Chương 408: 403. Kirnos - III

Levalas grinned.

"Yeah. I can't tell too much about it—mainly because I don't even know enough about that project anyway—but let's just say sewing skills are going to be in demand by the baron himself."

"Sewing skills being in demand by the baron?" Juhibi frowned.

"Huh? I've heard the village has a new baron, but I don't get it. Is he a tailor too?" Levalas laughed loudly.

"No, not at all. But trust me, as a skilled seamstress you won't have any problem earning a better living than you do here. If you don't mind me asking, how much do you make here every month?" Juhibi hesitated for a moment, then shrugged.

"Not as much as you'd think. It used to be better a few years ago, but these months I usually earn around 3 to 4 gold every month after expenses for the raw materials. I do have some savings left from... Joric's sacrifice, which I've been dipping into."

"Hmm... That's what... 10 to 13 coppers a day?" Levalas snorted.

"Hah! From what I've heard, the baron is willing to pay 20 to 25 coppers a day—if not even higher—to any skilled craftsman. Or woman. He doesn't discriminate between genders, as weird as it may be for you to hear. Since you're a seamstress, which is something that interests the baron a lot these days, you will likely be at the upper end of that range. And that's what he's willing to pay you to work for him full-time, that means it will be pure profit for you.

Of course, you always have the choice to just work independently as a seamstress, but you still have an option to earn at least that much." Juhibi's eyebrows rose again.

"25 coppers a day... That can reach above seven gold per month! I've never earned that much in my life... Even when the times were good and Joric was here to help me, we barely made five gold every month in profit. Six gold was an exceptional month. But I can earn more than that every month in Tiranat?"

"I can't give you any guarantee," Levalas shrugged, "but, if your skills are good, then yeah. And that's only a start, of course. At the rate Tiranat is growing, we will likely double in population in a year, or even earlier. That means double the customers for you. You can even hire your own apprentices to help you at that time. So 25 coppers a day is only a start." Juhibi stared at him for a moment before she exhaled.

"All that sounds too incredible to be true..."

"Well, Joric believes in at least some of that, which is why he told me all those private memories to convince you to come with me. It's still your choice whether to stay here or move to Tiranat, but you have to consider that your savings won't last forever. If—or rather, when —Lanidas becomes the baron after his father retires, he might very well ask you to pay more money to continue your lease. The baron's word is basically the only law in his village, after all. And that will only be a start."

"But he can't do that!" Juhibi protested.

"It'll be against the law!" Levalas snorted.

"Officially, he'll be in the wrong, yeah. But can you really afford to travel to Cinran with your young daughter to complain to the Count about it? Cinran is like a week's journey from here on a wagon. And even then, do you really think a bastard like Lanidas will let you go freely to complain against him? Most likely, he'll send thugs after you to force you to back down before you even reach the town. Without any male member in your family, and a little kid, it will be you who will have to yield first."

He shrugged.

"My suggestion, you come with me to Tiranat. Lord Kivamus—the baron of Tiranat, who's often called as the savior of Tiranat by the locals—is a far better noble to work under than the thugs who run this village. Or Cinran, for that matter. Trust me, I'm speaking from experience here. And even if living in Tiranat doesn't work out for the better, you'll still have the money from this shop as well as your husband at your side to decide what to do with your future.

I'd say that that's still a far better life than being harassed by the young master here. Or worse..." Juhibi finally took a seat at one of the chairs.

"If you're not lying—and I don't think you are—Tiranat does seem like it'd be a better place to live, especially if Joric is already there." She frowned.

"But you haven't told me how he's free now. Did he escape from the clay mines?" Her expression tightened.

"I don't know much about Torhan, but I've heard he's a vengeful bastard. He'll never stop coming after Joric, since he can't possibly let a slave go free, on principle." She looked at her daughter and pulled her closer.

"What if he attacks Tiranat? He'll easily burn the place down! Torhan is very powerful, you know? Even Baron Farodas keeps good relations with him so he wouldn't attack us." If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. Levalas couldn't stop himself from laughing again, and this time it took him a while to calm down.

"What?" Juhibi frowned.

"What did I say that was so funny?"

"Firstly, the reasons for your baron keeping good relations with that... bastard... are probably different than you think." Levalas waved it off.

"Anyway, that's not the important thing. You fear Torhan will attack Tiranat? That it's a dangerous place for you and your kid to live?" Juhibi nodded uncertainly. Levalas grinned.

"What if I told you it's already happened?"

"Wait, what?" Juhibi stiffened.

"You mean Tiranat is already burnt down? Then everything you've said so far was a lie!"

"Of course not!" Levalas shook his head.

"I mean Torhan has already attacked Tiranat with nearly his full strength, and the village— my village —is still standing just fine. That bastard and his men couldn't even come close enough to touch our village's walls."

"But… but how could that be?" Juhibi stared at him.

"Torhan must have dozens of men working for him!"

"Actually, he has even more. Or at least, he used to have." Levalas grinned.

"Now they're right where they belong—six feet under the ground. Torhan is still alive, though. For now."

"For now?" Juhibi frowned.

"What do you mean?" Levalas gave a dangerous smile.

"Let's just say, if things go well, then your family won't have to worry about Torhan by the time you reach Tiranat. Our village is strong, and we don't let unprovoked attacks on us go unpunished. I really can't say anything more about it right now..." Juhibi stared at him for a moment, like she was making a decision, before she smiled for the first time.

"I think I get what you mean… Tiranat has a new baron—probably a son of the Duke according to the rumors. Joric has escaped, and Torhan attacked your village but most of his men are dead, with hardly any losses on your side, since they couldn't even reach your walls. And you don't let attacks on your village go unpunished..."" Oops... Guess I said too much." Levalas smirked, knowing he had said exactly what he wanted to say. Juhibi laughed.

"How much time do I have to decide?" Levalas shrugged.

"The sooner the better. It won't be easy to sell your house and shop, and the more time you get for that, the better price you'll receive. If you need help in that, then let me know the names of any few locals who might be willing to buy your lease and I'll negotiate with them in your place, and I'll get you the best price possible."

"Why are you going that far to help me?" Juhibi asked.

"You don't even know me...."

"Eh... Don't think of me as a benevolent priest of the goddess who just wants to do good in the world... I'm only following orders. You'll know more when you meet your husband." The young woman looked at the amulet for a while, then at the confused face of her daughter. After a moment, she gave a firm nod.

"Fine. Life in Tiranat may not be as wonderful as you claim, but I guess it can't be any worse than here. You may not know it, but my sales have been going down continuously. These days I barely sell enough to feed the both of us, even in good months." Levalas nodded slowly. He knew the situation wasn't good even in bigger places like Cinran either, since the rising food prices had taken away any surplus purchasing capacity from the people, which would be used to buy new clothing and such.

But looking at the pretty woman sitting in front of him, and knowing what Joric had told him, it was also possible that Lanidas or his thugs had a hand in this. The lower her sales were, the more desperate she got, and the more likely she was to make a bad decision in order to keep taking care of her daughter. Either way, those problems would be in the past now.

"You've made a good choice. If you're lucky, you might get to meet Joric before even reaching Tiranat," Levalas said.

"At the time I left, he was also going to go out of Tiranat with some other men for something I can't say here. Even if that doesn't work out, you'll still meet him in your new home—Tiranat."

"New home, huh?" Juhibi looked at her daughter and hugged her.

"I guess a new home would be nice right about now, especially if Joric's going to be there with us..." Levalas raised a finger.

"I do have to say, you likely won't be able to get a nice wooden home like this in Tiranat immediately. Don't worry, you'll both still have a roof over your head, but you'll have to stay with other people in a big hall in the beginning." The young woman frowned.

"That doesn't make sense… Even if Tiranat is a very poor village, at least they'd have some houses there to lease, or even rent out, right?"