The lord asked once again, 

“Or do you think that this family and land of mine will be ruined someday?” 

“If there is a big war around here, you never know. Who knows if the lord will give up his right to this land and run away then? If that did happen, wouldn’t any promissory notes written by the lord be worth nothing more than tissue fragments? And it’s not like anyone will guarantee them instead. Or did the Imperial family guarantee the lord’s promissory notes? If that was the case, then the Mage might be willing to receive it,” 

“That’s… it’s not,” 

“Then it will be difficult. The Mage will never trust the lord’s promissory note.” 

It was a bitter situation, but the lord also knew that the promissory note he wrote wouldn’t work well here. 

Although people in neighbouring territories or merchants who sell within the territory accepted promissory notes without problem, outsiders who were not from the lands in the area were different. 

They always preferred gold coins that could be used anywhere straight away, rather than a promissory note that could one turn into useless scrap paper. 

“Then what do you want me to do? These days, the land situation isn’t very good, if I had the coins, I would have used them,” 

At that moment, he didn’t know why, but Carl recalled the boy from the Banco he had met before. 

“Then you would have to borrow gold coins,” 

The Hound Mercenary asked the lord to pay for the additional expense of hiring a Mage, and the lord did not have to go to the Banco to take out additional loans if he dissolved some of his assets. 

He hated going to the Banco but – 

‘I can just borrow the money. Is there any need to lay a hand on my property?’ 

The phrase that his predecessor and father, Wallas de Montefeltro, repeatedly emphasised was ‘Be careful of debt’. 

‘Is there anyone who doesn’t know that a lot of debt is a problem?’

If there was a sudden bad harvest in the land, or if the situation became difficult due to the unexpected problem of war, one might have trouble securing the tax revenue immediately, which can cause problems. 

But without such things, the additional cost of hiring a Wizard was a problem that could be fully tolerated with additional loans. 

‘It’s something I’ve only just realised, but my father was too afraid of debt. I don’t know what he was so anxious about, but if there aren’t any immediate signs of collapse, there is no need to be so afraid.’

Since he was frequently stopping by the Banco these days, it served as an opportunity to reconsider the legacy left by his father, the previous lord. 

‘If there are no big problems in the land, I can pay back the interest and eventually pay off any loans I get. If things do go badly, then as the landowner, I can be a little audacious about it. I, the owner, say I will pay back later, so who on earth would say anything?’ 

Perhaps if his Late father knew of his thoughts, he would have been furious, but to the lord, who was already entering the swamp of loans and debt, the legacy left by his father was becoming increasingly meaningless. 

—

“Kehum!” 

Rockefeller, who was working at the banco, looked up when the lord entered the Banco and announced his presence with a loud cough. 

When Rockefeller, who politely bowed his head in greeting, asked why he came, the lord took a moment before informing him on the purpose of the visit. 

“In this Orc subjugation, I have decided to cover the extra cost of hiring a Mage,” 

Rockefeller, who pretended to know nothing, asked back with a surprised face, 

“Mage? If it’s a Mage then… Is there something wrong with the Orc subjugation?” 

His opponent was a young boy of about 15. On the other hand, the lord had no intention of ignoring Rockefeller too much because he was an assistant at the Banco and the head of a family.