My Servant System

"I don't know, Anput... this seems more thuggish than anything else, honestly... This man can't meet his 'tribute' - his taxes - and you publicly accost him in front of everyone, and publicly threaten him? That doesn't seem-"

Leone was cut off by Anput, the Jackalkin grinning widely as she said "It is 'thuggish' when compared to the late fees and false promises that can be found in the Empire. If you were curious, I did a little research before I moved over to live with you, and the things I found...

None of them were pretty, and while the status quo for the average person is more than serviceable, there is a large amount of corruption and lying going on amidst your wealthy citizens. They can do certain things to avoid paying certain prices, they can extort or browbeat someone into paying a higher or lower price for something just because, they can enslave through terrible contracts that no one verifies.

How is that any different? Because you cannot see it, therefor what we do - what we show you on the surface, with no holds barred - is thuggish? I don't think that is fair to say, Leone~! Besides... this tribute that they pay is not simply being hoarded inside our vaults. It is redistributed and used to pay for the infrastructure of the city, for the security of the city, used to pay for the wages of the soldiers and set aside just in case they perish... We retain a small amount of wealth from what is given to us. Come."

Opening the door again, Anput peeked outside and nodded at the Death Jackals, all of whom dismounted and moved to stand beside the carriage as soon as they noted that their charge had decided to head outside, their gazes focused on the area around us as they continued to protect their Begum.

They weren't the only ones to notice Anput, as the soldiers guarding the wall all straightened up and gave Anput a salute, their eyes filled with reverence as they shouted "May the Gods bless the Begum!", and a moment later that portly Caninekin merchant shouted the same thing, albeit with a shaky voice and fear in his eyes.

Waving off the acknowledgements of her presence, Anput strode forwards and stopped a few feet away from the man, her eyes narrowing as she asked "Do you know what you've done, peddler?"

"B-Begum, I sw-swear..! I swear I d-didn't mean to-!"

"Didn't mean to what?"

He flinched at the harshness in her tone, the fear almost becoming a palpable scent that rolled off of his sweaty skin and expensive fabric, not masked by the sweet perfume that lingered around him either.

"I t-thought that all of the crates were filled! I swear it! On my life, I swear that I thought these crates were filled! I would never try to skimp on my tribute! Never!"

A growing confidence radiated off of him now instead, and he turned to glare at the kneeling woman beside him as he snarled "Dani! Did I not tell you to double check the tribute?! Now our soldiers - our glorious and amazing soldiers - won't be properly paid! How could you be so incompetent!"

The Death Jackal looming above the man remained motionless, though when she heard Anput snicker she reached down and grabbed him by his clothing and yanked him up onto his feet, before pushing him to stand in front of her Begum so that Anput could say "A mere slave is the one you trust to organize and prepare your tribute? Certainly not, peddler. No one would trust a servant to organize their tribute... besides~!"

Grabbing the man's hand, she raised it up and tapped each ring, making him flinch as the Death Jackal glared at him from the side, only to almost jump out of his skin when Anput yanked on one finger and grabbed his attention again.

"Focus on me, not her. I'm your bigger worry right now, peddler. See, it isn't just me here today; my fiancees are here as well, and they think that we are... barbaric. That's not the case, is it? We aren't a barbaric people... We can be violent, we can be brutal, but it is all warranted, no? The harshness of the desert begets..?"

Squeezing his finger, Anput smiled at the man and made him gasp "I-It b-begets h-hardiness..! Hardiness and togetherness! Because together we are strong, together we can survive!", and as soon as she got the answer she wanted, Anput released his finger and turned towards us with that same smile.

"We do things differently here to get the same results, Jahi, Leone. The desert is harsh, dangerous, and ready to take your life the moment you let your guard down. Going alone is a death sentence. Together... Only together are you able to survive. Together, we can prosper. Together, we do prosper. But if we don't work together... if not everyone pulls their own weight, if they don't provide for the well being of the collective..."

She turned back and punched the man in his stomach hard, making him double over before sweeping his legs out from under him, letting him drop to the ground with a thud and a groan as he curled into a ball, trying to protect himself from another blow.

"This man is a merchant. His usefulness is in his ability to procure materials and goods for everyone, but if he is trying to skimp on his tribute? A servant slave, two pleasure slaves, a guard from one of the many oasis cities... all of those rings..? But these crates aren't full... Tell me, what does that tell you? Incompetent management, or perhaps something else? Guard, does this peddler have marks against himself already?"

"No Begum! This is Nasir's fifth tribute, and each of them before this has met the quota required!"

Nodding, Anput looked towards the kneeling warrior that this Nasir had hired as a guard and asked "You! Tell me, is this peddler trying to grift some extra money by skimping on tribute? What is he like back at his home?"

Looking up in surprise at Anput, the guard blinked a few times before swiftly answering her, his voice slightly shaky for a few breaths before stabilizing as he said "I believe..! I believe Boss Nasir is attempting to grift some extra money, Begum! Boss Nasir is a greedy man, as expected of any merchant - he tried to renegotiate my contract thrice already for 'performance issues'!"

"Oh? Well, that seems par for the course... Badr, have this 'Nasir' brought in for an interrogation. Go over the records and look into them for me please. If the results are not in his favor... well, I suppose you have found yourselves a new training dummy for the day~! Load everything back up! While we're here, let's go ahead and observe the next one, shall we? We have the time, and this will give Mom some time to prepare whatever it is she wants..."

The soldiers got to work quickly loading those crates back into the carriage, and the Death Jackal grabbed the merchant by his neck and dragged him away kicking and shouting, that fear returning as he tried to plead with everyone to let him scrounge together the rest and then some.

"This still... hasn't proved anything, Anput. If anything, it's helped support my claims more..."

That made the Jackalkin shrug as she replied "I can't do anything else besides show you, now can I? This is how the Sultanate has worked for centuries now, Leone. We have a balance; a fine, delicate balance between our citizens and the government, and that balance has kept us alive and thriving. Whether or not you accept those differences is something else.

To me, the softer ways of the Empire were foreign and idiotic to me. Prime example; that bitch Jillian. We knew she was out to get us. Your Mom knew she was out to get us. The rest of the Nobility knew she was out to get us; remember Draka? She stopped talking to us at the Academy because of that. And yet... we couldn't do anything. Even though we KNEW she was an evil bitch who was going to try and kill us...

That is the difference between us and you. Over here, if I think someone is plotting against me, I take my troops and march on their home to demand an answer. If they want to fight, I fight them, and if I win, then they die. If I lose, then I die. Lines are drawn, deals are struck, and decisions are swift. We don't beat around the bush; we burn it. It's effective and efficient. Why both negotiating if I think a bunch of weaklings are plotting against me?"

"What if they are plotting for a reason? What if they are-"

"Then they are stupid, and stupidity should be weeded out of the gene pool as quickly as possible. If you are envious of the things I have, get stronger and either take them from me, or earn them yourself. Complaining that I have a lot of things and you have nothing does nothing for me nor for you, so shut the hell up and do something about it."

Leone frowned at that, the Vampire watching as the next carriage rolled into the gatehouse and unloaded their cargo, this time their crates and barrels almost filled to the brim with goods and gold, causing Anput to grin as she said "That wine will be used to celebrate a victory or a return. That silk will be used for the dresses of the Shaykhah - our Noblewomen - so that they can present themselves to the worthy warriors as a woman worthy of being the main wife. This gold will fund the maintenance of the roads, of the buildings, pay the workers and ensure the warriors have wealth."

She looked over each crate before beckoning for us to return to the carriage, adding "Everything you see is used for good, and a small amount of it is stored away for later, whenever we reach a period that might not be as prosperous or lucrative as it is now. We don't grow fat on the labor of our people and not lift a single finger; we work for them like they work for us. The difference is we are strong enough to have them at our beck and call and not the other way round. Now come, let's head towards the palace."