Chapter 137: Chapter 137
At the unexpected story, Shan and Roden looked at Count of Meln, Gillian, with surprised expressions.
Gillian gave a broad smirk at their reactions and clapped his hands to call someone.
“Bring that here.”
“Yes, my lord.”
What the servant, who answered politely, brought right in from outside was none other than magic gear.
Judging by its familiar appearance, it was clearly a sword, a spear, and a set of armor produced at Palles’s magic gear factory.
Shan asked while looking at them.
“Did you happen to smuggle those in?”
“That’s right. It cost quite a bit of money.”
Unlike other armies, Pendia’s regular army strictly managed all equipment instead of merely supplying it, but no matter how thoroughly they screened people or inflicted harsh penalties, there were bound to be one or two who turned blind out of greed for immediate money.
The arms Gillian held had undoubtedly been leaked in such a manner.
They had wondered what kind of fellows were secretly buying them up for large sums of money, only to find the culprit right here.
Ignoring the sharp gazes of the two, Gillian drew the sword halfway and looked down at the blade as he spoke.
“Upon checking it myself, this mass-produced magic gear isn’t a particularly tremendous item in and of itself. Unlike the relics of the Altoan era, it cannot slice through ordinary iron and stone like clay, and if struck repeatedly with a heavy hammer, it breaks. At best, it’s merely slightly harder and sharper than a very well-crafted steel weapon. The armor is also only slightly better than chainmail.”
Even while speaking critically, Gillian’s eyes looking at the sword resembled a man bewitched by a beautiful woman.
“However… unlike relics that prestigious families possess only one or two of, this is still being produced continuously and supplied to hundreds and thousands of soldiers, is it not?”
The last Pendian civil war and the outcome of the pirate subjugation battle proved just how grand the power of such mass production was.
Even now in eastern Pendia, warriors armed with magic gear did not fall back against the monsters pushing in far more than usual, guarding the living domain of humanity.
Was that all?
Even now in Pendia, various types of magic gear substituted for the work people had to do, dramatically driving up productivity.
As the master of a port city who had continuously spied on such changes in Pendia, it was natural for Gillian to covet this.
“If my army can be armed with these weapons, and if various daily-life magic gear can be introduced to the port, I will be able to seize southern Libert in an instant.”
“The Western Holy See won’t tolerate such a thing, though.”
Roden spoke in a calm tone.
Originally, Goddessism did not forbid the use of magic gear.
During the Arman Empire period, starting from the imperial house, the Armando family, every prestigious noble family of the empire possessed a few Altoan relics that symbolized their house.
If they forbade their use or ordered them surrendered to be destroyed, they would turn the entire noble faction into enemies, so the Holy See had shown a dual attitude of tolerating magic gear while terribly despising magic.
However, the mass-produced magic gear Cheryn made was a different story.
This was a symbol that magic had begun to surpass miracles in terms of practical utility in earnest.
That was why the Western Holy See excommunicated Cheryn for the sole reason of manufacturing and using them.
If one purchased and used magic gear in large quantities, Gillian would naturally be regarded as a similar sort.
To this point, Gillian raised the corners of his mouth and answered with a sneer.
“I don’t care about such outdated losers. It’s not just me; most people probably feel the same.”
With the terrible defeat in the last ‘Holy War’, the authority of the Western Holy See was frightfully diminished.
Above all else, the fact that the invincible Holy Paladins had all been defeated by Shan alone played a huge part.
Those who had sworn to use their power only against heretics and apostates, obtaining enormous strength in return, had lost their lives at the hands of a single Altoan knight.
In response, the Western Holy See daily made a fuss claiming Pendia had summoned and manifested a demon, calling it a crisis for humanity and urging a second Holy War, but not many feudal lords and knights responded to this.
“Well, strictly speaking, the Holy See’s authority was continuously dropping and closer to taking a decisive blow this time, but… as I said earlier, I want to stand on the side that benefits me. This time, it seems that side is over here.”
Gillian’s proposal that followed was simple.
Pendia sells magic gear, and Meln arms itself with it to grasp hegemony over southern Libert.
Through this, Gillian could satisfy his ambition, while Pendia could strengthen the security of its trade routes and acquire a powerful ally across the sea.
Supporting the war with Ruman this time along with the large sum for purchasing magic gear was a bonus.
Roden, who had been quietly listening to the story, nodded and spoke.
“It is certainly an enticing proposal. However, there is one critical problem.”
“You mean it’ll be troublesome if I just take the magic gear and wash my hands of it?”
“That’s right.”
When the question he had been thinking returned as it was, Roden nodded with a slightly surprised face.
Libert was a nation far wealthier and more populous than Pendia.
If a warlord armed with magic gear grew, the relative advantage Pendia enjoyed would be neutralized.
On top of that, although impossible right now due to the nature of being an Old Faith nation, if he brought in mages later on and dismantled magic gear to replicate the manufacturing process, things would become uncontrollable from that point forward.
In the long run, it might turn into raising a powerful enemy.
Gillian nodded at Roden’s opinion.
“It’s a reasonable concern. However, betraying you guys is hardly beneficial to me either.”
“Why is that?”
Pausing his words for a moment and moistening his throat with the liquor set before him, he continued his explanation.
“First of all, producing magic gear ourselves might take an extremely long time or be impossible, so we’d essentially be kept on a leash for a long period. During that time, Pendia can grow strong enough to stand against Libert. And second, if we take the magic gear and betray you, would the stubborn fools in the central region or those Ruman bastards leave us alone? They’d demand we hand over the magic gear to them or destroy it. We’d either lose our sole advantage or have to fight with enemies on all sides.”
“…That is true.”
“Above all, if I did that, I’d have to fight that Shan Barendil over there, wouldn’t I? I have no intention of following in the footsteps of the foolish Pendian princes.”
Wondering if this was another joke for a moment, Shan was slightly surprised to realize that Gillian’s gaze was serious.
Even Roden raised no objection to this.
They truly believed that the presence of Shan alone could serve as a weight that restrained an alliance from breaking.
“…Am I really to that extent?”
“Of course.”
“Most likely.”
Shan, who had brought up the question, shut his mouth at the perfectly aligned answers of the two.
Gillian, who had been snickering at that sight, spoke.
“Still, if you’re anxious, I have one more thing to propose. It’s a marriage alliance.”
“A marriage alliance…”
Shan’s eyes looking at Gillian narrowed slightly for a moment before returning to normal.
It was out of the thought that the Count of Meln he had seen so far was no fool, so having a wife already rather than being single, he would not have the audacity to dare covet the Queen of Pendia.
As expected, the content that followed had nothing to do with Cheryn.
“Who and who?”
“I’d like to marry off my sister here, Benois, to an influential figure on Pendia’s side. Becoming one family so we cannot betray each other.”
When the gazes of the two turned, Benois bowed her head a little lower.
It seemed he had brought his family to the dining table with this in mind from the very beginning.
“But considering how you talk about Duke of Morayen, it doesn’t really seem like it…”
“Ah.”
Just a moment ago, regarding the crisis of his close second cousin, he had said, ‘Why should I help when it brings no profit?’ so saying such a thing held no persuasion whatsoever.
While Roden was flustered by the sight of Shan openly bringing up what he had only been thinking, Gillian answered with an exasperated expression.
“What are you talking about? Savante is a friend, not family. In noble society, a second cousin is practically a stranger. Although it’s true we were able to become close because we’re relatives.”
“…Is that how it works?”
“I suppose so.”
Not to mention Shan, Roden was also of commoner origin, so he was unfamiliar with such a sense of distance among nobles.
But if you put it that way, brother-in-law and brother-in-law are also relatives…
While the two tilted their heads in wonder, Gillian turned his gaze to look at his sister seated right beside him.
Unexpectedly, pity and guilt were harbored in his eyes.
“Seven years ago, after our parents passed away in a boating accident, my sister missed her chance for marriage while taking care of me when I was a greenhorn who knew nothing. If not for my sister, I might have had the family’s assets stolen by relatives and died long ago.”
Though it was difficult to guess a person’s age by face alone, Benois appeared to be around her mid-to-late twenties at a glance.
If she had been able to handle family affairs while raising her younger brother seven years ago, she was probably over twenty-seven.
Certainly, unless one was a man, she was old for a noblewoman of the Arman Alliance, where marriages often occurred right after passing the coming-of-age ceremony at nineteen.
No matter how capable a count’s sister she was, it would be difficult to find a good match among conservative Old Faith nobles under these circumstances.
At best, she might obtain a spot as the wife of some old, pot-bellied countryside lord.
“So I can never betray such devotion from my sister. If I were to marry Benois off and turn hostile toward Pendia, there’s no need to mention how terrible a situation she would be placed in.”
Whether those words were true would have to be investigated, but at least on the surface, he appeared sincere.
Roden let out a small groan of “Mm” before asking.
“In that case, what are your desired conditions for the groom? Right now in Pendia, there are hardly any royals or high nobles of marriageable age.”
Since the few who had existed were swept away in the recent coming-of-age rebellion plot, there were almost no suitable grooms in Pendia right now who would satisfy Gillian.
As if he had anticipated this question as well, Gillian answered smoothly.
“There is one person I’ve thought of in advance. Someone who accomplished great feats in the last civil war, holds deep trust from the Queen, and has great potential to rise higher in the future…”
“Baron Satru?”
When Lug’s title was mentioned, Gillian shook his head.
“No, I don’t easily evaluate someone I haven’t seen with my own eyes.”
Only upon hearing this did Roden realize whom Gillian was referring to and wore an embarrassed expression.
After all, the only Pendian nobles he had met in person were the two right here.
Don’t tell me he wants to make Shan his brother-in-law!
Even though he was a powerful count of Libert and possessed ample potential to become an ally of the kingdom, considering the relationship between Shan and Cheryn, there was not even a tiny possibility.
Even their ages differed by about ten years…
Just then, Shan brought up an absurd idea.
“With Roden?”
“That’s right.”
At the sight of Shan uttering shocking words and Gillian nodding nonchalantly, Roden widened his eyes.
“…Me? Not Shan?”
“Wasn’t that side already claimed by the Queen? That’s what I understood.”
Gillian, who casually uttered a statement that could cause big trouble, added with a smile.
“He is the sworn brother and confidant of the Lord Protector, holds the Queen’s trust, wields command over a kingdom’s army, and is widely renowned for being competent as a bureaucrat. Having met him, his mind works well, and his appearance is manly and not bad. This is more than enough to qualify as my brother-in-law.”
At Gillian’s praise, Roden was rendered speechless.
*
“You don’t have to give an answer right away. You brought that transmitter thing with you anyway, didn’t you? I’d like to see it once, but you won’t let me. I’ll allow the mercenary recruitment I mentioned earlier, so let’s gather people and negotiate slowly.”
Saying so, Gillian left the banquet hall first with his family.
All while riding the carriage back to the ship, Roden wore a half-dazed expression.
Shan poked such a Roden and spoke.
“What’s wrong with you? Pull yourself together.”
“No, it’s just…”
It was a situation where it was hard not to be half-dazed.
No matter how much he was on the fast track to success, a baron of commoner origin and a count’s sister… what kind of matching combination could this possibly be?
Even if the woman’s side was older, it was an excessively lopsided marriage.
“Could… could there be some sort of scheme?”
“You think so?”
“Well…”
It was not so much that he really thought there was a scheme as it was picking up any words to utter.
At the sight of Shan contemplating seriously, Roden shook his head saying he didn’t know.
A short while later, after returning to the ship at the harbor and communicating with Cheryn, a positive response came back from that side.
[It doesn’t sound bad.]
“Is that so?”
[Yes. Gaining support in the war with Ruman is good, and we needed to secure more financial resources anyway.]
Currently, Pendia’s magic gear production had reached a somewhat stable line.
Although distribution to rural areas was still a bit difficult, sufficient equipment was being provided to the properly trained regular army.
In such a situation, rather than letting surplus weapons rot in reserve, Cheryn’s view was that selling them off to Meln City and using the money and supplies obtained in return to expand facilities and invest in education could roll the wheel of a virtuous cycle.
If such a bond strengthened, not only would an ally be created to defend against attacks from Libert’s side, but it also became possible to use them as an intermediate port of call to exert influence toward Horais as well.
[However, I don’t know what Roden’s intentions are. I hear that woman is a few years older than Roden?]
“Yes. She asks how you feel about it, Roden?”
“Huh? Ah, well, as for me.”
Roden recalled Benois’s appearance that he had seen earlier during the day.
The elegant features framed by glossy black long hair, the slender yet graceful figure like a willow tree…
To be honest, she was far prettier than the women he had dated a few times in the past.
Slightly blushing, he cleared his throat and spoke.
“Ahem, if it is for the kingdom, I am fine with it.”
[That’s a relief. In any case, this is quite a positive miscalculation. I briefly heard evaluations that Count of Meln is a young and open-minded figure, but if we can properly cooperate, we stand to gain a lot.]
“It would be nice if he’s a trustworthy person.”
[Please verify that while the two of you recruit mercenaries.]
“…Will that be possible?”
[I believe it will be possible.]
At Cheryn’s words, Shan recalled the tone and attitude of Count of Meln, Gillian.
A appearance subtly similar to his relative, Duke of Morayen, yet different…
In particular, the fact that he appeared magnanimous and good-natured on the surface while possessing a calculating mind seemed to resemble him.
Although Shan was not particularly gifted at reading people, at least that was his impression.
[For now, approach in a positive direction while bargaining. We will look into what more we can find out about him from our end as well.]
The next day, Shan and Roden had their subordinates begin full-scale mercenary recruitment.
At the news of recruiting those to fight Ruman and the high pay, people gathered in swarms.
There were even many who lacked a hand or an eye.
“Me! Pick me! I might be old now, but in my youth, I was a man who cracked pirate scoundrels’ skulls like coconuts!”
“If you mention Ragit of Bensen, anyone who knows would know…”
“You honorless bastards, wanting to work under that cursed Altoan… argh! W-Why are you doing this!”
“Keep your trap shut!”
A few idlers who were bad-mouthing Shan from a distance were soundly beaten by guards waiting nearby.
This was because there had been instructions from the count to treat him as a distinguished guest and ensure no inconvenience befell him.
While selecting useful talents from among those gathered or looking at new warships, the two visited Count of Meln’s castle and revealed to Gillian that the Queen had accepted the proposal.
The young count smiled brightly and spoke.
“You mean word reached directly from Pendia’s capital? That’s truly amazing! Even taking the fastest ship and riding a horse, it’s a distance that would take twenty days to deliver news…”
To his suggestion asking if he could be given one transmitter, Roden answered that it was difficult right now but he would give one later.
In truth, having one to communicate quickly with Libert was beneficial, so it was no empty promise.
Afterward, tedious negotiations over the quantity and price of magic gear continued.
Just as with transactions between mere merchants, transactions between a kingdom and a fief in particular had much to discuss, as a single digit altered the scale.
What was surprising was that Gillian’s sister, Benois, chimed in with a word or two here and there.
“The tax on this side seems to be calculated too high, Gillian.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. We don’t collect taxes at Kinte Port due to the contract terms.”
“Aha. Thanks.”
As if the statement that she had raised Gillian into a lord was no lie, she displayed a familiarity with fief business almost equal to her younger brother.
It was an appearance uncharacteristic of a woman who had received an Old Faith education.
Whether embarrassed by pointing out her younger brother like that, Benois glanced at Roden and turned her gaze away.
‘Oh…’
For some reason, Shan felt like he somewhat understood how Roden felt when watching himself and Cheryn.
Benois, who initially only pointed out Gillian’s minor mistakes, gradually began to converse directly with Roden as he did not find it unpleasant.
The two, both adept at practical business and administration, communicated well with each other.
Seeing that the atmosphere between the two was not bad, Shan informed Roden that he would leave negotiations entirely to him and devote himself to the mercenary recruitment side.
“Will you be alright without me?”
“The difficult work is all done now anyway. There’s someone to calculate the money after all.”
“Well, that’s true, but. If there’s anything you don’t know, tell me. Don’t ruin it by doing it alone for no reason.”
“Got it.”
Since Shan was better at recognizing whether a recruit was a skilled warrior or not, this was a proper distribution of talent.
Having thrown Roden into the count’s castle, Shan personally selected mercenaries, set wages according to skill, and assigned units.
After several days passed like that.
Shan’s eyes widened as he looked at the mercenaries who had come over from other regions.
‘Uh…’
Among those gathered this time, an Altoan was visible.
In itself, it was hardly anything to be surprised about.
Libert was also a country where quite a few Altoans lived, albeit mostly wanderers, and since the employer was an Altoan, not a few had come looking for him.
However, the problem was that his appearance looked familiar.
A somewhat taller height than ordinary people, a sturdy build, and feathered horns growing on both ears…
Pen, a member of the Altoan Troupe met on the road to Pendia a long time ago, was standing in line among the mercenaries seeking employment with a tense expression.