Chapter 20 — Investment Value
Blade of Dawn · Page 3 of 3
"That is for me to consider," Gao Yang said with a smile, while in his mind's eye rose a picture of the land seen from high above—a satellite map of near-insane precision and breadth, utterly beyond the reach of this era's humanity, stored deep in Gao Yang's memory. It might be years, even over a decade, out of date (after all, he had now lost his connection to that overhead vantage), yet it was enough to point Gao Yang toward the road ahead. "You need only consider this carefully… how much investment value a founding grand duke who took part in the Second Pioneering and still holds perpetual pioneering rights might have."
Andrew lowered his head and, for the first time, truly thought the matter over.
After a long while, he broke the silence. "If your perpetual pioneering rights are truly recognized by the crown, then I, a humble viscount, will gladly offer you whatever help is within my power."
A textbook smooth noble's reply—leaving no opening, overstepping no rule, and still displaying a measure of deference. ..
Rebecca's eyes went wide. "Surely the present king would not deny perpetual pioneering rights recognized by the founding sovereign and the ancestors of every nation?!"
Gao Yang gave this somewhat unripe junior a look. "Of course he doesn't want to recognize them. In fact, there's a very good chance he won't recognize my identity at all. Even if Charles I himself popped up to prove I'm genuine, that king and his advisors would most likely still pray from the bottom of their hearts that I drop dead on the spot and get buried again in the old tomb in the southern marches."
"Why?!" Rebecca felt her worldview under assault. "You are a founding grand duke! A figure enshrined in the temples! The king and nobles pay tribute to you every year—would they not wish for you to return and help this kingdom again?"
Gao Yang was about to explain when Amber, across the table, blurted out: "Because they'd lose three days of holiday!"
As she shouted it, the half-elf young lady deliberately winked and grimaced at Gao Yang, earning herself an irritated glare from Heidi.
"Don't listen to her nonsense—that was a joke I made to her," Gao Yang said, waving a hand. "The real reason… Miss Heidi and Master Andrew have both worked it out already, haven't they?"
Heidi sighed. "A king will pay tribute to heroes, because a hero's image and renown can be used to shore up his rule. But he would never wish for that hero to return. Once the hero returns, that image and renown are no longer his to control…"
Because Andrew was present, Heidi left some even more treasonous words unspoken: especially when this particular king had sprung from a bastard, his legitimacy shaky to begin with.
"So the question before us is actually quite clear now," Gao Yang said, looking down at the Pioneer's Sword at his waist. "And that is… simply to make my perpetual pioneering rights take effect."