Chapter 247: Let’s Get Some Investment. (1)
Dududududu!
The soldier drove the horse relentlessly.
It was a horse galloping across the vast northern lands. As it sped down the long road, it began to reach a speed unmatched by other horses.
If the distance became too great, they could simply switch to another horse at each checkpoint. So stamina was no problem at all.
Although it could only operate within the territory for now, as the road network expanded and more checkpoints were established, the areas available for delivery would increase significantly.
The delivery soldier, who had departed in the morning, arrived at the Forest of Monsters guard post that same evening.
“What… you mean my mom sent this this morning?”
“Yes, with Penris Arrow Delivery, we prioritize the fastest delivery possible.”
Ricardo scanned the delivery soldier up and down with a suspicious look.
“Even if it’s a nearby territory, does it really make sense for it to arrive this quickly?”
Typically, sending such letters would require hiring a merchant group or mercenaries.
So, it would naturally be expensive and time-consuming. Unless one was willing to pay a hefty price, they wouldn’t send someone out just for one person.
“Speaking of which… didn’t the Grand Duke cause a ruckus about starting this delivery business?”
Roads were being laid down in Perdium, and telegraph offices and various facility posts were built. Ricardo had indeed heard something about the delivery business being heavily promoted.
“Then again, there’s no reason for anyone to play such a trick on me.”
It didn’t seem like someone was joking around. The delivery soldier standing right in front of him was dust-covered and sweating profusely.
It looked far too earnest to be taken as a jest.
Ricardo unfolded the letter. His mother couldn’t write, so it must have been dictated, but he was confident he’d recognize the content.
[When are you planning to get married? Stop dating and please hurry up and get married. A friend’s son has already married and even has grandchildren…]
“Oh, this definitely sounds like my mom.”
The nagging he heard every time he visited his mom matched perfectly with the content of the letter. It was filled with genuine concern and rage.
How desperate must she have felt to use something nobody else even used—’Arrow Delivery’—to send this letter?
“Well, I’ll be on my way then. Could I get a signature here confirming that it was received…?”
“Wait a second.”
Ricardo needed to verify the truth. He hurriedly wrote a letter and handed it to the delivery soldier.
“This is free, right? Can you send this to my mom?”
“Yes, it’s currently in the free period. I’ll deliver this to your mother!”
While he could use the telegraph office, Ricardo wanted to confirm it quickly. He wrote the letter asking for a personal story from his childhood—something only his mom would know.
He wanted to find out if he could truly exchange letters with his mom, and whether Arrow Delivery was real or not.
The next evening, Ricardo received his mother’s reply. His letter had been delivered in the morning, and she had responded immediately.
“Wow, this is real? The speed is insane!”
The letter contained details only his mom would know. There was absolutely nothing wrong.
Having tasted the greatness of Arrow Delivery, Ricardo excitedly bragged to the guards at the Forest of Monsters. He didn’t forget to show off to the women at the friendship meeting, either.
Ricardo’s parents in Penris eagerly shared this miraculous news with those around them.
At first, people were unsure, but soon they were sending letters to their close relatives within the territory and couldn’t help but praise it.
“Wow! This is really as fast as an arrow, right? I’ve already exchanged letters and gifts with my relatives in Perdium several times!”
“Is it because the roads are well paved? It arrives in no time, just a day or two!”
“Have you tried ordering items? They actually bring it right to your doorstep!”
As the rumors spread, more and more people gathered at the telegraph office. The existing staff couldn’t handle the workload, so they hired more employees, and in cities and towns with large populations, they even built several additional telegraph offices.
The most popular service was delivery of goods. When ordering hard-to-find items from the market or items needed in bulk, people would use the telegraph office.
Although not many items were available immediately, you could see what could be delivered and in what quantity within the telegraph office, and they would bring it to your house.
People began to get excited about the service.
“I can’t live without Arrow Delivery now!”
“They say the number of items we can order keeps increasing. The Lord said he would add more!”
“I can’t believe we have something like this in our territory! Our Lord is amazing!”
The more people praised it, the prouder Ghislaine became. He arrogantly raised his chin and said to his retainers.
“How about that? See? People always seek the fast and convenient. That’s why I always emphasize doing things quickly.”
“……”
Retainers, including Claude, found themselves at a loss for words. People really were using Arrow Delivery more and more.
Thanks to that, the administrators became busier. This wasn’t a personal business but an enterprise run by the territory.
Checking the inventory of the logistics warehouse daily and quickly replenishing items for each town and city was all part of the administrators’ duties.
“Whoa, just operating this within the territory is impressive, but think about it expanding kingdom-wide. The number of items we can deliver and people using Arrow Delivery will only increase.”
The retainers nodded as if in agreement and thought.
‘And we’ll be even more worn out.’
They had also applied to the royal family for the right to collect usage fees instead of constructing roads, but approval hadn’t come yet, and they hadn’t received any funding for the business.
Once that was all settled, they would conduct Arrow Delivery business throughout the territories of all the Crown Prince faction nobles.
The problem was, no matter how much investment they received, the main body of the business was Penris Territory. In the end, it meant that the managers of Penris would be spread all over, hiring people and doing the work. It was clear they would be stretched thin.
Claude, wanting to stop at this point, threw in a comment.
“However, we are running into a substantial deficit. Setting up infrastructure is costing more than we expected. Even after the free period ends, the fees will still be pretty low, so it seems tough to turn a profit for a while.”
“It’s fine. I don’t care if we’re in the red right now. The important thing is to lay the foundation. Eventually, we’ll make a ton of money. We’ll monopolize everything, right?”
‘Sigh, it’s no use.’
Claude sighed in disappointment as he watched Ghislaine recite his predictions.
If they built an overwhelming logistics infrastructure, other merchant groups would have no choice but to use Arrow Delivery.
If they didn’t like it, they could pay for road usage.
‘Still, something feels off. His confidence seems excessive for simply making predictions. Is he having prophetic dreams or something?’
It was strange that most of the things the Lord had initiated created concepts that hadn’t existed before.
At first, it seemed like youthful arrogance without basis, but listening to his words showed he had a fair amount of knowledge and was logical.
It was clear that his constant successes weren’t just due to luck.
While Claude scrutinized Ghislaine with suspicion, Penris Territory was rapidly developing.
Thanks to the roads being built and additional horses added, the mass-produced meat and food, along with various resources, were transported at an incredible speed throughout the territory.
Receiving reports of the situation daily, Ghislaine wore a satisfied smile.
“Everything is going really smoothly. But there are still many things we lack, so let’s move faster.”
The telegraph office, stables, and logistics warehouses weren’t all the facilities they needed for transport. For the territory to grow stronger, more facilities were necessary.
The more Ghislaine urged, the more the administrators felt overwhelmed, but the speed of the territory’s development accelerated beyond comparison to before, and people’s convenience began to rise steadily.
As the administrators were urged on, they were dropping like flies, but the pace of territory development skyrocketed compared to before, and people’s convenience began to improve.
It’s likely that a territory this comfortable to live in is rare, if not impossible, to find anywhere on the continent.
Ghislaine, with a mindset of rowing while the water’s rising, immediately kicked off the next task.
“Let’s head over to Marquis Branford soon. Let’s get some tax rights and investments.”
*
Claude and the retainers crafted a business proposal aimed at maximizing efficiency.
It’s a venture covering half the kingdom. The royal family probably could never have imagined something this large.
Tax rights? If Marquis Branford says he’ll give, then he will. The Crown Prince Faction can’t refuse our proposal in situations like this.
Once tax rights are obtained, that’s it. Other lords might later refuse to pay, but… with Ghislaine’s personality, she’d definitely bring the army along.
Having a justification makes it easier to slice through others.
Claude checked the business plan, a meaningful smile spreading across his face.
“Just as the lord mentioned, even if we suffer some losses, it doesn’t matter. What’s more important than a few coins is the massive increase in our territory’s influence. If we play it right, we’ll have the leashes of the lords and merchant groups.”
If they can just secure tax rights, they’ll be able to tightly control logistics and people’s movement. Once the system is properly established, no one will dare to lay a hand on Penris.
Of course, it wasn’t all rainbows and sunshine. To exert that kind of influence, a powerful military force is necessary. Otherwise, there won’t be anyone to oppose when they forcibly take the roads.
In that regard, they were still lacking, but for now, with Marquis Branford backing them up, they felt a bit of relief.
“Well, our territory’s top priority is a powerful military. And that’s growing pretty rapidly. The Crown Prince’s nobles aren’t a problem… the upcoming civil war is the real issue.”
The Duke is targeting the Crown Prince faction. If they get swept up in that, this territory might end up with its neck on the chopping block.
But what if the Crown Prince faction prevails in that civil war? Or even if they lose, if Penris survives? What if they can build the powerful military the lord wants in between?
“Maybe… instead of the Duke, we’ll rule the kingdom…”
Those words slipped out unconsciously. Claude was startled and covered his mouth.
Did he have such ambitions? He hadn’t realized it at all, caught up in the hardships of late. He thought simply living it up would be a satisfying life.
When his eyes met Wendy’s, she tilted her head curiously.
“What’s wrong?”
“N-no, it’s nothing.”
Being with the lord seemed to have sparked reckless thoughts in him. Claude shook his head several times to clear his mind.
Forget the civil war; what was more pressing than that was the task at hand.
He spent several days holding meetings with the retainers, drafting a detailed business proposal. Now all that was left was to send it to Marquis Branford.
The problem was that Ghislaine was too busy focusing on territory development.
No matter how many times Claude asked, Ghislaine stood firm.
“Are you really not going to the capital?”
“Ugh, it’s such a hassle. I’m really busy right now! I need to check the status of the territory development, train, check the training status… so just send someone. The marquis will definitely agree.”
“……”
Of course, you could send a letter and convey the message with another person.
But the recipient was Marquis Branford, the most powerful figure in the kingdom. Even the lord wouldn’t be enough; who would he send instead?
‘I don’t want to go…’
Claude’s memories of Ghislaine nearly getting him killed when she offered to treat Rosalyn were still fresh. To be honest, he found the marquis terrifying. Just seeing him made him feel like he might wet himself.
Even aside from that, he himself was quite busy.
So Claude postponed sending a letter to someone else. He called Lowell, setting the mood as best he could, and said,
“You go to the capital.”
“Me? Really?”
“Yeah, go explain our business to Marquis Branford and get the tax rights. Tell Rosalyn and Meriel to invest too.”
“How can I handle something that big! No way! I’m scared! I’m busy too!”
“You can do it. So hurry up and go. If not, I’ll have Wendy kill you.”
“I can do it. So hurry up. If not, I’ll tell Wendy to kill you.”
Wendy, who was listening from the side, shot him a disgusted glare, but Claude pretended not to notice. He began to understand a little why the lord was so insistent on pushing people around.
“Just do it already! Why do you keep resisting? It’s so annoying!”
Under Claude’s pressure, Lowell reluctantly headed towards the capital with tears in his eyes. He was already busy, and now he would have to deal with even more work once he got back.
Honestly, it felt like the lord and the chief officer were just the same kind of people, driving him to death.
*
Marquis Branford stared at Lowell with a chilling gaze as he held the business plan.
“Road project? Tax collection rights?”
“Yes, yes… um… you said you needed it… and that it would be a great help to the Crown Prince Faction.”
Even the articulate Lowell trembled and stammered in response to the Marquis.
The pressure from the retainers, knights, and soldiers standing on either side made it hard to even breathe. The atmosphere was completely different from the carefree chaos of Penris Territory. It felt like standing on a sharp knife blade.
After tapping his chin a few times, the Marquis continued in a displeased voice.
“Are you telling me that this mere border lord dares to undertake a project that encompasses the entire kingdom?”
“Uh… it seems so.”
Lowell nodded vigorously, trembling the whole time.
Ghislaine was the kind of guy who would push on no matter what he wanted. So asking him was pointless.
“Why are you asking me? You can’t even control him, Marquis.”
While Lowell grumbled timidly in his head, Marquis Branford fell deep into thought.
“This crafty guy. He’s planning to make money from this opportunity and expand his influence. Who would have thought of that?”
Other nobles wouldn’t think that way. They believed that laying a road in someone else’s territory would only be detrimental to themselves.
They needed an enormous amount of resources, so they wouldn’t even imagine trying it. This was the kind of project that the royal family would take on directly at the kingdom level.
And now, this one lord wants to give it a go? If it had been someone else, he would have scoffed, but the one in question was Ghislaine, who had a firm grip on food supplies and an abundance of money and people. That changed the conversation entirely.
“This is a good idea. If it’s completed, it will be a huge help when fighting the Duke Faction.”
After all, avoiding a civil war was now impossible.
To fight the strongest Duke Faction as a single force, the royal family and the Crown Prince Faction’s lords needed to unite.
When someone gets attacked, the surrounding territories will need to swiftly support them with troops and supplies to endure.
Of course, if multiple territories are occupied, it would only end up giving the enemy a path to advance, but such risks were necessary.
Without a solid path to advance, the Crown Prince Faction would struggle to move quickly and would eventually collapse.
“This guy seems to be thinking ahead to after the civil war. Is that confidence that they’ll win at all costs? How arrogant.”
While that kind of confidence wasn’t unpleasant to see, the thought of it growing beyond his control felt unsettling.
“But the royal family can’t take on this project.”
The aftermath of the famine still hadn’t completely faded. Other lords were barely managing to maintain their military strength.
This kind of large-scale project was only something that the guy with overflowing food and money could attempt. If he stepped in, the rest of the lords could just provide laborers.
But he still seemed to want a large-scale investment, probably because he felt the burden of doing it alone.
“After all, no matter how much money there is, a single lord cannot handle such a venture alone.”
After a long moment of contemplation, Marquis Branford slowly opened his mouth.
“Alright. I will permit this project and instruct the lords to cooperate. I will also grant the tax collection rights to Count Penris in the name of the royal family.”
“Oh!”
Lowell was taken aback. He hadn’t expected Marquis Branford to make such a decision on the spot.
“As expected, it turned out just as the lord said. It’s amazing.”
But Marquis Branford’s words were not yet finished.
“However.”
“…?”
The Marquis looked at Lowell with a chilling gaze and continued.
“We need to increase our share a bit.”
