SWNOVELXO Chapter 27: -24- "Financial Crisis
"What? No money?"
Charlotte's tone rose slightly, and her expression was somewhat incredulous.
She really couldn't understand.
The wealthy Castel family had run out of money?
"Yes, Mrs. Castel... um, that person seems to have spent all the money in the accounts. After your instruction, I took a special look, and now there are only a little over 5000 gold tanas left in the family's accounts..."
Casimodo scratched his head, looking distressed.
Charlotte: ...
"5000 gold tanas..."
She couldn't help but twitch her lips slightly.
Nothing else...
Because that amount of money was already substantial, even for ordinary people or Transcendents who hadn't entered the tier.
Throughout these days, Charlotte had ceased being ignorant; she even crazily studied the common knowledge of this world during the days she stayed in the hospital.
Not to mention, in the world of Mireya, no matter the race or country, the currency used is "tana," issued under the lead of the Holy Royal Court along with other True God Churches.
Tana is a round metal money, divided into gold, silver, and copper, where the official exchange rate is brutally straightforward: 1:100:1000.
Of course, in reality, this setting is quite foolish, definitely decided by the Church Priests on a whim, completely impractical.
In fact, due to differences in the quality of coinage, local economic conditions, and disparities in silver and gold mining reserves, the real exchange ratios vary by country and region and are continually changing, generally being higher than the official rate.
Taking Bold Duchy as an example, the current real exchange rate of tana on the market is 1:117:1316, slightly lower on the black market, but still quite above the official rate.
As for the income of ordinary people...
Charlotte had hinted and inquired about this during chats with citizens attending rituals at the Church.
The person, flattered by her attention, told her that in Bold City, the monthly salary of a skilled craftsman was about 2-3 gold tanas.
5000 gold tanas... The person couldn't earn that much in three lifetimes without eating or drinking!
And this is just for skilled craftsmen in the western city district.
The income of civilians in the Outer City District would undoubtedly be even less!
The income of Transcendents is definitely a bit higher, with apprentice priests at the Church Hospital generally getting a monthly stipend of 15 gold tanas.
But even so, it's still preposterous!
5000 gold tanas could support an apprentice priest for more than twenty years without eating or drinking!
This is ridiculous... Is this supposed to be penniless?
She wasn't, like before, planning to hire a hundred or two hundred servants. Maintaining the manor minimally was enough!
Not to mention, their own territory would also send a considerable amount of expenditure funds at the end of each month.
Although Charlotte didn't know how much money specifically came from the territory each month, she remembered that whenever it was time, a large team of armored knights would gingerly escort the money carriage!
That is to say, the current funds need to last until the end of the month.
5000 gold tanas...
Can it not even last a little over half a month?
How could that be possible?
Charlotte was about to make a sarcastic remark, but seeing the lunch on her table she hadn't finished, she suddenly had an idea and asked:
"How much is this steak?"
"This is an imported steak from the Northern Territory Duchy, exclusively supplied to the Royal Family, about 30 gold tanas."
Charlotte: ...
"And this pan-fried goose liver?"
"It's imported wild goose liver from the Falling Star Kingdom's high hills, marinated in secret sauce, this small piece... at most 50 gold tanas."
At most... at most...
Charlotte felt the corners of her eyes twitching.
"What about the spotted cheese and cream of mushroom soup?"
"The spotted cheese, same as the one long supplied to the New Moon Royal Family, is a limited production from the Honey Workshop, transported directly by a Mage after production, costing 25 gold tanas, and the cream of mushroom soup, also specially supplied, requires 30 gold tanas, vegetable salad a bit cheaper, only taking 5 gold tanas."
Charlotte: ...
God damn cheaper!
A plate of these scraggly lettuce leaves amounts to a skilled craftsman's salary for two months?!
Is she eating gold?!
Ah no, even gold isn't this expensive!
She finally understood why the money wasn't enough...
Daring, her lunch itself cost over a hundred gold tanas? A normal craftsman's ten years of income?!
And this is just the "simple lunch" Casimodo mentioned?
"In the manor... has it always been like this?"
Charlotte took a deep breath and asked.
Casimodo scratched his head, a bit distressed, and said:
"No, it wasn't like this before; the quality used to be a bit better, but now due to financial strain, we had to tighten it a bit."
Charlotte: ...
God damn tightened!
"How so, master, is the quality of the dishes too poor, not to your taste?"
Casimodo carefully asked.
"No, not at all, I just think... my stomach really is valuable."
Charlotte sighed.
Casimodo tilted his head, seemingly not understanding.
"How much does your daily food cost approximately?"
Charlotte suddenly asked.
"Me?"
Casimodo was slightly startled.
"Mm."
Charlotte nodded.
The old servant thought for a moment and said,
"Reporting to the master, our family has always been generous to servants. When at the store, our daily food standard is about 10 silver tana, but it's higher in the manor, roughly 30 silver tana."
Charlotte: ...
That is to say, the cost of food for one day isn't even enough for a leaf on this dining table!
"What did you have for lunch?"
Charlotte asked again.
"Uh... I haven't eaten today, but yesterday... a roasted thin pancake, a ham sandwich, half a roasted chicken, and a large glass of wine."
Casimodo honestly answered.
That isn't very extravagant, is it?!
And... only 10 silver tana!
The damn financial crisis!
It's clearly because the manor spends too lavishly!
The price of a dessert after a meal tops a Church Priest's monthly allowance… The life of a Great Noble really is damn extravagant!
"From now on, reduce the daily dining expenses, my standard can be roughly the same as yours, since I don't eat much anyway."
Charlotte thought for a moment, then spoke.
"That... might not be good? You are the master, and we are servants... plus, it would undermine the dignity of nobility..."
Casimodo hesitated.
"Dignity when rich is dignity, but dignity when poor is just putting on a brave face, it's self-inflicted suffering."
Charlotte shook her head.
She picked up a tall crystal glass and took a sip of milk, then continued,
"Now I am the family head of the Castel, I have the final say. Since our family's inventory isn't much, we'll save a bit more and with the extra money, summon some servants."
Casimodo hesitated for a moment, then nodded,
"As you command, my master. It's just..."
"Just what?"
"Just... I'm afraid no one would want to come to our manor."
Casimodo said with a bitter smile.
Charlotte was stunned for a moment, then instantly understood.
Castel Manor was a place where people had died, even wiped out entirely, and it was notorious for the Blood Demon case, with the previous family head likely involved with the Blood Demon Church.
Such places involved in the Evil God's blood sacrifices, any normal person would likely dare not come…
After all, nothing is more important than one's own life.
Especially in recent times when the Blood Demon Church has been so rampant, nobody can guarantee that the Castel family wouldn't face trouble again…
"Let's try it, raise the payment a bit, there are always some courageous folks. Hmm… or, perhaps, we could also summon some servants from the few family stores in the city."
Charlotte thought for a moment, then said.
Casimodo became even more troubled,
"About that... actually... I was just about to report to you..."
"Mm?"
"In our family's stores, the staff have almost all run away..."
Charlotte: ...
"Ha? What happened now?"
"Ah, it's all the rumors... After the incident, there were rumors below saying the Blood Demon Evil God has targeted the Castel family. If they don't leave soon, they'll be caught for sacrifices or turned into living corpses. Consequently... after a few days, people had fled..."
Charlotte: ...
"Ah, well, let's try our best anyway."
She rubbed her temples, sighing.
After receiving the orders, Casimodo prepared to clean up the table and leave.
"Wait, let me finish eating first."
Looking at the remaining lunch, Charlotte hesitated a bit, then spoke.
Although she was full, thinking about the cost of the meal made her unable to waste it.
It is all money!
A meal alone costs as much as several months of food at the Church Hospital!
Struggling, she finished the last piece of veal steak, ending her lunch while Casimodo cleared the tableware and left.
Once the old servant left the manor, Charlotte was left alone.
Casimodo would not be back for a while, Charlotte glanced at the time, deciding to take the opportunity to try the fully charged "Blood Summon."