On August 31st,
"This time's haul was impressive — seventeen ships. Five large ocean-going merchant vessels and twelve medium-sized armed warships, all from the slave-owning nobles of the Hanayabada Kingdom. One convoy was transporting luxury goods — Steward Hanske, see to their receipt. The other two convoys carried over a thousand slaves, all purchased from several nations along the southern Gold Coast. Put them to work on the island for a while; we'll set them free after we return from the campaign…"
"Yes, my Lord," Steward Hanske replied.
"There are also over two hundred members of slave-hunting crews aboard the ships. Bodfanger, send men to interrogate them, then hang every last slaver and slave-hunting captive. The sailors too — after interrogation, anyone who's committed serious atrocities and is a citizen of the Hanayabada Kingdom, don't let them off. Understood?" Lorist thought nothing of how these few brief words had just sealed the fates of hundreds.
Some time ago, Lorist had grown restless on the island. Unable to bear the boredom, he'd boarded a ship and headed to the Sorrow Sea, intending to commandeer vessels alongside Injerik and the others. To his surprise, the Sorrow Sea was completely deserted — sometimes not a single ship could be seen in an entire day. Come to think of it, the coastal shipping lanes here weren't infinite. After Lorist's two rounds of requisitioning, most of the smuggling vessels had ended up in his hands, and any stragglers had sensed something was wrong and hidden themselves away, refusing to put to sea…
Left with no other option, Lorist took the Morning Dawn's Flying Fish and the Storm and sailed to the sea trade route between the Hanayabada Kingdom and Hidden Gold Bay to wait — and the harvest was extraordinary. Nearly every major slave-owning noble of the Hanayabada Kingdom had his own private fleet, ranging from seven or eight ships down to two or three. In less than half a month, they had captured over forty vessels. Once the Flying Fish closed in with Lorist aboard, those ships had virtually no chance of escape. And the Storm finally proved the might of its cannons — seven or eight ships had been sunk while trying to flee…
"Yes, my Lord." Bodfanger turned and issued several curt orders. Before long, several Family Silver Knights led large companies of soldiers toward the captured vessels.
"My Lord, the remaining expeditionary forces from the family territories have all arrived on the island," Bodfanger said.
"Mm, I could see the beach was covered with the family fleet's ships — I knew they'd arrived," Lorist said.
"But, my Lord, I've found that most of the soldiers who disembarked are in low spirits. They're not accustomed to spending long stretches at sea, and many of them are seasick," Bodfanger delivered the bad news.
"There's nothing to be done about that. Tell the apothecaries to prepare more seasickness potions — every soldier gets a bottle when we set out," Lorist could only offer this less-than-ideal suggestion. "Anything else?"
"My Lord, the fourteen ships borrowed from the Peterson Chamber of Commerce have arrived as well. Chairman Peterson also sent you a letter. Additionally, Knight Lenmord has sent a war report covering the conclusion of the Treinberg Kingdom conflict and the
As he opened the letter, Lorist asked, "What does the war report say?"
"The Treinberg Kingdom is no more — the Mercantile Alliance won a decisive victory. On another note, the Second Prince suffered a crushing defeat in Majik Province," Bodfanger replied. "I've placed the war report in your main tent, my Lord."
"Oh." Lorist set the war report aside for the moment and opened Chairman Peterson's letter.
Chairman Peterson's letter, beyond the usual greetings, provided a brief overview of the Mercantile Alliance's current situation and forthcoming developments. The most important point was a very sobering fact laid out in the letter: the eight-month-long Glass War with the Treinberg Kingdom had dealt a devastating blow to the Mercantile Alliance's vitality. Even the Peterson Chamber of Commerce, one of the Big Seven, had suffered enormous losses — both commercially and in terms of its own strength, it was now in its most difficult period.
This was nothing like the old days when the Mercantile Alliance had resisted the invasions of the former Krisen Empire. Back then, when one corner of the Alliance was in trouble, aid came from all directions. The surrounding kingdoms and duchies all understood that if the Mercantile Alliance fell, they would be next, so they had spared no effort in supporting it, and relations between everyone were excellent. Even though the Alliance suffered heavy losses each time it repelled a Krisen invasion, it could recover within the following years through trade with neighboring nations.
But this Glass War was different. By all rights and reason, the Mercantile Alliance should have been the victim. Yet they happened to be up against the single-minded Treinberg VII. Having such an enemy was quite the Alliance's misfortune. After being dragged through his reckless antics, the Alliance had made a splendid transformation from victim to villain — the powerful bully that pushed others around.
In the eyes of the surrounding nations, this was clearly the beginning of the Mercantile Alliance using its formidable power to oppress and annex smaller neighboring countries now that the great northern threat was gone. Take the Glass War with the Treinberg Kingdom, for example — it was obviously a war the Mercantile Alliance had provoked out of envy for Treinberg's glass monopoly, using it as a mere pretext.
But more than that, they were guarding against and remain wary of the Mercantile Alliance's ambitions.
Yet no one had anticipated the outcome of this Glass War — much like the military experts and war scholars who, when attempting to summarize the conflict in their histories of continental warfare, found themselves at a loss for words. There were no pitched battles, no field engagements, no sieges or assaults. Aside from marching, pillaging, assassinations and counter-assassinations, the two sides essentially sat across from each other in a standoff for over six months. Then, in a manner no one could quite explain, it ended with the annihilation of seven nations.
It had been an utterly absurd war, rife with despicable schemes, backroom deals, coercion, assassination, surrender, and betrayal. At least, that was the verdict of one military expert. The facts were not far from his assessment. Near the end of the war, two second-tier merchant guilds conspired to hold hostage the family members of a senior general commanding a small nation's relief forces within his own borders. They forced the general to turn his army around, march back home, arrest his own king, and surrender to the Mercantile Alliance — all to save his family's lives…
Chairman Pedersen had stated it plainly in his letter. Though the Mercantile Alliance had won a sweeping victory in the Glass War, the aftershocks were still being felt. On the positive side, the Alliance had successfully implemented the lordship system. By absorbing seven neighboring countries, it had not only leapt to become the third-largest nation on the Galentea Continent by territory, but now possessed ample land to grant as fiefs to those ennobled.
On the negative side, the remaining neighboring nations had all bolstered their vigilance against the Alliance. This not only hampered the expansion of the Pedersen Guild's trade routes into surrounding countries, but some nations had even enacted policies to restrict or expel Alliance merchant guilds from their domestic trade points, imposing heavy levies on caravans passing through their territories…
Under such circumstances, Chairman Pedersen admitted the guild was facing enormous difficulties. Although they had acquired guild territory, their expenditures had skyrocketed at the same time. They needed to forge new trade routes, restructure the guild's commercial layout, pacify the populations in their new territories, develop and build up those holdings, and establish a territorial guild militia…
As a result, Chairman Pedersen hoped to delay payment for goods traded with the
"How much does the Pedersen Guild currently owe us?" Lorrisset asked.
"My lord, from the last deal involving magic beast pelts, the Pedersen Guild still owes us three hundred and twenty thousand gold ferdigs. They had originally planned to settle the debt with grain and other supplies, but their last message said that due to the war with the Treinberg Kingdom, they needed to delay payment for a while. Since we had the Hilowas Island incident on our end at the time, we agreed to their request. On top of that, add the ten thousand sets of refined iron standard equipment they plan to order from our family, and the total comes to roughly one million five hundred and forty thousand gold ferdigs."
Steward Hanske, having handled the transactions himself, knew the account ledgers inside and out. "My lord, what did the Pedersen Guild say? When do they intend to make payment?"
"See for yourself..." Lorrisset handed him President Pedersen's personally written letter.
Steward Hanske's face went pale after reading it quickly. "My lord, no, we can't agree to the Pedersen Guild's demand. If they delay payment for a year and a half, our family's finances will collapse. Steward Speer has calculated it clearly—our family's reserves, according to the set budget, will be depleted by May or June next year. We are counting on the funds from this deal with the Pedersen Guild to arrive so we can hold out until all the development and construction projects in our family's territory are completed. Otherwise, there will be chaos..."
Lorrisset nodded. "Enough. I understand the situation. I will write a reply to President Pedersen. Steward Hanske, the supplies and valuables from the captured ships should total around one hundred thousand gold ferdigs. Go receive and register them first. Every bit of income helps right now."
Steward Hanske hurried away.
Lord Bortfinger grew anxious beside him. "My lord, is the family really facing such a financial crisis?"
"Yes. If it weren't for releasing those prisoner-laborers this year, and the attack on Hilowas Island, we could have managed. We might have even made a small profit by launching those new products." Lorrisset said with a bitter smile. "I didn't expect so many released prisoners who met our family's military recruitment criteria to want to join our armed forces. It would be easy to refuse them, but giving them up would be a greater waste. Adding to that, we heard the Chickte Guild is eyeing Hilowas Island. Military expansion is now imperative.
Equipping and training these additional tens of thousands of troops is causing military expenditures to skyrocket. Especially the costs for the naval corps and the sailors' training camp—that's the biggest part. Not to mention, just the Storm, its supporting bronze cannons, and training the gunners cost nearly thirty thousand gold ferdigs alone.
To make matters worse, our family's territory on Hilowas Island was attacked by slavers and slave-hunting parties from the Haneabada Kingdom, causing us major losses. The follow-up and compensation costs are countless. On top of that, to retaliate, we're mobilizing the family's forces to campaign against the Haneabada Kingdom, adding several hundred thousand more in military expenses. Steward Speer's budget isn't wrong. If no major income arrives by May or June next year, the family will go bankrupt."
"My lord, isn't there any other way?" Lord Bortfinger asked urgently.
Lorrisset shook his head. "Other ways? I've considered them all. We could try to secure a loan from the Merse or the Red Crow Tavern in
"What a shame…" Bortfinger was a soldier through and through. He could only sigh up at the heavens, worrying over the family's financial crisis.
"Borg, let me ask you a question. Do you know what's the fastest way to make money in this world?" Lorrisset posed an unexpected question to Bortfinger.
"Um…" Bortfinger thought for a long while before answering hesitantly. "Is it the business of selling military equipment? I used to hear Sir Shrade talk all the time about how military equipment trade is immensely profitable. Back when we organized the caravan heading north, we were transporting military equipment…"
"No…" Lorrisset shook his head. "The fastest way to make money is robbing people—robbing those territorial nobles. Do you still remember when we defeated
Then you led the caravan to the Kingdom of Andinac. Although the Second Prince used you as a pawn, you swept through the entire Kingdom of Andinac with the caravan's formidable armed forces. Nearly two-thirds of the territorial nobles were hanged by you. From the manors and castles of those nobles you put on the gallows, the valuables you seized were worth more than two million gold Fordes…
When we reached the Northland, we defeated Duke
We invested all those funds into developing the family's territory—building up a powerful family armed force, eliminating the beast tide that had plagued the family lands for over two hundred years, and providing a stable and happy life for the refugees and soldiers' families who had followed our caravan to the Northland. We also established numerous workshops and mines, built towns and villages, and set up elementary schools where children could learn to read and write. Next, we plan to build a proper academy…
We found an estuary at the far end of the Blade Mountains and built a port city. We transformed the once-dangerous Black Mud Marsh into fertile farmland. The family has been pouring in enormous sums of money, and that's how we have the thriving, vibrant family territory we see today. If you count carefully, the family invests over one million gold Fordes every year—all the profits from our trading ventures have been poured in as well, such as the two million gold Fordes we earned from selling standardized equipment to our three allied partners…
If those slavers and slave-hunting parties hadn't attacked Hilowas Island, I might have led you to raid the Duchy of Madras. In the Northland's surroundings, the Duke of Madras was really the only target who looked wealthy enough for us to rob. My original plan was to land at White Sand Beach in the province of Sidigre, launch a surprise attack on the Grand Duke of Madras's stronghold, strip his accumulated wealth bare, and then withdraw by sea. The proceeds would have solved our family's urgent financial crisis."
"Don't look at me like that, Borg. You're my trusted knight, and I don't mind telling you the truth. There were several reasons for this plan. First, I wanted to give our family's armed force a taste of real combat. You have to understand—elite soldiers aren't forged through training alone; they're tempered through war. Second, the Duchy of Madras is a hostile state, so targeting them is entirely justified. And third, yes, I wanted to take the opportunity to enrich ourselves a bit at the Grand Duke of Madras's expense." Lorrisset grinned.
"Now that the Kingdom of Haneabada has delivered itself to our doorstep, I can afford to let the Grand Duke of Madras slide for the time being. His stronghold is in the province of Sidigre—it's not sprouting wings and flying anywhere, so it can wait for a future opportunity. Just as I'm not the least bit worried about our family's impending financial crisis, I'm quite certain the Kingdom of Haneabada is far wealthier than the Duchy of Madras. Those slaver lords and slave merchants must have accumulated a great deal of ill-gotten gold over the years. I daresay I'll be only too happy to collect their dirty money and put it to proper use…"
A sinister smile crept across Lorrisset's face. "Bodenfing…"
Bodenfing shuddered. "My lord, I'm here."
"Listen well. This expedition to the Kingdom of Haneabada has two priorities. The first is to rescue our people who have fallen into the hands of slavers and slave merchants. The second is to seize the wealth of the Kingdom of Haneabada to resolve our family's financial difficulties. As for our family soldiers, we will tell them that we march to avenge the innocent residents slaughtered on Hilowas Island and to liberate the slaves of Haneabada. We must make our soldiers believe with absolute conviction that we are fighting on the side of justice. Only then can our family's armed forces become a formidable military power instead of degenerating into a band of brigands. Do you understand?"
"My lord, I understand. Just as you said—those who offend the Norton Family, no matter how far, shall be punished! We are going to punish those slaver lords and slave merchants. Seizing their wealth is merely a convenient byproduct—something we do but never speak of…"
"Good. Borg, now tell me what's in the battle report Lunmod sent over. How did His Highness the Second Prince suffer such a crushing defeat?"
…whether through bribery or some other means, the commander turned his troops around, captured his own king, and surrendered to the Commercial Alliance. The Commercial Alliance has now become the third-largest nation by territory, rousing suspicion and vigilance among all neighboring countries.
Lunmod reported that prices in Morant City have skyrocketed—a mug of ale at the Red Crow Tavern that used to cost two copper coins now sells for ten. He's even requested a salary increase, claiming he can no longer support seven wives and all those children on his current pay…
As for His Highness the Second Prince's devastating defeat in Majik Province of the Kingdom of Redilis, Lunmod only learned of it from the Morant Daily. According to the report, a military genius emerged among the noble coalition of the Kingdom of Redilis—someone named Zitulam or something similar. He exploited the Second Prince's carelessness and lured his army of seventy thousand into low-lying terrain, then broke open dams that had been built in advance, unleashing a flood that swept away the Second Prince's forces. They say the Second Prince narrowly escaped with his life, but of his seventy thousand troops, barely a handful survived. The Second Prince coughed up blood from fury and swore a solemn oath—he would not rest until Zitulam was dead…
…(To be continued.)