Five days back to the Brennan estate.
And the true value of this deal
was not iron ore, but time.
&
“Father.”
“Oh, how did it go?”
Without a word, I held out the contract.
Father quickly skimmed its contents, then burst into hearty laughter.
“Haha! To conclude it in such a short time. It couldn’t have been easy.”
“Fortunately, things went well.”
Father looked over the documents once more, then nodded.
“If iron ore comes in, we’ll have to smelt it eventually. We do have blacksmiths on our side, but I’m not sure whether they have proper smelting techniques.”
“It will be fine.”
I answered calmly.
“Even if our smelting techniques are lacking, merely turning it into iron will be helpful enough. For now, that will suffice.”
Father nodded again.
“I see. But what do you intend to do about the rice?”
His gaze turned to me.
“Aside from harvesting what grows in certain regions, even a reliable cultivation method is not yet known. Velmardian, Lucewald, even the kingdom itself failed, as far as I know.
Do you think you can succeed?”
“It will sound absurd.”
I chose my words for a moment.
“Simply attempting it will have meaning. That alone will be enough to draw the interest of other nobles, or at least become a topic of conversation.”
“Isn’t that too great a loss for just that?”
“Yes.”
I continued at once.
“To be honest, what I just said was closer to an excuse I gave because I’m afraid as well.”
After taking a brief breath, I looked Father straight in the eye.
“But if things continue as they are, our family will find it hard to escape from merely scraping by while relying on a single knight and a single scholar. We have to do something.”
My voice was calm, but my words were clear.
“It may be peaceful for now, but there is no guarantee that peace will continue.”
Father’s eyes narrowed.
“You speak as if a territorial war might break out.”
“There is a possibility.”
I answered shortly.
“That is why the estate must become stronger, so we can protect that peace.”
Father was silent for a moment,
then slowly opened his mouth.
“But if you succeed in cultivating rice, that alone will put us in danger.”
I nodded and continued.
“That is why I’ve thought of a method.”
“Wouldn’t we be protected if we offered a portion to the kingdom as tax grain?”
It was not a bad plan.
Our profits would decrease, but we would gain justification.
“That alone will not be enough.”
I answered immediately.
“Nobles trying to discover the cultivation method will approach us. If we refuse, we’ll earn their resentment, and if we release it to everyone, it will lose its meaning.”
“Then?”
“We will sell it.”
Father’s eyebrows rose.
“The rice?”
“No.”
I spoke clearly.
“The cultivation method.”
Father was momentarily at a loss for words.
“…You’ll sell the cultivation method?”
“Yes.”
I calmly continued my explanation.
“We will first establish our cultivation foundation, and until a certain point, we will take the advantage of being first. After that, when the appropriate time comes, I intend to sell the cultivation method itself.”
“In the end, they will seek exclusive sales rights.”
“Yes. That is why I intend to attach conditions.”
I reorganized the calculations I had prepared in my head as I spoke.
“Even if we hand over the cultivation method, we must retain our right to cultivate and sell rice to the very end. Even if we have to share part of the profits with the other party.”
Father listened silently.
“If we do that, we will take the greatest profit in the beginning. Afterward, even if the side that receives the cultivation method begins production and prices fall somewhat, we will already have our foundation in place and can continue to profit steadily.”
Lastly, I added,
“Of course, they may produce a better grade of rice. But no matter what, we will still be able to earn far greater profits than we do from potatoes and sweet potatoes.”
In the end, there was only one thing to calculate.
It was not how greatly I could multiply money with this rice cultivation method.
It was whether, when taking the safest route possible, I could create results better than potatoes and sweet potatoes.
Father looked at me for a while.
“I see.”
He slowly nodded.
“What we should be looking at is not how far we can grow with this cultivation method. The key is whether it will be clearly better than potatoes and sweet potatoes.”
Father seemed to understand at once as well.
“You are better than I am. To think you were calculating it that way.”
“I learned it from you, Father.”
At my answer, Father’s smile deepened.
“Indeed.”
Father murmured softly.
“Seeing you now, I can clearly imagine how flustered Count Trevio must have been.”
Father rose from his seat.
“Very well. Even if you fail, you must have your own calculations. And judging from what you’ve said, you don’t seem likely to act recklessly. Try it. This father of yours will support you.”
“Thank you.”
I bowed briefly, then left the office.
The sound of the door closing echoed low through the corridor,
and after taking a few steps, my feet suddenly stopped.
Is this really the right choice?
If my expectations are wrong.
If, let alone a marquis, even a count’s house grows greedy and launches a territorial war,
we would not last half a day, let alone a full day.
Burning walls.
A collapsing crest.
And if the beginning of all that was my choice.
My breath grew short.
In the end, I must take responsibility for the outcome.
That obvious fact only then came upon me as weight.
At that moment, one person came to mind.
Aileen.
Someone who carried a far greater burden than I did with a face that showed nothing at all.
She really is incredible.
I took a short breath, then began walking again.
***
As soon as the next day came, I headed straight for the village.
Clang.
Clang.
It did not ring out often, but now and then, the sound of a hammer came from the smithy.
There was only one blacksmith’s shop in our estate,
and I knew that its owner was someone who had settled here after retiring from work in the capital.
He had once worked at a renowned smithy and even made weapons, but now he only made and repaired farming tools.
“Is anyone here?”
I knocked on the door, but the hammering continued inside.
I pushed the door open myself and went in.
Hot air rushed over me.
“Ah! Hello… h-huh!”
A young child who had been organizing the counter saw me and flinched in surprise, hurriedly trying to kneel.
“I, I greet Lord Reion!”
“That’s enough.”
I lightly waved my hand.
“What is your name?”
“De, Denzel, sir!”
“All right, Denzel. Go call the owner.”
“Yes!”
A short while later, a man who looked to be over fifty walked out from the back.
“Oh my, Lord Reion. I am Redek. What brings you here?”
“Iron ore will soon be coming into our estate.”
I spoke as politely as possible.
“Are you capable of smelting it?”
Those with skill ought to be respected.
That was fundamental.
Redek thought for a moment, then slowly nodded.
“I have worked in the capital, so I know the basics. Smelting itself won’t be a problem.”
But he soon continued.
“However, considering the state of this place, and since my smelting technique is not particularly outstanding, the results likely won’t be very good.”
“That is fine.”
I answered at once.
“Even if the powder that comes out of it and the quality are poor, iron farming tools will be enough.”
“Then there will be no problem.”
At that moment, I carefully asked,
“By the way, I heard that you do not make weapons.”
At my words, Redek’s expression stiffened.
And a brief silence passed.
Redek was unable to open his mouth for a while, then spoke heavily.
“I once encountered bandits.”
His voice lowered.
“My wife was killed by one of those bandits. But the sword in that man’s hand… was one I had made.”
I quietly nodded and asked,
“Then what about armor?”
Redek’s gaze slowly rose.
“As long as it isn’t a weapon, it is fine. If it is armor… I can work on it.”
“Then can you make chainmail as well?”
The look in his eyes changed in an instant.
“As it happens…”
After hesitating briefly, he continued.
“In truth, there is one piece of armor I made after that day.”
A very faint confidence was mixed into Redek’s voice.
“Chainmail is suitable for knights to use, but it is extremely inconvenient for ordinary people. Above all, it is expensive.”
He raised his hand and explained his thoughts.
“So if it is made by combining it with leather, it can be much lighter while still blocking blades to an adequate degree. For soldiers, that side would actually be more practical.”
The moment I heard those words, one product came to mind.
A mass-produced composite armor.
Armor that was cheap, quick to produce, and had spread throughout the kingdom.
There had even been disputes over its production rights.
I wondered if it could be.
“Do you happen to have that armor?”
Perhaps Redek found my reaction unexpected, for he blinked for a moment, then immediately went into the inner room.
Not long after, he returned carrying something.
The moment I saw it, I swallowed my breath.
Ha! It’s right.
Could it really have been Redek who made this?
For now, it was somewhat crude.
The finish was rough, and the structure was not fully refined.
But it was unmistakably that armor.
Of course, that was not to say composite armor of this kind did not exist in the world at all.
But Redek’s method was different.
Usually, iron plates were attached or linked over leather,
but to explain it simply, this was closer to a structure where iron was melted and spread broadly onto the front or back of the leather.
From the explanation alone, it sounded like anyone could make it, but it was actually a fairly technical task.
It was cheap.
And yet it was far stronger against blades than clumsy leather armor.
Armor that belonged to no one yet.
I spoke at once.
“Let’s register this technique.”
Redek tilted his head.
“Register it? Goodness… how could armor like this be…”
I firmly shook my head.
“It has value.”
And I added clearly,
“This is not equipment for knights. It is for soldiers.”
Redek’s eyes shook slightly.
“There are far more soldiers than knights. And they do not have the money to purchase expensive equipment.”
He knew that fact well enough.
I continued calmly.
“To receive a kingdom production seal, you need the guarantee of a noble. I will provide that guarantee. The Signal family will also bear the costs.”
Redek swallowed his breath.
In this world, a craftsman cannot register a technique alone.
A noble must stand as guarantor, and in exchange, the rights to the sales profits belong to that noble.
Custom is merciless.
The original registrant’s share is, at most, one-tenth.
If unlucky, only their name remains, and they gain almost no practical benefit.
Even so, there is only one reason craftsmen desire registration.
Because their name remains.
Looking at Redek, I said,
“I already have a name in mind.”
Redek’s gaze wavered.
“How about naming it after your wife?”
“M-my wife’s name? Serena… Armor.”
Yes.
Serena’s Armor.
Then as now.
Before long, this armor would become standard equipment for the soldiers of most estates.
Once its distribution began, it would not stop.
And the more wars increased, the more explosively demand would grow.
The money earned from it would not be small, either.
If heard in words alone, it sounded as though one could make a truly tremendous amount of money,
but unfortunately, that was not the case.
The kingdom would inevitably step in.
Because in exchange for being protected by the kingdom production seal,
half the profits would enter the royal treasury.
That was why a craftsman’s first patent profits amounted to, at most, one-tenth.
It was merely the price of leaving one’s name behind,
not a structure for seizing wealth.
Moreover, I intended to give Redek a sufficient share as well.
So in the end, the money entering our family could not reach astronomical levels.
As time passed, similar items would spring up everywhere like mushrooms after rain.
Even so.
It would certainly become a considerable sum of money.
On the way back to the mansion,
my steps felt a little lighter.
But suddenly,
one thought brushed past me.
Wait.
Aren’t there more things I can secure first?
A map unfolded in my memory.
The western mountain range.
An iron mine that would be discovered several years later.
What if I discovered it first and registered it with the kingdom?
In that instant, my body stiffened.
The iron that came from there was on a different level from the Bedberiu estate’s.
Iron is not a mere mineral.
Military supplies.
Military supplies are military power,
and military power is authority.
The moment a small estate takes hold of that iron mine, not only the surrounding estates but even distant territories will change their calculations.
A territorial war is not the issue.
Assassination.
I stopped walking.
Greed swells quickly.
I cannot yet bear that weight.
Let’s not be greedy.