Karl gently squeezed the horse's belly, and Night Wind spiritedly took a few steps forward, approaching the encirclement.
Karl did not lift his visor like Bakari. From beneath his helmet came a muffled voice with a metallic echo, clearly reaching the ears of everyone present.
"Bakari? Right, you didn't find the wrong person." Karl's voice betrayed no emotion.
He paused, as if remembering something, his tone even but carrying an invisible pressure, and continued.
"The horses ridden by these knights under my command were recently purchased from your territory, each at a high price of twenty-three Orens."
As soon as these words were spoken, Bakari's heart suddenly clenched, as if doused with ice water.
The other party deliberately mentioned the horses and their prices, combined with the recent large-scale purchase of horses on Terra's territory, for which they had paid far more Orens than the market price.
He instantly recalled who the knight in golden armor before him was.
Rumor had it that this young lord, who had been lucky enough to gain the king's recognition and a large prize in Vizima, and who had recently renamed Baron's Meadow to Terra, was Karl El.
He had initially thought the other party was just a lucky man who had suddenly become rich, lacking a foundation and armed forces, and could be treated like a fat sheep to be slaughtered at will.
But the dozens of heavily armed knights before him, clearly no novices, completely shattered his illusions.
This... where is the inexperienced aristocrat? This is clearly a lion with hidden fangs!
Such armed force was enough to easily flatten his Carriras. And when he thought of the horse prices, which he hadn't only inflated...
And the Lord of Dornedale, who was closer to Terra, seemed to have done the same to raise prices.
Bakari only felt a cool breath creeping from the soles of his feet to the top of his head.
He barely managed to force a smile uglier than tears, sat on his horse, and involuntarily leaned forward, showing even greater humility.
His tone was almost pleading: "So... it turns out to be the esteemed Lord of Terra, Your Excellency Karl El."
He quickly said: "This... this is definitely a misunderstanding! A huge misunderstanding!"
"Because... due to a shortage of horse traders and a lack of recent supply, the price of horses... only then went up."
"I... I am fully prepared to compensate you for the extra portion of the money you paid for the horses."
"Double, no! Triple payment! I only hope that Your Excellency can forgive my negligence this time."
The cold, emotionless words from Karl through the helmet sent Baron Bakari into an ice cave.
"Triple? Ten times! Not one Oren less is acceptable."
"Ten... ten times?! Your Excellency Karl, that's... isn't that too... too..."
Bakari exclaimed, his lips trembling uncontrollably, the blood draining from his face instantly.
His mind raced, his heart bled. The market price of an ordinary horse was usually around ten Orens.
Previously, he had relied on the other party's urgent need and what seemed like being a "fool with a lot of money," simply inflating the price to twenty-three Orens, making a net profit of thirteen Orens per horse.
The other party had bought fifty horses at once, and he had made a full six hundred and fifty Orens in profit.
But now, if the other party demanded tenfold compensation, that would be 6,500 Orens...
That was almost the amount of net income from his territory for nearly ten years, a matter of cutting flesh and drawing blood.
Karl seemed to see through his inner struggle and stinginess, chuckled lightly, and teased: "What? You think I'm asking for too little? How about paying thirteen times? That matches the thirteen Orens you overcharged."
"Eight thousand four hundred and fifty Orens, that number sounds more reasonable."
"No! No! No!" Bakari was so frightened he felt his soul would fly away, and he quickly waved his hand, his voice changing.
"Your Excellency Karl! Just ten times! 6,500 Orens! I... I am willing to pay you!"
He almost shouted this sentence, but then showed an embarrassed look and tried to delay: "But... Your Excellency, as you also know, such a large sum of money..."
"I... I'm afraid I can't produce it immediately... Could you give me a little time?"
He tried to use delaying tactics, hoping that time would dilute everything or give him room to maneuver.
However, Karl didn't fall for it at all and didn't even object.
He just slightly turned his head and nodded to Dalton beside him.
Dalton understood, raised his hand, and waved it towards the team responsible for the supply train at the rear.
Immediately, a Holy Blood Angel stepped out of the ranks, holding a wooden tray in his hand.
On the tray were conspicuously placed a feather, a roll of good parchment, and a small box of bright red sealing wax.
Seeing these three items brought to him, Bakari's face turned pale.
The other party had clearly come prepared and didn't trust his verbal promises at all.
They had even prepared the tools for a promissory note in advance, to ask him to put the huge compensation in black and white.
Dalton was expressionless and businesslike as he pressed: "Please also ask Your Excellency Bakari to write on this parchment the reason for the debt, the specific amount, and the repayment period."
"Then sign your name and press your palm print over your name."
Bakari looked at the tray, his heart pounding and bleeding.
But, glancing at the dozens of knights around him, at the silent but heavy pressure, all his luck and resistance were completely shattered.
He understood perfectly that the other party was still willing to use such a respectful title as "Your Excellency" to maintain a superficial aristocratic etiquette, which already gave him great face.
If he wasn't interested, what awaited him would never be a happy ending.
The best outcome would be to be beaten and disarmed by the other party,
then have his hand forced to write a promissory note like an animal, which would be a hundred times more humiliating and disgraceful than now.
And even worse... he didn't dare to think that the other party might not care about this small amount of money at all and directly kill the five of them on the spot.
They could disguise themselves as bandits or Kaedweni scouts; who would investigate thoroughly during this sensitive period of rushing to the border?
Therefore, Bakari had a smile uglier and more contorted than a cry, and said in a dry voice: "Yes... it should be so, it should be so..."
He dismounted, trembling, and almost fell due to weak legs, but fortunately was supported by the servants behind him.
He took the tray, picked up the quill with shaking fingers, dipped it in the ink, and began to write on the unfolded parchment as Dalton had requested.
He wrote very slowly, each word seeming to weigh a thousand pounds, like cutting meat from his heart.
But he was a noble who understood the situation. When writing the "reason for the debt,"
he hesitated for a moment and did not write that he had been accused of maliciously inflating the price of horses.
Instead, he wrote that he was borrowing 6,500 Orens from Karl El, the Lord of Terra, due to a lack of operating capital for his business ventures.
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