Chapter 124: Finances

I got out of the carriage when I saw the city of Nambonan.

I got off the carriage when I saw the city of Nambonan, because it was a small hill from which I could get a bird's eye view of the city.

It was probably a popular spot because of the great view, and there were a few travelers sitting on the ground nearby, resting.

Looking around the city from a distance, I saw a line of horse-like creatures with a body shape similar to a dachshund carrying an object that looked like a sugar cube.

When I looked closely at the objects, I saw that they appeared to be stones that had been cut into squares or rectangles.

It was only a few days ago that they gave permission to rebuild the city walls, but it seems that construction work has already begun.

A polygon of brown lines was drawn on the ground surrounding the entire city of Nambonan.

Surprisingly, the city of Nambonan had the financial resources to rebuild its walls.

The payment of reparations to the Kuordentse family is also progressing without problems. It was hard to believe that the city had surrendered after losing the war.

The merchants are not discouraged, but rather, they are actively working to take advantage of the fact that they are now part of the Kuordentse domain.

The dream city that enjoyed freedom from the aristocracy is now gone, but its economic growth shows no sign of slowing down.

'N…… Rain?'

At first I thought it was the sound of grass and trees swaying in the wind, but it was the sound of raindrops hitting the leaves.

A drop of rain fell on my cheek, which triggered the rain to begin to fall harder and harder.

I wanted to avoid getting wet in the cold winter outdoors, so I got into the carriage and headed back to the city of Nambonan.

Papers were piled up in the mayor's office.

At first, I called the civil servants to check and process them.

I had only been away for a few days, so there were not too many papers, and soon the desk was clean.

The mayor is returning to New Nellie City.

As I was going over the schedule with the civil servant, the roomie blurred out, “The mayor is going back to New Nellie City, isn't he?

What? Is there any event left?

No, that's not what I meant.

The New Year's holidays will be spent with his familyhis back in New Nellie City.

The heir apparent of a noble family is a busy man.

Kohary has requested to continue to live in Nambonan, so we decided not to take him to New Nellie City.

As a roomon, I think he would rather be refreshed without me since he can spend a good time with his lovely sister his.I don't know why he is lamenting my leaving his.

Does roomon want me to do the paperwork so badly?

I urged Roomon, who had fallen silent, to continue.

I asked him to continue, “General Garfis is now concentrating on the construction of the castle at ……. I was worried that the former Voigtlander's army might take advantage of the mayor's absence to attack the city of Nambonan.

The construction of the castle is well underway at the westernmost frontline base in the territory of Kuordenze.

Since it is a threat to the old Vojstra, my grandfather told me that units of force reconnoitering were coming frequently.

If my grandfather is away for an extended period of time, it is possible that the old Voestra, wishing to sabotage the construction of the castle, will attack the outpost with their main force. Front line base.

During my last furlough in New Nellie, my grandfather visited Nambonan several times, but this will no doubt decrease in the future.

In such a situation, roomon seems to be worried about me returning to New Nellie City.

No, I think he is speaking for the citizens of Nambonan, and I should consider this as the opinion of the citizens of Nambonan.

The army is packed in Nambonan City, so there is nothing to worry about.

It was a civil official, not me, who answered Roomon's concern.

The Quardenze military is still stationed in Nambonan. The activities of the army are diverse, ranging from defending the city and maintaining public order, to serve as frontline base replacements and hunting down remnants of the army.

The military rotates the troops so that a certain number of followers remain, so there is always a certain amount of strength in the city of Nambonan.

He said, “You have something to say, don't you? Tell me.

Since he did not seem to be satisfied with the civilian's answer, I asked for more opinions.

Roomon thanked me and opened his mouth.

I am worried about the case of an invasion by the nobility of old Vojstra.

'Nobles? …… Oh, the mainstay.

Generally speaking, nobles do not appear on the battlefield very often.

In a sense, this is similar to fighting mature demonic beasts.

The knights and peoples would then cut through the battlefield and attack. There is no way the main force will come.”

A civilian officer from a knightly family says to Roomon as if to admonish him.

Having been familiar with war and the military from an early age, they have some knowledge that Roomon does not.

The old Voivodeship has its hands full defending itself. “The old Voivodeship has its hands full defending itself, and to attack Nambonan now would be like putting a hole in its shield,” He said. And it is not General Gulfis who will miss the opportunity.

He's right. If he had wanted to attack Nambonan, he would have done so before the city became part of Quardenze territory, wouldn't he?

The other civil servants from the knightly family also began to push their own arguments.

But Roomon was undeterred.

But the walls are gone,” He said.

The walls, made of a special stone material that repelled magic, were literally the greatest barrier to the invasion of Nambonan.

The Quardenze forces were lucky to capture the city, but it would have been a bit troublesome if they had used it as a shield against a siege.

However, that wall was dismantled and converted into a frontline base with my grandfather. Today, the city of Nambonan is completely bare.

The walls are gone, but in their place are the soldiers of Quardenze. There is no general in the old Vojstra who has the backbone to take on an army of this size.

The duke is a soft-hearted duke who is afraid of General Galfis and hides himself away in the city.

The duke of old Vojstra is treated as soft, but that cannot be helped in some respects.

Basically, in wars between fiefdoms, knights and commoners are the main fighters, and nobles only appear in decisive situations.

When the knights and commoners win a certain amount of victories, talks are held, and the issue is often settled by giving compensation or some demands are met.

The nobles who go out to the front lines and stir up the war like my grandfather did are in the minority.

The civilian officials continued to explain to Roomon that other military aspects such as the number of nobles and knights in the old voivodeship, the number of commoners, and the benefits of an invasion made an invasion of the city of Nambonan unlikely.

He continued, “…… So, it would be a very bad bet to attack Nambonan City. I don't think the cautious old Voigtlanders would choose it.

His explanation he was so logical that I did not see anything I needed to point out.

Even civilian officials are familiar with military affairs when they are the children of knightly families, I suppose.

Roomon seemed to understand the explanation, but he didn't seem to be convinced.

I turned to Roomon, who was pondering what to say in response.

I said to him, “What you just heard is the conclusion reached by those who know the standards of the military. Roomon, you're not convinced because you've come to your conclusion based on a different standard, right? What did you base it on?”

That seemed to help just enough for Roomon, and he smiled for a moment.

'The merchant's criteria.

'Hmmm. Say ……. I forgive you.”

Roomon took a deep breath and then looked at me.

'Old Vojstra is in financial straits from a protracted war. The major cities are exhausted, the lords are suffering from heavy taxes, and the city of Othellia is losing its momentum. According to merchants familiar with …… Old Vojstra, most of the territories are near financial ruin.”

Perhaps preparing to explain this case, Roomon pulled out a document from a nearby shelf and laid it out on his desk.

There was a detailed description of the financial situation of several noble families, known as the old voivodeships.

This document seemed to be the result of a financial forecast based on information gathered from logistics in the city, increases and decreases in business volume, and connections with influential local people with whom he was familiar.

It seems that Roomon was working as a spy for a merchant in Nambonan City.

According to the data, the finances of all the noble families in the former Vojstra had deteriorated sharply since the annexation of Nambonan to the Kuordenze territory.

Why has it gotten so bad?”

…… Because aid from the city of Nambonan has dried up and merchants have begun to avoid the old Vojstra for fear of war.

When the city of Nambonan was at odds with the Quordenze territory, it was using its ample assets to keep itself in the dark.

Since the old Vojstra was a sworn enemy of the Kuordentse family, it seems that they were receiving considerable assistance.

However, the city of Nambonan was annexed to the Kuordenze territory. Naturally, the city of Nambonan provided no assistance to the former Vojstra.

In fact, the Nambonan merchants began to refrain from doing business with the former Vojstra because they feared that the Kuordentse family would raise suspicion if they got involved with the former Vojstra.

Peddlers from other parts of the country, concerned about the escalation of the war, began to avoid the former Vojstra's territory.

It is no wonder that the financial situation has deteriorated so rapidly.

The longer these financial problems continue, the harder it will get.

“Hmm.

The sooner we launch an attack, the better. If you find the city of Nambonan without walls in front of you at such a time, you should ……

The city of Nambonan may be attacked at the drop of a hat before it is completely out of control.

Even if they cannot occupy the city, if they can temporarily obtain money through looting, they can still hold their breath.

The nobles of the former Vojstra, who had received aid, would be well aware that the city of Nambonan is a rich city.

Let us remember Room on's appeal.

In the event that troops led by the nobles attack Nambonan City, the current troops can only buy time.

I made a note in my brain to at least check the communication system with New Nellie City again.

Either way, not returning to New Nerry City is not an option.

After finishing the paperwork, I let the civil servants out and had a cup of tea by myself, when Roomon came back to the mayor's office.

I have someone here who wants to see the mayor.

'From the look on your face, I'm afraid you're not a worthy opponent …….'

Then Roomon smiled bitterly and then said.

'He's a merchant who used to be Kohary's fiancée.

I remember Kohary and roomon saying before that there was such a guy.

Kohary, who was a pawn in a political marriage, was going to become the property of a perverted old man more than one year older than her.

The “Pervert” Part is just my imagination.

I've never seen him. Didn't I tell you to stay away from Kohary already?”

The perverted merchant had been following Kohary even after Father Roomon's downfall, but Roomon had supposedly stopped him recently with his protests his.

'Yes, it's all right over there. There is no more shadow of that man around Kohary.

It seemed that he was indeed not so foolish as to touch Kohary, who had become a “Nobleman's concubine.

The relief on Roomon's face shows that this is the truth.

He tried to touch Kohary, even though he didn't know it. He wanted to apologize to the mayor for that at any cost.

'So, what's the real story?'

'Half of it is an apology, and the other half is an attempt to make a good impression by paying tribute to the mayor.

I see.

When he found out that Kohliy was my concubine, the perverted merchant probably didn't feel comfortable.

The end result for a commoner who has sidetracked a nobleman's beloved concubine is nothing short of horrendous.

However, I feel that it is just like the Nambonan merchants who would not get up by themselves to use an apologetic meeting to make a good impression.

How can I help you? That man's business association is doing some very bad things, and he has a very bad reputation in the city.

Father Roomon had a bad reputation, but it seems that the perverted merchant is also a very hated person.

It seems that like brings like on the earth and on the continent of Eluo are no different.

The merchant association is also suspected of tax evasion and is scheduled to be taken down by the military by the end of the year. Perhaps they will bring a bribe to have their tax evasion forgiven.

In the past, the military has raided several business associations and organizations at the request of civilian officials.

I had several memories of signing documents related to permission for the military to mobilize.

As the next head of the family, I am not so foolish as to allow tax evasion for a short-term bribe.

If I were to take a bribe, I would have no problem getting caught and arrested.

Let it pass.

Since he had come all the way here to curry favor, he should be able to expect some kind of tribute.

What would the vile merchant bring?

Money, curiosities, or women.