Chapter 274

Chapter 274

Garrett hesitated for a second, wondering if reminding the other party in front of everyone would seem like mockery.

Before he could resolve his dilemma, a bell chimed behind him. The mage from the Protection School, who had been dealing with him, raised his voice for everyone to hear:

"Please, Mage Garrett Nordmark, submit your papers to the judging committee."

...You did it yourself last time, what’s with the laziness this time?

Garrett thought to himself, swiftly walking over to receive them. The paper on isolating and treating dysentery had already been submitted during the last debate, so this time, he had only the paper on observing bacteria under a microscope to present. Thanks to Aurora’s quick work, just two minutes ago, she had mentioned the title of the paper, and now, eight copies were ready...

Handing them over one by one, Garrett handed them to the mage from the Protection School. From the direction of the audience, a majestic, somewhat urgent voice rang out:

"The Temple of War requests to review the papers!"

Huh? Garrett paused. Almost immediately, a familiar, deep voice followed:

"The Naturalist Church also requests to review the papers."

Ah, Elder, you’re a great help! Garrett quickened his pace of handing out the papers, planning to finish here and then distribute them to the audience. Just as he handed out the last paper and before he could turn around, a third voice chimed in. Majestic and solemn, it carried a hint of reluctance:

"The Temple of the Spring Goddess also requests to review the papers—"

Facing away from the Archbishop and the priests, Garrett saw the mage in white robes wink at him, eliciting a fleeting smile.

Huh, even the Temple of the Spring Goddess wants the papers?

Garrett blinked, trying to keep his lips level.

The Council encouraged mages to exchange and share knowledge. As long as one had a mage badge, it was convenient to access submitted papers—albeit only abstracts; to read the full text, payment was required.

However, for non-mages, like knights or priests, wanting to access literature... this...

Even after crossing over, the problem hadn’t improved. Or perhaps, because the productivity level of this world was lower, and the common people poorer, the phrase "no money" became even more glaring. The City Hall had no money, the Council had no money, the country had no money—

No money meant no money.

And macroeconomic issues were not Garrett’s forte as a doctor.

Garrett tightened his grip on the papers, preparing himself. And the person in charge of the Budget Committee was indeed an expert in economics, rattling off numbers swiftly, his thin lips moving rapidly as he spoke, a long string of digits flowing effortlessly from between them. With a curl to his mustache and a rhythm to his lips, he spoke for a full fifteen minutes without stumbling once.

After half a minute of listening, Garrett was already struggling to keep up with his pace. And as for whether the numbers reported by the mustached man were accurate and whether any items were missing from the accounts, Garrett admitted that he couldn’t judge at all.

"...In conclusion, due to last year’s war with the Radiant Church and the subsequent repair of military equipment this year, the finances of Nevis City will remain in debt for the next three years." Twenty minutes later, the mustached man adjusted his tie, exhaled, and began his closing statement:

"The Budget Committee’s assessment is that, until the financial situation improves, there are not enough funds available to undertake

these projects without economic return, such as constructing new, larger water supply facilities, repairing sewers, or building infectious disease hospitals..."

He slowed his pace in the last sentence, his tone becoming more solemn, as if unfamiliar with these new terms. After pausing for a moment, he returned to his previous smooth rhythm:

"The Budget Committee’s evaluation is that, until the financial situation improves, there are not enough funds available to undertake these projects without economic return."

He bowed deeply to the audience. The hall fell into a stifling silence, with no applause, no words of thanks. Only those in the back rows of the committee and the audience, some richly dressed but not extraordinary listeners, showed concern, as if afraid someone would demand they donate on the spot.

"Did you find any loopholes in his argument?"

"No, I didn’t understand a thing—"

Aurora Worton quickly nudged Garrett, silently asking her boss. Garrett silently shook his head, not having found an opportunity to speak yet, when the long, drawn-out bell chimed again. The secretary adjusted his wig, turned to Garrett’s side:

"Now, Mage Nordmark, please make your statement—"

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