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"Mm..."

"What do you see?"

Gengyo asked, after Togashi made a noise as if contemplating. The bearded man’s eyesight was better than his own.

"They look to be empty."

The men almost cheered at that, but held themselves back. Jikouji had not yet announced that the news had been good.

Even the two guardswomen were intrigued, looking down the sloping road as they stood just outside the gates with the rest of them.

"JIKOUJI! WHAT NEWS?"

Rokkaku shouted, unable to bear the suspense they were being left in.

The old man acted as if he had not heard, and merely kept on riding, betraying no emotion on his face. Seeing that Jikouji was not willing to humour them, they attempted to peer past him, and see if the servants would give them any reaction. But it was a futile attempt, as they rode almost directly behind him.

Even as he arrived next to them, he did not slow, and they were forced to step aside. Isabella was so caught up in thought, that by the time she stepped aside, it was almost too late.

He rode his cart inside, and parked it where it belonged. They followed in after him and the other two empty carts, waiting expectantly as he dismounted with a huge sigh. He looked back on them, his face hard as his gaze met theirs.

"..."

And then he broke into a smile.

"Four thousand and forty-three gold coins."

He said casually, as though it were an every day amount. They continued to stare at him, processing what he said, as the meaning of his words certainly did not match up to the emotion he spoke them with.

"HOOHHHHHHHH! WE’RE RICH FELLAS!"

Rokkaku shouted loudly, his voice reaching everyone on the estate. It was a vaguely familiar reaction, as Gengyo seemed to recall him, or another one of them saying a similar thing when they had calculated the jewellery haul.

He was pleased by his own bodies reaction to it. There was the smallest quiver of excitement within his heart – and that was enough. What he needed was to be able to respect the sum so that he would not spend it recklessly, but being satisified with that amount was equally as dangerous, as he needed to deal in amounts far higher than that.

Amongst their cheering, he alone did not smile. He was pleased, no doubt, but he held the smile back.

Even Isabella – who was attempting to be more conservative with her emotions – could not hold her smile back as Rin patted her shoulders excitedly, pleased with the amount. The money held a different significance for them – it was their future, and it signified that their services would be required again.

As the few women amongst a group of men were bound to, they had become closer with one another. Or more like, Akiko had tried her best to include Isabella, and Rin had backed her up. Slowly but surely, the falsity in her behaviour was desolving, and she allowed herself to be more vulnerable in their presense.

"Good work, Jikouji."

His voice found it’s way to the old man’s ears, despite the clamour of the cheering.

Jikouji nodded. They had both anticipated his success, but words of recognition were still nice to have.

They stepped slightly away from the noise of the rest, and shared a conversation.

"Was it difficult?"

"There were questions asked, of course. But when you’re selling something like iron ore, there will always be buyers, as long as your price is reasonable."

"I understand. You will have to have conversations with Isabella in future, as whatever we are able to acquire will be dependant on you being able to sell it. If you cannot, then it’s better to avoid that shipment before hand."

"Aye, that’s true... She’s quite the useful informant. I wonder quite how you managed to tame her?"

He raised a question that had been on his mind for a while. The response to which was as he had expected, and Gengyo merely shrugged and smiled.

"There are always people who are willing to work for coin."

Came his simple response. Anything more detailed was unnecessary, and though he had promised to be open, he was not likely to dive into the entire contents of his past whenever he was asked to.

Jikouji pursued it no further. He was entitled to his secrets, and as long as he kept good on his promise to be more revealing in regards to future plans then there was nothing he would do to complain.

"Fair enough. I suppose I had better get more acquainted with her. When did you intend to set off?"

He asked, pursuing a more immediate topic instead.

"As soon as I am able. Today, hopefully. We have some supplies packed, but I’ll take some gold for expenses just in case. And, of course, I’ll take that amount for recruitment."

"By all mean – it’s yours after all."

He walked back to his cart, and began to distribute the sack of coin, handing 20 bags of 100 coins to Gengyo. By this point, their actions had drawn the attention of the rest, and they gathered round.

What an amount of coin it was. A single gold coin was worth a good deal, and if a peasant were to find one, then he would be set for a good while. Yet here they were, with enough gold coins to fill a sack. The physical representation of such an amount was what really made it hit home just how much they had.

Gengyo had to find a second sack to stash his amount in and a smile of amus.e.m.e.nt wandered to his lips. As he travelled the road, such a sack would be hung from his saddle, and the people who passed him would assume that there was nothing of quality inside – mere clothes or food. Yet if they were to take a peek, and discover that he had enough to money to buy a large army...

As he was sorting the gold out for Gengyo, he also began to dividing it for the rest of them. He threw two coin pouches to Isabella – her 5%. She caught them with a surprised look, before peering inside excitedly. She then tried to hide it, as though self-conscious about how much she had received, but Rin and Akiko merely smiled, and congratulated her, showing no signs of jealousy.

A further 300 was given to Morojo for the services of him and his men into the future. He received the coin pouches with a dignified nod. That set the amount he had earned to 1,000. And that was achieved in a little over a week.

He praised his earlier judgement in accepting this work. It was making him very rich indeed.

And then the rest was split evenly amongst them, and they stood there, receiving their coin pouches with excitement. Even Akiko and Rin received their own amounts.

"Ha... Finally! I’ll be able to go to the market and actually buy the things I want!"

Rin announced, holding the pouch of coin close to her face, as though it were some cute puppy. She looked entirely satisified.

Akiko, in contrast to her friend, did not know quite how to react. There had never been an instance in her life where she had been given coin and told that she could do whatever she wished with it. There had simply been someone there to try and meet her material desires, though all that she had received was mostly books and clothes.

Having coin of her own was an entirely different game, and there was no doubt that she would spend it and treat it differently than she had the coin of her father.

Whilst they were all pondering how they might spend their coin, Morohira had already ran off across the courtyard, and to the residence where he and his wife were staying.

"LOOK FUKU! WE’RE RICH!"

They were able to hear his shouting even from where they stood.

Gengyo allowed himself a small smile at his father’s excitement, before he entered in through the main mansion’s doors, and headed upstairs towards his study.

On his table lay a map of Mikawa - some parts of the surrounding provinces were included as well. There was just enough information on the map for him to find the first town in South Shinano. It was not an incredibly detailed depiction of the land around them, but it noted the main geographical features, and that was all he really needed to orient himself.

He took his sword from the armour stand in the corner of the room, as he ran his fingers over the smooth black leather of the dou, and tapped its shoulder.

"Soon, I’ll be able to wear you again."

He promised, as he fitted his sword through his belt.

Kitajo appeared at the door, apparently ready to leave as well. He also had a sword through his belt, and had a straw hat brought low over his eyes.

Gengyo nodded to him, before donning a straw hat of his own. It was perhaps an unnecessary precaution to take, but he did not wish anyone to recognize him from Imagawa’s campaign.

"Are all the supplies ready?"

He asked, rolling up the map carefully so that he would not crease it.

"They are. There is enough to last us several days, providing we don’t reach an inn before then."

Kitajo asserted, his face hard, as he prepared himself mentally for the task ahead. There would be no one to forgive him if anything were to happen to Miura Tadakata.

"Good."

Was his simple response, as he stood in the middle of his room, his eyes closed, and made sure that he was not forgetting himself.

With a nod, they flickered open once more, and he made his way to the door, confident that everything was completed.

Within the courtyard, the men were still gathered, chatting excitedly about the fortune they had begun to acc.u.mulate. Isabella was bombarded with questions as they attempted to anticipate how much reward they would get after the next mission. But Isabella had not even gone back to Toyokawa next, so there was nothing she could say in response to their relentless questioning.

Jikouji did not get involved, and when Gengyo returned outside, he was the first to notice him.

"You’re off then, lad?"

He asked. There was a hint of worry in his voice.

Two servants held their horses ready and saddled, with the supplies left in saddlebags.

"I am."

Was his reply, as he walked over, and mounted the beast. The men were quiet as they watched him do so, fully understanding the importance of the mission ahead.

He turned to them, before he left for the gates, and offered what reassurance he could.

"Worry not for my safety, for I will be back before you know it. Simply concentrate on your task, and greet me with a huge pile of coin."

With a heel to the horse’s side, he began forwards towards the gate.

"Good luck, Miura!"

Rokkaku was the first to shout.

"GOOD LUCK, MIURA!"

The rest soon joined in.

"GOOD LUCK, TADAKATA!"

Rin and Akiko shouted together. Their words reached his ears, but he did not turn back to pay them heed. It was all forwards from now.