After glancing around to make sure fifty hidden executioners were not about to jump out from somewhere, Phield silently picked up his teacup and took a sip to calm himself.

"Then why are you so nervous? Are you trying to find the culprit? I’m sorry to hear the news, but I can at least guarantee one thing. It wasn’t me."

"Hahaha, if you ever want to do something, you’re always welcome to." Simon said something utterly outrageous. "This time it’s a giant’s child, so the risks are extremely high. That’s why I’m feeling restless."

Simon sighed deeply, his face filled with weathered exhaustion.

"What do you mean by ’this time’? Don’t tell me there was a previous time too? Actually... I think I should leave."

For the first time, Phield felt completely at a loss. His whole body heated up as he awkwardly said, "Maybe you should prepare more potions that Divine Chosen can use..."

"I’m worried whether the giant’s child can survive, not Florine. She’s a Third Tier Divine Chosen. After giving birth, she could probably go out and hunt another giant."

"What the hell... is this really something I get to hear for free?"

Phield was speechless.

"You people really live dangerously."

"This time isn’t about entertainment, dear Baron Phield." Simon suddenly adopted a serious tone, though the words coming out of his mouth still sounded absurd. "War is not far away. When I heard the news, I genuinely felt sorrow for the Empire and Her Majesty the Empress."

"What happened?"

Phield’s expression also turned serious.

"According to intelligence from the Imperial Purge Guards, the three western provinces suffering from famine are on the verge of rebellion."

"Verga Province, Thousand Lakes Province, and Maritime Province?" Phield froze in shock. "Those three provinces make up nearly four fifths of the Empire’s coastline. How could they still fail to resolve a famine?"

A famine in coastal regions was already something incredibly hard to believe.

"And yet that’s reality. Between us, the people there have long harbored rebellious intentions. They’re all a bunch of filthy commoners." Simon shrugged. "Prepare yourself. If a war on that scale erupts, Her Majesty may conscript you."

What a pain in the ass. That stingy old Empress has never even handed out subsidies, and she still expects to draft me.

When the time comes, I’m definitely going to loot Her Majesty hard.

Phield cursed inwardly, but outwardly he put on a righteous expression and declared passionately, "For Her Majesty the Empress, even if I must march into hell itself, I will uphold the spirit of knighthood to the very end."

Rolling his eyes, Simon burst into laughter.

"I know exactly what you’re thinking. Deep down, we’re the same kind of people. Neither of us are good men, hahaha."

Phield was instantly annoyed.

What do you mean we’re the same? We’re not close at all.

Because of the Vigor Elixir and his frequent dealings with Simon, he had apparently already been categorized by others as one of those "perverted" nobles.

"Serving Her Majesty in war is different from serving under a governor. As long as you perform well under the Empress’s direct gaze, titles, wealth, and even Divine Chosen can all be rewarded."

"The Divine Chosen born within Her Majesty’s direct territories are the most numerous, and most of them are married off to young knights. Phield, don’t you not even have a Divine Chosen of your own? If you distinguish yourself during the rebellion suppression, Her Majesty loves cultivating talented young knights."

Phield immediately became interested.

"There’s actually something this good? Interesting."

Then I’ll perform well first... and loot Her Majesty afterward.

Both men harbored their own thoughts.

After finishing his tea, Phield set down the cup and got straight to the point.

"Enough chatting. The latest batch of Vigor Elixir has already arrived, and I’ve brought some new luxury goods as well. You might be interested."

Simon nodded.

"Go on."

"I want to start a salt trade with you."

"Oh? So you’ve switched careers and become a salt merchant. That doesn’t exactly suit your identity." Simon raised an eyebrow, mildly surprised, though he clearly did not take it too seriously.

After all, Nightfall Domain was basically a wasteland. Even if it somehow produced salt mines, there was no way the quality could surpass what already existed on the market, and the production volume was surely tiny.

"Don’t dismiss it so quickly."

Phield took out a palm sized carved wooden box inlaid with crushed gemstones. The craftsmanship alone radiated extravagance.

"This is Nightfall Domain’s exclusive refined mineral salt. Its production is rarer than gemstones. Let me make one thing clear. I’m not planning to become a salt merchant. I’m in the luxury goods business."

The moment the box opened, the delicate, pure salt inside, resembling pale pink gemstones, instantly captured Simon’s attention.

He quickly took it, pinched a small amount to smell, then cautiously tasted it.

"Holy shit, this really is salt. And there’s not even the slightest bitterness. It’s pure saltiness with a faint fragrance. How is that possible?!"

Simon’s eyes widened in disbelief.

Due to technological limitations, even the salt consumed by nobles in this era still contained impurities and carried a slightly bitter taste.

Phield elegantly sipped his black tea, his expression smug to the extreme.

"I only sell premium goods, products meant exclusively for true nobles. If you want the garbage flooding the market, I don’t carry any."

Simon stared at Phield for a long while and thought to himself: This is probably some special Ross family product that he secretly brought out to sell. There’s no way Nightfall Domain can produce salt of this quality. I refuse to believe it. It’s probably a product created by a Divine Chosen.

But since it’s something from the Ross family, I absolutely have to secure it.

"Well?" Phield asked with a smile.

"It’s exceptional." After holding back for a while, Simon finally admitted it. "Even during my years in Griffin Province, I never tasted salt this good. I happen to be attending a diplomatic ball soon. This salt will absolutely steal the spotlight there. I doubt there’ll be any concern about sales."

"You really do have wide connections if you can attend a diplomatic ball."

Phield was genuinely surprised. Diplomatic balls were not events one could enter with money alone.

That was also one of the reasons Maple Leaf Territory’s commerce was so prosperous. Simon’s network was simply enormous.

"Indeed. With the three provinces rebelling, the Empire hopes the Kingdom of Fralanvia won’t interfere in our internal affairs. Though personally, I doubt that’ll happen. Fralanvia is extremely ambitious. They won’t miss such a perfect opportunity."

"Hah, but no matter what, the gold still needs to keep flowing. Let’s discuss pricing."

Phield extended his hand, signaling Simon to make an offer. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

"I’ll need to consult with my economic advisor first. Please wait a moment."

Simon carefully put away the small wooden box and left briefly.

On the market, coarse salt for commoners sold for roughly one silver coin per two kilograms.

That might not sound impressive at first glance, but a pig only cost thirty silver coins, while one silver coin could buy three kilograms of wheat or eight kilograms of rye.

The price of salt had already surpassed wheat, a food many ordinary people could barely afford, and that was merely the price of crude salt.

After quite some time, Simon finally returned.

"Twenty five silver coins for five hundred grams."

"Heh, I believe eighty silver coins would be a more appropriate price." Phield replied calmly.