NOVEL NEXT Chapter 14
As soon as the sale of steel by the Visconti Duke clan was legalized, I gathered the craftsmen from the Blacksmith Guild.
I specifically called the ones whose names barely made it onto the guild membership list.
If I were to take over the guild, it would generally make sense to recruit the influential members first.
But there’s a reason for this desperate gamble.
“Thank you all for gathering despite your busy schedules.”
As I said this, all the craftsmen turned their gazes towards me.
Seeing their eyes, it seemed they had a lot of complaints against me.
After all, these guys were practically supporters of my faction’s political rival, the Sforza Duke, who funded my enemies.
If anything, I am a high-ranking denizen from the enemy territory, or perhaps just the messenger of a high-ranking enemy.
Furthermore, the fact that we infringed upon their interests makes it even stranger that they would have a good view of us.
“The reason I called you here today is that I want to have a productive conversation.”
No one here seemed to believe my words.
Who would trust the messenger of an opposing faction who says he’s here to talk?
To be honest, I didn’t even come here to have a proper conversation.
I’m here to threaten them with a knife in my right hand.
“Who’s the representative here?”
In response to my question, a bearded man spoke up.
“I run the biggest workshop here. I’ve been a craftsman for about 18 years now.”
“What’s your name?”
“Zacry.”
“Good, Zacry. From now on, you’re representing everyone here.”
The reason for picking a representative is quite simple.
It’s just easier to have one person handle questions instead of me dealing with multiple inquiries alone.
“Let’s quickly get to the main point. The illustrious Emperor Daniele de Toscana of the Toscan Empire has granted Duke Visconti the rights to sell steel, effective yesterday.”
Did the lowly craftsmen here not get that news yet?
They all started murmuring among themselves, looking at each other.
“They lost the monopoly on steel? Then does that mean we’ll have to compete with that cheap steel from the Duke Visconti?”
“Damn, if they’ve opened steel sales, they’ll soon take over our territory.”
The reason the guild could survive for so long boils down to one thing.
They monopolized the transfer of technology, production of goods, and sales.
But if any of those starts to crack?
Those merchants, who operated with a civil servant mindset, will be completely wiped out in the fierce competition of a free market economy.
“Now that steel sales have been opened, the manufacturing and selling rights for your tools, armor, and weapons will soon follow.”
Craftsman representative Zacry looked at me with wide eyes.
But here’s just one of the shocking revelations for them.
“And there was an incident where goods being transported by the Duke’s merchants were raided by bandits. The Duke suspects that the leaders of the Florence Blacksmith Guild were behind that.”
We might not have caught the culprits.
In a world without CCTV, recording devices, or telephones, it’s practically a perfect crime.
In the 21st century, if I were to argue with a lawyer about the lack of evidence, I’d probably get acquitted.
But this world is a medieval fantasy world.
It’s not about concrete evidence; if a high-ranking person points a finger and says, “That guy did it,” then that guy’s as good as dead.
“Is there any evidence that we did it?”
Zacry seemed too shocked.
It’s as if the common sense required for survival has run away from him.
At this point, with everything lining up and the Emperor announcing the legalization of steel sales, even without concrete evidence, they’d still be looking at jail time.
“There’s no evidence, but the circumstances are more than enough. So a reasonable investigation will commence.”
By the way, in this era, a “reasonable investigation” is done through all sorts of torture devices.
A few beatings or some torture usually makes the culprit confess their sins.
“Once the reasonable investigation ends, the guild’s senior craftsmen will confess their crimes… Do you think you’ll be safe?”
The Duke won’t bother hunting down these junior craftsmen here to bring them to justice.
But what if the entire Blacksmith Guild disappears?
These folks will turn into unemployed people in no time.
Moreover, they would earn a criminal record just because they were craftsmen during the guild’s collapse.
“We truly have done nothing wrong. We’ll confess to anything to survive, please spare our lives.”
It seems that my reasonable persuasion jolted our representative back to reality.
“Become the dogs of the Visconti family.”
“Then we’ll be saved?”
At those words, I shook my head.
“You’ll be allowed to live well. To be specific, I’ll hand over the workshops controlled by those upper craftsmen and the guildmaster to you.”
The craftsmen of the guild are, after all, precious human resources.
If we were to compare, they’re like engineering masters or doctoral candidates in Korea.
Throwing away such talented individuals would be a waste.
Though ultimately, I won’t earn a penny, our Duke will surely be pleased, and perhaps I’ll be rewarded someday.
“Will you die, or will you become the Duke’s dogs?”
Zacry looked around at the other craftsmen and communicated with his eyes.
They all nodded in agreement.
“We will become the Duke’s dogs.”
“Good, don’t forget that spirit. The moment you betray the Duke, it’ll be your end.”
Then I handed each of them two documents.
One document stated that the guildmaster colluded with bandits to raid the Duke, and the other was previously written, indicating that they purposely drafted it for personal gain.
The latter will likely never see the light of day, but by writing it, they will understand that the Duke holds their lives in his hands.
So if the Duke ever says to die, they’ll really act like they’re dying.
“What are you all doing? Hurry up and report to the barracks.”
In the Toscan Empire, soldiers also enforce public order and protect the country.
So the soldiers in charge of security handle policing duties.
And when I reported the end of the day’s work to the Duke’s subordinate…
Out of nowhere, I received an order to dress in formal attire and come in two days.
“Is the Emperor throwing me some crumbs?”
Right now, I’m incredibly perplexed.
I’m not in a bad situation, but I’m experiencing something I hadn’t anticipated.
“The second son of the Medici Baron clan, Fabio de Medici, step forward to the dais.”
I find myself in an unbelievable situation.
I thought wearing formal attire meant I’d receive praise from the Emperor, perhaps a royal decree honoring me.
But when I actually arrived, there was an uncomfortable seat prepared, filled with barons, viscounts, and even counts scattered around.
So now I’m being called up to the dais.
It’s a heavy burden; not attending a noble’s gathering would be deemed rude.
Even if I lose my head, I’ve got nothing to say about it.
Then, elegantly dressed attendants began to ascend the dais.
But wait, aren’t they holding swords instead of royal decrees? Why do those swords look so fancy?
“His Excellency, the brave and honorable Giovanni de Visconti, is about to rise to the dais. Everyone, please stand!”
Upon hearing that, my mind suddenly began to function normally.
Ah, they are genuinely preparing to make me a noble.
Yet, a mere knighthood can typically be wrapped up in a hastily scribbled document when urgent, often conducted with multiple people at once…
The Duke climbed to the dais and immediately started to recite the ceremonial oath, and I became a machine responding with “yes.”
After acting like a machine, the Duke drew his sword and touched it to my shoulder.
“I, Giovanni de Visconti, solemnly swear before all the nobles gathered here and before God, that as long as Fabio de Medici remains loyal, I will never abandon him, and in return for that loyalty, I grant him the village of Bio.”
Having a village makes one of the top 5% among knights when randomly gathered with a hundred of them.
In other words, I just made an instant leap in social status.
Being the second son of a baron has its weight, but personally receiving a territorial grant is in an entirely different league.
…… Ha, seeing all these nobles gathered makes the intent clear.
It’s likely that my brother Albert and I are being pitted against each other to make us both work our tails off for the Duke.
Politicians may be evil, but isn’t this a bit too much?
And then the Duke issued me another command.
“Immediately depart for your territory and begin its reconstruction.”
…… I’m losing my mind, seriously.
And the territory I received was in a state far worse than I imagined.
Did they think I’d develop some magical products here with my merchant skills?
No, why on earth are they giving me a coastal village that’s been ravaged by famine and corrupt officials…
“Well, at least being by the coast gives me the chance to create something new, maybe that’s a good thing?”