Traveling through The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim

"I am the widow of Baron Montoya."

Ah? This is the former mistress of the Newgra Fortress, the poor woman who was defiled by my incompetent squire Sam. She is not coming to me to ask for punishment, is she? The mother and daughter were originally pampered noble women, but they were suddenly met with misfortune, their family was destroyed, and the person who insulted them has never been brought to justice. It is also because there are too many things happening recently that I have completely forgotten about Sam. He should still be waiting for my disposal in the dungeon, but I don’t know which fortress he is imprisoned in.

"This is not the place to talk. Please follow me, ma'am."

The woman covered her face with a cloak, obviously unwilling to show her face. I led her into the fortress and came to the small room that Rigel arranged for me, and made a pot of pine needle tea. Mrs. Montoya gently pulled down her cloak and sat in front of me. Her every move met the standards of a noble lady. It can be seen that even though she was down and out, she still tried her best to maintain her dignity. This was a pitiful and respectable woman struggling in troubled times. Of course, I didn't dare to be disrespectful, but took the initiative to apologize to her.

"Madam, it's all my fault for not being able to manage my subordinates. With the enemy at hand, I was so busy with worldly affairs that I failed to punish Sam in time and give you an explanation. I hope you can forgive me. If you and your daughter need anything, I'm willing to do my best to help."

Mrs. Montoya spoke in a calm, even voice.

"You misunderstood. I came here hoping that you would release the child named Sam."

This time I was confused again. Could it be that this aunt wanted to continue to eat young grass after tasting the marrow? Although I can understand that the relationship between two people has nothing to do with age, and I can accept sister-brother relationships, but Sam is not even twenty years old. Is it too much for him to be the stepfather of Miss Montoya, who is a few years older than him?

Seeing that I was petrified, Mrs. Montoya quickly explained why she came. Her husband and son were killed by bandits, and she and her daughter were also humiliated. But in her words, Sam did not do such a beastly thing just to save his own life. In fact, the bandits threatened him with the lives of three people to force him to surrender. Later, the lord recaptured the Newgra Fortress, arrested Sam, and revoked Montoya's baron title on the grounds of extinction, and took away the castle. The mother and daughter lived on the baron's inheritance, which was not too embarrassing. But Miss Montoya had just turned 20 and was not married. If she was still a baronet, she would have no worries about getting married, but now her status has become a commoner and she has lost her innocence, so her future is not very bright.

So Mrs. Montoya thought that if Sam could be redeemed and made her son-in-law, the three of them would be in the same boat and would understand and care for each other. She also visited Sam's father for this matter. The old man was a guard in Falkreath when he was young. He fought for his whole life to give his youngest son a chance to be a squire. But this kid turned around and caused such a big mess, which made his father so angry that he collapsed on the bed. Now the victim came to the door and not only expressed his understanding, but also expressed his willingness to marry his children to each other. Sam's father naturally agreed with many thanks. So Mrs. Montoya came to ask me to release the man.

"Madam, please forgive me for being so nosy. If you really believe that Sam is kind-hearted and worthy of your lifelong trust, then I am willing to give him a chance to reform. But I hope you will consider it carefully and not ruin your lifelong happiness because of temporary difficulties. There is another thing I have to explain. Even if Sam is released, he can no longer be my squire, but I can assign him another job. In addition, although the opinions of parents are important in matters of marriage, it ultimately depends on the ideas of the two parties involved. I will not threaten Sam to agree to the marriage on the condition of being released from prison. Everything is up to him to choose. So, are you sure you will no longer pursue the guilt of the former squire Sam and redeem him?"

Mrs. Montoya stared at me with her gray eyes, and after more than ten seconds she nodded firmly.

"Okay, I will report this to the lord today and have Sam released as soon as possible. For other matters, please ask him in person."

After seeing off Mrs. Montoya, I drank three cups of pine needle tea. I had spent most of the day talking to Murray, Nari, the Rigel father and daughter, Eddie, and Mrs. Montoya, and my mouth was dry. But I still had to talk to Lund. No matter what, he should learn to protect himself first, and not give others a handle, and then help others count the money after being sold.

Lund's office had a small window, and the afternoon sun made the room very warm. The room was also bustling with activity. Rigel kept his promise and did not let Lucia be her maid. The little girl could read, write, and calculate, and was now helping Varga to compile various data. Lund held a piece of charcoal in his hand, standing with his hands behind his back facing the wall. He had written all the outstanding amounts and the latest payment dates on that wall. On the other wall to his right was the meat hunted, the seafood and food purchased, and the amount of food that needed to be distributed every day. Two long guns stood at the corner of the two walls.

"Locke! You're back! Eric wrote to me asking about you, and I didn't know how to reply."

When they heard me enter the room, the three of them looked up. Lund threw away the charcoal in his hand and rubbed his hands on his pants. He wanted to give me a hug, but when he saw the charcoal ash on his hands, he gave up.

"Come on, these two spears are for you and Eric, go pick one. I don't know much about this, so Miss Angie helped me choose."

"Weapons should be given to the town guards first. If you intercept them and give them to us, don't let anyone gossip about it."

Lund has already offended a lot of people, and I don't want anyone to find any more evidence against him.

"Give it as a gift? No, no, no, how can I give it to you two for free? Each spear costs one hundred Septim. Miss Angie paid for Eric's share. You are not popular, so you have to pay for it yourself."

Oh my! This guy is really a sly swindler, not even sparing me! But to be honest, the blacksmith in Jingyue Camp is really good at his job, and paired with the gun barrels from the Rift Valley, it looks very attractive. Lund must have seen my look, and quickly climbed up the pole.

"Look, Locke, even though I'm an outsider, I can tell that these two weapons are finely crafted. We're the only one in Skyrim that has these spears, and my price isn't high. Besides, you said that if I gave them to you for free, people would gossip about them. If you don't buy them this time, don't regret it, because I won't be able to get them for you again in the future."

"Buy, buy, buy, but I have no money now. My money is all in the Bloody Throne and is kept by my squire Stein."

"That's fine. Just write a note and I'll get someone to get the money from him."

Lund led me to the table and turned to look for ink and quill. My eyes were drawn to a piece of draft paper on the table. The title was written in a line of capital letters: "Septim Collection Order (Second Edition)".

The content of the conscription order was not complicated. It required people who were currently living in Helgen Town and had more than 100 Septim in cash to lend 30% of the cash to Baron Helgen. The baron used the products of the quarry in the Bloody Throne and the timber mill in Falkreath City as collateral. After driving away the imperials, he would repay the loan in the ratio of 30% in cash and 70% in materials.

"Lund, do you know what the consequences will be if this thing is posted?"

Lund held the ink and looked at me steadily. After a long time, he sighed and pointed at the wall with the words "owed money" written on it.

"Locke, come and see. We must settle the payment from the Quiet Moon Camp in full and on time. Those are all weapons and equipment. Without them, we cannot defeat the Imperials. Moreover, the price they offer is very fair. If we break our promise this time, we will not be able to get this price in the future. We cannot owe money to the farms and fishermen in Ivarstead. Hunting in winter does not yield much. If the food supply there is cut off, Eddie will be in trouble. He has already lowered the food ration very low. If we give him less, won't everyone kill him? Miss Angie knows the owner of the lumber mill. I have asked Eric to write to Miss Angie and ask her to help negotiate to see if it can be delayed for a week or two. I don't have that much face. So, I need to get 2,000 Septim within five days."

"But, Lund, you know what if..."

I swallowed the words back. Varga glanced at me and led Lucia out of the room.

"I know, of course I know. If everyone refuses to pay, the baron can just push me, a cruel official, out to punish him, and he can rest easy. They can even refuse to pay back the money in the future, saying that I embezzled all the money. Anyway, I have offended everyone."

"Then why are you doing this?"

Lund pulled over a chair and sat opposite me, casually flipping through the account book on the table.

"Locker, you know that what I hear the most here is your story. Valga, Nari, the baron, and the guards in the city are all talking about you, saying that you took risks alone, made plans, led everyone to a bright road, and earned a fortune for yourself. Eric said in the letter that if the situation is critical, we can go to Whiterun to join him. But if that happens, everything you fought for in Falkreath will be over. Locker, the three of us grew up together, and I know it's so hard for you to achieve what you have today. I, Lund, am the least capable one among our brothers, but I want to help you keep this property. Even if I lose my reputation, I don't want to see your efforts go to waste!"

Lund finished speaking in one breath and sat there dejectedly, as if the courage that supported him to offend the entire town had been taken away with his previous words.

Good brother! But Lund, since you don't want to see my efforts go to waste, how can I bear to see you ruined? I picked up the draft of the robbery order and tore it into pieces.

"Lund, don't send this thing out again. I'll figure out the money issue. Give me three days. I won't write that note either. I'm going to go to the Bloody Throne and bring the money to you on the way. Now, cheer up, we need to have a few drinks together."

I'm going to find Danger and squeeze all the money out of this old fox! If he still wants to hide it, I'll go to Whiterun with Lund. As for the mess here, whoever wants to deal with it can do it!