Sofia watched as Thaddeus laid back down. She realized he must be going through a lot.
'Was he even aware he was a noble?' She thought back to the Succession Crisis of 1374, just 77 years ago. It was a common outcome now, but there had been complications along the way.
The nobility was being slaughtered by the Orc assassins.
So much so, that they had to completely rework the system that the nobility were using to keep their heirs safe.
They decided on a protection program. Unassuming lives for the main offspring and then tricking the Orc's into targeting the "less valuable" offspring.
She shook her head at the madness of such a policy, but she couldn't argue with it. It worked, maybe a little too well.
She flipped through the notes provided, 'Normally a kid like this would be reunited with their parents, although, not this time.'
Sofia had been like him. Unaware. Then one day, the "Mother" of the orphanage sent her to the palace, alone, with nothing.
"Your Noble House has been dissolved, and your title of Lady is revoked." The old and ignorant man spoke in her mind.
She was so confused in the moment, but she quickly adapted.
She let out a small muffle as tears began to flow.
Sofia thought that she would be imprisoned there for ever. It was as bad as the Deep Red, she would never go back.
"Sofia?" A small voice called out, "Why are you crying?"
She quickly patted her eyes with the long and unkempt sleeves, "Nothing of import, milord." She broke a small smile.
Eddy could tell something was wrong, but it was never nice to intrude on your friends...
He shrugged, "Okay, if you say so." He peeked out the window and noticed a white substance coating the ground.
"Uh..." he pointed outside, "Is that SNOW?"
She nodded and quickly hid her tomes. The report was done an hour ago and she was just obsessing over it.
Then she scooted along her seat to the wall of the carriage's interior and they looked out the small viewing window.
She spoke, "The elevation of the Blackstone Mountain causes water to condense much more easily, it is snowy all year round."
Thaddeus nodded, "That makes sense, how high are we?"
She comfortably answered, "We are close to the highest part, but the average of the province is around 13,000 feet."
"Wow." Thaddeus appeared enamored by the snow, which made sense if he had never left the capital, as they had weather controlling enchantments for the nobility.
Thaddeus slowly pulled the square handle on the carriage door and immediately he felt the nipping of the air.
"It is so cold..." He was slightly dejected, "I see why my father spent all his time traveling with my mother."
Sofia wanted to open her mouth, but it wasn't her place to correct the Lord on personal matters.
He turned back around and pulled the door shut, "So, any idea how much longer? I am all napped out, so this will be boring."
She smiled, "I have good news then, your report is done, and the time remaining should be less than a half-bell."
"30 minutes? How long was I out?" He shook his head.
"Wait, you did the report?" He finally processed the first part of the sentence.
Sofia nodded and Thaddeus looked awkwardly, "I didn't mean you had to do it right now, it was just a suggestion for when you were in a lull." He felt awkward for taking her off task and fucking with her schedule.
She shook her head, "I had ample time to complete my standard duties and make your report."
She laid her hand on the top of a stack of paper, "This is the detailed analysis."
"Can..you read it to me?" Eddy asked shyly.
She nodded, "Of course."
"The Net Income of the Holdings of the Lord report to be a total of 29,875.12 Imperial Crowns for this collection." She seemed satisfied.
"Is that a lot of money?" Eddy asked sheepishly.
She nearly choked for a moment, "Yes. Yes, milord. The collection for this cycle is around 700% higher than other Viscounts." Then she looked at her notes, "This amount of income is not typical of a Viscount, or even a Count."
Eddy looked away, "I do not have a solid grasp on money..." She picked up on his insecurities immediately, "Ah! Do not fret milord, I will assist you. I too was once in an Orphanage of Protection, I understand a great deal."
She seemed sheepish, 'She was in a what? Is that what the place I woke up in was, an Orphanage of Protection? What am I, in the mob?'
He relaxed, "How does the currency work, I have only ever played with a silver coin." A small lie, but necessary.
She nodded, "Yes. We are kept separate from the world so we do not stand out and risk death."
He nodded, "Orphans can't go slinging gold around, right?"
She smirked, "Yes. They would make for excellent target practice, and we need less dead heirs as it is."
His face froze. 'Protection. Ah, shit.'
She noticed his look, "Ah, do not worry. You are much safer with trained knights around. They could cut the arrow down before it made its way to you."
"Seriously!" Eddy blurted out.
She nodded, "Yes. They are very powerful."
Then she redirected the conversation, "The Imperial Coinage is controlled by the Royal Treasury. All currency is accepted, but in times of war, certain coins may be..less valuable." He nodded, "What about the kinds?"
She smiled, "Milord's knowledge base is very mixed, picture reading must have been your favorite thing to do in your spare time, no?"
He cringed, "I do enjoy a good picture book..."
She nodded and continued, "The "denominations" of coinage follow, Bronze Pieces, Copper coins, Silver coins, and Gold coins, otherwise refereed to as Imperial Crowns or Gold Crowns."
He waited, "Bronze pieces are used very frequently by Villagers. A family might go through 25 Copper coins a day if they are living conservatively, leaving them a profit of around 10 Copper coins split 4 ways."
She wiggled her hand, "This isn't necessarily true. The serfs actually rarely exchange coin. They do large transactions in which they pay for the renting of land, they pay for their homes, and they pay the Empire's tax."
"In the past, these values were much smaller, only a tenth of the goods would go to the Lord's coffers, but the wealth of the people has increased greatly over time."
She waved her hand, "Anyways, the Silver coins Represent 100 Copper coins, and then the Gold Crowns represent 10 Silver coins.
Eddy nodded, "A 1 to 1000 ratio with Gold to Copper, then Bronze is a fraction?"
She nodded and shook her head. "They are informal pieces, unrecognized by the Royal Treasury. They are not worth regulating. The pieces are created by braking copper cookware, which would be more valuable by simply selling it."
Eddy was confused, "Why? Why not mint a standard ?"
She shrugged, "The commoner's solve their own problems."
Eddy couldn't really believe it, 'Why go through the trouble of making money and NOT using it correctly? If the people need a smaller denomination, make one.'
She kept explaining how the income worked, but he couldn't really understand. The values were way off from what he remembered.
'Inflation must be a bitch here, either that, or something is fucked up.'