Chapter 11: Entering into agreements

Olicar had mixed feelings when he saw that the family estate had changed hands. In the space of a few days, he had gone from being the aristocratic second son to the heir, and then to the capitulator who had doomed the family's future.

Victory or defeat is only temporary. History is replete with examples of a talented heir reviving a declining noble family. But if he can't bear to lose the grace and bearing of a noble, he will become an outsider, isolated in noble circles.

Twenty of Baron Stewart's men, dressed in freshly polished armour and brandishing gleaming swords, stood at the front door of the main building. As Olika and the others stepped out of the carriage, the bugler immediately sounded his horn and Knight Liam came out to greet them on behalf of Baron Stewart.

The handover ceremony took place in the hall. As Olika entered, Christine rose to greet him. Now that the situation had developed, both sides tried to show as much nobility as possible.

Good day, Lady Stewart,' Olika greeted first.

Good day, Mr Olika,' Christine returned the greeting.

In addition to the representatives of the Baronies of Stewart and Lorient, those present included Antoine Le Roy, priest of the fifth order of the God of Order, who was also the priest of the city's temple and had been invited because the priest of the God of Order had to witness every treaty signed on the continent.

Protocols of wars and capitulations between nobles on the Continent had long since taken a fixed form, and a priest of the God of Order began to read from parchment.

The war between the Barony of Stewart and the Barony of Lorient ends with the victory of the Barony of Stewart. Do either side have any objections?

'No,'

said Christine and Olika. If they had any objections, they would not be sitting here.

The town of Lorient, the villages of Languidic, Morelant, Plouay and Lefaver, occupied by the Barony of Stewart, are its spoils. Does Monsieur Olika have any objections?

'No... no,' Olika replied through clenched teeth.

'Monsieur Olika, do you wish to redeem these lands?

'I wish to redeem the city of Lorient, the other villages... no. Having said this, Olika felt as if he had aged ten years.

Even though he was mentally prepared, when the time came, he still couldn't accept it. Even though he wasn't the one who caused this, he was the one who had to sign the treaty. Even if it was only a few decades or a few hundred years from now, his family would still be remembered for it.

At this point, you can see Christine's intention when she sent people to occupy the village. In war, whoever occupies it belongs to them.

Of course, according to the 'Nobility Convention', it is allowed to redeem it with money. The market price for a town is 50,000 gold coins and 10,000 for a village. Of course, this is only the land, not the population. If there are not enough gold coins, you can pay with other valuable items.

This price is only the buy-back price. For any noble, land is priceless. Unless there are special circumstances, people will not sell it to you unless you have the money.

The village here is not just a village where the villagers live, but a vast area that includes forests, meadows, lakes, rivers, etc. within its borders, similar to the size of a modern administrative township.

The vassal's fiefdom is just one big farm, with no land outside.

But the problem is that, as a baronial family, Olika can never come up with 90,000 gold coins, so they can only choose the most valuable city to redeem.

Mr Olika, do you wish to redeem the subjects of one town and four villages?

I will only release the subjects of the city of Lorient.

The inhabitants of the occupied villages are, of course, also prisoners of the enemy. As human resources are very important on this continent, they have to be calculated separately.

For the same reason, Olika does not have the money to release all his subjects.

Mr Olika, according to the Nobleman's Pact, after you surrender, the castle is the spoils of war of the Stewart Baron's territory. Are you willing to surrender it?

I... waive redeeming it.

The market price of the Baron's castle was 50,000 gold coins. If the enemy had not attacked the castle, Olika would have surrendered. Of course, the castle would not be considered a trophy. Similarly, villages that were still under your control at the end of the war would not be considered your opponent's trophies. However, what noble would surrender early without defending a castle?

Of course, the spoils of war would only be the castle itself, not the wealth of the nobles inside, otherwise, if you were penniless after surrendering, it would be better to die in battle.

The reason for choosing to keep the town is that the land and population of a town can at least maintain the family's standard of living at the level of a lord, but redeeming a lone castle is unlikely to bring any benefit to the family.

Mr Olika, as the losing party, you must pay compensation to Baron Stewart's territory. How will you pay?

War is no joke. Just because you say I can't win and surrender, you have to pay compensation.

I hope to pay by ceding half the town of Lorient.

Half of the city is the equivalent of a village, and although it is theoretically worth 10,000 gold coins, in reality the nobles' obsession with land can be translated into 20,000 gold coins.

As there are precedents for what happens after surrender, Olika had thought about it before she came.

Baron Stewart has captured Baron Lorient's soldiers and weapons. Will Mr Olika release them?

'No.

Soldiers are the foundation of a nobleman's rule, and a few hundred sets of weapons and equipment cannot be collected in a short time. Therefore, Olika could decide to release the prisoners of war and the weapons, but not to mention that his money is not enough to pay the ransom first, and even if he releases them, he cannot support them.

The basic terms were basically negotiated between the two sides, so the priest of the God of Order drew up an agreement in triplicate, signed by both parties and sealed with their personal seals.

Priest Antoine Leroy also signed as a witness on behalf of the Church of the God of Order, and then performed a first-level divine technique called 'Righteous Supervision'. A divine emblem of the God of Order appeared where the three signatures and seals were affixed, signifying that the God had approved the agreement. If one party broke the agreement, the other could apply to the Church for enforcement, for a f*e of course.

Then came a series of agreements, including the Territorial Transfer Agreement, the Subject Population Transfer Agreement and the Castle Transfer Agreement, all in triplicate, with each party holding one copy and the Church of the God of Order holding the other.

Incidentally, since the Baron of Lorient had died on the battlefield, his family seal had also become a trophy of war, and Olika had paid 1,000 gold coins to redeem it.

Other lords, knights and squires who had followed the Baron of Lorient into battle negotiated and signed treaties individually. As their territories had not been occupied, they only had to pay war damages and ransom for prisoners. Christine received 35,000 gold coins as compensation.