My Villains Episode 355
60. The End of Winter (6)
Keibor was a settlement that was born from the clustering of several small farming villages. It seems that it also serves as a granary for the highlands because it is surrounded by a generous flatland, which is rare in the vicinity. And, unfortunately
, Baron Boanen refused to accept Princess Theodora
‘s blessing .
“All the gentlemen of Keibor will.”
It was the reaction of the knights, servants, and landlords who had been called by Prince Ulkar.
The village centered on the manor house belonged to Baron Boanen, of course, but the surrounding farmland was a little different. The baron owned only about 20%, and the rest belonged to those who called themselves ‘gentlemen’
.
Most of them received manors from the great lord for their achievements in the past, and there were some landlords who received farmland that originally belonged to the church.
“…unexpected.”
Ulkar, who was expressionless in front of Baron Boanen, could not hide his disappointment at their rejection.
“The land that would not even have been possible to farm without the ritual of farming is the land of the Lords. After harvesting the winter rye, my intellect would fail and the results would be disastrous, so how could I refuse it without thinking about it?”
“We are faithful members of the Kwangmyeong Church. You cannot provoke the lord to anger with how much you produce.”
“I am furious. It is my lord to bestow blessings through my niece, but who is angry?”
Ulkar was especially disappointed because some of the people gathered here were his former comrades.
Similar to this time about 10 years ago, it was when a war broke out on the western frontier. King Lionel III took all of his sons and went out to meet the army of Mitterge Land. It was at this time that Ulkar first showed off his invincibility.
Of course, the knights and servants of Keibor also participated in the battle and rode along with Ulkar. As such people are telling obvious lies, the prince is bound to feel frustrated.
Unlike Ulkarwan, who was silent in frustration, Lord Ankir openly glared at the knights and gentlemen.
“Yes, you guys can be so lofty. Even if there is a bad harvest for a few years, you won’t starve.” People averted their eyes, but the gigantic knight’s growl continued.
“What about the serfs? What are the swings begging for your land? If there is a bad harvest, most of them will not be able to survive even for a year, let alone a few years!”
“…I don’t think Lord Ankir cares. It is the owner’s job to manage the manor.”
“what! Lee-”
“Stop it.”
Ulkar, who stopped Lord Ankir from saying something excitedly, sent the ‘gentlemen’ of Kaybor back without hiding his hard face.
We rented an inn near the Yeongju Hall, the grocery store next to it, and the entire barn attached to it as our accommodation.
It was because they were not able to take care of the tent because they only recruited cavalry. Well, even if there were tents, it wouldn’t have been possible to find a suitable vacant lot because of the refugees who filled the entire village.
The tribe of knights are those who want to sleep in a warm place as much as a war horse, even if they are willing to spend the night. Spending some gold coins for this would not have been a waste for Ulkar, who valued the morale of his subordinates.
“I should have brought the son of the Marquis.”
Sir Gisela puckered her lips and handed over a thick beer in a tin glass. Ulkar accepted the glass and smiled.
“Why do you say that?”
“If there was someone who would one day become their master, wouldn’t they have treated them like this? To think that they wouldn’t
even give lodgings to those who were about to go to war to protect their hometown
… ‘My God, this is unimaginable in Marva,’ Tul Tuldaeja Ulkar said, leaning back on the backrest with a wry smile. .
“…well. Even if there was a ‘Garwin’ Lord So, nothing would have changed much.”
“Why?”
“It seems to me that the nobles of Kaybor below Baron Boanen are loyal to the Church of El Ganore. Not the Axodbrook family.” The high lord of the plateau is the Margrave of Landry of the Axodbrook family. And it is a well-known fact that he is actively cooperating with Prince Ulkar—actually serving as a subordinate. It was to the point that even I had heard a story about it in Longville a few months ago.
The nobles of Kaybor will also know that their lord, Landri, has a close relationship with Ulkar. But even so, the corps is so picky.
“That bastard’s priests immediately ran away without a tail…. They are fools.”
“Don’t resent them. Responsibility lies with the clergy who
led the believers astray .”
“Aristocrats are also a problem. How pitiful are the knights and villagers to be such pathetic people. There is even a cloud of war hanging over the High Castle right in front of you.”
“Since you paid the shield tax, you must have fulfilled your duty. In fact, the materials and livestock they sent are helping the garrison, so there is no room for blame.”
Having said that, Prince Ulkar took a mouthful of beer and closed his eyes. Then he slowly swallowed the beer and opened his mouth.
“They are the ones most in need of the ritual of saving soil. They must be refusing it because they are afraid that the church that will return someday will take revenge.”
His sleepy, half-opened eyes turned to the knights and soldiers gathered around the round table.
“I want to go back to High Castle just like this. However, the case in Kaybor is different from that in Longdale, where commerce flourished, so I am worried.”
The prince’s men opened their mouths one by one as he looked at them asking for their opinions.
“If you’ve been fooling around, beating him up is-”
“The beer is really good, so give it a try Sir Ankir. I think you will like it.”
“How about taking advantage of the night to dig in the soil?”
“There is no reason to act secretly, as the light that occurs during the ritual of excavation is also a problem, but not shameful. And I can’t make my niece do that.”
“Then, the princess is taking this opportunity to convert.”
There were no very upbeat comments. In fact, among Ulkar’s underlings, the ones who play the role of a guinea pig are ‘The Viper’ Sir Ariad and ‘The Painter’ Sir Hilter. But since neither of them are here, there’s no way I can come up with a great opinion.
I sat down and ate some pancakes, then looked back at Theodora sitting next to me. Maybe because of the conversation, his expression wasn’t very good. He touched her arm with his elbow.
“…kyung?”
“Have you tried it? It’s really amazing.”
Whispering, as I handed out the bowl of pancakes, Theodora blinked her eyes for a moment, and then made a mysterious expression as if frowning and laughing.
When I tapped the rim of the wooden bowl, she coughed softly and raised her fork. Theodora, who tasted the pancakes made with sourdough mixed with wheat flour, eggs, honey and milk, and baked in lard, opened her eyes wide in surprise.
“Is it delicious?”
“Um, that’s right.”
“I asked the clerk because the scent was unique, and he added dried saffron grown in the garden.”
“Saffron?”
“yes. That must be a lie, right? What kind of saffron do you grow in this poor village?”
Theodora, who had been biting her lip, shook her head slightly.
“It doesn’t sound like a lie. It smells like saffron.”
“Is that so? I heard that it is an expensive spice, but could it be grown in a place like this?”
“Bülsruhe in the west is also famous for its barren land and inclement weather, but it grows many precious spices. There is no such thing as a highland where you can’t grow spices.”
“I see… I think the boss overreacted by saying that the prince was here. It’s a pity, everyone can’t even tell if it’s saffron or roadside flower leaves anyway.”
After taking a look at the prince and knights having a meeting, he said, ‘Isn’t it?’ whispered, and Theodora finally burst out laughing.
All eyes gathered at once, and the princess pretended to spit, dyeing the nape of her neck red. It was a good improvisation, but Prince Ulkar looked back at me with a slight smile.
“Looks like Lord Phoenix gave his niece an ingenious opinion. Will you tell me too?”
“Um, would that be okay?”
“Why not?”
It seemed like I was doing something different, but I also had something similar to the compound eye, so I was able to open my mouth willingly.
“You’ll fill it with money.”
“…with money?”
“yes. What you’re worried about right now is the serfs, not the rich aristocrats. If the famine lasts for a long time due to not being able to perform the ritual of harvesting the land, the nobles will suffer, but the serfs will literally die.”
Ulkar narrowed his forehead as he rested his chin on the silver prosthetic arm.
“There are more than 2,000 serfs in Keibor. It is next to impossible to find a way to support them before the battle, and even if we did, it would not solve the problem of those who fled.”
“I can do it here.”
“here?”
“yes.”
I shrugged and said.
“Buy farmland.”
“…buy farmland?”
“Anyway, if you don’t do the ritual of cultivating the land, isn’t it the land that will die in 5 years at the shortest and 10 years at the longest? Let’s ask those gentlemen from earlier to sell them cheaply as they are going to become a nuisance pot.”
“You’re saying to buy land and cultivate it.”
“yes. Who will say what if I say that I will accumulate soil on my own land? Even if the baron does a trick, you can ignore it. Power is originally full and overflowing, and I even have a justification.”
The knights and friendly soldiers who were talking nonsense in the middle of the day opened their mouths as if they had heard the story of the goal-slapping.
“It is nonsense.”
Sir Gisela was the first to come to his senses and speak up.
“It’s nothing compared to fertile soil like Antrum or the Troshire Territory, but the nearby land is rare farmland in the highlands, and it’s not small. Besides, knights and nobles are landlords and proud, so it won’t be easy to buy land from them. I’ll have to rob more than half of the gold of the gunman.”
“If I can’t buy it, I’ll borrow it.”
“……what?”
Looking at the bewildered female knight, I scratched my eyebrows.
“Wouldn’t it be much cheaper if you said you would rent for one year? The nobles aren’t losing their lands, so I don’t think there’s much complaint.”
“It’s like covering your eyes and screaming. If the church knows”
“No.”
Prince Ulkar stopped Sir Gisela, who continued to refute.
“Good idea.”
“yes? Haona, Your Highness.”
The prince knocked on the table and nodded.
“It would be a good excuse if you said that you would build a dune field in preparation for a prolonged war. If only the locals kept their mouths shut, the church would not even think of borrowing the land for manure.”
He muttered that and looked at me with his eyes twinkling.
“Good opinion, Sir Phoenix.”
“But my question is this.”
” question?” “yes.”
I pursed my lips for a moment, then asked a question mixed with a sigh.
“Why do you have to go that far?”
“…what does that mean?”
“Isn’t the prince trying to do something that neither this village nor the church wants, even spending money?”
“I didn’t tell you already. If you don’t do the ritual of harvesting, there
will be a famine.” “If there is a famine, the lord and the church will be responsible.”
“His Highness’s words are not over!”
Lord Ankir yelled lowly, but the prince only glanced up at the prosthetic hand resting on his chin.
“Why does the prince want to take all the responsibility? Isn’t the important thing right now the enemies flocking to High Castle? I don’t quite understand why you’re pushing yourself this far.”
The prince was silent with a firm expression at the question he had been hiding all along.
At the same time, the audience became quiet, and Ulkar slowly opened his mouth.
