Episode 316 Jace’s Mercenary (2)
From now on, depending on his answer, he could gain the upper hand in negotiations with the Kingdom of Seren.
“Of course, Celia Kingdom intends to accept the request. Also, although it is said that it interferes with internal affairs, it is a policy to reflect the will of His Majesty King Seren as much as possible.”
King Seren gladly said at those words that seemed to scratch the itch.
“I’m glad you got along well. ha ha ha.”
I thought I was going to have a war of nerves and at least negotiate, but if the story goes like this, there seems to be nothing to worry about.
That time when the conversation was about to flow like that.
Count Evos added a word.
“We promise full support from the kingdom of Dansilia after the declaration of support from the kingdom of Seren.”
“Declaration of support?”
“The Kingdom of Bonn is currently in the midst of a conflict with the Kingdom of Devon. If the kingdom of Seren can declare its support here, it will be of great help to the war situation.”
In other words, if there is something going, there must be something coming.
Unlike the first time, it is not unusual to see the liver like a trumpet.
Even though it was a small kingdom, he could be so confident in front of himself as the king.
Admiration came out, but it was not good.
The words that came out naturally were not good.
“…It seems a bit unreasonable to declare support for the war. As you know, we have no ill feelings with the kingdom of Devon.”
Count Evos also readily nodded and agreed.
Anyway, he only tried to be greedy once.
There is no way that a small country like Seren Kingdom would step into a war.
The count, who had been spurned once, brought out another proposal this time.
“I heard that the resources of the Kingdom of Seren are so abundant that they fill up and overflow every year. On the other hand, Celia Kingdom is always experiencing a shortage of resources. Now that the floating population has increased in the era of abundance, solving with imported goods is also reaching its limit.”
“You mean to promise to procure resources?”
“yes. Please provide it free of charge.”
wriggling
King Seren’s swordsman convulsed.
Free provision of resources.
What this meant was pretty big.
It was completely unexpected for him that they would make such a request unless they were a defeated or colonized country.
“Are you insane?”
When he asked with sincerity, Count Evos looked at him with clear eyes.
Knowing that it was disrespectful, but not avoiding his gaze would be an expression of his will not to back down any longer.
King Seren looked at him for a while and burst into laughter.
“Khehehe. That’s funny. Celia judged our Seren as a small country and was ignoring it?”
“Not at all. However, I want you to know that the risk of this kingdom that has accepted Seren’s request this time is also considerable.”
Even though the knights lined up next to him radiated energy, Count Evos’ shoulders did not shrink.
On the contrary, he straightens his waist more than before and creates the appearance of a dignified man.
King Seren asked, as he was amazed at the sight.
“You came here as an envoy. Have you ever thought that if you said something that would harm the current situation, you would put yourself in danger?”
Then came an unexpected answer.
Count Evos, who arranged his clothes once, speaks politely.
“If you ask who the ruler of this place is, 100 out of 100 will say that he is your Majesty King Seren. But I am Celia to the core. I have received grace from His Majesty the King, and to repay it, even my humble body moves. How can I say something that is not in my heart just because my life is wasted?”
“If you only weigh gains and losses like that, you could end up dying.”
“If it is something that will be honorable when I see His Majesty King Celia again, I will not regret it.”
The two met eyes.
Although Count Evos knelt down and King Seren sat on the throne looking down at him, the two exuded an atmosphere of equals.
The relationship between a trader and a trader, not between the king and the count of another country.
In a way, it was similar to the merchants.
King Seren was the first to break the brief silence.
Unlike the first time, he looks at the count with friendly eyes.
“I am envious of King Celia who has loyal subjects like you.”
“Even His Majesty Seren will dare to have a subject who cannot be compared to me.”
“Ha ha ha ha ha. Thank you for your words. It’s good, I’ll see your face and I’ll accept that condition.”
Only then did Count Evos’ expression brighten.
The free provision of resources to the Kingdom of Seren was a well-spoken condition, but it was a negotiation that was almost like an unequal treaty.
I was nervous about being a little more forceful than usual, but it was fortunate that the result was good.
Now that King Seren had taken a step back from the negotiations, it was time for him to take a step back.
He pulled out some parchments from his bosom.
“Thank you for listening to my almost forced request. This is a small courtesy from Celia to His Majesty Seren.”
He carefully opened the parchment and politely handed it to King Seren.
“It’s a trade.”
“That’s right. Surely, His Majesty Seren promised to provide the resources free of charge, but even if they were free, it is clear that it will take manpower and money to move them to Celia. If you are moving resources, it would be a good way to open trade routes by inserting other items into it.”
It was definitely a good idea.
Rather than moving only resources, if you deal with special products or magic stones, the exchanges between the two countries will become frequent.
When the floating population increases, so does the upper class or the upper class.
If that is the case, the two kingdoms of Celia and Seren will be able to grow further by using each other as a stepping stone.
King Seren looked at Count Evos with admiration.
Could it be that he had the guts to foresee this far?
If so, he was an incomparable obstacle in the world and a talented person who had to be acquired.
Celia’s gift he was talking about did not end there.
Count Evos speaks while holding out a piece of parchment with the seal of King Celia.
“We, the Kingdom of Celia, will pay for the cost of wagons and toll workers. The Kingdom of Seren should only take a share of the profits from trade.”
It means that I will do all the boring work for you.
Absolutely no reason to refuse.
“Good conditions. But why didn’t you tell me about this from the beginning?”
If he had heard about the present ‘gift’ in advance, King Seren would not have considered the free provision of resources absurd.
Still, why didn’t you tell me until the deal was done?
Count Evos smiled quietly when asked as if wondering.
“It was our last resort, too. Opening a trade route is not an easy task and it is expensive, so you have to hide it until the very end in order to show your true worth. However, His Majesty Seren willingly showed goodwill first. It is no man’s business to remain hidden any longer.”
King Seren burst into laughter at his words, which were even joking.
“Ha ha ha ha ha! That’s a good answer!”
The more I looked at him, the more I coveted him.
Is there any way to attract it?
After thinking for a while, King Seren shook his head.
‘He is a man who stands tall with one loyalty. Defeating him is not something a monarch would do.’
I calmly suppressed the greed that filled my heart.
He was not a vessel that could be supported in Serene.
Since it is a place where the power of the nobles is superior to that of the king, the place for him to stand would be cramped.
If that’s the case, it would be better for him to continue serving as the Count in the Kingdom of Celia.
King Seren laughed heartily after a long time.
* * *
Self-proclaimed patience has reached a state, but after waiting for two days, he felt that he was running out of patience.
Jace’s guild is still running well, and the piggy guild is lazing around building towers of gold coins as usual.
As I kept looking at it, goose bumps ran through my body.
“If you leave that thing alone, you’re a bastard who will build a tower for years.”
Why didn’t a guy like that become an architect!
Wouldn’t it be unfair to see your talent blooming like that!
Ray, who was deeply impressed by the way he diligently piled up the gold coins, erased his presence.
Now there is no other way but to break through.
I have no choice but to search all over the office and find evidence of something.
I checked the bookshelves and searched all the drawers.
Even after searching the office like this, nothing came out.
At this point, shouldn’t a confidential document stick out!
“I tripped on the wrong leg. I don’t think it’s the office.”
Despite not earning much from the office, he made his way to Jace’s bedroom as if it didn’t matter.
The steps are so natural.
If Sibi saw it, it would be as if she was entering and leaving her bedroom.
Ray’s face wriggled as he tried to slowly explore the inside of the bedroom.
Jace was holding on in front of him.
Choosing a book from the bookshelf with serious eyes and reading it seriously is a very desirable upper class.
Even if he hadn’t watched the tower build up while salivating, Ray might have been quite impressed.
‘No other guy, but that guy who’s crazy about gold coins reads books?’
Until now, Jace had been relaxing while touching his gold coins during the time he could afford.
Now, even if I suddenly see him reading a book, it just feels awkward.
As I watched carefully, Jace looked around and hugged a book dearly.
The appearance of picking up the bookshelf without even turning it over is somehow suspicious.
Jace, who had been wary of the surroundings by spreading his senses widely, headed to the backyard, which he hadn’t even looked for several times with heavy steps.
He lit a fire out of nowhere in the secluded backyard.
Gather firewood and manifest magic.
The flame quickly spread to him.
When the fire seemed to grow to some extent, Jace threw the book he had carefully carried into the flames as a substitute for firewood.
Poof—!
Books, which were already easily flammable, burned in an instant.
Roar-!
Slowly acrid smoke began to pour out, and I don’t know if it was a special treatment for the book, but the smoke was dark crimson.
It’s so natural that you don’t feel strange even when you look at it up close.
Could this be a substitute for signal flares?
Ray watched him, leaning against a tree.
Then, a little over an hour passed.
A series of robed groups appeared with their backs to the mountains.
He was behind the Jace Merchant Company he had been waiting for for over two days.
