Chapter 179
Chapter 179: Finally, That Time Has Come. (2)
Amelia frowned at the words of Conrad, the merchant leader of the Actium Guild.
“Did you request food from Penris again?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Is the situation in Penris and Perdium that bad?”
“It shouldn’t be. The northern lords have already provided support, and the Crown Prince Faction is also offering assistance, right? If I had to guess, it seems they want to secure supplies in advance because of the immigrants.”
“How much support has the Crown Prince Faction provided?”
“Because it was a sudden decision, I can’t say for certain… But since Marquis Branford is involved, it should be sufficient to last through this year.”
Conrad reported to Amelia every time something special happened in their dealings with Penris. This time was no different.
When they first sold food, there were no particular thoughts, but as they observed the situation, something felt off.
Despite receiving considerable support from the Crown Prince Faction, they were still buying food like crazy.
The amount of food being bought was increasing to the point that food prices in the north were rising, so it was impossible not to report it.
Amelia lowered her gaze, lost in thought.
‘What are they planning this time?’
The harvest season was approaching. No matter how barren the north was, food prices would inevitably drop right after the harvest.
Yet here was Ghislaine, already with enough food, unable to wait even a moment, buying more to the point of raising prices, and that was troubling her.
“What about the actions of other guilds?”
“They’re eagerly selling food. It’s obvious prices will drop soon, and they plan to cash in before that.”
The north was a region that guilds from other areas passed through when selling food.
Even after transportation costs, they could sell it for much higher prices here than anywhere else.
With the prices rising even more than usual, it was clear every merchant wanted to seize this opportunity.
After a moment of silence, Amelia asked something else.
“How’s the weather lately? What do you think the harvest will be like this year?”
“It has gotten a bit drier compared to last year, but it’s nothing to worry about. We’ve had such weather often.”
“Hmm…”
While the north often faced famine, Raybold and Desmond rarely experienced such issues.
Even during a drought, it would only be that there was no surplus to sell to other territories, but the territory residents wouldn’t go hungry.
That’s why Conrad confidently stated, “It’s nothing to worry about.”
However, even after hearing that answer, Amelia pondered for a while and then raised her head decisively.
“Stop selling food. Not just in Penris, but everywhere. For now, just stockpile it. Secretly, without anyone knowing. Also, buy from other guilds as much as you can manage.”
At the sudden command, Conrad looked slightly flustered.
“Once the harvest starts, prices will drop quickly. We could profit if we sell now. Our supplies can be stored, but buying from other guilds would incur great losses.”
“Stop talking back and do as I say.”
“…Can I ask why you’re insisting on this?”
“When did I ever let you question my orders?”
“…My apologies. I’ll implement it immediately.”
Seeing Conrad’s stiff face, Amelia clicked her tongue. Since he was a valued retainer, it wouldn’t hurt to explain a bit.
“I have something to confirm.”
“What is it?”
“I want to know whether that fool has succeeded so far merely by luck or through genuine skill. I’m willing to accept losses, so proceed as I’ve stated.”
“…Understood.”
Conrad gave up trying to persuade her. Amelia was someone who rarely reversed her decisions once made.
Even though he valued her as a retainer, crossing her on her decisions in the past had resulted in severe consequences.
Though he had to follow her orders, the thought of sustaining significant losses troubled Conrad as he left.
Even after Conrad clutched his pained stomach and withdrew, Amelia remained lost in thought for some time.
‘Ghislaine… I’ll watch carefully to see what scheme she’s up to this time.’
*
Claude clutched his belly, laughing at the order to prepare supplies for three thousand people.
“Lord! Our forces, even with the knights included, are only 500 strong! Three thousand? Hahaha! Wait, Wendy, did the butler not properly count the numbers? Aah!”
Only after getting slapped by Belinda did the real Claude rub his sore eyes and ask again.
“Is it really three thousand?”
“Yes.”
“But our forces don’t even amount to that!”
“I told you before, I’ll take care of finding them.”
“From where? Perdium doesn’t have that many soldiers either, and even if they did, they wouldn’t be able to spare them because of the northern border.”
“Oh, it’s fine. There are plenty of places to borrow from. You’ll see, soon I’ll be getting requests from everywhere.”
“Ugh… Here we go again.”
No lord lends soldiers without a solid relationship or due payment. Even the Crown Prince Faction, which had already given up territory residents, didn’t provide any military support.
Yet the lord spoke confidently of procuring soldiers like it was a done deal, and Claude couldn’t wrap his head around it.
Exhausted from questioning, Claude asked out of curiosity.
“By the way, didn’t we agree we’d be defending?”
“Never said anything like that.”
“What about during the hot air balloon instance!”
Claude raised his voice, then stopped short.
Thinking back, the lord had actually never said such a thing. He just believed it because he was overly enthusiastic about it alone.
“…Yeah, it must have just been my misunderstanding. So when will you borrow the troops?”
“Soon. Almost finished. Just a little more waiting.”
Claude sighed.
It seemed the ‘time’ he had been talking about since they returned to the territory was approaching.
What kind of time was so big that he could be this confident?
If it turned out to be nothing, he was fully prepared to tease him for it.
‘If only he could really bring three thousand troops…’
Even if he were a total fraud, there were approximately 400 that could show knightly prowess, even if only for a moment.
If three thousand soldiers were added to that, their chances would greatly increase.
‘Of course, if Count Cabaldy gets scared of our numbers and goes into a siege, then it wouldn’t be guaranteed…’
Claude shook his head, trying to separate his tangled thoughts. Right now, nothing was certain.
“Understood. For now, I’ll prepare for an expedition based on three thousand. We have ample food, so there shouldn’t be any issues.”
“Good, since it’s nearly time, everyone make sure you don’t slack off on your duties.”
The retainers bowed their heads, showing anxious expressions. Hearing the lord’s tone made it seem like they would really set off soon.
Until now, the lord had made various preparations and mentioned borrowing troops, but that was all.
Because they had never heard the details, everything felt confusing and difficult to trust.
But how much power did they actually hold? If told, they would have no choice but to obey him. After all, he was just the Chief Officer coordinating the duties in front of the lord.
Seeing the worried retainers, Ghislaine quietly smiled.
‘Just wait a little longer, and you’ll find out.’
As Ghislaine had foreseen, the people of Penris began to feel something unusual as time passed.
“What’s going on? Why is it so hot lately?”
“This level of heat hasn’t been seen in years, has it?”
“Isn’t a drought coming?”
Those who farm are sensitive to the weather. Weather is deeply related to the year’s harvest.
As the air became hotter and drier day by day, the territory residents felt a chill run down their spines.
For those who had always struggled to eat and were only just now filling their bellies, a drought was the worst disaster, reviving nightmarish memories.
With concern etched on their faces, everyone busily surveyed the fields every day.
However, that worry didn’t last long.
“Oh, it was an unnecessary worry. It’s just a bit hot, I guess? Am I getting weak or something?”
“The wheat is looking great! We should be able to harvest again soon.”
The monstrous wheat created by the lord was thriving regardless of the heat or dryness.
Honestly, it looked fine to harvest right away.
Thanks to the recent maintenance of the waterways, there were also no issues with irrigation.
Unlike the nonchalant atmosphere in Penris, other territories began to turn chaotic.
Lowell, in charge of information gathering, reported daily on the conditions of nearby territories.
“The weather is unusual. It looks like a major drought is coming. All the lords in various regions are worried.”
Initially, the report concluded with a mere note of concern. Plus, the wheat was growing well, so the retainers did not sense the issue with the weather.
With reservoirs and water tanks filled to capacity, they had no worries about water supply.
Everyone simply believed Lowell was making a fuss over some hot weather.
But as days went by, Lowell’s reports grew more extreme.
“The water levels in the river are dropping rapidly! The crops are in poor condition!”
“The merchants are mobilizing to secure food! There seems to be a shortage!”
“T-the price of food is skyrocketing!”
With reports growing far more severe than before, the retainers gaped and turned to Ghislaine.
In Penris, they had expanded their warehouses significantly because they were running out of space to store food, while it seemed other territories were in chaos over shortages.
If a real famine had come, it would make sense. All the food in the north had been sucked up by Penris at inflated prices.
Other guilds would find themselves unable to procure anything even if they tried.
However, the retainers residing only in Penris could not believe Lowell’s words.
Just the day before, they had complained about having stocked too much food, saying, “At this rate, we won’t even eat it and it’ll just rot,” cursing the lord. Suddenly, they were hearing about country-wide shortages?
‘We’re okay, though? Is he lying? Did the lord order him to lie?’
‘Crops that weren’t doing well suddenly skyrocketed in price. Could it be that a drought actually hit?’
The retainers, half-convinced, soon became convinced by the new reports a few days later.
“Famine stones have begun to appear in various localities! There is definitely a drought! The situation is severe!”
If famine stones, planted to signal drought, appeared, it meant that even the riverbanks were drying up and that the situation was grave.
This level of drought was a disaster that might only occur once in several decades, even in the barren north.
But that wasn’t the only issue. Other regions outside the north were suffering from drought as well.
“Across the kingdom… An abnormal climate covers the entire kingdom. It seems difficult to normally harvest crops… Not only Ruthania but also territories nearby our kingdom are facing the same. It’s the worst… drought.”
This couldn’t just be brushed off as a mere famine.
A drought causing famine across the kingdom was incredibly rare.
The retainers couldn’t wrap their heads around it.
In Penris, they had plenty of food stockpiled, and there was so much water that it was impossible to feel the gravity of the situation, while everywhere else was in chaos from drought.
It seemed like the lord had been harassing people precisely because he anticipated this situation.
Claude, trembling with confusion and anxiety, asked,
“L-lord, what’s happening? What on earth is going on? Did you really foresee an actual drought?”
Everyone resonated with Claude’s words and looked at Ghislaine.
Up until now, anything the lord had done could be explained as having heard it somewhere or merely having good luck.
But predicting the weather was an entirely different matter.
Foreseeing the future was something only a prophet from legends could accomplish.
While everyone was surprised, Ghislaine merely rested her chin on her hand with a subtle smile.
What should I say? That I actually do know the future?
Although I couldn’t actually say that, just imagining it was amusing.
Seeing Ghislaine smiling, Claude urged her for an answer.
“Stop just laughing! How did you even know there would be a drought?”
After a pause, Ghislaine casually answered.
“Because it’s hot.”
“Huh?”
“When the weather gets too hot, a drought comes. It has been consistently hot for a while now. Isn’t that right?”
“Are you saying you made all these ridiculous preparations just because it was hot? That doesn’t make sense!”
“Oh, so what if it’s hot? I don’t like it being hot.”
“……”
Ghislaine’s nonsense left everyone speechless.
‘So you mean to say that you made a fuss and prepared only because it was hot, and it turned out to be the right call by coincidence?’
That was the kind of thought that only someone seriously preoccupied with worry would think of.
It was just as hard to believe as saying she foresaw the future, but at least it felt a bit more plausible.
If the prediction had been wrong, Penris would have been left with spoiled food and would bear quite a significant loss.
After enjoying the silence a moment longer, Ghislaine turned to Lowell and asked.
“What’s the situation in Perdium?”
“Uh, well… It’s a bit different from other places.”
“Details, please.”
Flipping through reports with a frozen expression, Lowell responded.
“Baron Homern, the chief officer of Perdium, upon receiving the report on the territory’s situation…”
“Received what?”
“Ahem. ‘Ah, we’ve messed up farming this year too. But we mess it up every year anyway, right? Right now, we have plenty of food, so it’s fine. If we run low, we’ll just ask the Grand Duke again.’… That’s what he said.”
“…I see. How’s the water situation there?”
“Water levels have decreased a lot, but thanks to the river flowing from the Forest of Monsters and the water tanks we provided, it seems they can hold out decently. Their conditions are better than other territories.”
“Good, there shouldn’t be any big problems.”
Perdium was already a place that lived hand to mouth, so they could shrug off this drought with ‘it’s always like this.’
If the drought were prolonged, there would be an issue with water, but still, they would manage somehow.
Honestly, I wanted to create more water tanks and irrigation, but since Perdium was my father’s territory, I felt limited to intervening.
Confirming that Perdium could hold out, Ghislaine then asked about other territories.
“The situation in other territories?”
“It’s the worst. Raybold and Desmond won’t be able to harvest even half of a normal year’s yield. Fortunately, they will likely have some reserves, so they’ll make it… But in other areas, deaths from starvation are expected.”
“Hmm, that’s unfortunate.”
“Everyone is in a frenzy trying to secure food. If we sell now, we could get ten times the usual price.”
At Lowell’s words, all the retainers’ eyes lit up.
The north had always struggled with food production. There was no way they could endure this drought.
On the other hand, Penris was stockpiling food in unfathomable amounts. Plus, soon, they would see a massive output from the fields where they had planted monstrous wheat.
If they took advantage of this opportunity well, they might become the wealthiest territory in the kingdom.
Despite all the hopeful gazes from the retainers, Ghislaine shook her head.
“I have no intention of selling right now.”
Claude suddenly recalled Ghislaine’s frequent mention of ‘the right time.’
Since the crops were withering, Count Cabaldy wouldn’t be able to properly feed his soldiers either.
Starving troops would be demoralized, unable to fight effectively.
Ghislaine grinned and replied.
“Finally, that time has come.”
