Chapter 81-82

Chapter 81 – I made a declaration!

"So, is this everyone?"

I muttered while looking at the dragonfolk who were no longer Lindwurms.

Their three ships were pulled in by Mappa Golem as if they were toys, and they were now tied and anchored by our docks.

Each ship had only about a dozen guards and some slaves. And so when the giant stone Golem started to move, they immediately gave up trying to fight it.

After all, it was hard to maintain the will to fight when their leader, Arder, was being strangled in front of them like a chicken.

Currently, over a thousand dragonfolk were sitting on the ground in front of us.

They were surrounded by monsters, and not one of them thought to resist.

Furthermore, nearly all of their ears were burnt black.

Perhaps it was because they were burned when they were in their Lindwurm forms, but the wounds looked rather painful.

Also, they seemed thinner and weaker than they had before the transformation.

Baris really had been right when he said that their wings were the source of their power. As for Arder, he no longer seemed like a robust man in the prime of his life. He seemed more like a frail old man.

…Had they just been people who drifted here or were shipwrecked, I would have treated them.

But I could not do that.

After all, they were invaders.

We had offered them food and water and taken care of their wounded.

But that was not enough for them, and they tried to hurt us. Just for some gold and precious gems.

Indeed, Erevan and Kamyu had pointed their blades at me at first. However, they were desperate to survive, and had stopped fighting when I showed that there was another way. But this time, things were different.

And so I could not treat them in the same way.

Just then, Berfalt came forward as a representative of the slaves.

"Lord Heal. All of the slaves and prisoners in the ships are now free! Lady Rienna is now treating them."

The slaves had been shackled inside of the ships.

Their clothes were ragged, and they had wounds suggesting they had been flogged.

"That's good. Food is also being prepared, so you must all eat as much as you can."

"Th-thank you! I really don't know what I can do to express my gratitude… I know."

Berfalt said as he ripped open his sleeve and took out a piece of paper.

He had apparently been hiding it from Arder and the others. So it must be important.

"What is that?"

"It's my insurance certificate. I put insurance on my ship and cargo before setting out to sea."

The sea was always full of danger.

Disastrous weather could cause your ship to sink, your cargo to be lost. And there were also pirates.

And so people had insurance for such events.

You could pay the state or money lenders before a voyage, and if your ship or cargo is damaged or lost, you can receive money in compensation.

What made it different from the insurance that merchants that traveled in carriages used, was that ships were a great asset that carried great amounts of cargo. And so the price for insuring it was very high.

However, Berfalt looked embarrassed.

"Though, I know it is a terribly low amount for you, Lord Heal…"

I looked at the paper. It was written in the Fallion language, and I couldn't interpret it immediately. However, I was able to see the numbers at once.

"30,000 orts… Uh, orts are the Amolis currency, right? How much would that be back home…"

"1 ort is about 10 dels…so, that would be 300,000 dels."

"300,000 dels!? You could buy a house near the main street in the capital with that…"

It was enough money to buy the kind of house that rich merchants and low ranking nobles lived in.

Hell, it was enough money to bribe some royals, even.

"Huh? Oh, I suppose. Maybe you could do that… But I'm sure it means nothing to you, Lord Heal."

Berfalt seemed puzzled that I should be astonished.

He had probably seen the jewels that the monsters were wearing and thought that 300,00 dels would be nothing to me.

Indeed. If I wanted to sell everything I had dug up until now, I would probably make more money than what existed in the entire kingdom of Sanfaris.

Well, except for the fact that the value of the stones would drop tremendously once it was known I had so much of them.

"No, it is a lot of money…Berfalt. But this is your insurance. You lost your ship, didn't you? You should be the one to use it.

"Bu-but… You saved my life and freed me. I have to give you something in exchange…"

Berfalt was a very righteous person.

And he could not leave a debt unpaid.

"Either way, you can't receive the money unless you return, right?"

"Ye-yes… Ah… Now that I think about it…how can I return…"

Berfalt's ship had been sunk, apparently.

So those three carracks were Arder's from the beginning.

"But don't the others all want to return too? Then you should use those carracks."

"B-but, those were captured by you, Lord Heal. We can't take them."

"It's true that we've wanted new ships. Unfortunately, we don't have a big enough crew right now. So we don't need three ships."

"But…still… I know. I will buy it from you. I can bring the money when I… Oh, but a ship of that size might be more than just 30,000 orts…"

Berfalt held his head.

"In fact, with just 30,000 orts, much of it would be spent on the voyage to deliver it… Oh, maybe I should mortgage my house…"

Perhaps he was disturbed by how it didn't seem to be worth the cost.

And so I made a suggestion.

"Berfalt. You're a merchant, right?"

"Ye-yes! Though, I only just started… This was my very first voyage after becoming independent. I still haven't made any profit yet. So maybe I wouldn't even qualify…"

Berfalt's shoulders slumped. I continued.

"In that case, why don't you work for me?"

"For you, Lord Heal? I don't mind, but…"

"I want you to send these dragonfolk back to their country. Along with a letter."

"You're letting them go!?"

"Aye. They would never be accepted by the others if they stayed on this island."

Well, for my sake, I'm sure the others would have tried.

However, these dragonfolk showed no signs of wanting to change.

Even now, they continued to insult and mock us with loud voices.

These were people that enslaved the other races. Their pride would not allow them to see us as equals.

Arder was clearly in pain, and yet he continued to glare at us with hatred.

But when Erevan glared back at him, he quickly lowered his head.

Indeed, even I did not want to welcome them to this island.

"Of course. They returned your kindness with violence. I was just surprised that you're letting them go free. Um… I am personally against slavery, but it is true that even without their ears, they would fetch a high price. And of course, you could use them as laborers here…"

"There are no slaves on this island. And there never will be."

"I see… Please excuse me. It was a stupid question, given that you freed us all."

Berfalt looked quite happy when he heard that I was against it.

"Of course, I will accept this task. They hid their flags when they attacked us. However, at least on the surface, the Amolis Republic and the Vadar Dragon Kingdom are not at war. There was even a ceasefire agreement. So I should be able to send them there safely. However, if they are not slaves, what will they be?"

"Prisoners of war. They have declared war, have they not? We fought and captured them, after all."

"I see… It was like a declaration. Uh, is this a country…"

"That…"

There would likely be a problem…with saying that this was part of Sanfaris.

After all, since we were sending these prisoners back, they would have to react in the appropriate way.

If it were just a tribal society, they might get enraged but do little else. However, this was a country that made treaties. They would be aware of how it would look on the outside. In other words, they cared about diplomacy.

Arder would surely be punished, at least, publicly.

To attack other ships without a flag was a flagrant act of piracy. If word got to Berfalt's country, the Amolis Republic, then Arder would have to be punished and a formal apology made.

Furthermore, they had antagonised us, who they had no political relationship with, and forced us to fight. And so they would have to apologize to us as well.

However, this 'us' was also a problem.

Officially, how many of us should there be?

Monsters weren't citizens, but I was considered a lord of the kingdom… That meant that this was Sanfaris territory, and I was a citizen of the country.

However, if I said this, then the Dragon Kingdom would send envoys to the royal capital instead of here.

Which of course, meant that the entire matter would come before my father. And he would know that I was living here with monsters.

But then again, given that Berfalt and the other former slaves would be returning home, there was no keeping this island a secret anymore.

They had all been brought here by force, and I could not force them to stay. They would have family and people waiting for their return.

Besides, we had already been seen by that other ship… At this point, it seemed that keeping our existence hidden was impossible.

Furthermore, it wasn't as if we ourselves wanted to avoid having any connection to the outside world. If it was possible for us to be on friendly terms with other countries, we would welcome it. Of course, the knowledge of our wealth would likely bring in unwanted visitors as well. We would have to know when to hide what needed to be hidden.

In any case, the day would come sooner or later, when this island would become known.

And so I decided to build diplomatic relationships as a country separate from Sanfaris.

…A free country where race did not matter. A country that was unrelated to all the chaos on the continent.

"This country shall be called Sheorl… And I, Heal, will be its representative."

And so on that day, I would declare Sheorl an independent country.

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Chapter 82 – We started making a town!!

"…In any case, I think we should at least look like a country from the outside."

I said to the important members of the island, as we talked under the World Tree.

Berfalt and the other former slaves would leave the island, and the captives will be sent back to the Dragon Kingdom… Not only that, but this island was also seen by another ship. And we didn't know when someone would arrive from the outside again.

This meant that we could no longer postpone figuring out how we would deal with visitors.

And so we had to come up with methods for not just fighting back with force, but also how we wanted to appear to peaceful visitors.

"Showing everything truthfully…is too dangerous, in my opinion."

Said Haines the kobold. Erevan nodded in agreement.

"I think so too. More idiots will be lured here by all of the gold and precious stones."

Everyone else at the table was nodding.

Then Baris added,

"There will also be problems if we sell it. Not only will it take jobs away from other miners on the continent, but some towns will be ruined economically as well. Besides, we are sure to be invaded by countries if they knew how much treasure we have."

"So, to put it simply, we do not allow our precious stones and metals to leave… Either that, or we only sell small amounts at regular prices… Is everyone alright with that?"

As they all nodded, Rienna opened her mouth.

"While I do think it's important to hide all of that, it's also important to hide the cave itself. Whether it's stones that extend your life or crystals that raise your magic, it is filled with things that are in a way, much more valuable than any precious stone."

"Yes. I can see people risking their own lives for a Resurrection Stone…"

Fule said with a chuckle and the others nodded.

"It is with all of this considered that…hmm.."

Baris started to draw something with a paper and pen that was on the table.

It was the map of the town he had shown me in the morning.

Now that I thought of it, we had been talking about building shops for visitors…

It was a bird's eye view of the island, and Baris was writing in it furiously.

Then he pointed at an area that was half of the reclaimed ground with the wharf, and opened his mouth.

"First, since this is where ships will dock…why not make a commercial district?"

"Commercial district?"

Erevan asked with a puzzled expression.

Apparently, it was not something that some of the monsters were familiar with.

And so Baris explained it to them in simple terms.

"A commercial district is a place for trading, that exists in most human towns. There will be shops, inns and workplaces for people who come from outside."

"I see…"

Baris saw that Erevan understood him, and so he continued.

"Furthermore, we can make a town square in the center, near the wharf. This will show visitors that we are at least somewhat prosperous. We could then separate the commercial district and the cave with a wall… Everything behind it is strictly land for Sheorl citizens."

Baris drew a wall around the other area.

"As for the area in front of the entrance to the cave…This will be our administrative district. And in its center, will stand Lord Heal's palace."

"Oh, so like the mansion of a king! I like that idea! Let's make something amazing!"

Erevan stood up and flexed his arms. The others replied enthusiastically.

Rienna then made a suggestion.

"Speaking of palaces…there should also be a garden!"

"Oh, and what about a fountain? There should be ducks too."

Fule said with a nod. Next to her, Mappa was carving a piece of iron with a knife. He was making a small statue.

"Is that a statue of Lord Heal? …I see. Mappa, you're making a statue for the king!"

Ashton said, and Mappa nodded.

They were getting a little carried away, and I felt frantic.

"Wa-wait-wait! An administrative district is fine, but why do we need a palace? It's not like this country will be a kingdom…"

Everyone turned to me and said, 'what?'

"…? But Lord Heal, you are our king. If you are ruling a country, wouldn't that country be a kingdom?"

Ashton asked me with a puzzled expression.

"N-no. While I am the lord of this island… I think of myself as a representative for all of you. I think 'king' is pushing it a little far…"

I would protect them all as the lord of this land…I felt that much responsibility.

However, when it came to being king…

That was something I wanted to avoid.

My father would never forgive me if he knew I was calling myself a king.

And he would be furious if he knew that I was living here with monsters.

However, if there was just a little chance…a little hope…that he would accept us, I didn't want to ruin it.

All I wanted was for him to accept me as the lord here and that I was living with monsters. That was it. I had no ambitions for revenge against him or to invade other countries.

"Hmm… I see. Considering that relationship, it would be bad if Lord Heal called himself 'king.'"

Baris seemed to understand my meaning, and he nodded.

Ashton and Rienna also seemed to realize as their expression changed.

"Indeed. There would be problems if Lord Heal was king."

"Yes. I agree. It would be considered an insult…"

If my father was king, then it would not make sense for me to claim to be one as well…

Rienna was royalty, and Ashton was also close to a royal family. And so they knew what these familial relationships could be like.

And so Baris had another suggestion.

"As for this position of king, it can be put on hold. However, as I understand, a country can still have a palace even without a king. And why not have one, if not just for appearances?"

Should there be a king, if only just in name…? All of them recognized the king as the highest authority in their tribes.

Perhaps Mappa was interested in kingship, because he kept looking at me and the others.

However, no one paid him any attention.

That being said, I was sure that my father would be just as against someone else being king. After all, this island was supposed to be part of his territory. It would be just as wrong to him.

"Indeed… I agree with building a palace. However, I think we better not have a king at all…"

We should all discuss and decide things together…as a republic.

The Sheorl Republic… Yes, it had a nice ring to it.

Baris nodded in agreement and then returned his gaze to the others.

"Very well. There will be no king. Now, we should start work on the building of the palace and the administrative district at once. Is everyone in agreement on this?"

No one had any objections.

After that, we talked about what kind of town we wanted to make.

The main things we decided were that the entrances to the cave would be covered by buildings so they would look like temples.

They would be holy ground that only citizens could enter… That would be an excuse to keep people away. It was Baris's idea.

We also decided to leave the World Tree as it was.

Aside from that, we decided on smaller matters, like building a hot spring in the commercial district and how we would vote on a design for our flag.

Once we were in agreement, the meeting was over.

Then Baris walked up to me as if unsure about something.

"That was a good meeting, Lord Heal. So, about the letter that is to be given to Berfalt…"

Baris showed me the letter.

He had written down what I had asked him.

We had merely used force against their men as an act of self defense.

We didn't want to be enemies with the Dragon Kingdom. And to show that it wasn't a declaration of war, we were sending the prisoners back to them.

And I suggested that as a responsible country, they have stricter rules against piracy, and that we sign a no-raid agreement…

This letter was just a draft, and so there was no name on it.

In the first place, we didn't even know the name of their king. I would have to ask Berfalt about it later.

However, the contents of the letter were fine.

I nodded to Baris.

"It's perfect. Not too aggressive or demanding… Unless they are incredibly hot-tempered, it shouldn't be taken badly."

"Then I shall make a fair copy. Also, about Berfalt…"

"He insists?"

"Yes. He wants to return the ship to you no matter what. And so he will return here after sending the prisoners."

"I see… But he won't have much money…"

"Yes. I tried to tell him, but he kept objecting to it. He will not change his mind."

He really was stubborn… However, he had lost his ship and his cargo.

We had acquired two ships and didn't need more money. He didn't need to give us anything in return.

And then Baris made a suggestion.

"…In that case, why not ask Berfalt to buy us goods, just like Kamyu? If you pay him for the work, he will also make a profit. Just tell him that you are lending the ship to him and occasionally ask him to do business with you."

"I see… That's a good idea. Do it."

"Yes."

Baris bowed his head.

"Still…you really are helpful, Baris. Just like you did earlier, you're quick to understand my intention."

"If anything…I was too slow. For that, I am sorry."

"There's no need to apologize. I'll continue to count on you, Baris."

"Aye. Now, I must go and prepare the letter to give Berfalt. He will depart tomorrow, so we must finish repairing the ship and storing the supplies."

"Yes, thank you. I'm going to go mining. I leave the rest to you."

"Yes, Your Majesty…"

Baris said, and then walked briskly away towards the ships.

Your Majesty… Did he really want me to be king?

Well, as long as it was just between us, it didn't really matter.

But he would have to be more careful around outsiders…especially in the presence of people from Sanfaris.

It was with such thoughts, that I returned to digging.

Later that day, one of Baris's assistants came and brought the letter and the money that were supposed to be given to Berfalt.

However, my hands were too dirty, and so I asked for the letter and amount to be read aloud.

It wasn't a shocking amount of money, and the letter was pretty much the same, so there was no problem.

And so I told the assistant to pass it on to Berfalt, and then I returned to my digging.

The next day, Berfalt and the other former slaves got on the ship and left Sheorl.

We watched as the ship carrying the gold and prisoners sailed away.

Voices of gratitude could be heard, echoing from the deck.

～～～～～

"Ahh, they really were nice people."

Berfalt was alone in the captain's cabin as he counted the money he received from Heal.

The sack of gold was about the size of a person's head.

These gold coins had no markings, and looked like they were newly minted. And even Berfalt could tell that they were made of high quality gold.

"This is such a great amount… He asked me to do many things, but I don't know if I could even use all of this…"

Berfalt had been told that he could keep what remained as a fee, but he thought he would only take what he knew was the proper amount, and return the rest.

And so he locked up the gold in a chest and picked up the letter from his desk and was about to put it away.

But then he looked at the Barleon letters on the back and muttered.

"…The Sheorl 'Empire' huh. They will surely be a grade trading partner for merchants of the Amolis Republic."

And like that, Sheorl became the Sheorl Empire. And Heal would become known to outsiders as its Emperor.