The Cavain Merchant Group
It was an astonishing discovery.
Until now, Jeron had only focused on how to develop local specialties, thinking of raiding supermarkets, gift shops, or dollar stores to trade. He had never considered that he could make a fortune through auctions.
Ironically, this was due to Jeron's own rigid way of thinking.
By running a merchant group and putting truly expensive-looking items up for auction, he could raise massive amounts of capital all at once.
Jeron wanted to dance with joy, but he forced his emotions down.
A noble living in this era must never show their emotions. Doing so alone could damage one's reputation and lead to losses.
Jeron's well-modulated voice echoed softly.
"You have an eye for masterpieces."
"I greet the Lord."
Burken Cavain knelt and bowed his head deeply.
Jeron had assumed the Cavain family genetics would be exceptionally outstanding, but he was wrong.
He looks exactly like the historical descriptions of Liu Bei from the Three Kingdoms.
Long arms like a monkey and droopy ears.
Even his face was incomparably homely compared to Dame Layla. However, Burken had a smiling face and a strange charm that drew people in.
He ran a merchant group that had been passed down through his family for generations, but recently, they had fallen into ruin.
They barely managed to get by by acting as sales agents for the territory's specialties, but because the local lords were more passive about trade than in the past, they were struggling.
Jeron walked over leisurely and stood in front of The Starry Night.
"Rise."
"I am deeply honored, my Lord."
"The exact origin of the masterpieces hanging here is unknown, but it is said they are the works of my ancestor, the eighth patriarch, who was deeply versed in painting."
"...!"
Burken Cavain looked at the masterpiece with a startled face.
Then, he examined the painting closely with a renewed sense of wonder.
"Indeed... As a merchant, I too have laid eyes on many posthumous works left by great masters. Among them, the works of Count Lafes, the eighth patriarch of the Farrow family, are highly renowned. His style was famous for being ever-changing, and indeed, he has captured the stars on canvas through such a unique style. He was truly a great man."
"Ahem, of course. He must have used materials infused with magic. He was also famous for his magic, after all. That is why it has not discolored even after all this time."
Jeron was no painter, nor did he usually have an interest in art.
However, he had been quite interested in a few posthumous works of famous painters, and back when he lived on Earth, he used to set them as his computer wallpaper or hang printed pictures in his living room and bedroom.
The copy of The Starry Night in front of him now was a printed work coated in acrylic, giving it extremely vivid colors.
Jeron spun his tale, and it worked remarkably well.
He put his hands behind his back and looked down at the territory, which was being dyed by the colors of twilight.
"My ancestor left a will stating that if the territory should ever fall into ruin, we should sell the works he left behind to help with the household finances."
"I-Is that true?! Would it really be alright to sell your ancestor's works?"
"I am the patriarch of the Farrow family. Right now, our territory is preparing to soar. You would know this if you have seen how the territory is running lately."
"I could feel that you have drawn your sword, my Lord. The entire territory is changing. However, I did not know how long we could hold out at this rate... To think you had such a plan. This humble servant is truly filled with admiration."
It was a stroke of sheer luck.
Hearing that the paintings he had brought back simply because they were light and pretty would fetch an astronomical amount of money put him in a very good mood.
He had been worrying about where to raise a large amount of capital before the trade rights were transferred anyway.
"Do you know about the auction system?"
"I do, my Lord."
"Tell me in detail."
"An item of this value must be put up for the royal family's official auction held in the capital, Brancia, to fetch its proper price. Although the commission for auctions run by the royal family is around thirty percent, it is lower than black-market auctions or those run by various nobles. There is no risk, either."
"If we put this up, how much could we get?"
"It will start at fifty thousand gold at the very least, and I believe the final winning bid could reach one hundred thousand gold."
"One hundred thousand!"
"I will look into whether there is a way to get even more."
Jeron was lost in thought as he gazed at the twilight, which was increasingly dyeing the territory in gold.
Holy crap. This is insane, right?
Currently, three hundred thousand gold was the annual operating budget of the territory.
To think that a frame printed out and coated in acrylic was worth one hundred thousand gold?
He had realized it when trading the dragon ring and the grandma sword, but if he searched Earth thoroughly, there were countless items that could make money.
"Sit."
"Yes, my Lord!"
The fact that Burken Cavain had come here meant he was prepared to become the territory's merchant group.
First, he would finalize that matter.
"If you become the territory's merchant group, I promise you two percent of the total profits."
"A-Are you serious, my Lord?"
"A lord does not speak falsehoods."
He spat out a phrase that had been popular on Earth.
Seeing the eyes of both Burken and Layla sparkle, it seemed Jeron's words had worked well.
"I still have many items to show you. However, if the contract is not finalized, I do not think we can discuss deeper matters."
"My family has belonged to the Farrow family since birth. It is enough if you use us like cattle and horses."
"Do you mean you wish to become my vassals?"
"If you would allow it, we would consider it the greatest honor of our family."
"Becoming a vassal means you will belong entirely to our family. It is not a decision to be made lightly. Why have you made such a choice?"
"I heard from my sister that you are a very benevolent lord and a highly open-minded person. Meeting you in person, I have realized that you are indeed an enlightened and benevolent lord who cares deeply for his people. Naturally, I believe your affection for your vassals must be great as well. I judged it right to share the future of my family with such a person."
"..."
He's a merchant, alright. He talks smooth.
His tongue was very slick.
It was not a bad trait.
In the future, as Jeron ran the territory, the management of funds would play a major role.
The nobles of the kingdom looked down on trade, but they needed money to get anything done.
If someone with this kind of insight and trait became a vassal, it would make Jeron's work much easier in the future.
Since the foundation of the Cavain family was here in this territory, there was no possibility of betrayal.
"Let us sign the contract."
Jeron signed a formal lord-vassal contract with the Cavain family.
This was broader in scope than the personal lord-vassal contract he had signed with Dame Layla.
It meant the family itself now belonged to Jeron.
The Cavain family was of ruined noble origin and currently only held a noble title, but since Dame Layla was serving Jeron as a lifetime noble, they did not fall behind at all in terms of vassal rank.
They drafted the contract and stamped it with the family seal.
Burken knelt on the spot and prostrated himself.
"I greet my liege."
"Yes, Sir Cavain. Let us do well in the future. Your official position will be Vice Minister of Finance, but once the rank of the Farrow family rises, I will grant you a separate manor."
Thud!
"I will serve you with all my loyalty."
"Sit."
Perhaps because her entire family now belonged to him, Dame Layla's eyes were red.
To think that the cold-hearted witch, who seemed to have neither blood nor tears, would show tears.
It seemed she, too, lived her life wearing a mask.
Jeron deliberately ignored her tears as he emptied his backpack, piling it high on the table.
All sorts of items poured out of the backpack.
Starting with various ornaments, jewelry, swords studded with cubic zirconia, accessories, and tableware, there were also perfumes, air fresheners, and even superglue, pens, and paper.
Burken's eyes widened as he looked at them.
Burken could not take his eyes off a perfume bottle that was emitting a brilliant light.
It was a perfume called No. 4 released by Chainel, a bestseller on Earth.
He had found it by chance while farming and had stuffed it into his backpack out of habit.
Since he had to open it to sell it anyway, Jeron tore off the packaging and lightly sprayed it around.
"Gasps!"
"Th-This scent?"
Everyone had shocked faces.
In this era, the concept of perfume did not exist.
Some people carried scent pouches to emit a good fragrance, but it mixed with various odors and ended up smelling even harsher.
Even in Earth's history, the concept of perfume was only established after the mid-fourteenth century.
In this barbaric world, it was taken for granted that all sorts of rotten smells wafted around, and people had no real awareness of odor.
It was only natural that people who encountered a bestseller of the modern perfume world would be shocked.
Burken expressed the scent in one word.
"It is indeed a scent from the heavenly realm!"
"Th-The heavenly realm?"
"For an item dropped by a goddess to descend to the human realm..."
"Ahem, I do not know the source either. It was in the family's secret storehouse."
"I believe my guess is correct."
Honestly, isn't that going a bit too far?
To think that perfume would be packaged as the scent of a goddess.
In addition, there were air fresheners and body lotions, all of which emitted unique scents that shocked the people around them.
Burken, who was quietly examining the items, shook a transparent plastic tube.
"Um, my Lord. What is this item? It looks very unusual."
"Ah, that is called superglue."
"Superglue?"
"It bonds broken items in an instant like this."
Jeron broke a piece of wood and bonded it with the superglue.
It bonded perfectly, and it did not fall apart.
It wasn't called superglue for nothing.
"A-A magic tool?!"
"Y-Yes, I suppose?"
"Is that... for sale?"
"The quantity is small, so we might be too busy using it ourselves. We also need to separate the items we will use from the ones we will sell."
"Ah! What a pity. If it could be sold, it seems it would fetch a very high price. Since it could even repair broken relics, it is truly an amazing item!"
"Ah, it could be used that way too. Should I go buy some broken relics?"
He was a merchant indeed.
Jeron had just brought out the products and explained how to use them without much thought, but Burken reinterpreted them in the language of this era.
The thinking of the people of this era was not entirely rigid.
Since someone with Burken's level of insight had become his vassal, this too could be considered a stroke of good luck.
It's not that our territory lacks talent.
Jeron concrete-proofed the merchant group's operation plan with Burken.
They would start selling the local specialties as soon as they were ready, and they planned to send the masterpieces, perfumes, and other relic-grade items to the capital to put them up for auction.
However, the problem was that there weren't that many of those high-end goods.
I have no choice but to farm harder.
His hands itched to cross over to Earth right away.
In the eyes of the people of this era, the items from Earth all looked extraordinary.
Once the rough outline of the merchant group's operation was established, Burken expressed considerable regret.
"If only we had the trade rights in our hands right now, we could make even greater profits. Do you happen to know when the trade rights will be granted?"
"Since His Grace Duke Langton will start working on it as soon as he goes up to the capital, I expect it will take a few months. So do not obsess too much over the profit margin. There are countless items left by our founder in our territory."
Jeron decided to wait for the trade rights with an easy mind.
However, a great wind was blowing through the political arena, far beyond anyone's expectations.