Under the Oak Tree

Chapter 31: Chapter

Maxi asked about the conversion that confused her the most.

“Th-Then this small gold coin... a d-denar, was it? How m-much is one d-denar in liram?”

“There’s no precise conversion, since five liram are worth three denar,” replied Ruth, sliding a gold denar and a silver liram across the table.

She quickly began scribbling notes on parchment. Ruth watched her for a few moments before sighing softly.

“You were likely confused between liram and denar in your dealings with the merchant. The soldem is too valuable and is seldom used, while the derham’s small value makes it unsuitable for large-scale transactions. Trade between noble houses and merchants is usually conducted in liram, the Roemian silver coin, or in the gold denar from Lakazim. Unfortunately, liram and denar do not convert neatly. Breaking the coins into tiny pieces isn’t an option, so traders often convert them into derham to simplify things. If you just do the conversion properly, your calculations should be accurate.”

Maxi nodded, dejected.

“I d-didn’t know th-there were so m-many kinds of coins...”

“You’ve only seen a fraction of them, my lady. Balto in the north and Sykan in the east have their own currencies. Their coins’ purity and weight are identical to that of soldem and liram, but it’s best if you at least take note of their appearance.”

He searched his pockets, then scratched his head.

“I don’t have any samples with me. Next time, perhaps.”

Maxi looked at him with dread. More currencies only meant more confusion.

“If th-they’re worth the s-same as s-soldem and liram, is th-there really a need t-to s-see them?”

“More and more lords have been minting their own coins to show off their wealth and power. But most of these coins are impure alloys that contain lead or copper. These must be rejected in transactions. Coins from Balto or Sykan, on the other hand, are pure and reliable. Come next spring, merchants from these kingdoms will arrive in Anatol, so it’s best if you know what their coins look like.”

“I s-see...”

“The soldem, liram, denar, derham, and copper shekel widely used by commoners are among the most reliable currencies. And then there’s the dant, which is used only by the elite. You’ll probably be fine if you remember those.”

Maxi’s ears pricked up at his mention of the dant. She had only heard the name in passing.

“H-How much is a d-dant w-worth?”

“The dant is the currency with the highest value in the world,” Ruth explained. “It was issued during the golden age of the Roemian Empire. They’re book-sized and resemble metal plates more than coins. Made of orichalcum, they’re exceedingly rare. Only 600 exist across the continent, and 160 of them are in Sir Riftan’s possession.”

Maxi’s eyes went round. Ruth began to boast.

“Sir Riftan found them six years ago in a monster lair in the canyons of Osiriya. At the time, he hunted monsters like a madman and collected all kinds of treasures. The dant coins were among the most valuable of his finds. He originally owned 200 dant, but he spent forty on building the castle walls, paving village roads, and repairing the castle.”

“H-He was able t-to do all that w-with just f-forty coins?”

“Twenty would have sufficed, but Sir Riftan paid the workers several times the usual wage to expedite construction.”

Ruth made no attempt to hide his displeasure.

“Y-You’ve known R-Riftan a long time.”

“Since he was a lowly mercenary. It’s been nearly twelve years.”

Maxi was intrigued. Twelve years ago, Riftan must have been sixteen. Had he become a mercenary at that age? She knew that Riftan had been knighted at the age of eighteen. And to become a knight, it typically took at least three years of training and an additional year of learning swordsmanship under a knight...

“We’ve digressed. Let’s return to the ledger, my lady. We must finish before the merchant arrives.”

Maxi swallowed her questions and buried her nose in the ledger once again.

***

Aderon was visibly upset when Maxi canceled some of the orders. His eloquence nearly persuaded her to reconsider, but she stood her ground as she remembered how Ruth had scowled at her immoderate spending. In the end, the merchant drew up a new statement with a sigh of surrender.

Maxi tried to estimate the total cost. When it dawned on her that she would be paying with piles of the gleaming coins that Ruth had shown her, she felt that it was no small sum. She signed the receipt with a renewed sense of responsibility and gathered up the rolls of parchment.

Ruth looked relieved when she told him that everything had gone well.

“May I see the receipt?”

She passed him the piece of parchment.

“The fellow isn’t entirely unprincipled,” he said after a thorough examination.

“He’s rather p-persistent, b-but he’s not a b-bad person...”

“Anyone can pretend to be a paragon of virtue before gold.”

As he pulled out a chair to sit at the table, Maxi sat down across from him and rolled her eyes. His cold remark was at odds with his soft features. She had sensed it earlier, but the sorcerer was far more ill-tempered and sharp-tongued than his face suggested. Though he was nosier and more talkative than Riftan, the two men undeniably both had difficult personalities.

“Please record the transaction in the ledger. I’ll help you make any necessary corrections.”

“A-All right...”

She obeyed without questioning his right to give her such instructions.

“This calculation is wrong.”

“Oh, I’m s-sorry...”

Ruth silently observed her as she scratched away with the quill. After some time had passed, he pressed a thumb to his forehead and tapped one corner of the parchment. When she hastily corrected the mistake, he pointed again to the section below.

“This unit here is wrong.”

“I-I’m sorry...”

“And please keep the accounts in greater detail. We want to avoid confusion when they’re settled.” ƒr𝙚𝙚𝘸e𝚋𝐧૦ѵ𝒆𝒍.𝒄𝒐m

“I-I understand...”

“Here, the spelling is wrong. Please refrain from scrawling. These are official records that will be passed down for generations.”

Maxi withered. Not even the tutor that Duke Croyso had hired had been so strict. When she finished writing in the ledger, Ruth reviewed the numbers as if he were inspecting her homework.

“This is acceptable,” he said haughtily as he closed the ledger, his face brightening as if a great burden had been lifted. “We’ve seen to all the problems. Now, my lady, I’d like to ask that you not disturb my sleep.”

Maxi rolled her eyes again. Did the man plan to continue sleeping in the library? Had Riftan not mentioned that his quarters were in the tower? But it was not her place to interfere. She hesitated a long while before opening her mouth to speak.

“We d-decided to work on the g-gardens next spring...”

...

Ruth’s face contorted. Maxi looked at him pleadingly. She had toiled alone for days and did not wish to continue tearing at her hair. Having suffered all manner of humiliation, she no longer had anything to lose. f𝓇𝘦e𝑤𝘦𝚋𝒏૦ѵℯ𝒍.c𝐨𝒎

“And r-repair the a-annex...”

Ruth clutched his head, regretting that he had ever intervened.

***

From that day forward, Ruth oversaw Maxi’s bookkeeping. She would enter the library and silently hover over him as he slept in the corner, and he would rise, grumbling that he should never have meddled. Still, he examined the ledger meticulously and advised her on the purchases. Though his advice bordered on nagging, he was of great help, and Maxi found herself turning to him for even the most trivial problems.

When Maxi told him of her plans for the garden, however, he looked concerned.

“The servants will be troubled if you order the removal of the tree by the pavilion.”

Maxi looked at him questioningly.

“But it’s d-dead. It d-doesn’t even g-grow leaves.”

“Anatolians believe that nymphs inhabit trees. They’re wary of uprooting trees, even dead ones, and logging is sacrilegious. If you were to order that tree’s removal for aesthetic reasons, they’d be horrified.”

“B-But...” she said, baffled. “W-Wouldn’t they understand if w-we told them the t-trees would be used f-for fuel? Look how h-hideous it is...”

...

“They’d probably accept it,” Ruth mused as he rubbed his chin, the corners of his eyes crinkling. “But that tree is an oak tree.”

“W-What’s s-special about oak trees?”

“Anatolians hold dear the legend of Sir Rosem Wigrew, the first knight to have flown across the sky on a dragon. According to legend, that hill is where Wigrew mounted his dragon before he left.”