position where it would have been quite wealthy. Considering that it had been taking quite a lot of profit through intermediary trade, I judged that helping them would not necessarily be bad, and in the end, I came to think that I should use not the national treasury, but my own personal funds to help them.

And I spoke to Branne as though adding a footnote.

“The promise back then to share the merits earned in the war still has not been fulfilled, so this time, I hope you make an effort to be a bit more trustworthy.”

“I can only apologize.”

After that, Branne was surprised to see me readily accept their proposal, and watching Branne’s face bloom brightly as her once-heavy expression seemed to lighten, I ended up laughing softly.

It could be called acting like a pushover, but it was an investment. Right now, the war was in the process of intensifying. Considering the value of gold and the value of iron and so on, if the situation did not worsen after one year and the war stabilized to some degree?

I thought that, even if it would not be dozens of times what I had handed over now, I would be able to receive back several times more.

And if that did not happen?

As Branne said, I could simply take her in. For the price of the Ishtain Domain and one Master, 5 million great gold coins was honestly quite cheap.

If the Empire learned that I was providing aid like this, they would probably throw a fit, but honestly, I was not afraid.

To put it bluntly, it was not even a non-aggression pact. It was simply a ceasefire. In that case, it meant they had no place to interfere with whatever we did while considering it diplomacy.

Besides, it had been an enthronement ceremony, yet not a single common Imperial noble had appeared. It seemed the Imperial Family had spread some quite firm rumors, but I thought they were laughable fellows, wondering why they had all been so frightened and had not come.

On the last day of the festival, I gathered all the important figures from each country into the banquet hall of the inner Keep and ended up entertaining those who thought themselves rather noble. Today, Branne appeared not in a dress, but in a knight’s formal uniform, and even so, her beauty was overwhelming, so gazes of envy and jealousy were being sent at her from the surroundings.

Moreover, as though she did not care at all about other people’s reactions, she stuck right beside me and stood there without saying much, as if she were my escort, which was truly… quite burdensome.

That was because the gazes sent by the princesses of the surrounding nations were making my face feel as though it were prickling. At least Onellia, who was acquainted with me, approached and acknowledged me, but all the other women merely watched me with sharp gazes.

“I do not know why they are all looking at me so burdensomely.”

Hearing my words, Onellia covered her mouth with her fan and laughed with a “hoho,” then asked me.

“Are you asking because you truly do not know?”

“Mm, I am very lacking in perception, you see. I truly do not know, so could you tell me?”

With an expression as though she had heard something unexpected, Onellia smiled softly and said.

“They must have become jealous because you are keeping only one woman by your side. On top of that… since she boasts such extraordinary beauty, they cannot even bring themselves to approach.”

For saying that, Onellia had confidently approached in front of me. Besides, I had never kept only one woman by my side. Honestly speaking, I had not kept Branne by my side; Branne had been following me around.

Moreover, no matter what question I asked, she did not answer affectionately, but rather gave short replies while observing the surroundings with a somewhat stiff feeling.

Feeling my gaze, Branne met my eyes. Then she lightly curled the corners of her mouth and showed me a smile close to a smirk, and I wondered what meaning that smile held.

So I also smiled awkwardly at Branne, and Onellia spoke casually.

“You make quite the handsome man and beautiful woman pair. Whew, I never expected to feel such a wall. Haa…”

I could not understand what she meant, but Onellia was indeed looking at Branne as she said it. But then, just in time… because Branne threw out a comment as though tossing a spark, even I became awkward.

“I am different from ordinary women who compete with their beauty. I am a swordswoman and knight who walks the path of the sword. I am indeed a woman, but… if you think of me as an ordinary woman, that could be called extremely rude.”

Onellia’s expression hardened the fastest, and after that, sparks rose in the eyes of the women nearby who had been listening closely.

It did not seem like she lacked tact… Could she have done this on purpose?

That was the moment I thought so.