Chapter 306: Chapter 62: Legend! Legend! (10)

They were mostly the elderly and women, along with a few men wrapped in filthy bandages, their wounds still unhealed.

Unlike soldiers, they didn’t offer military salutes. Instead, they bowed clumsily but with immense sincerity, or placed their hands over their chests, their lips moving without a sound.

Their clothes were tattered and their faces sallow, but as they looked at Murphy, their eyes were filled with an almost pious gratitude.

A mother holding a small, thin child felt her eyes quickly well up. She seemed to want to say something but was too choked with emotion to speak. She simply turned her clueless child gently to face Murphy and pressed down lightly on the child’s head.

Murphy reined in his horse.

Aurora watched everything in silence, seeing the genuine light in the eyes of the common folk.

She said nothing, only pressing her cheek a little closer against his back.

Her voice was a soft whisper, audible only to the two of them. "Brother, look... They remember you."

She could feel Murphy’s body, beneath her hands, tense for an instant before relaxing.

Murphy was silent for a moment, his gaze sweeping over the common folk bowing to him.

His expression remained largely unchanged, but deep within his perpetually calm and profound eyes, a subtle ripple seemed to flicker.

He did not speak, merely nodding gently in their direction.

But this simple gesture seemed to bring the common folk immense comfort. They bowed even lower, and some even began to secretly wipe away tears.

Aurora’s arms tightened slightly around his waist. "Brother, you saved the people here, just as you did in the Duval Territory."

Murphy still did not reply.

He slowly retracted his gaze and looked to the Path ahead once more.

The late summer wind blew through his dark hair and teased the golden strands by Aurora’s cheek.

After a long while, he finally let out a soft "Mm."

Then, he once again gently squeezed the horse’s flanks.

The gray mare docilely started forward, continuing on its way to the Inner Castle.

Once they left the main road and turned onto the quieter slope leading to the upper sections of the Inner Castle, the surrounding din gradually faded.

Only then did Murphy speak.

"Regarding our future dealings with the Peric Clan, particularly Blackstone Fortress, the Duke has awarded us the Iron Spine Medal. The holder of this medal possesses the highest priority for military passage and emergency resource requisition throughout the Eastern Border War Zone. Additionally, for the next ten years, all trade from the Monte Territory that passes through the official trade routes of the Iron Ridge Mountain Range will be completely tariff-free."

Aurora immediately grasped the implications.

"This will significantly reduce the cost and risk of our trade with the Eastern Territory, and by extension, with other regions that we trade with through them. It’s especially crucial for importing strategic materials and exporting our territory’s own products."

"With military passage rights, our caravans will be much safer within the war zone. The Duke’s move is both a reward for our service and a way to pull us deeper into the Eastern Territory’s web of interests."

Murphy nodded.

"Yes. He also formally recognized our status as ’Friend of the Eastern Guardian,’ which comes with the same courtesies afforded to a Hereditary Count. That will facilitate our activities in the Eastern Territory."

Aurora smiled.

"The formal courtesies are icing on the cake; the real prizes are the passage rights and tax exemptions. They’re a lifeline, especially for a territory like ours on the fringe of the Northern Territory, desperate to expand its trade routes. Brother, what about the list?"

Murphy pulled a sealed parchment scroll from within his coat and handed it back to her.

Aurora took it but didn’t open it right away. She just gave it a light squeeze to feel its thickness before putting it away.

"I’ll review it in detail when we get back. However, now that we have a tax-free channel, we can raise the procurement and transport of the items on this list to the highest priority—especially the urgently needed Thunder Steel and other rare minerals."

"The Peric Clan themselves are likely in urgent need of post-war reconstruction and military replenishment, so they may not be able to provide the full quantity we need. But through Blackstone Fortress, we can try to contact more suppliers from the Eastern Territory and even other regions."

Murphy continued.

"As for the Church Court, they’ve granted me the title of Holy Protector, along with a promise of permanent protection for our family and a favorable allocation of their resources. In terms of materials, we’ve been given the rights to a large iron vein, enough for twenty years of mining. We also have a twenty-year exemption from all taxes owed to the Church Court by the Monte Territory."

Aurora drew a sharp, quiet breath, her expression growing more serious.

"The title of Holy Protector has far-reaching implications, especially in any dealings involving the Church Court. The iron vein is a tangible source of wealth and a strategic resource; it will significantly reduce our reliance on basic iron."

"A twenty-year tax exemption... That will save us a massive amount of capital, all of which can be reinvested into the territory’s development and military."

"The Church Court was very generous this time. It’s an affirmation of your personal achievements, but I suspect it’s also their way of binding you—and by extension, the Monte Territory—more tightly to their faction. We’ll need to carefully weigh the benefits of this patronage against its potential hidden obligations."

Murphy said calmly.

"I understand. I’ll leave you to coordinate and manage these rewards. The specific trade terms with the Peric Clan, the takeover and preliminary survey of the mine, and the plan for utilizing the tax-free trade routes—all of it needs to be implemented as soon as possible. The fortress should be relatively quiet for a while, so we can use this opportunity to begin."

Aurora’s voice was steady and full of confidence.

"Rest assured, Brother. I’ll convene with our traveling Secretaries and the caravan Stewards to draft a preliminary plan. We can leverage your reputation to initiate talks with the Peric Clan. As for the Church Court’s iron mine, we’ll need to dispatch trustworthy veteran craftsmen and guards to conduct a preliminary survey and determine its quality and mining conditions. As for the special materials on the list..."

She patted the tucked-away parchment.

"I’ll mobilize our network of contacts at our various trading posts and combine that with our new tax-free passage to find reliable suppliers as quickly as possible. I will handle all of this. You don’t need to worry about it."