Chapter 229 House Fortemps' Secret Weakness
Hanjun understood now. It seemed the king's intentions were very clear, just as Hanjun had guessed.
The king was now showing favor to the Church of Light.
Hanjun could be almost certain that he would be able to obtain Viscount Hereford's lands, and soon, even the Royal City of Orinthia might be under his control.
As long as the King gave the order, the Church of Light could revive and grow throughout all of the Kingdom of Orinthia's territory.
Thinking of this, Hanjun felt a bit more positive about the King of this country.
When he returned to his resting place in the evening, the players brought him some good news.
Following Hanjun's advice, the players successfully infiltrated House Fortemps and, after gathering some information, they hurried back to report to Hanjun.
While asking around near House Fortemps estate, the players learned that House Fortemps was importing large quantities of Chupa Chups to host banquets and entertain guests.
In other words, House Fortemps had a huge demand for Chupa Chups.
However, the Royal City of Orinthia was spending a lot of money to procure it, and there still wasn't enough to meet the demand.
The players quickly found a way to gain access to House Fortemps: by selling their own stock of Chupa Chups.
Especially Master PungPong, who had the most Chupa Chups stockpiled.
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At first, House Fortemps didn't believe that they had such a large amount of cheap Chupa Chups.
It was Master PungPong who confidently took out a bottle in front of the butler who is in charge of purchasing and said, "If you don't believe me, just try it!"
The butler, seeing the unique packaging of the bottle, was already convinced.
Plus, such a valuable item wasn't something he could just taste.
Even if he took a sip, he wouldn't be able to tell if it was real or not.
The players successfully sold the drink at twice the original price of Chupa Chups and managed to build a good relationship with the butler, allowing them to continue doing quests and having a lot of fun.
However, when Edmont heard that the heroes of the Church of Light who are brought by Hanjun, were helping out in his family estate, he showed a look of disbelief.
What was going on with these heroes? Did they think they wouldn't be recognized?
They didn't even try to disguise themselves — did they think House Fortemps was full of fools?
Still, they allowed the heroes to enter because their Chupa Chups was cheaper than what other merchants offered.
Otherwise, there was no way they would let these strangers set foot in the Fortemps estate.
Master PungPong exchanged winks with his teammates.
His choice had been the right one, allowing them to smoothly enter the Fortemps estate.
Now they could focus on taking as many quests as possible to build favor while quietly searching for any information or secrets about House Fortemps.
Thanks to the Chupa Chups and their enthusiasm, willing to help with any task for just a little reward, and doing it quickly and well, the butler found that using these heroes was even better than using the maids in the house.
It's no wonder the heroes summoned by the Church of Light could deal with the demons.
After seeing them in action by himself, it was clear that their reputation was well-deserved.
At the same time, they were getting more skilled at using the heroes.
The butler couldn't imagine that for the heroes, entering a new map and getting new quests was no big deal.
They just wanted to complete quests, earn experience points, and build favor.
They were incredibly patient, serious, and hardworking. Experience tales with empire
What was even more surprising was that, while doing these tasks, the heroes often learned secrets about House Fortemps that outsiders wouldn't normally know from the servants.
To the servants, these small things might not seem like much, and they didn't feel like they were going against the butler's wishes or revealing any real family secrets.
But when these little details were connected, the players could find many clues.
Master PungPong happily shared the news he'd heard with Hanjun: "Don't be fooled by how flashy the Duke of House Fortemps is. Even though they hold parties every week and pay so generously for Chupa Chups, I've heard they're almost out of money. They're just trying to keep up their status as the richest family in the Royal City of Orinthia."
As he said this, Master PungPong clicked his tongue in disbelief.
Who would have thought that Edmont, who had just been threatening Hanjun, had such troubles at home?
It was even more surprising that his family was in this situation and still dared to mess with Hanjun, which made no sense at all.
Spicy Flavor Fairy crossed his arms and said thoughtfully, "I guess House Fortemps is protecting Viscount Hereford because they value the mana stones his lands produce. With Viscount Hereford's tribute, they can keep going; otherwise, they'd lose face in the Royal City of Orinthia."
Hearing their analysis, Pork Rib Boss showed a puzzled expression.
"But if they keep covering one hole by digging another, it's only a matter of time before they get exposed. Why not just cut their losses now?"
Pork Rib Boss's question was a good one, reflecting what many people would feel in this situation.
However, when someone is actually facing such a dilemma, can they really handle it so perfectly?
For the Duke of Fortemps, admitting that House Fortemps was out of money would probably feel like a death sentence—it just wasn't possible.
To them, reputation was more important than anything else.
If they got caught up in a scandal, House Fortemps's century-long honor would be ruined overnight.
This alone could cause House Fortemps to collapse from within.
Master PungPong was quite pleased with the valuable information he had gathered.
This time, they had caught House Fortemps's weak point.
Let's see how they could stay arrogant now.
Aside from this, most of the other clues were just minor things.