abcnovels
Chapter 217.2
Chapter 217.2
Chapter 217.2
“Also, Viscount Zeavert.” (King)
“Ha!” (Welner)
I bowed deeply as he called out to me. But I almost shook my head at the line that followed.
“I am aware that the Viscount is heavily in debt.” (King)
“Oh, as you say, sir.” (Welner)
Ugh, I never thought that story would come up here.
I could hear laughter all around me. I blushed unintentionally, but then His Majesty’s words followed.
“But I understand that the debt was all for the good of the country. In fact, I am aware that the development and experimentation of such various tools would not have been possible without prior research.” (King)
I know it may seem like that, but it was not the case. Well, there was no way that I could say, “I’m sorry, I’m just using the knowledge that humanity has accumulated in previous generations”. It was embarrassing to be praised based on someone else’s knowledge.
Moreover, I was sure that some of the attendees misunderstood my blush as embarrassment over the fact that my efforts to hide my embarrassment had been revealed. Wow, this was a bit of torture.“I recognize that you deserve a special award for your long-term efforts and service to your country without regard to your own disgrace. Therefore, the state shall assume all your debts and reward the viscount with an equal amount.” (King)
…Yes?
Eh, wait a minute. That would almost be like being in debt to the government from the beginning, since most of the money was borrowed from His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. I think that the amount of the debt and my financial reward would be quite a lot of money.
My debt was the result of my loyalty to the country, which was highly valued by the government, which showed its gratitude by taking over all the debt and giving me a financial reward.
The country benefited greatly from this. I never thought they would use my debt in such a political way.
I guess the budget for this would be raised by destroying some noble family, right? It was an unexpected turn of events, to be honest.
“In recognition of his insight, I am appointing Welner Von Zeavert as the new head of the Third Stable Master. The Third Stable Master will be under the jurisdiction of the Crown Prince, so keep that in mind.” (King)
This time, there were shocked voices all around me. I was astonished as well. Wait a minute, I was still a student.
A Stable Master was literally the head of the stable. To be precise, the highest rank was the royal Stable Master, who managed the horses and carriages of the royal family. The numbered Stable Master’s main duty was to manage the official horses and carriages, which were used by the knights, diplomats, and other emissaries to distant places.
The reason why there were multiple Stable Masters (along with multiple stables) was to prevent all the horses ending up out of service when a sickness struck the stable.
However, of course, the horses themselves were taken care of by horsemen and other specialists. Therefore, it was not unusual for people who were not necessarily experts in horses to be assigned to this position.
In fact, in the Middle Ages, an old duke who had given up his real power to his son and practically retired was appointed as a Stable Master of the royal court.
In that sense, a Stable Master was more of an honorary position.
On the other hand, horses were both a luxury car and a chariot in this era. In other words, it was an extremely important national asset. Therefore, as the person in charge of managing them, the position and salary offered was quite high.
The highest-ranking Stable Master, the royal Stable Master, would be paid between 7,500 USD and 11,500 USD per month in my previous life. Other stable managers would also receive about 7,000 USD per month. And I was also paid a stipend as a viscount.
(T/N: Above figures are very high based on Japan’s economy. They may not seem that high in the USA itself.)
The Stable Master always accompanied royalty on horse-drawn carriage parades, always staying near the carriage. This was a precaution in case something happened to the horses pulling the carriage, but he was one of the people who could always be near the royal carriages, so to speak.
Furthermore, since the division related to military horses was also included, the Stable Master oversees the accounting division of the stables as well as the administrative division. For example, he had the right to select merchants in the purchase of supplies, the warehouse division, and the technical division, including craftsmen who make horse tack and blacksmiths who make horses’ hooves.
They would also be consulted on military matters concerning the horses.
So, this position of Stable Master was an important one, both in everyday life and in military service.