Erantri Quest (2)

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Azadine’s subordinates patrolled along the road, protected the refugees, mediated those who got into disputes, and shared food with those who collapsed from malnutrition.

They guided them to Sandokar Gate so that no one would collapse and die by the roadside, and the refugees gathered there like clouds.

“Welcome to Sandokar. I am Ivchek, Count of Sandokar.”

A giant nobleman in middle age spoke before the refugees. Since he was a formal noble and a member of the Yaegas God tribe, yet had sworn loyalty to a member of the Messenger Clan, the priest could not look favorably upon him.

However, while they were cowed by long hunger and bitter cold, when they saw Count Ivchek’s dignified and imposing appearance as he welcomed them with a confident bearing, their respect was greater than their contempt.

“First, permit us to use blood magic. It is to sort out drug addicts, heretics, and those belonging to thieves’ guilds.”

As soon as Count Ivchek finished speaking, the blood mage behind him cast a spell.

Blood flowed from his forearm, became small snakes, and scattered among the refugees.

“Do not touch them! They will not harm you!”

Along with the caster’s warning, the blood snakes moved and burst in several places.

When the soldiers approached and examined the arms of those people, black chain tattoos were revealed.

“I-I am a commoner!”

“You were Dwarven Arrow.”

“N-no! I’m not even a dwarf, so how can I be Dwarven Arrow!”

But when the soldiers threatened and subdued him with spears, then searched his body, opium hardened with resin spilled out from his baggage.

They had truly filtered out a drug addict with blood magic.

In that way, the work of filtering out drug addicts, drug dealers, heretics, criminals, and others was completed. When one heretic’s identity was exposed, he immediately tried to harm the people around him, but a crossbow fired by a crossbowman pierced his head.

Crossbowmen had been waiting atop the fortress battlements for a signal.

“Now then, are those who remain commoners? I will give you work. We cannot simply give things away without limit, after all.”

Count Ivchek began sorting the refugees with his subordinates.

It was to filter out those addicted to drugs or affiliated with criminal organizations, and to divide craftsmen, farmers, and warriors so they could be reassigned to the right places.

“Stone masons will be paid a wage of 1 shilling and 6 pence per day.”

“Carpenters will receive 1 shilling.”

“Blacksmiths will be paid 1 shilling and 3 pence!”

“We are recruiting people to work on farms! The wage is 10 pence!”

Count Ivchek’s recruiting officers classified people according to each skill and occupation. The refugees had worried that they would have to live like beggars and simply die slowly while eating thin gruel, so when jobs were instead offered on quite good terms, everyone was surprised.

As people rushed to apply for jobs, scribes recorded people according to their occupations and gave them identification plaques engraved with numbers.

“Hmm….”

The priest who had fled with Edir seemed shocked as he watched Sandokar accept and classify refugees, and then saw the orderly streets of Sandokar despite the large number of refugees it had taken in.

Even though it had entered an age of tribulation, it actually looked more organized than the city where they had originally lived.

“Could this possibly be your achievement, Count Ivchek?”

“I would like to say so, but no. It is Sir Azadine’s will.”

“…….”

“So, priest, what work can you do? Since you belong to the King’s Church, I think it would be good for you to stay on my side.”

“Do you not need people who can read, write, and calculate numbers? You seem to need many scribes.”

“But the scribes must become Sir Azadine’s subordinates and do that work. For you, a priest of the King’s Church….”

“I will do it. No, please allow me to do it.”

“Very well. Welcome.”

Count Ivchek accepted the priest, who volunteered as a scribe, and looked at Edir and Gidit.

“And you?”

The priest, who was being guided by Count Ivchek, stepped forward on their behalf and vouched for their identities.

“This man is Edir, a servant from Vthuma. And this man is Gidit, a doppelsöldner of the Cell Sword Guild. Both are quite skilled. Thanks to them, we were able to flee here safely.”

“Is that so? Hmm, positions for officers to train recruits are always open. You have come well.”

Ivchek gladly accepted them. Edir felt as if he had been possessed by a ghost.

The Messenger Clan was the enemy that had destroyed his homeland, Vthuma. And yet this place, managed by Sir Azadine, a member of that Messenger Clan, had become the optimal refuge for refugees.

Of course, it was not a refuge where one could play and eat for free, and they had to work, but the desperate sights he had seen on the way here felt like lies.

“Um, Count. Forgive my impertinence, but I heard Sir Azadine is a member of the Messenger Clan. What kind of person is he?”

“Ah, you said you were from Vthuma, did you not?”

People from Vthuma could not possibly have good feelings toward the Messenger Clan.

The people of Vthuma, who had lived prosperous lives under the reign of the Golden King Manza-Jadek, had suffered the humiliation of having their king killed by the Messenger Clan and their country destroyed.

“A Hospitaller.”

“A Hospitaller?”

“Yes. A true Hospitaller. Compared to him, it would not be an exaggeration to call the other knights of the Rescue Knights Order frauds wearing tin cans over their heads.”

“…….”

Edir was left speechless as he listened to Count Ivchek’s bold assertion.

“Do not ever be rude to Sir Azadine. I may be the count who governs this gate, but I have offered my sword to Sir Azadine and entered his command. He is the lawful guardian of Sandokar, so I will not tolerate any act of insulting him.”

“But can he truly be trust… Ah, no. It is nothing.”

Voicing his distrust of Azadine here would only sour the count’s mood.

Edir held his tongue and decided to confirm things with his own eyes first.

Azadine released the gold and silver confiscated from Chashan to create jobs for the refugees.

The refugees could receive wages by working as Azadine’s subordinates, and with those wages, they could buy food and eat.

It was Azadine’s consideration, as he wanted not simply to provide relief without thought, but to give them work and make it possible for them to support their families.

Of course, this would have been impossible without the enormous amount of gold and silver confiscated from Chashan, and the large amount of food stockpiled thanks to the fertile land of the Chadra Plateau.

Thanks to this, Azadine’s fame in Sandokar and the Naisandokar region adjacent to Sandokar soared sky-high.

At that time, a councilor from the Kingdom of Arangi came to visit.

“As you know, the place where you have now formed your force is called the Naisandokar region, and it belongs to our Kingdom of Arangi. In other words, you are occupying the territory of the Kingdom of Arangi without permission.”

Originally, Naisandokar had been a land ruled by the Margrave of Arangi, but after the Syphilis War broke out and the Margrave of Naisandokar died in battle, it quickly fell into ruin.

The forests swarmed with Bri, goblins, wolf packs, and magical beasts, so unless one had extraordinary passion, it was impossible to govern this land.

When the dwarven drug dealers, Dwarven Arrow, had won over the slash-and-burn farmers around Naisandokar and scattered bribes, they had abandoned control of Naisandokar and withdrawn on the condition that they would continue receiving bribes.

Those people had now come because Azadine had taken Sandokar Gate, hired refugees, widened the roads of Naisandokar and Sandokar, and stabilized public order.

Were they angry because the detestable Messenger Clan had occupied their territory without permission, even if it was land they had neglected?

However, their proposal was unexpected.

“Sir Azadine. The Kingdom of Arangi hereby grants you the position of Margrave of Naisandokar.”

Azadine and his military faction were already exercising effective control over the Naisandokar area, and their reputation was high.

Rather than quarreling with such a reputable Holy Knight, the Kingdom of Arangi intended to give him an honorary position that existed only in name and, in exchange, take what corresponded to it.

However, even if it was only honor in name, it was still a tremendous matter. Azadine, a member of the Messenger Clan, would officially obtain the title of count.

It was the status of a true noble, one that even the King’s Church could not object to. No matter how much Azadine claimed himself to be a descendant of the Emperor, it was nothing more than a meaningless bloodline diluted over several generations.

This was an excessively generous offer. And of course, a king’s generosity was like bait for fishing, with a sharp hook hidden inside it.

“This is an excessively generous offer. It is an honorable proposal, but what obligations will I bear because of it?”

“Obligations, you say? Actually, we are thinking of sending some subjects to Naisandokar… Refugees created by the collapse of Korasar, Vthuma, and even Banreung are wandering in search of a place to live. As Sir Azadine happens to be the guardian of Sandokar and a devout believer of the Rescue Knights Order, we believe that, judging from your faithful teachings and honorable conduct, you will show the way to those who have lost their homes.”

“…….”

In other words, the Kingdom of Arangi was troubled over how to deal with the refugees.

Since the Rescue Knights Order bordered the Kingdom of Arangi, they had thought they could just pass them off to the Rescue Knights Order, but once Fimbulbert approached, even the Rescue Knights Order cast aside appearances and began acting difficult.

They were pushing the refugees back onto the Kingdom of Arangi, citing various reasons: that there were spies among the refugees, that there were heretics, and that they could not admit them until investigations were complete.

The Kingdom of Arangi wanted to pass those refugees back to Azadine and have him handle them. For that, they were even willing to accept the political risk of granting a countship to a member of the Messenger Clan.

“Forgive my impertinence, but I was born Aragasa. Will the King’s Church tolerate that?”

“As for that, you need not worry, Count Azadine. The King’s Church is not in a position to care about such things right now.”

“No, to call me count already is too much for me to bear. First, I believe I must widely seek wisdom from many learned people, and only after I am certain I can bear it myself will I be able to accept that honor.”

“Then decide quickly. We will stay here for two weeks.”

The envoys of Arangi said that and smiled.

Normally, the majority of people would immediately bite if told they would be granted a countship, but seeing that they showed no sign of panic despite Azadine putting off their offer, it was clear they had a plan for when Azadine refused as well.

“In any case, you will have no choice but to accept.”