Paonia
Paonia had begun to move, and a full month slipped past.
In that time I gathered every scrap of intelligence I could find on them.
The city of Plain.
The conference room of the administrative hall.
I convened a general council with my subordinates scattered across the territories.
"Grandfather."
"Understood."
Campbell rose from his seat.
"Paonia has been operating as a thoroughly compartmentalized cell network. They have embedded themselves throughout the Island. Specifically—"
Hunter carried in a large map. Countless dots covered its surface.
"These are the numbers we have uncovered so far, plotted here. Recently we identified their central hubs as well; those are marked with the larger dots."
The map bore several oversized marks—anywhere from one to three in each territory.
Campbell finished his briefing and sat down again.
Every gaze in the room shifted to me.
"We intend to raid those hubs—their branch offices. If anyone has an opinion, speak now."
Aine was the first to rise.
"Their branches are spread across the entire Island. We will need the cooperation of each territory’s lord or lesser lords if we are to strike them all at once."
"A sound idea. Whether the lesser lords will actually follow my lead, however, remains uncertain."
I maintained amicable relations with them, yet we were hardly allies. In the larger picture, Venia’s faction and Alencia’s faction were still competing for influence.
"These people formed secret groups and moved freely inside the territories. That alone constitutes a clear threat to territorial security."
Aine was right. Even if the other lesser lords were not openly hostile to Paonia, a clandestine society operating within their borders would feel like a knife at their throats.
"Hmm… Very well. I will persuade the lesser lords myself."
At that moment a young girl raised her hand. Russel’s daughter, Sara. She was currently traveling with her father, learning the merchant trade.
"Yes. Speak."
Sara stood. She had grown considerably since I last saw her. Once she had looked like a child; now she was a proper young lady.
She drew a nervous breath. Beside her, Russel offered a quiet word of encouragement.
"Soap sales are surging at the moment. This is happening not only in Frontier, but across every territory on the Island."
Soap, all of a sudden? I did not immediately see the connection, yet I let her continue.
"Any merchant who generates significant revenue inside a territory—especially a major merchant—must pay tribute to the local lord."
In that respect, doing business in this world was never simple. Selling fine goods alone was never enough. Relations with the powerful often mattered more.
"And?"
"Father and the other members of the merchant group discussed the matter at length. We have decided to offer fifteen percent of the soap-sales profits as tribute to each lord."
"I see."
I had instructed every department to handle routine affairs on its own, so the arrangement had never reached my desk.
"If you bring that to the table, you can negotiate with the lesser lords from a position of strength."
In other words, use the fifteen percent we had already planned to give them as leverage.
"An excellent suggestion. That will certainly help the negotiations."
I collected further opinions from the rest of my subordinates until a clear course of action emerged.
"Grandfather, continue watching the Paonia organization."
"Understood."
"Aine, take charge of the castle’s mercenary companies. For this raid, mercenaries will matter far more than the slave soldiers."
"Yes, my lord."
I issued final readiness orders for the hunters and mercenaries, then closed the meeting.
My subordinates returned to their posts. I myself left Plain and set out for the Vampires Duchy.
Vampires Duchy.
Venia’s office.
"So you are proposing that we attack those cell networks together?"
"That is correct."
"And the price is seven-point-five percent of the soap-sales profits?"
"Exactly."
I made the offer precisely as the council had decided.
"If it is seven-point-five for me, how much are you offering Alencia?"
She spoke as though she already assumed I would approach her sister as well.
"The same seven-point-five percent."
Venia lifted her teacup and took a slow, deliberate sip.
Clink.
Her movements were so unhurried that a single mouthful took more than thirty seconds. She was clearly organizing her thoughts in the interval.
"If I refuse, you will simply offer Alencia the full fifteen percent, will you not?"
She had seen straight through me. That was precisely why I had come to the Vampires Duchy first. Unlike the other lesser lords, the two duchesses stood in open rivalry.
"As you well know, soap is wildly popular. Sales will only continue to climb. Are you truly prepared to hand every last coin of that tribute over to Lady Alencia?"
Venia drained the rest of her cup, then allowed a faint smile to touch her lips.
"Whenever I see you, Lord Elwin, I feel fortunate."
"When you see me?"
"Had we not broken off the engagement… you would have become my greatest enemy. I accept the proposal. Once the plan is finalized, inform me. I will move exactly as directed."
I rose and bowed.
"Thank you, Lady Venia."
Footsteps. Just as I reached the door she called after me.
"It has grown dark. If you have not yet arranged lodging, why not stay here for the night?"
I turned and bowed once more.
"I still have business to attend to. If you will excuse me."
My next stop was Alencia’s chambers.
She sat with her arms folded and her legs crossed, her expression carved from stone.
"You went to Venia first again, did you not? When you come to the Vampires manor I told you to see me first."
I had expected exactly this complaint, and I had prepared my excuse in advance.
"I made a proposal to Lady Venia."
I explained that Paonia had begun to move and that we had already uncovered a substantial portion of their organization.
"So you want us to attack them together? Very well. I will help. But you still have not answered my question. Why did you meet Venia before me?"
For a moment my carefully prepared script tangled.
Normally I would make the proposal, she would demand a price, I would offer seven-point-five percent of the soap profits, and the negotiation would end cleanly. Instead she had accepted without even asking for compensation.
"Ahem—Lady Alencia, if you assist in this operation, the soap-sales—"
"I already said I would help. Answer my question first."
"I will give you seven-point-five percent of the soap-sales profits."
"Appreciated. Now the answer?"
Seven-point-five percent was no small sum. The Vampires Duchy possessed both a large population and a thriving market.
Yet Alencia remained fixated on a question that seemed almost trivial—an attitude that sat oddly with her reputation for cold pragmatism.
Still, the negotiation was finished. Time for the answer I had prepared.
"Because it was late."
"Late?"
She turned her gaze to the window. Outside, full darkness had already settled.
"Once my business is concluded I must stay the night. I intended to meet you last and, while I was at it, receive lodging from you as well."
Alencia uncrossed her arms and rested them on the chair’s armrests.
"That makes sense. Had you met me first, then Venia, then returned to ask for a room, it would have been cumbersome. Marie, prepare a bedroom for Elwin."
She murmured the reasoning half to herself, then issued the order to her maid.
I followed Marie through the ducal manor to a familiar chamber—the very room I had occupied for four years.
"Lord Elwin, it has been a long time since you last used this room, has it not? I have cleaned it every day, so there should be no trouble. And…"
She trailed off.
"Speak freely."
"I am glad you look brighter than before."
Marie withdrew, leaving me alone.
I look brighter?
Well, when I had lived in this manor my expression had probably been perpetually dark. Life here as Alencia’s fiancé had never been comfortable.
In those days the mere prospect of meeting her had weighed on me. I had worried; sometimes I had even been afraid.
And now?
Alencia no longer frightened me in the slightest. If anything, I felt that if I chose my words carefully I might even change her mind.
"It sounds strange to say… but sometimes I feel as though I am the one standing above her."
Her rank was higher. In conversation I used honorifics while she spoke casually. Yet every so often I sensed that she was watching my reaction, gauging my mood.
I cut the thought short and threw myself onto the bed.
The soft mattress enveloped me completely; a gentle pressure whispered against my skin.
"I cannot let my guard down. If I start acting on feelings and end up earning Lady Alencia’s dislike…"
The moment I lay down, the fatigue of the long journey crashed over me. If I closed my eyes I could easily sleep until morning. Even so I forced myself upright.
"I need to wash. I should scrub myself clean with the soap stamped with the wheat pattern."
After concluding negotiations with Venia and Alencia, I met the remaining lesser lords of the southern houses.
Those talks proved far easier. Both duchesses had already given their consent.
Together with every lesser lord on the Island I finalized the plan to strike Paonia, and at last the day of the operation dawned.