Chapter 2: The Richest Man of Rome, Crassus (2)
"Kiya ~, the wine tastes great."
Jae-hoon, who perfectly adapted to Marcus' body, was enjoying a luxurious banquet with his friends today.
Is it said that it is an animal that adapts to people?
At first, the ancient world without the Internet or smartphones felt so frustrating.
But that's also for a while.
The inconvenience far from civilization's interest has become something he can endure in a few days.
You can savor seasonal delicacies to your heart's content without worrying about money, and slaves always stay by your side to listen to anything you say.
Instead, he felt more comfortable than when he was in modern times.
Of course, Jae-hoon, who has the sensitivity of a modern man, never gave harsh orders to slaves.
The mere handling of slaves poked his conscience, but the conventional wisdom of this era followed it for now.
Jae-hoon did not have a sense of justice or initiative enough to protest the ideology of the times actively.
This is because he was just an ordinary person who could be seen everywhere.
Instead, it was the best he could do to make an excuse close to self-comfort that he would treat slaves humanely enough.
Of course, the slaves of the family whispered that Marcus had changed.
Marcus no longer beat his slaves and did not drink to the point where he was left to eat.
He just hung out with his friends and drank wine to the point where he was moderately drunk and enjoyed a feast.
Jae-hoon did not need to be harsh because Crassus allowed him to play that much.
Jae-hoon, who became Marcus, was completely drunk on current life's comfort.
The Parthian War, in which Crassus and Publius die, is 20 years later anyway.
It is too much to take measures even after adulthood.
Right now, he just wanted to enjoy it as much as he could enjoy it.
Cassius, his close friend, recommended pouring wine into an empty glass.
"Now, let's have another drink. You're not drunk yet, are you?"
"Of course! This much is enough to eat in one bite."
"Oh, as expected, the eldest son of the Crassus family!"
When he drank wine in one shot, his friends and slaves lined up behind me, applauded, and cheered.
'Kuh~ Is this heaven?'
It's a series of luxurious days he couldn't even dream of in his previous life.
He was so satisfied that he even thought this was a happy life.
Jae-hoon left the drinking party just before he was drunk.
After promising to watch the gladiators fight in the amphitheater tomorrow, he headed for the mansion with light steps.
The Crassus family's mansion is located on Palatine Hill, the best location among the seven hills in Rome.
Although it is in the highlands, it is rich in water, and there is a fresh west wind along the Tiber River, and if you go down the slope, the center of the city, the Roman Forum, comes out right away.
Most of Rome's powerful and wealthy families had houses on this Palatine hill.
In Seoul, he can compare it to having a building in Gangnam.
It is not comparable to his previous life, where having a house in the metropolitan area, let alone Seoul, was the dream of life.
The current banquet was also held by renting a bar in Suburra*, where ordinary people live together.
'This is the life of a second generation of chaebol**, right?'
Of course, Jae-hoon has never seen the second generation of chaebol in his life. Still, it made him proud to be in the same line as the kind of people he encountered in dramas.
"Come on, young master."
An intelligent young Greek man guided Jae-hoon to a luxurious palanquin.
A young man named Septimus was a freed slave whom Crassus had placed as his son's assistant and watchdog.
Crassus has a lot of freed slaves as he is involved in various kinds of businesses.
Senators are not allowed to engage in commerce in principle.
Of course, it's just a good law. The majority of senators have worked on a variety of businesses with their representatives.
Liberated slaves were legally free people, so it was easy to escape even if officials questioned them later.
Septimus was also a case in which he was quick-witted and intelligent, which caught Crassus' eyes and took off his slave status.
His main job at the moment was to educate Marcus and clean up the mess he faced.
Jae-hoon shook his head, thrilled at Septimus' recommendation to get on the palanquin.
"Okay. I'm in a good mood today, so I'll walk home. Only they will have a hard time if they carry a heavy palanquin."
"Because it's a slave's job. Didn't you ride a palanquin in the garden before?"
"It was because I was immature."
"It's very touching that you've grown mature in just three days, from someone who's in charge of training the young master."
Jae-hoon lightly laughed off Septimus's sharp satire.
The original Marcus was quite reluctant to his father's henchman.
This is because liberated slaves, unlike slaves, are clearly family members, so they cannot be treated as shameless except by the pater familias (head of the family).
The former always made excuses to stay away from him, but Jae-hoon was different. Instead, he thought it was fortunate that a secretary-type man next to him told me so clearly.
"Today is a banquet, tomorrow is a gladiator's game, and the next day is a banquet. Indeed, Rome is great. Isn't this the paradise on earth? Does Septimus think so too?"
"...if you feel that way, it must be so."
"Yes, Rome is the ideal place I wanted. There is a reason to hear the great empire in future generations."
Jae-hoon strolled on the street at Suburra*, rambling about the sounds of 'future generations" or "great empire" that no one would understand while drunk.
As he was walking along, drunk with happiness, he heard a crackling sound in front of me, and the thick door opened.
Jae-hoon stopped walking and looked at what was going on.
A stout man showed his face through a crack in the door. A burly man who followed him threw a bag on the ground.
He could see something wriggling in a bag thrown like garbage.
"What's that? Is there an animal in it?"
The contents in the bag were still moving slightly.
Jae-hoon frowned and clicked his tongue. Even in modern times, many humans have a below level of cruelty to animals.
Jae-hoon, who is a little excited because of alcohol, approaches the man because he wants to preach.
The sound of footsteps echoed through the streets at night, narrowing the distance.
Jae-hoon, who was about to pass the corps, inadvertently stopped.
He paid attention to the contents revealed between the finely loosened bags. He could feel something warm touching Jae-hoon's ankle.
The hand, as thin as a branch, held him by the ankle. He didn't even feel like he was got caught because it was so weak.
The owner of the hand that crawled out of the bag was a little girl.
He thinks she is about ten years old. She was a Thracian girl with nearly brown-black hair.
The blurred eyes showed no power, and the marks of beatings were all over the shoulders.
The body, which seemed to be close to malnutrition, was already disconcerting to call it a person.
It is not an exaggeration to say that it is only life attached and that it is close to the corpse.
The drunkenness that had risen pleasantly in that ghastly appearance evaporated instantly.
"It was a human...."
The Thracian girl desperately did not let go of the stunned Jae-hoon's feet.
In fact, she didn't feel any power enough to shake it off, but something like tenacity, not strength, was conveyed.
He could tell what kind of tenacity it was without asking.
It's an obsession with life.
The girl tried to move her mouth without even speaking.
"...Are you asking for help?"
Jae-hoon muttered like he was talking to himself. The girl's dry lips moved slightly but indeed as if in response.
It was a faint voice that could not be as loud as breathing, but it sounded like thunder to Jae-hoon.
"Hey! What are you doing, kid? Do you want to be scolded?"
A stout man shouted nervously and clenched his chin. A sturdy slave standing in the back took a step forward.
"Don't get involved in other people's business and go away. Or else...."
The man, who was threateningly talking, checked the slaves lined up behind Jae-hoon and closed his mouth.
You can indirectly infer the class of the family just by looking at the physique and attire of the slaves.
There was a luxurious palanquin behind Septimus and the slaves.
The quick-witted man recognized at a glance that Jae-hoon's status was unusual.
"Are you an aristocrat?"
Rome has no right to trample on commoners at will, even if they are aristocrats. Roman citizens could enjoy their guaranteed rights as Romans, regardless of whether they were aristocrats or commoners.
However, if you are a prestigious family with power and wealth, you can bury the other person in a form that does not violate the law.
Even if they were the same Romans, commoners couldn't stiffen their necks in front of prestigious aristocrats.
Jae-hoon knew this Roman reality well because he had Marcus' memory as it was.
He nodded his head, acting as Marcus did in the past, with an infinitely arrogant look.
"Do you have to ask me to know? This is why they are ignorant."
"Yes, I am ashamed of myself."
"So what's with this kid?"
Even if he didn't want to show it on the outside, there was evident anger in his voice.
The man rubbed his hands servilely and smiled.
"She's my slave. I thought she needed a little discipline, so I was training her."
"Is it discipline?"
Jae-hoon's voice slowly started to annoy him. It was knowledgeable that the slaves of this era were the property of their masters.
No matter how the master treats the slave, it is the mood of the master.
It didn't matter if he beat her to death because he didn't like her.
The owner loses money equivalent to the value of slavery.
Jae-hoon, who had fully adapted to Roman society, was already aware of it.
However, it is not only a very pleasant sight to see a young girl beaten in front of his eyes, but the trembling touch of the girl's hand, which is desperately gripping his ankle, added to it more and more upsetting.
"It's the first time I've seen a young female slave disciplined in such an ignorant way. Isn't it usually left to freed slave women? Anyone can see that this is closer to corporal punishment?"
"You have to make it compliant in advance so that you don't have any problems when you wait on it later. The main edition is pretty good, so don't you think it'll be better than the original if you set it up and decorate it and sell it for the first time?"
When his words further distorted Jae-hoon's expression after hearing the explanation, the man was embarrassed and hurriedly continued to speak.
"I'm guessing that the discipline of slaves in your family will be different from the commoners. Yeah, it's probably a lot more organized and rational. The way we commoners do it is not enough, so it's rough. But this is our way...…."
'It's corporal punishment, and it's my slave anyway, so it's none of your business.'
... The man, who said this with the utmost respect, smiled as servilely as possible and looked at the signs of an aristocratic child who was ignorant of the world in front of him.
It is typical of an immature young man from an aristocratic family who wants to show off his dignity.
Usually, in this case, the man thought it was not a big deal because it would fall off soon if it were praised correctly.
Seeing the other person's expression like that, Jae-hoon could clearly read his insides and sneered.
Jae-hoon understood the meaning of the man right away.
The ownership of slaves falls into the category of property rights. No matter how aristocratic you are, if you meddle more here, it is more of a tyranny.
Jae-hoon briefly recalled Roman slavery when he saw a young female slave trembling at his feet.
Slavery was a natural concept in ancient times two thousand years ago.
The productivity of ancient times is vastly lacking compared to modern times.
In such a place, if you want to wield enormous wealth like a chaebol**, you inevitably have people underneath.
Jae-hoon knew how miserable they were, but this was the first time he saw it in front of his eyes.
The memory of his previous life, in which he had lived with a 'soil spoon', now overlapped with the image of a young girl struggling to live here.
The memory moved Jae-hoon's heart.
"What were you planning to do with this kid?"
"Huh? That's it's...… I'll continue to discipline like I do now."
"Tsk. It's not vulgar...… What if she die?"
"I haven't done this for a year or two, and I know how much she can breathe."
The man, who had a cold hunch on Jae-hoon's face, urgently added.
He was annoyed by the fact that he didn't go yet and kept picking on him. But, he had no choice but to endure it as much as he could because he couldn't speak carelessly to the children of the aristocratic family.
"This is legally my property. Do you know that under Roman law no aristocrat can encroach on the property of a citizen?"
"Of course. Who said anything about it?"
Jae-hoon continued, laughing.
"That's the problem."
The man was embarrassed by Jae-hoon's unexpected response.
"What do you mean... I'm telling you for sure that this slave is mine."
"I know. Slaves belong to their owners."
"Yes, it is. Absolutely."
"Then, the fault of the slave should be regarded as the fault of the owner, right?"
For the first time, the man frowned openly at Jae-hoon, who smiled fishily. With that attitude, Jae-hoon felt his ease had disappeared from his opponent.
"Look at my ankle. Your slave snatched it and it was covered in blood. How dare a slave grab the body of the eldest son of a senator and dirty him?"
"But it's not my fault, isn't it?…. It just so happens that...…."
"Did the law you like tolerate this?"
"... that, that...…."
The man could not refute anything and was at a loss.
He knew this would happen.
In modern times, few people memorize the law unless they are lawyers.
Most of those who raise knowledge of the law in this way only know what is in their favor.
"A slave is not a person, but the property of the owner, right? I don't think it's unreasonable to interpret this as a serious disrespect to me. Am I right, Septimus?"
"As you say. There's nothing to say even if the master drags that slave to death right now. If you don't agree, you can ask the owner to compensate you with money."
When Septimus nodded calmly, the man's expression distorted.
It is not so easy to obtain female slaves who are outstandingly beautiful and virgins. Even if you save it, a massive amount of money is shattered.
The man was going to risk going to trial if necessary.
"So... are you saying that the aristocratic should take over that slave because she has been rude?"
"Yes, I will take her and make her pay for her rudeness herself. I'll pay you for the money you spent buying the slaves. Then you won't have any complaints, right?
There is no way that there is a fool who gives it away when it is asked to.
The man was confident that if he educated the girl for one or two more years, he would extract more than twice the amount he spent.
I had no intention of handing over these walking golds at the original cost.
"I don't know if it's twice as much, but I can't just take the principal amount and hand it over."
Jae-hoon snorted.
"Ha! I think you're mistaken, but I'm not buying a product from you. I'm going to dispose of the slave who committed disrespect to me, so I'm telling you to get the right price and hand it over."
"If you say you can't...… Are you going to accuse me?"
"An accuse? Why do you have to endure such a time-consuming and uncomfortable thing?"
Thanks to Marcus' memory, Jae-hoon knew how to treat these kinds of people very well.
"The generous me can comfortably overlook your rudeness, but I think you may not be the people who have something to do with me? Bad luck may strike you as you continue your business in Rome. There could be minor problems such as no one trying to sell slaves to you or firefighters not putting out the fire when there is an unknown fire."
The man's face turned ashen. This was a clear threat and typical aristocratic tyranny. But that wasn't the case for him to do anything now.
Compared to young girls, men were an absolute powerhouse, but similarly to men, who were ordinary slave merchants, Jae-hoon, the eldest son of the richest man in Rome, was a much greater power.
The man realized that he was in a pretty nasty situation. He didn't expect to be caught by such a picky, nosy aristocrat.
The man was forced to make a last effort.
Even if you hand over slaves here, you don't know what kind of nitpicking you will find later.
He had to appeal that he was not such a pushover.
"I don't know how great of a family you are, but I also have nobles with whom I do business. There are some who have seats in the Senate. I want to tell you that they may feel quite uncomfortable if they do not receive a supply of slaves from me."
"LOL, do you have connections with nobles?"
Jae-hoon laughed coldly regardless of the man's words.
"I'm really curious to hear that. Will the senators who deal with you side with you, not the Crassus family? Shall we experiment?"
"Kk, Crassus?"
The man's mouth was so vast that it couldn't be more.
The Crassus family was the richest man in Roman history who no ordinary Roman knew.
In particular, those who did not engage in such bright work as slave traders clearly remembered the dark side of Crassus when he accumulated wealth.
Crassus was armed under Sulla, who had an iron-blooded dictatorship to strengthen the power of the Senate.
The enormous wealth gained from thoroughly purging Sulla's opposition served as the background for Crassus's wealth formation.
At that time, it is said that he expressed his disapproval of the opposition without blood or tears.
In any case, among the most famous pupils of the now-late Sulla, Pompeius is the first, and Crassus is the second.
There was also Lucullus, who was elected consul this year, but the impact that Crassus had as Rome's richest man was a little bigger.
Being a mediocre slave trader is not something to be proud of.
All men could do was lie flat and pray.
"Oh, young master! I didn't recognize you and made a mistake. Take as many slaves as you like who defiled your ankles! Of course. If you give me the principal, I really don't have any complaints! "I'm so grateful."
"Really? I'm glad you have the same interests. How nice is it to end the conflict in such a satisfying way? I'll pay the money tomorrow."
"Well, I mean. Hehehe, it's the price. You can pay slowly. Then I'll go now."
The man servilely rubbed his hands, closed the door as if running away and went inside.
Jae-hoon approached the girl who was lying down without looking at the man who ran away.
"Keep calm and close your eyes. From now on, you will be protected under my shadow."
The girl closed her eyes slowly in fear and emptiness at the caring voice that flew like a dream.
It was Septimus who was surprised, even if he did not show it on the outside.
He had never seen Marcus like this before.
Marcus was the one who beat slaves to death, not the one who saved them.
That's why he said the obvious question.
"Are you going to take her and get drunk?"
"Huh? What do you mean drunk? What?"
"It is that kid."
"...this kid? I didn't really think of that."
Septimus looked even more incomprehensible.
Embracing a young slave in Rome is not particularly objectionable.
The targets that they should never touch were children born as free people and the Vesta priestesses.
The extent of sleeping with a young slave in sexually open Rome was not even scandalous.
But if you're not going to get drunk, there's no reason to come forward and save you.
"Then why did you save this child? You would never have done this normally."
"It's just. It makes me feel dirty."
"You mean the slave trader?"
"Yeah. Slave traders and the like keep talking about the aristocratic family's discipline policy and property rights."
"That's why."
Jae-hoon shuffled out, leaving Septimus behind, naturally citing the thoughts that a typical Roman aristocrat might have done.
Of course, this was only half true. It was also because Jae-hoon's previous life suddenly overlapped with the appearance of a child who was so helpless and miserable.
It was just self-satisfaction, but the small thing that saved a girl caused a weak stir in Jae-hoon's heart.
Is it because of that? Gradually feeling his foul mood loosening up again, Jae-hoon began to walk ahead, humming his song again.
And Septimus felt something different from before in the back of such a young master who trudged along.
The way he talks is still typical of a child aristocrat, but he felt that his behavior was definitely changing recently.
"Come to think of it, what should I do with the slave trader?"
"Investigate if he has done anything illegal. And if he has done something punishable, slip it to a lawyer who has nothing to do with us. I'm sure that trash like that would have done a lot of law-abiding work. If you rob it, it's something to accuse of, and you'll get a lot of it."
"I'll take care of it as you say."
Septimus smiled slightly so that no one could see him.
Now, even if he is free, he is also from slavery.
There is no way to begrudge a man who beats and sells slaves for ridiculous reasons.
He had been ordered to report to Crassus unconditionally if Marcus had an accident.
Still, this time, he decided to report as favorably as possible to Crassus.
* * *
* = The Suburra was a vast and populous neighborhood of Ancient Rome, located below the Murus Terreus on the Carinae and stretching on the slopes of the Quirinal and Viminal hills up to the offshoots of the Esquiline (Oppian, Cispian, and Fagutal hills).
** = The chaebol is a large industrial South Korean conglomerate run and controlled by an individual or family.
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