Chapter 55
(Kyle Calendar
Year 505: Age 12)
Chrisia ②
Translator : PolterGlast
"Brother, today I
saw a strange place in town," my sister dropped a bombshell at dinner.
"In the very back
of the third section, in the South District, there was a strange building, and
the atmosphere there was very odd."
No, no way, did she go
to the area behind the lodging district in the third section, at the end of the
restaurant district...?
Anne looked
embarrassed at my agitation. Claire too...
"Many beautiful
women wearing thinly clad clothes were leading men by the hand...
And all the men looked
very happy..."
Aaaaaah!
It's okay, you don't
have to say everything, please!
"That's the same
as the brothel in the town of Est, isn't it?
Before, I saw Mother
get really angry about why such a thing was built in the town of Est, and
Father was scolded.
Could it be... you
too, Brother?"
My sister's pursuing
gaze... was intense.
This way of cornering
someone, so natural, I feel like she inherited it from Mother.
No, I'm still a 12-year-old
child in appearance.
Of course, I can't go
even if I want to.
I'm different from
someone (Father) who secretly built a brothel to his liking in the town of Est
because he wanted to frequent it!
"Chrisia, this is
important. Teigun is still a developing town, and there are many laborers
involved in the construction.
The town currently has
an overwhelming majority of men compared to women...
And the miners also
come to Teigun to relieve their fatigue. Because of that, there needed to be a
place where they could unwind."
My sister looked at me
with a narrowed gaze as I desperately explained...
"So yeah, there
are various deep reasons..."
※
Yes, there were other
reasons.
In towns with an
extremely high proportion of migrant workers, brothels are indispensable for
stabilizing public order and preventing crime.
Moreover, if many
citizens utilize them, tax revenue will increase, and the citizens (men) will
also be happy, truly killing three birds with one stone!
Of course... when I
first suggested inviting brothethels, I was surrounded by only women, and none
of them looked pleased.
But once I explained
it logically, they understood. And for some reason, Father was extremely
enthusiastic and even offered to introduce brothels from Est... or rather,
Father arranged the invitation himself.
The steward
(Raymond-san) smoothed over various institutional considerations, how the
government office should be involved, and made various arrangements with
relevant parties.
As for me, I offered
land for free to attract them, and secretly used my connections among men to
advertise...
Also, I attached one
condition when inviting the brothels.
Even if the prices
were a bit higher, they had to ensure the safety, clean environment, and health
management of the women working there.
Therefore, the barrier
to entry was a bit higher, and Teigun only had mid-range and high-end
establishments.
And the women working
there were treated with care.
※
On the night of the
harvest festival, when I was eating food bought from a stall on a bench, there
happened to be some thinly clad women next to me, eating the same food from the
same stall.
Yes, they were
prostitutes working at the brothels in this town.
They were by no means
outcasts.
They were cherished by
both the establishments and the town, and it was a common sight here in Teigun.
At first, they
probably mistook me for a child from the town.
"Same thing,
huh?~ This place is delicious, right!?"
She spoke to me
casually.
"Yes! This is one
of my favorite shops."
"Right~"
"Hey!
Yoru-chan!"
"...Huh? Ah!
P-please excuse me~!"
Stopped by her
companions, the woman who had spoken to me hastily prostrated herself.
Such things happened.
Since it was a good
opportunity, I asked the embarrassed women to stay and listened to various
stories from them.
"Is the working
environment alright? How about the clientele?
If you have any
requests, please let me know.
If anything
unreasonable happens, please visit Miseri at the government office."
"No, no, not at
all!"
"Compared to
other towns, this is a very good town!"
They answered with a
smile. I was very happy.
"I know it's a
tough job, but thank you for coming to Teigun."
I bowed my head
respectfully and expressed my gratitude.
"Thanks to you all,
many people can work hard and energetically. You're a source of motivation and
vitality for tomorrow.
In this land with few
women, there are many things we rely on you for. If there are any problems with
the working environment, please feel free to consult the government office. I
believe we can help you."
I conveyed my words of
gratitude to them.
In short, their
presence was that important here.
But my sister didn't
understand these feelings at all.
※
"Is Mother aware
of the brothel matter?
If Mother has approved
it, then I won't say anything. But when it was Father, she was furious.
The fact that there's
a brothel in this town means you built it, right, Brother?
You haven't mentioned
this in any of the regular meetings until now."
My sister's relentless
accusations continued.
Oh no, I can't stop
sweating. Someone help me.
Anne, why are you
running away? You don't have to make tea now.
Claire, even if you
suddenly remember an urgent errand, stay here.
Rosa, Mia, don't
secretly back away and leave.
That day, I was
relentlessly scolded by my mere 10-year-old sister, to the point where I
couldn't even remember what I ate.
I had to somehow
smooth things over and silence her before Chrisia returned to the town of
Est...
If Mother found out...
it would be very bad.
I would be checkmated.
Needless to say, I
couldn't sleep a wink that night.
In the end, all I
could think of was to appease her with a bribe.
※
Something my sister
had been interested in for a long time was mages.
Ever since we were in
the town of Est, she had been participating in medical courses alongside mages.
At that time, she had
shown an extraordinary interest in mages and the ritual to confirm mage
aptitude.
"I wish I could
become a mage too."
At the time, she had
repeatedly muttered such words.
Fortunately, it was
now possible to confirm mage aptitude in the town of Teigun as well.
It was necessary to
inform them in advance and have them prepare, though.
Today was just that
day. The other day when I went to the town of Est, I had confirmed with Father
and received his permission.
The specified
catalysts had also been prepared in advance.
Since the Demon Realm
was close by, and Teigun served as a base for those who hunted monsters for
catalysts, catalysts themselves were surprisingly easier to obtain compared to
the town of Est.
The reception office
(employment agency) at the main gate clearly stated the types of catalysts
given priority and their respective purchase prices, buying them at the same
price range as larger cities.
Hunters who wanted to
sell catalysts no longer had to go all the way to distant cities or sell them
cheaply to middlemen.
For this reason, there
were many who brought in catalysts: hunters, those testing their skills, those
seeking quick fortunes, and mercenary corps who had hunted monsters during
exercises.
※
"Chrisia, today
we're going to witness the mage aptitude confirmation ritual. Would you like to
come with me?"
"Really,
Brother?! I've always wanted to see it!"
She looked up at me
with sparkling eyes.
I, who was thinking of
bribing her with bait, felt a pang in my heart.
Twelve individuals
were undergoing confirmation today. All of them were people who had immigrated
to the town of Teigun, stationed soldiers, or people staying in the town of
Teigun for temporary work.
Since immigrants and
temporary workers were properly registered in Teigun, highly accurate
information could be obtained. That was a big advantage.
There was a good
chance that some were different people with the same name and age, but I
believed that over half of them would have aptitude.
※
"I had heard
about it, but hearing about it and actually seeing it are very different. It
feels incredibly sacred."
Chrisia watched the 12
men and women lined up in the church to undergo the ritual with excitement.
"I wonder if I
have aptitude too. I want to try it."
My sister uttered the
words I wanted to hear, so I immediately jumped at the chance.
"Shall we try it
in secret?"
"Is it really
okay? I've always been interested in medicine, and I'm very interested in holy
magic..."
Yes, that's right, you
have an aptitude for holy magic.
Without saying what I
was thinking, I conducted my sister's magic aptitude confirmation ritual last.
And indeed...
"Brother! I! I
can use holy magic too!
To be able to use two
attributes, this, this is unbelievable!"
My sister was ecstatic
with surprise and excitement.
It was a trial, and
she was able to confirm aptitude for the attribute she wanted from a ritual she
took out of mere curiosity, so of course she was happy!
"Let's keep this
a secret from Father and Mother for a while... okay?
Next time, after I've
made arrangements for the mage aptitude matter, I'll invite you to Teigun
again, and we can do it then, how about that?"
"You'll invite me
again?! Of course!
It's our secret,
Brother, just the two of us!"
"That's right, a
secret just for the two of us.
And... the matter of
that place in town, that's also our secret for a while. I'll talk to Mother at
the right time."
"Understood, it's
our secret, just the two of us, Brother.
I can't be the only
one getting rewards... Understood, it's a promise!"
"Thank you!"
I gave my most
respectful bow to my sister, who was overjoyed that her dream had come true.
As a result, we performed
aptitude confirmations on 13 individuals this time, and 11 were confirmed to
have magical aptitude. My sister was the only unexpected one...
They were all newly
enlisted as mages.
The number of mages
increased, the formation was strengthened, and the magic corps took shape.
---
~Magic Corps - List of
Mages~
Mage Aptitude Name
Background Current Affiliation
＜First Batch＞
①Wind Mage Christoph (Hunter, Frontier Village) Defense
Unit
②Wind Mage Carleen (Citizen, Est) Government Office
③Wind Mage Gale (Citizen, Est) Archer
④Wind Mage Gold (Citizen, Est) Archer
＜Second Batch＞
⑤Fire Mage Claire (Orphanage, Est) Government Office
⑥Earth Mage Elan (Slums, Est) Development Department
⑦Earth Mage Mary (Citizen, Mars) Development Department
⑧Water Mage Sasha (Refugee, Frontier Village)
Development Department
⑨Holy Mage Rosa (Infirmary, Est) Government Office
⑩Space-Time Mage Bart (Orphanage, Est) Direct
subordinate of Lord
＜Third Batch＞
⑪Fire Mage Mars (Soldier, Est) Cavalry Unit
⑫Fire Mage Danke (Soldier, Est) Cavalry Unit
⑬Water Mage Wals (Soldier, Est) Cavalry Unit
⑭Holy Mage Mia (Orphanage, Est) Government Office
⑮Light Mage Kran (Slums, Est) Direct subordinate of
Brother
＜Fourth Batch＞
Mage Aptitude Name
Background Former Affiliation
⑯Wind Mage Aral (Soldier, Est) Archer
⑰Wind Mage Lilia (Immigrant, Est) Commodity Exchange
⑱Earth Mage Astor (Laborer, Ale) Self-Defense Corps
⑲Water Mage Aira (Immigrant, Ale) Commodity Exchange
⑳Fire Mage Krolla (Immigrant, Ale) Reception Office
㉑Holy Mage Lanatoria (Immigrant, Phobos) Infirmary
㉒Holy Mage Marianne (Immigrant, Est) Lord's Manor
㉓Ice Mage Kinia (Immigrant, Est) Orphanage
㉔Dark Mage Raphael (Immigrant, Fran) Self-Defense Corps
㉕Space-Time Mage Caul (Laborer, Frontier Village)
Self-Defense Corps
※ Commodity Exchange refers to the publicly operated
commodity exchange.
-----
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