pappabearbooks Chapter 138
Chapter 138
Chapter 138
The Sword Saint’s Territory was located in the eastern part of the Empire.
Usually, the greater the power a ruling class possessed, the closer their territory was to the wealthy west or the central regions, but considering the Sword Saint’s renown, it could be said that his land was situated in a rather remote place.
‘Well, if it’s that old man, it makes sense.’
From the start, the Sword Saint did not particularly like filthy struggles such as power disputes, and even if someone dared to challenge him, he had more than enough strength to beat them down all by himself.
After finishing lunch, Petra and I packed our belongings as they were and used the Imperial Palace’s Teleport Gate to move to my territory.
“It's neat.”
Petra said that as she looked over the cityscape after stepping down from the Teleport Gate.
My territory, located a few days away from the Sword Saint’s Territory, was a small city where 1.5 million people lived.
Judging by population alone, it would probably be about the size of Daejeon. Of course, the land area was larger.
“Is it neat?”
Compared to reality, this city also looked sufficiently large. But considering that Petra’s Leipzig had a population of around eight million, and the Imperial Palace reached roughly forty million, it might indeed be neat, as she said.
“Present arms—! Salute toward the lord—!”
As we went down, knights guarding the territory came out in formation and gave us a dazzling welcome along the path we descended.
Beneath them, a man dressed as an administrator stepped forward and bowed deeply to me.
“We sincerely thank you for visiting, Your Highness. As I informed you in advance, I am Beron, who has been managing this place on Your Highness’s behalf.”
Beron was a white-haired middle-aged man.
He was a quasi-noble with a baronial rank that was not hereditary, and as a native of this land, he had governed this territory in my stead for the past several years.
“It is fortunate that Your Highness has taken an interest in the territory. Unfortunately, due to my age, it has gradually become difficult to continue operating it.”
After moving to the estate, we sat facing each other in the reception room. Since his opening words were practically an expression of his desire to retire, I looked at him with a bitter smile.
“You still look quite healthy.”
“Hahaha, thank you for saying so, but I am already over seventy. It is time for me to prepare for the end of my life.”
‘Seventy years old.’
He was slightly younger than my grandfather, but nobles were a class burdened with many duties as one went lower in rank. Moreover, as a quasi-noble, he must have endured considerable hardship.
Indeed, Beron’s face looked far older than his actual age.
“Still, isn’t it a pity?”
“…If you ask it that way, there is indeed some regret. If only I were a bit younger, I could have made this territory even better, or so I think.”
“Hm.”
I nodded and skimmed through the report he had organized.
It contained overall operational data of the territory, assets, and even key elements such as the list of contracted merchants and logistics.
Compared to when he first took charge of the territory, the indicators had grown severalfold in many areas, including the economic aspect.
Of course, there was the possibility that he had embellished it to look good in my eyes, but unless he had several lives, he would not have dared.
‘This is a bit of a shame.’
Since coming to this world, I had only learned practical things like the sword or magic.
Even after entering the Academy, I only studied general knowledge such as imperial history, medicine, and foreign cultures, so I had no knowledge whatsoever regarding territory management.
Calculations were no problem since I came from a science background, but economics had its own calculations, and I would need to learn even that kind of miscellaneous knowledge.
‘It’s far too inefficient for me to do it myself.’
When I lifted my head to look at Beron, he smiled with a benevolent expression, as if he were looking at his own grandson. Fortunately, it did not seem that Leios had acted like a hooligan even here, as his attitude toward me was normal, but it looked difficult to change the heart of someone who had already decided to retire.
“If it’s difficult for you to manage it directly, is there perhaps someone you could recommend?”
“…Hmm, since the position of acting lord is what it is, it must be held by a noble of baron rank or higher. In the case of my son, he has served under me all this time, so he has sufficient experience and ability, but his status is…….”
So there was someone, but status was the problem.
Beron’s noble status was not hereditary. That meant his son would be a commoner. In other words, if that issue were resolved, it would be fine.
“I’ll take care of that issue. Even I can grant a title. Of course, one that can be inherited by future generations.”
“…I-is that really true.”
At my words, Beron’s eyes widened. Seeing those trembling pupils, it seemed he had agonized greatly over this matter.
Even bringing it up before me must have taken considerable courage.
The heavens favored those who seized opportunities and endured crises. Perhaps that was why Beron’s hand had been lifted.
“Yes. However, you must promise to continue managing my territory steadily. Unless there is some special problem, I will not drive your family away.”
Although the Empire was vast, most of the prime lands were already occupied by influential families.
Thus, it was extremely rare for a baron who had not rendered proper merit to possess his own territory. Unless he was a fallen noble or had governed that land since ancient times, it was almost unheard of.
“Five days should be enough, right? Finish all preparations by then and return. If so, your son will be able to proudly establish a family as your successor.”
Five days was the time it would take to finish the gathering at the Sword Saint’s Territory and return after wrapping things up.
Since he had demonstrated his ability, giving him that much leeway would be enough for him to handle it himself.
“…I will obey your words.”
Beron stood up, his eyes brimming with tears, knelt before me, and bowed his head. As I nodded with a satisfied smile, Petra, who had been outside, peeked her face through the door and cautiously called out to me.
“I finished everything you asked. Should I come back later?”
“No, I’ll go. Then, Beron, I’ll leave the rest to you.”
“I will handle everything perfectly.”
I waved my hand at him, telling him to get back to work, as he bowed once more, then followed Petra outside.
She handed me the almost-empty Subspace Pouch and shook her head with a fed-up expression.
“How could so much fit into such a small pouch? It looked like nearly ten years’ worth of Leipzig’s territorial budget.”
“In terms of value, not ten but even a hundred years would be no problem. I scraped together seventy percent of the goods that were in my palace.”
While I was dealing with the territory’s issues, I had asked her to unpack the luggage. Since all the miscellaneous items had been stored in the Subspace Pouch anyway, all she had to do was pour them into the vault.
“…There really is a lot.”
When we arrived at the vault deep within the estate, secured with all kinds of magic and devices at Chris’s request, the room full of piled-up goods greeted me.
It was probably an amount I could never spend in my lifetime even if I splurged. At this level, it felt like I wouldn’t need to collect taxes from this territory until I died.
‘Well, once a war with the Demonic Realm breaks out, it’ll disappear quickly, so it’s better to save it.’
Money was always better the more there was. Believing firmly in that absolute principle, I spread my arms slightly, looked at Petra, and asked,
“What do you think of a rich man?”
She grinned and replied,
“An eyesore.”
After finishing our business in the territory, we headed straight for the Sword Saint’s Territory.
I had thought about walking around the city to get a feel for the atmosphere, but that could be done leisurely after the gathering was over, so I chose to head there first.
In terms of sheer size, the Sword Saint’s Territory was roughly ten times larger than mine. Its population easily exceeded ten million, and the number of powerful individuals within it was incomparable.
It had originally been an ordinary territory, but after the Sword Saint took charge, admirers who idolized him and those who wished to come under his protection gathered like bamboo shoots after rain, forming what it was now.
It probably possessed greater strength than most great noble houses.
“The gathering starts tomorrow, right? It’s already unbelievably crowded.”
Unlike my territory, which had been called neat, the city here was overflowing with people.
The Sword Saint’s gathering was an event only Sword Masters and their disciples, direct lines, or representatives could participate in, but such people rarely traveled alone.
Some had a desire to show off, while others wanted to display their power with a grand entourage.
Thus, the gathering seemed to be treated as a major event for the territory itself.
“Are we going straight to the estate?”
“No, he said it would definitely be crowded around this time, so if we sat somewhere suitable, they’d come to pick us up. Ah, that cake over there looks good. Should we eat first?”
Petra and I moved to a nearby shop and had cake with tea. Although dinner was scheduled at the Sword Saint’s estate, neither she nor I, having trained with the sword, would feel particularly full from this.
After sitting there for a few minutes, just as the steam from the once-hot coffee began to fade, a group of people entered the shop.
“…….”
They checked the inside, then immediately approached and stopped in front of us.
“Ah, are these the people?”
As Petra began to stand, thinking they had come to escort us, the woman at the front thrust a parchment toward us and spoke.
“Ostia of Bayern Academy. You are under arrest on charges of a first-degree crime.”
“…Pardon?”
At that, Petra froze in an awkward posture.
She then looked at me with a questioning gaze, but I had no idea either. When I shrugged, she hurriedly accepted the parchment the woman offered and read its contents.
“…The seal and the contents are all genuine.”
“Of course. It was officially issued in this territory.”
At the woman’s confident words, I let out a small laugh and asked,
“By the way, what’s the charge?”
“…It’s the crime of setting my heart on fire!”
“……???????”
An utterly unexpected answer burst from the woman’s mouth. Petra, for her part, merely wore a confused expression filled with questions.
“You put a lot of effort into this prank. You even forged documents.”
“Forged? It’s a real blank arrest warrant. I just wrote your name on it. If I submit it as is, you really won’t be able to set foot in our territory, you know?”
“…Give me a break. I came here at your grandfather’s request.”
As I stood up with a bitter smile, Petra finally grasped the situation and looked at us with a sigh.
“…Don’t tell me this person is the Sword Saint’s granddaughter?”
“My name is Esmeralda!”
Esmeralda undid her neatly tied hair and looked at Petra.
“Nice to meet you, un, ni.”