Steel, Guns, and the Industrial Party in Another World-Chapter 433: The Count’s Banquet

TL: Etude Translations

Despite various twists and turns, Liszt finally arrived safely in Collins.

Upon entering the city, the reputation of Count Bridges proved beneficial, enabling him to meet this nobleman smoothly.

“Ha ha ha ha! Mr. Liszt, I apologize for the fright you experienced,” the Count said, laughing heartily and clapping Liszt on the shoulder after concluding their business in the study.

“But it can’t be helped, you know. The current situation has been a bit unsettled,” Liszt could only respond with a wry smile.

“How about this? I’m hosting a banquet tonight. You should join us. It’ll be a good opportunity to introduce you to some of Collins’ prominent figures,” the Count invited him.

Liszt hurriedly stood and bowed, “Ah, thank you, Your Excellency.”

Such a high-society banquet was tremendously helpful for expanding his business. The Count had done him a great favor.

Following the Count’s suggestion, Liszt took a stroll around the city to experience the local culture and customs.

As the sun set, he returned to Count Bridges’ mansion.

After changing into a local-style formal attire, he was guided by a servant to the banquet hall.

The hall was brightly lit with numerous torches and candles, casting it as bright as day, while pleasant music played, with artists invited by the Count to entertain.

The hall was already filled with many guests, both men and women, dressed elegantly and exquisitely. Some were engaged in conversation, while others danced to the music of Horn Bay in the dance floor.

A long and clearly expensive carpet ran down the central axis of the hall, both quiet and comfortable to walk on. Liszt, following the carpet and passing by groups of guests, arrived at a square table made of four long tables at the center of the hall.

“Oh! Look, our guest from the Kingdom of Ordo has arrived,” Count Bridges stood as he saw Liszt approaching.

“Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce Mr. Friedrich Liszt, the trade representative of Ordo’s northwest bay shipping company in Horn Bay. Let’s welcome him. Their merchant ships are big and numerous, much better than those shabby boats of the coastal folk.”

As the Count finished, applause broke out around them.

“Thank you, everyone. It’s an honor to visit your beautiful country,” Liszt said, his heart finally settling. He had been quite nervous before.

Being of common birth, he had always held a deep reverence for nobility. Before entering the hall, he worried about being looked down upon, but it seemed his concerns were unwarranted.

Count Bridges introduced him to the nearby dignitaries, indeed many important figures, each wealthy or noble, either high-ranking officials in the court or senior clergy in the church.

Liszt was somewhat overwhelmed, witnessing such grandeur for the first time. freewёbnoνel.com

Although Collins was a small kingdom compared to Ordo, with territory including only the main city-state of Collins and a few surrounding cities and villages, perhaps not even as large as Alda and Baylding combined, it was still a kingdom, complete in every aspect.

Suddenly, he was in contact with the upper echelons of a nation.

But soon, Liszt understood why these dignitaries treated him with such respect.

“Todd Shipping? I’ve heard of it, a very large shipping company.”

“Mr. Liszt, you’re the first merchant from Ordo to reach Collins. Please tell your compatriots when you return not to endure the extortion of those coastal people anymore. Bypass those greedy fellows and come directly to us for trade.”

“I’ve seen your goods; they’re excellent. We’re not complaining about the price, but those coastal people’s markups are clearly extortion.”

More than one person expressed such a strong desire.

“Uh… I’ll do my best to convey your message, haha,” Liszt could only respond vaguely.

But he understood that doing business with these inland countries would inevitably involve the coastal nations. Although Ordo had land routes to the inland of Horn Bay, these had limited capacity and high costs. Moreover, traveling from north to south through Ordo involved passing through numerous checkpoints, especially through the territories of the rebellious Jars and Viburen families.

Thus, he wondered whether the coastal nations of Horn Bay would impose heavy taxes on Todd’s shipping, the inland pioneer, as a deterrent, given that these countries thrived on their role as middlemen.

However, it was heartening that Ordo’s (Northwest Bay) commercial prowess was well-recognized even in inland Collins.

The banquet hosted by Count Bridges was not solely for Liszt, and soon everyone formed small groups, each engrossed in their activities.

Liszt tried to join some of these groups, but soon realized the natural barrier created by the different social classes he and the nobles belonged to. Sometimes, a joke would elicit laughter from everyone around, but he would not understand the punchline.

In Horn Bay’s coastal nations, due to the development of commerce, there was more blending between the nobility and wealthy commoners, which Liszt could handle. But the nobility of these inland nations clearly formed their own small society, to which he was unaccustomed.

To avoid awkwardness, he simply wandered among the various delicacies with a glass of wine in hand.

The exquisite food, silverware, and fine wine all reflected the luxurious lifestyle of the local nobility, not unlike that of the coastal elite.

Despite the economy being less developed than the coastal areas due to geographical reasons, it didn’t seem to affect the extravagance of the ruling class.

Soon, he noticed someone who seemed somewhat similar to himself.

A young man, tall and thin with curly brown hair, dressed simply compared to the elegantly attired guests, sat alone at a table, out of place with his surroundings.

His eyes were fixed on something in the distance, an anxious look in them.

Liszt guessed, was he spying on his crush?

A poor young man, who by chance entered high society, met a noble girl and fell for her, but could only silently guard her from afar due to the vast difference in their social standings – Liszt’s mind concocted a series of typical novel plotlines.

Following the young man’s gaze, however, he only saw a group of elder men deep in conversation.

Well, it seemed he was wrong.

“Hey! Hello, I’m Friedrich Liszt. Nice to meet you.”

Perhaps driven by a sense of shared displacement, he approached the young man to make acquaintance.

“Uh, hello… Ah, you’re the Ordo guest from earlier. Nice to meet you, I’m Kebur.”

The young man was obviously preoccupied and responded distractedly.

Realizing something was amiss, he explained, “I apologize, Mr. Liszt. My mind is a mess right now, so…”

“It’s okay,” Liszt waved his hand. “If you have any troubles, feel free to share them with me. Maybe I can offer some advice.”

“Well…”

After a moment’s hesitation, the young man spoke up.

“Alright, I’ve been feeling suffocated keeping this to myself. Maybe you, as a foreigner, could understand the injustice I’m facing.”

“Injustice?” Liszt’s brow furrowed. This sounded serious, but what did it have to do with him being a foreigner?

Kebur continued, “Specifically, it’s about my mother’s injustice. She… she was falsely accused of being a witch.”

A witch?

Liszt’s frown deepened. At such a sensitive time, this was a dangerous accusation.

Yet, at the same time, a beautiful image came to his mind.