Chapter 37 : Chapter 37
Chapter 37: Nika’s Gratitude, Arrival at the Castle
Ryan was extremely confident about this trip.
He had not been feeding Nika empty promises.
The reason he had killed the two men who followed them earlier was entirely because they had first harbored malicious intent toward him.
But he could not deal with the Jurgen Family the same way.
If he wanted the Jurgen Family to relent and let Nila leave, then he would definitely have to offer them sufficient benefits.
Ryan’s plan was courtesy first, force later.
If Nila was willing to leave with him,
then he would entrust the sale of perfume to the Jurgen Family.
Back at the Orphanage, Ryan had entrusted the sale of perfume to Mark’s family.
However, Mark’s family only had influence within the Kingdom of Mia.
Their control over the other five kingdoms was very weak.
And for a product with enormous profits like perfume,
without powerful backing, it would simply be a fat sheep waiting to be butchered.
That was why Mark’s family had never expanded the perfume business into the other five kingdoms.
This trip to the Kingdom of Candel was also an opportunity.
An opportunity to make perfume sell wildly here as well.
The Jurgen Family held tremendous influence within the Kingdom of Candel.
There could not be a more suitable choice than entrusting the perfume business to them.
Ryan had never once considered running the perfume business by himself.
It would waste time and effort, and it would get in the way of him enjoying his life in another world.
And there had been plenty of examples on Blue Star in his previous life.
People who tried to keep all the profits for themselves usually died even faster.
So Ryan had never intended to keep everything for himself.
Wasn’t doing it this way much better?
He could hand all the troublesome matters over to a powerful local family and concern himself only with spending money.
Every time he had not even finished spending the last payout, the next profit share would already arrive.
Maybe some people who transmigrated into another world dreamed of becoming the richest person in the world.
But Ryan had no desire to become the world’s richest man.
He had already had more than enough of that beast-of-burden life in his previous world.
This time, he intended to enjoy life to the fullest.
He would find seven or eight women, have seven or eight children,
and if he had enough children, forming a football team would not be out of the question either!
After hearing Ryan’s explanation, Nika finally understood.
It had to be said that Ryan’s thinking was extremely thorough.
A moment ago, she had simply been too worried about her younger sister, so she had completely overlooked the possibility that Rudolf might be lying.
Now that she thought about it, she felt a lingering chill of fear.
What if Rudolf had lied?
What if her sister were currently trapped in a living hell?
At that thought, Nika spoke again. “Thank you, Master. I really did not think that far just now.”
“It’s fine. I understand.”
Ryan smiled as he patted Nika on the head.
He did not blame her either.
When it came to her own family, Nika had already handled herself quite well.
“Thank you very much, Master. Because of my sister’s matter, I have caused you trouble.”
“And how are you going to thank me?”
“Mm...”
Nika froze for a moment. Everything she had, body and soul, already belonged to Ryan. She truly had no valuables she could offer him.
But in the next instant, Nika remembered what the older woman at the Slave Merchant Guild had taught her.
Her cheeks immediately turned crimson. Then, gritting her teeth, she slowly knelt down in front of Ryan.
When Ryan saw Nika’s movement, he could vaguely guess what she intended to do.
But he did not refuse.
He had gone to great lengths to help reunite the sisters. What was wrong with enjoying himself a little?
In the next moment, Ryan instantly felt a shudder run through his soul.
“Hiss...”
It was a night of passion.
Early the next morning, Ryan woke up.
The movement of Ryan getting out of bed woke Nika as well.
Nika rose and made her preparations too.
After Ryan took Nika downstairs and ate breakfast with her at the inn, they headed to the Jurgen Family’s castle.
The Jurgen Family’s castle stood on a hill to the east of the town. The hill was about one hundred meters high, and the base of the castle lay roughly two kilometers from the edge of town. From the town center, one could look up and see the castle’s towers.
The castle as a whole was square in shape and covered an area of about twenty thousand square meters. Its outer walls were built from gray stone, with evenly sized blocks fitted tightly together. The walls stood twelve meters high and three meters thick, and their surfaces were lined with loopholes shaped like funnels, wider on the inside than on the outside.
At the top of the outer wall were battlements one meter high, spaced one meter apart, with a guard rotating duty behind each one.
The castle had two entrances: a main gate and a side gate.
The main gate was located on the south side. It was arched, five meters high and three meters wide, and made of thick iron plates reinforced with horizontal iron bars. Riveted to its surface was the Jurgen Family’s crest—a silver shield engraved with crossed swords and a magic wand.
Behind the main gate were two barriers. The first was an iron portcullis, and the second was a wooden gate plated with iron. Both could be raised or lowered by mechanical devices inside the castle.
On either side of the main gate stood a square tower, each twenty meters tall. The tops of the towers were capped with conical roofs covered in dark gray stone tiles, and at the peak of each tower flew the family banner, black in color and emblazoned with the family crest.
The moment Ryan and Nika reached the gate, they were stopped by a guard.
“Halt. This is the Jurgen Family’s castle!”
“Hello. I am Ryan, and this is my slave, Nika. We have business with Lord Alfred Jurgen. Could you please announce us for me?”
“Do you have an appointment?”
“No, we do not.”
“My apologies. Without an appointment, you cannot see the Lord.”
Ryan was taken aback.
This was not what Rudolf had said at all.
Had Rudolf not claimed that anyone could ask to see Alfred Jurgen?
So why had he hit a wall the moment he arrived?
What Ryan did not know was that countless people wished to meet Alfred Jurgen.
After all, the Jurgen Family wielded enormous local influence, and many families were eager to cooperate with them.
Visitors like Ryan, who came seeking an audience with the family head, were the kind of people this guard saw every day.
If he had to go announce every single one of them, then he would not be doing his job as a guard at all.
So if a guest had no appointment, he would not pass the message along.
Ryan only thought about it for a moment before he understood the guard’s meaning.
It seemed that meeting Alfred Jurgen would not be simple after all.
Nika looked at Ryan anxiously.
Ryan gave her a look, signaling for her to stay calm.
Then Ryan took out one Gold Coin and one bottle of perfume and stepped up to the guard again.
“My friend, I am a merchant. I came here this time to discuss a business partnership with Lord Alfred Jurgen. Let me put it this way—I do not want to make things difficult for you. Please help me deliver this bottle of perfume to Lord Alfred Jurgen, and tell him I am here to discuss cooperation. I believe Lord Alfred Jurgen will definitely agree to see me.”
With that, Ryan handed the Gold Coin and the perfume to the guard.
Ryan only asked the guard to deliver the perfume to Alfred Jurgen, which meant the one Gold Coin was for the guard himself.
And one must not think that one Gold Coin was a small amount.
In this world, an ordinary household’s yearly income did not even reach one Gold Coin.
Of course, someone like a guard of the Jurgen Family would certainly earn a bit more.
But no matter how much more, there was no way his monthly pay could reach one Gold Coin.
The one Gold Coin Ryan casually offered was already a very large sum.
The guard understood Ryan’s meaning, and his eyes immediately lit up.
One Gold Coin was already an enormous amount to him.
Still, out of duty, he had to ask clearly first.
After all, what if this thing called perfume was poisonous and harmed the Lord?
“What exactly is this perfume used for?”
“It’s like this. Perfume is...”
Ryan explained the purpose of perfume to the guard.
The moment he heard the explanation, even this guard could tell how extraordinary perfume was.
If perfume really worked the way Ryan claimed, then it would definitely become an astonishingly profitable business.
The guard immediately said, “All right, I understand. Wait here. I’ll go pass on the message for you.”
“Good. Thank you for the trouble.”
Ryan nodded and quietly let out a sigh of relief.
The first step had succeeded.
Now all that remained was to wait.
But Ryan was very confident.
If Alfred Jurgen was truly a successful family head, then he would definitely understand the value of perfume.
And if he understood its value, Ryan would definitely get to meet him.
And just as expected,
Ryan did not have to wait long before the guard returned and said, “Hello. The Lord has agreed to see you. Please come with me.”
The guard’s attitude toward Ryan had undergone a complete reversal.
All of it was because of Alfred Jurgen’s reaction just now.
The guard had not forgotten the excited look on Alfred Jurgen’s face after hearing what perfume could do.
Even the guard himself had been praised because of it.
And Alfred Jurgen had even said that if the partnership was successfully concluded,
then the guard could be promoted directly and become the Guard Captain.
The moment he heard that news, the guard was overjoyed.
And naturally, his attitude toward Ryan changed as well.
This man was his benefactor!
He had merely helped pass along a message, yet he had received such a tremendous reward.
It was truly a blessing dropped from the heavens.
Ryan followed behind the guard with Nika, observing the interior of the castle.
Inside the castle, the grounds were divided by walls into three sections.
The front section was the drill yard. The ground was paved with smooth bluestone slabs, and the slabs bore dents of varying depth left behind by long years of training.
On the north side of the drill yard stood a row of wooden target frames. In front of them were ten straw dummies dressed in Leather Armor for swordsmanship practice.
On the west side were six stone magic practice platforms. Basic magic circles were carved into their surfaces, and they were used for practicing low-level magic.
The middle section was the living area, with two rows of stone houses roofed with tiles, serving as the residences of family members and servants.
Between the houses ran a cobblestone path. A few fruit trees had been planted along the roadside, their trunks thick and their branches and leaves broad enough to block part of the sunlight.
At the center of the middle section was a well lined with stone, fitted with a wooden winch. The water inside was clear and used for daily life.
The rear section was the core area, containing the main castle, the magic tower, and the armory.
The guard led Ryan and Nika to the council chamber of the main castle.
Alfred Jurgen was waiting there for Ryan’s arrival.
Knock, knock, knock!
“Come in.”
The guard led Ryan and Nika into the council chamber.
“My Lord, the guests have arrived.”
“Very good. Bring them in. You may leave.”
“Yes, my Lord. Sir, please enter.”
The guard bent at the waist and extended a hand, gesturing for Ryan to enter the council chamber.
Ryan entered the council chamber with Nika and finally met the head of the Jurgen Family.