Chapter 810 - Chapter 4: Countermeasures in the North (7)
In Northern Gram, we contacted Saxburg and went to the villa where she was staying. Eowyn-sama, who had moved to the Old Gram territory, was coming the next day, so we were allowed to stay overnight.
The topic at dinner was, of course, Black Rot Disease countermeasures.
Saxburg seemed to understand as well; after finishing greetings in the garden, we were shown to a room. After drinks were distributed, people were immediately dismissed, and Mute was cast. It's quite solemn.
"According to my father, at present, increasing the production of magic water is impossible."
She said that right off the bat.
Saxburg, sitting across from us, was not wearing her costume. Duke Hexham was also dressed in something close to formal attire. In other words, it's an official discussion. However, they seemed to be curious about the two wolves Gwyn-sama had brought, as they had been glancing at them since we got off the bowls. The two wolves were sitting well-behaved in the corner of the room without barking or making a sound.
"What is the reason for that?"
"Because East and West Liber are not in a state of non-aggression. Our country does not provide magic water to countries in a state of war."
She answered Eleanor-sama's question with a expressionless face. It seems smiling diplomatic negotiations are still impossible for her. On the other hand, Duke Hexham was smiling slightly. Is he practicing? However, he was also looking at the wolves. Unlike Saxburg, he was looking openly, so his smile might be because the wolves were there.
"Saxburg, my sister-in-law. Today, we did not come to talk about such things. I came to show these wolves to my beloved wife's sister."
At Gwyn-sama's words, her expression brightened all at once.
"Really?"
"Yeah, we'll talk a little about Black Rot Disease, but Eowyn is coming tomorrow, right? It can wait until then. In any case, it's not a talk about diplomatic negotiations with other countries, so don't think so stiffly. First, won't you listen to the story regarding these wolves?"
When Gwyn-sama called the names of the two wolves, they stood up with a "wafun" and went over to him.
"Here, Saxburg, you pet them too. These guys are smart, so they won't bite. Duke Hexham, you like animals too, don't you?"
When he said that while stroking their heads, Saxburg stood up as if she had been waiting for it. She ran over just like that and stroked their heads. They were making "kun kun" sounds as if it felt good.
"Look, it's okay."
She called out to the hesitant Duke Hexham as well, and the two of them started stroking them together.
"The larger, darker male is Daylight, and the other is the female, Twilight."
"Hmm. The male is larger, isn't he?"
"That's right. There's a reason for that. Do you know why?"
"A reason? Isn't it because he's a male?"
"No. I think Saxburg, who aims for coexistence and co-prosperity with various races, would understand."
"Coexistence and co-prosperity... Eh? Could it be?"
As expected of someone who has formed a contract with Difodor. She seemed to have noticed immediately.
"That's right. You two, step back a little."
Duke Hexham stepped back timidly, while Saxburg jumped back with her eyes sparkling.
Gwyn-sama, confirming that the two had distanced themselves, pointed his left hand toward Daylight and stepped forward greatly with his left foot, turning sideways.
"Based on the contract with me, come forth! Abyss!"
Simultaneously with the line, he raised his right hand high.
He had thought up a pose before I knew it.
Just as Daylight's body twitched and stopped moving, Abyss slipped out from that body.
"I am called Abyss. I look forward to your acquaintance."
Abyss, still in his pitch-black demon form, gave a knight's bow to the two of them.
"His name is Abyss. Lovely..."
The bloodline really can't be denied. That older sister, this younger sister.
The next day, Eowyn-sama arrived. Until then, it had been nothing but talk about the wolves and Abyss, but from here on was the real thing.
Saxburg took a great interest in the experiment we did in Finis.
"How about it, Saxburg? When it comes to trade, it's the Hexham family's turn."
Eowyn-sama was smiling. He's a strict older brother.
The House Hexham, which Saxburg married into, has become the largest player in trade in Northern Gram. In the past, it was a family known for holding military power and the right of trial. That was significantly changed along with the change in leadership.
Regarding military affairs, the burden of military service for the nobles... that is, the number of people... was reduced, and the royal direct army was increased. The power of the national army was augmented. However, that would make the burden on the royal family too great. Therefore, they looked toward trials and trade. They opened up trials and the highly profitable trade with the continent, albeit with restrictions.
Nobles originally judge and resolve small matters within their own territories themselves, but for example, large trials such as disputes between nobles sometimes occur. If one family mainly acted as the judge for such times, various problems would arise. If the verdict could be swayed by the judge's discretion, bribery would naturally flourish. To resolve that, a system of consultation among several powerful nobles was established. If the verdict is split, the royal family intervenes.
Regarding trade with the continent, trade with the continent, which was previously monopolized by some nobles... mainly House Hexham... was opened up so that anyone could participate as long as they received the King's permission.
As a result of these reforms, several powerful nobles became the side that handed down trial verdicts and gained honor. Small and medium-sized nobles became able to participate in trade with foreign countries, starting with the continent, which they previously had to give up on. The profits thus gained by the nobles were partially handed over to the royal family, and in exchange, the burden of military service was lightened. It was modeled after the military reforms being advanced by King Seldic of Engrio. Or so I heard from Mary.
"I think it's an effective method."
Saxburg acknowledged the results of the experiment we did in Finis. However, she says it's difficult in Northern Gram.
"Northern Gram gives permission for even the royal family to trade freely with the continent. Compared to Finis, it's not a royal monopoly, so centralized management is difficult. Besides, regarding contracts with the Demon Race, we can't get the Church on board."
Those two might be fatal.
"You could just have the royal family take Black Rot countermeasures only for ships coming from the continent."
"I wonder if that's possible."
"Which noble has the largest volume of trade with the continent?"
"House Hexham."
"Is it not? If House Hexham takes the lead, it should be fine. I think other nobles will follow suit."
Hmm, Saxburg crossed her arms.
"Hey, what do you think?"
She asked the young head of House Hexham.
"How about gathering them in one place?"
"Gathering what? Ships?"
"Yeah. Ships coming from the continent come north along the White Island from around Morandine, right?"
"That's right."
"Then, I think it would be good to have them stop at a port near the border of Morandine and process them there. Once that's finished, they can go wherever they want."
"Is there such a convenient place?"
"Yeah. The port of the Old Gram Capital. Old Gram has been completely under Eowyn-sama's control since the previous defeat, and I don't think there are any nobles who would complain. The noisy ones are the Northern Gram nobles, right? Ships coming to Northern Gram pass off the coast of that port, and depending on the weather, they even stop there. I think it'll be fine."
Splendid. His tone and appearance don't make him look like a great noble at all, but he's giving a solid answer. He seemed to be getting along well with Yorg-sama, and I can see why they hit it off.
"The Church?"
"Hmm, that's still difficult."
Saxburg listened to Duke Hexham's talk with a nod, then turned back to Gwyn-sama.
"Understood. The countermeasure itself might be possible. But the Church is impossible."
If we can't get the Church on board, we can't do the rat extermination. However.
"Regarding the rats, it is our country's secret art. In other words, in Northern Gram, even the Church cannot do it."
"Then, isn't it all the more impossible?"
"Not necessarily. Finis just needs to cooperate."
In other words, he's saying they will dispatch users of the secret art. Depending on the situation, they could even increase the number of people by the amount of demons they could contract with, under the guise of passing on the art.
I see, that's true.
"I see. Then it can be done?"
"Yeah, we'll be dispatching users of the secret art, so it won't be for free. However, I think it's better than being moored offshore for many days."
"But, Northern Gram is fine, but what about other countries?"
"I don't know about that. We should just do what can be done in Finis and Northern Gram."
"That's true too. What do you think, Brother?"
She asked Eowyn-sama, who had been watching silently with a smile, having seemingly been convinced.
Eowyn-sama agreed with Duke Hexham's idea.
However, he made contracting with multiple demons the top priority. Otherwise, if they couldn't form contracts, Finis wouldn't be able to function.
Since Eowyn-sama's consent was obtained, we decided to talk to Difodor before meeting the Dullahan. We won't let her meet Abyss. If the two of them liked each other and became a pair, the search for a successor would become the priority. Besides, the name Chaos wouldn't be usable anymore.
"What, am I not good enough?"
When Saxburg asked if there were low-level demons in the Dullahan's forest, Difodor replied with a miffed expression.
"It's not that, it's just that Gwyn-sama of Finis and my brother want to form contracts with low-level demons."
"Is it okay for me to stay like this?"
"Of course. I'd be in trouble without you."
"I see. Good."
When Saxburg jumped at her, she hugged her happily. It's a good thing they're close.
"There should be some. I go back to the forest occasionally, and the Dullahan asks if I want to swap with someone else."
She must be living a comfortable life with Saxburg. Apparently, she's always given souvenirs when she goes back to the forest. Food, alcohol, and she wears beautiful clothes. Difodor says she hands them over to the Dullahan when she returns. The Dullahan is also given souvenirs when he comes here. Alcohol. He gives it to his subordinates. Apparently, those who heard such rumors are envious and saying they want to go too. Since they say it to the Dullahan, he has no choice but to ask Difodor. As for Difodor, she apparently refused every time she was asked.
"If possible, I'd like two contracts for myself, and one female-only for Finis. The one going to Finis will live with the male who has already contracted in Finis."
"Hmm. Is the one going with Eowyn a pair?"
"That's right. If one isn't found, a single male is fine."
"If you ask the Dullahan, I think he can manage the numbers at least. I don't know if they'll become a pair, though."
"That's fine. Whether they pair up or not is a matter for the individuals themselves."
The marriage of Eowyn-sama and Aira is often thought of as a political marriage due to their respective positions, but there was actually a romance. Same for Saxburg and Duke Hexham. For that reason, his words have persuasiveness.
"Hey, what about Difodor? Do you ever think you want to meet a nice man?"
She asked in a somewhat fearful manner, perhaps worried about her marrying away.
"I'm fine for now."
"For now?"
Will she go to the forest to find a partner after a few years pass?
"I like it here. There's work, it's safe. They provide everything. But..."
"But?"
She asked anxiously.
"Humans have short lifespans, right? While Saxburg is alive, I'm fine staying here, but when she dies, I might go back to the forest and find a partner to pair with."
The sense of time is clearly different. A human's entire life is only about a few years to a demon... no, I've heard that a demon's lifespan lasts until they die. Surely it's not just a few days.
Saxburg let out a sigh of relief.
"If you want to find a partner, you can take a groom anytime. I won't send you away as a bride, though."
"Ufufu. I'll think about it."
This time, Difodor was the one who approached and hugged Saxburg.
Since Difodor was like that, the meeting with Abyss was cancelled. Therefore, we ended up meeting the Dullahan.
To meet the Dullahan, we had to go to the forest. The movement was via the Dryad's clone in the herb garden. Eowyn-sama, Gwyn-sama, Saxburg, Duke Hexham, the Sertoria group, one Alraune working at the isolation facility, two wolves... the male possessed by Abyss... and for some reason five barrels of alcohol moved and went to the Dryad's Forest.
After giving a long-time-no-see greeting to the Dryad, we moved to the meeting place.
The meeting place with the Dullahan was, of course, not in the Dryad's Forest. It was outside the forest, the place where the Dullahan was previously knighted. Since there was a Dryad's clone for scouting, when we moved with that tree, there was a stone hut. No, to be precise, we dug out what was half-buried in snow. In the North, even in March, the snow doesn't melt. The magic used was Flame and Clump Water. After melting the snow and manipulating the melted water to fly far away and digging it out, there was the entrance door with the Northern Gram Royal Family's crest carved into it.
The alcohol barrels that Eowyn-sama, Gwyn-sama, Henry-sama, and Will and Bonnie had carried were transported to the edge of the forest by Wilson-san's bowl and left there. As an afterthought, one bag containing dried meat was placed per barrel. We left them like that and came back.
When we opened the door of the hut and went inside, there was a large table and a long bench. We were encouraged to sit, so we all sat down. Looking around the inside of the hut, there were water jars, barrels, and rolled-up furs. Apparently, there's even a toilet inside the hut. You can spend time without going outside at all. When the magic soldiers closed the door and burned the provided firewood and a small amount of dampened dried weeds that they likely cut nearby in the fireplace, smoke came out of the chimney. Using that as a signal, the Dullahan would come.
"This hut is a commemorative hut. Because the moment Henry-sama knighted the Dullahan as the Knight of the Forest back then, our country's coexistence and co-prosperity with other races began."
The commemorative hut is in a Northern Gram Royal direct territory and a no-hunting zone. It was the place where the Dullahan was knighted. While the Demon Lord has not been resurrected, it has become a place where the human side and the Dullahan side contact each other. The meeting is held inside the hut, and basically, they don't go outside until the business is finished. The alcohol barrels and dried meat left outside were apparently for the fifty or so orcs the Dullahan brought to drink and eat as they pleased.