186: Chapter 104 Gifts_2 186: Chapter 104 Gifts_2 He carefully picked out gold coins nearly equal to the value of 15 gold crowns and set them aside.
This amount was originally for the expenses of hiring the messenger and the advance money for the more than a hundred coffins.
Each account must be settled on its own, and it was time to reimburse that.
The remaining ransom, worth approximately 985 gold crowns, was to be distributed evenly among the several dozen households of Selva Village.
The calculations showed each household would receive fifteen gold crowns, six Silver Nalers, and three Diers and five copper coins, adding up to 1563.5 Diers.
However, reality wasn’t as easy as playing a game; handling odd and exact amounts of money still required a change to be broken down, making it easier to divvy up.
Dividing gold coins was straightforward, but Nalers, Diers, and the odd copper coins still needed readjusting.
Physical currency was satisfying to handle but a hassle to circulate.
Leon couldn’t help missing the electronic payments and online banking from his previous life.
When he first received the ransom note, he had briefly entertained the idea of setting up a manorial bank in Selva to collect deposit interests and encourage subjects to keep their money in his vault, available whenever needed through bank slips.
If such a scheme were to be implemented, he would undoubtedly have an advantage, fulfiling his promise and rapidly gathering ample funds from the hands of his subjects.
This idea was indeed appealing, yet after discussing it with Mr.
Brian and his partners, he decided against it.
These money-making schemes weren’t unheard of in this world; Leon had seen the burgeoning city banking industry during his time in the business circles of Dragon’s Throat City.
But that was only feasible on a small scale among wealthy citizens and business groups.
Engaging with the illiterate poor fellows of the village in such endeavors would be less efficient than outright reneging on a promise and seizing the money directly from their hands.
Moreover, setting up a small bank would involve managing money, keeping records, verifying withdrawals—tasks that required educated personnel, more time, and cost, potentially leading to endless troubles.
Leon didn’t want to complicate a straightforward process; creating chaos with his subjects over money could lead to unforeseen grievances and backfire significantly.
After all, with Selva soon facing construction, and considering the plan, it wouldn’t be long before each family in his territory would need to spend money.
Adding any extra steps now was unnecessary.
Perhaps he would reconsider such ideas when he had more territory, financial power, and educated personnel in the future.
“Leon, did you miscalculate?”
Olivia, sitting beside Leon, tilted her head, counted silently, and couldn’t help but remind him, “You forgot, didn’t you?
After Uncle Tuck moved away, there’s one less household in Selva now.”
Leon paused, reprocessed the numbers in his head, then looked at the girl with resignation, “I didn’t miscalculate…
Did you forget to count your own family?
There’s a share here for you guys too.”
But isn’t this money meant to support the families of the victims?
My father and I are safe,” Olivia said confusedly.
Leon shook his head with a smile, “It doesn’t work that way, Olivia.
Mamor was defeated by you.
He is your prisoner of war.
Strictly speaking, the entire thousand gold crowns belong to you, even though you want to share it with the suffering villages, we can’t possibly leave you out.”
He looked at the naive girl beside him, genuinely worried she could still be deceived by others and lose her money; he needed to protect her in the future.
“This…” Olivia glanced back at her father and saw him waving dismissively as if he didn’t mind.
She then tentatively tried to offer her share to Leon, “Isn’t Selva in need of money?
I don’t usually have expenses of my own.
Maybe my share can be like that bank idea you mentioned earlier—kept with you until I need it.”
“Don’t refuse it; I don’t lack that little amount.
What belongs to you is yours.
Even if you and Uncle Brian were unharmed, your property at home was still left in a shambles by those men, right?
And, remember, you also lost two horses.”,
Leon chuckled as he took out roughly the value of fifteen gold crowns in gold coins from the pouch and stuffed them into the girl’s hands: “You’ve been busy managing everything, dealing with the village disputes, doing so much for Selva, you deserve a compensation for your efforts, let’s settle on that.
I’ll fetch the change later; make sure to keep it safe~!”
Seeing Leon’s firm stance, Olivia pursed her lips, thought for a moment, recalled something urgently needed money for and thus stopped refusing.
The next day, without bothering Azeryan to run errands, Leon took advantage of Kovis’s downtime from restoring Magic Power to step away from his daily training, planning to exchange the gold coins for more commonly used currency in the city and distribute it to the subjects.
He also planned to visit the castle of Farolis, to meet with the emblem painters of the Thorny Flowers family and order the flags that would soon be needed.
A quick there and back, with Kovis accompanying him, he decided not to wear armor or involve any other guards.
He instructed the captain of the Guard, Zabron, to continue leading Hawk and others outside the village to strictly maintain the training arranged by Mr.
Brian while the pair led the horses out from the back yard.
Before they could mount, Olivia, who was inside the armory, heard the commotion in the courtyard and peeked outside.
“Hey, are you heading out now?” the girl asked, leaning on the doorframe.