Sign Merigold

11.

Even if the Empire were to crumble into pieces, Lancel wouldn’t care anymore.

The time he lived for the glory of the Empire, the time he fought for the honor of his lord, the time he strived to be remembered as a great hero—all of it had long rotted away, turned to ashes, and vanished.

War. Empire. Rebellion. Emperor. Old ties.

All those things had burned Lancel’s soul, leaving behind only an empty shell. Nothing more, nothing less.

If Marigold hadn’t appeared to him as he languidly drifted through the long years, what would have become of him? What would he be doing now? How would he be living?

Lancel couldn’t even imagine it. He didn’t want to, just as he wouldn’t want to open a foul-smelling pit.

Yes.

The reason he was indulging in such sentimentality now was, of course, because of Marigold.

“Now, we have to take this salt and sell it anywhere we can. If we keep piling it up here, the Imperial Law will surely confiscate it all. If we refuse, we’ll be branded as rebels. We have to dispose of it immediately. Even if we have to sell it at a pittance, it can’t be helped.”

After Viscount Dante posed this question, Marigold, who had been silent for a moment, opened her mouth.

“What if we go to the battlefield and sell the goods?”

Her words caused the Dante Family’s dinner to come to a halt.

“We have enough money and salt, so I’ll gather people and go directly to where the war is happening. If we sell the goods there quickly and come back, wouldn’t that be good? We can sell everything before it’s confiscated. I think we could make quite a bit of money…”

“Ahem.”

Viscount Dante was sparing with his words.

Certainly, it would be profitable. No, perhaps they could amass a fortune that far surpassed anything they had earned until now.

In this era, in this world, the way for merchants to make money was very simple: buy goods where they were cheap and move them to where they were expensive. They repeated this until they died.

A region where war was raging was, in that sense, the land where goods were most expensive. Lancel had already witnessed countless people pulling up in wagons, feeling that money was more precious than life.

If even the trains were paralyzed soon, the price of salt would skyrocket even further.

Salt that would be confiscated if left untouched. The question was whether to safely hand it over at a low price or to take the risk and move it to a place where it could be sold for even a little more. It was a matter of choice.

“It’s too dangerous. No one knows what the situation is like on the battlefield.”

“Please trust me, Head of the Family.”

Marigold thumped her chest.

“Please give me a chance to repay your kindness.”

“I never thought I was doing you a favor, Mary. Wasn’t it mutually beneficial?”

“I don’t think so, my lord. I feel like I’m in debt. Repaying debts is a merchant’s virtue, isn’t it? Please think of it as something for my credibility.”

Twenty-three-year-old Marigold was unwavering. She seemed a little different from when she was fifteen, seventeen, nineteen, or twenty-one.

“I’ll definitely sell the salt and return within a year. Even if we don’t earn as much as expected… it’s better than having it confiscated while we’re holding onto it, right?”

Lancel raised his hand and interjected at that point.

“I’ll go with you.”

“No.”

Marigold immediately shook her head.

“…?”

It was unexpected. He hadn’t anticipated that Marigold would refuse his company first.

“I don’t want to drag my benefactor into something I started. Please trust me, benefactor. I’ll come back with wagons full of gold.”

There was a sense of determination in her eyes.

How presumptuous.

‘I was going to step in because my vacation is ruined anyway.’

Lady Dante and the Viscount, who had been listening quietly, chimed in from the side.

“Yes, you should know that your precious life is valuable. What are you, a knight with no skill, doing trying to meddle?”

“That’s right, Lancel. If the war drags on, we’ll probably be called up anyway. It’s best to wait and not get involved now.”

The two of them were being overly cautious.

Lancel, who had been lazing around at home like a bum, actually had outstanding skill and experience enough to survive on the battlefield.

And the Dante Family being called to the battlefield was, well, something that was bound to happen, but not for at least two years.

Of course.

‘It’s okay since it’s a reset in two years, right?’

They had no way of knowing what Lancel was thinking.

“I’ll bring all the money in this continent. Benefactor. Ehehehe.”

“You’re going to the battlefield, but you’re so carefree.”

“It’s okay.”

Marigold’s smile sparkled across the fireplace.

“I’m originally the type who’s strong in a crisis. I’ve survived several times.”

“That’s right. Thanks to whom?”

“Anyway.”

Marigold subtly approached and took Lancel’s hand. She glanced at Lady Dante. Her mother was drinking from her glass, pretending not to see.

“I’ll send you letters every day, so please reply every day.”

The grip of her hand was strong. It was as if she was trying to make her touch remembered for a long time, intense and desperate.

“Promise?”

“…Okay.”

Hmm.

‘Did I show it a little?’

Lancel felt a slight regret, wondering if Marigold had read his intention to take a ‘vacation.’

Even Lancel wasn’t that heartless.

.

.

.

“Load everything up!”

“Move the heavy stuff inside first!”

“Hey! Take care of your own luggage!”

After a month of preparation, Mary’s Trading Company finally formed a large Grand Caravan.

It was such a grand procession that all the Mercenary in the area flocked to form the escort.

==========

—Special Event Alert!! Marigold’s trading company is starting a ‘Grand Caravan’ today. Countless dangers and difficulties await her in the mountains and fields, hills and ridges, rivers and seas, forests and meadows she will pass through. But to become a tycoon, this much might be worth enduring!

※She has gone from a porter in a trading company to the leader of a Grand Caravan. She is displaying charisma. (Charm, Grace, Sensitivity, Stamina, Sex Appeal UP!!!)

==========

“Letters! Please reply to my letters!”

She waved her hand until she disappeared from view on horseback. She was at the head of the long procession.

Marigold left on her Grand Caravan that day.

12.

The letters started arriving the very next day.

-August 1st. Is this even possible? The wagon wheel broke down on the very first day of departure, God! This is too much! I felt a little comforted when I saw the clear sky as I put the fallen salt back in and set off. Even though we are apart, benefactor and I are under the same sky!

Lancel chuckled and immediately picked up a quill and dipped it in ink.

[August 2nd. Since the wagon wheel is made of a single axle, be careful when turning. There’s no need to look for God, you’re just not skilled enough]

[P.S.: Strictly speaking, we don’t have the same sky because we have different climates. It was cloudy here]

The reply came back a few days later.

-August 4th. I saw homeless people wandering without a home. Would I have become like that someday if it weren’t for benefactor? I shouldn’t be complaining about my butt hurting! Fun fact: If you have jam in your mouth, you won’t be hungry for a long time.

-P.S.: But we are under the same sky! I believe that!

[August 7th. Wouldn’t you have been hanged to death before becoming homeless? And the reason why you’re not hungry when you have jam in your mouth is simply because you’re eating it]

[P.S.: It looks like it’s going to rain, so be careful not to get the salt wet]

What should I say.

It was a strange feeling.

Was it because he hadn’t exchanged letters for hundreds of years? Lancel didn’t find the stories exchanged through a small piece of paper annoying.

On the contrary, it was interesting.

-August 11th. I’m upset, benefactor! Why are you worrying about the salt more than me when it’s raining! But fortunately, our smart trading company members took care of it! A herd of wild boars appeared at dawn two days ago. Since we have plenty of salt, we immediately salted them and made them into meat. Today is a feast!

-P.S.: I’m suddenly curious, why did benefactor go on a trip?

[August 16th. You’re the one who went to sell salt, so of course I have to worry about the salt? Be sure to cook and eat the female wild boars rather than the males. The males really don’t taste good]

[P.S.: In the past, I used up a lot of energy because of a certain woman, so I went on a trip to clear my head]

The time it took for the letters to come and go gradually increased as she moved further away, but strangely enough, there were times when he felt, ‘I think it’ll come today?’

And with a high probability, that was the correct answer. When he glanced at the front of the mansion, a messenger with a letter had arrived as always.

-August 22nd. What are those nobles who demand tolls on roads that aren’t even their territory? When I see people like that after seeing such wonderful people like Head of the Dante Family and benefactor, it makes me angry!

-P.S.: What kind of woman was she? I couldn’t sleep all day yesterday because I was so worried. Please tell me what kind of woman she was. What kind of relationship did you have, what kind of person was she!

[August 29th. You’re still naive. Originally, the road belongs to the person who blocked it. That’s the common sense of this world. If you’re not happy, push through with force. They’ll pretend to lose and clear the road for a procession they can’t handle with their own strength]

[P.S.: Let me just say that she’s a woman I can’t talk about to you]

-September 7th. Ugh! What kind of woman is she that you can’t talk about her! I had barely forgotten, but when you say that, it feels like my hair is falling out again, please don’t do that! I’m sad. But I’ll keep moving diligently. I’ll grill you when I get there!

P.S.: If I go back, would you grant me one wish? It’s nothing big, I got some famous tea leaves from this area. I just want you to drink a cup of it.

[September 16th. What are you trying to feed me?……Omitted]

August passed, then September, October, November…….

Even when winter came and the leaves fell, leaving the trees bare, the letters arrived.

Although the distance the messengers had to travel back and forth gradually increased, eventually taking a month, the letters always found Lancel.

-December 1st. It’s completely winter now, benefactor. Rumors are spreading and salt and supplies are being sold. It’s a big problem because the snow and salt are mixed together! The battlefield is a scary place, but if I focus on making money, I quickly forget about it.

-P.S.: I think I’ll be able to go back soon. I haven’t seen you in so long that I almost forgot what you look like. I’ll come back as a tycoon, so be prepared, benefactor.

Lancel had already read the December letter several times.

The date was well into February. The next letter still hadn’t arrived. Marigold’s news had stopped with this letter.

It was the year she turned twenty-four.

“Hmm.”

Lancel stroked his chin thoughtfully. What should he do?

In any case, this round would end if he just waited one year. Whether Marigold became a tycoon or came back with a huge amount of money, it had nothing to do with him.

If he just lazed around and watched the year pass, the spring breeze would eventually sprout, and lush greenery would come in June.

That was the day he would regress.

Eventually, he would reunite with Marigold again. She would be waiting for him somewhere in this world in some form. As long as she wasn’t dead.

Yes. There was no need to step in.

No one was pushing him. There were no restrictions or obligations. No one told him to. There was no one to blame, no one to remember. Lancel alone could drift through the time that would be completely forgotten, chewing over a fleeting sense of unease.

—Benefactor!

But.

“Young master? Where are you going at this late hour?”

Lancel put on his cloak and mounted his horse. The head butler approached him with a puzzled look.

What should he answer? After thinking for a moment, he smiled faintly and replied.

“To the place where my last memory is.”