Not Loyalty

"Since the case had finished now," the scribe returned with a new respect in his eyes, "the lord wanted to know if you were completing the deal of the land or that offer had been taken back. Because if that is the case, the land would be up for bidding again for other nobles." 

The scribe stared at the traders looming around Elias and then at him in the new light. He did not remember lord Crestford ever having much power or wealth. But if he refuses to buy the land now, they have to look for the buyers far away. Since after losing half of his estate, lord Velmore would not be able to buy it too.

Traders turned to look at him with anticipation too. He placed his hand in his pocket and smiled softly.

"That would not be needed. We are going to buy it now." Elias followed the scribe with others in the courtroom again. This time, there was a larger crowd watching him as he entered. 

Lord Halves narrowed his eyes with scrutiny as the scriber explained he was buying the land. The papers were soon brought as the chests were carried by the traders, their eyes gleaming with greed and joy.

"Since the papers are already prepared, with the transfer of fifteen thousand gold crowns, the land formerly registered under Lord Velmore are hereby transferred in entirety to Baron Elias Crestford, who shall now hold exclusive ownership, taxation, and management rights, effective immediately under royal seal."

The final stamp echoed through the silent court like an announcement of a new leader of the land. A deal that was supposed to be Velmore' was now transferred to Elias.

Elias stepped forward and signed his name in steady strokes beneath the royal declaration. The ink had barely dried when the room came back to life.

The same traders and minor nobles who had once sung praises to Velmore now approached with the oily smiles of opportunists. 

"Baron Elias," said the trader with jeweled rings on every finger, "you had hit a masterstroke indeed! I must say, you have handled everything with such elegance."

"Brilliance," added another, a narrow-eyed noble who had once been Velmore's drinking companion. "Not only did you dethrone a lion, but you have claimed his den for yourself. Impressive!"

Another leaned in with an eager smile, clapping Elias on the back. "Now that the land is yours, you need not worry about the mess left behind. We have good and loyal men and I personally know a few thugs. If I am honest, they have already done tasks like this for me in the past. They knew how to clean the encroachments and unpaid tenants within days. We just need to give them the word."

"You have done the hard part," another piped in. "Leave the dirty work to us. We have all benefited from this deal. And now that we have stood beside you, well…" He let the sentence trail with a smug grin and a knowing nod.

Their laughter was light and confident, as if the future was already sealed in their favor. They believed Elias was the sort of man with too much money and not enough experience. Someone they could shape and guide. Someone who would owe them favors forever for simply picking the winning side.

Elias watched them with an expression that could have been carved from ice.

He let their noise swirl around him for a moment longer before finally lifting his gaze and asking calmly, "Did you forget that I have the full management rights to the land?"

The group faltered and the trader offering thugs blinked.

"Yes, yes, of course, Baron," he said with a wheezy chuckle. "It is your land now, naturally. We are only offering help since these things can be… messy. And you're still new to how to manage these types of things."

"You seem to think," Elias interrupted in a sharp but quiet voice, "that I require your help."

A heavy silence fell and their smiles faltered. One by one, the traders began to notice the look in Elias's eyes and it stunned them that it did not show the soft gratitude they had expected, but cold indifference. He wasn't grateful to them, he was studying them like insects crawling over a feast that wasn't theirs.

Another thinner and taller man attempted a laugh. "Surely, Baron, we have been on your side from the start. Without our support, dealing with Velmore wouldn't have gone so smoothly."

Elias tilted his head slightly. "Do you mean the same support that costs you nothing?"

The tall man's throat bobbed. "Well, influence has its own value."

Elias's lips twitched not into a smile, but something unreadable.

"Let me be clear," he said slowly. "When we have discussed the deal I have offered you twice the price for the services you would offer to me and the land, but I never said you could decide that. Since I have the management right, I will decide how things will work. 

Those who want to stay, can stay for the wealthy. Those who did not like the idea could leave and I will not hold a grudge against you."

The men were left speechless. They had come so far only to be treated like this.

"You could have never won against lord Velmore without our help." he hissed, losing his patience.

"You stood beside me not out of loyalty, but fear. You abandoned Velmore the moment he stumbled. And now you presume you will find permanence under my shadow?" He stepped forward, just once, and the shift in the air was palpable. "I can offer that but only under my terms." The smugness drained from their faces.

The rotund trader opened his mouth as if to argue, but Elias's next words cut through like frost.

"The land is mine and the taxes are mine. The deeds are signed under royal seal. Your names, however, are not written on anything. You have not paid a single cent yet. I am offering you all the wealth the land could earn, I hope you would choose wisely." A silence descended so thick it choked the chamber.

Elias continued, eyes gleaming with controlled menace, "and remember, the next time one of you assumes you have authority where you do not, I will not respond with words."

He turned away from them, reaching for the leather folder containing the official deeds. "This land is not a prize for your loyalty. It's a mark of your irrelevance."

With that, he walked toward the exit of the court and disappeared in front of their eyes. Behind him, the traders stood frozen. Their imagined alliance had crumbled in less than five minutes. The smug certainty in their eyes was gone and replaced by dread.

One of them finally whispered, "He's not like the others."

"No," said another hoarsely, watching Elias's retreating form. "He's worse."

But Elias never looked back. As he stepped out onto the sunlit court stairs, the crisp wind brushing past his coat, he allowed himself the smallest smile.

Let them scramble. Let them plot. He hadn't just bought land today. He had buried Velmore's era, and carved his own throne from the remains.