Chapter 214
(Kyle Calendar Year 511: Age 18)
Territory Tour - Dimos
Translator : PolterGlast
The town of Dimos, in
the eastern border region of the former Viscount Solis domain. Previously, it
was the smallest, most remote town among the five in my father's domain (when
he was a Viscount).
Two years ago, a great
calamity struck this town of around 600 people. Thousands of refugees,
suffering from the plague and driven out of what was then the Hiyorimi domain,
passed through this town.
It was fortunate that
the town was small to begin with and had neither the capacity nor the surplus
food to accept refugees, so many of them simply passed through, aiming for
their destinations of Teigoon or Fran further ahead.
However, a number of
people, mainly the seriously ill and the elderly with weak legs, tried to stay
in this town, a number very large compared to the resident population. The town
and nearby farming villages opened their public granaries prepared for famine
and worked hard to support them.
Even so, the town
overflowed with refugees beyond its capacity, plague patients, as well as
secondary infection victims caused by them.
And just as this town
was reaching its limit in many ways, a rescue unit led by the Holy Mage
Michelle and an escort unit led by the Fire Mage Isaac rushed in from Teigoon
with a large amount of supplies as reinforcements.
They welcomed the
support unit from Teigoon with cheers.
Since Michelle and
Isaac were from nearby farming villages, and the Earth Mage Laila was from
Dimos, requests for cooperation from relevant parties and negotiations with key
figures were all carried out swiftly.
After the road to Fran
was blocked, the critically ill were transported to Est where time was of the
essence, and many lives were saved, but even so, 200 lives were lost from among
the refugees, and 50 from among the people of Dimos and the surrounding area.
The reason Dimos and
its surrounding area did not suffer fatal damage was that the army led by the
former Viscount Hiyorimi was quickly defeated, and a helping hand was extended
from Teigoon via Fran immediately afterward.
After the rebellion
ended and the Estol domain steered toward reconstruction, sufficient measures
did not reach the remote Dimos. The Viscount Solis (at the time) camp also had
limited funds and personnel available to deploy to various parts of the domain.
And so, while a bright
future was not yet in sight, one day, a major turning point arrived for them.
They welcomed the second son of their former lord, the Demon Territory Count
Solis, as their new lord.
※
Leaving Ishtar early
in the morning, we made a large detour around the northeastern foothills of
Mount Teigoon, passed through the border with the former Hiyorimi domain, and
headed for the town of Dimos.
Isaac, who was
familiar with the surrounding geography, led the way, and Laila was by my side.
"Until now, the
town of Dimos was the smallest and poorest town in the Estol domain. There was
no overt exchange of goods or people with the former Hiyorimi domain, and its
only role was as a relay point connecting the surrounding farming
villages."
Laila told me about
the Dimos of the past. Even within the former Estol domain, I myself had never
extended my travels to the two towns of Dimos and Phobos. I think the reception
center itself was established last in Dimos.
"This time,
thanks to you, Lord Takuhir, Dimos and the surrounding farming villages have
been reborn. Everyone is overjoyed, saying it's like a dream."
For her, being from
Dimos and having her parents living there, that must have been the happiest
thing of all. Her voice bounced as she spoke with a smile.
Although the development
of the Dimos area was put off for a bit, now Mary and Sasha have created the
basic concept, and Laila is leading the execution unit, pushing forward with
the town's development.
"Please look.
That over there is the reborn, new town of Dimos."
At the end of where
Laila pointed happily, there was a town of about 1 km square, surrounded by a
moat and properly equipped with defensive walls.
"In developing
it, to give the town itself room for the future, we made it significantly
larger so as to surround the old town. We had the townspeople move to the part
where the new town was built, and we are gradually renovating the old townscape
as well."
Relocation involved in
development is usually a difficult matter due to various entanglements and
complications. This is even more true because unlike Teigoon, a new town
created by the lord himself, Dimos was originally governed by a knight
appointed by my father as an acting governor.
But during the plague,
they ran around desperately to save their hometown and contributed. And perhaps
the fact that it was their hometown was also fortunate.
Some of the residents
had stayed in Teigoon for treatment and had seen the results of the
development, so it seems everyone actively cooperated with the town's development.
"Originally,
Dimos and the surrounding villages were built along the river, but considering
flood damage, we extended the town to the side opposite the river and a
tributary, regulated by a water gate, has been drawn into the town.
We store water little
by little in the moat when the water rises, and when the water volume exceeds
70%, we pump it in with a water-lifting wheel. That way, in times of drought,
we can let the water accumulated in the moat flow to the villages ahead,
serving the role of a reservoir."
"I see. You're
properly taking measures against drought too. How is the population at the
moment?"
"Yes, it's still
in the pre-plague state, with just over 600 permanent residents, but as a
logistics relay point connecting Gaia and Ishtar, the town is vibrant and has a
reasonable number of temporary residents.
If shops, inns, and
restaurants increase, making it more convenient and increasing jobs, exceeding
1,000 is not a dream. We are proceeding with town planning for the town itself to
be able to house a maximum of about 2,000 people.
Also, regarding the
five nearby villages, there is one upstream and four downstream along the
river. Fortunately, in this area, land that can be turned into farmland spreads
everywhere. I want to gradually increase the number of pioneer villages and aim
for a total of about 10 villages."
I see.
If the 10 villages
mature and Dimos also develops, the area will hold a population of 3,000 to
4,000 people. It will take time, but if that happens, this area will have the
potential of gaining the land capacity approaching that of a small barony.
I don't know how many
years or decades it will take, but if each of the five towns has the
productivity and population of a barony, the Demon Territory Count's domain will
not be a domain in name and military power only, but will be able to reach the
level of a count's domain in productivity despite its small area.
If the economic power
of specialty products is added to that... I hope that day comes as soon as
possible.
The number of laborers
we held in large numbers in the town of Teigoon has now decreased considerably.
At one time, the number exceeded 1,000, but some have already settled in new
pioneer villages in various places, some have become soldiers, and now the base
of laborer activities has moved mainly to Aegis and Ishtar.
For laborers, Ishtar
and Gaia are popular settlement destinations, while Dimos is slightly
unpopular. Well, since over 90% are men, and for laborers who are mostly
single, there are adult reasons involved too...
"Um, I have a
request for you, Lord Takuhir..."
Eh? Did she see
through what I was just thinking? No, there's no grand justification like a
mine here, so that's a bit...
"Could you
attract a church and an infirmary to Dimos? Even in the last plague, remote
Dimos suffered many casualties. If only
there had been a church... we have thought about that many times and felt
frustrated."
Ah... that. That's a
relief.
"Yeah, I'll
consult Father Grace when I return to Teigoon. He gave an immediate yes for
Ishtar, so I think it will probably be fine."
Ah, he's a Bishop now,
not a Father. Just out of old habit... Well, as long as it's not in front of
him, I don't need to correct it every time, right?
I'll probably need to
bring some golden sweets as a souvenir next time, but he is now the Bishop
overseeing the southern border region. And with several domains merged due to
the rebellion, I think there are churches with nowhere to go.
It will probably work
out somehow. I made a promise based on that reading.
"I consulted Miseri-san
and tried various things for the pioneer villages around Dimos, like extending
the tax exemption period by one year to three years, but it hasn't gone well...
I thought it must be because there aren't enough churches."
"Yeah,
understood. I'll deal with that immediately and make it happen, so if there's
anything else missing, don't hesitate to say so."
Laila is still young,
barely 20, but she was originally hired for the establishment of the reception
office here in Dimos, and because of her excellence, Claire pulled her in as a
direct subordinate.
It would be
interesting to prepare a place for her to be active as the administrator of
this Dimos in the future.
After that, we
observed the results of adding defensive walls and moats instead of reservoirs
to the existing farming villages, and the pioneer villages currently under
construction, and then rode our horses to the final inspection site, Gaia.
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