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Nachhexen-10-14-2494
I had managed to resolve part of the Bretonnian dilemma thanks to the Emperor's intervention. The knights of Bretonnia were convinced that the Empire still retained their property — their serfs — because the imperial–Bretonnian peace treaty made no explicit mention of them; to the Bretonnians, what was not written down remained theirs. They had demanded the return of those serfs on several occasions: labour was scarce in Bretonnia. Many knights who had lost their lordships now saw vast, empty estates divided among them, but they had no one to work the land.
That desperation explained the knights' audacity: when the Damsels of the Grail arrived urgently seeking sorceresses — accompanied by their knights and paying little heed to borders — they did not hesitate to enter my domains. They had taken five young women with magical aptitude from various villages; that was why they ventured so far. I, for my part, immediately incorporated the apprentices; sorceresses of Ghyran would be useful to me in the future.
Not everything went badly, but the grievance and public offence remained. I therefore decided to close trade with Bretonnia: I forbade Bretonnian goods from entering my markets and rescinded the leases on properties held by Bretonnian merchants. The measure included expelling their traders from my cities.
No sooner had I issued the order than complaints from Bretonnian merchants began to arrive. The more they complained, the more convinced I became that the consequences should be made sterner. The Bretonnians depended on our markets to sell their grain and other goods; blocking their commercial access would strike them a severe blow. I also prepared a letter for my good friend, the Elector of the Imperial March, asking him to apply the same policy: a general imperial embargo on trade with Bretonnia. Thus the Bretonnians would be forced to turn to Estalia, and their trading network would suffer greatly compared with the connection they had with us.
As I finished drafting the letter to Joachim — explaining what I expected him to do to close all bridges to the Empire, and promising to reimburse his expenses — one of my guards entered on quiet feet.
"My lord… merchants request an audience," he murmured, opening the door carefully so as not to interrupt.
"I have already said I will not hear Bretonnian merchants. Their complaints will not be heard nor considered," I answered sternly, letting the quill fall into the inkwell.
"They are merchants from your lands, though Breton-born… they beg an audience despite your full schedule," the guard insisted.
"Bah. Very well — bring them in. I will hear them, but I will not change the rules on their account." I motioned for them to be admitted.
A few minutes later a group of merchants entered my study; as they did so they knelt, nearly touching the floor with their foreheads. One of them spoke without looking up.
"M'lord, thank you for your time. May Sigmar bless you this day!" he said in a trembling voice.
"Sigmar's blessings. Tell me: what can I do for you? And please, raise your heads." I watched the display with composure.
The merchants, visibly frightened, rose carefully, avoiding eye contact. One drew a breath and spoke haltingly.
"My lord, your order —though right— has caused us great harm, because… because…" His voice broke.
"I understand. This affects your income and your livelihood, but you must appreciate that the Bretonnians have behaved increasingly erratically. I must punish them; not long ago they attempted to abduct women from my villages. I cannot permit that, and so I cannot reverse this decision." I spoke calmly, fixing my gaze on the leader of the group, who was sweating with nervousness.
"No… no, m'lord… what happened is that we…" the merchant stammered, bowing his head again. "We have been acting in your name and using your reputation for our benefit, trying to save more people who suffer under the lady' serfs."
"So you are the ones who organised those mysterious population increases my men could not explain?" I asked, sceptical.
"Yes, my lord. We could not ignore Sigmar's teaching to protect humanity. The worshippers of the Lady treat our people like filth; we could not stand idly by while others suffered. We beg your mercy… but understand that this is how we tried to help. If you block our trade, we cannot continue." His voice cracked at the end, thick with fear.
"I see… this may well be the root of the entire problem. The Bretonnians are desperate; they have no one to till their fields and are becoming erratic from the lack of labour. It is likely, for that reason, that they are demanding I return all Bretonnians who have come into my lands," I said, watching the merchants.
"We're sorry, m'lord… truly," one of them replied in a shaky voice. "But we had to do something. The abuses have only worsened in recent months; the knights have gone mad with their dealings — people can't bear it any longer."
"And in the end, how many did you bring? I do not have an exact figure, only an estimate. I would like to know how many people we are speaking of that you managed to extract," I asked, leaning forward with interest.
"I… I have the book, m'lord. We keep a register where we write all those we managed to get out of Bretonnia," another merchant said, drawing a big ledger from his clothes and showing it to me.
I signalled to one of my guards, who took the book and handed it to me. I opened it and scanned the pages filled with numbers and names.
"Crude notes, but legible. They exceed one hundred thousand. That explains why the expenditures did not add up, and why my architects kept asking me for more and more funds," I said with a slight laugh, while the merchants grew nervous again.
"It is what we managed with our network of helpers," said the merchant who had handed me the book.
"A network of helpers?… so this runs deeper than one might expect, does it?" I asked with a small smile.
"Yes, m'lord… many hate the knights and they're tired; they don't fear risking flight. We take care to help them, doing our duty as merchants," the leader answered again.
"I see… interesting. Tell me, how do you finance this? It is curious, because even with all the income you might obtain selling in Bretonnian markets it would not cover transport and supplies. You have moved an enormous number of people; what you have done is worthy of note," I said, surprised by the audacity and organisation of those Bretonnians.
"All this is paid for by the Bretonnian communities, m'lord. Every month the people gather and make donations which we distribute among ourselves to fund the purchase of goods; that way we justify needing to hire many workers and bringing them back into the Empire. If we did not do that, it would be far too obvious what we are doing." The merchant bowed his head with humility.
"What a pleasant surprise… Who would have thought the Bretonnians could be so united in their suffering, that they would sacrifice to pay for this?" I said, surprised and somewhat moved.
"That is good to hear. Sigmar must be pleased with your devotion to protect humanity from those vile servants of the one who calls herself the Lady of the Lake. I understand your petition and I believe it will be prudent not to carry out the changes…" I said, signalling to a guard. "Notify the heralds and let nothing change."
"Thank ye, m'lord… many thanks!" the merchants exclaimed, lowering their heads in relief.
"Enough with the reverence; I look like a tyrant. Continue your work as before. You might, if necessary, go to some temple of Sigmar and ask for monetary support for this cause; I doubt they will refuse. That said: be sure to say it was not my idea, that would be problematic. What you have done, however, deserves proper recompense." I offered a faint smile.
The merchants regained heart; they began to lift their heads and prepare to leave.
"One more thing… only one more thing, if you will permit. Using your connections, could you send a message to the Bretonnian communities? I am considering a future recruitment to finish the work I began years ago. I will require soldiers willing to fight; there may be losses in my next campaign and I will need men to hold positions. Would it be feasible for you to temporarily finance the training of a Bretonnian military force while, in parallel, my veterans train several thousand Bretonnian youths? We would provide the weapons and place some of our veterans as instructors; what I ask is that you fund wages and food during that period." I watched their reactions, interested to gauge their decision.
The merchants turned and watched one another in silence. "you plan, m'lord… excuse us," said the leader, kneeling and bowing his head. "you plans to attack Bretonnia again?"
"Yes — at the end of the year, if all goes well I will march on the Bretonnian capital to set it afire, kill as many knights as I can, and break once and for all that realm of tyrants and free everyone from the yoke of that Lady so that they may live according to what Sigmar teaches," I replied gravely.
The merchants began to pray in silence, giving thanks to Sigmar. "That is great news, m'lord. I am sure all who support us will be eager to finance and join an army to uproot once and for all the damned, corrupt yoke the Lady exercises over men. We shall do all we can to raise more. Thousands will be willing to serve Sigmar," the leader of the merchants said.
"Very well… proceed with what you were doing. I will ensure you are supplied with weapons for the training and will send some of my veterans as instructors," I answered with a smile.
The merchants left in high spirits, speaking excitedly among themselves. I, for my part, took advantage of the opportunity: I mobilised arms and troops that required no immediate pay. I had all the stores awaiting authorised buyers brought to Marienburg; they would suffice to equip the Bretonnians. With weapons, armour, and discipline they could form a wall of flesh capable of withstanding Bretonnian cavalry charges, and they would serve as leverage to provoke mass desertions among the enemy ranks and encourage peasants to rebel before each clash.
Not a week passed before volunteers began to arrive. At that moment I could not afford to choose only the tallest or strongest: these were soldiers I did not need to pay or feed, many of them financed their own equipment or were supported by the communities that sent them. While I supplied uniforms, arms, and armour, my veterans would handle their instruction; within a few months they would be ready for the next campaign.
As I finished the final preparations to depart for Kislev, a few hundred warriors sent by the Tsar arrived. They were not many, but they belonged to the Tsar's guard: men whom many of us recognised from having fought at our side against the hordes of Chaos. Their presence, therefore, was of good quality, though they lacked firearms.
I set the instructors in order and observed the volunteers' camp: ranks of men and women ready to fight Bretonnia, adjusting the gear we had provided. With logistics moving and morale high, I boarded the train bound for Kislev; before leaving I had to attend the second ceremony, and then I would continue on to Karaz-a-Karak.
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If there are spelling mistakes, please let me know.
Leave a comment; support is always appreciated.
I remind you to leave your ideas or what you would like to see.
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