Chapter 53: Chapter 44: Welcome to Hospitable Westwood Laine Castle
He was the one who had notarized Henry’s territorial claim. At the time, he didn’t think Henry would succeed; if Henry hadn’t practically thrown his noble crest in his face, the official truly wouldn’t have wanted to do it.
’And he actually succeeded?’
The notary was now practically fawning, terrified that Henry would come looking for trouble.
Fortunately, Henry paid him no mind. He was busy examining his newly acquired "property deeds."
There were four brand-new enfeoffment contracts and a letter. The three Knight fiefs were now, in the eyes of the law, Henry’s territory.
Henry opened the letter. Inside, the King praised him and outlined his new tax obligations.
The three Knight fiefs, like Westwood Laine, were not considered newly conquered lands but internal territories of the empire.
However, Henry would still enjoy the three-year tax-exempt period granted to new Pioneer Nobility. All his income was exempt from royal taxes.
This meant that for three years, Henry would be the absolute ruler of his domain!
The King’s words made it clear to Henry that this was the Dean looking out for him, and that he should stop looking for loopholes.
Pioneer Nobility, by rights, should be fighting the Alien Race.
If he did come into conflict with another noble, the King wouldn’t blame Henry for declaring war on them.
Henry didn’t care about that. It wasn’t as if he was always looking for loopholes; this time, it had simply been a matter of convenience.
Henry took a reply he had prepared in advance from his sleeve and gave it to be sent back to the King.
After taking care of these matters, he took his men and returned to Westwood Laine.
Claude immediately came to report on the fief’s progress. After a month of construction, the tailor shop, candle Workshop, and blacksmith’s forge had been completed, and the three-story tavern was also nearly finished.
Henry didn’t expect the tavern to make a profit; it was merely a place for his soldiers to spend their money.
It also gave the roughly one hundred self-employed farmers and civilian artisans a place to let loose, which helped make the territory’s finances look more normal.
However, the tavern was in an excellent location and could be developed into a future den of indulgence.
Henry had it built to the standards of the largest tavern in Autongard, so accommodating several hundred drinkers was no problem. The guest rooms were in a separate multi-story building, consisting mostly of large communal dormitories that could house several thousand people—more than enough for passing merchant caravans to stay in the future.
In the newly acquired Hernlei, Tixilei, and Taienlai Villages, the land had been cultivated to the very limit of what the serfs could work.
"My Lord, I’ve also finished inventorying the food and supplies. The army is ready to assemble and depart at any time."
Henry told Claude about John’s "generosity," which left Claude utterly shocked.
Everyone said the grassland nobles were generous, but surely not *this* generous? Claude suspected there was some kind of deal involved, but he was still astonished.
Because this time, Henry was mobilizing an army of more than two thousand men. John, who was contracted to handle Henry’s logistics and supply train, was truly blessed!
Over the next few days, Henry significantly strengthened his border patrols, constantly sending Grassland Warriors to Odoche to gather all sorts of miscellaneous news from the traveling merchant caravans.
And just like that, a piece of good-bad news landed in Henry’s lap.
’A large number of disgraced and exiled nobles are flooding into the eastern border. Baltahan, Autongard, and Odoche are filled to the brim, and the influx is spreading toward the smaller noble territories further east.’
This was bad news. Nobody liked these pariahs, especially not other nobles.
The "good" part of the news was that these disgraced and exiled nobles often still had a little money and a few skills.
Just two days after this news reached Henry, large groups of people began pouring into the area.
After thinking it over, Henry decided to let them in, but only a portion of them to start—a thousand people at most.
’This is money being delivered right to my doorstep. It would be a damn shame not to take it!’
As the order was given, Henry’s army opened the way, and countless disgraced and exiled nobles from all over the empire poured in like a tidal wave.
Some wore wrinkled imperial robes, their faces haggard, their eyes betraying a sense of helplessness and confusion.
These once-powerful figures had now lost their former glory.
They carried what was left of their wealth and some rare possessions, hoping to rise again amidst the pioneering of the borderlands.
The tavern, which had been little more than a facade, instantly became bustling. New recruits serving as temporary staff hurried about, busily making transactions.
Huge quantities of food and drink were consumed, bringing in enormous sums of money and many pieces of pawned jewelry. Faced with the exorbitant prices at the Westwood Laine tavern, these people didn’t dare say a word.
As for why the prices were so high, it was on Henry’s orders, of course. ’This is the middle of nowhere, so what if things are a little pricey?’
A small pot of wine that cost forty-five Su elsewhere, Henry sold for seventy. A wheel of cheese that went for twenty-one Su, Henry could sell for thirty-three!
A chicken bought for fifty-three Su was sold cooked for one hundred and thirty Su—the equivalent of one Dinar and three silvers. The price included spices, facility fees, and preparation fees... In any case, take it or leave it.
Expensive? What’s so expensive? That’s always been the price at Westwood Laine! Want a bed in the tavern? That’ll be extra! Want to drink a little wine and eat some meat? Extra!
In short: everything costs extra!
Once this first group of people had settled in, Henry planned to slowly let in another.
In just a few short days, by letting the groups of disgraced nobles into the tavern batch by batch, Henry—through constant robb... er, *profiteering*—managed to double his income.
’How much did I even pay for all this food and wine? This was pure profit!’
At the same time, just as Henry had expected, this influx brought with it a certain amount of chaos.
The already mediocre dirt roads became horribly congested, sanitation became a vexing problem, and public order issues grew increasingly prominent.
To keep others from bullying them, the exiled nobles often clashed and fought with the disgraced nobles, who were comparatively better off.
This was something Henry couldn’t understand. ’Experts at infighting, are we? Look at the state you’re in, and you’re still plotting against each other? How stupid!’
Henry showed no favoritism toward these constantly brawling nobles. He treated them all the same: he fined them, and that was that.
At first, some of the disgraced nobles refused to submit. Even after learning that Henry was the recently famous Star of the Battle of Zhiluo, they remained defiant.
They demanded a fair ruling!
But after the disgraced nobles saw Henry’s thousand-strong, well-equipped army put on a show of force, they were all won over by his judgment.
So very fair!
In secret, Henry also had Tommy, Bain, Vasco, and his soldiers go and entice the exiled nobles who had few men.
They could buy a plot of land for a high price or invest in a shopfront. It was entirely possible to live a good life in Westwood Laine, after all.
As for the soldiers under these exiled nobles, they could trade their weapons and armor for a small plot of land and become self-employed farmers. If their equipment wasn’t valuable enough, they could become tenant farmers instead.
As for slaves, they were the nobles’ private property; how they were handled was none of Henry’s concern.
In short, Westwood Laine was a wonderful place, warm and hospitable, welcoming more Exiles and disgraced nobles to its gates. Henry was more than willing to give them all a warm home!
