CH 26

Human Resources Discovery

Translated by Mlzkzr

Edited by Mlzkzr

“Tax?”

In the audience room, one of the reports I received from Mimis caught me.

Recently, perhaps Mimis has learned how to deal with me, since the way of his reporting has changed from before.

He does a basic overview, and he will only explain in detail the matter I bite at.

Even now, since I bit at the word “tax”, he received another document from another vassal again, and he started to explain in detail while reading it.

“It’s from a village called Shiromero, but it’s only recently that they’ve dodged paying tax.”

“Is there any reason?”

“There’s nothing especially, if I say it strongly, I guess it’s about the replacement of village chief.”

“I see”

Seeing that I didn’t dig deep as I said that, Mimis said nothing and went to the next report.

Tax, hah.



After the day’s work, I went out to the city of Pindus.

While walking through the bustling city of Pindus, I was thinking about Shiromero in my head.

The moment I heard Mimis’ story, I thought I could use it for something.

Speaking of prodigal lords, I know that in the past, their collection of tax has often failed.

My purpose is to buy hate decently from there, and to be naturally driven away from being the Head.

I was walking while thinking that how could I make good use of Shiromero, which doesn’t pay taxes properly.

“…… Is it the safest to leave them alone?”

A Lord who can’t even collect taxes, will be branded as incompetent.

It may be okay to just leave them alone, without me doing anything in particular.

“Are you stupid!”

I heard an extremely angry bellow, and the sound of hitting something.

The passers-by around me were scared all at once, but just by taking a quick look at the direction of the voice, everyone walked away with a feeling that it doesn’t concern them.

Wondering what was going on, I then went to the direction of the voice.

And then, in the back alley, a thug―― No, I found people doing hoodlum business.

Their number is 5, one of them is obviously the boss or Big brother*, or a man with that sort of position. (TN: The Kingpin of a gangster)

He had an angry face, and he slap the side of the face of the weakest of the five.

“With that collection a little while ago, are you an amateur!”

“I,I’m sorry! Bu,but I think that way was better――”

“Ahhn? But? What do you think, that I’m wrong?”

“――! That’s not the case――”

When he was about to make an excuse, the weak-looking man was slapped by the cheek by his boss again.

He staggered with its momentum, and banged his head against the wall.

They crouched down on the spot where he collided.

“We can’t use you at all. Let’s go, you guys”

“““Yes!”””

The boss threw him away, and went away with his other minions.

The man who looks timid was left behind.

The way they left him was, in reality, they turned their backs, and abandoned him. That I can feel.

“Ahaha…… look…… I’m no good as I thought……”

The man, who looked timid, was depressed, as he sunk into the ground.

The person himself seems to be aware of it.

There was something I thought about, and I, approached the man and called out to him.



We enter a nearby simple restaurant, and sit face to face.

“Uh,uhmm…… what do you want from me?”

“I have something to ask of you. Ah, before that, I’m Hermes Canoe. Your name is ”

“I’m Nassos …… eh? Ca,canoe……?”

After hearing my name, the man who called himself Nassos momentarily looked blankly.

“Eeeeeeehh!?”

Then, he was so surprised that he turned the chair over, and it has fallen on the ground on its back.

“Ca,Ca,Caca……”

“Caca?”

“CaCaCanoe-sama, perhaps you are the Head-sama!?”

“Ah, that’s right”

“Eeeeeeeehh!?”

“Don’t be so surprised. Rather than that, sit down. I have something to ask of you.”

“Ha,hah……”

Nassos raised his chair, and sat back with a terrifying surprise.

Perhaps he was scared to hear that I’m the Lord, his butt is only half on the chair, and as I see it, he was sitting uncomfortably.

Well, leaving that aside, let’s hear his story.

“First, I’ll confirm, are you collecting debt?”

“Ye,yes…… But I’m something like a dropout. So, I was scolded by Big brother a while ago ……”

“Fumu”

It was that scene which I witnessed huh.

They are a debt collector gang, that’s why, they went to collect debt, but this weak-looking man named Nassos was punished for making some mistakes.

And in addition to that.

“I was no good at it……”

“Is that right?”

“Yes, everyone has always said that kind of thing to me ……”

“I see”

Apparently, it seems like that.

Let’s go with him.

With him, it will surely fail. (TN: LOL)

“Hey Nassos, I have expectations from you, so can I ask you for something.”

“To me?”

“Ah yes. At the village called Shiromero, the tax payments at that place are delayed, so can you collect it?”

“Eh?”

“If you turn up, 5 percent ―― No, I’ll take 10% for you.”

“Eeeeeeehh!?”

Nassos is terribly surprised.

It’s not particularly a strange story.

Even now, some noblemen outsource their tax collection to non-subordinate merchants, or collection specialists.

When I heard it, I asked some people for their bid, and there seems to be a way to leave “their pay (take) from a couple of it”.

I’m trying to get Nassos to do that.

If I’m not wrong, this guy will fail.

And if he fails, it will be my responsibility.

The plan is just right.

Even if I fail once to collect the taxes in the Shiromero village, the damage will not be enough to shake the Canoe family itself.

I can make a reasonable mistake there, and lower my rating.

“Bu,but  I……”

“You can do it.”

“Eh?”

I decided to push him.

It’s rare for me to see a failure as clear as someone like Nassos.

I have to instigate, and motivate him here.

“I…… I can do it?”

“Ah, you can. I believe so”

“You believe me……?”

“Rather, I have expectations, in your power.”

in a negative sense ―― I didn’t say that.

Nassos had his eyes wide open.

When I thought that he was surprised, at the next moment, he began to tremble all over.

He started crying at the end!

“I,I…… it was the first time in my life that I was told this much.”

“Is that right?”

“Big brother, and also my dad and mom, I’ve been told that I’m no good. To such me…… to such me……”

Nassos wipes his tears with the back of his hand, severely, and he stared at me with his face while saying.

“I’ll do it! I, will risk my life for Hermes-sama!”

“That’s the spirit!”

I thought in my heart that I was able to put it well.

By the way, I didn’t give him any instructions on how to do it.

I’ll tell him how to do something and he’ll succeed ―― that was the pattern so far.

I’ll leave everything to Nassos.

I expected failure from him, and I’m convinced that he would.



Half a month later, at the audience hall.

“……Eh?”

I, was speechless with Mimis’ report.

“Mu, I have to say that this is as expected of the Head. We possibly, couldn’t think of this at all.”

“No, wait, praise me later ―― no, don’t praise me”

I was confused.

What did Mimis, who came in during the audience at the morning during work hours, just say?

“The tax of Shiromero, has been collected, is it?”

“At the exact full amount”

“By who?”

“By a young man named Nassos. He said that he was ordered by the Head, though?”

Was it different? To Mimis who makes that face.

“That’s, correct, but”

Eh? What does this mean?

You mean to say that he took the tax properly?

Wasn’t Nassos supposed to fail.

Did I do anything wrong?

To such confused me, Mimis continues as if to explain.

“Well, he may look like a weak young man at first glance, but he’s the type that grows if you compliment him.”

“Eh?”

If you compliment him…… he’ll grow.

“And according to what I hear, he has never been praised before. And yet, he felt indebted to Head-sama who found him. That’s why, he desperately done it, I guess”

“……”

“As expected of the Head. No, I wish you could teach me at that area. Not being praised for all life ―― That is, the secret of how you found the talent of a man that no one has noticed.”

“……You’re lying”

I became more and more vacant.

Thanks to the success of Nassos, my reputation of collecting tax has risen among my vassals.

Moreover.

“It’s the most important ability for a Ruler.”

It seems that the place which I shouldn’t have risen the most has gone up.