Chapter 107
(Kyle
Calendar Year 507: Age 14)
A Moment of Respite?
Translator : PolterGlast
"I need to free
everyone from this 'black labor' soon..."
I feel like I've been
muttering these words to myself repeatedly lately. Honestly, I feel terrible
for putting everyone through this. Since returning from last year's campaign,
we haven't had a moment's rest.
·
The Second Teigun Harvest Festival and Victory
Celebration
·
Preparation for the Joint Supreme (Champion)
Tournament (construction)
·
Hosting the Joint Supreme (Champion) Tournament
·
Second phase renovation work for the entire Teigun
area (construction)
·
Implementation of the First Large-Scale Subjugation
Operation (Demon Realm inspection)
·
Formation Ceremony for the Fifth Corps of the Frontier
Knights branch
All of this was
condensed into just half a year, making every day incredibly hectic. We can't
have ourselves branded as the 【Black Labor Solis Baron family】 or 【Black Heaven Teigun】. (Though my comrades, including myself, are already
in quite that situation...) For the next six months or so, I wish to settle
down properly with everyone and meticulously plan our future strategies.
With the two Earth
Mages entrusted to me by Baron Cornell at the Frontier Knights branch Fifth
Corps formation ceremony, the total number of Earth Mages I command has reached
seven, including Sarah, Elan, Mary, Astor, and Laila. Frankly, no other noble
possesses this many Earth Mages. This fact significantly accelerated various
construction projects.
·
Teigun city renovation: Completed
·
Northern Outwork (Post Town): Completed
·
Southern Outwork (Pasture Village): Completed
·
Agricultural Land (5 districts): Completed
·
Fran Side New Checkpoint: Under construction
·
Demon Realm Fort: Under construction
<About the
Development of Pioneer Villages>
Due to these circumstances,
the development of agricultural land progressed rapidly. The outer and inner
walls of the farming villages, and the granaries, are already completed in all
five districts.
Each district is a
square measuring 2 km on each side, containing four villages, each 1 km square.
Since there are five such districts, the total number of villages is 20. Each
village can accommodate 22 settler households, with each household occupying a
200 m square field. In the future, if each household has four residents
(parents and two children), the estimated population of the agricultural land
will be 1,760. Combined with the populations of Teigun town and the Northern
Outwork (Post Town), this is a sufficient number for a typical Barony.
Furthermore, the outer
perimeter of each district is enclosed by an earthen wall 5 m high, and the
central residential area is surrounded by an inner (stone) wall 10 m high, with
a common granary for the four villages in the center. This can be considered
sufficient defensive infrastructure against monsters and bandits. In fact, I
believe it's safer than any other village scattered throughout the Solis
Viscountcy.
【Agricultural Land - District 1 Outline Map】
（Village 1） （Village 2）
① ② ③ ④ ⑤ ● ● ● ● ●
⑥ ⑦ ⑧ ⑨ ⑩ ● ● ● ● ●
⑪ ⑫ ⑬ ⑭ ⑮ ● ● ● ● ●
⑯ ⑰ ⑱ ⑲ ――― ● ● ● ●
⑳ ㉑ ㉒ ｜住住住住住｜ ● ● ●
＝＝水路＝＝｜住住倉住住｜＝＝水路＝＝
▼ ▼ ▼ ｜住住住住住｜ △ △ △
▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ――― △ △ △ △
▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ △ △ △ △ △
▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ △ △ △ △ △
▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ △ △ △ △ △
（Village 3） （Village 4）
水路 : Waterway
住 :
Residence
倉 :
Storehouse/Granary
The demand for
settlement in the agricultural land surged. The number of applications has been
increasing daily as the agricultural land districts are completed.
When the first two
completed districts were opened, joyful shouts immediately echoed from the reception
desk.
"We started
accepting applications for two districts, 176 households, but 120 households
are already filled by pre-bookings, and another 40 households have been filled
by subsequent applications. What should we do next?" Claire asked me just the
other day. Because of this, we rushed the construction of the third district,
preparing an additional 88 households.
"For the fourth
and fifth districts, we'll observe the situation for a while even after
completion before opening them, so please manage the allocation at the
reception desk," I had told Claire. Now, those two districts are also
complete, but settlement there is still planned for a little later.
※
<About the
Construction of the New Checkpoint (Fort)>
Currently, prisoners
and temporary laborers are all diligently working on the construction of the
New Checkpoint (fort) on the Fran side. I added my requests to the plan created
by Elan, Sarah, Mary, and Sasha.
〇 Additional Construction (Temporary Hospital, and
Temporary Barracks)
This facility is
designed to accommodate 600 soldiers or patients, serving as temporary barracks
and an isolation hospital in case of an epidemic. The facility itself will be
partitioned by internal walls within the fort, with all rooms being private,
and its sewage system will be separate. I also requested windows for
ventilation and provisions for heating during severe winters.
"I want you to
prepare large-scale cooking facilities and a dining hall within this
facility."
And I added one more
thing.
"Since there's no
concern about the water supply, how about incorporating multiple bathing
facilities here and operating them as public baths during peacetime?"
For this facility
alone, I requested accelerated construction, disregarding the construction
cost. The result of planning to avoid waste during peacetime was the dining
hall and public baths. By incorporating these elements, I want to be fully
prepared before any epidemic occurs.
〇 Additional Specifications
I also requested two
additional specification changes for the fort's construction plan itself.
"For the fort's
drinking water only, I want you to prioritize the use of wells. I hope it ends
up being unnecessary worry, but I want to be extremely particular about the
safety of the drinking water."
Why? Even though
there's an abundant supply of fresh water from the river... They might have
thought that, but I couldn't concede on this point.
"Also, I want the
fort to be built with a deformed star-shaped wall."
The drinking water
system was to be secretly secured through a separate system as a contingency,
and the deformed star-shaped wall was requested as a preliminary prototype for
the fort to be built on the Demon Realm side.
"Elan, I'm sorry
to overburden you, but I need you and four Earth Mages to prioritize the
foundational work for the walls and moats, and the water and sewage systems.
The additional buildings should proceed on a separate line, and I need those
prioritized as well. As construction progresses, the Earth Mages will gradually
shift to the Demon Realm fort construction, so please factor that in. I'm
hoping you can focus solely on the Demon Realm construction while just managing
the planning and progress here, but is that okay?"
I fully understood
that this was quite an unreasonable request. However, both constructions were
Elan's ideas, and his expertise was indispensable for both. Fortunately, once
the overall concept and blueprints for the New Checkpoint were finalized, it
seemed Sarah could manage it sufficiently, allowing Elan himself to gradually
shift to the Demon Realm fort construction.
※
<New Talent
Discovery>
Until now, our talent
acquisition had primarily focused on Mages, but it was likely that there were
fewer than 20 more individuals whose aptitude could be confirmed. If it were
simply those with aptitude, there would still be about 170 people, but
excluding those past their prime, mothers raising children, and those who are
still children, the candidates would quickly dwindle to less than 50. From that
pool, cross-referencing with administrative records would yield around 30
individuals. And after interviews with Raymond, the steward, and other hiring
procedures to confirm their character, I estimated that probably around 20
individuals would remain as final candidates.
Therefore, I
reallocated some of our remaining resources to a different perspective.
Primarily, I extracted individuals with swordsmanship talent from the
"History Book's" list of citizens. Then, just like with the Mages, I
sorted and reorganized the information.
As a result, I found
more than 10 individuals with swordsmanship talent, capable of becoming [Sword
Masters] or higher. And two of them could be immediately secured.
"They are still
far from useful, but they have good potential. They certainly have the
possibility of becoming distinguished swordsmen," Commander Weiss also
gave his seal of approval after seeing them.
The ability to confirm
inherent talent and potential is an incredible cheat and a blessing. I was once
again grateful for the existence of the 【History Book】. And the activity of
gathering 【talented individuals】 will continue in the future, to secure those talents.
<Mage Combat
Training>
This was my biggest
headache. Because Lady Yuka and my sister wished to participate. I discussed it
with the Commander (demon) in private.
"From what I can
see, both of them are strong-willed individuals. If you try to go easy on them,
I think you'll receive a scolding instead. Is that still alright with
you?"
Indeed...
"But Commander,
you're still going to do it after all, right?"
"Of course. To
train Wind Magic, especially if they desire to use Wind Magic for defense, this
is the first path they must take."
I was hesitant to put
Lady Yuka through the Commander's initial trial. Many nobles, and the Mages
under their command, would absolutely never conduct such training. Conversely,
that's precisely why their Mages are said to be useless on the battlefield.
"Then, please, be
careful not to let them get injured." I requested.
※
"Mages aren't simply
people who can use magic. Originally, even in magic combat training, we first
conducted combat training in swordsmanship and other martial arts. If they
can't use magic, they're useless. In that case, they'll be targeted first on
the battlefield and simply lose their lives. However, since you two haven't yet
developed adult bodies, your training will be a special menu."
"Yes! Please take
care of us!"
"Y-yes!"
Lady Yuka, if
anything, had sparkling eyes, while Chrisia (my sister) looked slightly uneasy.
Non-magic training would primarily focus on self-defense, taught by Vice
Commander Kira. For magic combat, the Commander himself would train Lady Yuka,
and Marianne would train my sister.
"First, you must
overcome fear. Learn to observe incoming arrows without closing your eyes and
time your movements. On the battlefield, when deflecting arrows, you need to
expose yourself and deal with it calmly."
As the Commander said
that, skilled archers simultaneously loosed arrows at Lady Yuka.
This was precisely the
training I feared. Although the arrowheads were modified, if one were to hit,
it would be quite painful and cause injury. And eventually, they would use real
arrows. The sight of dozens, hundreds of arrows flying towards you, and the
terror of the wind cutting as they pass right before your eyes, is
immeasurable. In fact, even though the archers were skilled and carefully
selected, several arrows still flew precariously close to her.
Lady Yuka did not
flinch. After several rounds of shooting, she even had a faint smile.
"Oh, this
training, even experienced soldiers would hesitate... Impressive. Is it because
you inherited the blood of Viscount Gorman, renowned for his martial prowess,
or is it your resolve to protect that makes this possible...?"
The Commander
expressed admiration, but I was on pins and needles.
"Um... I think I
somehow understand. Can I try to block them next?"
"!"
Not just me, but even
the Commander was surprised by Lady Yuka's sudden request.
"If you use wind
halfway, the arrow's trajectory might deviate and hit you directly. Are you
sure?"
"Yes,
please."
And then... In the
next volley, she created a wind barrier, deflecting all arrows that passed near
her. Of course, not all of them were deflected, but...
"Your talent and
courage are impeccable. I will train you to be a splendid Mage warrior!"
The Commander looked
pleased. I felt a bad switch had been flipped.
"You don't have
to become a warrior. Please take it easy," I muttered softly.
According to Marianne,
my sister is also talented. She had frequented the Est infirmary since
childhood, studying medicine alongside the early Mages. The Holy Magic she
couldn't fully utilize at home found ample opportunity here (due to the
constant stream of injuries from the Commander's brutal training).
The toughest time
seemed to be for the six new comrades who joined last year, excluding Yoltia,
and the six Mages entrusted to us from other territories (four from Gorman's
territory and two from Cornell's). They (both male and female) were immediately
subjected to the grueling training, ending up battered and exhausted. Of
course, I, too, was battered and exhausted from the swordsmanship drills,
having to be attended to by the Holy Mages alongside them.
Thus, the joint
training for Mages, alongside the Frontier Knights, mercenary corps, and
garrison, will continue. The 150 individuals dispatched from the Gorman
Viscount family, in particular, participated with fierce determination. It goes
without saying that their unusual zeal was because their lord's daughter
herself was leading and undergoing such rigorous training.
In this way, the
groundwork is being laid for the Fifth Corps of the Frontier Knights to become
known as the strongest unit.
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