Though it was early morning, and each of them had yet to sleep, not a single one of them felt tired, for they were burning with anticipation.
They sat in the reception room in the downstairs of the main building, as they presented all their goods on the table.
Jewellery and furs were littered everywhere, as were rolls of silk.
"Bloody hell, I never expected there to be so much."
Morohira commented in awe, as he looked at the scale of their haul.
"Neither did I."
Gengyo agreed, though he had been the one to plan all this.
"We're rich…"
Ii mumbled as he ran a cl.u.s.ter of necklaces through his fingers, savouring the feeling of the cool metal against his skin.
"Can you value all this?"
Gengyo asked of Jikouji. The old man had a better understanding of how each item was likely to be priced, because of his experience.
"I can, but it'll take a while."
He warned.
"We're willing to wait, aren't we fellas?"
"Aye lad, I'm not missing out on this if it kills me."
Togashi assured him. He had never seen such wealth in all his days, and finding out what it was all worth was exciting. Especially since the outcome of this would affect how they were able to act moving forward.
"Fine, I'll go get something to write with."
Jikouji said, leaving the room. He had a rough idea where it all might lie, but he didn't want to raise any numbers until he was certain, and had counted each item individually.
Gengyo chuckled lightly, breaking the silence.
"What're you laughing at?"
Morohira asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, I was just thinking, imagine if someone from outside were to walk in now. Their reactions would be priceless."
"Ahaha. I almost hope someone does now…"
Rokkaku said chuckling.
Jikouji returned with his paper and his writing utensils, and he began picking each item up one by one and evaluating it. His old fingers reached for a sapphire dangling from a golden chain.
"20 gold…"
He muttered, jotting it down on the pads.
He ran his fingers through a soft wolf pelt.
"Good quality… 5 gold…"
He ran through each one, muttering their value out loud, and slowly but surely their expectations rose, as the amount of gold continued to go up and up.
"What are we on now, Jikouji-san?"
Kitajo asked, his eyes wide.
"Hm… 1043."
He murmured, he himself being surprised by the total. It was more than the lad had promised, and there were still many more items to evaluate.
"43 gold…"
"7 gold…"
"5 gold…"
He continued to list their values, until finally, he lifted the last item – a ruby bracelet.
"13 gold."
He said with an exhausted sigh. It must have taken him more than an hour in total, but they had hung on to his every word, willing the price to go ever higher.
"Well?"
The young master asked expectantly.
"Er… we're looking at 2107 gold."
"HELL YEAH! WE'RE RICH FELLAS!"
Sasaki said jovially, as he tousled Kitajo's hair in his excitement. The other's were similarly ecstatic. With this amount, they could certainly put together a relatively large army – even if the cost for recruiting men was higher, now that the war had taken so many.
"That's just a rough estimate though…"
Jikouji attempted to say meekly, though he was largely ignored.
"What about this?"
Gengyo asked, interrupting them, placing the locked strongbox on the table.
They glanced at it with questions written all over their faces, in response to which he merely shook it, demonstrating the weight and sound of the coin.
"Ho… There's more still!?"
Togashi breathed, having forgotten that the young man had taken the strongbox at all.
"Indeed. But I do not know how to go about opening it."
He confessed. The box was made of a thick metal. An attempt at forcing it open with brute force would likely mangle the material, making it even harder to open.
"Give it here."
Ii said, seeming confident.
Something about the way he spoke made Gengyo trust him, and he handed the box over.
"Mm… Easy enough."
He said, as though familiar with such a mechanism.
"Anyone got a knife that can fit in here?"
He asked looking round.
"There's one there."
Enya informed him, pointing to a small knife that sat by an apple.
"That'll do. I need something thin to pick it with now."
He reached for a thin bracelet, and everyone felt physical pain as they understood his intentions. That alone was worth 13 gold… and there he was, bending it apart, so that he could use it as a lockpick.
He put the knife in, holding the locking mechanism open, as he went to work with his lockpick, looking for the sweet spot, as he continually turned the knife testing it.
They watched him keenly, ready to tear him to pieces should he fail. No one wanted to see the bracelet that was worth so much be destroyed meaninglessly.
He was skilled in what he did, seeming to have quite the amount of experience, and they noticed that the locked started to turn a little bit more each time he twisted the knife. He was getting closed the sweet spot.
CLICK
"There."
He said with a grin, flipping back the lid. Everyone else had been bathing him in immense amounts of pressure, wanting him to suffer for his c.o.c.kiness in using an expensive bracelet as a lockpick. But he relished that, and only performed better because of it.
He flipped the lid back, revealing all the gold coins that lay below. He then poured it on the table for all to see. It spread a good distance, and a rough estimate would label it as upwards of 300 gold.
"You've done that before."
Gengyo commented.
Ii met his words with a shrug.
"Since we're all thieves now, no need to hide the past anymore, is there?"
"No, there is not."
The young master agreed. No matter what secrets the men in that room held, not a single one of them was righteous enough to pass judgement.
"So, what now?"
Ii asked, motioning to all the jewellery and gold that lay upon the table.
"We sell all this and get the gold. After that? Who knows. We'll have to find a way to split it up."
He barely pondered upon the question. He had his own goals in mind, but he was not quite ready to reveal them yet. He wanted to savour their reactions when the time came.
Togashi put his hand up in objection.
"I'm against splitting it up. We do not yet need money of our own. What matters is our cause. I want to leave you with the full amount, because you know how to make best use of it."
"I agree with that."
Kitajo said, raising his hand.
"Me too."
Rokkaku seconded.
They all nodded their heads in agreement, apart from Ii, who looked as though he wished to object, but ended up saying nothing. He figured in the future he would be able to make his coin, what did it matter giving this up for now?
"Then, I will get this sold."
Gengyo announced, standing up, as he began to clear the jewellery back into a bag.
"Right now?"
Jikouji asked, frowning.
"That's the plan."
"But you haven't slept! And you can't sell it in Toyokawa – the other traders will recognize the jeweller's goods."
"I will be fine, and I'm well aware of that. I plan to head to Okazaki instead."
"Atleast go tomorrow, and then some of the men can go with you, in case you run into bandits or something of the like."
He pleaded, attempting to convince him.
"Honestly, Jikouji, I will be fine. I promise to return with the gold. Everything will go smoothly."
The old man sighed through his nose, giving up. His new master was as stubborn as the old.
Seeing that he had finally relented, Gengyo spoke to the rest of the men.
"Get some rest, men. You should not worry about working in the fields for a good few days, at least. I need you to be on top form for what's about to come."
They knew from the way he phrased it that he would not reveal what he had in mind, at least, not yet, so they did not bother to ask. But still, they took his words to heart, and relished the thought of more action. It should be bigger, and even more chaotic when they take the stage again this time – as they did so with the backing of far more coin.
"Aye, you look after yourself as well lad."
Morohira patted him on the shoulder as he left. The rest followed behind, nodding to their master as they did so. They left that room with a great deal more confidence that they had the day before. Now there was a degree of certainty about their revenge coming into fruition, and they could actually envision it happening.
Only Jikouji remained.
"Will get you get a cart prepared for me? I would like to leave immediately."
He asked of the old man, as he busied himself with rebagging the goods.
"Aye… Leave all of that there – I'll get the servants to load it. You go and spend some time with Akiko."
It was obvious from his tone that he still did not approve of the young man not taking the time to rest. But Gengyo still nodded, grateful for his words. And he made his way upstairs.
She was in her room, quietly sipping on a cup of tea, as she read from a scroll laid atop the table.
He knocked lightly, so that he would not startle her.
"Tadakata!"
She said, smiling.
"Hello."
He wandered in, glancing at her scroll.
"And then the winter winds did blow, chilling even his soul… Interesting."
"Mhm. He's a really interesting writer. I only just found out about him yesterday. His name is Jokomo Nishi."
"Jokomo Nishi, eh? I haven't heard of him. A poet, is he?"
"Yup! He does those 'Death Poems' too, but I dare not read them – they're too sad."
He shook his head at her sweetness.
"I'm going to be heading to Okazaki today. I have some goods that need selling."
"Okayy!"
She said with a nod.
He was a little surprised that she did not ask any more questions, but still, he was grateful for it.
"If Isabella comes by, have Shibata tell her that her payment will come once I return."
At that, her smile faltered slightly. It seemed Isabella was still a confusing sore spot for her, so he offered a partial explanation.
"She's someone I pay for information."
"Ah…"
She breathed. It did make sense. Someone like Isabella would be perfect for that.
"When do you think you will be back?"
She asked.
"Two days time, at most. I have not travelled this route before, so I can not tell exactly. But certainly not any longer than two days."
She nodded, as she leaned in to give him a hug.
"Take care of yourself, okay?"
"Mhm. You take care of yourself too. I'll see you later."
They parted, and he moved towards the door, bidding her farewell.
"See you later, Tadakata."
She whispered, as he disappeared from view once more.
As he came down, he saw the servants at work loading the goods into a cart drawn by two horses. It appeared to be nearing completion, so he helped out in throwing the last couple of bags, before mounting cart.
"If you get robbed by bandits, don't say I didn't warn you."
Jikouji muttered as he passed him the reigns.
"You can come along if you're that worried old man."
He said playfully.
"Ah, to hell with you. I'm falling asleep just standing here, never mind on the back of that cart. Just stay safe, lad. Do us proud."