CH 332

It’s been a week since I came to the Caan Knights Nation, and I think I’ve done a lot of work that was packed with various things.

Local investigations are still underway. It will take some time before we know all the results. There is no point in rushing to do this now and ending up half-finished. Even if it takes some time, it is necessary to properly investigate and deal with it accordingly. First and foremost, that’s what matters.

Other than that, I’ve dealt with administrative work since I arrived, so most of the things that have accumulated have been cleared up. This shouldn’t be a problem now because it’s just a job that comes up day by day.

Construction is the most pressing issue right now. Koenigsvelg was established as the capital of the Caan Knights Nation. Is it a territory even though it is a sovereign nation? There is also the question, but since it is within the Kingdom of Ploiss, calling it a territory’s capital is fine.

Anyway, if this place is going to be the center of the Caan Knights Nation, then the Lord’s castle is necessary first. I said it’s a castle, but it doesn’t have to be a castle, exactly. Anyway, it is the place where the Lord is and where government affairs are carried out.

So first we have to build those things. There is no vacant land for such a large-scale development in the city of Koenigsvelg at present. If you’re going to do it, take over on a large scale and start over from land readjustment. If you do such a thing, the owner of the requisitioned land will hate you, and it will be a wasteful big construction and inefficient.

That’s why I’m thinking of expanding the current settlement and building a new city. I’m thinking of concentrating on the Lord’s mansion, the government building that centralizes administrative functions, and the facilities of various schools and public institutions that are planned to be built in the future.

Fortunately, the underground infrastructure work and road construction in Caan territory has come to a halt. Above-ground construction is at full capacity over there, so it’s difficult to pull out those builders to here, but the water, sewage, and road construction workers can be sent over here.

First of all, land readjustment of the new town and construction of underground facilities. After that, I’ll lay the roads… First of all, I’m going to rush building the Lord’s mansion, which will be my base, the government office, and the school. Other facilities can be postponed. You have to build this one first.

There are various plans for schools, such as so-called elementary courses for basic learning, secondary courses for developing from there and learning specialized knowledge, high school courses, vocational courses, universities, etc., but first of all, with basic learning, I would like to create three divisions: advanced learning, application of those principles, and specialization education.

I’m not going to say compulsory education for all citizens yet. It would be impossible to suddenly make such a leap. People’s lives are still poor. In modern times, what you’d call child abuse is considered a valuable labor force in this world. It is unreasonable to suddenly pick them up and tell them to receive compulsory education.

Don’t say anything because the times and circumstances are different from the modern sense. Even on Earth, it was a similar situation until just a few decades ago, or a hundred and several decades ago. We shouldn’t impose the beauty of today’s blessed environment on people who are desperate to survive day-to-day.

First, let the children of the Ploissian nobles who were interviewed go to school according to their learning progress as they are now.

At present, it is not possible to classify by age suddenly. From next year onward, it would be possible to enroll students from elementary school depending on their age. But I’ve never seen a school like this before. Even so, it would be cruel to suddenly say that you should start from junior high school because you are junior high school age.

Since each of them was studying at home, their study progress is different. Therefore, first of all, the first classes will be divided into grades according to their current academic ability and let them study what they already are studying. From next year onward, children of a certain age will be required to attend school.

Most of the children sent to school are children of noble families. If you are a noble, you will have some leeway in your life. We can’t keep living without child labor… I think. In addition, they will be able to learn the basics even at home.

Other than that, students with excellent grades are sent free of charge with something like a scholarship system. Let’s give excellent people the opportunity to learn among those who cannot afford to go to school because of their home environment. Here we will loosen the restrictions on age, and remove restrictions such as, for example, having to enter the 1st grade at the age of 6.

They might be self-studying in between farm work, so even if they’re a little over age, let’s make it possible to enter later. Well, there are limits, but… As expected, there is no first grader at the age of 50…

The school building will be built in the new city from now on, but for now, we will rent a building in the old city and start the school for the time being.

The curriculum and teachers are already well established. Originally, I had been thinking of building a school for a long time, and I had been creating a curriculum, securing teachers, and training them. It was unexpected that the school would open in the Knights Nation before the Knighthood, but we’ll start here first.

It takes a long time to make a box structure… For the time being, my government affairs will be at the original government building in the old town, and the school will be opened at a facility we rented. Later…….

“Master Floto!” a noisy man yelled as he rushed in.

“Yes, yes… what’s going on now?” I asked.

There’s been so much ruckus that there hasn’t been a quiet day since this guy came into my service.

“There is a man claiming to be your father. How would you like to proceed?” Kanbee asked.

“Father……? Ah~…… I suppose you’ve never met my parents, have you, Kanbee?” I asked. “Don’t worry, if they’re already this far inside they can’t have been impostors.”

My father and mother are supposed to be active in the northernmost area around Windou, but I wonder if there was something that suddenly came without a letter?

“It looks like you’ve brought in a fairly good vassal,” another man said.

“Father.”

Apparently, my father came in on his own. Well, even if I say it’s quite selfish, most people know about my father, so he got through without formal procedures. Kanbee, Musashi, and other newcomers didn’t know who my father was, so they must have been in a panic, thinking that someone they had never seen before had come and claimed to be my parent.

“Did something happen, Father…?” I asked. “You’ve come in without prior notice.”

It’s unthinkable that my father didn’t contact me in advance. And of course, my parents know that I’m in Koenigsvelg. It would be natural to think that the sudden arrival here is an emergency.

“I would like to borrow a few more soldiers and a fleet,” Father said. “I just came directly because it would take too much time to exchange letters first.”

“Is that so…? Let’s discuss it right away.”

Certainly, it would be quicker for the person in charge to talk directly than to exchange letters. The finer nuances are also understood and the possibility of inconsistency is low.

But if my father and mother are on the front line and they still bother to ask me to dispatch additional soldiers and fleets, it probably means that the situation is not very good. They say that it’s not a special situation and that there’s no need to worry, but I can’t accept it at face.

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I also offered to go to Windou but was rejected. I was told that it would be better for the Caan Knights Nation to solidify their system now than for me to go to the front line.

Certainly, the more stable the rear, the more stable the front line. If the rear is unstable, it will not be possible to move properly no matter how strong the army’s combat strength is. When I think about it, I can understand what my father is saying, and he’s right, but… I don’t feel comfortable even if I’m the only one who is told to do internal affairs in such a safe backline. 1

In this case, it would be more comfortable to go to the front line and throw even one spell into the enemy camp. I’m not a battle junkie like Mother or a muscle brain, but…

Well, it’s even worse to throw away your responsibilities and leave for battle without even being summoned. For now, let’s strictly follow the division of roles as my father said, and firmly back up my parents and the soldiers on the front lines. That’s my job.

In the first place, Father may not call me to the front line because I have this temperament. What we should do now is not going to war with the Principality of Moscove. In order to avoid war, it is to confront each other patiently without taking provocations and without allowing the other party to be too aggressive.

If you’re short-tempered like me, why don’t you throw in a single magical shot and annihilate them? It’s an order that can’t be done just by someone saying so. Thinking about it, Mother seems to rush in on her own, but… After all, there is no doubt that my mother did not simply respond to the provocations because of her seniority.

The enemy’s aim is to provoke you into firing the first shot. Repeated provocative actions at the border, or in some cases, slightly beyond the border. If we don’t respond, they will gradually invade the border, and if we respond, they will repeat provocations to get us to fire the first shot.

It is exactly the same as the type of provocation that modern Japan is experiencing out on the Senkaku Islands. It’s outrageous not to respond, but there’s no end to just going out and chasing the other party. Even though the other party repeatedly provokes them to enter and exit at will, it’s exhausting to just chase them each time.

If you repeat that kind of thing every day, the personnel will get tired. A lot of money is needed just for fuel, food, and the movement of the army. It’s harder to just protect after being repeatedly exhausted and provoked.

It would be better if all the intruders could be dealt with without questions…

“Don’t worry about us. There are no problems so far,” Father said.

“Yes… Sorry for the trouble…” I said.

In the first place, this is something that House Caan and the Caan Knights Nation must deal with. Certainly, in the War with the Kingdom of Polsky, the Caan and Carruthers Forces were united by order of Ploiss, but this territory was now just the Caan Knights’ land.

For House Carruthers, legally it is the territory of another family and has nothing to do with them. Even so, House Carruthers is still risking their lives to work for us. I can’t thank them enough.

“I’m getting enough profit. Shouldn’t I at least work for it?” Father said.

“That is……”

I guess he’s talking about tariff rights in the Hulk Sea Trade. It’s true that we got the tariff right from the Kingdom of Polsky and the money came from them. Unlike House Caan, who obtained the territory, House Carruthers did not directly obtain the territory but received cash as tariffs.

House Caan bears all of the stationing expenses, including food expenses and various expenses such as weapons and armor for the soldiers of House Carruthers who are on expedition. So now for House Carruthers, even if they stay and work here, they don’t have to bring anything out of the country, and they’re making a profit just by getting cash from the customs duty.

Father is probably saying that they have to work for that amount of money, but the customs right is the compensation for the War with Polsky, and it has nothing to do with the current confrontation with the Principality of Moscove. Right now, I’m just pushing extra work and it’s as if I’m not paying for it. As I mentioned earlier, I am paying for this, but…

“Also, I must mention… there are a lot of people from the Carruthers Vassals who are on the expedition now who want to serve in House Caan, instead. Can you recruit those who can be valuable by looking at their work?”

“…… Huh?”

I was taken aback by my father’s words. What are you saying? Do you want me to pull out of the Carruthers Vassals?

“Among the people participating in this expedition, the majority of them are young people who cannot take over their Houses,” Father said. “Many of the heirs are still in their territories. It doesn’t matter how many you take, so long as they catch your attention, Flora, I’d like you to let them serve you.”

…… I see. I see! For example, if the eldest son inherits the house, the second son cannot inherit the title. On the other hand, even if you want to serve somewhere else, it’s too late now. They wouldn’t hire you so easily at another House. It’s also difficult to enter the Carruthers Vassals. Even House Carruthers is doing their best to feed the retainers they have now. If the branch families increase too much, it will not be able to support them.

How does our House compare to that? There are very few hereditary vassals. And since it is a new force, there is a shortage of retainers, and there is plenty of territory to give and capacity to keep retainers.

The fact that House Carruthers has enthusiastically participated in this expedition is not just to support House Caan. If possible, Father wanted House Caan to hire those who could not inherit titles, thanks to their achievements in this war.

That’s right……. In that case, we can obtain a trustworthy vassal, and the future of those other than the heir will be stabilized, it will be a relief for House Carruthers and their vassals. A win-win for each other. How come I didn’t realize this simple thing?

“I definitely want to hire a lot of them!” I said. “Of course, I’m looking for achievements and success for the sake of having vassals, right? As expected, people who just came along and didn’t work may be refused.”

“Indeed. I’m also keeping records of those,” Father said. “You do a lot of these… interviews… don’t you? You just need to check with the person himself and check the materials I’m going to give you. Some of the claims are exaggerated. There are also people who have done exactly as said. Isn’t it better to have a lot of information in order to determine that?”

“Yes! Thank you very much! I will definitely use it!”

Hooray! I don’t know how many of the Carruthers expeditionary force (which has more than 1,000 people) are not heirs but if it’s even just half of them, that’s 500 people… Even if we don’t hire all of them, we might be able to secure hundreds of people still.

If it’s the Carruthers Vassals, they have connections with their parents’ Houses, so there shouldn’t be too many strangers. It would be very helpful if there were several hundred people who could be reasonably trusted and who had been trained as Carruthers vassals.

I don’t know what it is, exactly, but it’s a happy scream because the number of people has increased rapidly recently!