Ten Arrows

Chapter 4

The rest of the month practically flew by.

Every single tenant had paid that month's rent in full, and all of their receipts had been stamped on the same day, a feat I would have considered impossible any normal month. There were no extension requests, no excuses, none of the issues that usually came up around the time money was collected. Understandable, given that they were being charged a mere fraction of what they'd paid me the previous month.

Additionally, word of my ridiculous rent policy had spread like a brush fire. In just two days it had been reported to me that every single building in my territory now had tenants, and that there was now a waiting list of several hundred shopkeepers who wanted in. I'd expected as much.

As a result of this influx of people, a good chunk of my time was spent handing out dozens of Tucat merchant seals to stutteringly grateful new tenants. In many cases, just showing my face in certain neighborhoods was cause for spontaneous celebration, and I was practically assaulted by heartfelt thanks and other outpourings of good will.

Considering how I was usually regarded, it wasn't exactly difficult for me to enjoy. It was more or less what I'd expected for that month.

Several unexpected things happened that month as well.

For example, and to my tremendous surprise, every outstanding tenant debt I held was settled. This without any sort of encouragement on my part.

Overdue payments and tribute extensions were paid, debt markers were handed in, and everyone was caught up for the first time in the history of my territory. All loans, some of which I'd held for nearly three years (and even a few that I'd privately written off as uncollectable), were paid in full.

I developed a few theories regarding why this happened, of course, because paranoid Thief-Lords like me usually make a point of finding out why things happen the way they do.

The first theory was simple - some tenants were honestly having a difficult time making ends meet, and this was simply the first opportunity they'd had to pay me back. On the other hand, some others probably suspected that this whole rent fiasco was part of an elaborate setup, and that I was seeking recompense for some long-forgotten swindle or slight they'd given me. Paying their outstanding debt was a precautionary gesture, I figured, one that they hoped might lessen any embarrassing retribution I was planning to send their way.

Of course, they had nothing to fear - no retribution would be forthcoming. Still, if people actually wanted to eliminate their debts to me, I wasn't going to turn them away. It meant more money in my pocket, and less work maintaining the books in the long run.

Privately, I began to wonder if I should do this sort of thing one month out of every year. Lost income aside, it certainly had its advantages.

Another rather unexpected tenant development was both amusing and troubling - not a single shopkeeper reported any sort of robbery to me or my knights for the entire month.

This wasn't because no robberies were taking place, either. I had personal knowledge of at least three robberies on my territory that had happened around the middle of the month. First-hand knowledge, in fact.

See, after two full weeks passed without a single claim being filed, I decided that a test was in order. Late one night I stole items worth at least twenty gold from three different shops in three different areas of my territory, making certain that each stolen object had been clearly marked with a Tucat merchant seal, which resulted in two glowing cats becoming visible when the object was illuminated by the blue light from a greyberry candle. Then, once that was done, I sat back and waited to see what happened.