The Lord's Idiot Son

Quests were scarce thanks to the cold snap.

The few promising ones were still a ways off, so we'd been taking it easy for a bit.

"Hah, yah, hah!"

Azu's shouts echoed through the backyard on what had become a bitterly cold morning.

Her swordsmanship was a world apart from where she'd started.

Though in this case, the target of her downswing was firewood.

She'd been about to start her daily practice swings, so I had her chop firewood while she was at it.

Not for home use. These were to bundle and sell as merchandise.

Azu got her training, I got product to sell. Two birds, one stone.

She'd been confused at first, but once she got into the rhythm, she was splitting logs into neat piles like running water.

Firewood was in demand year-round for cooking alone, but during the cold snap it was a hot commodity.

Sold well to people who found burning stone too pricey.

Azu was puffing out visible clouds of white breath from the effort.

She'd changed so much since the day I first bought her.

She still had a girl's build, but the lean muscle she'd put on made her unrecognizable from the scrawny frame she'd arrived with.

The way she swung a sword looked almost like a first-rate swordsman's. Though that might be too generous.

I watched her for a while.

Each time a pile of split wood formed, I'd tie it into bundles and carry them to the storeroom.

Eventually the wood ran out, and Azu, finally spent, sank to the ground breathing hard.

I handed her a drink.

"Thank you."

She took it and drank with loud gulps.

"Squeeze my hand for a second."

I held out my right hand toward her.

Azu did as told, gripping my hand with hers.

I could feel the heat radiating from her.

I squeezed back as hard as I could, but she didn't budge. Like gripping a rock. Then I felt a crushing pressure close around my hand.

"That's enough."

"Ah, sorry. Are you okay?"

"Fine."

I'd felt her grip tighten to the point of pain before I let go.

Between killing monsters and daily training, she'd clearly grown far stronger than me.

Adventurers got stronger by killing monsters. I'd been half-skeptical of that, but…

There was no way mere training alone could produce this kind of strength.

I wanted her to keep growing at this rate.

Maybe once she was stronger, I'd tag along on a trip. No, bad idea. Way too dangerous. Better to just send them.

Elza, who'd been watering the garden, chuckled softly at our exchange.

What was so funny?

Her time at the monastery had paid off. Ever since I'd put her in charge, the vegetable garden had been thriving.

She gathered a few ripe leafy greens for lunch and headed to the kitchen.

The tool shop was fine with just the employee running it.

When I reached the kitchen, Alexia was at the fire magic stone stove, charging it with magic power.

I told her good work, and she shot back with a halfhearted reply, so I gave her butt a squeeze. She protested with considerable vigor.

"I can't believe you!"

I shut the noisy Alexia up and sent her off to recharge the next magic stone.

Unlike the other two, this one had energy to spare.

The fire magic stone was charged to full capacity, right on the mark.

She couldn't cut corners when it came to work. Pride, maybe?

Former aristocrat, current overworked slave.

I pulled a whole chicken from the cold box and started prepping it alongside the leafy greens and rice.

Chicken cut into manageable pieces went into the round pot with the vegetables and rice.

Seasoning was salt, herbs, and dried root vegetables.

The dried root vegetables available during cold season were varied and rich in flavor.

Chicken and rice in a round pot was a local staple, and since every household used different root vegetables, it was a real home-cooked classic.

I ended up with roughly eight servings.

Plenty, but between three slaves and myself, there was rarely any left over.

Alexia ate three portions, Azu and Elza two each. Then mine.

Food costs were no joke.

Though cooking was both my hobby and a practical necessity, so I didn't mind.

The adventuring income had been trending sharply upward lately, so I could write it off as expenses.

Between Elza's holy water and healing miracles on the side, Azu's odd jobs, and Alexia's magic stone recharging and household magic, the three of them were surprisingly profitable.

After days like these passed, the next quest was a caravan escort mission.

You needed a track record to even qualify for these, so it felt like we'd finally reached that level.

Escort quests meant long hours and unpredictable conditions, which translated to high pay.

Half the monsters killed along the way were yours to claim, and if all the cargo arrived intact, there was a bonus on top.

I briefed them on the details and sent the three of them off.

The Slave Bracelets they wore now looked like mere accessories at a casual glance.

Some masters apparently liked to flaunt their slaves with conspicuous collars.

Me, I didn't care about any of that. As long as they listened and brought home money.

All that was left was to wait for good news… or so I'd thought. The day after my slaves set out, the lord's son issued an outrageous decree that gave me a splitting headache.

Apparently he was going to erect a massive Sun God statue in the town center, funded by levying the townsfolk.

Refuse, and you'd be charged with treason against the lord, your assets seized.

Give me a damn break.

Merchants with shops were expected to pay even more. Tens of gold coins' worth.

He was going around proclaiming it would bring divine blessings to everyone, regardless of whether they followed the Sun God faith.

A wonderful thing for the people, he said.

I'd always suspected the son was a fool, but this was beyond anything I'd imagined.

Nobody was going to try stopping him?

Actually, it was possible the Sun God Church had already filled every position around him.

There was no choice but to pay. The lord's seal was on the decree, and proxy or not, it carried legal weight.

But we merchants could file a formal protest as a group.

I rushed out letters to every merchant I knew.

… And now, here I sat. In a jail cell.

How did it come to this?