Gonsalos just shook his head. “Oh, no, the land through which Zastros and his doomed army passed had been emptied and cleared out long before the army’s first mounted scout waded his horse across the Ahrbahkootchee River. No, these beauties did not come from out my homeland.
“So, what do you mean to do with your new wealth, my boy, keep them or sell them? There is an assortment of lands and titles just now up for sale to men of good breeding and proven character, you know, most of the parcels coming complete with hereditary titles, more or less battered holds and more or less occupied towns or even walled cities.”
“But who … where can I sell such a treasure and be certain that I’m not being cheated, that I’m getting a fair price, my lord Sub-strahteegos?” Bralos asked helplessly, adding, “My lord must see, my late sire was a komees, yes, but far from wealthy in aught save lands and children, so my knowledge of gems and gem-sellers is very scant.”
“Hmmm,” mused Gonsalos. “Let me think of it for a moment, my good Bralos.” Seemingly absently, he went back through the contents of the twelve smaller bags, lifting out a stone here and another there. When what looked to be a pool of fire lay winking in the lamp-fire upon his desktop, he replaced the bulk of the stones in their purselets and asked,
“Bralos, you mentioned that you had found silver in one of those drawers. Coin? Of what approximate value?”
“A hundred and sixty thrahkmehee, my lord, mostly of King Hyamos, though appearing new-minted still,” replied the lieutenant.
Gonsalos grinned. “Nearly a full year’s pay for a lieutenant of foot-guards, eh? But still and all, it’s a less than inconsequential piffle compared to these gems and their value. Even so, it should be enough to hold you for a few months.” His grin widened. “With careful budgeting, of course.
“Now, as you may know, my first cousin is Zenos XII, once king and now prince of Karaleenos. I’m going to send this sample lot of the gems to him. He has always had a fondness for stones of the cut of the ancients and he still owns an impressive collection of them, despite all the turbulence of the past years. I am certain that he will buy some of these samples, and I intend to ask that he obtain the best possible prices for the remainder … carefully hinting that there are more where these came from.
“As for the rest of them, I can think of no safer place for them, just now, than within that secret drawer wherein you found them. Do not breathe a single word of any of this to even your lovers or your dearest friends; if talk you have to, talk to your horse and in strictest privacy.
“Now, polish off that brandy and hie you back to your bed. The drums will roll at the usual time and you’ll be expected to perform your usual duties.”
“So, my lord Thoheeks Sitheeros,” continued Captain Bralos, “I was sought out at drill some months later, ordered to wash and change to dress uniform, then to present myself to the adjutant at the headquarters of Sub-strahteegos Thoheeks Tomos Gonsalos. When I did so, the sub-strahteegos had me ushered into his office, opened a small boiled-leather chest and counted out to me ten and a half pounds-weight of gold Zenos.”
Sitheeros whistled and shook his head silently. Each undipped Zenos of Karaleenos contained a full ounce-weight of pure gold, and the rate of exchange at the time of which they were conversing would have represented a sum of between three and four hundred thousand thrahkmehee of purchasing power in the then-depressed economy of the war-scarred, impoverished land, wherein gold had commanded vastly enhanced values.
Gonsalos had said, “My cousin, Prince Zenos, would like to see and examine another selection of similar size. Even should he not decide to buy all of these as he bought all of the first lot, he will see that you receive the top prices for them from whomever—if any man living has unlimited access to well-heeled dealers, it’s my cousin, and none of them is so witless as to try to cheat him.
“Have you decided in which thoheekseeahn you want to buy land and title, young Bralos?”
Upon being told of the offer from Thoheeks Klaios, Gonsalos had sat for a few moments, pulling at his chinbeard. Then he had nodded once and said, “You should not buy land you’ve never seen and at least walked over from a man you know but briefly. I’m going to have an order drafted temporarily detaching you from the foot-guards and assigning you to my headquarters; you’ll be taking it back to your captain from here. Bring all of those gems back with you—I’ll make the selections and lodge the rest in my strongbox.
“On the morrow, you’ll be leading out a score of my horse-guards. Your destination will be the Thoheekseeahn of Ahndropolis. If, after you’ve seen and examined the land, talked over the inherent rights and obligations of the holder and, most important, decided whether or not you can live under or even really like your prospective overlord, you still want to buy what he has to sell, you can give him the two pounds-weight of gold you’ll have carried down there and promise him the rest—in gold—when you have been properly invested. How much did he say he wanted, anyway?”
Lieutenant Bralos had replied, “One hundred and twenty thousand thrahkmehee, my lord Sub-strahteegos.”
“Hmmm, sounds reasonable, about what your average vahrohnoseeahn seems to be going for down here these days, but even so, see if you can haggle him down to a hundred thousand, my boy. Remember, rank also hath its definite responsibilities, and the folk and erections on that land will be yours, once you’re invested their lord,” said Gonsalos, adding, “And you’re probably going to have to carry those folk for as long as it takes to get the land into production again, not to mention rebuilding town walls, habitations and, probably, even your hold. Then you’ll have to furnish your hold and town residence, hire on a certain number of garrison troops and other functionaries to mind the place in your absence … unless you intend to sell your lieutenancy and retire. Do you so intend, Bralos?”
“No, my lord Sub-strahteegos,” Lieutenant Bralos had answered. “I like the army and I had actually intended to buy a captaincy-of-cavalry, could I afford it after buying land and title.”
Gonsalos had smiled broadly and warmly. “Good, good, that’s what I’d hoped you’d say, Bralos. You’re a fine young man, a good officer, and you’ll be an equally fine squadron captain, I’m sure. When you’re ready to purchase that captaincy, let me know.”
Thoheeks Klaios and his sparkling, vivacious young wife had treated Lieutenant Bralos less like a favored guest than like a loved member of the family from the very beginning of his stay with them. He could see that although ravaged, overgrown and showing the evidence of neglect, the land was basically good and, with hard work, could be put right and productive again. The walls of the town were in need of extensive repairs and the hold looked as if nothing short of total rebuilding would suffice to make it livable and defensible again; however, the thoheeks was quick to tell him of the granite quarry in his thoheekseeahn and of a few skilled stonemasons locally available; he also made mention of his agreements with neighboring thoheeksee to trade dressed stone for baked roofing-tiles and building-brick.
In the end, Bralos had been able to haggle the price of his lands and title down to one hundred and twelve thousand thrahkmehee in gold. Thoheeks Klaios not only freely gave Bralos a very favorable tax-structure for ten years into the future, but offered to have his own seneschal oversee the governance of whomever Bralos hired on to rule in his absence.