Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: A Very Small Helping Hand 4
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Kazeros seemed surprisingly pleased when she decided to travel with me.
However, a short while later, back in my room as we discussed our future plans, she wore a deeply troubled expression.
"But... to just hand over this house and all of Sir Santana's assets to the Archbishop... No matter how I think about it, it breaks my heart."
"Haha, the way you're reacting, it almost feels like you lost the money yourself, Kazeros. No need to feel so bad about it. Money's just something you can earn again anyway."
Even accounting for the fact that she was now in the same boat as me, Kazeros was showing more genuine dismay than I was, the actual party involved.
I responded with a light smile, but as she watched me, Kazeros slowly shook her head.
"Of course, Sir Santana is more than capable of doing that. But... I'm worried about the people left behind. With this, I wonder what will become of the lives of those who've been getting by with your help all this time..."
"...Pardon?"
Kazeros had brought up something I hadn't expected.
I started showing a bit of bewilderment, and seeing that, she continued in a bitter tone.
"I've always pretended not to know, but I was aware that you've been buying up houses and land to help various people. That you lent out farmland for minimal tenant fees and rented out homes at prices lower than anywhere else so those in need could use them."
"Uh... well... that..."
Her words made my face heat up a little, leaving me unsure how to respond.
And regardless of my feelings, Kazeros pressed on with genuine anger in her voice.
"It's just... truly infuriating. You were only trying to help the needy as a Holy Knight, and you just happened to amass wealth in a bit of an unconventional way to do it... Yet the Archbishop is excommunicating you and trying to seize your assets..."
"Mm... uh..."
As a Holy Knight who served the divine, Kazeros was genuinely heartbroken by this sordid reality.
Yet seeing her like this, I—the one directly involved—felt a rather peculiar mix of emotions.
'No... I never really intended to help the poor or anything...'
As she said, it was true that I'd bought up a lot of houses and land and rented them out cheaply.
However, that had nothing to do with the kind of relief efforts or saintly compassion she imagined a Holy Knight might have.
The biggest reason was simply that, as a Korean at heart, I just liked land and houses.
And the other reason was that, in my current position, it was the best way to save money.
While it varied slightly by region, Holy Knights—as a type of clergy—enjoyed tax exemptions on the land and houses they owned as a perk of their status.
All because you couldn't tax assets belonging to the divine.
Of course, there was the underlying rule that clergy weren't supposed to have children, so upon death, the assets would revert to the lord or sovereign anyway...
Still, thanks to those advantages, I'd chosen to build up my assets this way rather than trust them to banks where my credit as someone from another world was shaky.
'And as the houses and land piled up, it felt wasteful to leave them idle, so I rented them out cheaply and put in some tenant farmers...'
As a member of the clergy, I had to maintain a certain dignity, and I needed to avoid building any notoriety that might hinder future endeavors.
Besides, since the whole point was saving rather than exploitation for profit, I hadn't been too attached to it and had just been running it modestly and affordably.
That was the background behind me renting out land and houses cheaply...
But the Kazeros in front of me seemed to interpret it purely as my selfless goodwill.
As if I'd done all this just to help the poor.
'No wonder she was reacting so sensitively for someone not directly involved. So that's the background. Well... Kazeros has always been devout.'
Come to think of it, this misunderstanding was likely a big reason why she'd so readily agreed to follow me.
From her perspective, the situation wasn't just about money—it was the Archbishop excommunicating a Holy Knight who'd been doing his utmost to do good, all out of personal greed.
For someone who'd always lived piously with pride in her role as a Holy Knight, this must have been a massive disappointment in the Church.
And then, that very Holy Knight reached out to her, inviting her to leave this place where only disillusionment remained.
In such a situation...
The answer was obvious.
'From Kazeros's view, there's no reason to stay in a place she's lost all affection for or with the Church as a faction... That must be why she accepted my proposal so easily.'
As I pieced together the reason for her anger and why she'd willingly abandon everything to follow me, I began to feel more than a little embarrassed deep down.
The fact that my actions— which weren't meant to be some grand act of kindness—were being seen by her as the benevolent deeds of a saint was surprisingly embarrassing for the person involved.
'Who knew getting unintended praise would hit this hard...'
However, setting aside this tangled misunderstanding, I figured there was no need to spell out the truth.
It wasn't causing any real issues, and ultimately, what I'd set out to do started from wanting to save precious lives, so there wasn't much difference at the core.
Above all, I didn't want to disappoint Kazeros, who was looking at me now with eyes full of admiration, by complicating things with explanations.
'Eh... good is good, so I'll just let it slide.'
Having sorted out my thoughts on the matter, I gave her a calm smile and spoke to Kazeros, who still looked upset.
"Thank you for caring, but there's no need for you to get so worked up, Kazeros. There are ways around it."
"...Pardon? What do you mean...?"
"Heh... You'll see the details if you just watch from the sidelines."
She looked surprised by my unexpected words.
But at that moment, what I was saying to her wasn't mere comfort—it was the honest truth.
In a situation like this, the standard answer was to neatly abandon the houses and land you couldn't easily move and grab whatever cash you could before hightailing it out.
Time and the law were both on the Archbishop's side,
and she knew that, which was why she'd launched this excommunication offensive against me.
Even after her relatively "light" sabotage using Nune and Tine failed, she wasn't bothering with me anymore for the same reason.
However... this was truly regrettable for the Archbishop.
Sadly for her, I wasn't that much of a pushover.
The scriptures that Holy Knights studied included the line about turning the other cheek if struck on one.
But
when the one teaching it—the Archbishop herself—was the first to swing, blindly following that in this situation would just be idiotic.
If the opponent slapped your right cheek, the proper response was to twist their wrist and snap it.
'Alright then... time to make that wretched Archbishop shed bloody tears.'
We had six days left. It wasn't long, but it was plenty for me, especially with Kazeros here to help.
Without a moment's hesitation, I immediately set the plan in motion.
The plan to royally screw over the Archbishop who'd spectacularly blown the chance to save this city... this nation... and the Church's entire faction.