Upon my return to the Medici Barony, I was met with a warm welcome from all my retainers.

    “Young master, welcome back!” “You must be exhausted from your long journey.” “We’ve prepared a feast of delicious food for you!”

    The way they looked at me was almost sickeningly sweet.

    It’s the kind of look I’d prefer to receive from Chloe or other beautiful women, not from a bunch of old men.

    Still, it’s nice to be greeted so enthusiastically, even if it’s a bit uncomfortable.

    Or maybe they’re just curious about how much money I brought back?

    “I’m sure you all have some idea of the results by now.”

    The retainers here are sharp enough to tell from the sailors’ expressions and mood alone.

    They’d already deduced that I’d made a substantial profit on this trade mission.

    I deliberately took my time pulling out the documents detailing our earnings, letting the anticipation build.

    Albert, the highest-ranking of my retainers, spoke on behalf of everyone.

    “Young master, please, don’t keep an old man waiting. Tell us the news.”

    I held up the document and began reading from it.

    “After deducting bonuses for the sailors, ship repair costs, purchases, and mercenary fees, our net profit amounts to 12,000 gold coins. With that, the Medici Barony can pay off the debts from our marriage alliance with the Farnese Count’s family, and there will still be some left over.”

    All the retainers clenched their fists as they listened.

    Some gripped so tightly that their hands turned white, but their faces were lit up with smiles.

    They were so overjoyed that they didn’t seem to notice any discomfort.

    The debt that could have strangled our family was now gone.

    It would be strange if they weren’t happy in a situation like this.

    In the midst of this joyous atmosphere, Albert asked on behalf of everyone.

    “Even if you took risks, like smuggling, I find it hard to believe that Al-Sini would simply hand over enough spices to earn 12,000 gold coins. How did you manage it?”

    The spice trade is a guaranteed goldmine.

    One gold coin’s worth of pepper from the Sultanate can be sold in the Toscana Empire for 30 gold coins, flying off the shelves.

    ‘In other countries, smuggling can drive the price up to as much as 50 gold coins.’

    “I pretended to eliminate a pirate crew that was troubling the Al-Sini family, then recruited them into my service. In exchange, I received spices allocated to other families, which I sold in the Kingdom of Granada.”

    These retainers are close to me, almost like my father’s old friends.

    But if word got out that I’d taken in a pirate crew, someone would surely use it as an excuse to tear me down.

    I’d rather hide this from even my allies, though it’s impossible with the Medici retainers having accompanied me.

    In that case, it’s better to reveal it openly.

    The captain of the guards then spoke up.@@@@

    “So, how did you recruit the pirates? Did you use the Medici family’s military might to intimidate them?”

    “With just one merchant ship? How could I have threatened a pirate crew with that?”

    To exaggerate slightly, a single pirate ship can have the combat power of two, sometimes even three, merchant ships of the same size.

    Merchant ships are slow due to their cargo load and carry minimal cannons.

    While they can defend themselves to some extent, they can’t match a pirate ship built specifically for combat.

    “When I dug up some information on them before the fight, I found out they were relatively ethical pirates—they only targeted heretics.”

    Usually, people say that and still manage to sleep just fine.

    But Chloe, who lost her parents and siblings to illness, genuinely worries and can’t rest whenever I’m seriously ill.

    ‘More than once, I’ve had to force her to get some sleep.’

    “Alright, I’ll stay in today. So, don’t worry.”

    If it’s not urgent, I can afford to delay my tasks once in a while.

    Chloe smiled brightly at my words.

    Then she immediately left the room to inform a butler that I’d be resting for the day.

    Since I couldn’t sleep, I thought of reading a book when Chloe returned.

    “Young master, do you remember promising to reward me if I studied hard?”

    I had considered what to give Chloe as a reward, even while at sea.

    I could introduce her to cakes that no one in Toscana has tasted, or perhaps buy her a pen as encouragement to study more.

    I’d thought about it but hadn’t decided.

    Now that Chloe seemed to know what she wanted, I wondered what it might be.

    “May I use that reward now?”

    “Of course, ask away.”

    “Could you rest with me here today? You just came back from a long voyage and drank a lot. If you don’t rest, you might fall ill.”

    Looking back, I hadn’t really spent time with Chloe since I started my duties as financial administrator.

    She’s the kind who easily feels lonely, so she must have missed me a lot.

    “Alright, let’s rest today and go somewhere nice together later.”

    “Yes.”

    Chloe clenched her fists and blushed a little.

    “Well, young master... There’s something I’ve wanted to try for a while. Would you let me?”

    “What is it?”

    “A lap pillow... You must be tired, so let me.”

    It’s that thing couples do in those romance comics where you wish they’d just explode already.

    “My mother said it made her feel better when she was tired, and it helped me feel safe too...”

    Wanting to get as close as possible to Chloe, I couldn’t say no to her request.

    So, I immediately lay down with my head resting on her thighs.

    As I lay there looking up, most of my view was blocked by her chest.

    What size is she, anyway? At least an F, maybe even a G?

    One day, I’ll make them mine...

    Strangely, even though I hadn’t felt sleepy, drowsiness suddenly washed over me.

    The last words I heard as my consciousness faded were:

    “It would be nice if we could stay like this forever.”

    Not long after, having finished all my duties as the Medici Barony’s financial administrator, I returned to Florence.

    As soon as I arrived, an urgent message from the Duke awaited me.