Valkyrie's Shadow

Chapter 10

7th Day, Middle Winter Month

“Ku, ku, ku…”

A dark chuckle echoed in the darkness, emanating from the Dark Warrior of Darkness, Momon. All around him, in the hold of a cargo ship recently returned to Corelyn Harbour, were piles of hides, precious ores, uncut gems, and exotic materials. Exotic to Re-Estize, at least.

In all, it was the first of many shipments imported from the Beastman-populated lands of Rol’en’gorek: the result of trade negotiations spearheaded by Countess Corelyn’s cohort. A success in the Sorcerous Kingdom’s efforts at foreign outreach, which were otherwise dominated by delays and various other difficulties.

He placed a gauntleted hand on the nearest stack of hides, another chuckle rising from his throat. The best part about their new trading partner was that they primarily dealt in raw materials. Indeed, he had long grown weary of dealing with Merchants bearing all manner of manufactured goods from foreign lands – goods rendered by inept hands into near-worthless trinkets and substandard tools. It would have been better if the materials that went into them remained unprocessed to be fed to the Exchange Box.

And so would the fate of all surplus materials produced by the Sorcerous Kingdom have been if not for the intervention of Countess Corelyn and her friends. To his surprise, the shrewd woman had discerned the existence of the Exchange Box – or at least something that served a similar function – within a few weeks of reviewing Albedo’s officially issued materials and made a counterproposal outlining how the Sorcerous Kingdom’s resources could be better put to work.

Passively collecting raw resources to accrue wealth was too conservative; trade was ultimately much faster. The excess manpower resulting from adopting Undead labour was a workforce ready to be trained into a manufacturing core beyond the likes of which the region had ever seen, turning imports of targeted resources into items exponentially more valuable than what they had started with. All the Sorcerous Kingdom had to do was allow trade to flow and collect its dues from an ever-growing economy.

Her ideas were sound, at least in theory. More importantly, Albedo had submitted the Countess’ proposal to their Master and he put his seal of approval on it so swiftly and decisively that it would assuredly be successful. The completion of each cycle of trade made the conversion of Gold Merchant Coins into Yggdrasil Gold Coins increasingly efficient relative to immediately consuming vast quantities of excess crops. Unfortunately, the Countess and her friends were also the only ones who had managed to facilitate any substantial trade deals. This was much to the frustration of Albedo, who had been working to achieve similar results with her agents in Re-Estize since then.

“Do we have permission to unload the cargo?”

Pandora’s Actor looked over his shoulder at the Elder Lich standing behind him.

“Umu,” he said. “By the way, how are the ships’ crews doing?”

“Their condition remains nominal.”

“I see. I’ll be going back once I pick up the samples. Be mindful of the schedule.”

“This one obeys.”

He pondered an immediate return to the Guild Treasury as he put the variety of samples set aside for him into his inventory. A rare visit to Corelyn Harbour as Momon served as an excuse to be around when the ships from Rol’en’gorek returned. Throughout his tour of the town – whose denizens no longer paid much attention to him – his mind was dominated by thoughts about what new items might arrive.

The decision was robbed from him the moment he disembarked.

“Mister Momon…Mister Momon!”

An urgent whisper drew his attention to an unmarked carriage parked nearby. Out of its partially opened window was a familiar face.

Hm? What’s she doing here? Also…

The anxiety emanating from the woman was palpable. Pandora’s Actor scanned the surroundings, but couldn’t discern whatever it was that worried her. With one last look at the port around them, he strolled over at an unbothered pace to greet her.

“If it isn’t Edwina Hoffmann,” he said in a friendly tone. “No, if I recall correctly, you got married last month.”

“My husband married into the family,” the woman replied.

And so the Hoffmann family shall remain in power for the next generation.

Unless there was a severe case of mismanagement or some sort of scandal, the political power of a Guildmaster was such that the position may as well have been hereditary. Not only was the ‘heir’ of a Guildmaster the beneficiary of an upbringing that groomed them for the position, but they also inherited the network of relationships and contacts cultivated over a Guildmaster’s time in office. Perhaps the only ‘guild’ that didn’t display the dynamic was the Adventurer Guild, whose highly individualistic membership would rail against anyone who they considered undeserving of the position. There was also the Magician Guild, for obvious reasons.

“Either way,” Pandora’s Actor said, “you have my congratulations.”

“Thank you, Mister Momon.”

“Is there something in particular that brings you all the way from E-Rantel to see me?”

Pandora’s Actor once again examined their surroundings as the young woman’s cautious air intensified.

“Yes, there is,” the guild official replied. “But I would like to discuss the matter in the city.”

Is there something that bothers her about Corelyn Harbour? Or has she perhaps prepared something in E-Rantel?

The carriage door opened the rest of the way as Mrs Hoffmann gestured for him to join her. As they rolled past the rows of warehouses on their way out of the port, he further considered what her business might be about.

Despite her tangible trepidation, her fear wasn’t intense enough to carry her thoughts with it. As far as he knew, things were relatively quiet on the domestic front. The vast majority of the population was preparing their fields for the sowing season while the urban centres were busy churning out goods for the spring markets. The main source of excitement over the winter had come from the periodic visits by various factions of the imperial aristocracy, but they had already returned to the Empire to oversee similar activities in their lands.

Indeed, what one could call a status quo had finally fallen over E-Rantel. Unless something happened, the Sorcerous Kingdom would be focused on consolidating its recent gains over the next few years while waiting for events in Re-Estize and Roble to come to a head.

Mrs Hoffmann let out a quiet sigh as they passed through the northern gate of Corelyn Harbour. The winter skies cast a grey pall over the vineyards of the Katze River Valley, adding to the weight of the young woman’s grave expression.

“So,” Pandora’s Actor said, “what troubles you so, Mrs Hoffman? Don’t tell me you’ve come to consult me on husband troubles…”

“What?” Mrs Hoffmann blinked, “Oh, no, nothing of the sort. It’s just…do you think the Soul Eater can hear us?”

Hoh…

He made a show of looking ahead through the cabin wall to where the Soul Eater was drawing the carriage. When was the last time one of the Sorcerous Kingdom’s citizens approached Momon the Black over concerns they feared to express to the Sorcerer King and his followers? Even then, most encounters of that nature happened in the western portions of the duchy, where a combination of rural and religious attitudes made adaptation slow relative to the rest of the territory. The city itself had long put its fears behind it, at least as far as the fear of imminent death was concerned.

“I don’t think anyone has put a Soul Eater’s hearing to the test,” he responded in a low voice.

“Then we should wait. Also, Several of the guildmasters wish to speak with you about the same topic.”

There were many matters that might merit the participation of multiple guildmasters, but none that warranted the secretive actions carried out by the guild official. None that he knew of, at least. Was this a sign of new foreign interference? As far as national security went, the Guilds were one of the more porous fronts by nature. Trade and travel meant the movement of foreign agents and the resources that fuelled their efforts, and the Sorcerous Kingdom’s policy regarding the activities of said agents meant that little was done to dissuade them.

The question was: who was it? Going by Mrs Hoffmann’s behaviour in Corelyn Harbour, one might be led to believe it was the Theocracy, but their operatives in the Sorcerous Kingdom did little more than observe the people and the effects of government policy. Her question about the Soul Eater made it evident that, whoever it was, it was someone that Momon might side with against the Sorcerer King.

Perhaps it was the City-State Alliance or Argland, which still hadn’t initiated diplomatic relations two years after the Sorcerous Kingdom’s official founding. Demiurge was still in the process of repurposing Ijaniya’s network of agents in Re-Estize and Baharuth, so their information beyond E-Rantel’s immediate neighbours remained limited to the rumours and tales brought to them by the trickle of travelling Merchants lured to the city by the prospect of cheap commodities.

But would they dare set any conspiracies into motion? Even with the limited information available to him, Pandora’s Actor was certain that the City-State Alliance could not challenge them in any significant way.

A coalition, perhaps? One with the myriad powers in the unknown lands?

If such a thing was forming, it was at least unfeasible from a military standpoint. The methods employed by the region indicated that the logistical challenges were too great to even mount a serious invasion of the Empire, never mind the Sorcerous Kingdom.

Indeed, a great part of why the Sorcerous Kingdom was content to focus on domestic affairs for the time being was because there were no tangible threats in the vicinity. The only evidence of Players were centuries-old remnants of their existence. Local power levels were so low that a single Floor Guardian could probably fight all their neighbours at once and handily come out on top. By all indications, the conquest of the New World was essentially theirs to lose, so the prudent course of action was to proceed carefully rather than blunder into pitfalls similar to those experienced in the past. This, of course, came as a great disappointment to the more aggressive of Nazarick’s denizens – especially Cocytus, who served as the head of the Sorcerous Kingdom’s Royal Army.

Ah, well, I’m sure he’ll have something to do once in a while.

The carriage slowed as it approached the southern gate of E-Rantel, joining a short queue of wagons returning from their trips to the surrounding countryside. Roughly half were empty, while the other half were filled with charcoal: fuel for the homes and workshops of the city. He ran a critical eye over the cargo as they passed them by, though none would have noticed it through his slitted visor.

Yet another inefficiency to address. If only we could accelerate the production of magic items.

There was little that could be done about that. The average citizen levelled at a glacial pace and the ability to cast magic was uncommon. Even if that wasn’t the case, the resources required to practice a magical artisan’s trade rapidly dried up when any attempt at mass production was made. Still, the fact that they were producing magic items meant that they would see increases in efficiency over time. They were essentially indestructible in domestic applications, after all.

Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

Outside of his window, the midday markets stood unfazed by the gloomy winter weather. At a glance, things hadn’t changed much from the previous year save for the slight increase in Demihuman citizens that could be spotted throughout the mostly-Human crowd. Here and there, there were even Demihuman Merchants trying their hand at running a stand.

“How fare the non-Human members of the Guilds?” Pandora’s Actor asked.

“There still aren’t very many,” Mrs Hoffmann answered. “The vast majority of those are peddlers travelling to and from their homes outside of the Duchy. Even with them, integration has been problematic.”

“How so? Have they been breaking laws?”

“They aren’t engaging in criminal activities,” the guild official replied, “but we have all sorts of problems getting them to adhere to our regulations.”

“Well, they do come from outside of Human society,” Pandora’s Actor said. “Adjustment will take time.”

“At this point, I wonder if that will even happen.”

“Hm?”

Mrs Hoffmann frowned out of the window as they entered the main plaza, but he couldn’t see what she was looking at.

“I suppose if I were to blame it on any one thing,” she said, “it would be a lack of respect for the Guilds. We’ve gone to great lengths to accommodate the Demihumans’ presence, but they continue to remain detached. Raw resources aside, the goods they try to sell in the city do not meet our standards and I could go on forever about how they price things. None of their artisans recognise the need for our system of apprenticeship and they rarely, if ever, submit any reports about their activities.”

He was, of course, aware of the difficulties she described. So far, the Guilds’ response was to limit imports from tribal ‘peddlers’ to raw resources. It wasn’t exactly a nice thing to do, but, without the approval of the Guilds, manufactured products couldn’t be sold whether it was in E-Rantel, Arwintar, or anywhere else where the Guilds had established themselves.

Their carriage made its way around the Merchant Guild office, bringing them to one of the building’s service entrances. Pandora’s Actor stepped out into the shadow of the towering stone structure and was immediately ushered inside by Mrs Hoffmann. He was led through a set of corridors and up two flights of stairs before being seated in a large study with windows overlooking the plaza.

“Please wait while I inform the Guildmaster of your arrival, Mister Momon,” Mrs Hoffmann said.

A quiet click sounded as she shut the room’s polished wooden door behind her. With little else to do but wait, Pandora’s Actor seated himself at a long wooden table, idly scanning the rows of records stretching off to either side of him. Those records had been unknowingly taken away to be transcribed shortly after E-Rantel’s annexation and he had found the contents to be about as mundane as expected.

Fifteen minutes later, the door opened again to reveal the Master of the Merchant’s Guild, Darian Hoffmann. Behind him came the Masters of the Pharmacist Guild, Carpenter Guild, Mason Guild, Leatherworker Guild, Weaver Guild, and the Blacksmith Guild.

The major craft guilds are here…does that mean I’m being consulted on an economic matter?

“Thank you for agreeing to see us on such short notice, Mister Momon,” Master Hoffmann said.

“It’s not a problem,” Pandora’s Actor replied. “I’m here for the people of E-Rantel, after all.”

Mrs Hoffmann, who entered the room last, went to close the heavy curtains hanging beside each window. Pandora’s Actor sifted through the surface thoughts of the guildmasters as they seated themselves around the table, trying to get a preview of the discussion to come. Like the young guild official, their minds all emanated a sense of fear, but they were far better at keeping their thoughts in check.

Pandora’s Actor leaned forward, his hands folded in front of him.

“So the mystery will finally be unveiled…”

“Forgive us for the secrecy, Mister Momon,” Master Hoffmann lowered his head. “Given who this matter involves, we couldn’t risk airing our concerns in public.”

So it involves Father, after all.

The thread of excitement grew within him. Mrs Hoffmann had expressed her worries about speaking within earshot of one of the Sorcerer King’s Undead servitors, so he could only conclude that it was a conspiracy against the Sorcerer King. Of all of the things he had been assigned to do while masquerading as Momon, this was something he hadn’t yet needed to deal with.

“A prudent move,” Pandora’s Voice turned grave. “One never knows if an agent of the Sorcerer King is listening.”

“Do you think the Death Knights stationed at the main entrance can hear us in here?” One of the guildmasters asked.

“Death Knights are fundamentally Fighters,” Pandora’s Actor replied, “so that would be impossible.”

A collective sigh of relief rose from the Humans around the table. As they settled themselves for the discussion. Pandora’s Actor mentally prepared himself, simulating dozens of potential scenarios and the responses that Momon might render.

“Then let’s get down to it,” Master Hoffmann said. “A threat to the development of the Sorcerous Kingdom has appeared…in the form of one Baroness Ludmila Zahradnik.”

Eh?

Why were they suddenly talking about Baroness Zahradnik? Weren’t they supposed to be hatching a grand conspiracy against the Sorcerer King?

“If I’m not mistaken,” Pandora’s Actor said, “House Zahradnik’s territory lies on the mostly undeveloped fringes of the Duchy. Its economic influence is infinitesimal, so how could it represent a threat to the development of the Sorcerous Kingdom?”

“Baroness Zahradnik’s defiance of the Guilds sets an extremely problematic precedent,” Master Hoffmann said.

“Defiance?” Pandora’s Actor’s puzzlement grew, “What has she done?”

“She has rejected the Guilds in their entirety!” Mrs Hoffmann fumed, “When I went to investigate a series of administrative discrepancies in her village, she even went so far as to declare war on us!”

Then why are you still alive?

The Baroness was just about as merciful as Albedo, but, unlike Albedo, took no pleasure in tormenting her victims. If the militant young noblewoman had indeed declared war as claimed, Mrs Hoffmann would have already been turned into fertiliser for the Baroness’ growing daughter.

“I feel that I’m missing some critical details,” Pandora’s Actor said. “How about a summary of the events that led to this ‘war’?”

He nodded periodically as the guild official related her account of her confrontation with Baroness Zahradnik. The masters of the craft guilds also reacted while she spoke, expressing a mixture of dismay and affront. They had obviously heard Mrs Hoffmann’s testimony before, so he could only look on in silent bemusement at their act. At the same time, he could sense that the young woman was telling the truth as she knew it and that the sentiment among the guildmasters was genuine.

“As you must understand,” the master of the Carpenter Guild said, “this rejection of civilised society cannot stand! Sooner or later, the other members of the nobility will start getting ideas and progress will slow to a crawl.”

“We may even regress,” the master of the Weaver Guild added mournfully. “Generations of development, destroyed! E-Rantel will become the laughingstock of the region; the very picture of primitivism and barbarity.”

“According to Mrs Hoffmann’s account,” Pandora’s Actor noted, “the source of this dispute is not some desire to bring an end to industrial development, but a disagreement over how artisans should be managed in Warden’s Vale.”

“Conflicts of this nature are not unfamiliar to us,” the master of the Pharmacist Guild said. “Occasionally, Nobles who grow in pride and power do this sort of thing. Sometimes, they covet our wealth and seek to steal it from us. Other times, they lust for power and see us as an obstacle in their bid to control the towns and cities. In this case, I believe Baroness Zahradnik has become drunk on her meagre successes in the economic arena and now believes she can do our jobs better than we can.”

“It certainly doesn’t help that she’s a follower of The Six,” the master of the Blacksmith Guild chimed in. “Those religious fanatics are under the insane notion that they have a divine mandate to oversee humanity.”

“Her constant exposure to the wilderness tribes may have also affected her thinking,” the master of the Pharmacist Guild said. “She’s been dabbling in the mysticism of Goblins, Ogres, and what-have-you. Someone like that can’t be entrusted with the future of our precious arcane artisans.”

Around the table, the guildmasters voiced their agreement with their colleague’s assessment.

“It’s a damn shame,” Master Hoffmann said. “She was so compliant at the beginning. Now, she’s proven herself to be a menace in the making.”

“I doubt her compliance was ever genuine,” Mrs Hoffmann sniffed. “She was undoubtedly waiting for things to return to a semblance of normalcy before revealing her true nature.”

“We’ve gone for too long since the damn Nobles were put in their place,” the master of the Mason Guild said.

“So you intend to put the Baroness ‘in her place’,” Pandora’s Actor. “I hope this doesn’t involve any measures that would be considered criminal by the Sorcerous Kingdom. My deal with the Sorcerer King is contingent on your good behaviour.”

“Actions of that nature are unnecessary,” Master Hoffmann said. “As mentioned, this isn’t the first time we’ve dealt with an overreaching Noble.”

“If anything,” Mrs Hoffmann said, “we fear the opposite may be the case.”

“The opposite?” Pandora’s Actor said. “Do you mean to say that you expect Baroness Zahradnik to attack you in some way?”

“A Noble always resorts to the same methods of retaliation. A Martial Noble like Zahradnik will almost certainly enact violence upon our members in some fashion. Since she’s an officer in the Royal Army, she could order the Undead to do something…”

“She’s been sending her footmen to that Demihuman dojo. I wouldn’t be surprised if they started to beat up our members one of these days.”

Pandora’s Actor resisted the urge to scratch his head. Did they think that the Royal Army could be ordered to commit petty crimes by a rogue officer? Or perhaps their fear of the Undead made them believe that they would happily inflict pain and suffering upon the living. As for footmen beating up citizens, Sebas would be beside himself with dismay if he caught wind of it.

“I see,” Pandora’s Actor said. “So you desire my protection in the event that something like that happens.”

“Baroness Zahradnik has fallen fully to the side of the Sorcerer King,” Master Hoffmann said. “Should your promise to protect us from the Sorcerer King not also extend to the actions of his government?”

“Yes, of course,” Pandora’s Actor replied. “Out of curiosity, how do you intend to fight this ‘war’ with House Zahradnik?”

“We’ll deal with her the same way as any other Noble who challenges us,” the master of the Merchant Guild said. “She may be able to do whatever she wants in her own territory, but we control the region’s commerce. By enacting an embargo on Warden’s Vale, her fief’s economy will shrivel up and the artisans she’s won over will abandon her in droves for better opportunities. In the end, House Zahradnik will accede to the will of the Guilds or be reduced to a state no different than that of its neighbouring tribes.”

“That’s quite ruthless of you.”

“That type only respects power,” Master Hoffmann said. “It’s best to act decisively once negotiations break down.”

He pondered his response to the Guilds’ request. They had completely misread what was going on in Warden’s Vale, but their embargo still represented a substantial threat to the various experiments being conducted there. Or did it? If considered from a different angle, it was, in reality, an unintended blessing.

As was consistent with her personality as both a Martial Noble and a Ranger, Baroness Zahradnik’s planning included making her fief both siege-proof and self-sustainable. An economic siege might cut her off from guild-controlled trade, but it wouldn’t achieve the Guilds’ desired objectives. If anything, it would have the effect of cutting off the flow of high-quality goods and magic items from Warden’s Vale to the rest of the Sorcerous Kingdom while factors unrelated to material wealth continued to attract the people that the Baroness desired.

The Guilds thought to teach a ‘misbehaving’ Noble a lesson, but who would actually be the one to learn it? Ultimately, loyalty to Ainz Ooal Gown made the choice a trivial one.

“You have my guarantee that I will protect you from any corrupt actions on Baroness Zahradnik’s part,” he told the assembled guildmasters. “I sincerely hope a resolution to this conflict will come soon.”

“That is our hope, as well,” Master Hoffmann offered a smile of thanks. “House Zahradnik is notoriously stubborn, however, so I’m sad to say it’s more likely that Baroness Zahradnik and her subjects will experience years of pointless suffering before they see reason.”

“How unfortunate,” Momon said as he rose to his feet. “Well, now that our business is concluded, I should get going before people start wondering where I’ve disappeared to.”

He left amidst the gratitude and farewells of the guildmasters and swiftly returned to the door he had entered the Merchant Guild from. With his visit to Corelyn Harbour cut short, he now had plenty of time to assess the imports from Rol’en’gorek. All he had to do was briefly show himself in the city before retiring to Momon’s manor.

『Pandora’s Actor-sama.』

His stride remained unbroken as a familiar voice sounded through a Message.

『Entoma? What can I do for you?』

『Albedo-sama wants you to come to the throne room as quickly as your situation allows. We may have an emergency on our hands–or so she says.』

『I’ll be there. Thank you.』

An emergency…as quickly as my situation allows…

The phrasing didn’t make it seem like much of an emergency. It was likely something they had to quickly devise a plan for rather than an event that required immediate action. After showing himself to the citizens in the main plaza, he went straight to the city’s central district where Narberal teleported him back to Nazarick. He stepped through the awaiting teleportation gate and appeared in the throne room fully adorned in his stylish mustard uniform. At the base of the Throne of Kings, Demiurge stood together with Albedo, who held a thin binder in her gloved hand.

“My apologies for the delay,” Pandora’s Actor said. “You mentioned something about an emergency…”

In response, Albedo held the binder out towards him. He took the item in his slender fingers and perused its contents…and then he read it again. Doing so did nothing to dispel his confusion, so he looked back up at Albedo and Demiurge, tilting his head in befuddlement.

“Huh?”