Soon, Duvas had handed over the satchel of gold after counting the full amount of 1071 gold and 9 silver coins to the tax collector, who finally looked relaxed, probably for the first time since he had arrived here.

"I am glad that you managed to pay all of this on time," Ustaimo smiled. "I really wouldn't have been able to give you an extension. Sir Tuilas also has no reason to cause any trouble now."

"I doubt it," Kivamus snorted, "but at least we are done with the taxes. For this year, it will be due in late autumn, right?"

Ustaimo nodded. "Right after all the harvesting is done in the farms. That being said, how did you manage to raise this much gold so fast? I remember you mentioning that you had around two-thirds of this amount ready to pay when I arrived, but what about the rest of it? I know two merchants have arrived here, but getting the remaining gold just by selling coal would take, what 40 wagons? I don't think those merchants could have bought that much."

Kivamus laughed. "No, of course not. We did manage to sell a good amount of coal, but the rest of it was earned by selling the furs we had stored in the winter. There were a lot of them," he added, trying to deflect the conversation, "so thankfully, it worked out for us."

"Oh, that makes sense," Ustaimo nodded. "It would take a lot of furs though..."

Duvas answered, "Oh, we also had an adzee pelt here. That made up for the majority of it."

"Wait, an adzee pelt? Did you really manage to kill an adzee here?" Ustaimo shook his head. "Those are rarely seen near human habitations, although I guess I shouldn't be surprised about it at Tiranat's location." He scratched his chin for a moment before he sighed. "As much as I hate to say it, the count wouldn't forgive me if I didn't try to buy that pelt for him. He has a weakness for them, even though he can hardly afford them right now. But I'd rather not risk my neck over that, in case he finds that I didn't try to buy it."

Duvas shrugged. "We still have to transfer the pelt to the merchant, but we've already made a deal to sell it."

"Doesn't matter," Ustaimo insisted. "How much did you get for it?"

"Uh... 82 gold."

"82 gold...? Then... Will you sell it to me for 85?" the tax collector offered. "No...? I'll offer you 90 gold! I have no doubt the count will be willing to pay that much, even by borrowing more - although Baron Zoricus might be the happiest at that time - since he will be the one eventually funding it at a high rate of interest. What do you say?"

"But..." Duvas hesitated, before looking at Kivamus.

He thought about it for a moment. While it wasn't ideal to ask to get it back from Pydaso, nobody wanted to risk angering the Count at the moment, especially for such a simple thing. He knew that the merchant would understand, even though he might ask a higher price for it. Finally, he gave a nod. "Alright then. We'll buy it back from the merchant and sell it to you."

"That's a relief..." Ustaimo smiled. "I'll pay you for it once I get the pelt."

"That'll work," Kivamus nodded. They would only be gaining at most 8 extra gold coins from this transaction, since most of the 90 gold they would get from the tax collector would go to pay back the merchant. Still, gold was gold, and the count might also be happier to see that pelt, even though it made him worry about the future of Cinran if things kept going like this.

Duvas stood up. "Coal is still being loaded to Pydaso's wagons outside. I'll go and see if he's still out there, so I can ask him to cancel the sale of the pelt." After a nod from Kivamus, he left the manor hall.

Ustaimo grinned. "Well, now that you have managed to pay the tax in full, I have no reason to continue rechecking the tax ledger again and again. I will talk with Sir Tuilas, and we should leave tomorrow morning."

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

"I hope you have a safe journey ahead," Kivamus wished, before he remembered what had happened to the previous baron and the tax gold they had lost on the road. Not wanting a repeat of it, he began, "As much as it hurt our finances, I can still agree to the reasoning that the previous baron didn't manage to take that gold to you or the count, which is why he asked for it from us again. However, this time, you - the tax collector of Cinran - has himself taken the gold from us, which means we shouldn't have any more liability to pay any tax on the previous year. But what if something happens to you on the road? I really hope it doesn't, but just in case you aren't able to take the gold to the count, how will we prove that we have paid the taxes?"

Ustaimo patted his pocket. "I will give you a receipt, of course, just like every year. It will have the seal of the count and you can show it to Lord Ebirtas to prove it in case I have to meet the goddess early."

Kivamus sighed with relief. "That will work. Wait, isn't it risky to carry the seal of the count in case something happened to you on the road? What if someone uses it to proclaim some forged document to benefit himself?"

The tax collector chuckled. "This is not a seal which carries the count's full authority, like the one Lord Ebirtas uses to give written orders to others. The seal I am carrying is just an ancillary seal which he has given me so I can confirm that the taxes have been paid in full, that's all. This seal cannot be used to give any other orders from the Count, forged or otherwise."

"That makes sense, but still, what if someone steals it from you on the road, or takes it from you in case you are killed? Can't he use it to produce a forged paper to prove that he has paid the taxes, even though he hasn't?"

Ustaimo grinned. "Don't worry about that. A new seal is crafted every autumn for this purpose, and its stamp contains the harvest year for which it verifies the tax payment. The one I am carrying has already been used to verify the tax payment of the other barons and merchants who owed us taxes, and TIranat is the last barony for which it retains any purpose. However I get your point. Your concern would be valid even the next year, but even if someone steals it from me, they can only use it to prove that they have paid that particular year's taxes. It won't be something they can use repeatedly."

The tax collector continued, "Apart from the merchants who live within the walls of Cinran, the taxes are usually paid by the barons coming to the Count's mansion in Cinran - in which case they would first have to pay the gold to the treasury before I give them a sealed receipt. However, in rare cases, I have to go by myself to get the taxes in case it is late, like from Tiranat. In this case, if the seal is stolen but I still bring the tax gold, I can deposit it to the treasury and confirm that the tax was paid, and we will just make a new seal with a different design. Just in case, both the seal and the tax gold are stolen from me and I somehow manage to return alive to the Count, I can tell him the truth about whether the tax was paid to us or not. If it was, the baron wouldn't hold any more liability for it and can also show his receipt, but if it wasn't, the barony will still owe the tax."

"So that's why we needed to pay the tax even though the previous baron had already gone to pay it..." Kivamus muttered. "We just didn't have the receipt!"

The tax collector nodded. "Indeed, that is what verifies it." He continued, "In the other case, assuming I die on the road while the seal and the tax gold are also stolen, someone can't claim after it that they have paid the tax by producing a sealed receipt, since there is no good reason for them to have it if I am dead. Whether they stole the seal from me, or killed me on the road, either way the Count will make sure they get the retribution they deserve, while the people from the treasury will also be able to confirm if the gold had reached them or not."

Kivamus snorted. So accounting would always be complicated, whether on Earth or Eranityn. At least it was good to hear that there was a proper system to verify if someone had paid their taxes or not.

The outer door opened and the majordomo walked inside.

"Pydaso has agreed to give back the adzee pelt at the same price," Duvas reported. "He was reluctant though, and was curious about how we could have found a buyer here, since he wasn't sure if he would be able to sell it even in Cinran, but when I told him that the count was the one buying it, he agreed readily."

Ustaimo sighed in relief. "I'm glad to hear that. If you can bring me a sheet of parchment, I'll write up the final receipt for you."

Kivamus nodded, and gestured to the majordomo to get it. He chuckled. "I can't wait to finally have a written receipt that we have paid the taxes."

Ustaimo grinned. "Trust me, milord. I understand completely. Nothing is more important than receipts!"

Kivamus laughed loudly at that. Accountants would always be accountants, no matter which world he was living in.