70. Reunion (2)
70. Reunion (2)
Sonyataff was a fortress city situated at the transportation hub connecting the Haisen Kingdom and the Kiza Kingdom to its northwest, serving as both a border checkpoint and a citadel.
However, curiously enough,
there were almost no records of any war fought between Kiza and Haisen over this place.
This was despite it being a strategic point that was even a port city with a great river beside it.
"That's strange."
It was Serica's assessment, as she sat beside me reading the same book.
When she mentioned she was bored, I'd randomly picked a book, and it turned out to be a history text.
Contrary to my expectation, she was concentrating quite well. Even while fidgeting and holding my hand tightly, she wore a focused expression, brow furrowed—diligent and rather cute.
"In what way?"
Her eyes, turning to face me, were tinged with curiosity.
"If you look at this map, Haisen completely blocks Kiza's land. The only open sides are the sea and the west. Yet they never fought. That's strange. Humans are greedy."
"Excellent. You're right."
It must have been, in part, the education from the marquis household, but it was still an insightful observation for someone who'd spent most of her life alone.
However, there was one element written within the book that could refute her point.
"But what if they were siblings who kept sharing blood?"
"Siblings? Nations can be siblings?"
"That seems to be the case."
There was one primary reason there had never been a war here.
The Grakheizen region was a pseudo-basin blocked by mountains to the east and south and by the sea to the northwest.
The modern Haisen Kingdom and Kiza Kingdom held most of that land, having their origins as sibling nations that expanded from this very place.
"And moreover, it appears they are soon to become one nation."
"I see..."
On top of that, the royal family of Kiza, originally the elder sibling, currently lacked an heir, meaning it was scheduled to be naturally absorbed by Haisen in the near future.
There were candidates to be found for the Kiza royal heir, but with the massive Zenota Kingdom to the west and the Norn Empire eyeing the Haisen Kingdom to the east, the two nations had made a decision from a broader strategic perspective...
...was what it said, in the history book.
"Still strange."
"What part?"
"Humans are as greedy as the demon tribe. Because they're clever."
I agreed with that as well.
The history of the two nations spanned a full half-millennium. It had already been 100 years since the situation had settled into its current form, and...
Furthermore, at the time of 'Milden 1', both were only count-level domains.
No matter that their origin was as sibling nations, there must have been several times in history when the two countries' national power was similar and the strategic situation was stifling.
Yet over those long ages, they had never once fought a major battle.
It was only natural to find it strange.
'Even considering that the two nations had actively intermingled the bloodlines of their high nobles and royal families, it's still just as strange.'
Because if matters between nations were that simple, there wouldn't be so many complicated affairs in this world.
Real siblings fight over inheritance precisely because they're human. So for nations—collectives of humans—to not fight because they're siblings is actually stranger, isn't it?
"...Well, that's none of our concern anyway."
"Mhm. Right!"
Sensing the carriage had stopped without my noticing, I closed the book, stood, and took Serica's hand to help her up. It was the hand she'd kept holding onto the whole time inside the carriage.
Since I'd only picked up the book because she said she was bored, it wasn't for the purpose of seriously reading and discussing it.
Of course, I resolved to look into it further later.
"This human city is incredibly large...! It must be... twice the size of the cave that was my dungeon."
When we stepped outside, the sight visible was that of a commercial city with countless people moving among its tall walls. In the far distance, the sight of a port where two sailing ships were anchored could be seen.
Needless to say, it was the sight of Sonyataff.
For now it was a border fortress of the Kiza Kingdom, but a great city soon expected to become the western capital of the unified Haisen-Kiza Kingdom.
"Be careful saying things like that."
"I couldn't think of a fitting metaphor."
According to the contact we'd received beforehand, the underground market's auction would already be underway.
Today was the second day of the three-day auction, meaning it was the day before the core was due to be listed.
Of course, it was Baroness Haley who had informed me of that.
[Anyway, the most important items usually come out on the last day, so you can afford to take your time coming, Master. I have reserved a seat, and the order for that item is close to the very end, so it doesn't matter if you come on the day itself.]
[You've worked hard.]
[Don't mention it. Serving you, Master, is my joy.]
Haley was the underground market's external collaborator previously discovered in Copherin. Thanks to her, I could move with leeway in scheduling.
'No matter how I think about it, putting her under my control was a good choice.'
Of course, the option of manipulating a person at will was not pleasant.
It was simply that since I was still weak, and there were many who could become enemies, I was using any means necessary.
It was a method I wished to use as little as possible.
Yet at the same time, this method was also the one that brought the most peace of mind.
'Variables that can be controlled are ultimately caused by people. To block as many variables as possible, controlling human behavior is best.'
Perfect domination over a person did not exist.
Power, rewards, violence, mercy, justice—they all leave gaps. Gaps created by shifting circumstances, by human desire and gain and loss.
'In that sense, magical power is far more intuitive and stable than those methods.'
Of course, if the domination were broken, the controlled person's hatred for their former controller would grow immense—but that's not so different from the irrational hatred any traitor eventually bears.
Furthermore, when the domination was forcibly broken by an external party, a feedback returned to the caster, allowing even the retaliation of the formerly controlled person to be anticipated.
If one could only bear the moral hazard that inevitably arose...
'The more I think about it, the more it's the only choice.'
"Dear ladies. I have been waiting for your arrival."
After passing the city gate inspection and waiting a little while, the embodiment of that judgment came walking down the main street and offered a greeting.
"Haley. Have you been well?"
"Good morning, Haley!"
"Of course. And I trust you ladies have been well, too."
At present, Serica and I were mysterious foreign noble ladies who had heard rumors of the underground market and taken an interest, while Haley was a bold noblewoman who had approached such ladies to raise her standing within both the underground market association and high society.
Some might find it odd that Haley, who had remained idle and complacent in her position until now, had suddenly begun acting on her greed.
But since she had lived extravagantly until now, the depth of that suspicion wouldn't be deep.
That is the nature of human greed, after all.
"This is in fact a secret, but the item you ladies desire is scheduled to be traded tomorrow. So how about touring the city today? I have arranged restaurants and accommodations."
A person of great greed wouldn't be deeply suspected for something like leaking this trivial secret.
Of course, it would strike a blow to a performance review, but if we kept our mouths shut, no one would know.
"We shall follow your sincere efforts."
"Yeah. We'll follow!"
"Fufu. Then, this way."
Thus began the sightseeing of Sonyataff.
"This building is the villa of His Majesty King Friedrich, the hero of the Haisen Kingdom and its second monarch. It is now open to the public. Inside, you can see the lifestyle of the nobility of that era, so it is quite popular."
"It is said that in this plaza, Haisen and Kiza rose as nations and swore eternal friendship as siblings."
"This, the port of Sonyataff, is the largest port in Haisen. Though there is the capital Hylash, it is somewhat lacking compared to Sonyataff. This is because all the maritime logistics of the northern Eastern Continent gather here."
Haley's sightseeing tour was more thorough than expected, and also quite enjoyable.
"By maritime, do pirates also come...? I've never seen pirates before."
And Serica, who kept holding my hand the whole time, was also very enthusiastic about the sightseeing.
She and I had both dyed our hair the same golden shade, and though she'd said it felt strange to match hair colors with me, she was now looking at Haley with eyes still carrying that same sparkle from then.
How cute.
Her speech was clumsy, but the way she awkwardly mimicked my way of talking actually suited her appearance.
"Of course, my lady. Though not something I can officially acknowledge, many pirates hide their identities and flock here to sell their plunder. Most of those items come to the special place we will attend tomorrow."
Haley was, of course, referring to the underground market.
Anyway, pirates, huh.
I had heard that in this world's seas, besides many marine monsters, there were also two 'demon realms' centered on the sea, making it difficult for ordinary pirates to operate.
I'd heard it's an environment where simply sailing a ship is difficult, so could there really be that many pirates?
"Are they numerous? On the open sea, activity would be hard without marine beastmen."
"It is as you wisely say, my lady. Without beastman sailors, one cannot detect the movements of marine monsters. However, in coastal waters, pirates are more numerous than you might think. This is a secret, but they are those who are on the nation's payroll."
"As expected."
So they were privateers.
If they had national backing, detecting monsters would be a trivial matter. Even without sailors familiar with the sea, they could simply board a mage capable of detection magic.
Since many nations border the sea, fostering maritime trade and a navy is an essential task for most countries on the Eastern Continent.
'Though the Demon Realm Archdukes who rule the sea, Gaph and Astaroth, do exist, they aren't around here.'
However, the navies created that way were just money-devouring monsters in peacetime. Even if they tried to train them, you never knew when a monster might appear and cause damage.
It was highly likely they'd disguised them as pirates, wanting to extract some profit somehow.
Of course, it wasn't just one or two nations doing it.
"Hey there, lady. Very pretty, eh? Huh?"
"If you don't leave immediately, I will call the security force."
Once I became aware of it, no matter how I looked, riffraff who clearly weren't ordinary citizens stood out.
They may be called privateers, but in the end, those who make a profit by plundering others' property are prone to corruption if they aren't careful.
Especially privateers; many of them probably labor under the delusion that working with nobles makes them close to nobles.
Like right now, in this scene.
"Seems you're a lady from a noble house. I make a lot of money, you know."
"I have a husband and children. If you keep this up..."
"Eheh, just 'cause you've got a guy in charge doesn't mean greasin' palms stops, does it?"
The man who had latched onto Haley and was acting disgracefully during the brief moment she was separated from us while we looked at a stall was wearing clothes that, although quite flashy, were unbelievably shallow—dripping with every kind of jewel.
No matter how I looked at it, it wasn't a noble's style.
At best, a wealthy merchant. Or else...
"I'm actually the first mate on the sea, see."
Right. The pirate we had just been talking about.
Speak of the devil and he shall appear, as they say.
'He's stupid and being a nuisance.'
Of course, I'm not necessarily saying people must not be corrupt.
If they don't harm others, what does it matter how they live? ...But it was just unpleasant because there were those who lived while causing that harm.
Though, that harm would be small compared to the harm I would cause humans in the future.
Saying it like this makes me dislike it even more, like some sort of self-hatred.
"Haley. How long must I wait?"
"My lady. My apologies."
"Wait. You said my lady? Oh dear..."
Still, he seemed to know his place, as the first mate drew back the moment he heard our titles.
No matter how he acted, he apparently had no thought of tangling with high-ranking nobles.
"Let's talk..."
"Wait. Sir guard. We'll just go. I'm sorry, okay? Here, I'll leave money too. Lady... I mean, my lady. Please forgive me. Yes?"
When Shue, who was serving as my escort, approached, the first mate, who backed away as if recoiling from a large beast, left his coin purse behind and spoke directly to me.
If I had been an ordinary high-ranking noble, even speaking to me as a mere pirate would have been an offense warranting beheading; he seemed to know high nobles were dangerous, but didn't know that much.
I nodded to Shue, who was silently asking my intention with his eyes.
"Consider yourself lucky..."
"Oh dear, thank you. Thank you!"
There was no need to cause a big commotion.
We planned to attend the underground market tomorrow and leave this city; I'd rather avoid any troublesome entanglements.
"How dare you ruin my time with Rita...?"
However, Serica seemed to feel otherwise.
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