Monopolizing Goods #3(2)
As the beer talk began, the dwarf delegation headed straight to the church under the guidance of the lord.
They left the celebration without any regret, as there was no beer.
There was only one church located in the Montefeltro territory.
A place where a single high priest led several priests to spread the teachings of God, the church had already completed all preparations for mass beer production several months ago.
"The scale is enormous."
"I can't believe there's a place like this here."
Fields of barley and hops spread throughout the church's jurisdiction.
Next to the church, a moderately-sized brewery had been built, and the priests had been producing beer for a month.
As soon as they arrived at the church, the dwarf delegation couldn't help but exclaim in admiration, as if they had found a treasure trove.
"Unbelievable! This place was a hidden treasure trove!"
"How could they hide this so well!"
"With this scale, we won't have to worry about beer for a while."
"Very nice!"
The leader of the delegation, Orin, stepped forward and raised his voice.
"I'll buy the beer here right away! With our sovereigns!"
Unfortunately, the barley and hops grown here, as well as the beer produced in the brewery, had nothing to do with the lord.
'If only everything here were mine.'
"That's... unfortunate, but this place is not under my jurisdiction."
At these words, the dwarves showed expressions of disbelief.
"No, if you, the lord, are not the owner here, then who is?"
"Don't tell me you don't want to sell beer to us!"
"It must be a trick! Bring out the beer right now!"
The lord, with a bewildered face, spoke to the excited dwarves.
"Although I am the lord here, this land belongs to the church, not me. So, naturally, everything here belongs to the church."
"What?"
"You mean this isn't yours?"
"It's amazing how it's not his."
"Is that how humans usually are?"
"I don't know. How could we know about human affairs?"
"Well, if you're trying to trick us because you don't want to give us beer, you better be prepared. We're not so easygoing."
The lord, sweating, tried to calm the agitated dwarves.
"It's a misunderstanding. I really have nothing to do with this place. That's how human churches are."
And then he suddenly thought.
What would happen if the church didn't sell beer to the dwarves?
'If that happens, the Thunder Mountain dwarves might invade this territory because of the beer here. With their beer-crazed nature, they could do more than that.'
"Let's go inside the church and talk. I'll prepare a seat for you right away."
The lord hurriedly went inside the church to arrange seats, and a few minutes later, the impatient dwarves were guided by the lord to meet Peter, the high priest in charge of the church.
The lord could not attend the meeting between Peter and the dwarves, as it was the high priest's wish.
It was the high priest's intention to keep the lord from interfering in church affairs.
So, the lord's expression was not very good as he watched the situation from outside the church.
'What are they discussing inside that they even kicked me out? Is it just church business and I, the lord, shouldn't interfere?'
The lord, waiting for the dwarf delegation, glanced at the barley and hop fields cultivated widely in the church's jurisdiction.
The scale was truly impressive.
It was as if they had been waiting for this day.
'Surely they didn't foresee today's events and expand their business like this? No, that can't be. It's just that their luck was good and everything happened to fit well.'
As the lord looked over the wide fields of the church, a familiar commoner entered his sight.
A boy riding a donkey in the distance was someone the lord occasionally met, causing his face to flush.
'Rothsmedici.'
The lord, who recalled the family name before Rockefeller's name, frowned even more when he saw Rockefeller riding a donkey.
'What brings him all the way here? Surely he didn't come all this way to collect interest from me?'
Carter Bank already had a large debt, and the monthly interest repayments were annoying enough.
'No, I paid this month's interest, didn't I?'
Feeling he had nothing to be ashamed of, the lord decided to ask Rockefeller why he came here instead of avoiding him.
Soon after, Rockefeller, riding the donkey, saw the lord in front of the church and immediately got off the donkey, bowing respectfully to the lord from afar.
Seeing this, the lord beckoned with his hand, and Rockefeller led the donkey to stand in front of the lord.
"Rockefeller Rothsmedici, I see you, my lord, as I pass by."
As Rockefeller bowed his head and showed respect, the lord immediately asked about the reason for his visit.
"What brings you all the way here? Do you have any business with the church?"
In fact, the business with the church was a secret between Rockefeller and the high priest, unknown to the lord.
The church had its own power, so there was no reason not to accept Rockefeller's request, and for that reason, the lord still didn't know much about the relationship between the church and the Rothsmedici family.
"Tell me, it's not like you have any business with me."
"No, I didn't come to see you, my lord."
Rockefeller spoke.
"I came to talk to the church."
"The church?"
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