Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 62

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 62. Seizing the Opportunity
“The manor seems unusually busy today. Is something happening?”
The woodcutter who had come to sell timber glanced around curiously. The advisor’s subordinate looked up from his money calculations and regarded him briefly.
“No. It’s the same as always.”
“Is that so? Haha….”
A lie. The woodcutter laughed awkwardly and scratched his nose. Ever since the former count died, the number of servants had plummeted, leaving the manor perpetually silent. Even after the advisor and his entourage arrived, there hadn’t been a single day when all the manor’s lights were lit.
But today felt different somehow.
“This wood is a bit damp, isn’t it?”
“It’s wet from the dawn dew. Once the morning sun rises, it dries right away.”
“All together, that’s three copper coins.”
“Thank you.”
The subordinate jotted something down like writing a receipt, then pulled three copper coins from his pocket and handed them over. The woodcutter bowed and was about to leave.
“Wait.”
“Yes?”
“Do you have some time? We’re maintaining the garden right now, and there’s a tree standing stubbornly in the center. If it’s old, we’ll leave it be, but otherwise we’re thinking of cutting it down.”
“Ah, of course! Leave it to me!”
“Follow me.”
At the subordinate’s words, the woodcutter patted his pocket. He’d been planning to head down and have a drink right away, but well, this would work. He might even earn extra compensation for the trouble.
‘So that’s why the manor was so hectic.’
Now that he thought about it, servants who seemed barely visible on normal days were bustling about here and there.
The woodcutter followed the subordinate around the manor’s perimeter. The ground transitioned from weeds to grass. Though he’d lived his entire life in Bratz, this was his first time crossing this boundary.
“It’s this way.”
‘Gasp!’
The moment the woodcutter stepped into the garden, his breath caught. His expectations of flowers, shrubs, and trees arranged beautifully together shattered instantly.
Vegetation planted in neat rows as if running a farm.
The woodcutter, who had pocketed a tidy sum during the gula recruitment, recognized it immediately.
‘…They’re cultivating gula? And they even built a greenhouse for it.’
It was true. The rumors circulating in town were genuine. The subordinate tapped his shoulder with a piece of paper.
“What’s wrong?”
“Ah. I-I’m sorry. What kind of tree is it?”
“This one here.”
While the woodcutter answered the subordinate’s question in detail, his attention remained fixed on the gula field behind them. Meanwhile, Ian, observing from a corridor window overlooking the scene, asked a question.
“How many so far?”
“Five merchants bringing provisions, this is the second woodcutter, the costume workshop and… where was it? Anyway, we easily counted ten people coming and going.”
“Supply provisions?”
“Reduced as you said. Half.”
“Good work.”
At lunch, Ian had outlined two methods of supply.
Using rumors.
And maintaining deliberately lax security.
The key was to stimulate human greed for precious things. With supplies already reduced, the hunger for gulara would only deepen.
“So now I just need to set up some random person to guard it?”
“No. Have Romandro’s subordinates stand watch in shifts. Fully armed.”
It was a slightly different instruction from what I had mentioned before. Berik, who had been looking down at the garden, turned his head to glance at me, but I merely smiled at his gaze.
“In other territories or at the Central, such methods would work. But this estate still lacks an official ruler—it’s an empty domain. If theft and plunder run rampant, it directly affects security and drastically diminishes the quality of life for its people. That, in turn, diminishes the quality of the estate itself.”
The first time is difficult; the second time is easy.
Especially if the manor gets robbed, those people will come to think of theft lightly and will soon be entering their neighbors’ homes as well.
“Then what should I do? Just let them see it?”
“Berik. Worry about yourself instead. You’ll need to wake up early for a while.”
“Huh? Me? Why me?”
At Berik’s question, I laughed and closed my mouth. Then I tapped the window lightly and headed up to my office.
* * *
“Is this the right way?”
“I’m telling you it is!”
“Keep your voice down. The guards will hear!”
Two men approaching the manor under cover of dawn darkness.
With supplies cut and food running out, rumors spread that the manor was full of gulara. With no choice, they had to slip into the darkness to survive.
“Ugh.”
“Damn, this is heavy.”
“Hurry up and lift it.”
The thieves barely managed to scale the tall manor wall. According to what they’d heard, the gulara field wasn’t inside the building but in the outer garden. If they could steal just a few of these precious plants and transport them to the Central, they could shake off this wretched poverty.
“Is… is this it?”
The thieves peeked their heads out and surveyed the garden. It was pitch dark, but they could clearly see that something was planted all over the ground. They began carefully stealing, painting rosy pictures of their future.
“Unbelievable. They brought something worth its weight in gold to the manor without even knowing it. Tsk tsk.”
“Shut your mouth and keep gathering.”
“Should’ve brought another sack.”
While the thieves giggled and pulled up gulara, Romandro’s subordinates sighed as they watched. They’d already caught one and thrown him in the underground prison, and now more thieves show up?
“Hey there!”
“Kyaaah!”
“Aaaahhh!”
As a subordinate lit a cigarette and shouted, the thieves yelped and scrambled. They threw the gulara into the air and bolted across the garden.
“Where do you think you’re going? You’ll wake everyone up.”
“P-please! Please spare us!”
“If anyone hears this, they’ll think I’m the one who broke in.”
But what could they do? Before long, the thieves caught by the scruff of their necks dropped to their knees and desperately begged for mercy. It was as two subordinates were binding the thieves’ arms with rope.
“You’ve all worked hard.”
“Ah. Ian, sir.”
I appeared with Berik, both of us wearing hoods. The thieves hiccupped as they looked up at me. What were those golden eyes that even the darkness couldn’t conceal?
“Did you come to steal?”
“Ah, well, you see…”
“I’m sorry! Food! It’s been so hard to earn enough food that….”
I clicked my tongue softly as I looked at the thieves.
“Wait a moment. How did this happen.”
“Yes?”
“Lock them in the underground prison.”
“Yes, Ian. Will you not be taking an escort today either?”
“No. Berik alone is sufficient.”
I and the manor’s subordinates exchanged words that made little sense to anyone. While the bewildered thieves were dragged away to the underground prison, Berik and I set out from the manor’s main gate.
This was already the second consecutive day of going out.
“Yawn.”
“I told you to get some rest.”
Berik tapped the sack of gula on his back instead of answering. He was making it clear that he was just as busy as I was.
Shortly after, we arrived at a dwelling on the outskirts.
“I heard that household has many children.”
“Is that so? Then let’s go there first.”
Since it was dusk, the lights were off. I stepped into the yard and carefully knocked on the door.
Knock knock.
“Is anyone there?”
Getting no response, I knocked again.
Knock knock.
“Come out for a moment.”
Then a faint light appeared in the window. Soon a man with a hoarse voice from sleep asked back.
“Who is it?”
“It’s Ian.”
“…Who?”
“Ian.”
Creak.
Still half-asleep, he seemed unable to grasp the situation. The door opened quite slowly. Blinking, the man who saw me suddenly widened his eyes and flinched.
“Ian?”
“Shh. You’ll wake the children.”
“Ah, what brings you here?”
He knew who I was, but he never imagined I would know him. And no wonder—the man was merely an ordinary estate villager. It was only natural to be startled when a stranger with no connection spoke of his children.
“Have I, have I done something wrong….”
So it was inevitable that anxious thoughts crossed his mind. As fear flickered across the man’s face, I silently rummaged through Berik’s sack.
Whoosh.
“What, what is this?”
“Gula seeds.”
“Yes?”
A sack of gula seeds.
“It’s not a miracle cure like the rumors suggest, but it is true that the Advisor enjoys eating them, and they are indeed delicious and nutritious. For now, the manor strictly controls their distribution, but soon I will release them freely throughout the estate. I continue to petition the Advisor about this. Until then, endure well, and should any of your neighbors desire them, share generously.”
“I-Ian!”
“Since you have many children, I’m giving this to you first. You have plenty of other places to go, so you won’t be able to stay long. You know we only eat the seeds, yes?”
“O-of course. Everyone in the estate knows that by now.”
“Just taste a bit, then plant the rest. One seed produces more than ten gula.”
What kind of midnight gift was this! The man nodded repeatedly in gratitude. As I patted his shoulder and stepped into the courtyard, he followed me out, bowing continuously.
“Thank you so much!”
“You’ll wake the whole neighborhood.”
Shh! At my words, the man quickly covered his mouth. As I disappeared into the darkness, he carefully made his way back inside. The faint lamplight suddenly blazed brightly.
“…Ian. You’re truly incomprehensible sometimes.”
“I understand you perfectly. You look like you want to collapse into bed this instant.”
Berik rubbed his tired eyes. Distributing gula in the middle of the night, wandering around doing it himself no less. I understood what Berik couldn’t.
“While the Imperial Palace’s messengers monopolize and cultivate gula, supplies dwindle. Tonight they were surely worried about the harshness of winter. But if I distribute gula like this, how will it appear to them?”
Like a blessing sent by the heavens. Then they’ll feel gratitude, and that gratitude will translate into support for me.
“Ugh. I’m exhausted.”
“Move quickly. Next is where the children are. Rumors spread fastest through children anyway.”
There were solitary homes like the large family’s house, but the red-light district where my mother Philia lived had blurred boundaries.
“What’s going on? You’re not sleeping at night?”
“Mom, mom. Ian came by?”
“What? Why is Ian here?”
“He’s giving out gula! Gula!”
Since many people here lived inverted schedules, it was far noisier than elsewhere. I distributed the gula I’d brought while whispering a stern warning to the children.
“This is scarce even for Bratz’s people, so never give it to outsiders. Understood?”
“Yes! Can I eat some now?”
“I want some too!”
“Go ahead. Line up. I have more.”
I patted each child’s head as they eagerly took the gula, exchanging greetings with them.
A certain man had been secretly following Berik and me.
Whoosh.
He confirmed that we returned to the manor as the dawn moon set. After waiting some time, he too entered the manor, arriving at the annex where Mollin’s group stayed.
Creak.
“You’re back?”
“Yes.”
The man was Dgor. He threw his hood onto the bed with an incredulous laugh. Mac, who hadn’t slept all night waiting, pressed him for details.
“What were you doing going out in the middle of the night?”
“Distributing gula. Very openly at that.”
“What?”
At Dgor’s words, Mac sipped his wine. Mollin, sitting by the window, also laughed.
“That fellow… has a reckless side.”
Surely Romandro hadn’t omitted Ian’s name when reporting the gula discovery. He was the type to secure both the Imperial Palace’s favor and the estate villagers’ support without missing anything.
“It seems he’ll be going out at dawn with only Berik for a while.”
At Dgor’s words, Mollin turned his sunken eyes. It was the perfect opportunity to seize Ian’s throat under the cover of darkness.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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