Chapter 61

Gerald was in his study. In front of him sat Robard and Arthur. They'd just arrived a few moments ago. He pointed at the open window behind him. "Merchants are beginning to arrive in Ard. I trust this will be in the territory's interest."

"Indeed, my lord," Arthur said, a smile plastered on his face. "The small market within the walls is coming to life again. There are not enough merchants for the tariffs to enrich the treasury, but I believe that within one or two months the merchants will be coming in droves."

"None have asked for passage to the north yet, yes?" Gerald said.

"None yet, my lord," Arthur said. "It's too early. It will take merchant guilds a considerable amount of time to arrange for a trade route between Maric and Andross. Sending a caravan to the Empire's lands right after the Viscounty became ready for trade was never within expectations."

Gerald nodded. "Hmm. You were in a hurry to tell me something when you first arrived. Did anything happened?"

"Ah," Arthur tapped his forehead. "There is good news, my lord."

Gerald liked the sound of his minister's words. Instead of hearing about bandits all day, good news was finally coming to his door without much effort. "I would like to hear it," he said.

Arthur carried an apologetic smile and said," and there is also bad news, my lord."

Gerald's smiled twitched and he replied, "I would have to hear it."

"The good is that the wealth earned from Grina's properties is enough to compensate for the the damage of the recent battles. There is also an excess. We have a certain amount of gold remain—"

"Just use what's remained to make an acceptable military camp of the fort in the south," Gerald said interrupting him. He'd found a reason not to tear it down after wiping out the bandits. "We can use it when we need, I suppose. It would make a good place for Lucas's men should we need to move him away from Ard."

"Very well," Arthur nodded. Then he leaned forward. "Ahem. The other news is that Renard has returned, my lord."

Gerald snorted. "I didn't expect him to stay in the mines for eternity."

Arthur shook his head. "That's not all, my lord. He's also sent a bird."

Gerald grew silent. Along their journey from the Duke's lands to the Viscounty, it hadn't been difficult for Renard to bring a few Zagel birds that could be sent back with brief letters. Usually, such birds would be brought from an ally's territory to make it easier to send short letters. They were costly to raise and difficult to maintain. Right now, only the Royal Capital's birds were in Ard. But Renard had brought some from the Malfi Duchy, and he had brought a caretaker for them, posing as a servant. This was never a secret. Gerald was aware of all of it since they'd arrived. He just didn't expect him to act so soon. He'd just returned today, and he'd already read the recent events and realized that trade would return to the north soon. The Duke would very soon be aware of what had recently happened in the Viscounty. Renard wouldn't have to write much in his letter, simply that the Viscounty was rid of most if not all of its bandits.

"The Duke would have found out sooner or later," he said. It was inevitable that his sister would be used against him. He had to bear with it until he had enough power to negotiate on even grounds. "Perhaps I can delay his demands using Gasper."

Robard cleared his throat and frowned. "The soldiers have been asking questions, my lord. Not only about Lucas's men, but also about the crew they have fought beside and eventually let go. There are a lot of puzzled voices rising among the men. We're fortunate that your lordship's family members have been isolated. They would have been the most capable of asking questions without fear at a time like this."

"The men's questions will soon be answered, but we need some time," Gerald said. "Regarding my family." He glanced at Arthur. "How is the garrison faring?"

"Your commands have been heeded, my lord," Arthur said. "Old Han is almost done retiring all of your family members from the garrison. They didn't get a chance to resist." He looked at Robard. "Their counterparts in the army have not had the time nor the freedom to interfere."

Gerald nodded with a satisfied smile. His family members would still have some power in Ard after this. They were everywhere; in the castle's trade, in his keep, and many of them were even working under Arthur. They had a lot of power, but if he succeeded in removing them from the army and the garrison, he would not have to worry about any resistance from them later. He could easily strip them of their influence in Ard during the coming year. Any influence needed the backing of a blade, after all. He made use of Grina's attempted rebellion as a justified excuse for what was being done.

"Ah," Arthur rubbed his forehead. Gerald only now noticed his minister's red eyes. It appeared that he hadn't slept well last night. "I've remembered something, my lord," the old minister said. "Those who served Grina have all been tried and either imprisoned or executed. Their families are supposed to share their punishment. They've betrayed their Lord, after all. I have been wondering how you'd like to sentence their families, my lord."

Gerald thought of the traitors' families and the memory of his sister seeing him off at Malfi city's gate flitted across his mind. Something gripped his heart, a faint hint of fear perhaps. Lena was his only family, the only family he truly knew. He hoped he could see her again in the near future. "Their families have done nothing . . . " he said, unconvinced of his own words. He had sentenced Estor to be guilty by sippenhaft recently. But, he told himself, that was something else. "Let their families be. If any of them are too wealthy for their own good, you know what to do. But other than that, there is no need to harm their families. Simply keep an eye on them."

Arthur looked puzzled but he eventually nodded.

"What should concern us right now are the refugees on the outskirts of Ard," Gerald said, moving to another matter. "I don't want a slum eventually emerging outside of the walls." Since he'd arrived, he'd had the weight of thousands of refugees on his mind. The overcrowded and underfed people outside of his walls were like a wound that would soon fester. He didn't want to wait until it became too dire of a problem. Ard was already crowded as it was. There would never be enough resources for the thousands of idle mouths that waited outside. He had enough idle ones within the walls..

"We could chase them away, my lord," Robard said. His suggestion was what most Lords did when they faced a similar problem. "It would be hard to chase them back the way they came. But we could herd them towards the north and deliver the Duke a kind gift." The head knight smirked unlike his usual self.

"If I may suggest otherwise, my lord," Arthur quickly said. "We might be able to move the refugees to another part of the basin where they may be of use."

"Which part?" Gerald raised his brows. The basin's villages already had their dwellers, and the abandoned hamlets and farmsteads would soon be inhabited again by the peasants who'd escaped to Ard. There were also not many mines to dig through with the immense labor the refugees could provide. Even the bandits he'd recently captured were crowding his dungeons. The single mine the territory had was already filled with laboring prisoners.

"The burned patch of land, my lord," Arthur smiled. "The Torching of the forest was more unfortunate than it was fortunate, but it has still brought us an opportunity. The village that was northeast of the forest used to receive its water from a stream that came down from a lake north of the forest. The lake isn't very large, but it never dries, my lord. Winter or summer, it never grows shallow. It is fed by numerous streams of water that descend from the mountain range in the west. And many streams come out of the lake itself as well."

"Why haven't these streams been used then?" Gerald cocked his head. He'd never been to the forest himself, and he hadn't seen the ruined village or the lake Arthur spoke of.

"All but one poured into the forest, my lord." Arthur's words explained his intentions.

Gerald leaned back into his chair, frowning in contemplation. "With enough labor, the burned forest could be turned into arable land," he pondered aloud. He knew that was what his minister was suggesting. He could use the idle to prepare the land for planting, and then he could move the refugees there to farm it. Most of them were farmers who'd escaped the flames of war, after all.

"It would cost the treasury a considerable amount, my lord," Arthur continued. "But we don't need to cultivate too wide an expanse of land. We could begin with enough land to make busy a few thousand men during the coming winter sowing. Perhaps a farming town would eventually emerge in the middle of this piece of land. We only need to clear the land and dig the needed water passages."

Gerald nodded. He fancied the idea. It would remove the weight of the refugees from his shoulders, and it would provide his territory with more crops to sell or store. Perhaps by next year, all of the refugees around Ard would be working the fields where the forest once was. Hopefully, not many more would arrive during the coming months. For the time being, they had stopped pouring from the south. Perhaps the war was coming to an end, or perhaps the two Kingdoms warring were taking some respite. He wasn't certain.

"Begin from tomorrow," he told his minister. "We must have enough land to plant before the summer harvest is reaped. The winter isn't kind to ill-fed men without roofs to cover their heads. I fear that such men may not be kind to my territory when the heavy rains arrive."

"As you command, my lord," Arthur nodded. "I will arrange for the labor beginning tomorrow."

Gerald looked at Robard. "How goes the training of the new recruits?"

Robard bobbed his head in satisfaction. "Very well, my lord. Lucas's methods have been helpful. The results aren't certain yet, but I believe the recruits will be soldiers in a few short months. The half-regiment that was near the southern pass has been summoned back. Training our formations will begin soon."

"Good," Gerald said. For now, he had to have some patience. He would wait for Ard to receive more merchants, and he would wait for the Duke's expected demands to arrive. He also needed to be made more familiar with the neighbors of his territory.