Chapter 376 — Negotiations at the Border
Blade of Dawn · Page 1 of 3
Faced with Horsman's elegant and utterly confident smile, Green realized that this great noble—renowned for his far-reaching vision and keen instincts—had not in fact lost his head. The frequent gatherings of nobles on the Horsman County lands since last winter had been more than simple "business dealings." Through one transaction after another involving alchemical potions and arcane technology, a bloc had taken shape, led by the Horsman family, one that regarded the Cecil power with vigilance and wariness.
This bloc shared the same pursuit of profit, and the same object of suspicion. The irony was that the vast wealth which had drawn them together had been created by Cecil Territory—and that which they watched with such wary eyes was Cecil Territory itself.
The newborn Cecil Territory was a land where gold and silver flowed. This was a consensus that had gradually taken form during the final stretch of last winter. At first, the nobles of the Southern Frontier had not understood what the alchemical potion merchants traveling everywhere, the slowly spreading arcane network, and the mining machinery systems truly signified in value. But as Count Horsman gathered them together and they exchanged intelligence, the noble lords came to realize just how vast the scale of these dealings had grown. Anyone with half a mind had only to do a little arithmetic to be struck dumb by that astonishing wealth—and then to realize how utterly insignificant the few gold coins they had scraped together were compared to the fortune the entire Cecil family had amassed.
Such immense gold and silver was piling up in the Cecil family's vaults. They gathered wealth not through war, yet took in more than war ever could.
And yet it would be unwise to recklessly oppose the name of Cecil. Whatever that family had been over the past century, it was now an undeniable fact that they had regained their honor. Even the king himself must face today's Cecil family with proper deference and care. But if a reasonable excuse could be found—one that could unite most of the Southern Frontier's nobles and still hold up before the royal court... the problem did not seem so complicated after all.
"They say the Duke of Cecil has already gathered an army of several thousand men. That at least proves one thing: however mad his actions may seem, his reason is still intact. He knows he must command sufficient force to protect his wealth," Count Horsman said without haste. "Most of that force is raw recruits, but the numbers are still considerable. And word has it that Cecil Territory has already repelled two assaults from the monsters of the Gondo Wasteland. I suspect that was largely the personal prowess of that legendary duke, but it also shows that Cecil's army has seen blood. So we must gather a force of our own to guarantee our safety."
"You mentioned the Duke of Cecil's personal strength as well... an ancient legend. He will be difficult to deal with, I fear?"
"Yes, of course, very difficult," Count Horsman said, and at last he smiled. "Which is why we must find additional means to tie down the duke himself—at least to keep him occupied elsewhere for a time."
Green looked at his master. Even as the head of intelligence on these lands, he could not always see through all of the count's designs, but he knew Count Horsman had likely already arranged a great many other things in secret. "You have a plan?"
"Ah—the Duke of Cecil is not merely undermining the noble order of Anzu; he has offended a great many others as well," Count Horsman said with a smile. "Have you heard of Cecil Territory's recent sheltering of heretic worshippers?"
"...Of course," Green nodded. "I had the intelligence at once. Cecil Territory openly declared it would take in those exiles cast out by the Church of the Radiant Sun and condemned as heretics."
Count Horsman nodded slightly. "The Church of the Radiant Sun has coveted this Southern Frontier land for a long while..."