Ransom

Two days later, a meeting was held on the border of the Barony of Cleveland.

A wooden table was set up on the grass. Velin and the wife of Brandon sat on opposite sides. Brandon's eldest son, Leobel, stood behind his mother. The accompanying guards stood about ten meters away, warily observing each other.

The middle-aged noblewoman sat elegantly in her chair. Her every movement exuded nobility. Although there were some wrinkles on her face, one could still glimpse how beautiful she must have been in her youth.

In contrast, Velin was much less formal, doing whatever felt comfortable.

"My lord, what are your terms?"

Her voice was pleasant, causing Velin to look at the noblewoman a few more times.

"Five hundred female serfs, three thousand gold coins, one hundred and twenty thousand catties of grain, and twenty draft oxen. I will release Sir Brandon. As for the other captured knights and soldiers, there will be a separate price."

The middle-aged noblewoman looked at the young man who was making such an exorbitant demand, doing her best to suppress her anger.

Leobel, standing beside her, lacked such composure. Anger contorted his face as he exclaimed, "Why don't you just rob us?"

Velin smiled slightly and replied, "Robbing? Isn't that what we're doing right now?"

"You..."

"Leobel, be quiet." The middle-aged noblewoman turned and reprimanded him sharply.

Hearing his mother's words, the young man immediately deflated. He lowered his head, not daring to say another word.

Seeing her son quiet down, the middle-aged noblewoman regained her composure. She opened her mouth slightly and said, "My lord, you are asking for too much."

"No, I believe this is the value of Sir Brandon. Or perhaps, in your eyes, your husband is so worthless? Or perhaps you..."

"That's not the issue. We are discussing the ransom," the middle-aged noblewoman quickly retorted, extricating herself from the verbal trap Velin had set.

"Alright, let's discuss the ransom then." Velin leaned back in his chair and said casually, "Madam, you wouldn't want to lose your husband and become a widow, would you?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"What do I mean? It's simple. The wilderness is full of dangers. Look at how many guards I need when I travel, let alone Sir Brandon, who is unarmed."

"My lord, if that is the case, then there is no point in continuing this negotiation." The middle-aged noblewoman stood up and looked down at Velin. "If anything happens to Brandon, the Barony of Cleveland will be your sworn enemy."

"Is that so?"

Velin remained seated, smiling at the middle-aged noblewoman.

"I hope that in half a month, you will still be the one negotiating with me here, my beautiful lady."

"You..."

Looking at the young man's smile, the dignified middle-aged noblewoman felt extremely vexed, as if she had been completely outmaneuvered.

After a moment of internal struggle, the middle-aged noblewoman sat down again.

She knew that her weakness had been grasped by the other party. If this dragged on, the lord of the Barony of Cleveland would change hands within a month.

After twenty minutes of continuous debate, the middle-aged noblewoman finally compromised.

Leobel, standing beside her, glared at Velin, his heart filled with anger. However, bound by his mother's authority, he could only suppress it.

Five hundred female serfs, three thousand gold coins, one hundred thousand catties of grain, and twenty draft oxen were set as Brandon's ransom.

For one knight, the ransom required twenty serfs and two draft oxen.

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For one soldier, the ransom required five serfs and one hundred catties of grain.

In total, the Barony of Cleveland would have to deliver eleven hundred serfs, three thousand gold coins, one hundred and ten thousand catties of grain, and thirty-eight draft oxen to Lake of Star Prayer.

Finally, the middle-aged noblewoman picked up the pen and, with a deep sense of humiliation, signed her name on the contract.

This time, the Barony of Cleveland had suffered a significant loss, with fifteen percent of its total assets gone. This was the fortune her husband and his father had built over eighty years.

"Very well, Madam. In three days, we will conduct the transaction here, and you will see your husband, Sir Brandon."

Velin collected the contract and left with his men.

Watching their "enemy" depart, Leobel said resentfully, "Mother, this is a betrayal of Father. He will not allow you to do this."

"You."

Seeing his mother raise her hand, Leobel simply closed his eyes, but did not flinch away.

The middle-aged noblewoman, seeing this, slowly lowered her raised right hand.

After an unknown amount of time, Leobel opened his eyes. He looked at his mother, who was walking away, then turned to look with humiliation at the retreating back of Velin. He mounted his horse and followed the procession.

On the way back, Belder rode up, saying excitedly, "My lord, we've made a huge profit this time! With so much, the castle's construction progress will be greatly accelerated."

"Even so, before true stability is achieved, we still have a battle to fight," Velin replied, looking out at the silent wilderness.

"My lord, you are referring to... Brandon."

Velin glanced at Belder upon hearing this and replied, "You're half right. We also need to deal with the surrounding territories. If we subdue them this time, excavating the Mithril Ore will be much smoother."

"Why is that?" Belder asked, scratching the back of his head in confusion.

"How about we poison Brandon during the transaction? He'll die a few days after returning. Your subordinate knows a poison that can achieve this."

Velin refused without a second thought. "No, such despicable methods would easily make us a target in Cadro Province, and even the entire kingdom."

"My Lord, since that plan won't work, how will we deal with the combined forces of several territories with the troops we have?"

"You don't need to worry, I have my own plan."

Velin reassured Belder, telling him to calm down and just follow orders.

After returning to the camp, Velin wrote a letter and handed it to a knight, instructing him to travel over two hundred kilometers to the Ridge Territory and deliver the letter to his cousin, Brian.

A few days later, at the border of the Barony of Cleveland, the exchange of ransom and personnel went smoothly, with no conflict occurring between the two sides.

Upon returning to the castle, Brandon had the steward invite several surrounding nobles to discuss important matters.

Meanwhile, Velin, with over a thousand people and numerous supplies, returned to the Lake of Star Prayer, preparing to re-plan the territory's construction and get ready for the upcoming battle.

First, two hundred strong men were selected from the captured and traded serfs. They were handed over to a knight at the Lake of Star Prayer for training, with the goal of having them ready for deployment in a few days.

In addition, three hundred people were allocated to the half-elf girl Eunice to supplement the insufficient manpower for castle construction.

Finally, the remaining people were put under the management of another knight stationed at the Lake of Star Prayer, who was responsible for the farmland, river channel leveling, and lumberjacking.

The next morning, as soon as Velin woke up, Orlando excitedly ran over to deliver the good news.

"My Lord, the task you assigned to the artisans has been completed."

Velin, still groggy, immediately became energized and said excitedly, "Quick, take me there."