The Merchant Guild

I was taking it easy since I still hadn't shaken off the fatigue from the plaza when a summons came from the guild master of the Merchant Guild.

No question it was about the town and the tax collector.

I had the slaves wait at home and followed the boy who'd been sent to fetch me.

I was led to the second floor of the Merchant Guild.

Stepping inside, I found most of the seats already filled. Every head turned to stare at me as I opened the door.

I was the last to arrive, it seemed.

I gave a slight bow. The gathered gazes scattered just as quickly.

About twenty people were in the room. Not the entire Merchant Guild, obviously, but the representatives of every major merchant house in town were present.

Everyone here except me ran shops of a respectable size.

I felt a bit out of place. They'd probably relay whatever was decided here to the smaller merchants later.

Once I sat down and the headcount was apparently complete, the guild master cleared his throat to draw attention.

The content was exactly what I'd expected: the current state of the town and what came next.

It started with how Jacob the tax collector, the guild master of the Adventurer's Guild, the town representative, and the Merchant Guild master had all gone to the lord's manor together.

Inside, only a handful of servants remained. Every member of the Church of the Sun God who'd occupied the manor had vanished.

The lord had been confirmed dead from physical decline.

Normally a thorough search of the premises would have been necessary, but since the documents had already been gathered in one place, getting a handle on the situation went far more smoothly than expected.

Finn had done her job properly. Good. I hadn't been worried; she was honest when it came to money.

People who operate on self-interest can be trusted to do reliable work within those bounds.

The bulk of the tax revenue had been funneled into the bronze statue, but the additional taxes levied under the pretense of the statue had been flowing to the Church of the Sun God's temple.

Damn it, I knew it. I'd thought from the start that they were pouring far too much money into a single statue.

Cross-referencing the remaining servants' accounts with the documents made it clear: the moment the lord's son made contact with the Temple Knights, the lord's health began deteriorating and the embezzlement started.

The town guard filled up with unsavory types, and the officials stopped doing their jobs.

The timeline matched. I remembered how much grief those officials had given Azu back then.

She'd nearly had her work stolen and been left with nothing to show for it. The Azu of today could handle that, but back then she'd been quite timid.

Nowadays she'd probably draw her sword and threaten them.

That incident was what led me to buy Elza. I'd realized Azu alone wasn't enough. She was still a young girl, and she needed support beyond just combat.

Elza was a good woman and an excellent cleric. She'd been wary of me at first, but adapted to the environment quickly.

She had a slightly scary side too, but that was part of her charm, I supposed.

In the end, I'd never seen another Creator King cleric besides Elza. The slave merchant hadn't come across any since, either.

I mulled over all this while listening to the briefing.

The lord's son had been crushed to death by the statue, and the lord himself was gone. Further pursuit was deemed impossible.

The problem was what came next.

A replacement lord would be decided by the Kingdom, but it would take at least several months before they actually arrived in this town. In the meantime, Jacob would remain here as acting governor.

They'd apparently decided leaving the town without oversight wasn't an option. Rebuilding the economy, including commerce, was the first priority.

The town's economy had been stagnating badly. Money was being siphoned off to the temple, and the lord's son had done nothing but raise taxes.

As for the Temple Knights, a clear ban on their entry had been put in place. The Kingdom's official response was still pending, but for now they'd send a diplomatic protest to the Church of the Sun God.

Strong measures would be directed solely at the Temple Knights and the temple's power structure.

Going after the local church itself would undoubtedly cause chaos, and I agreed that was best avoided.

After all, during the plaza battle, the statue had attacked Sun God priests too, and those priests had fought back.

The priests were the ones handling treatment of the injured.

Lumping everyone from the Sun God faith together would be dangerous.

With the immediate issues settled, the guild master wrapped things up by saying they'd focus on restoring the town's reputation while rebuilding.

The first order of business was repairing the plaza.

That area was the heart of the town. Shops clustered there, making it an important center.

With taxes back to their proper levels, some eager stall owners had apparently already set up shop.

But I still had no idea why I'd been summoned. Honestly, hearing about the decision after the fact would have been more than enough.

There wouldn't be any formal motions or votes today — this was purely an announcement.

When the briefing ended, everyone stood and filed out.

I was about to leave too when the guild master stopped me.

Apparently the acting governor, Jacob, wanted to speak with us. Among the adventurers who'd fought the statue, my slaves had been fighting closest to it.

That being the case, I accepted.

Not that I was in any position to refuse.

Since Jacob was already working out of the lord's manor as acting governor, I'd bring my slaves along and head there.

Back at the house, Elza and Azu were tending the garden. From the look of it, they'd been sparring earlier. They'd changed into comfortable clothes.

I obviously couldn't bring them before the acting governor dressed like that.

After having them wash up, I had Elza put on her priest robe.

Azu's best outfit was her adventuring gear, so she changed into that.

Alexia looked presentable enough in her regular clothes. I changed into something proper as well.

I doubted anyone would actually take issue with our attire, but the man was a knight and a Kingdom noble.

Better to err on the side of caution.

"You do know how to mind those things, at least."

"I'd rather not earn anyone's grudge over something trivial."

"A bad first impression makes everything harder down the line. I don't imagine you'd end up in a cell, but still."

"That was a miserable experience."

Alexia had pulled strings to get me out back then. I owed her for that.

Well, time to go meet the acting governor, Jacob.