"My lord, why did we just give them so much money?" Dismas rode beside him, noticing that the money given just now far exceeded the city entrance tax.
"If you don’t give it to them, they’ll delay you by searching through the goods for half a day. If you encounter greedy ones, they’ll find an excuse to confiscate your goods. In the end, you still have to pay, and even more so. Giving them money now at least leaves a good impression. The cost of dealing with a small squad leader and a bureaucrat is not the sa."
Lance said faintly, encapsulating the intricacies, which were all relayed to him by Walter.
Otherwise, how would an ordinary person like him have such experience?
"Let’s go; we need to settle down quickly. Everyone needs to rest." Lance wasted no ti and hurriedly looked for a place to stay.
「...」
Inside the Walter Conglorate’s quarters, an argunt was erupting.
"York! You actually betrayed us!" The woman roared at the man before her, "How can you justify this to the trust my father placed in you? When have we ever wronged you in our household?"
"Miss, I did it to save the boss. Lord Gene said that as soon as you marry him, he’ll imdiately mobilize n to rescue the boss from Hamlet."
York, hearing these words, showed not the slightest guilt. Instead, he put on a smile; it seed he had learned all the tricks of a rchant.
"Impossible! Go back and tell that fellow to give up any such notion. The affairs of the Walter family are not his concern." The woman slamd her hand on the table and glared angrily.
She wasn’t like those foolish won. She was well aware that those n weren’t really thinking about saving anyone; they just wanted to swallow the Walter Conglorate whole.
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Even if her father were still alive, all she would receive after marrying into that family would likely be his corpse.
"Miss, you should think this through. With the boss missing and rumors spreading that he died at the hands of bandits, without Lord Gene’s help, I fear you won’t be able to handle the conglorate’s troubles." York’s smile turned nacing, his tone ostensibly a reminder but in actuality a threat.
"Hmph! No matter what troubles we at the Walter Conglorate face, they have nothing to do with him, Gene. And now, they have nothing to do with you either, since you’ve been expelled from our group! Get out!"
The woman had heard those rumors too. She had dispatched teams to search, but all had failed. She knew her father was most likely dead.
Yet, she couldn’t afford to show any weakness; she still had her mother and younger brother to look after.
On the contrary, she had to be even tougher, or she wouldn’t be able to protect the property her father had left behind from those greedy wolves.
"So the warehouse is empty now, huh? What will you use to fulfill orders? Failing to deliver incurs a hefty fine. Do you know how much?"
York’s smile carried a hint of mockery. He had been one of Walter’s right-hand n, qualified to be involved in most matters, and knew the conglorate’s ins and outs like the back of his hand. Now, with just a few words, he’d pierced the facade of the woman’s bravado.
With her deepest vulnerabilities exposed, the woman was left speechless. Her face turned cold as she fell into silence.
But York seized on this vulnerability, aware of the real issues the conglorate faced, and continued his deadly assault.
"Furthermore, the boss took most of the manpower with him on his last trip. If we leave, the Walter Conglorate will dissolve by tomorrow."
He looked around at the other mbers present, tempting them, "Lord Gene said the terms would remain the sa if you go to him. Everyone knows the current situation. Staying here isn’t a good choice."
The other conglorate mbers inevitably began to waver. For the conglorate founded by Walter himself, if Walter were still alive, they would have trusted that any difficulty could ultimately be resolved and would have been willing to strive for it.
But now that the boss was dead, it was hard for them to believe the young miss could lead them out of this slump. In this era, even if she perford well enough, a woman’s status was always a problem.
It had not been questioned before because Walter had backed her, but now the issue had co to the fore.
Moreover, with York’s words, although Walter had been good to them, no one wanted to tie themselves to a sinking ship. They were wavering; they had wavered.
"Miss, York’s right. You should just..."
The woman suddenly looked at another man in astonishnt, clearly not expecting the Guard Captain she had promoted to also defect.
"Bill! Have you forgotten? When your son was gravely ill, it was Father who spent a fortune to have a Priest save him! We’ve never even asked you to repay that money!"
The Guard Captain nad Bill appeared sowhat embarrassed upon hearing this. He didn’t say much but began to move his feet to stand behind York, his stance making his decision clear without needing to utter a word.
"Hahaha!" York, seeing this, beca more arrogant. He threatened those remaining with venom, "You all better think carefully! When the conglorate falls, you’ll have no chance to leave even if you want to!"
With one person taking the lead, more and more from the remaining group went over, leaving only a few with conflicted expressions. After all, Walter had been good to them, and abandoning the conglorate at this ti was sothing they couldn’t bring themselves to do.
Witnessing this scene, the woman felt a surge of sorrow. Her father’s hard-built legacy was finally collapsing in her hands. At that mont, she truly lost the will to fight and gestured towards the few who remained.
"You all should go too."
The few remaining exchanged looks, realizing the conglorate was on the brink of collapse.
"Who wants to leave?"
At that mont, a voice broke the strange atmosphere in the room. Everyone looked over and discovered a stranger who had appeared in the hall without them noticing.
"Who are you? Do you know where this is..." one of them stepped forward, aiming to rebuke the newcor, but was completely ignored.
"I don’t think I’m in the wrong place. This is the Walter Conglorate’s base, isn’t it?" Lance walked up, self-assuredly surveying the hall. He asked with curiosity, acting as if he owned the place.
"What’s going on here? What are you all doing?"
York sensed sothing was off. He should have been familiar with anyone connected to the caravan, but this man was soone he had never seen before.
"Friend, this is an internal matter of our conglorate. Don’t you think it’s a bit inappropriate for you to interfere?"
"If it were any other matter, I wouldn’t bother," Lance replied, not flustered in the least, his gaze revealing a hint of amusent.
"Friend, paths are made by walking. There’s no need to offend people over a failing conglorate, especially since Lord Gene could be..."
"So, you’re threatening , eh?" Lance interrupted him with a languid comnt before he could finish speaking.
When York looked up, he saw the man’s casual smile had faded. His face turned cold, and his sharp, terrifying gaze trendously increased the pressure on York.
Having traveled far and wide for so many years, he had only ever felt such an aura from those who held high positions. Who exactly was this man?
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