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Vol 03 Chapter 85: Honeymoon Part II

Day two of our stay in Lezado. We dedicated the second day to sightseeing… or more precisely, to inspect the city.

First, we headed to the port.

「Our beautiful city’s main role is to serve as a base for transporting salt mined in the Adernian Peninsula and wheat and olives harvested from Lezado’s farmlands to the Kirisian peninsula. All the goods here converge in Claris, and two-thirds of them are exported to the Persis Empire. Recently, we’ve also been profiting from paper, aside from salt.」

The council member accompanying us explained Lezado’s trade with a smile.

I can tell he’s trying to gauge my mood all the time, desperate not to anger me.

Now that I think about it, in a monarchy, the king’s mood can drastically change foreign policy, so the diplomats who have to interact with him have to be on their toes all the time. On the flip side, if they can get on his good side, they will have an easy time building favorable relations.

「Are only Claris’s ships docking at this port?」

「No, ships from city-states that are part of the Western Alliance, of which Claris is part, often use this port. Ships from Alto and Terbai occasionally stop by, usually for supplies or for repairs. On rare occasions, we also see ships from Persis or Pofenia.」

Hmm, it seems they’re not on bad terms enough to disrupt each other’s trade. It looks like they export a significant amount of salt and agricultural products to the Persis Empire.

The economic ties between the different powers of the Tethys Sea appear to be quite strong.

Suddenly, I saw a group of naked men, all shackled. They were slaves.

「Where did those slaves come from?」

「Those are probably from Gallia. There are important colonial cities in the south of Gallia as well.」

Looking around, I noticed slaves everywhere.

While our King Rosais’ Country also has a fair number of slaves, the ratio here is much higher. Most of the population in our country are plebeian landowners, they may be wealthy enough to own one or two slaves, but they don’t own a great number of slaves like the rich Kirisian merchants.

Since Lezado doesn’t have any mines, the slaves here are likely employed in the farms outside the walls or as rowers for the ships.

The slaves here are of several races, but an overwhelming number of them are Caucasian.  Most modern people usually have an image of slaves being mainly black people, but there is not a single black slave here, and it’s not because there are no black people here, some of the merchants are black.

「By the way, I’m interested in purchasing some ships.」

「Ships? If you don’t mind me asking… King Rosais’ Country doesn’t have access to the sea, does it?」

No, it doesn’t. But there are other places you can use a ship besides the sea.

「I want to use them on the river. Our country has many rivers, you know. I understand that sea ships and river ships are different, but… perhaps you don’t have vessels suitable for river use? I thought I could get everything I needed in the great Lezado, but maybe I was expecting too much?」

When I spoke with a bit of provocation, the council member, a tad ruffled, responded positively.

「We can provide you with ships designed to be used in shallow waters. We use the rivers for transportation in the Kirisian peninsula as well. How many would you like?」

「Let’s start with about fifty for a trial run. Also, I’d like to hire some shipwrights for maintenance and repairs when necessary.」

When I asked for shipwrights, the council member promised to start recruiting them immediately.

Let’s get started recruiting personnel.

「Next, you wanted to see the farms, correct?」

「Yes, that would be great.」

◇

Ainz was observing the new Rosais king with whom he had a long-standing relationship, while he was listening intently to the council member’s explanations.

Ainz had a favorable impression of this young man named Almus. After all, Almus had repaid all his debts, including the twenty-five years of interest, in several months.

It was astonishing.

At first, Ainz thought Almus was interested in Kirisian culture. Many powerful figures of the Adernian peninsula favor Kirisian culture.

Raised in the frugal, if not somewhat impoverished, culture of the Adernian peninsula, its people found the luxurious, resplendent, and delicate culture of Kirisia incredibly appealing.

That’s why Ainz had prepared sculptures, paintings, and gem crafts, expecting them to catch the young man’s interest.

However, contrary to his expectations, this young man showed little interest in such luxuries, focusing instead on ships, farmland, roads, and other practical matters, which was surprising to Ainz.

Ainz was not particularly fond of agriculture. This was true for the many countries around the Tethys Sea, but in Lezado and Claris, there were two main factions: the coastal party, which focused on trade, and the plains party, which prioritized agriculture. Naturally, Ainz was part of the coastal party.

From the perspective of a coastal party member like Ainz, it was puzzling why Almus was so keen on learning about agriculture.

Furthermore, Almus tried to hire Kirisian experts in any field he found interesting. This was not a concern for Ainz. Lezado did not restrict the movement of its people, and it was not a problem if farm experts and foremen chose to go to King Rosais’ Country on their own. It would be a problem if craftsmen related to critical military secrets like iron blacksmiths were the target of Almus’ recruitment efforts, as those would reduce Ainz’s potential sales, but roads and farms were not sellable commodities.

「Isn’t this the bubbling fruit that was in the bath?」

Almus exclaimed with excitement. Ainz hurried over to him.

「This is the salpo fruit.」

「Salpo?」

Almus asked Ainz to clarify.

「It’s used for washing, and cleaning the body. It’s popular in Kirisia for making hair and skin smooth. Did you like it?」

「Yes, I’m very interested. In fact, I want to produce it myself, I want to buy the trees and hire people experienced in managing them.」

Almus approached Ainz eagerly. Ainz was a bit perplexed by his enthusiasm.

「Well… how about you try to negotiate with the owner of a salpo fruit farm? There are several farms in Lezado. Maybe you could offer the owner land in exchange for relocating to your country…」

「Please do introduce them to me.」

Almus said as he firmly grasped Ainz’s hand.

「And, could you also give me one of those sponges?」

「A sponge? Certainly. I’ll prepare it as a souvenir for you.」

It was an expensive item, but if it could please a king, it was a worthwhile investment.

◇

「What an incredible collection of books.」

「Thank you for your compliment. There are 30,000 volumes here in Lezado, which I believe is one of the largest collections on the Adernian Peninsula.」

I looked around the library. Most books seem to be made of papyrus.

I can’t see any made from our paper; well, copying them would be labor-intensive.

「By the way, where is the world’s largest library?」

「If I remember correctly, the largest I know should be the Imperial Library in Jamshid, the capital of the Persis Empire, which has about 250,000 volumes. The largest in Kirisia is the Claris National Library with 100,000 volumes.」

I think the Library of Alexandria had about 700,000 volumes. Compared to that, Persis’ library is much smaller but still quite large.

「I’d like to have a library like this in my country. By the way… how much would it cost to create a copy of a book?」

「Are you asking about the labor costs?」

From the conversation, it appears there’s no concept of copyright here. Books are written to spread one’s thoughts, so copying them is more than welcome.

The costs are only for the paper and the wages of the person copying it. Even without copyright is quite expensive.

「I see. I’ll probably request them once I have a little more leeway. Is that okay?」

「Yes, anytime.」

The council member answered with a smile.

「Now, shall we head to the temple? Hey, Tetra, we are leaving.」

「Hmm… go ahead without me. I’ll join you later,」

Tetra said, completely absorbed in the books.

What I’m going to do with you…

「Let’s leave her be and move on to the next place.」

「Is that okay?」

「If we wait, we’ll be here until sunset.」

I said that in a joking manner, but when Tetra gets absorbed in something she forgets everything else.

◇

Julia was fervently admiring the temple, engaged in an earnest discussion with the high priest. Unfortunately, I’m not that interested in religion.

So, I’m left with nothing to do and feeling quite bored.

「How is religion organized in Kirisia?」

「Our country has an organized religion. We try to keep it as separate from politics as possible. The main deity of Claris is the god of commerce and gold, so the priests are quite diligent in making money. Well, it’s business under the guise of donations.」

Interesting… so, to the folks in Claris, donations are a form of business. What about corruption? It seems they’re quite brazen about it.

Polytheism tends to be quite lenient, but from what I hear, Claris is more than just lenient; it’s quite murky.

While I was talking with Ainz, Julia returned. Behind her, several priests were carrying a golden statue.

「Hey, Almus. If we donate ten gold coins, they’ll give us a statue embedded with divine energy.」

「Is that golden thing supposed to be a god? Well, ten gold coins are within the budget, I guess.」

I can’t believe that a golden statue would improve our finances, but it’s all about the mindset, isn’t it? Compared to the ridiculously huge Great Buddha1 that Emperor Shomu had made, this is quite a bargain.

Even so, a statue embedded with divine energy is pretty cheap. But I guess that’s how it is with religion. If someday we need more money we could sculpt some figure in a piece of wood, call it a god, and sell it.

Long live idol worship.

「What’s that weird yellow thing?」

Tetra muttered under her breath.

Since when are you here?

「I just came back. I got something good.」

Tetra was holding several scrolls of papyrus in her hand.

Did she whine until they gave them to her? or did they give them to her to get her to leave?

◇

「Please don’t stray too far.」

「Don’t worry, I’m not a child.」

When I answered full of confidence, Ainz sighed in response. Our shopping trip, under the guise of market inspection, was permitted with the supervision and protection of several council members, accommodating my desire to keep my identity hidden.

「The streets are quite wide here.」

「Well, they need to be this wide for carriages to pass through.」

The street is divided into a roadway and a sidewalk, and I’m walking on the sidewalk. Several carriages are passing by on the roadway.

There are also storm drains on the sidewalk. It seems they’re designed to prevent rainwater from accumulating.

Good, let’s recruit some road engineers too.

「There are so many different things here… what’s this?」

I noticed a familiar green spherical object. This is…

「A melon?」

「There are melons too? Let’s grow them in our country.」

I really like sweet melons.

「Melons aren’t sweet, you know? They’re slightly sweeter than cucumbers, but that’s about it.」

Is that so? Now that I think about it, I’ve heard that melons and watermelons are considered vegetables.

Being from the same family as cucumbers, it’s not strange that the primitive species taste similar. But through selective breeding, they can be developed into something like the Musk Melon.

I want to develop a Musk Melon before I die. Maybe it’s impossible?

On our way, we found a jewelry store. It was a well-maintained shop, and inside, there were slaves who seemed to be combat slaves, armed and standing guard.

Their faces are intimidating, and their muscles are impressive. Their mere presence is a security measure.

「Since we’re here, do you two want anything?」

Both of their ring fingers are adorned with gold rings. These rings signify more than just engagement; they’re a symbol of being a married woman, an adult woman.

Moreover, these rings serve as seals, like a proof of being a family, perhaps?

Incidentally, I have two rings on my ring finger, making it obvious at a glance what kind of guy I am.

Anyway, I haven’t bought the equivalent of what would be engagement or wedding rings in Japan for the two of them. They didn’t ask for them, and such customs don’t exist on the Adernian Peninsula.

But since we have the opportunity, and now I can afford a hundred or even two hundred rings.

「Then I’ll take this.」

Tetra said, picking up a hair ornament with a ruby set in it.

「Hmm, a hair ornament… it’s conspicuous and nice. Then I’ll take this one,」

Julia selected a hair ornament set with an emerald.

「Alright. Then these two… and while we’re at it, let’s also get these.」

I said, picking up two pearl earrings to go along with the hair ornaments and handing them to the clerk.

Then, I looked at Ron and Gram, who were accompanying us as guards and asked.

「Aren’t you two going to buy anything? For Soyon and Lulu?」

They both shook their heads.

「We have custom orders for our wedding.」

Ron replied.

「Besides, Roswald would probably get upset.」

Well, it would be a bit unfair to Roswald, who’s left to guard the place alone. Wait a minute, when did they decide on their weddings?

「We’re planning to have them soon, now that things are settling down.」

Ron answered.

「Alright. Make sure to invite me, okay?」

I’ll have to do something for their wedding gift. Maybe I’ll place a secret order for them. Something custom-made.

◇

After dinner and a bath, as the day was drawing to a close, Julia, Tetra, Iarl, Bartolo, Ron, Gram, and I gathered in my room.

「Alright, let’s summarize and prepare for tomorrow’s diplomatic negotiations. Let’s establish our strategy.」

TN1: The Great Buddha of Nara, located in Toda-ji Temple, is a 15m (49 feet) tall bronze statue of Vairocana Buddha.