The road remained open for three weeks.
Three weeks without trouble.
To Rem, that was almost suspicious.
The first carts began to pass through.
Then more followed.
Small farmers discovered they could use the road to reach the merchants without going through the usual tolls.
Tomas was the first to notice.
“More people are using it.”
Rem watched the road from atop a small hill.
“I know.”
“That’s good.”
“It is.”
Tomas fell silent.
“You don’t look happy.”
Rem looked at him.
“The more people use it, the harder it’ll be to keep it hidden.”
Tomas smiled.
“Then maybe it’s better not to hide it.”
Rem didn’t answer.
Because he knew it was true.
An empty road could be ignored.
A busy road became important.
And important things attracted attention.
The first harvest sold along the new route brought more money to the Aldren Estate.
Not a fortune.
But enough for Aldric to pay off some old debts.
Elara bought new fabric to make clothes.
Edgar got a pair of boots.
Celine received a small wooden toy and spent the rest of the day carrying it everywhere.
And Rem?
He didn’t buy anything.
He saved his share.
Aldric noticed.
“You don’t want anything?”
“I do.”
“What?”
“Tools.”
Aldric stared at his son.
“Tools?”
“For the land.”
“You could buy something for yourself.”
Rem thought about it.
“That’s for me too.”
Aldric smiled.
“You really do think differently.”
Rem didn’t answer.
He couldn’t explain.
In his past life, he had learned too late that money spent without a purpose disappeared quickly.
Money turned into something that produced more money remained.
It was a simple rule.
But a powerful one.
The first problems arrived the next morning.
A farmer showed up at the Aldren Estate.
He was furious.
“They blocked my passage.”
Aldric frowned.
“Who?”
“The Viscount’s men.”
Rem, who was nearby, immediately approached.
“Where?”
The man pointed toward the old road.
“On the stretch near the bridge.”
Rem felt his blood run cold.
He and Edgar ran.
When they arrived, they found three men blocking the way.
A wooden barrier had been placed across the road.
One of them was holding a document.
“This passage has been closed.”
Rem stopped in front of them.
“Why?”
The man looked at him.
“Safety.”
“Whose safety?”
“The users’.”
Rem looked at the bridge.
There was nothing wrong with it.
“Then why didn’t you warn anyone?”
“We don’t need to justify administrative decisions to a child.”
Edgar stepped forward.
“He’s not just any child.”
Rem grabbed his friend’s arm.
“No.”
He looked at the man again.
“Who ordered this?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“It matters to me.”
The man smiled.
“Then find out.”
The three men left.
Edgar stared after them.
“What do we do?”
Rem didn’t answer right away.
He crouched down.
Examined the barrier.
Then looked at the road.
“They don’t want to close the road.”
“They don’t?”
“They want to scare people.”
Edgar understood.
“Because if no one uses it...”
“The road dies again.”
Rem stood.
“And then Harlen doesn’t have to do anything else.”
That afternoon, Rem gathered Aldric, Tomas, and several farmers.
There weren’t many of them.
Maybe ten people.
But they all had the same problem.
The new road had given them an alternative.
And now someone was trying to take it away.
Aldric placed the document on the table.
“They claim there’s a structural hazard.”
Tomas tapped the paper with his finger.
“Lies.”
“I know.”
Rem picked up the document.
Read it.
Then read it again.
“There’s a seal.”
Aldric nodded.
“Official.”
Rem studied the signature.
“But there’s no inspection date.”
Silence.
Tomas stepped closer.
“What does that mean?”
“It means someone signed it before checking.”
Aldric looked at his son.
“Does that help?”
“Maybe.”
“How?”
Rem raised his eyes.
“If they want to play by the rules...”
He set the document on the table.
“Then we’ll force them to follow all of them.”
The first thing Rem did was look for the city merchant.
The same man who had bought the first products.
His name was Matteo.
When Rem explained what had happened, the merchant crossed his arms.
“And what do you want me to do?”
“Keep buying.”
Matteo laughed.
“The road is closed.”
“Temporarily.”
“And if it doesn’t reopen?”
“Then you lose a supplier.”
Matteo grew serious.
Rem continued:
“And so do the other merchants.”
“Are you threatening me?”
“No.”
Rem smiled.
“I’m showing you an opportunity.”
Matteo was silent for a few seconds.
Then he asked:
“How many farmers use this road?”
“Still only a few.”
“And how many could use it?”
Rem answered:
“Many.”
The merchant understood.
“You want to create a market.”
“I want to create a route.”
“It’s the same thing.”
“No.”
Rem pointed toward the window.
“A market depends on buyers. A route creates buyers.”
Matteo was impressed.
Not by what Rem said.
But by the age of the person saying it.
“You really are sure you’re only that old?”
Edgar, standing beside him, started laughing.
Rem shot him a look.
“Don’t start.”
The next day, Matteo sent a cart.
Then another.
And another.
Not to transport products.
To gather information.
How long the road took.
How much transportation cost.
How many farmers could use it.
Which merchants were interested.
Within a few days, the little road was no longer just a path.
It began to become a network.
And that changed everything.
Harlen received the news a week later.
This time, he didn’t smile.
“How many?”
“Seven merchants.”
“And farmers?”
“Twenty-three.”
“On a road I ordered closed?”
The man lowered his head.
“They’re using side roads.”
Harlen stood.
He walked to the window.
“Then they still don’t understand.”
“My lord?”
“They’re not fighting the road.”
Harlen turned.
“They’re building something else.”
The man fell silent.
“Find out who.”
“We’re already investigating.”
“No.”
Harlen stepped closer.
“Find out who is teaching Count Aldren to think this way.”
The man hesitated.
“There’s a name.”
“Who?”
“Rem.”
Harlen frowned.
“The son?”
“Yes.”
“How old?”
“He’s still very young.”
Harlen stared at him.
“Then bring me the boy.”
That night, Rem was in the fields.
The sun was disappearing.
Edgar was sitting beside him.
Celine was playing a few yards away.
“You’re worried,” Edgar said.
Rem looked at him.
“I’m thinking.”
“Is that different?”
“Very.”
Edgar smiled.
“Does your father know?”
“Some things.”
“And are you going to tell him?”
Rem fell silent.
“Not everything.”
Edgar looked toward the horizon.
“Why?”
Rem took a while to answer.
“Because the more people know what I’m thinking, the easier it is for someone to use it against me.”
Edgar nodded slowly.
“Then I won’t tell.”
Rem looked at him.
“Thank you.”
Celine came running over.
“Rem!”
“What?”
She pointed toward the road.
A carriage was approaching.
It wasn’t Matteo’s.
It wasn’t Tomas’s.
It wasn’t the Aldrens’.
It was black.
With the Viscount’s crest.
Rem stood.
Edgar did too.
The carriage stopped.
A man stepped down.
The same man who had stood before the window.
He walked slowly toward them.
“Rem Aldren?”
Rem didn’t answer.
The man smiled.
“Viscount Harlen would like to meet you.”
Edgar stepped forward.
Rem grabbed his arm.
“I’ll answer for myself.”
He looked at the man.
“And what if I don’t want to?”
The smile vanished.
“Then the Viscount will be very interested in finding out why.”
Rem felt his heart beating faster.
This was no longer an inspection.
It was no longer an indirect threat.
Harlen had finally set his eyes directly on him.
Rem took a deep breath.
And for the first time, he realized that the next move wouldn’t be economic.
It would be personal.