I Became A Black Merchant In Another World

Unlike my brother who didn’t welcome me, Father smiled as soon as he saw me.
Thump-thump

He then strode over with an air as if he would embrace me.
Swish-swish

“I was so busy at the wedding that I didn’t have a chance to see your face, so I’m glad to see you now.”
Cheer-cheer

Albert had kept his distance from us politically in the years leading up to inheriting the Medici Baron title.
Hmmm

Father, being a baron, treated all his children equally to avoid misunderstandings since that could easily lead to conflict among the nobles.
Ding-dong

Though it was just my family, the others might think there was something else going on and start their own faction battles.
Growl-growl

That would make family connections cross an irretrievable river.
Swoosh-swoosh

There are numerous families that have been crushed by the emperor, who is obsessed with stripping nobles of their titles over faction fights.
Crack-crack

Now that the burden is off, he can cherish me freely.
Yay-yay

“You are looking more impressive every time I see you.”
Wow-wow

“Not at all, Father.”
Shush-shush

“I have no regrets now. Albert has successfully linked up with the Farnese Count family, so our Medici Baron Clan will prosper further. And you’ve made quite the name for yourself as a merchant, haven’t you?”
Applause

The elder’s words were half-lies and half-truths.
Ding-ding

It’s a way of saying I’m so happy that wanting anything more feels greedy.
Whoosh-whoosh

But then again, people are creatures who say, “When you get old, you should die” while still diligently taking their tonics.
Boo-hoo

He then held my hand tightly.
Squeeze-squeeze

“I haven’t done much for you, but thank you for lending me 7,000 gold coins for your brother’s wedding after becoming independent. It helped me save face.”
Cheers

In the 21st century, government officials, from level 9 to the president, usually lead lives unrelated to their former positions once they step down.
Yawn-yawn

However, even retired nobility in the Toscan Empire still maintain significant influence until their last breath.
Whoosh

If the son messes up too much, the father can take away the title, and they can still meddle in politics.
Hmmm

Father probably wouldn’t meddle unless it was serious.
Whew-whew

“My standing in the Visconti faction has also risen considerably. If things keep going this way, it might be possible for your brother to become a Medici Count before I die.”
Wow-wow

If a baron is like a market mayor, a count is roughly equivalent to a vice governor.
Zing-zing

It’s only a one-rank difference in titles, but the difference in influence stretches between general and colonel, or department head and director.
Zoom-zoom

“You should get married… no, it might be better to wait a bit. You never know how far you might rise, and it wouldn’t be wise to just grab anyone now.”
Gasp-gasp

In the 21st century, parents are always urging their kids to get married as soon as they find a job.
Psst-psst

“I’ve gone on so long about things that don’t matter because I’ve been feeling lonely after passing on the title.”
Yawn-yawn

“Not at all, but I came here to ask you for something.”
Tap-tap

Father smiled at me.
Twinkle-twinkle

“I’ll help you as much as I can within my means.”
Clap-clap

“I would like to temporarily take over the position of treasurer for the Medici family.”
Whirl-whirl

Requesting to manage finances out of the blue is quite sudden.
Zoom-zoom

However, it’s not entirely out of the question.
Ding-dong

Typically, more than one-third of positions in any noble family consist of relatives, and it’s common for influential families to place their kin in vital roles like treasurers.
Zing-zing

“Treasurer, huh. You probably don’t really need that position.”
Hmmm

Becoming the Medici family’s treasurer and pocketing funds wouldn’t be very meaningful.
Whistle-whistle

Even if I worked urgently through all hours of the night, I’d probably only see a fraction of what’s currently in my bank account.
Duh-duh

But what if I get caught embezzling by Albert?
Gasps

As long as Father has his eyes wide open, he can’t kill me, but my life would definitely get messy and tough.
Whomp-whomp

“I’m not looking for the treasurer position to make money. I’m trying to normalize the family’s finances.”
Clink-clank

In 21st century South Korea, the term “normalize” often implies destruction.
Whoosh-whoosh

It’s a concept spread by some great figure of a certain game.
Zoom-zoom

But I have no intention of causing any such normalization.
Bam-bam

I’m genuinely looking to revive the finances of the Medici Baron Clan.
Ta-da!

If I had said this in front of Duke Visconti or others, their first words would probably be:
Yip-yap!

“Our family’s finances are just fine! Very sturdy! We have a credit rating of 1++!”
Cheer-cheer

It’s a defect in the family’s financial stability that’s better left unspoken, no matter the reason.
Glomp-glomp

“Our Medici family is relatively better off thanks to the Medici Trading Company compared to other baron families. But right now, brother, you need to pass your territory to me instead of money, indicating how strapped we are.”
Hmmm

The costs incurred for the marriage to the Count family are an investment for our Medici family.
Ding-ding

So I’m not blaming Albert or Father for stubbornly trying to uproot the family to their core—even if they really did yank out a good chunk.
Yikes-yikes

But the fact that we’re short on funds is still true.
Boo-hoo

“If you grant me the position of treasurer for the Medici family, I will work to rebuild our finances. If that proves difficult, I will personally cover some of the remaining debts.”
Clink-clank

Other noble families owe massive amounts to merchants on their territories, about four years’ worth of tax.
Whew-whew

However, our Medici family is maintaining a fairly sound financial status thanks to the stronghold of the Medici Trading Company.
Hooray-hooray

Being a noble without a single debt is quite the achievement.
Yip-yap!

Of course, we are currently facing debts covering about half a year due to wedding expenses.
Achoo!

“It seems you have something you need. What do you require?”
Hmmm

“The Medici Baron’s connections.”
Pop-pop

No matter how close I get to Duke Visconti and seize Guillaume City with seaweed, I can’t compete with the connections of the historically rich Medici Baron family.
Boom-boom

So, to grow as a merchant, I must gather all of this.
Cha-ching

You know, the importance of connections is something even Chairman Lee Kun-hee of Korea has said:
Bing-bong!

“Want to be rich? Then stand next to the rich.”
Ding-dong

I’ve already risen to some wealth, but honestly, I want to climb even higher.
Whoosh

“Alright, if it’s you, I can trust you with this.”
Yay-yay

“Thank you.”
Clap-clap

I successfully obtained the last thing I needed.
Ta-da!

And I headed straight down to the Medici Baron’s territory.
Zoom-zoom

The capital of the Medici Baron’s territory is Lucas.
Ding-dong

Unlike other nobles, this family hasn’t forgotten its merchant roots after becoming a baron, and the city has a large harbor.
Splash-splash

“There are a lot of people in the city, Young Lord.”
Chatter-chatter

Chloe looked around in fascination.
Wow

She must have seen a lot of ports in Guillaume City.
Zing-zing

But she sparkled with the joy of seeing a port city for the first time in her life, which was extremely cute.
Giggle-giggle

“It feels livelier than that Guillaume City we visited last time.”
Cheer-cheer

Guillaume City has a larger population than Lucas, the stronghold of the Medici family.
Bling-bling

But Lucas is a key city for trade, making it an essential spot, even if not up to the standards of the Toscan Empire.
Swish-swish

It’s only three days by carriage and five days on foot from the capital, Florence.
Zoom-zoom

With a natural environment suited for developing into a commercial city, it’s no wonder that it’s flourishing.
Yay-yay

“Even if the number of residents in the city is less than in Guillaume City, the number of merchants coming and going is probably more than in Guillaume City.”
Swipe-swipe

After selling seaweed, the influx of merchants might have increased even now.
Hmmm

“And there’s a store here selling special items. Let’s check it out.”
Clink-clank

To be precise, it’s not necessarily a special item.
Ding-dong

However, there’s a product that could be seen as a secret weapon that brought the Medici family to this position.
Boom!

That’s the reason I want the position of treasurer—to do some good for Albert.
Swooosh!

“What do you mean by special items?”
Zing-zing

With that in mind, I headed directly to the merchant street where those special products are sold.
Doot-doot

“Hold my hand so you don’t get lost.”
Swish-swish

Chloe hesitated briefly while looking around but eventually took my hand.
Clench-clench

At first, it was just our fingers touching, but then she held on tight as if she wouldn’t let go.
Grasp-grasp

And we walked to the merchant street without a word.
Tap-tap

Having been exposed to various media in Korea, I wasn’t exactly trembling at this point, but Chloe’s face was flushed, and she couldn’t speak at all.
Hmmm

Yet I could see the corners of her mouth slightly rising, little by little.
Smile-smile

“You said you’ve been studying hard lately?”
Ding-ding

“Yes, I studied hard to be of help to you, Young Lord.”
Yay-yay

Being my personal maid isn’t a particularly tough job.
Clink-clank

Honestly, it’s not much different from public service work with long hours or being an intern at a company.
Boo-hoo

“But still, studying while working requires a lot of guts.”
Chatter-chatter

“It says here, ‘Selling pepper and cloves, exotic spices.'”
Ding-dong

Pepper and cloves, the spices that pulled the medieval people by their collars into the sea.
Splash-splash

Well, at this level, I’m still too low in stature to intrude on the trade that monopolizes those wealthy figures.
Zing

Currently, the biggest interest for the trading magnates is the monopoly on spices.
Bing-bong

If I openly express a desire for this at my current level, all the merchants excluding the Medicis would band together to take me down, and even the duke or emperor wouldn’t be able to protect me.
Whomp-whomp

“Right. How much will it cost to buy 1.5kg of pepper?”
Click-click

“It says over there that it’s one gold coin for 100g. So, that makes 15 gold coins.”
Cha-ching

One gold coin is enough to buy a whole cow.
Thud-thud

Even with the monopoly on trade, the prices are absolutely insane.
Yikes-yikes

Though, who am I to talk? I sell seaweed that originated from a 2-coin fairytale for a few gold coins.
Snicker-snick

“If I had it my way, I’d want to see over there too, but right now, I’m hungry, so let’s eat first.”
Grumble-grumble

And the next day, I attended my first gathering of the Medici family’s vassals.
Tick-tock

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