Chapter 114: One sows and another reaps
The merchants who worked for their own profit worked with eagerness that exceeded expectations. They worked without sleep to haul everything that they could to increase their profits. The cave once full of goods was emptied to the ground. Reclaimed horses were used to pull the carts and workers were assigned to take the reins. They began moving as they all finished hauling the goods.
“I never saw so many goods in my life!”
“How much will this be?”
“I will give Jane’s butt a good smack when I go back.”
“I’ll enjoy cool Ainos beer when I get back.”
“Henen, should I become a mercenary?”
“What?”
“Did you see those thieves falling to my arrow? I think I have talent in archery.”
“You must be crazy.”
“I just want to enjoy my life in peace. I don’t want to be in a war again.”
“I know, I lost all my appetite.”
“I saw you eating more just now! Don’t lie.”
“NO WAY!”
Everyone was excited. Joonbum grinned.
‘No one hates money.’
This world shared the same truth. Everyone wanted money, and they worked hard for it. Even the cart that had tens of heads did not raise any complaints as the reward was doubled for it.
‘The marquis will be quiet for now.’
There were a lot of problems that were solved, but there were still more left to solve.
“Sir, they want to go with you.”
‘Ugh.’
Joonbum frowned as he heard Ress reporting to him. Joonbum rescued a girl from Baron Ferric’s family and her servants. They were on a trip to another noble’s lands and were captured by the thieves. The baron’s family did not know of this because it was only recently that they were captured.
“Ugh.”
Ress grinned as Joonbum seemed to be troubled.
Ress suggested, “You can use this chance to make a connection with the baron. They are not a high-ranking family, but they still are landlords. Their land neighbors Count Khalodian’s lands, so I think it will be helpful. I heard their land is also very safe and fertile.”
He was very interested in the situation. He was, after all, a skilled merchant who knew the value of relationships. It seemed like Ress wanted to be part of this connection.
“Hmm.”
The carriage that held two women inside moved quietly. One could see two ladies through the window: a girl named Catherine, and her servant, Eina. The girl was only eight years old and Eina Hillic was about thirty years old. Eina was a servant, but her duty was to protect her master.
Catherine noticed Joonbum was watching her. She blushed and waved her hand.
“Joonbum! Hi! Ugh.”
“Miss! Stop it please! That’s embarrassing!”
Catherine was yanked back inside the carriage. Joonbum shook his head and sighed.
‘It’s good that she’s not shocked, but she’s too friendly.’
It was awkward that a young girl like her was being friendly to him, but it wasn’t bad. He thought it would be similar to having a younger sister.
“She is lucky to be so young,” Ress said and Joonbum nodded. Their fates were doomed when they were captured since the marquis had to keep quiet about what he was up to, so they probably would’ve been killed.
‘Anyway.’
Joonbum thought about the marquis again. Ress realized what Joonbum was thinking, so he said, “We won’t need to worry about the marquis for a while. But he will not forget what happened here. Thus, I suggest we stay friends with that little lady for now.”
‘Oh, so that’s what you meant.’
Joonbum grinned bitterly.
‘I don’t know who this marquis is exactly, but if he comes after me because of those heads, I will have to put an end to him myself,’ he thought as he grinned coldly. Ress, who was watching him, changed the subject.
“We finished discussing. We will have half of the money prepared for you. How do you like it?”
“Half to me? Did the merchants agree to it?”
“Yes, sir. They have no objections. We will divide the other half amongst ourselves.”
Joonbum was puzzled and Ress smiled, “We were astonished by the actions you took that day. We are greedy merchants, but we are not greedy enough to take the goods that belong to our savior. We do not deserve even half of it, but consider it the cost for moving and selling the goods.”
Joonbum nodded. The goods were plenty. It would be in a merchant’s realm to sell such goods if he did not want to sell the goods at a bargain price.
‘I don’t need to be greedy and make the merchants my enemies. I don’t need to make a profit off of them.’
“I will take 40% of the profit. Divide other 10% equally among the merchants, mercenaries, and the workers. Count that after taking out all the costs needed to sell everything.”
“What?”
Ress was shocked. The half they offered was the actual half as they needed to sell the goods first. But they did not expect Joonbum to exclude the expenses that were required to sell the goods and then divide it among the people.
‘He is different.’
No nobles cared about how hard it would be to sell the goods. This man was different. Ress himself had begun realizing such difficulties after he became a merchant, but this knight from the other country knew it already.
“Thank you.”
“No need. I can’t do it alone.”
“Thank you. This is the list of what we managed to document.”
Ress handed over a parchment with a list of reclaimed goods. Joonbum frowned.
“Ugh, I miss Arabic numerals. How can these people use such numbers to calculate things? I should hire Jackson soon…”
*
The marquis was in distress. Several human heads and a letter were delivered to them. The letter was handed over to Marquis Dunahan Beneth by his secretary, Vezzak. An old man with a stout body calmly read through the letter. His hair that resembled a lion’s mane gave him a strong impression and flaunted his beauty. His face was also covered with a full beard.
“Very interesting…”
The marquis quietly read the letter and looked at his secretary. Vezzak bowed. Another man, Knight-Captain Ardun Hawk, also bowed next to Vezzak. The marquis let out a small sigh.
“It is too good to be true, right?” Marquis asked.
Vezzak spoke in a low voice. “It’s my fault, milord. I will take any punishment.”
Ardun also bowed. “No, milord. I should have used men who would be more fitting for the task. It is my fault.”
They both were angered by what happened. The marquis asked calmly, “Rage won’t change any results.”
“I-I’m sorry, milord.”
Both men bowed down more.
“Have you checked the letter? Are the number of heads and the identities correct?”
“Yes, milord.”
Marquis Beneth seemed to be amused, rather than being furious at his failure.
“Well, we won’t have to worry about anything then. Joonbum Christos? This guy is smart. He took care of our biddings.”
The marquis looked like he was very calm and peaceful. Vezzak opened his mouth to speak.
“Yes, milord. Nobody will relate what happened to us.”
“Yes. That means we won’t have other nobles coming after us.”
“But there are a few who know. They might try to threaten us for that, milord.”
Ardun was still angry, unlike Vezzak who found his regular self. It was his own men that he trained himself. All those men were killed and were returned without their bodies. It was outrageous. The marquis watched him quietly as he rubbed his mustache.
“So, Ardun, what is it that you’re proposing? Should we go to war?”
“N-no…”
“What will they do if I make a move now? All those merchants and nobles that support them will rise against me at once. Do you think I can just ignore them because they have no proof?”
“I am sorry, milord.”
“Hmph. Vezzak.”
“Yes, milord.”
“Do you think all the proof is gone?”
“No, milord. We have the right count, but some of the faces are heavily mutilated. We cannot confirm the identities.”
“Hmm…!” Ardun moaned in a low voice as Vezzak explained, “We are still underhanded here. The man promised to keep quiet with such a present. We should not return it with a war. This is where we end it. And it was for fun anyway, so don’t mind it too much. But make sure you two find out who this Joonbum Christos is and what exactly happened. Understood?”
“Yes, milord.”
Both men bowed and answered the marquis. Ardun’s anger dissipated and was replaced with the same question that the marquis had asked.
‘What really happened?’
