Chapter 186 - 186 – The Council Meeting I

Year 5, Winter, First Month, First Week

The cold wind swept the dry leaves through the Capital’s main road making the few, who dared to go out, shiver. On normal days, the roads would be filled with eager workers and lively children, but the early winter annunciation dissuaded people from outdoor activities. Though sudden, the cold was anything but unexpected, as winter never failed to come every year. Hopefully, the improvements in the city’s heating circle would be done in a few days, or at least before the snow started to fall.

The seemingly desert business and governmental districts were, of course, an illusion. No AK citizen would shrink from the duties to their recently founded Kingdom, they just chose to do whatever they had to, where the temperature was less aggressive. Unfortunately, not everyone could afford to stay indoors. Soon, a handful of people dashed through the roads, almost running to their destination. Amongst them, a young couple walked, curiously calmer than the rest.

To everyone else’s shock, the woman was even parading her strong tanned limbs, as if the cold didn’t matter. The man, on the other hand, was a little more reasonable and was wearing a warm long coat. Even though he was appropriately dressed, others still silently reprimanded him for walking slowly.. The fact that his face was noticeable red, only made onlookers more confident in their evaluation. Strangely, nobody seemed to remember that four years ago, the lack of clothes would be a common and expected sight.

“We should talk with them… It’s better to get this over with quickly…”

Diana was talking to Karl, but somehow the words seemed to be directed at herself too. The Alchemist tried to hide his embarrassment by forcing a confident expression. Unfortunately, he wasn’t aware that the uncontrollable blushing made all his efforts null.

“Talk about what?”

Karl was taken back by her straightforwardness, but fortunately, he managed to speak without stuttering. Blushing aside, he would keep his dignity, or at least try to. However, judging by her glare, he shouldn’t have spoken that at all. He got used to her unannounced and, in his opinion, undeserved rage, as well as how to survive it. So, he immediately tried to appease her by talking about recent military accomplishments while throwing in a few discrete compliments.

Karl felt a sense of pride, if only by having the ability to calm the famed mistress of fire. But, how could he know that Diana predicted his reaction, and chose to do it just to see him embarrassedly trying to pacify her? Though, she wouldn’t mind if he took it seriously and answered her directly. The thought raised an unrequested discomfort on her heart, so she decided to tease him further to dispel it.

“Grandpa might be complicated… But your parents should be OK, right?”

“Eh?”

Before Karl could sink deeper into her trap, Toni jogged beside them, with his usual cheerful and unconcerned behavior.

“Good morning Karl. Good morning Diana… Did you guys hear about the meeting’s topics? Grandma Marlen… Sorry. Councilwoman Marlen only told me to put someone in charge of the station, it must be a long discussion this time… Did something happen?”

The trio continued to discuss their guesses about the meeting's topics until they reached the Council building. Each councilor would bring up their own problems and reports, so the meeting would naturally last long, but somehow they felt that this one would be even longer.

***

“First, I would like to welcome you to this important meeting. Unfortunately, not everyone could be present, but Councilors Lew, Samia, Sania, and Tael will be participating from the Tunnel through communicators. I’ll refrain from extending my opening since we have much to discuss… Though we have some pressing issues, let’s deal with the formal matters first.”

Omero started the meeting with his regular solemn speech but quickly moved on to the specific reports of each Ministry. Of course, the main topic’s mention was deliberate, but his purpose was to keep the reports simple and not incite curiosity. Tradition would prompt Kanin to talk first, but since farming was now under the Ministry of Foods, Marlen started.

“Feeding everyone is no longer a problem for AK. Our crops and the meat gathered by hunters have been enough to sustain us and even store for winter. So, I proposed we focus on quality and diversity now. It would be nice to have options to chose from.”

Marlen's distinction from the regular elders was evident. She set a pattern for the reports, short and clear, slow enough so the operator could type her words, but not too slow.

“I’ll leave the quality of the crops to Kanin, but I have a few ideas to improve the storage and preparation of the meat. I discussed it with Reiner, and the Alchemists should help with some tools when they are free. For diversity, we could get more from AP, but the transportation costs… It’s the same for the vegetables we’re sending. If we can’t improve the transportation, we should open some fields close to the Tunnel, at least for fresh green vegetables.”

The idea was reasonable enough to earn everyone’s support, so the Farming Department would try to spare a team and send it to the Tunnel when spring came. Sadly, the other ideas required the aid of the Ministry of Alchemy, which was currently too busy to start another project. Even so, Karl promised to help them as soon as they could.

Marlen also brought up the opportunity of trading food with the independent tribes. Currently, the trade was being handled by Keller’s niece, who was acquiring it from the fire region. Since they already transported the weapons from AP, adding a couple of extra carts with food wouldn’t be too difficult. Of course, it would be limited to grains and anything that could survive transportation without going bad. Other specifics were left for later. It would be of no use going into details before the fields near the Tunnel were opened.

Kanin’s report as the Head of Farming didn’t add anything worthy of attention. Their harvest was yielding the expected and no serious problem appeared. Though the lack of challenges was welcome, they couldn’t help but feel a little strange about the stagnation. The councilors were, after all, used and eager for constant changes. Well, all the councilors except for Kanin who preferred simple and steady.

In the end, the man agreed with the Minister’s proposal of trying to grow new crops for the sake of diversity. They would ask for Keller’s help to get other seeds, but they would also explore a few wild options, taking a page from the tea garden’s book. Not all wild plants could be grown on fields, but it was worth a try.