Chapter 128
I Became the Finance Director of a Kingdom on the Verge of Civil War – Part 4
『 Translator – Divinity 』
Fortunately, I succeeded in persuading the Headmistress. Although it was questionable whether it could be called persuasion.
In the end, I got her permission, so all’s well that ends well, right?
Of course, I wasn’t planning on using the name Adam Keynes on this business trip. Naturally, I headed to the Delphia Kingdom with Beatrice under an alias, as a salt merchant, not the Finance Director.
I did use the name of a certain red-haired demon in the process, but…
‘Let’s sell salt instead of spreading communism.’
In the first place, it was questionable whether communism was even possible in a world where a single high-ranker could easily kill dozens, hundreds of low-rankers.
Anyway, I had no intention of turning the Delphia Kingdom red or showing any expansionist tendencies.
But since I used the name Karl Marx, if I had to mention communism, it would be this.
‘Redistribution of wealth.’
Give me gold coins in exchange for salt. That’s redistribution.
I leisurely observed General Cartea, who was deep in thought, holding the document that listed the total amount of salt I had.
‘It would be nice if he bought it all.’
He probably wouldn’t be able to. Even I could tell it was a considerable amount.
Of course, the sack that Suzanne was carrying instead of me, a mere Rank 1, didn’t look that big, but it was an artifact. It was one of the artifacts the Headmistress had given me, saying I had to take it with me.
Artifacts related to space were essential for merchants, but the one the Headmistress gave me was quite something.
If you’re wondering where she got it when she had sold all her artifacts…
‘Dwarves are gods and invincible.’
When the Headmistress summoned that dwarf acting mayor, Tir, and asked for it, he immediately handed it over.
It wasn’t exactly given to her, but lent, but the fact that it was lent for free showed how much of a powerhouse the Headmistress was to the dwarves. She received several other artifacts as well.
And I also had the ‘trump card’ I received when I first became the Finance Director.
I filled the artifact sack with the salt I diligently produced. This was the creative economy.
“…W-well, that’s quite a lot of salt.”
“A rock salt mine was recently rebuilt. This is from there.”
“I see. If this is the actual quantity, and the quality is also purified by the Church… I’m sorry, but it’s difficult for me to buy it all. You only accept gold coins, right?”
“As you said, I only accept gold coins, not jewels, valuables, or art pieces. There’s no need to explain why, is there?”
“Of course not.”
It was true that jewels, art pieces, and such had high value for their size. The problem was that this was a country on the verge of civil war, and I was a merchant with no reputation.
High-value goods like jewels and art pieces had many counterfeits, so you needed an appraiser to properly assess their value, and you had to know how much they were actually worth.
If I were the Finance Director, I could easily verify it through the staff, but I was alone now. Even if she was a high rank mage and the fourth princess, that didn’t mean she was an expert at appraisal.
That’s why it was easiest to just receive the payment in Imperial gold coins. I had an artifact with spatial magic, so the volume wasn’t a big concern.
Merchants usually preferred gold coins over high-value goods with low liquidity, unless it was a special case.
General Cartea, nodding at my reasonable words, pondered for a moment and then held up two fingers.
“I’ll buy 20%.”
“That’s still a considerable amount.”
“I have that much in gold coins, so don’t worry. I need it urgently, so let’s make the deal without delay.”
It seemed like he had more gold coins hidden away than I thought. Even if he looted the surroundings, the nobles would have taken all the gold coins with them when they fled.
Anyway, all I had to do was receive the money. I received the gold coins without delay and handed him the salt in another sack.
General Cartea’s eyes gleamed as he saw the artifact sack.
“That sack, it’s quite an artifact. It’s not something an ordinary salt merchant would carry around. Especially not a Rank 1.”
“I was just lucky.”
“…Right. Of course.”
Cartea, who looked like he would have killed me and taken my belongings if I hadn’t come with Beatrice, gave up his greed. He seemed to have realized that I was intentionally hiding my identity.
It was suspicious for an ordinary salt merchant, a Rank 1 at that, to be traveling alone and even carrying such a high-grade artifact.
He seemed convinced that I had met Beatrice by chance and joined her… but well…
Whether he realized it or not, all I had to do was sell the salt, meet with Crown Prince Zeke to discuss the bribe again, and return with Beatrice later.
If it were the old her, the building destroyer, I would have just left her, but she was now a VIP customer who diligently paid bribes. I had a feeling I would regret it if I left her behind.
After finishing the clean deal, I stepped into the newly built tent for Beatrice and Suzanne.
“Your Highness, I’ve returned.”
“Thank you for your hard work. I’ve taken care of the soundproofing, so you can speak comfortably.”
“How could I? I’m not the Finance Director now, but a salt merchant.”
“…You…”
Look behind you, behind you. Can’t you see Suzanne’s gaze?
She was giving me a “Just try speaking comfortably” look. She even clicked her tongue while looking at me.
Usually, it was fine to meet Beatrice alone, but now, if I wasn’t careful, I could lose an arm to a certain high-ranking maid.
‘I have a hunch why she’s like that.’
After all, she carried that heavy artifact sack instead of me.
It wasn’t difficult to appease Suzanne, as there would be many more situations where her strength would be needed.
“…By the way, Finance Director, thank you so much.”
“Excuse me?”
“You broke your promise with my brother and even persuaded the Headmistress… to allow me to return. I’m truly grateful.”
“It’s fine since I’m also profiting from this. However, since I’m Rank 1, I’ll leave my protection to you, Your Highness.”
“Don’t worry! I’ll definitely protect you!”
Beatrice puffed out her chest and nodded confidently. But wasn’t it tiring for them to bounce like that?
It was only natural for a Rank 1 to ask a Rank 6 for protection, so Suzanne didn’t glare at me.
More importantly, should I write in the ledger?
‘The salt sales are going smoothly.’
I was originally planning to sell all the stock to Crown Prince Zeke, but this general near the border bought 20%. It was a pleasant miscalculation.
By the way, Suzanne also had to carry a separate bag for the gold coins. I couldn’t put gold coins in the salt sack when I hadn’t even sold all the salt.
…Come to think of it, was that why she was glaring at me? But a frail Rank 1 like me couldn’t carry the salt or the gold coin sack.
I decided to just be shameless. If she was unhappy, she could complain to Beatrice.
‘I left my illusion at the academy, so it should be fine for a while.’
It was fortunate that the artifact production I commissioned from Equipment No. 2 was finished faster than expected. I wondered if it was normally this fast, but thanks to the Headmistress visiting him from time to time and pressuring him about the completion date, Equipment No. 2 finished it quickly, even at the risk of his rank dropping.
Of course, the quality suffered because of that, so it wasn’t something that would last long, but I could just have him make another one.
It was an illusion that even the Archbishop couldn’t detect, so it would be effective in hiding my absence and pressuring Milia and Equipment No. 1.
I did ask the Headmistress to spread the rumor about our fake relationship using the illusion, but…
‘She’s not actually kissing the illusion, is she?’
I trust her, well… I do. The Headmistress had already shown me many things, but I believed she wouldn’t be that ridiculous…
Actually, it would be better to make more salt at this hour since there wasn’t much to write in the ledger, but…
‘…It’s not coming out. Well, after that stunt…’
No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t create any more salt. To be precise, it was because I used a little trick.
Since I was going to a country in the midst of a civil war to sell salt, the more I had, the better, so I forcefully produced a lot of salt with the Headmistress’s help.
The plan itself, where the Headmistress infused my heart with aura and I used that aura to create salt, was good, but…
Perhaps because I made too much, I couldn’t produce any more salt.
‘It’s not a loss of ability, but a sort of prepayment, they said?’
The fragment of the sacred relic was still in my heart. I had it confirmed by Ruth and the Headmistress, so there was no doubt.
They said it would probably take about the same amount of time it took to create that salt with a shortcut before I could make more.
What was this, a game? …Well, I was inside a game.
They said I wouldn’t be able to use mana at all for a while as a minor side effect, but I was Rank 1 and couldn’t use it anyway! Damn it.
“Huh? Finance Director? Where are you going?”
“I’m going for a walk outside. Can I go with Lady Suzanne?”
“Of course. Suzanne? Attend to the Finance Director properly.”
“Understood.”
Wouldn’t it be awkward to be alone with Suzanne now? Not really?
It was fine because we wouldn’t say a word to each other and just take a walk.
Awkwardness wasn’t something you felt when you were in a superior position.
“…A sudden walk?”
Oh, she’s talking to me.
Then, well…
“Yes, a real walk.”
“………”
Why did she ask if she was just going to be quiet again?
If you’re asking if it’s a real walk, of course not. I wasn’t crazy, why would I take a walk in an army camp?
It was because I had other matters to attend to on my way to the Delphia Kingdom.
‘Cardinal Reti said there were heretics wandering around in the Delphia Kingdom.’
The ‘personal favor’ I got from Cardinal Reti during the Circe incident. I asked her to investigate the Delphia Kingdom’s civil war, and she delivered splendidly.
There were various pieces of information, but the one that caught my eye was about the heretics. And that they granted wishes.
It was obvious at this point.
‘The Wish Cult.’
Dark Sword was in Ruth’s possession, and they had lost their Paladin Captain during that academy attack WWE incident.
It was only natural that they would target the Delphia Kingdom in their weakened state. It was easy to infiltrate and proselytize in a country on the verge of civil war.
Of course, they were heretics to the Church and a cancer to the Delphia Kingdom, but to me, they were excellent collaborators.
I had already made a good impression on General Cartea, so it should be fine to wander around the camp freely. If possible, it would be nice to find a connection here…
“Hey, are you sure this is how you do it?”
“I’m sure! …Probably.”
“Don’t screw around. We could lose everything! We barely have any supplies!”
“I know, so just stay still. Do you think I’ve ever used this before? This is military-grade, it’s incredibly potent!”
What’s that?
The soldiers were secretly doing something, but I noticed something familiar.
…Huh?
“Huh?”
“Mr…. Marx?”
Uh… uh…?
***
‘…They’re late.’
Beatrice, who was alone in the tent, checking the artifacts, raised her head.
It had been an hour since the Finance Director and Suzanne left for their walk. It would be one thing if they were walking around the entire camp, but it was taking too long for a simple stroll.
‘Of course, it can’t be just a walk.’
If it were something time-consuming, he would have told her beforehand. The fact that he didn’t meant it was something quick.
But it was still suspicious that it was taking an hour.
‘Except for General Cartea, there’s no one in this camp who can subdue Suzanne silently. And General Cartea is still in his tent.’
She was keeping track of Cartea’s location with the detection magic she left in the general’s tent. No one else could subdue Suzanne in an instant, and if someone did attack, there should have been a commotion.
What was going on? Beatrice, after a moment of contemplation, left the tent.
‘Could it be that Suzanne and… what am I even thinking?’
Beatrice scoffed at her own strange delusion and then, in her state of mana exhaustion, drew mana from her artifact and used detection magic.
Using magic openly in the camp would expose her, but finding the Finance Director was the priority now.
Beatrice, slightly anxious, found the familiar presence of a Rank 1 and hurriedly ran towards it.
“Tearing the veins of the leaves like this and extracting the sap is the most efficient method. Normally, you would refine it, but even if you just soak the remaining leaves in it and burn them…”
“Ooh…!!”
“The effect is much better!”
“I can’t believe that salt merchant knows so much about our kingdom’s cigarettes…”
“I’ve used them a lot for various reasons.”
“…This isn’t for civilian use, it’s a military stimulant.”
“Various reasons.”
“…?”
That…
The Finance Director?