Byron's suggestion made everyone present a little puzzled, especially Hetty, who asked directly: "Buy slaves at 30% of the market price?" And also in the form of issuing mercenary commissions? How could anyone be willing to accept it? Not to mention that this is abnormally low, I'm afraid the mercenaries will have to take a fee from this thirty percent...... This is a complete loss for those mercenaries. ”

Faced with this question, Byron only said lightly: "So we have to add an additional one: no slavery and no contract." ”

Hetty and Rebecca looked at each other, and Amber had already understood, the half-elf thief was about to say something, but she didn't expect Gawain to speak before her: "In this case, the mercenaries will take the outcasts and sell them as slaves for money." ”

Amber glanced at Gawain with some surprise, as if he didn't expect this duke to know about such a thing, while the Byron knight nodded in surprise: "A robust serf or slave worker with complete slave contract procedures and a clear background usually needs twenty to thirty small inlaid silver coins, or sixteen or seventeen silver shield coins, and the biggest cost of them is actually their slave status, because there is an identity book, so it must be purchased from formal channels, in addition to the money for the slave itself, the slave owner, The 'slave labor associations' formed by the lord's tax collectors, the local churches, the slave market, and even the ruffians would take a cut of the middle, which was several times or even a dozen times the price, but the outcasts ...... There is no cost to the homeless, no one will protect them, they have no identity, and there will be no concern for disappearance or death. ”

At this point, Byron paused, as if to give Hetty and Rebecca some time to think, and continued: "Under normal circumstances, nobles would not buy slaves without a slave contract, because such slaves have no security of origin, and will appear to be stingy, poor, and low-grade, and such slaves will not be compensated if they are killed or captured by other slave owners. But even then, there are still people who make orders to buy cheap stateless slaves - this is the default black rule, which actually refers to ...... Refugee. ”

Hetty clutched her chest, and although she was already a model of the nobility being close to the commoners, she had never been exposed to this deepest dark truth: "How could such a thing happen? ”

"Not only that, but every year, everywhere, ma'am," said the Byron knight in a low voice, "in some unscrupulous mercenary circles, such outcasts are called 'long-legged money,' and they even circulate their outcasts' shelters as paid information, staring at the displaced like sharks and hyenas, waiting for anyone to buy cheap stateless slaves, often in large quantities, and they will rush to them. ”

Rebecca subconsciously clenched the iron staff in her hand, her knuckles even turned a little white from the force, and she whispered as if talking to herself: "Mercenary...... I listened to their stories in the tavern, and listened to their stories of slaying bandits, killing monsters, and exploring castles and secret realms, and I thought it was the life of a mercenary, but ......"

"Lord Viscount, when you are in the tavern, the mercenaries in the tavern are not mercenaries," the Byron knight gave Rebecca a deep look, "not all mercenaries will do what I just said, what you said is indeed part of the mercenary life, but there is one more point - mercenary hands are destined to be unclean, it is just a matter of how much evil they do." ”

Then the middle-aged knight raised his head and looked at Gawain: "My lord, what do you mean?" About the release of the order ......"

Gawain looked at the knight with a smile, and the other party said the darkest truths in front of everyone, in fact, the subtext was already obvious, but he didn't want to expose this halfway knight who seemed to have a very good past: "I don't plan to save this money." ”

Both Herty and Rebecca were visibly relieved.

"We are not short of money, the gold and silver in the treasury are enough to spend the entire territory for a long, long time, but if we save money by promoting evil, the debt to our souls will not be so easily redeemed," Gawain said unhurriedly, "Just follow the normal process, go to the neighboring territories to post notices and send people to read them, go to negotiate with the nobles who can catch the line, go to rent chariots and horses to prepare dry food, if you buy serfs, buy them according to the normal channels, don't be stingy with money, I have only one request: to make sure that everyone who is about to come to this land understands one thing: that whatever they have done before, they must obey the laws here. ”

Byron stroked his chest and bowed his head: "This is their duty." ”

Gawain nodded: "You are good at dealing with people in this area, so this matter is left to you, and you can go to Heti to support how much money you need, but you must have a clear account and support plan." Also, if you have a channel, it's a good idea to find out where the displaced people gather. ”

As the infrastructure was on track and there was a margin of manpower, the minting of the territory had been carried out on a small scale, and Gawain had designed and ordered the first few coins to be minted a few days ago, and sent them to the neighboring town of Tanzania and several other distant towns, where they were notarized by merchants and nobles, and were now ready for use.

After Byron and the others left, only Gawain and Amber were left in the tent, and the latter kept looking Gawain up and down with strange eyes, making Gawain uncomfortable: "What are you looking at?" ”

"Letting those mercenaries who only recognize money go to catch the homeless and send them over, obviously it is much easier and more laborious and cost-effective than sending people to carry propaganda and search yourself, and you have to prepare chariots, horses, and dry food, I thought you would definitely choose a more practical plan - haven't you always said that you are a pragmatist?"

"I'm a pragmatist, but I'm not a villain, and how those mercenaries will capture outcasts as slaves, I can imagine with my back molars, how many people will be killed on the spot in the process? How many people will be separated? How many people will die of starvation and disease during the rough 'transport' of those mercenaries? Even though I deliberately emphasized in my commission that the health of the 'slaves' must be guaranteed, how many mercenaries do you think will really listen? And these things may not have been done by my own hands, but I caused them, which is against my code of conduct. ”

"But you know what, even if you don't do it, someone else does, and the stingy farmers and the black mines ask mercenaries to buy stateless slaves every year, and they buy enough to fill your little camp several times."

"Therefore I am prepared to destroy this status quo and to establish a new order, not only in my own actions, but in every land I have built, they must be followed, whether they are slave owners, mercenaries, ruffians, bandits, profiteers, or hereditary nobles. I do not do evil—and neither do they. ”

Amber opened her mouth and looked at Gawain in amazement, before she spoke: "You have a big mouth...... But why are you so obsessed with protecting the weak? Is it really because of the so-called 'classical aristocratic virtues' or 'chivalry'? ”

"No, it's just basic morality."

Amber seems to be deliberately angry, but she has to find fault: "You are so naïve, how can you change so much by yourself?" You must know that in this world, it is the rule that the weak eat the strong, and it is morality for the strong to override the weak. ”

Gawain looked at Amber and suddenly couldn't help laughing: "That's right, the law of the jungle is indeed the rule of this world, even the rules of nature, the strong should make rules, and the weak only have to obey." ”

Amber blinked: "Then you ......"

Gawain's smile was even more irrepressible: "So haven't I already started to make the rules?" ”

Amber: "...... You can still do this!? ”

At the same moment, Veronica was in her prayer room on the White Oak, which had sailed away from Cecil's collar and was sailing on the whitewater river.

She was still dressed in a plain white nun's dress, her long pale blonde hair was softly draped over the back of her head, without a hint of luxury, and she knelt in front of the idol of the god of light, her hands folded on her chest, imitating the image of the two holy lights crossing on the emblem, and the abundant light elements swirled and fluttered around her, like translucent cherubs, guarding this devout believer of the light.

She prayed reverently, letting the light gradually envelop the statue of the god of light, whose face was blurred and impossible to distinguish with the naked eye, and when she had finished a prayer, she opened her eyes to see the thick candle burning in front of the statue.

The flame of the thick candle jumped a few times, and suddenly changed from orange to pure white, and the flame expanded several times at once, turning into a pure light flame, which shook and contracted, and gradually formed the image of an old man.

The old man sat in a chair, looking quite dignified, but obviously old and weak, and if any believer of the God of Light was here, I am afraid that this is the current supreme ruler of the Holy Light Church, Pope St. Ivan III.

Veronica lowered her head slightly: "His Majesty the Pope." ”

From the flame of light came the Pope's slightly distorted voice: "Child of the Holy Light, you have already returned?" ”

"Yes, I have left Cecil Territory, and the fleet should be approaching the mouth of the Dolgon River by now."

"Did everything go well on this trip? Is that Gawain Cecil an enemy of our lord? ”

Veronica pondered for two seconds, then replied softly, "All well, Gawain Cecil is indeed the legend of seven hundred years ago, not the ghost who stole the hero's body and survived the world, he is a man of noble character who talks freely in the light of the Light." ”

"Well, then. I have heard the voice of the Lord a lot in recent years, and it is a real concern that Gawain Cecil is resurrected at this time, but now that you have confirmed that he is not an enemy of the Lord, then I am much more relieved. ”

Veronica folded her hands and bowed her head deeply: "The righteousness of my lord will surely spread throughout the world. ”

The candles were gradually burning out, and the power of the magic was coming to an end, and the voice coming from the light flame became faint: "Come back as soon as possible, don't delay on the road, in case the filthy world affects your pure light, return to the Basilica of Light......"

The flame of light was gone, the candle was left with only a few pale ashes, and the papal breath was far away from the place.

Veronica waited a few more seconds before slowly standing up and quietly staring at the idol of the god of light.

She spoke softly, as if to herself:

"That's a non-believer, isn't it?"

"Yes, not only is there no faith, but it is against the way of Light."

"He seems to be only resisting God, not the Light......"

"In short, neither a servant of the Light nor a servant of the darkness."

"It's a lot of fun......

"It's funny."