@Vick_detri said in My Quiet Blacksmith Life Vol. 9 Discussion!:
I don't understand what happened to the northern delegation.
They have no idea where the protagonist has come from, they went to a foreign country that they have no real ability to threaten or force the hand of.
Even when they know he is already a protégé of powerful people they demand to take him back? Were they planning to hold their breath until the nobles gave in?
If there's a leak of vital national information, you either kidnap or kill him.
yea, might be a cultural difference thing- odd sort of diplomacy:
Nordic Delegation: "we'd like our asset back, since he is your retainer and not your subject (citizen) there is no problem, right?"
local powers that be reply : " he is neither our subject nor our retainer - he lives outside of our sphere of influence, and is an independent contractor- we won't compel him to do anything"
Nordic delegation doesn't want a diplomatic incident, nor to lose face. They compromise by planting a spy/asset of their own in the capital (Karen/last chapter) believing that she might gain the skills that the asset has (?)
I don't believe the Nordic folks think Eizo represents a leak of national secrets, instead they realize that he is a heretofore unknown national treasure (and may have knowledge of 'ancient forgotten arts') ....Imagine if some hermit (in present day) knew the recipe for greek fire, or is making violins like Stradivarius, or just so happened to know the proof to Fermat's last theorem...and Harvard wanted to recruit him