Chapter 182: |
Chapter 182
“What?”
Count Trenby exclaimed in amazement.
But Raymond spoke seriously. “This is in return for closing down the Magic Stone mine and taking care of the aftermath. I will also take the debt owed to the Magic Tower. That will be a great benefit to you, Count.”
Count Trenby kept his mouth shut.
If what Raymond says is true, then yes.
The debt he owes to the Magic Tower is a whopping 300,000 penas.
It was a profitable business even if he paid 100,000 penas by taking that debt.
“…Are you really going to do that?”
The lords gathered there. Elmud and Christine became witnesses.
“Then, from this moment on, the ownership of the Borison Estate will pass to me, Raymond.”
“The debt of 300,000 penas to Magic Tower is the same. Do you understand?”
“Of course.”
Count Trenby thought with a satisfied look on his face.
‘I survived. I almost became a slave to the magic tower.’
‘I’ll have to pay Raymond 100 thousand penas, but that’s okay.’
It could be obtained by selling family heirlooms and disposing of property.
I might end up penniless, but it was better than being a slave to the devil’s tower because of debt.
Afterwards, the wise man Mevinson asked:
“Why did you do such a thing, my lord? Count Trenby is not worthy of pity.”
“You didn’t do it out of pity, did you?”
“Then? Why get the debt as well?”
Raymond chuckled.
“Aren’t you going to pay that debt?”
“……yes?”
“This incident happened because of the mistake of the Magic Tower, so there is no reason to pay the remaining debt.”
Yes, that’s right.
All of the debts Count Trenby owed were for setting up magic stone mining facilities.
But what if there’s a problem with that mining facility?
There was no reason to pay the remaining money!
That is, Count Trenby had his eyes opened and his nose cut off by Raymond.
‘Well, I didn’t lie. It was Count Trenby’s own fault for not thinking carefully about this.’
Raymond hummed inwardly.
Count Trenby was a diehard knight who had trained only with swords his entire life. That was why he did not seem to think much about this. He was frustrated and confused by the bankruptcy.
‘Of course, there’s no way that Magic Tower will obediently pay off the debt. Rather, they’ll probably try to make up some excuse to say that it’s not their responsibility.’
In reality, even when such an accident occurs, the average nobleman cannot properly protest to the magic tower.
Because the Magic Tower is a continent-wide, omnipotent organization.
Those guys from Magic Tower were truly the worst group of selfish people.
‘But I am no longer an ordinary noble.’
Yes, he was no longer a weak nobleman.
He was a great noble who was destined to become the fifth lord of the Kingdom of Houston.
‘Rather than paying off the debt, I should receive compensation for the damages.’
Raymond thought with low eyes.
Yes, compensation for damages.
He was given the Borison estate to receive it.
It was a chance to really give those guys from the Tower a hard time and make them pay a ton of money.
‘Let’s call them right now. This is our chance to extort money!’
Raymond’s eyes lit up.
Today was the first time he was this excited to contact the Magic Tower.
* * *
The Houston Kingdom Tower Branch Manager, Shameron, was contacted.
-Haha, it’s been a while, Count! Are you finally ready to become the disciple of the Magic Tower?
“No, I have some other business to attend to.”
It was only in an instant that Shameron’s bright face turned black.
-Ma, there was a problem with the Magic Stone mine? So there was an epidemic? T-That can’t be!
“Here is the evidence.”
Raymond presented his findings to Shameron, who remained silent.
Because it was clear that it was a problem with the magic stone mine.
“You can check again with the investigator at the Magic Tower.”
-……All right.
Shameron answered with a heavy face.
– I deeply regret that this has happened. Of course, it seems like an unavoidable natural disaster, but I will consider providing compensation as I acknowledge my moral responsibility.
Raymond frowned.
Natural disaster, moral responsibility.
It was an excuse to say that it wasn’t their fault.
“Then what kind of compensation do you plan to give at the Magic Tower?”
– I will pay you back the 300,000 penas you were supposed to receive from the Borison Estate. I will also help you close down the magic stone mine at the lowest possible price.
Raymond let out a hollow laugh.
‘You’re just going to wipe your mouth with something like that?’
The unidentified perpetrators are primarily responsible for this incident.
They had to be caught and made to pay for their crimes.
But does that mean that the tower is not responsible?
That was absolutely not the case.
The reason why they spend a huge amount of money on installing mining facilities on the Magic Tower is to prevent such unfortunate events.
However, the Magic Tower did not properly carry out its job of inspecting the Magic Stone.
In other words, Magic Tower also had some responsibility for this incident.
“Excuse me, which enchanter checked this magic stone?”
Shameron kept his mouth shut.
-… Since it was the lowest grade magic stone, a normal grade enchanter was in charge.
Raymond let out a hollow laugh.
General grade.
Now, a wizard who had just taken off his apprentice tag was in charge.
For reference, Raymond’s wizard rank registered in the Magic Tower was also ‘General’.
Shameron spoke in a stiff voice, perhaps realizing their mistake.
-…The rank of the wizard dispatched is determined based on the quality of the magic stone. Since we followed the procedure… Of course, we will accept our moral responsibility and provide a slightly lower price for the mine closure fee.
They were saying that they followed the procedure and that it wasn’t their fault.
‘hmm.’
Raymond crossed his arms.
He expected the Magic Tower to turn out like this.
Raymond also admitted that there were some unfair aspects to the tower. He probably never imagined that something like this would happen.
But what an attitude they have where they don’t admit their own mistakes at all.
‘This makes me want to rip you off even more.’
Raymond thought to himself.
‘I’ll put as much pressure on you as possible.’
A message just occurred to me.
[A surprise quest occurs when the opponent refuses to admit their mistake!]
[Take the magic tower!]
(Humanity Quest)
Precedence: Chinese medicine level
Difficulty: Easy
Quest Description: Magic Tower is using his position as a leader to avoid responsibility! Get him fair compensation and use the money to comfort the victims!
Clearance Condition: Claim for Justified Damages
Reward: Level up x2, 50 bonus skill points
Perks: Money
Raymond took note of the content of the special privilege.
It was ‘money’.
‘I originally only wanted to receive a moderate amount of compensation, but I will definitely get as much money as possible!’
Extorting money would be the most appropriate punishment for the devil’s tower. They are the worst money-grubbers who are crazy about money!
A message suddenly came to mind, as if to cheer him on as he made his resolution!
[The opponent is ‘the true foe!]
[‘Special skill: Bullying is bullying!’ is activated according to the opponent’s true pattern!]
[You are entering into a territory-level negotiation! The skill, ‘Negotiation Skill’ is activated!]
[‘’True Countermeasures’ and ‘Negotiation Skills’ create a synergy effect!]
Raymond crossed his arms.
“It’s very disappointing to hear you say that. I think that the Magic Tower is also responsible for not properly inspecting the Magic Stones in this situation.”
-That is…I acknowledge moral responsibility, but this incident is an inevitable natural disaster.
“I know that you are spending a lot of money to get quality assurance from the Magic Stone mine in the Magic Tower to prevent this kind of situation, but aren’t you just a genius?”
Quality assurance.
All magic stones are guaranteed by the magic tower when mined. This is done at great expense.
Without this quality assurance, it cannot be distributed on the market.
“I think that the Magic Tower should bear some responsibility for this situation.”
-… … .
Shameron looked troubled, then his face hardened.
– That’s difficult. The work that we at Magic Tower do is ultimately done by people. If you blame every accident like that, it will be difficult to do business with the Count in the future.
It was a threat.
If you want to deal with Magic Tower in the future, just be nice and let it go.
Intimidation using one’s exclusive position on magic.
‘If we compare it to modern Earth, the Tower of Heaven would be like a giant multinational monopoly corporation.’
Like the modern-day giant monopolies of the Earth, they were ‘super-heavy’, sword-wielding robbers.
And the common nobles who deal with the magic tower can be deal with.
No matter what kind of tyranny was committed, there was no proper protest.
‘If it were my previous self, I wouldn’t have been able to keep my head up after receiving threats like that.’
If the transaction with Magic Tower were to be cut off immediately, it would have been a huge hindrance to practicing medicine.
Other nobles were also unable to stand up to the tyranny of the Magic Tower because of such issues.
‘But not anymore. I’m not an ordinary moble anymore. I’m a ‘super noble’ in my own way.’
What if the ‘super noble’ customer becomes a big hand?
At that time, it becomes ‘super noble’, not the ordinary noble.
“I understand. Then, in accordance with the branch manager’s opinion, the Kingdom of Houston will cut off ties with the Tower.”
-… …What did you say?
“First, I will cancel all the supplies of magic tools that were supposed to be ordered from the Rafald region, and I will inform His Majesty the King to cancel the development of the magic stone mines in the central territory. The magic tools that were supposed to be distributed to the regular army of the kingdom… .”
-What, Count? What is this?
“Didn’t you say the business will be tough? So, as the future lord of the Kingdom of Houston, I’m simply following your advice.”
Yes, he was no longer an ant.
He was a big shot who would become the lord in charge of a whole province!
And as representatives of the kingdom, the great lords could have a loud voice in running the government.
If you set your mind to it and put your mind to it, it is possible to achieve what he just talked about.
-What are you going to do if you don’t make a deal with the Magic Tower?
“There is a way. We can ask for support from other kingdoms, and if that doesn’t work, we can ask for help from ‘His Majesty the Emperor’ of the Imperial Capital.”
Shameron became a honey-eating mute.
Yes, that’s right.
Common nobles could not receive magical support without the help of the Magic Tower.
But when it comes to the scale of a kingdom or empire, the story is different.
‘Not all wizards on the continent work at the Magic Tower.’
Although they were registered in the Magic Tower, there were quite a few wizards who worked for their respective kingdoms for promotion rather than for the Magic Tower.
So, once the kingdom grew in size, there was a way to resolve the magic needs on its own without the help of the Magic Tower.
‘If that doesn’t work out, we can receive help from other allies of the Crusader Empire.’
Shameron stuttered.
-No, don’t joke around. There’s no way you could actually do something like that…
“Of course it might be difficult.”
Raymond nodded obediently.
He spoke strongly, but in the worst case scenario, something like that is possible, and it is generally not something that can be easily chosen.
The moment when Shameron makes a puzzled expression at the unexpected recognition.
“But what would happen if something like that happened? That alone would probably be fatal to the branch manager, right?”
-…!
Shameron’s complexion turned pale.
Yes, that’s right.
All business in the Houston Kingdom is the responsibility of the branch manager, Shameron.
If such a huge commotion occurred, his position would never be safe.
“I may not mind a little commotion, but I guess that’s not the case for you, Branch Manager?”