Kays Translations

Chapter 142: Money Comes In Again

“So… Rodel is dead…”

A month had passed since the rebellion of Marquis Eiger was suppressed.

Hearing the news at the Rosemary Marquis family’s townhouse, Rest felt an odd sense of loneliness.

Sitting on the bed in his room, he sighed, feeling a chill despite it being summer.

(If he was going to die anyway, maybe I should have killed him on the battlefield?)

Perhaps that would have been easier than being forced to drink poison.

For a proud man, a month of merely awaiting death must have been incredibly painful.

Rodel Iwood was a detestable man.

There were parts of him that strangely resembled his foolish brother Cedric, making him a type of person Rest could never like.

Even so… when they faced each other on the battlefield, Rest felt an inexplicable sense of empathy.

If only he had been a slightly more decent person… they might have fought together as comrades.

It was a vague feeling, but that’s what Rest thought.

(Rodel’s body won’t be buried in the royal family’s tomb. Instead, it’ll be taken in as an unmarked corpse by a monastery in the remote region… In that case, maybe I should build a temple somewhere and make a proper grave for him.)

Even if Rodel was an exceptionally evil person… treating the body of a powerful person carelessly was not a good idea.

It would be troublesome if he became a vengeful spirit like Taira no Masakado or Sugawara no Michizane and haunted them.

Since they at least dueled on the battlefield, Rest decided that if he ever acquired land, he would retrieve Rodel’s body and build a temple for him.

(Even so… to think that I would become a Count.)

In the past month, many things had changed in the Kingdom of Iwood. The same was true around Rest.

First, the nobles of the Dowager Queen’s faction who sided with Marquis Eiger were punished.

Nobles who directly participated in the rebellion were all executed without exception. Those close to the ringleaders were also sent to the gallows along with their entire families.

Nobles who belonged to the faction but did not join the rebel army were given appropriate punishments. Their lands and assets were confiscated, and they were demoted to commoners.

Nobles who barely held back… those who left the faction when Marquis Eiger raised his army were granted amnesty, stripped of their titles, and ordered to forfeit their lands.

The lands owned by the Dowager Queen’s faction were redistributed; key locations became royal demesnes, and the rest were given to nobles who supported the king’s party during the suppression.

The Rosemary Marquis family also received additional land, and the head of the family, Albert, was busy traveling between the territory and the royal capital.

And as for Rest… for his meritorious service in the battle, he was granted the title of earl, a medal, and a reward.

At the investiture ceremony, he received praise directly from the king and had a friendly conversation with the crown prince.

During the ceremony, other nobles took the opportunity to approach him, trying to marry off their daughters as his wife, which was tiresome.

Viola and Primula, who were beside him, were also in a bad mood.

Since the incident at the Monster Hunt Festival, the Royal Academy had resumed classes, but Rest had hardly attended.

He went once, but female students approached him saying they wanted to be his wife or even a concubine, and male students offered to become his vassals if he made them magistrates.

The land given to Rest was mostly undeveloped plains… but even so, there was potential for future development and immense profits to be made.

This attracted many people like moths to a flame… sometimes, people even came to the Rosemary Marquis family’s townhouse to offer their services.

“Moreover… now there’s Rodel’s inheritance. More trouble, huh…”

Lying on the bed, Rest opened the letter sent from the royal family.

It stated that, according to the will of Rodel Iwood, who drank the poison cup, Rest would inherit his estate.

Rodel’s bequest included the Dowager Queen’s hidden fortune, presumably hoarded during his lifetime.

Among the treasures were national treasures that had gone missing, and the total amount was said to rival the national budget.

The royal family seized paintings, vases, and sculptures, but gold coins, jewels, and other direct valuables were given to Rest.

He was also burdened with magic books of unknown value and deeds to lands in remote areas.

Having money was nice, but honestly, such an amount that could never be spent even if he were reborn a hundred times was just a nuisance.

People with money are compelled to use it.

Otherwise, the economy would stagnate, and people would flock to the money.

It was like winning a huge lottery prize and suddenly being approached for donations or investments, or getting calls from self-proclaimed friends whose contacts you didn’t remember exchanging.

(If it’s that annoying, maybe I should just spend it all extravagantly… but having ways to spend it is also a problem…)

“…Shall I start developing the monster territory?”

Ideally, this should be done under the royal family’s leadership, but it might be better to start developing just the land I’ve been given.

To be honest, I’m even starting to suspect that the royal family might have given me the money with that intention.

“Maybe I should talk to my father-in-law about it…”

Rest got up and headed to his father-in-law’s study to discuss the development of the Sabnock Plains.

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