Chapter 160: |
“Ahhh! Lota! Kingdom of Lota! Hahahahahaha! I’m sorry, I’ve been busy tending to the affairs of the Kingdom lately….”
“It’s okay.”
Otto wiped a tear from his eye with his sleeve and forced a smile.
‘I can’t criticize the customer.’
Sultan Abdul II is a very big hand.
A water source that if played right, could bring enormous economic benefits.
Even a tiny country in the remote corners might slip his memory.
‘Sobs’
“From now on, our Caliphate and the Kingdom of Lota are bonded as brotherly nations!”
“King Otto, you are the I….”
“If you don’t mind, I would like to address you as a big brother.”
Otto stroked Sultan Abdul II’s ego.
“Kahahahaha!”
Sultan Abdul II laughed heartily.
“Is that true? Kahahha!”
“Yes, Sultan.”
“Very well, then from now on, The Kingdom of Lota is the younger brother of our Caliphate, and I will be your elder brother, as well!
“Okay, Elder Brother.”
Otto bobbed his head.
“Oooh!”
“Even a country a thousand miles away looks up to our Sultan!”
“Great! He is our great Sultan!”
The people of Al-Salam, seeing this, were filled with patriotism and looked at Abdul II with admiration.
This made Abdul II feel even more pleased.
He couldn’t have asked for a better way to have had his itch so thoroughly scratched by Otto.¹
The initial encounter was a great success, although there was a small and unpleasant hiccup when Abdul II forgot the name of his own kingdom.
“Now, King Otto, or should I say little brother now, Kahahha!”
“Yes, Elder Brother.”
“Come on, you have come a long way, and are standing here at the gates way too long, let us go!”
“Is it really possible?”
Otto smiled outwardly, but inwardly he scowled and grumbled.
‘It’s a damned thing to leave in front of the palace. You did it on purpose. You’re such a bastard.’
Otto knew exactly what Abdul II was thinking.
In fact, the reason Abdul II had traveled all the way to the palace entrance was not because he was appreciative of Otto’s services.
This was all a political show with a hidden motive.
Otto understood that and was able to play along.
Thus, they entered the palace.
“Are you all right?”
Camille whispered in Otto’s ear.
“Huh?”
“I was just wondering if you might have gotten your pride hurt.”
“Eh.”
Otto snorted.
“My pride doesn’t matter in the face of the national interest.”
“…Your Majesty.”
“There’s nothing for me to gain by showing off in a country so far away, anyway, though Sultan Abdul II might have something to gain. And…”
Otto smirked.
“There’s no pride in money, I’ll lie flat on my back and crawl like a dog if you give it to me.”
“What…?”
“Money, money, mon…. ey.”
For a moment, Camille was taken aback by how Otto’s eyes looked like gold coins.
‘So it’s all about money.’
Camille shook his head, regretting that he had been worried about Otto’s pride for a moment.
Meanwhile.
‘I can’t see him.’
Otto grimaced as he searched and looked, but Saladin was nowhere to be seen.
“He must have gone to his father, Abdul II, and begged him to stop the war, and earned his displeasure.
It was clear enough for him to figure out what had happened.
‘Hang in there….’
Otto was disappointed, but there was nothing he could do about it, so he swallowed his bitterness and followed Abdul II to the palace.
* patreon.com/SchattenTranslations *
* ko-fi.com/99viciouslordnovel *
Abdul II was a powerful ruler who took great pride in his personal power.
As such, his ambition for great achievements was great, and he was very prone to public appearances.
In other words, he was willing to do whatever it took to make himself look good, as long as it was done in the most favorable light.
Otto knew this all too well, and was confident that he would have a private meeting with Abdul II.
‘Still, I shouldn’t overplay my hand. This is a seasoned fox.’
Otto wasn’t confident.
Abdul II was prone to vanity and showmanship, but he was not a fool.
A ruler on the verge of establishing an absolute dynasty couldn’t be an idiot.
The fact that Abdul II had come to the front of the palace right away to make a political move proved that he was no slouch.
“So, little brother.”
Abdul II spoke in a laid-back tone as he sat in the throne room.
A demeanor that was clearly meant to put Otto down.
But Otto was unfazed and waited patiently for Abdul II to finish.
“I hear you’ve traveled all this way to make a deal with me.”
“Yes, elder brother.”
“And what trade do you wish to make?”
“That is….”
Otto paused for a moment, then spoke.
“I’m here to sell you some artifacts from the early days of the Krares Empire.”
“Artifacts from the early days of the Krares Empire… I’m sorry to say, but I have plenty of those. I own some very prized artifacts.”
Sultan Abdul II looked a bit sullen, as if his interest had waned.
But Otto was not discouraged.
“What if those artifacts were from the tomb of the Great Emperor Argonne?”
“The Tomb of the Great Emperor Argonne… Argonne the Great… What?!”
Abdul II’s eyes bulged wide.
“Y-You mean the Emperor Argonne? The Argonne the Great, the first emperor of the Krares Empire?”
“Yes, elder brother.”
Otto flashed a smile.
“These are the personal belongings that were buried in the Tomb of Argonne the Great.”
“I-Is that really true!”
“How could I lie to you, Elder Brother, and I’ll show them to you right now if you’d like.”
“Come on, show me! Please do me a favor!”
At the mention of the Emperor Argonne’s treasures, Abdul II’s eyes went completely glazed over.
The relics of the Krares Empire were still readily available, but the items that belonged to the Great Argonne would not even be available for purchase even for a billion dollars.
“I’ll show you where our cargo is.”
“Alright.”
Abdul II rushed to where the Kingdom of Lota’s cargo was stored, and showed the artifacts on the wagons.
His reaction was telling.
“Oooooh! Ooooooooooh!!”
Sultan Abdul II, who had always had a hobby of collecting antiques, recognized the value of the artifacts brought by Otto at first glance.
“This pattern… this form… this style of art is from the early days of the Krares Empire… all handcrafted by dwarves of the highest skill… Heh, Hehehehe.”
“What do you think?”
“It’s magnificent! Absolutely magnificent! More beautiful than any artwork I’ve ever seen in my life! And the rarity of these artifacts! Is there any other ruler in this world who enjoys the privilege of admiring such treasures, besides me, Abdul?”
“Of course there is not.”
At this moment, Otto decided to echo Abdul’s sentiments.
“As soon as I got my hands on these artifacts, you were the first person I thought of.”
“Is that true?”
“Indeed, the Caliphate is the greatest empire in the world. Who else but my Elder Brother could afford to purchase such artifacts?”
“Hmmm, my brother is right a hundred times over! Heheheh! the only one who can buy these artifacts is me!”
Suddenly, Abdul II’s term of address for Otto had been upgraded from “little brother” to “my brother”.²
“Oh, and.”
Otto added.
“I also brought a lot of fine liquor, tobacco, and salt this time….”
The fine liquor, tobacco, and salt mentioned here were, of course, looted from the Argonne’s smuggling ships.
Of course, the artifacts shown here were also plundered.
“Don’t worry about that, I’ll buy them for ten times the market price!”
“Is that true, Elder Brother?”
“My brother is the one selling it, so who am I to undercut the price? I’ll buy it for you without tariff, so don’t worry about it.”
“I’m truly grateful for your graciousness.”
Otto was honestly dazed and lost for words.
The promise of a tariff-free buyout at ten times the price was a staggering one for Otto.
The money he’d made from robbing the smuggling ships alone was worth a fortune.
“But how did you get your hands on these ornaments? Could it be…”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Otto nodded.
“I personally unearthed them.”
“Y-You mean you found the tomb of the Great Emperor Argon? By yourself?”
“Yes. How else would I have been able to acquire the personal possessions of the Great Argonne and bring them here?”
“Huh! What!?”
Abdul II was astonished to hear Otto’s words.
‘Yeah, that’s right. I went through all that trouble and hardship to come this far.’
Otto was very proud of Abdul II’s enthusiastic reaction.
He felt like all his hard work had been worth it.
“I’d love to hear about your adventures.”
“I would be happy to tell you.”
Otto replied with a smile.
“I look forward to it. I’m sure it will be a most interesting adventure.”
“Will it really be?”
“By the way.”
Abdul II interjected.
“So how much do you intend to sell this brother of yours these items that belonged to the Great Argonne?”
And so the negotiations began.
* patreon.com/SchattenTranslations *
* ko-fi.com/99viciouslordnovel *
On the other hand, Elise, who had departed from the Gurling Archipelago, had reached the Northern Wall in the barest minimum of time.
Though it was a long journey, spanning half the continent, it didn’t matter to Elise.
As one of Providence’s chosen ones, she was able to travel at nearly the speed of light whenever she headed north, propelled by an unknown force.
“You made it.”
“Yes, Grandfather.”
Giancarlo, the Grand Duke of the North, greeted Elise as he returned from his round of inspections.
“You have taken a leave of absence, have you not?”
“Yes.”
“Are you returning from meeting my brother’s grandson?”
“Yes.”
“How was this meeting?”
“My fiancé is….”
Elise thought for a moment, then smiled.
“It’s going well.”
“Oh?”
Giancarlo was surprised to see the faintest hint of a smile tugging at the corners of Elise’s usually ice-cold and impassive expression.
‘Hehehe, I knew this kid would make such an expression! Hehehe! There’s no doubt that my brother’s grandson is the one!’
Giancarlo, who had practically given up on giving Elise away in marriage, couldn’t have asked for a better arrangement.
‘I will somehow get him to marry our Elise, and make him my son-in-law. Brother, do you think I, Giancarlo, will let go of your grandson?’
Giancarlo clenched his fists and vowed that he would somehow make Otto his grandson.
“Come, let’s have a nice cup of tea with your grandfather. I’d like to hear your story.”
“Yes, Grandpa.”
Giancarlo sat Elise down and prodded her for details of what had happened.
“Did he? Really, did he? Hehehehe!”
Giancarlo was very happy to hear Elise’s story.
It seemed a bit rambling, but that was to be expected at his age.
He couldn’t stop his cheekbones from rising as he listened to the story of his granddaughter Elise and his soon to be son-in-law Otto.
“So, he went to the Kingdom of Caliphate?”
“Yes, Grandpa.”
“Heh. The Caliphate. Will that be all right?”
“I don’t know what you mean….”
“Didn’t he say he went to see the Sultan?”
“Yes.”
“What if he ends up going to the Sultan’s harem?”
“Harem… What are you talking about?”
“Do you not know what a harem is?”
“I had not heard of them, as my stay there was short.”
Elise blushed.
A lifetime spent with nothing but a sword had left her with little knowledge….
“The term harem means….”
Giancarlo had told Elise about the rumors of the harem that had spread across the continent.
Giancarlo himself had never been to a harem, but….
“That’s why I’m so worried about the young man. What if the Sultan takes him to a harem…….”
And then.
“Hmm?”
Giancarlo said, suddenly realizing something.
Because….
‘Huh.’
His granddaughter was nowhere to be seen.
Just a moment ago, she had been listening to the stories about the harem, and now she was gone.
** ** **
TL/N:
1. Think of the relationship between a Crocodile and plover birds relationship, or cow and bird commensalism symbiotic relationship.
2. 동생 (dongsaeng) = This term refers to a sibling who is younger than you.
우리 동생 (uri dongsaeng) = “우리” (uri) means “our” in Korean.
When you use “우리 동생”, you emphasize the shared relationship with your sibling. It implies a sense of closeness and mutual ownership within the family.
(Basically just think of when a Parent has a child, when that Child did a bad thing they would often say the reason why the child is unruly/brat/spoiled is because they inherit that from the other side’s personality. Whereas when said Child did something great like getting good grades in school they would often say “As expected of my child” etc.)