The Regressed Mercenary’s Machinations

Ghislain feigned ignorance as he asked.

He had already confirmed that the list of gifts he received that morning included one from Randolph.

Seeing that Randolph couldn’t wait for a response and came in person, he was clearly anxious and desperate.

Randolph swallowed nervously as he looked at Ghislain, who was acting nonchalant.

‘After seeing him yesterday, I realized he’s a completely cold-blooded bastard. How could he possibly plan to eat all that by himself? What a greedy guy.’

Despite cursing Ghislain in his heart, Randolph kept up his bright smile.

“After witnessing the Young Lord’s dignified appearance yesterday, I am confident the future of our estate is bright. However, Young Lord, do you think the estate can truly prosper if you only focus on your own success?”

Ghislain tilted his head at Randolph’s words and responded.

“My own success? I distinctly remember saying I’d support the estate in Raypold’s place.”

Randolph shook his head.

“No, that’s not the issue. Some things can’t be solved with just funding. Specifically, the knights.”

The truth was, being the Knight Commander of the Ferdium estate wasn’t a position worth having.

They constantly had to fight in the north, and the pay was abysmal.

Naturally, there was always a shortage of knights. To make matters worse, there had recently been some betrayals.

In fact, when Jamal and Philip betrayed them, Randolph was furious, but he also understood them the best.

‘Honestly, who would want to serve as a knight here?!’

Knights were valuable assets. Without talent, one couldn’t become a knight; even with talent, they required years of training.

Other estates offered high salaries, and landowners with vast territories would even grant small fiefs to their knights, allowing them to collect taxes.

Only two types of knights remained in Ferdium: those still loyal and those who had gone slightly mad and just wanted to fight barbarians in the north.

But even loyalty disappeared when faced with starvation—it was human nature.

Randolph put on a sorrowful expression and spoke.

“To maintain the knight order… Ahem, we’ll need a little sincerity from the Young Lord. Uh, something like a donation. Or perhaps a development fund?”

In short, he wasn’t asking for taxes or subsidies but for some personal funds to support the knights.

However, Ghislain had a look on his face that said, ‘What are you talking about?’

The term ‘development fund’ was one Ghislain loved to say but hated to hear.

It was a term he only used when asking Amelia for money.

“I don’t have any money.”

Without so much as blinking, Ghislain’s words sounded incredibly irritating.

Randolph barely restrained himself from throwing a punch and scratched his head instead.

‘Stay calm. Somehow, I have to get the money out of him.’

“Hahaha, saying that the richest man in the estate has no money is like a bandit saying he won’t rob you. Hahaha.”

The comparison was quite aggressive.

Ghislain laughed along with Randolph, though inwardly, he found the situation absurd.

“I’ve already allocated it all. So, it’s as good as spent. Hahaha.”

Randolph pressed his fist against his forehead, taking a deep breath to calm himself.

‘I need to hold it together. There’s no other way to get money.’

Every time he went to Albert, all he heard was that there was no money, and no matter how much Randolph tried to persuade him, it was to no avail.

Even when funds were available, they were always spent elsewhere first, leaving the knights’ order in a bad state. There was nothing he could do to change the situation.

Even if Ghislain took over Raypold’s role in providing support, it would be the same. The funds would merely replace what they were already receiving, and there was no chance the beggarly knights’ order would get more budget.

It is evident that things would remain as dismal as ever.

That’s why Randolph had no intention of missing this opportunity.

“No, seriously, where are you planning to spend all that money by yourself? You should be spending it on the estate! For the estate!”

Ghislain nodded with an impressed expression.

Like a parrot, he repeated Randolph’s words.

“Of course, I’m going to spend it for the estate. Naturally, it’s all for the estate.”

“For the estate… how exactly?”

“I have plans.”

Randolph cautiously asked, “Do those plans include supporting the knight order?”

Ghislain widened his eyes.

“Nope, not doing that. It’s not included.”

Randolph lowered his head, trying to hide the surge of frustration on his face, and took a deep breath again.

‘Wow, he really plans to keep it all for himself. Should I resort to threats?’

As the Knight Commander was contemplating extreme measures, someone entered to see Ghislain. It was none other than the estate’s Treasurer, Albert.

“Ahem, it seems like someone else is here before me. Young Lord, are you feeling well?”

It was clear why Albert had shown up, even without asking. Randolph, on guard, quickly stepped in to block him.

“Brother? No, I mean, Treasurer, what brings you here? Don’t you have work to do? I was already speaking with the Young Lord, so come back later.”

Randolph tried to push Albert aside subtly, but Albert stood his ground.

Clicking his tongue, Albert gave Randolph a condescending look as if scolding him.

“And as for you, Knight Commander, shouldn’t you be out training instead of loitering around here? A drop of sweat shed during training saves a drop of blood in battle.”

“Hah! What would someone who’s never even held a sword know? Just leave me to handle this, Treasurer. You should go back to your ledgers.”

“One needs money to manage ledgers.”

Despite their smiles, the two glared at each other in a tense standoff.

Watching the scene unfold, Ghislain shook his head.

It seemed clear that neither of the two men intended to leave his chambers anytime soon.

In the end, Ghislain turned to Albert and asked.

“Treasurer, are you also here looking for a donation or a development fund… something like that?”

At the direct question, Albert cleared his throat, a little embarrassed.

“Ahem, the Young Lord is quite sharp. It’s no wonder someone as brilliant as you were able to retrieve the Runestone. Truly, you are destined for greatness.”

Albert did his best to flatter Ghislain, but his effort was more effective than Randolph’s.

Whether Albert knew that Ghislain was inwardly laughing or not, he looked at Ghislain with admiration in his eyes.

“Ahem, I appreciate your offer to support the estate in place of Raypold, but… we need a bit of a lump sum to handle an urgent issue right now.”

Ghislain nodded.

“If the Treasurer says it’s urgent, it must be… a debt issue.”

“Exactly. I believe paying off the debt is the most pressing matter. Ultimately, the estate’s debt will fall on you, the Young Lord, who will inherit Ferdium. The family’s debt is your debt, and your money is the family’s money, wouldn’t you agree?”

Albert smiled gently as he spoke.

Ghislain, wearing a bewildered expression, firmly refuted Albert’s words.

“No, I don’t agree.”

“What?”

“My money is my money.”

‘Where does this guy think he’s pulling a scam from?’

At Ghislain’s sharp and definitive response, Albert’s face twisted momentarily.

‘Wow, I didn’t think he was like this. He’s really a money-grubber, huh?’

Albert grumbled inwardly but managed to keep his composure, forcing a smile again.

“Ahem, regardless of whose money it is, it wouldn’t make sense for the Young Lord to just turn a blind eye while the estate is struggling, would it? Honestly, just paying off the debt would improve the estate’s finances significantly. This is all for the estate.”

Ghislain was amused to realize for the first time how expressive Albert could be.

He had always thought of him as someone who always wore a cold, stiff expression.

But now, Albert’s face was constantly twisting, smiling, and changing in such exaggerated ways that Ghislain found it fascinating.

Not listening to Albert’s words, Ghislain simply observed his face, deep in his thoughts, before finally tilting his head.

“But I don’t have any money.”

Upon hearing that, Albert’s face twisted just as Randolph had before.

Struggling to control his rising anger, Albert slowly enunciated each word.

“Why… don’t you have any money?”

“As I told the Knight Commander, I already have plans for it. So, there’s none left.”

Not understanding this at all, Albert pleaded desperately.

“Where exactly are you planning to spend all that money? Shouldn’t you at least consult with us if you’re going to spend such a large sum?”

“Why would I consult you about spending my own money? I’ll handle it myself, so you don’t need to worry.”

“How could we ‘not’ worry about that?!”

Albert practically screamed, but Ghislain, starting to grow tired of dealing with the two of them, casually threw out his following words.

“It’s for the estate, so there’s no need to worry.”

Of course, neither of them believed him.

Considering Ghislain’s past behavior, they both suspected he’d squander the money on his own pleasures rather than anything useful.

They couldn’t let him waste such a large sum on frivolous things.

Both men urgently protested.

“What could possibly be more urgent for the estate than paying off the debt? Don’t you care about the money lost to interest?”

“What nonsense! Prioritizing the knights over paying off the debt is far more important. Look at other estates! Even if they have debts, they maintain their knight orders in top condition. The knights are the strength of the estate! ‘Strength!’”

“Oh, come on! That’s nonsense! Even without paying the interest, that money could be used in countless other ways, and you’re talking about knights now?”

“Ah, you’ve lost your grip on reality from sitting in your room counting money all day. It doesn’t matter if it’s interest or whatever else. If we don’t have the strength to fight, we’ll lose everything anyway! If we’re strong enough, no one will care whether we pay the debt or not.”

“Tsk tsk, that’s robbery, not knighthood. There’s an order to everything in this world.”

“And that order starts with the knights and the military!”

At some point, the two men stopped addressing Ghislain and began arguing loudly with each other.

Since it seemed unlikely they’d get any money from Ghislain, they’d turned their frustrations on one another.

“What are we going to do? Just pay off the debt first! Our estate’s credit is rock bottom!”

“If we form the knights first, I’ll handle the debt collectors! No one stands up to a sword!”

“…”

I had no idea why they were trying to decide on the order of things with someone else’s money.

A knight approached me as I sighed, thinking of forcing them out with strength.

“Young Lord, the Lord is urgently requesting your presence.”

“Oh, really? Well then, I’d better go right away.”

As I moved to leave, Albert and Randolph tried to follow me.

But the knight, with a stern expression, spoke firmly.

“He specifically said only the Young Lord is to come.”

Under the strict command of the Lord, the two men couldn’t follow, so they just shouted behind me.

“How are we supposed to pay off the debt if you take him away like that!”

“Hand over the knights! If you don’t, I’ll ruin everything every time you try to spend money! I’ll smash it all!”

Ignoring the two who were stomping and yelling, I headed straight to my father’s office.

Honestly, if I stayed any longer, all three of us might’ve lost our minds.

When I arrived, the knights standing guard in front of the office slowly opened the door.

Creeeak.

The atmosphere inside was cold. A chilling sensation pierced through my chest.

The tension in the room was like the calm before a storm.

Zwalter stood with his hands behind his back, gazing out the window.

Sensing the uneasy mood, I carefully opened my mouth.

“You called for me?”

“Yes. How’s your condition?”

“I wasn’t seriously injured. I recovered faster than expected.”

“Good. You’re doing important work, so be careful with your health from now on.”

“Yes, I’ll keep that in mind.”

Even as I answered, I tilted my head in confusion.

There had been plenty of times in the past when I’d gotten into bigger accidents and been injured more seriously. But my father had never shown this much concern before.

Still, with his hands behind his back, Zwaltor continued to stare out the window as he spoke.

“The weather’s nice. So, have you thought about how you’ll use the funds from the runestone sale?”

“Yes, as I mentioned before, I’ll make up for the deficit in Raypold and use the remainder for a project I’m working on.”

After a brief pause, Zwaltor spoke again.

“Alright. I’m sure you’ll handle it well. I trust that whatever you decide, you’ll use it for the benefit of the estate.”

“Yes.”

“You’ve caused a lot of trouble since you were a child. You’ve brought plenty of losses to the estate, too.”

“…Yes.”

“When the retainers suggested imprisoning you, I always forgave you. After all, you’re still my son. That’s the heart of a father.”

“Well, yes…”

I tilted my head once more. I couldn’t follow the flow of the conversation.

Was he worried about my injuries, or did he just want to bring up past grievances? I couldn’t figure it out.

Then Zwaltor repeated what he had said earlier.

“Whatever you do, I trust you’ll use it for the estate.”

“…”

I was beginning to catch on. Narrowing my eyes, I stared at my father.