Meyer stared wide-eyed at Lawrence, who returned the look with a vague smile in an attempt to brush over his stumble.
Holo had kicked his ankle under the table.
“Your fears are reasonable, of course,” Meyer continued, pivoting ahead to make sure his prey would not slip away. “But you are perfectly suited to resolve this situation precisely because you excel in trade, sir.”
“……”
Lawrence gave a little sigh, and not because Holo had kicked him. He gestured for Meyer to keep going.
“First, I believe Lord Tonneburg has made a simple error in his calculations. A forest, once cut down, does not easily grow back. And yet, he not only wants to clear trees but is also giving into temptation and plans to build coal-burning huts and smithies as Karlan has requested.”
Lawrence held his breath not in response to what Meyer said, but because he could hear Holo’s tail beginning to rustle beneath her clothes despite her blank expression.
“And that’s not all. Lord Tonneburg is looking to build a road through the forest so that all of the refined metal and coal can be easily transported, further developing trade. Representatives of Karlan sit on his shoulder and whisper to him that with a road, his wallet will grow fat off tolls, and he believes it.”
It was true that Lawrence found Meyer’s words a bit overwhelming, but the reason he shifted in his chair was because it no longer seemed like this was simply about making up for the cheap lumber that was supposed to be sourced from Salonia.
“The woods will grow thin, and the people who depend on the trees will be reduced to poverty. Yet all Lord Tonneburg can think about is the lumber trade, the coal-burning industry, the profitable smithies, and the lucrative tolls from those new roads. He has decided to line his pockets even if it means his people becoming impoverished and the woods dying.”
It did not seem as though Meyer reached out to Lawrence only because he was involved in the events that unfolded in Salonia. He had shrewdly determined that the only way to persuade his liege was to show him that he shouldn’t count his chickens before they hatched—making Lawrence the perfect man for the job.
“I have learned that you are now the owner of a bathhouse in a very well-known hot spring village, but you were once a renowned merchant who traveled the world over. I would be forever thankful if you could put that trading knowledge to use and tell Lord Tonneburg that his appraisal is not completely accurate.”
The overstated praise was not simple flattery—the fact that the bathhouse had been mentioned at all was proof of that.
Meyer was shrewd. He had done his research on the events in Salonia and had likely met Elsa in the process. It was a subtle threat; this was his way of telling Lawrence that he knew exactly who he was.
“What do you think? If you help me protect the woods, then I promise you seasonal ciders made with the fruits of the forest, in addition to mead, dried mushrooms, venison, and rabbit jerky. I vow on Tonneburg Woods’s honor that they are excellent products and more than enough to satisfy all the nobility who visit Nyohhira seeking relaxation and comfort.”
Holo’s eyes were glimmering at the delicious proposition, but it sounded completely different to Lawrence’s ear. A discreet offer of goods in lieu of coin most likely meant that paying for his services was either difficult or outright impossible.
That was because a vassal seeking to overturn his lord’s decisions would be risking life and limb.
The correct answer, if given careful thought, would be for Lawrence to immediately accept Meyer’s proposal with a smile, pack his bags, and run away with Holo in tow. If the other party insisted on following through on the veiled threat of harassing the bathhouse, then it would be a simple matter to retaliate with their nonhuman allies.
But there was good reason why Lawrence had no room to maneuver. The growling of the empty stomach from the glutton beside him aside, it was still true that those who lived in the forest would lose all its blessings if it was exploited with wild abandon.
More importantly, there was a much weightier issue than his role in the events at Salonia, which were the reason this was happening in the first place. And the heart of that issue sat behind him.
All he had to do was picture Holo when, one day, after this moment became a distant memory, she set off on a fresh journey in pursuit of fond memories. There might be a day when she would visit the Tonneburg Woods on a rumor.
He pictured her standing there alone, looking out over a wasteland dotted by the occasional tree, a place that humans had shattered long ago.
To Lawrence, nothing could possibly be sadder.
“Hmm?”
When Lawrence glanced aside, he found Holo looking at him dubiously.
He stood at a crossroads, in a way.
Would Holo fall to her knees at the threshold of a wizened forest, fingers brushing parched earth? Or would she laugh when she found a message left to her from Lawrence, carved into a sapling?
That was how he urged himself to his decision.
Rationally speaking, asking a ruler to change their mind was something wise people avoided. Yet Meyer was requesting that he show his lord how misguided his thinking was. In essence, this was a matter that did involve trade, but the problem was an entire magnitude more complicated.
Reasons he should turn this request down loomed over Lawrence like a mountain.
Yet opposite him sat Holo, and she looked at him with wide eyes.
There was risk both in getting involved and in not getting involved.
He balanced everything on his mental scales, then finally said, “…Would you give us a moment to speak?”
Meyer must have sensed the partial surrender in his tone; he glanced between Lawrence and Holo, keeping his expression as blank as possible, and bowed his head.
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“You fool! The forest is at risk because of you!”
Holo, sitting atop the blankets, thwacked her tail over the bed once, twice.
And when it landed against the sheets for a third time, she cradled it in her lap.
“…As much as I wish I could scold you so, I admit I was rather pleased you put in so much effort on my behalf in the previous town,” she said, glancing at her diary and the gifted cask on the table.
Both were perfectly sweet.
“Luckily, this matter involves the forest. I may not get many chances to make a difference in human affairs, but I may be able to play a role yet when it comes to protecting the woods.”
Lawrence was surprised.
“Why the face? We simply discourage them from cutting down the trees, no? Such conflict can be resolved in an instant by simply flashing my fangs.”
Foolish humans who ventured into the deep, pristine wood were at risk of running right into the sharp claws of the forest spirits.
That would lead to a happy ending in a fairy tale, but reality was not so simple.
That was especially true when it came to business.
“I understand. I know you want to protect the forest. But—”
“But what?”
“Do you remember what Meyer said? He wanted me to show his lord that his calculations were wrong.”
Holo met him with a confused look, and he continued.
“We’ve only heard Meyer’s claims so far. It means it’s technically possible that saving the forest might not be the right thing to do, despite what he says.”
“……”
Holo’s eyes glazed over, as though she could not believe what she was hearing. It was like she was telling him that there was never a good reason to cut down a forest.
With a sigh, Lawrence launched into an explanation. “In storybooks about the forests and their spirits, good and evil are always clearly marked. And so, if we were being asked to save the lord’s beloved woods, then the answer would be easy. But when it comes to gold, silver, and those whose lives they support, what is good and evil becomes much, much more complicated.”
✦ ✦ ✦
