I Became A Black Merchant In Another World-Chapter 255: Pearl and Revenge (9)

Even a condemned prisoner is given a cigarette before they are executed, as a matter of etiquette.

Since there are no cigarettes in the Tuscany Empire, I thought I might at least offer him a glass of fine wine.

It wasn’t out of any consideration for him, but rather just to stir his insides a bit.

It was highly effective, given the money I spent on it.

“Get lost, you satanic bastard! If you leave right now, I will show you mercy, so just get the hell out of here!”

Under normal circumstances, if I had brought armed mercenaries into another noble's mansion, I would have had my head on the chopping block.

Trying to kill a noble in the holy capital of the Tuscany Empire is a crime of treason against the Emperor’s authority.

But Albert, that bastard, not only caused a currency crisis but had already drawn his sword on me, his younger sibling and a fellow noble of the Tuscany Empire.

‘Father has long since declared he would revoke this bastard's barony.’

What does it matter how much he barks? Who would listen to him?

“Do you still not understand how things are going, brother? Do you really think I’m such a foolish, ignorant idiot who doesn’t know even the basics?”

When people are backed into a corner, they tend to start running their “happy circuits.”

People who lose billions in gambling borrow money from loan sharks, thinking this time they’ll hit it big.

Stock traders who’ve lost all their money scrape together any remaining funds to invest again.

And then, after losing everything, they go to the Han River to measure the temperature of the water, becoming a significant contribution to the river’s ecosystem...

Right now, Albert looks just like one of those people.

Even though he knows deep down that it’s all over, he’s still fooling himself, thinking there's a chance.

What a pitiful soul, unable to see the truth.

“Whatever, keep turning your eyes away from reality. After all, I’ve already decided your future, haven’t I? The most miserable and painfully prolonged path, that is.”

I’ve been making a lot of effort to ensure my older brother suffers as much as possible in his final moments.

Even in the midst of my busy schedule, I’ve taken the time to converse with merchants who specialize in dealing with heretical slaves and instructors who make use of war prisoners.

What a considerate sibling I’ve been, making sure he ends up like this.

Once this effort becomes known, people in the future might praise me as a virtuous person, right?

“First of all, Count Farnese has officially informed you of your divorce.”

A marriage is something between a man and a woman, but it’s odd when the father of the woman unilaterally announces a divorce.

In the medieval Tuscany Empire, however, marriages are completely decided by the head of the family.

Divorce, which is 100 times more burdensome than marriage, works the same way.

“Although the divorce has not been approved by the Vatican, legally, you and the Baroness are still married. However, within the Tuscany Empire, there is no relationship between you and the young lady anymore. By now, she has probably returned to her maternal home.”

Even in modern society, where divorce is not a serious flaw, it is still not easy for a couple to separate.

And in a world where family ties and marriages are essential for social status...

A wife’s divorce means a complete severing of ties with her family and leads to hostile relations.

It’s a conflict that makes it impossible for the two sides to ever live under the same sky again.

Albert, who had been running his "happy circuits," stood up and tried to grab me by the collar.

“Fabio, you bastard, I’ll tear you apart and kill you! You satanic bastard!”

In the Tuscany Empire, that might be the worst curse you can throw at someone, but...

I’ve played countless games where the best compliment to an enemy is asking how their deceased parents would feel about their gameplay.

To think my enemy, Albert, is praising me in such a way.

If only I had a recorder, I’d record that line and play it at dinner.

That would probably let me eat five dry rye breads without water.

“I will never forgive you!”

When threatening someone, it’s important to assess who they are and what kind of person they are before doing so.

If the target is weaker than me, or I can tell they’ll tremble in fear when I threaten them, I might manage to extort a fair sum.

But if the person I’m threatening is stronger than me?

Then I’ll get beaten up and lose everything, along with all my money.

Why can’t he control his anger?

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“Even murderers show respect when they’re in front of someone of higher rank.”

As Albert’s hand reached for my collar...

The mercenaries behind me forcefully threw Albert’s upper body onto the desk.

A groan escaped from Albert’s mouth.

“Ugh!”

If he had just quietly listened to what I was saying, he wouldn’t have had to end up in such a miserable state. I really don’t understand why he’s making things harder for himself.

“And last night, Father revoked your Medici Barony, Albert.”

When Albert heard this, his face turned as white as a sheet.

Being cut off from the Farnese family was a huge political blow, but something he could have somehow overcome.

But having his barony stripped by his own father?

In short, this bastard was no longer a “former Baron,” just a commoner, ‘A’.

And with the disgrace of being branded a "disgraced noble," there was no way for him to ever recover his status.

“I’m sure you already guessed, but now you’re no longer a noble of the Tuscany Empire. You’re legally nothing more than a commoner, with no protection whatsoever.”

There are few countries in the world with as good law enforcement as South Korea.

However, only South Koreans or foreigners who have entered through proper channels can enjoy the protection of the law.

Illegal immigrants can expect some judicial protection, but if they become a crime target, they’re just destined to become a body that no one will ever find.

Let’s not even talk about the Tuscany Empire.

“If you’re wondering, Albert, the son you had with Lady Farnese, Gusto, will die from an incurable disease in a few days.”

Up until the 1980s, even if young men died due to military abuse or mistreatment, the military prosecutors would mostly rule it as “suicide.”

If they ruled it as an official death, money would go out, and those in higher positions (like company commanders) would get promoted and become part of the elite, so it was better to just bury it.

How much more in a country like the Tuscany Empire, where the caste system is even more entrenched?

“Don’t worry, though. I’ll make sure the child suffers as little as possible before he dies. You can thank me later, Albert.”

Albert, subdued by my mercenaries, spat all kinds of insults at me.

“How can you still be human, you son of a bitch? You’re a satanic demon who kills people and wears their skins! You damned bastard, someday Deus will punish you with divine retribution!”

Let him bark as much as he wants.

No matter how much that dog barks, do you think I’ll be affected?

“Deus will punish me with divine retribution? How interesting. You, such a pious man, sent a band of thieves to my domain and had the villagers killed? You have no right to speak.”

I’ve honestly never lived a life without regrets, especially with the wisdom of the British Empire, which led the development of the world (mainly for my benefit), causing harm to hundreds of thousands of people, both directly and indirectly.

If those people curse me, that’s one thing.

But for a bastard like Albert, who tried to drown his own brother, to speak like that? No way.

“And as you’ve probably guessed, Albert, I will never let you die easily. Let me show you what it’s like to die when you can’t even die.”

I had a conversation with slave traders who deal with foreign slaves, and I found out that there are strange people in the Sultanate.

“When I spoke with Alcin, there was a nobleman from the Sultanate who wanted a blonde male sex slave from the Albanian continent.”

Some web novels even talk about elves who become sex slaves to enjoy life with S-class virgin elves.

But that’s not the kind of sex slave I’m talking about here.

I’m talking about a male noble from the Sultanate who becomes a sex slave to an old heretic.

It would be a great disgrace and agony for a man of the Tuscany Empire to go through such a thing.

I can’t even begin to imagine the effort I put into coming up with that idea.

Albert’s face turned not just pale but almost green with fear.

“Just kill me! Kill me! You piece of trash, worse than a heretic!”

Even though he claimed to be the former Baron of Medici, the opposition side had offered a sum of money so large I could barely refuse.

Of course, I couldn’t turn them down either.

Just like those strange people who enjoy men with hair... those people always seem to have a lot of money.

“Cut both of his Achilles tendons, bind him up tightly, and ship him in a sack. That’s a product worth 100,000 gold coins.”

It’s surprising how useful trash can be when you use it right.

The world really is full of surprises.