Chapter 58

Diplomacy begins.

First, the first envoy was sent to the Equus tribe.

The first negotiation was successfully established, and trade of wheat, rock salt, wine, wool, and horses began.

The Kingdom of Rosais is prosperous in agriculture but not so much in animal husbandry.

On the other hand, the Equus tribe relies on nomadic herding, so they have to import wheat.

This was a win-win relationship and was easily established.

It seems the Equus tribe also wanted to engage in trade.

Making friends is important, and the first greeting is crucial.

After that, envoys were sent every month.

In December, January, February, March, and April.

Trade proceeded smoothly and generated substantial profits.

By the time the relationship between the Kingdom of Rosais and the Equus tribe deepened, a rat planted in the Kingdom of Domorgal sent a message.

It seemed that the Kingdom of Domorgal would launch a large-scale military operation around June.

Apparently, they were also planning to harvest wheat during the invasion.

The Kingdom of Rosais prepared its defense.

I also began conscription of soldiers in the As territory.

Then, in May, the seventh envoy was sent.

This time, the proposal included not only trade but also the hiring of about two hundred Equus cavalry as mercenaries. This was actually the main point.

Since the Equus tribe is also under pressure from the Kingdom of Domorgal, it should be a good deal.

Of course, the war expenses and salaries will be covered by us.

If there are casualties, we will pay compensation to their families.

These are the conditions.

However, it seems that military action requires careful consideration, and they asked for time to think about it.

Then, the Equus tribe sent their own envoy.

Their request was for a meeting between the leaders.

In other words, if we want an alliance, we need to show sincerity.

However, King Rosais cannot leave his kingdom.

If he goes out carelessly, he might end up in the afterlife, not with the Equus tribe.

So, the one chosen was...

"Wow! We're at the summit. The view is great, don't you think?"

"Yes, it is. And please don't go so close to the cliff. You'll fall and die."

I say to Yuria, who is laughing happily.

This time, Yuria was chosen as the representative of King Rosais.

Initially, it was supposed to be Raymond, but the Equus tribe specifically requested Yuria.

They said they had a patient they wanted Yuria, the famous sorceress, to see.

Indeed, Yuria's medical skills are top-notch.

She has been working hard to cure King Rosais' illness.

Ironically, no matter how hard she tries, she can't cure King Rosais' illness.

It seems King Rosais has a rare constitution that is resistant to sorcery and medicine.

Anyway...

King Rosais strongly opposed it.

Sending his beloved daughter to a foreign country was out of the question.

Of course, there is a possibility of a trap.

But without the cavalry, the plan won't work.

So, I volunteered to go as a guard.

I am the strongest in the Kingdom of Rosais.

I convinced King Rosais that he could rest easy with me there.

Moreover, I am the heir to the Kingdom of Rosais. Meeting the King of the Equus tribe and seeing him in person would be beneficial.

He will be a reliable ally in the future.

So, the two of us (and 32 guards, including 12 from Rozward and Virgal, and 20 from King Rosais) were crossing the Alva Mountains.

Since we couldn't use carriages, everyone was on horseback.

Surprisingly, Yuria is quite skilled at riding.

She is a sorceress, after all.

We were supposed to meet at the summit...

"There, they seem to be coming."

Yuria points to the distance.

There, a group of about thirty people on horseback can be seen. The flag indicates they are from the Equus tribe.

"Hey!!"

Yuria waves at the group. Can't she stop? It's embarrassing for our country.

But Yuria doesn't care.

The leader of the Equus group also waves back.

They are both the same.

About five minutes later, we finally met with the Equus tribe.

The man at the front steps his horse forward.

"My name is Mutius Equus Sulpicius, the second son of the Equus tribe's chieftain. Are you Princess Yuria?"

"Yes, I am Yuria Rosais, representing King Rosais."

After the introduction, Mutius turns his gaze to me.

"And who are you?"

"I am Almus As, the lord of the As territory. I am accompanying Princess Yuria as her guard."

"I see, I see. You are the famous son of the Griffin. Can I call you Almus? In return, call me Mutius."

"Sure, I don't mind..."

He's so familiar. Hey.

"Haha, no need for formalities! I'm just the second son!!"

He pats my back.

I've never met someone like this before...

"Ah, right. Let's not use formalities. And please stop patting my back. It hurts."

"Oops, sorry, sorry."

Mutius stops patting my back.

I've never dealt with such a familiar person in this life or the previous one.

I immediately started to worry about the relationship.

"Still, both Yuria and Almus are skilled at riding. Is it because of that strange equipment?"

Mutius quickly became interested in the saddle and stirrups.

The Equus tribe rides bareback.

It must be unusual for them.

"Setting up a seat to make it easier to ride and providing a foothold for the feet. I see, it does look easier to ride and handle weapons. Can you teach me how to make this equipment?"

"Sure, I'll have some brought by the next envoy. If we give them to everyone now, we won't be able to go back."

Yuria says this jokingly.

The structure of the stirrups and saddle is very simple, so primitive versions can be made quickly.

If they are going to copy it, it's better to give them the real thing and become friends.

"But the wool we bought from the Equus tribe is excellent. It's incomparable to our country's wool."

"Haha, it's our main industry. The secret is to let them move freely and feed them plenty of good grass. But the wheat from the Kingdom of Rosais is also excellent. We can't make such delicious wheat. Can you teach us the secret?"

The Kingdom of Rosais is warm and receives relatively more rain, with fertile land.

This means they can harvest high-quality wheat.

We can't lose to the recent agricultural learners.

"I'm not very knowledgeable about agriculture... but Almus is, right?"

Yuria suddenly turns the conversation to me.

I am knowledgeable, but...

"Almus, please teach us!"

"Well... I don't mind... but I can't say much without seeing your agricultural methods. Let's start with the basics. The three essential elements for growing crops."

I give Mutius a rough explanation of agriculture.

"Water, sunlight, and soil nutrients. Without any of these three, crops won't grow. Water and sunlight depend on the weather, but water can be brought from rivers. The easiest to control is soil nutrients."

Mutius tilts his head at my words.

"Nutrients?"

"Like food for crops. To produce high-quality wool, you need to feed the sheep a lot of grass. Similarly, to grow good crops, you need to provide a lot of nutrients. Most soil contains nutrients, so it's fine at first. But the problem is that they can be depleted."

When I say this, Mutius seems to have an epiphany.

"I see. That's why the harvest has been decreasing year by year. I was wondering why, even though the weather wasn't bad. How do you restore the nutrients?"

He understands quickly.

Let's see how far I should explain.

"The most common method is to let the field rest, meaning not planting anything for a year. The nutrients in the field will return to some extent in a year."

"Hmm, but that means reducing the cultivated land. And it won't fully recover, right?"

He wants me to hurry up and explain the next part.

His eyes say so.

"You can supplement the missing nutrients artificially. For example, spreading ash or soil from the forest. Forest soil is rich in nutrients, as you can see from the large trees growing there."

I look around at the trees.

These are wild forests, where giant trees grow in a chaotic manner.

I read somewhere that the forests people imagine, like those in cities, are actually managed by humans.

Real forests are much more terrifying.

The Romanus forest was like this. The types of trees are slightly different, but...

"Ah, forest soil. I'll try it next time. Is there anything else?"

"There are other methods, but let's discuss them after the alliance is formed."

Sheep manure can be used as fertilizer.

I'll keep that to myself for now.

I don't plan to discuss crop rotation even after the alliance is formed.

It depends on the deal.

"Hehe, you're being mischievous. This gives me more reasons to convince my father."

Mutius seems to be in favor.

He seems to be a progressive person, especially in agriculture.

"Why is King Equus opposed to the alliance?"

"Well, my father is conservative. He dislikes agriculture. He hates the idea of digging up the soil. He's not very supportive of trade either, thinking that it will destroy our culture. He mainly opposes the alliance because he doesn't want to get involved in foreign affairs. He thinks it's foolish to shed blood in unrelated wars."

From what I hear, he doesn't seem to be stubborn.

He dislikes agriculture but doesn't oppose it. He's not against trade, just not in favor of it.

He allows it because it generates profit.

But he opposes the alliance.

His reasons are valid.

It will be difficult to persuade him.

But if we can offer returns that outweigh the risks, it should be fine.

Yuria has the authority to negotiate, but King Rosais has essentially given me the responsibility.

Yuria's negotiation skills are questionable...

"Ah, we're almost out of the mountains. Let's set up camp as soon as we get down. Is that okay?"

"Yes, let's do that. It's already dusk."

It seems we will camp after descending the mountain.

Finally, we can rest.

Long hours on horseback are tiring.

When we descended the mountain, a vast grassland spread out.

With proper irrigation and fertilizer development, agriculture could be possible.

It might become a major granary... or not, but it's not completely dry.

"Let's quickly set up the yurts."

The Equus tribe starts setting up large tents.

Are they still using nomadic dwellings, or just for this trip?

"Do all Equus tribe members live in yurts?"

"Most commoners use yurts. But the royal family and nobles have buildings and palaces in the cities. They have summer and winter capitals and change them according to the season."

When they return, their homes might be covered in dust.

Do they leave someone to manage them?

They seem to be semi-nomadic, not purely nomadic.

Their language is Adernean, with a slight accent.

Just as the yurts were about to be set up, one of Mutius' subordinates came running in a panic.

"It's an emergency!! A wyvern is approaching!"

"Idiot! How could you miss such a huge thing? Why weren't you watching properly?!"

Mutius shouts in anger.

A wyvern?

"I'm sorry... I thought it wouldn't appear because it's getting dark..."

"Damn, we have no choice. Once it starts moving, it's uncontrollable..."

Mutius turns to me.

"Sorry, it's our fault. A wyvern is approaching. We'll try to stop it, but can you help Yuria escape? If you're confident in wyvern hunting, we'd be grateful for your help."

What do you think?

I've never fought one before.

"I have a Dragon Damascus sword, though."

"Great. Let's go wyvern hunting together."

I thought about using a Kansai dialect for the Alva people, but it was too much trouble, so I dropped the idea.