Chapter 10: Rogue Lords (10)

 

The enemy forces retreated, we were victorious.

The number of enemy troops who returned home alive was less than 2,000. We were able to eradicate many soldiers on the mountain roads.

Bente was ecstatic, he poured the alcohol into his mouth without stopping. He had drunk so much already that his face was bright red.

“Centurion! Enough with the alcohol!”

A subordinate next to him shook Bente’s shoulder while stopping him.

“Hey, you can drink on a day like today! Uhahahahaha!”

Laughing broadly Bente binged on more alcohol. Finally, he completely stripped off his clothes and went on a rampage.

“Hey, old man. Listen to me. The lord has killed all of them. They’re all Narja’s men. He’s not like any other lords you’ve ever known. Ten warlords of Narja? He beated that guy with one strike! Kuh-ha-ha!”

Bente began to put on a nude show, his men rushed over and tried to stop him. These actions of Bente spread all kinds of rumors in Aintorian.

I hear it was a big deal?

The Narja’s have invaded again, right?

They say the lord stopped more than 10,000 soldiers.

My son actually saw him in action. I didn’t think the lord would……

I heard it was 50,000 men, not 10,000.

50,000 men versus 5,000?

It was mainly Bente who embellished the story. Thanks to this, the achievements of the lord quickly spread throughout Aintorian.

The lord, who was playful and could only torment people with his vassals, was such a strong man that he could stop the enemy from entering the city.

If we lost to Narja, all the cities and towns in the territory would be sacked by the Narja kingdom army. Men are murdered and women are raped, I’ve experienced that vicious cycle many times already.

Even if he was famous for being a rogue lord, thwarting, the enemy’s invasion was certainly a catalyst for the people’s growing fondness for the lord.

***

Martial force: 60]

[Intelligence: ?]

[Command: ?]

[Affiliation: the Lord of Aintorian]

[People’s spirit: 40]

I’m a very ordinary person. I can use the system and perks to increase my martial force, but not my physical strength. When I returned to the lord castle exhausted from fighting all night I fell straight into bed.I passed out and by the time I woke up the whole day had passed.

When I woke up after sleeping like that, somehow my [People’s spirit] had risen from 20 to 40, and I couldn’t remember doing anything in particular.No, we won the war.

Does this mean that no matter how bad my reputation as a rogue lord is, if I prevent an enemy invasion, I’ll be more or less well-received? However, if the territory is invaded by an enemy army, the people will either die or be taken, prisoner. With that in mind, the people’s spirits may rise somewhat. Anyway, the important thing is the fact that Aintorian did not fall.

I survived. From now on, I have to live as Erhin. History has been rewritten, and even I don’t know what the future holds for the Kingdom of Narja.

Will the Kingdom of Narja Kingdom force an invasion from the Lunan Kingdom’s northern borders, as history has shown?

I had to wait and see.

The butterfly effect of the changes I made would not be immediately apparent. Until the situation is confirmed, I’ll wait to see what’s going on in the territory.

“Chamberlain.”

“Yes, master.”

“Can you bring me all the documents on the territory’s financial status and tax rates?”

“It’s all about finances, isn’t it?”

“Yeah. I’ll have to do some studying. What are you waiting for? Get going.”

When I urged the unmoving chamberlain, he stared at me.

“Yes! I’m going!”

He quickly turned away and disappeared. It was obvious that something was bothering him, but what was it? I was curious and eventually asked when he came back with the materials.

“What do you want to say, chamberlain?”

“Nothing, sir.”

The chamberlain put down the papers and left after bowing his head. He wanted to tell me something? Was it my imagination?

Well, now it doesn’t matter. I turned away and began to read the tax books and other materials of the lord’s castle. For now, this was the first thing I had to do.

To restore the territory that the rogue lord Erhin had rotted back to normal it was necessary to properly know the current situation.

Strangely enough, I could easily read characters that were not even in Japanese. Perhaps this was also the power of the system.

“Totally……. It’s totally disgusting.”

I shook my head as I looked at the ledger.

The setting of this times is the agricultural era. It’s an era in which agriculture is life. The taxes collected from farmland in such a territory were close to 80%.

It was too much. At the very least, the citizens should be able to make a living. Taking away 80% of the harvested crops is not normal.

According to the regulations of the Lunan Kingdom, the tax collected from the territory is 50%. And of this 50% collected, 20% is dedicated to the king. However, instead of 50%, the present-day Aintorians collected more than 80% taxes under different pretexts.

This was spearheaded by the tax officer in charge of collecting taxes on the territory—naturally, one of my vassals.

Viscount Den Boldt.

He is the leading figure who is depriving the people of the territory along with Erhin. It’s undoubtedly a vassal that should be eliminated first and foremost.

For now, it would be better to meet him once to find out what kind of person he is.

“Chamberlain.”

“Yes, master.”

I called for the chamberlain again. He’s just trying to curry favor with me. Well, I don’t mind that he’s quick and competent at his job.

“Can you call Viscount Boldt? I have questions for him.”

“I’ll be right back.”

The chamberlain turned away, still showing no doubts. Soon after, Viscount Boldt arrived in my study. The first time I saw Viscount Boldt, he was just a fat old man. His basic ability value is also, well, terrible.

“You wanted to see me, sir?”

Is this old man the core of the problem plaguing the fiefdom?

Was it really Erhin’s order, or did that man instigated him? Is Erhin the only bad guy, or are they both evil?

“I hear you won the battle; the lord is a blessing to his people!”

Viscount Boldt suddenly began to compliment me.

“And the lord personally fought! Really……”

I couldn’t bear to listen, so I interrupted him and immediately got down to business.

“Oh well. More importantly, the taxes.”

“Yes, sir. What about taxes?”

“Why don’t we raise taxes a little more? Lobbying in the capital is something that costs a lot of money.”

“It’s…….But lord, I thought it would be a problem.”

“Heh. Do you disagree?”