Alpheo sat at his desk in the workroom, the glow coming from the small window at his sides lightened the meticulous reports spread before him. He leaned forward, his sharp eyes scanning the rows of numbers compiled by the treasury accountants. The calculations were clear as soon as the army returned home 14,800 silverii had been spent on the soldiers' pay that was owed at the end of the campaign.
The figure was staggering, but it was a necessity. Warfare demanded discipline, and discipline demanded compensation. Soldiers did not receive their salaries during a campaign, a policy Alpheo firmly upheld. Transporting such vast amounts of silver was logistically burdensome and with high risk of losing them against enemy's ambushes, not to mention the sheer amount of guards that would be needed to guard the money.
