Chapter 145 - 145 Welcome Back
Steve returned to the mansion and decided to take Jacob to Mackintosh Land. He wanted to bring him there immediately because Claire would be worried.
Jacob was in the room with Christina and Nancy. If he moved around recklessly, the servants of the mansion might get confused.
Christina saw Steve's face and asked.
"Master Steve, is it over?"
"Yeah. Lumoigne was caught by Lord Sowell, and the cotton market price collapsed. Once I deliver Jacob to Claire, it's done."
"What about my sister-in-law's place?"
"It ended with a net profit somehow. My brother-in-law won't be involved in the market from now on, so that's settled too."
"That is the best news. So, how much is our family's profit?"
"About 300 gold coins from the futures profit. I left the settlement to Emmanuel, so I think he'll handle it well."
Hearing that, Jacob was shocked by the scale of what he had been dragged into.
"T-300 gold coins?"
"Yes. That's all we got."
"That's all?"
He felt the gap between noble and commoner once again.
Then Nancy asked Steve.
"So, what was Lord Sowell's profit?"
"He took over the entire Lumoigne Trading Company. Including the position of merchant for Her Highness Alex. It seems he also agreed to the condition of not participating in the succession struggle."
With the number of gold coins added to the phrase "succession struggle," Jacob's thoughts stopped.
"So, in the end, that woman took all the good parts?"
"Well, yes. But because Lord Sowell made preparations, we were able to recover my brother-in-law's losses. Besides, even if I tried to do the same thing, I would just be overwhelmed by the Lumoigne Trading Company."
"That's true. However, owning a trading company that has connections in the western region, the Empire, the Kingdom of Merda, and even the Royal Capital... how much does she intend to earn?"
Nancy looked at Sowell Land with a dumbfounded expression.
"She is busy just protecting the house she inherited. Oh right, Jacob won't be charged with a crime. At the time of Lumoigne's arrest, it was the real me, so it became unclear whether the one who was with Lumoigne until now was me or Jacob. Also, Jacob never claimed to be Steve Thys Archibalt. In reality, it's somewhere between guilty and not guilty. It's a position that can swing either way depending on my mood. Well, in a society where nobles say someone is guilty, they are guilty, so saying that is meaningless."
Jacob, whose thoughts had stopped, restarted upon hearing the words "won't be charged." He couldn't understand the difficult talk that followed, but he grasped that he had been forgiven.
"So, I'm not guilty, and I can go home?"
"Yes. I'm sending you to Claire's place right now."
"I want to go too."
Christina and Nancy wanted to accompany them as onlookers. Their desire to see the result was strong.
"Then let's all go."
Steve said that, changed into commoner's clothes, and teleported to Mackintosh Land. Nobles standing out in the general district would attract attention, so like last time, he dressed in disguise. From there, they went to the house with Jacob's guidance.
Steve knocked on the door. Then Claire came out from inside.
"Welcome back."
Tears streaming down her face, Claire hugged Steve.
Everyone except Claire looked confused.
Steve gently pulled Claire away.
"Sorry. I'm a different person. Could you try hugging Jacob again?"
"Eh???"
Claire looked closely at Steve again. Upon closer inspection, he was wearing clothes that Jacob didn't have.
"Um, is this Lord Archibalt?"
"Yeah."
"I am terribly sorry. I thought it was Jacob."
Claire, who had stopped crying, blushed and bowed her head. Even Christina and Nancy couldn't get angry at this.
Even though Claire was told to start over, she couldn't hug Jacob due to various feelings of embarrassment.
"Jacob is acquitted. There was no crime."
"Thank you. Wait, did Jacob do something?"
"He was threatened to impersonate me. Well, since the culprit has been caught, you don't need to worry about retaliation. However, people trying to use Jacob's appearance will likely never stop coming."
Claire, who had been happy halfway through, became anxious upon hearing the last sentence.
"This time I failed because I drank alcohol, but there could be kidnappings of family members too."
"What should we do?"
"Talk to Marquess Mackintosh and move your family to my territory. If you are within my sight, I can watch over you responsibly. However, if you want to live in this town, that's fine too. I don't intend to force you."
"Um, I'd like to hear the story about failing because of drinking alcohol."
"Ask him yourself."
Saying that, he looked at Jacob, who looked troubled due to shame. He was desperately thinking about how to explain without getting angry.
In the end, he gave up and spoke honestly.
"While I was worrying so much, I was happily drinking alcohol with some woman somewhere."
Claire glared at Jacob. Steve had no intention of defending Jacob and just watched Jacob bowing his head in apology for a while.
After Claire had vented her anger and calmed down, Steve gave the same explanation.
"You are free to live wherever you want, and you don't have to decide right now."
"No, if there is a possibility that danger will reach my family, I want to move immediately."
Claire made that decision. She wanted to avoid a situation where even small children would be involved.
"Understood. I'll talk to Marquess Mackintosh, and once preparations are ready, we'll move to the Archibalt Territory. For now, let's call it a trip just in case it gets rejected."
While Steve and Claire were talking, Jacob cut in.
He bowed his head, kneeling in seiza before Steve's eyes.
"Thank you. I will never drink alcohol again. I will work seriously."
"Make that promise to Claire, not me."
When someone with the same face bowed like that, Steve felt a strange sensation. And it was very uncomfortable. It was as if he was watching himself apologize.
"Understood. Claire, I won't drink alcohol from now on."
"Really? Is it okay to have a little on your birthday?"
"No, let's not. I don't want to be tricked again and get into a terrible situation."
Watching such a conversation, Steve thought this would be fine. He considered showing an illusion to tempt him but stopped, thinking it would be rude. He decided to trust Jacob's resolve.
After that, he took the matter to Marquess Mackintosh, and the move was approved easily. As for Marquess Mackintosh, he didn't want to take responsibility when a commoner who looked exactly like Steve got involved in a crime.
If he didn't know, that would be one thing, but since he heard the story like this, it was unreasonable to insist he had no responsibility.
Thus, Jacob's family decided to move to the Archibalt Territory. Fortunately, there are plenty of carpentry jobs, so they won't have trouble finding work.
Behind one family being saved, there were families that were not saved.
The House of Parker.
Freya had visited her parents' home with her husband. With the futures market over, a meeting for reflection was held. Since this was a family matter, Brian, the head of the house, sat in the highest seat.
"Then, Sister, here is the profit from the futures."
Saying that, Steve handed 20 gold coins to Freya.
"We managed to make a profit."
"Yes. But I feel like I was just used by Lord Sowell."
"For our family, just not losing anything is a blessing."
Freya accepted the gold coins with a smile. Just as that atmosphere was dispelled, Brian conveyed Aurora's measures to Baronet Parker with a stern face.
"Baronet Parker, I assume you received a message from Lord Sowell, but your orders will no longer be accepted in any way, futures or stocks. As the head of a noble house, I think this is an undignified decision, but do you understand why this happened?"
"Yes. It is the result of my own lack of study."
Baronet Parker also answered with a solemn face.
A notification had already been sent from Aurora, and he knew it himself. Naturally, other nobles would learn of this, and he could predict a great humiliation, but he reflected that it was all his fault.
If he continued to incur losses without any regulations, eventually his territory would be taken away. To avoid that, he decided to accept this measure.
Brian continued.
"Since the loss from futures is gone, will you return some of the money I lent you?"
"Huh? Papa, wait a bit longer. I want to use the money set aside for losses for the reform of the territory."
Freya refused to return it. Hearing that, Abigail's face, and the aura behind her, turned into that of a demon.
"Freya, isn't that a bit too easy?"
"It's nothing. Compared to Sherry, it's cute."
The amount Sherry borrowed from Brian was incomparable. Of course, it was war reparations between nations.
Because there was a bad precedent, Abigail's anger grew.
"Mom, I'm not saying I won't return anything. I intend to keep the original repayment plan."
"If you return it."
When Brian made a sweet face, that became the deciding blow, and the early repayment plan was cancelled. Throughout, Baronet Parker shrank, listening to the Archibalt family's conversation without arguing in particular.
Meanwhile, in the Royal Capital, Her Highness Alex and Count Cutter were having a secret conversation.
"Was it really a good idea to give the entire Lumoigne Trading Company to Lord Sowell?"
Count Cutter regretted the loss of tribute money. But Alex didn't care about such things.
"If asking for such things made her turn into an enemy, it would be better to give up."
"She didn't turn into an enemy, but she didn't become an ally either."
"That's fine. I don't have the power to control her yet. If I brought her in as an ally, the next thing I know, she would take over my faction."
Hearing Her Highness Alex's words without greed, Count Cutter thought he had quite a lot of mental leeway. If it were the Alex of before, he would have tried to increase allies at any cost, but now he had learned to wait. It was easy to see that gaining the rights in the south had a big influence.
"So, this is a time of lying low."
"It will take time to soar. I am deeply regretting my way of living until now."
Alex was deeply regretting having been lazy until now. Looking around, there were countless people active even at a young age: Steve, Sherry and Abel, Evelyn, and Emperor Louis. Compared to those people, he couldn't forgive himself for having no achievements.
And he was calmly grasping that, restraining himself so as not to be anxious.
"By the way, jeans are just right for gardening. Why don't you make a few, Lord?"
Alex changed the subject and recommended the jeans, which were recently popular in the Royal Capital, to Count Cutter.
"No, unfortunately, I have no hobby of gardening."
"I see. Then it can't be helped. However, Lord Archibalt is terrifying. Things he comes up with enter daily life. And before you know it, they are accepted to the point where you can't get along without them. Vacuum flasks, clothespins, railways too. The fact that these parts are being controlled is a threat."
When Alex wore jeans, he had a feeling that this would become a natural thing in a few years. And thinking back, many of Steve's inventions were like that.
Furthermore, the manufacturing and sales are in a state close to a monopoly. If that isn't a threat, what is?
"Then, do you intend to eliminate them someday?"
"Don't be foolish. I cherish my life too. Fighting against those would be better than fighting a dragon."
To Count Cutter's direct question, Alex answered with a denial.
"I just thought I wanted someone who could come up with such ideas under my command."
Alex was worried about how to find such people.
However, Count Cutter did not take Alex's words seriously. Such discrepancies everywhere were also the reason why the Alex faction was not growing.
Thank you always for your typo reports.