Chapter 74
The new year began, and with it, goods flowed back into Aitheria as carriages began to arrive in the city .
The carriages mostly carried food .
The people of Aitheria had stocked up on food for the winter, but their basements could only store so much, and there were bound to have been miscalculations . In the first place, most people had not stocked enough to last them the whole winter .
Anticipating this, it had become a yearly custom for wheat merchants to build small warehouses around the city to store wheat and other goods for the new year . A small handful of companies that were backed by distant cities could also join in, but that was rare .
However, it would be a big deal if such companies succeeded . If they were able to acquire enough liquid capital before spring started, their business would be able to thrive for the year . On the other hand, if they failed, then their springtime stock would be limited, and they would be unable to acquire more goods .
The Eisen Schmidt Company should have been one of the rare examples of success this year .
「What are we going to do about this?」
Ignaz wasn’t sure whether to cry or get angry as he questioned Camil, his brother-in-law .
He was referring to the many bags of rice still in his company’s warehouse .
「We have to do something about this . 」
Camil sighed as he looked at his copy of a contract .
The rice that had arrived from the Clauvadia Company of the Holy Kingdom was three times more than they had expected . All of that was piled up before their eyes . They had paid the correct amount . The problem was the amount they got in return .
「I heard that there had been a huge harvest of rice in the Holy Kingdom, but…」
「Who would have thought that the price would drop to a third of what it was previously?」
According to reports from the local area, the harvest in the Holy Kingdom had been so large that even the granaries were overflowing . It was to the point that even the rats eating the rice were said to have become as fat as cats . That might have been an exaggeration, but there was probably some truth to it, considering they had received three times more rice than expected .
「Do you think we can even sell this much?」
「There is no choice but to sell it all . We have to empty this warehouse by spring . 」
「But…」
Eating rice was an uncommon practice in Aitheria .
Eel bentos had become popular for a while, but nothing of the sort had happened recently .
Camil was confident they could sell one-third of what they had due to the food shortage caused by the winter, but he didn’t think they could sell everything . They would profit greatly if they could sell everything, but he couldn’t think of a way to do so . As a merchant, he didn’t intend to just throw away the goods, but no matter how hard he racked his brains, he couldn’t think of a solution .
「What’s the matter, both of you? The year has just started, and you’re both making such long faces . 」
Gernot, the tax collector, came into the warehouse . He was a member of Aitheria’s City Council . Due to how strictly he collected taxes, he wasn’t well liked . Ignaz and Camil had heard rumours that he had become slightly more amicable, but they couldn’t believe it . Nobody could change in such a short amount of time .
「Ah, Gernot-san . I’m happy to see that you’re already working hard, even though the year has just started . However, please don’t come in here without permission, as that is a bit problematic . 」
Although it didn’t actually bother him, Ignaz chided him lightly . The tax collector took a handkerchief from his breast pocket and started wiping his monocle .
「If you are bothered about people entering without permission, then you should assign someone to stand outside . I stood beside the entrance and called out three times, but no one came . It would be quite a problem if someone had collapsed inside . I got worried, so I came in to check on you . 」
It was his sarcastic way of speaking that made people dislike Gernot .
Tax collectors were responsible for collecting taxes for the City Council . Many of them were corrupt, extorting extra money to line their own pockets, and Gernot was their leader .
Gernot’s response sparked an exchange of barbs . Camil stood protectively in front of Ignaz as Ignaz responded belligerently .
「How very thoughtful of you . As you can see, we are both safe, so please leave . I’ll discuss matters concerning taxes at a later date . 」
「I’m fine talking about tax matters at a later date . In the first place, it’s not like I expect you to be able to pay if I asked you to do so right now . I’m just making my rounds to wish you all a Happy New Year, so please don’t be too tense . 」
「You have no reason to make your greetings here . Don’t people say the poor have no time to spare? Well, now that you know both of us are fine, you should leave already . The door is over there . 」
However, Gernot wasn’t looking at the door that Ignaz had pointed at . Instead, he was appraising the mountain of rice bags .
「Why are you still here…?」
「Is this rice from the Holy Kingdom? Also known as sassarica rice . You stocked up on something unusual again . 」
The bags had, understandably, caught his eyes . There were identical-looking piles of bags stacked on top of each other, from one wall to the other . How could anyone miss them?
Ignaz wondered whether the bags would contribute to their taxes . It would be a big loss if they were taxed for the rice that they couldn’t even make a profit from .
「So you know about rice?」
「My hometown is in the southern part of the Empire that borders the Holy Kingdom . When I was a child, I used to eat pasta and rice . Risotto and the like were delicious . 」
If that was true, then could Gernot possibly know of any delicious recipes?
Ignaz’s hope was a short-lived one . What was he thinking? Gernot was a tax collector with a heart of stone . A tax collector wouldn’t help him without getting anything from it .
「My goodness, that sounds nostalgic . How about it? Shall I gift you a bag?」
Ignaz said it in jest, but Gernot’s expression darkened .
「Ignaz-san, I hope you know that I’m a tax collector . I am proud of my job . People who don’t know the situation would see this as accepting a bribe in order to accommodate the people subjected to tax collection . Your courtesy is enough . But…」
「But what?」
「Will you be able to sell this much rice in Aitheria?」
Gernot had hit a sore spot . As a tax collector, he had a variety of experiences from dealing with all sorts of people, so he might have had some knowledge about the product .
「Why are you concerned about that?」
Camil covered Ignaz’s mouth from behind . Even though he was called the “Coward” Camil, the nickname was being used less often recently .
「It’s for the purposes of tax collection, of course . If the product doesn’t get sold, there will be many difficulties . I would be troubled if I couldn’t collect taxes from the Eisen Schmidt company, which is my responsibility . 」
「That’s… true . 」
It was about taxes after all . Ignaz wanted to spit at him, but he endured it silently . There was no point arguing here . Figuring out what to do with the rice came first .
「Oh, I do have an idea . 」
「Oh my, the tax collector providing a plan to the people he is collecting from . Could he be trying to trick us into becoming an accessory to a crime?」
Ignaz had intended to pay him back for the sarcasm, but Gernot paid no heed to it .
「There is a shop called Izakaya Nobu . You should ask them for help . 」
「We know about that shop, but…」
In the first place, Ignaz and Camil had decided to purchase the rice because they had eaten the kaisen don from that shop . Naturally, he wanted to sell some of the bags to the shop, but they had way too much rice . Izakaya Nobu couldn’t possibly use it all .
(TL note: kaisen don =sashimi rice bowl)
「The regulars of that shop may be big eaters, but I don’t think even they could eat this much, Gernot-san . 」
Ignaz responded while believing it would be foolish to put any hope in Gernot’s idea .
「The eel bento that became such a craze also came from that store . If you could start a fad, then you might be able to manage, somehow . 」
Gernot’s monocle gave off a suspicious glint .
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