The Poorest Duke in History

At last, dark figures emerged one by one in the fading sunset.

Fat Hume was the first to cry out. He cheered excitedly, "Lord Aurelian has returned victorious! Prepare to welcome him!"

The old butler Hume straightened his tie and adjusted his clothes, doing his best to look presentable.

A line of figures on the horizon raced closer. Hume, Will, and the families gradually began to make them out.

They were all searching for the people they wanted to see.

Some nodded and sighed with relief, smiles appearing on their faces. Others furrowed their brows ever more deeply as a growing sense of dread took hold.

A group of strange black warhorses following Aurelian and his party finally reached them.

He swung down from George, handed his sword to a servant waiting nearby, and nodded to Will.

"Thanks for your hard work, Will."

Will was nearly fifty, yet still looked full of energy. He placed one hand over his chest and bowed. "It's my honor, my lord."

"And Hume, I've found a way to solve the problem of the seeds not sprouting."

Fat Hume was overjoyed, his whole body trembling. He hadn't expected his lord to single him out. He hurriedly said, "Thank you so much, my lord. On behalf of those poor serfs, I thank you for your kindness."

Aurelian shook his head and looked toward the people standing behind fat Hume.

When Aurelian arrived, they held their breath, afraid to make the slightest sound.

Still, faint sobs could be heard. Though their owners tried hard to stifle them, they were unmistakable.

The dozen or so bodies laid across the horses behind them could not be hidden. Those who knew the dead soon recognized them.

The knights still on horseback fell silent. Even though they could see their families up ahead, smiling and waving at them, they responded with an unusual silence.

Aurelian felt deeply troubled. This was the first time he had witnessed such a scene of joy and grief intertwined, and he didn't know how to respond.

But he knew he had to learn. Things like this would happen often in the future.

There was no other reason. This was the cruel Frostlands.

Where ice and fire coexisted!

"I'm sorry that parents have lost their sons, wives their husbands, and children their fathers—that you've lost your strongest support. Please forgive me for being unable to do anything for you. Everything I could offer would seem insignificant now. Whether you curse me or wish me ill, I will accept it. But I beg you to remember always: they were heroes of Winter City. Keep that in your hearts, and never forget them for as long as you live."

His voice rang out, authoritative and full of the bearing expected of a great noble. He soon took control of the situation, and everyone present listened intently.

"B-but I... I want... my daddy... to come back."

A little girl dressed in linen clung to her mother's leg, tears in her eyes as she sobbed.

The woman had been covering her mouth to keep herself from crying aloud. When she realized her daughter had spoken, she hurriedly crouched down and covered the girl's ears and mouth with her hands.

The woman looked at Aurelian pleadingly and hastened to apologize.

"I'm sorry, Lord Aurelian. She's still little and doesn't know any better. Please don't hold it against her."

At the woman's pleading apology, Aurelian's expression shifted. The nobles of this world had left the common people with far too poor an impression of them.

Aurelian slowly walked up to the little girl and met her innocent gaze.

Her mother was so anxious she was nearly in tears. It seemed the great noble before them had no intention of letting them go.

But to everyone's surprise, Aurelian crouched down and placed a hand on the little girl's head.

Looking into those innocent eyes, untouched by evil, he spoke as gently as he could.

"Your father has come back. He hasn't left. He'll always protect you and this city. He just can't appear in front of you right now. But I, Aurelian, swear in the name of the Duke of Winter City that one day he'll return and stand before you."

"Really? If you lie, you'll have to swallow a thousand needles, you know."

The girl asked in her childish voice.

"I promise!"

Reassured by the handsome big brother before her, she smiled.

In a child's eyes, everyone kept their promises.

Everyone stared, unable to believe what they were seeing.

Could this young man, who seemed so close to the child, really be a noble who stood high above them?

After comforting the little girl, Aurelian stood and addressed the onlookers around him.

"Everyone, please go home. I'll give the fallen knights a proper burial and pay their families a hundred Star Coins each in compensation."

A hundred Star Coins each as compensation!

Good heavens! Was this a dream?

Why was the death of an elite knight worth so much? A few dozen Sun Gold Coins should have been more than enough.

Aurelian's words once again changed what the knights' families thought of him.

Of course, the knights on horseback already knew, so they weren't surprised.

But Hume, who had heard Aurelian's announcement, went pale with fright. Had he heard wrong? Lord Aurelian intended to pay each family a hundred Star Coins in compensation.

Was he crazy?! Had he even considered Winter City's finances?

Although no merchant caravans passed through here, so they didn't need to buy supplies, Winter City still had to pay its guards and servants. Hiring the town's craftsmen for repairs was another considerable expense.

How could Winter City, which had no income to begin with, afford such reckless spending?

Eleven knights had fallen. At a hundred Star Coins each, that came to eleven hundred Star Coins in compensation.

That was enough to cover Winter City's expenses for ten years!

That's right. Star Coins were merely a unit of account to the wealthy nobles, but Winter City's treasury couldn't afford even that. That was how poor they were.

Hume felt as if all the strength had drained from his body. This job as an administrator was just too difficult.

He didn't dare reveal how little money remained in the treasury. That would be no different from slapping his lord in the face.

So he wiped the sweat pouring down his face and approached Aurelian on trembling legs.

He spoke softly to Aurelian. "My lord, we don't have that much money. Could we perhaps pay them in Sun Gold Coins instead?"

Aurelian's mouth twitched as he looked at Hume, who was staring at him expectantly.

He'd already made the promise. How could he take it back?

Even if he had to grit his teeth, he would come up with those eleven hundred Star Coins!

"All right, it's getting dark. Everyone, hurry home."

The crowd slowly dispersed, each person carrying their own joy or sorrow. Aurelian, meanwhile, wore a troubled expression.

He wondered why he was so poor. He was a duke, for heaven's sake—a powerful duke!

Could he be the poorest duke in history?