Re: Tales of the Rune-Tech Sage

Chapter 768: Castin Town Garrison’s Demands

CH768 Castin Town Garrison’s Demands

***

‘Wealth is flowing into this town in ways the magistrate doesn’t know about,’ Alex mused.

According to the official records, there was supposedly no agriculture within Castin Town—the very argument the five families used to justify not paying taxes.

If that were true, then where were they obtaining milk, honey, and black tea?

Calm Madness!

A cold light flashed through Alex’s eyes.

Yet his expression remained composed as he quietly sipped the milk and honey in his cup while he waited.

Soon enough, exactly as he had expected, a group arrived.

“Sir, a group of people identifying themselves as the heads of the five garrison families have come to pay their respects,” a Silver Wolf Guard reported.

“Bring them in,” Alex said.

A group of nearly a dozen people entered the inn’s common hall.

“They are here, Sir Count,” the Silver Wolf Guard announced.

“These are the heads of the Winkler, Saltz, Aulin, and Heisen families. Behind them are Garrison Squad Leaders Winkler, Saltz, Aulin, and Heisen. There is also Squad Leader Dunn.”

The Wolf Guard meticulously introduced each individual one after another.

Alex glanced at the guard for a moment before shifting his attention to the visitors.

‘So the ruling families of Castin are Winkler, Saltz, Aulin, Heisen, and Dunn,’ Alex thought.

‘To think that commoners would grant themselves family names without the approval of their domain lord. If someone didn’t know better, they might mistake them for nobles.’

“Welcome, gentlemen,” Alex greeted.

With a graceful gesture, he motioned for them to take the seats opposite him.

Meanwhile, Eleanore, Zora, and Milton rose from their seats and moved to a table behind Alex.

The four family heads present sat opposite him, while the garrison squad leaders took seats behind them.

The squad leaders were supposed to be representatives of the domain lord within the town and, by all rights, should have held authority above the family heads.

Yet here, the opposite seemed to be true.

The head of the Winkler family, a chubby middle-aged man, rose to his feet and bowed towards Alex.

“I represent the families of Castin Town in apologising to the domain lord for failing to present ourselves at Fonterra Bastide.

“Since news of your arrival in the domain reached us, we have been scrambling to acquire a gift befitting your status before presenting ourselves before you.

“Unfortunately, we have yet to obtain anything worthy of a Count. We never expected that you, Sir Count, would be unwilling to wait and would instead grace us with your presence before we could do so.

“To think that we had to rush over empty-handed after hearing of your arrival… we are ashamed of ourselves.”

The man spoke with an expression of sincere regret.

Alex’s eyes flashed coldly for an instant.

The change went unnoticed by the family heads as he maintained a pleasant smile.

“It is no issue. My appointment as domain lord was unscheduled. It came about only through the wisdom and will of the Emperor. How can ordinary men like us possibly move at the pace of His Majesty’s wisdom?” Alex replied, sounding every bit the noble of the Celahan Empire.

Then he added,

“I have no need for gifts. The greatest gift you can give me is your support in developing our domain and making it a better place than it currently is for everyone who lives here.”

“Sir Count is truly magnanimous.” The Winkler family head’s round face twisted into something resembling a smile.

After the initial pleasantries concluded, the Winkler family head spoke on behalf of the garrison and raised their grievances.

He protested the magistrate’s decision to withhold the land that should supposedly have been allocated to the families of the garrison guards.

He also demanded payment of the wages allegedly owed to the guards over the previous two years.

Each guard was entitled to ten berserk stone shards every month.

For a garrison force of three hundred men, the accumulated unpaid wages amounted to approximately seventy-two thousand shards, or seventy-two complete low-grade berserk stones.

These were matters Alex had expected the family heads to raise.

However, the Winkler family head soon brought up something Alex had not anticipated.

“Sir Count, Castin Town’s population has grown tremendously over the past few years.

“Although we have encouraged many of the younger generation to relocate to other settlements within the domain, there are still more people than available jobs. As a result, a large number of idle citizens remain within the town.

“We hope that Sir Count can grant us merchant permits allowing these people to travel outside the domain and engage in trade. That would provide them with productive work.

“Naturally, each merchant group would pay the customary ten percent tax to the domain in exchange for this privilege,” the chubby man said.

‘The audacity!’

Behind Alex, old Milton’s face reddened with rage.

He was about to rise and speak when Zora placed a hand on his arm and shook her head.

In front of them, Alex merely nodded as though he were seriously listening to and considering the man’s proposal.

Inwardly, however, he sneered.

‘You lot take me for a fool, do you?’ Alex thought. ‘You want me to grant you merchant permits so you can pay only ten percent tax? Do you really think I would agree to that?’

Merchant groups were not easy to establish.

There were countless dangers that could wipe out an entire merchant venture overnight.

As a result, merchant companies were usually operated directly by a domain or backed by the domain lord as a form of public enterprise.

That said, it was not unheard of for private individuals to own merchant companies by obtaining permits from their domain lord.

Such permits did more than merely authorise trade.

More importantly, they served as proof of identity and legitimacy when operating in foreign domains.

Without one, it was nearly impossible for a merchant company to be taken seriously elsewhere.

Other domains would simply not trust them.

And trust was the foundation of trade and commerce.

However, offering only a ten percent tax in exchange for such a permit was laughable.

Much like income taxes, the rates imposed on merchant companies typically ranged from thirty to fifty percent, while greedier domain lords demanded as much as seventy percent of their profits.

The reason was simple.

A merchant permit was not merely an authorisation or identification document.

It was effectively a declaration that the issuing noble house stood as guarantor for the merchant company holding it.

Nobles considered the high taxes a fair price for allowing merchants to use the reputation of their House and domain to open trade opportunities that would otherwise remain inaccessible.

The taxes also compensated the noble house for the risks it assumed whenever those merchants acted under its banner.

For the Winkler family head to believe that a ten percent tax was fair compensation for a merchant permit meant one of two things.

Either he did not understand the value of such permits, or he held neither the domain nor Alex’s title in high regard—a title whose authority ultimately flowed from the power of the Emperor himself.

***