To the Pisen Marquisate (2)
To the Pisen Marquisate (2)
Shortly before the semester began, Paula learned why they had been sent to the Carlos Kingdom.
It was because the other informants had failed to obtain any information for half a year.
The pressure from above had mounted, but they still hadn't uncovered anything.
Branches had collapsed, people had died, and their plans had visibly failed, yet they couldn't find out who was responsible or why.
In the end, the informants decided they needed whatever help they could get—even a cat's paw.
Ultimately, the informants had explained everything to Paula, who was that very "cat's paw."
"So they want me to find any ability user or artifact that disrupts the Prophet's prophecies, and figure out why their plans are being ruined."
It was a daunting request, and it was hard to expect any results. But once the informants entered the Carlos Kingdom, they realized the situation was far more serious than they'd thought.
While the branch was in ruins, the Kingdom was heading down a path completely different from the prophecies and the Organization's plans.
The pressure from above was bound to intensify, and in the end, even Paula had to be brought into the loop.
Having heard the story, Paula was just as baffled.
If the informants stationed in the Kingdom's administrative agencies and royal court couldn't figure it out, there was no way she, a mere student at the Carlos Royal Academy, could uncover anything.
"With that in mind, I pushed Joachim into the Princess's group, but I never expected things to turn out like this."
Honestly, she hadn't expected much from Joachim. Unlike his older brother, Joachim was just a simple knight.
She'd only intended to build a friendly relationship and listen to whatever rumors came her way, but then, out of nowhere, she heard an interesting story from an unexpected source.
The duel between a freshman and the Duke's illegitimate son, who was said to be the strongest knight among the second-years.
Neither she nor the other students believed for a second that the freshman would win.
The man had even defeated Joachim. There was no way he'd lose to a freshman.
"If it weren't for his physical enhancement ability, I might have suspected him too..."
He was a physical enhancement type ability user, a rare sight in the Kingdom. But since such users weren't entirely unheard of, she quickly lost interest.
Although the freshman had lost, Paula was still able to gather a few strange stories from those who had witnessed the duel.
The freshman, who seemed to grow stronger as he fought, and the female student he kept bringing up.
Sensing something amiss, Paula continued gathering information.
And finally, after meeting Ivana in person, she made her decision.
Her true identity was that of an informant for the Organization. It was time to shed the façade of an academy student.
Paula walked out of the cafeteria and headed toward the main gate.
From now on, she intended to meet with the other members of the Organization.
Unaware of what was unfolding at the academy, I enjoyed a brief, peaceful journey.
After passing through a single territory on our way from the capital, we arrived at the Pisen Marquisate. Despite its reputation as a wealthy noble's domain, it didn't look all that impressive.
"Is it the same here, too?"
It seemed that, like other territories, public order here had deteriorated as they prepared for the civil war.
But hearing my words, Mirisa shook her head.
"I heard that the Pisen Marquisate has always been a difficult place to live. Apparently, there are many displaced people who fled from the mines."
At Mirisa's words, I realized I'd been mistaken.
The information known to nobles was entirely different from what commoners knew.
Until now, I'd gathered information primarily about the nobility, but that wasn't the whole picture.
Different perspectives revealed different things. From now on, I'd have to make sure to gather information from the commoners' perspective as well.
Just as Mirisa said, the Pisen Marquisate was a noble family that had amassed its wealth through the mines within its territory.
Gold, iron, and even copper.
Thanks to the mines, numerous blacksmiths had sprung up, making the territory famous not only for its mining but also as a production hub for weapons and armor.
The Marquisate had used the money earned that way to amass artifacts. Now, in addition to being known as a wealthy domain, it was famous for being the noble house with the largest number of artifacts in the Kingdom.
"But I suppose those benefits never trickled down to the fief's residents."
At my words, both Balea and Mirisa tilted their heads in confusion.
The mines in the territory belonged to the Lord. In fact, the entire territory belonged to the Lord.
The concept of distributing the territory's profits to its residents as welfare, as in my past life, simply didn't exist in this world.
After passing through the shabby villages where the fief's residents lived, we finally arrived at the main castle of the Marquisate.
The Marquis's castle was a clear reflection of the territory's origins.
Marquis Pisen's castle, said to have begun as a mine, was built in a semicircle around one side of a mountain.
True to the rumors that mining was still active deep inside the castle, carriages fully laden with ore constantly passed through the outer castle gates.
Thick black smoke billowed high above the outer wall.
It was smoke pouring from the blacksmith shops inside the castle.
"Should I wear a mask or something...?"
The air pollution disgusted me. It was the first time I'd seen anything like it in this world, but Balea and Mirisa seemed to find it fascinating.
Since we'd contacted them in advance, we were able to pass through the castle walls without even a security check.
Within the massive castle walls lay an entire city.
Surprisingly, the air wasn't too bad.
I had no idea what method they'd used, but they seemed to have designed things so the smoke from the blacksmiths didn't settle in the city and instead drifted outward.
Looking at the bigger picture, it might harm the Kingdom, but on a kingdom-wide or continental scale, this level of pollution could probably be ignored.
Though there was no air pollution, the city itself was considerably filthy.
All sorts of mining residue stained the buildings, and the people's clothes were incredibly grimy.
I knew that was unavoidable in a mining city, but did it really have to be this dirty...?
But once we passed through the city center and arrived at the northern residential district, the atmosphere changed completely.
It was a residential area filled with luxurious estates. At a glance, it was obvious that this was where the nobles and the wealthy lived.
After passing through the residential district, we arrived at the Lord's mansion.
"Wow..."
Mirisa's jaw dropped the moment she saw the mansion.
And with good reason.
I'd seen all sorts of luxurious mansions in the capital and even the royal palace, but looking at this one, even I couldn't help but marvel.
It was a mansion constructed entirely of white marble.
I wondered how on earth they maintained it in this mining city, but gleaming marble lined the mansion's floors and walls.
Stepping down from the carriage and entering the mansion under the butler's guidance, I was astonished once again.
All sorts of decorations and statues glittered with a golden glow.
Surely they aren't all solid gold, are they?
Even if they were merely gold-plated, they must have cost an astronomical amount.
"The pillars and walls are gold-plated, but the sculptures and decorations are all solid gold."
Even though I hadn't asked, the butler guiding us answered the question I'd left unspoken.
Then again, every visitor probably asked the exact same thing.
The butler was probably proud to share that fact.
To me, though, it just looked like a fucking waste of money.
Passing through halls and corridors that looked even more lavish than the royal palace, we arrived at the reception room.
"The Marquis will be here shortly. Please wait a moment."
The reception room was equally extravagant.
The chairs and tables gleamed so brightly that sitting down felt almost intimidating.
Mirisa seemed to have given up on even approaching them.
A moment later, a middle-aged noble entered with the butler.
He appeared to be in his early fifties.
"I am Gabriel de Pisen, the Marquis of Pisen."
He stood at the head of the room and introduced himself.
The Marquis looked more like a merchant than a noble.
Since his line of work differed from that of other lords, who managed agricultural estates, it wasn't surprising that he gave off such an impression.
We greeted him in turn, beginning with the Princess.
Once everyone had offered their greetings, the Marquis took his seat first and gestured toward the empty chairs.
"Please, everyone, sit. It won't take long, but I can't keep the Princess, the Grand Archduchess, and their entourage standing."
We sat down on the glittering chairs.
Mirisa, though, couldn't even lean back against her chair, terrified of touching the shiny decorations.
We sat down, and the Marquis first asked the Grand Archduchess and the Princess for their understanding.
"If this were an official visit by the Princess and the Grand Archduchess, I would have hosted a far grander reception. But since this is an unofficial visit, I made no separate arrangements. I ask for the Princess's and the Grand Archduchess's understanding."
"It is quite alright."
As the Princess and the Grand Archduchess indicated their understanding, he turned his gaze toward me.
"And are you the boy who dueled my son?"
The negotiations were already over, and I had no reason to feel intimidated, but I still had to observe proper etiquette. I answered politely.
"Yes."
He clicked his tongue at my response.
"Tsk, he's gotten a little skilled and now he's running his mouth... I raised that boy poorly."
Fortunately, the clicks of his tongue weren't directed at me.
"I heard the details. You made a remarkably rational and practical demand for someone your age."
It wasn't a request to be given an artifact, but merely to be shown one.
The pretext of a group project was more than enough, and since I was only asking to examine the artifacts, the request was neither too much nor too little. It posed no threat to either family's honor.
Since the illegitimate son of the Gracia Ducal Family had won, the Duke's estate likely didn't care much about what the reward actually was.
I thought I'd be able to inspect the artifacts without any trouble, but the Marquis brought up a completely different topic.
"You possess great skill, and as an illegitimate son, you won't be bound to your family. How about becoming my personal knight?"
It was a recruitment offer.
At the sudden proposal, all my group members looked back and forth between the Marquis and me.
"I heard your skills are enough to join even the Royal Knights. But as an illegitimate son, you'll face many difficulties."
I'd never expected to join the Royal Knights, not even in the slightest. Nor did I intend to.
"It would be far better to become a knight of our family and aim for the top. And who knows? If things go well, you might even marry into our family and officially join us."
Even before the Marquis could finish speaking, I felt the mana around me twitch.
I didn't know why, but my instincts screamed that I needed to watch my words right now.
"Thank you for the offer, but as I'm still attending the academy, I believe it's too early to make such a decision."
Even if I became a knight for another family, I had no intention of coming to the Marquisate. If I were to serve as a knight, there were plenty of other places I could go.
At my response, the Marquis furrowed his brow for a brief moment before his expression smoothed out again.
"Indeed, making a decision right on the spot would be difficult. Then, feel free to ponder it during your stay here."
Though I wasn't going to change my mind, I bowed my head at his words.
The Marquis then turned back to the Grand Archduchess and asked,
"By the way, how do you plan to verify the artifacts? I did promise to show you all of them, but there's no guarantee you'll believe you've seen everything, and I would hate for you to think I was holding anything back."
"That is why we have prepared this."
The Grand Archduchess handed the paper she had prepared to the Marquis. It was a list of only the artifacts rumored to be in the Marquisate, compiled from the information our group members had gathered.
The Marquis scanned the paper and smacked his lips.
"You have prepared thoroughly indeed. Some of these have been lost, but I see you've also listed quite a few that are broken and left neglected."
Since this was the most crucial matter for the Grand Archduchess, she must have searched for them with the utmost diligence.
"This list seems perfectly reasonable."
We had intentionally left out some of the artifacts rumored to be in the Marquis's possession. Listing those sensitive items would only have made things awkward for both sides.
"Hmm, but this sword will require the consent of its owner."
Even so, there was one artifact that absolutely could not be omitted.
Because it was the very reason I had come to this Marquisate.
The Marquis handed the paper to the butler and bid us farewell.
"I hope you all have a wonderful time in this Marquisate before you return. May there be a favorable outcome for everyone involved."
He finished speaking while looking directly at me.
Judging by the way he spoke, the Marquis was certainly a noble, but he undoubtedly had the temperament of a merchant.
The problem was that the commodity the Marquis wanted to buy was me.
But that was a worry for when we were leaving.
I eagerly awaited my meeting with the owner of the Divine Sword the following day, my heart pounding.