Episode 84 20. Guild Meeting (4)
The head of the Lyon Guild.
About Benjamin de Lyon, Bishop Berkis knew better than anyone.
Being of the same family meant being close to him, and in fact, Bishop Berkis was the person who watched him closely since childhood.
That’s how you judge yourself.
Benjamin was not a man who, as Rockefeller said, would give up easily.
It was not enough to be savvy, and he was also obstinate, and he didn’t pay attention to the church like other people, so from the perspective of Bishop Berkis, Benjamin felt like a sore finger.
Even if he tried to throw him away, he was a member of the same family, so he had no choice but to hug him.
“As you said, Benjamin is not a helpful person to me. He’s like a family member, so even if he didn’t like it, he had no choice but to let it go.”
Rockefeller waited patiently for his next words.
He didn’t know what choice he would make after that.
He said his arms were bent inward, because he could have ignored all of that and insisted on a family member instead of himself.
“If you think about it, it’s always been a hindrance.”
Bishop Berkis said as he grumbled about the past.
“Even then, if the guild leader had been someone other than Benjamin, I might have been able to suppress all the forces that were trying to push me against me with the donations here. No other power in the denomination can be above the donation.”
It was the denomination’s job that as the amount of money donated to the upper parish increased, there was also interest that was not there.
It was the power of donations that allowed him to rise to the position of the archbishop, who was only a priest, and the power of various factions of the denomination was determined by the donations donated.
As such, the power of donations in the denomination was great.
So his thoughts have to be aligned with it.
“But at that time, Benjamin was the guild leader, so I couldn’t push the guild, which was a source of money, too hard. I did it to Benjamin. Even if it’s difficult right now, if you rise to a higher position than the Archbishop, I’ll push you to do business more comfortably than now, so please help me somehow just this one time.”
Rockefeller quietly listened to him, and Bishop Berkis shook his head as he recalled the event.
“I didn’t even hear it. I just said it was hard and repeated it like a parrot. Really, if I had put a little more effort, no one would have known. If I did well, I could even aim for the position of Minister of the Interior, but I can’t help you with that any more.”
There was a sense of resentment in his words.
Rockefeller gave him heartfelt words of consolation.
“It must have been very difficult.”
“You call that a word? Of course it was hard. It’s me, it’s been downhill ever since that day. It was a fact that everyone in the denomination knew that I was friendly with the Banco Alliance. He was a person who could bite anything if he was determined and bitten. In addition to that, I also had a close relationship with the Holy Father, so I would not have been able to leave him alone even around him.”
It seems to Rockefeller that Bishop Berkis was aiming for high-risk, high-return at the time.
Being close to the Banco Alliance in the denomination that despises the Banco Traders the most was a double-edged sword.
“I don’t think the choice was wrong then. The reason why I’m still sitting in the bishop’s seat even now is because of the banco vendors who are doing business here comfortably. And because of the donations they donate, they are still maintaining this position. But it’s just so sad. That time.”
Bishop Berkis, who had been staring into the air with a helpless gaze, spoke heavily after a brief silence.
“Sometimes it’s good to be from the same family. From my point of view, it’s rather uncomfortable. Especially that guy. Rather, they are putting pressure on me with money. It’s all thanks to someone who’s been so big, but now I’m sitting here doing stuff like that.”
What follows was important.
According to those words, Rockefeller will go back and forth between heaven and hell.
Hmmm!
After a brief cough, Bishop Berkis unexpectedly asked a question.
“What would you have done if you were the guild leader at that time?”
It was an obvious answer, but Rockefeller delivered it with the utmost sincerity.
“Hey, I would have kept pushing you, somehow, without even thinking about it. If we’ve come to that point anyway, wouldn’t it be right for us to see the end too? It’s impossible to live by just looking at the denomination’s eyes forever.”
“haha… … At that time, someone like you should have been the guild leader. No one knows what would have happened then. Perhaps I was ordained by the Holy Father and went to the position of Minister of the Interior.”
The Minister of Gung is a position like the Pope’s secretary, and his position and power within the denomination is strong, and he was also called the Pope’s deputy because he was in charge of the denomination until the next pope was elected at the time of the Pope’s death.
Another brief silence followed.
Looking at Bishop Berkis’s different expression from before, it seemed that he had decided on something.
“Even now, you will be the guild leader over there.”
At that word, Rockefeller almost made a sound without realizing it.
Arms bent inward were just words.
‘thank god. maybe i did Because I could have kept sticking with that person other than me. Anyway, they’re from the same family.’
“Sir, Bishop. How dare someone like me sit there? Hasn’t that place always belonged to the Lyon family?”
Bishop Berkis, who had made up his mind, didn’t seem to have much intention of picking up what he had said.
“I have come to a conclusion after much deliberation. No matter how you look at it, I think it’s right for you to sit there. Are you still young? And I’ve heard the story of the Montefeltro estate, so I know it well.”
“If it’s about Youngji… … Are you referring to the story of our Carter Banco taking possession of the estate?”
“That’s right. When I heard that story, I thought you were a very clever person. Only Banco will take all the rights of the territory.”
“I am only grateful that you said that.”
“And even if it happened there, nothing happened until now, right? That’s a good thing you did. If I had driven out the lord for nothing and you sat there, it would have made both me and Peter in a very awkward position. It’s not our jurisdiction, but that doesn’t mean it’s irrelevant.”
“I thought that there would be many stories here and there, so I brought only the rights of the territory first. We thought that it would be best for us to guarantee the lord’s dominion as it is.”
“That was good. Normally, I would have done wrong because I was blinded by greed. It may seem like a no-brainer, but in reality there is nothing more sensitive than that.”
“Well, looking at the quiet so far, it doesn’t look like there’s anything wrong with it.”
“The way I see it, you are the person you are going to be. So shouldn’t such a person be the head of the guild here? At least, it would be much better than the stubborn guy who only clings to the rice bowl in front of him and doesn’t know how to look big.”
The next words were what he really wanted to say.
“And when I’m with someone like that, won’t another opportunity come to me, who is on a downturn in the life of the church? So it’s right for you to sit there.”
The bishop’s earnest request.
Rockefeller never refused.
“If you would allow me to sit there. I will do my best to serve you, Bishop.”
Bishop Berkis, who shook his head with satisfaction, put a young man named Rockefeller into his sight.
‘The young man is very ambitious. It seems like yesterday that I was just a banco assistant and tried to ignore it. Now that you have persuaded me too, you are trying to sit in a place where you would not normally be able to sit.’
Faced with an ambitious opponent, he could feel that his dead passion was reviving.
‘I once had that kind of passion. that passion. I don’t know, but he probably wouldn’t be dead yet.’
“You, who have been an assistant to Banco on the edge of the Empire, will be very proud of you. It’s a position where you have to lead all the banco traders who are quite strong in their own way.”
Rockefeller nodded in affirmation.
“I am well aware of that.”
“My one concern is that I wonder if you have the ability to lead them.”
What Rockefeller showed at this moment was not humility, but confidence.
‘If I trembled in humility here, I would rather only live with antipathy.’
“Sir, Bishop. You don’t have to question my abilities. Of course, some guild members may object to me because I am too young. But as long as your Highness Bishop stays by my side, no one will be able to challenge my position. And if I am the guild leader and bring them more wealth than before.”
Rockefeller’s eyes were shining brighter than ever.
“They will have no choice but to accept that I exist.”
Bishop Berkis’ response to such confidence was not doubt, but faith.
Everything he has shown so far has been trustworthy, and the image he has shown now is also very reliable.
“Great. You are very trustworthy. I will definitely remember it now.”
“Trust me. You will absolutely never regret it.”
Bishop Berkis, who nodded with satisfaction, suddenly expressed his doubts.
“More than that, can I become the leader of that guild just because I support you? Of course I will support you, but the guild leader over there isn’t my place to sit, right?”
The position of the head of the Lyon Guild was virtually outside of his authority.
So when I asked, Rockefeller showed another confidence with an implicit smile.
“You don’t have to worry too much about that. As you know, the guild head is traditionally decided through the guild meeting. And that guild meeting will be held here in Ghetto Nuovo a week later.”
“Just because a guild meeting is held, there is no guarantee that you will be seated there, right?”
“There is no guarantee, but through this guild meeting, I intend to prove the incompetence of the current guild leader in front of all guild members.”
“In what way?”
“Prince Benjamin is openly arguing that the payment of interest on deposits of gold coins is absolutely unacceptable and that it is a very stupid thing to do. But these are just words. Practically, if I testify otherwise, the position of Prince Benjamin will be very embarrassing.”
Bishop Berkis shook his head.
“Right.”
“If you insist on the incompetence of the current guild leader at a guild meeting, expel him, and then elect a new guild leader.”
Rockefeller frowned slightly.
“Who will be appointed as the new guild leader in a field where there are no suitable candidates?”
“Of course, you will be the one I support.”
“That’s why this conversation was so important to me. Because without the help of Your Excellency, I will never be able to sit there.”