Black Iron’s Glory

The ambassador from the royal capital soon arrived in Polyvisia. He looked like a rather strict old man in his fifties, wearing his hair split in the middle. Coupled with his begrudging expression, he looked like someone who was owed money by everyone in the world. He was Viscount Donbajlo Ey Davlid. It was said he had some familial ties to Fredrey I, seeing as the king referred to him as uncle. He held the post of the vice chief justice and chief inspector in the kingdom.

He came with a line of royal guard soldiers for transporting the five million crowns’ worth of gold reserves from the Nasrian national treasury back to the kingdom. Claude and Bolonik held a welcome ceremony per protocol, but Claude found it weird that the viscount seemed rather aloof about it, as if he was hiding some matter. Soon, the viscount excused himself by citing his weakness to alcohol and went to rest.

Afternoon the next day, proper negotiations finally began. Claude provided the inventory of the spoils he got from the Nasrian treasury and vouched for its accuracy. Te Nasrian treasury’s reserves should be valued around 1.8 million crowns, and per the ratio of splitting public spoils, the region could receive three-tenths of them. Twenty percent more would be used to maintain local affairs, so the amount to be handed to the court would be half the total.

However, Viscount Davlid took a step back and privately requested Claude and Bolonik to let them take 1.5 million crowns back to the kingdom to relieve its critical financial situation. The royal guards defending the capital had already been owed three months’ salary and the officials of the kingdom had been working unpaid for a historically long six months. The court was counting on the Nasrian gold to survive.

“It can’t be… How can the court be that poor?!” Claude was utterly shocked.

Viscount Davlid smiled in resignation as he explained. Last year when the Union’s army was driven out of the kingdom, they took away everything they could from the royal capital and even destroyed a few resource-rich bases in the eastern area of the kingdom. When Fredrey I and the court returned, they found only a husk of the former capital. Not a single curtain could be found in the empty palace, with most of them either taken or destroyed by the enemy.

A few years of war caused the kingdom to deteriorate horribly, with special regards to its living standards. The tax they managed to collect in the royal capital could only barely sustain their livelihoods. nothing was left over for helping the local economy recover. Even the mines in the eastern area would take hundreds of thousands of crowns to be restored into working order for new coins to be minted.

But the national treasury was empty, leaving the court no choice. The colony was rich, but the royal capital had already borrowed a loan they would have to repay in ten years’ time. They already stretched the limits of the aid provided to them. It was one thing to do so during wartime, but it was unacceptable now that the war was over. The region’s council could approve a loan, but it would be with reasonable interest.

The court didn’t really mind borrowing more money, since the interest wouldn’t be that high anyway, but the old nobility did mind. They saw it as the region extending its influence into the court with ill intentions. The court could simply borrow money from the nobles instead, up to a few million, in fact, but the loans they offered had high interest. Basically, the court would receive eight-tenths of the amount they borrowed and pay 1.3 times the borrowed amount back, not to mention compounding interest.

That really angered the king. The loans the region offered had high enough interest, but they could be paid within two years. The loans offered by the nobles, on the other hand, couldn’t even be paid back within a century. It was far too ridiculous. As such, the proposal to borrow money from the region came under heavy fire. The king was no fool to borrow that kind of loan. Since they weren’t willing to help in earnest, then he would see who could hold out longer while the kingdom was in that state.

The one counting the most on Viscount Davlid’s mission as ambassador was none other than Prime Minister Marquis Blancarte. He hoped to have 1.5 million crowns shipped back to solve the most-pressing issues of the court first. A third of that would be used to pay salaries for the officials and the royal guard to be reassured once more.

Another third would be invested in the royal capital to restore the trade routes and roads the Union’s army destroyed so that traders would once more be incentivised to come to the capital. As long as trade grew, the national treasury would once more begin to fill up from taxes. It was a rather sound policy. The remaining 500 thousand would be used to restore the mining infrastructure the Union wrecked. As long as those two large mines were restored, the kingdom would be getting some hundreds of thousands of crowns on a monthly basis, freeing them up to do many more things.

Davlid was quite sincere in his request and clearly laid out the troubles the court was facing. Claude, however, felt a little regret at hearing that. Had he known, he would’ve sent his troops to harass the Union’s army’s camp. At the very least, he could have attempted to stop Pillag from leaving the capital so easily with the spoils the injured soldiers collected for themselves. It was a huge loss. The Union’s army did make off with quite a lot.

It was no wonder someone was so generous by leaving so much supplies and equipment in their camp instead of burning them before leaving. It was so that they would give up on pursuit when they reached the camp. It was apparent that Duke Pillag understood that if he burned those supplies, Thundercrash would never give up on pursuing his retreating troops, even if it meant busting through Mambamark’s border.

He truly was a sly fellow. All Claude could do now was bemoan his loss.

“What are you thinking about?” Bolonik gave him a nudge and snapped him out of it. “I agreed to the ambassador’s request to help the kingdom.”

“Please be assured that the kingdom will not forget your loyal contribution. The Lord Prime Minister did ask me to pass on that the kingdom couldn’t provide the rewards your troops deserve due to financial straits. So, he suggested giving you the rights to mine in Nasri for half a year. During that time, all you have to do is to hand the court a third of the profits. The rest can be used at your discretion.

“You should know that the kingdom usually goes for a three-seven split, with seven going into the national treasury and three being pocketed privately. Being given two-thirds for half a year is nothing short of breaking precedent,” Davlid hurriedly recited.

There were seven intermediate to small-sized gold-and-silver mines in Nasri which were the source of their funding. As for copper, they were immediately minted into coins and released into circulation. Claude looked at the accounts and saw that they could produce up to 1.4 million crowns each year.

A third of that was around 400 thousand, which meant the region would have a million at least. Though, with the term being half a year, that amount wouldn’t be more than 600 thousand.

“You really have a good plan on your hands. You don’t even have to pay a fenny to be rewarded. We’re the ones who’ll be hiring miners, maintaining machines and building infrastructure to mine. We’d have to invest some 100 thousand crowns before we start,” Claude said, shaking his head, “Also, why only half a year? It’s far too short. We’d need one at least.”

Viscount Davlid laughed awkwardly. “To be frank, I wanted to give you more time as well, but the prime minister and I have no idea what changes will come in half a year. There’s no saying who will own the seven mines here. We might have to resign new deals with the ones in charge of the mines.

“As for the excavation rights, you should mine as much as you can for now. Once the time is reached, if you don’t receive any notice from us, you can continue to mine. If the mineable resources here have a proper owner then, we’ll only take it over in half a year.”

Claude’s curiosity began to pique more and more. “You seem to be suggesting there’s something else going on within half a year. Care to tell me more about it? Or are you saying the court is planning to sell the mines off for capital?”

“Whatever, it’s not like you are outsiders now anyway, being hereditary nobles of the kingdom. I’ll tell you frankly.” Davlid looked around and relaxed when he was sure nobody else was around.

“Don’t worry. Nobody will listen in on us,” Bolonik assured.

“Well, Prime Minister Blancarte handed in a proposal to restore the kingdom, and it was unanimously passed by the Council of Dignitarians. Even the nobles think that the kingdom will return to its peak in the shortest time possible if the proposal works. We’ll become one of the strongest nations on Freia once more.

“In this plan, the prime minister hopes to bring in railroad trains from the region and have railroads be built here to connect the entire Eastern Freia together, thus speeding up transportation of human resources and goods. We’ll rebuild the waterways and irrigation routes of the kingdom as well to ensure agricultural stability. The forming of factories and companies that benefit the general populace will also be supported and encouraged so that their products and services can compete with those from the region.

“Another emphasis is the strengthening of our military. The three main corps’ gear will be renewed and we’ll receive training from the two corps of the autonomous region in battle tactics. The kingdom’s trust in our forces will thus be renewed. At the same time, we’ll also need the most-advanced ironclad fleet for ourselves. We’ll work together with the region to build new ironclad warships to defend our overseas interests and the safety of trade routes of Eastern Freia.

“Additionally, there are many finer adjustments to taxation, which I won’t bring up for now. That plan has detailed our current predicament really clearly and offered targeted solutions for each one of them. One problem, however, that we aren’t able to solve, is the empty national treasury. We have no funds with which to carry this out.

“This restoration plan will take at least 50 million crowns. Prime Minister Blancarte hopes that we can complete the plan within five years so that we won’t miss out on the best window of opportunity, but there’s nothing we can do without money. With the first year’s investment quota being above ten million crowns, where would we get such a huge loan?

“Some parts of the proposal like the building of railroads will be the largest expenditure. Covering the entire area will cost at least 20 million crowns in funding, and the prime minister hopes to take a book out of the region by crowdsourcing investment from the general populace in the form of shares.

“Another huge expenditure in the proposal is the renewal of military gear and the formation of the ironclad fleet. The prime minister plans to issue national bonds with terms of three, five, eight and ten years respectively. Each successive term will see a dividend of five percent. For instance, if you buy a ten-year-term bond for 100 crowns, you’ll get 120 crowns back in ten years.

“The prime minister hopes that military funds amounting to 15 million crowns can be collected from the bonds, but the bonds were mocked by many others. Many economists don’t put much stock into it, saying that the returns are far too low. One noble even told the prime minister that if one used a hundred crowns to start a business and didn’t get at least three to four hundred crowns back within ten years, the business would be considered a failure. That’s why the bonds aren’t attractive at all.

“Even if enough funds could be gathered from those bonds, we’re still 15 million crowns short. Initially, it was hoped that we could use the growth in the next few years to gather the funding we still lack, but it seems impossible if you think about it. The economy of Eastern Freia is a complete wreck after the war. We won’t be able to recover within a short timeframe.

“The proposal is perfect, but we lack the funding to make it a reality. That’s why the prime minister was mocked by many nobles for being a daydreamer. The reason the proposal even got unanimous approval is nobody really believes in it in the first place. They didn’t bother to argue against something that was doomed to fail.

“So, the dissatisfied prime minister privately gave his secret proposal to His Majesty, which only a small minority of people are aware of. The proposal suggest for a return to the feudal system and the enfeoffment of hereditary fiefs to earn the funding and support of the old nobility…”

“Wait, it can’t be. Returning to the feudal system is backing track on progress, isn’t it? Stellin XI wanted to reform it and only managed to win after six years! Isn’t going back to the feudal system a regress?” Bolonik interrupted from sheer shock as he shot Claude a look.

“No, no, no, General Bolonik, don’t misunderstand and don’t feel so agitated. The prime minister has his reasons for making that proposal, and it has received His Majesty’s permission. Listen to me first.” As Davlid calmed him down, Claude helped Bolonik back into his seat.

“Come to think of it, it’s thanks to the brave fight the region’s warriors put up that this proposal even got made. With Nasri, Canas and the other enemies of the kingdom wiped out, the kingdom has finally united Eastern Freia. It’s thanks to your efforts that the foundation of the kingdom’s prosperity was laid. That’s why the prime minister came up with that new solution.”

Davlid pointed to the ground. “The new fiefs the prime minister is suggesting to enfeoff is not in the kingdom itself.”

Claude looked at the floor and it clicked. “You’re talking about the Nasrian region?”

Davlid nodded approvingly. “Nasri has always been a feudal nation. The citizens here are used to being subjects of nobles and relying on their lords to live. If we implement our Rights of the Four Castes here, we’ll have to invest lots in educating the peasants. It’ll take up to 30 years for any effect to be observed.

“But the kingdom doesn’t have the funding for that, and the citizens here hold animosity towards the kingdom. Given all that, running this place like we run the kingdom isn’t ideal. We might easily incite revolt or the like. The citizens reacted the same during the decade of annexation of the four Nasrian prefectures at the border. That’s a lesson we’ve taken to heart.

“So, since the citizens here count on a dominion lord, we’ll give them one. The peace and development will naturally be the lord’s responsibility, so the kingdom’s burdens will be lightened. The kingdom will receive an annual tribute from the lords of ten percent, and the payment will be collected once every ten years.

“Additionally, only hereditary nobles will be enfeoffed territory here, with the size of their fiefs proportional to their Titles. You can also pick your own territory here, but you’ll have to pay a fee for that. Additionally, trigenerational and honorary nobles can also gain fiefs here as long as they pay the court to have their status elevated to hereditary.

“For instance, honorary barons who want to become hereditary barons have to pay 100 thousand crowns to become a trigenerational baron and another 200 thousand to become a hereditary baron. Only then will His Majesty grant him a barony. The two of you are already hereditary nobles, so you can already get fiefs, but it’ll cost you if you want to pick your own.”