I'm the Knight of This Town, Part 5
The final day of Junk Town had dawned. From the early hours of the morning, every single resident was up and busily packing their belongings, turning the entire town into a chaotic scene that rivaled a bustling marketplace. Yohan and Wilhelm sat perched on chairs outside the sheriff's office, leisurely taking in the spectacle.
"So we're really leaving this place for good. Honestly, it still hasn't quite sunk in."
"Weren't you the one who cursed this place every chance you got, calling it a trash heap filled with trashy people? And now you're getting sentimental?"
"I am."
When Yohan spoke with his usual sarcastic bite, Wilhelm didn't get angry. Instead, he gave a surprisingly frank, brief agreement.
"Ahem. Well, anyway, it's a happy ending for everyone."
"To be honest, I'll miss it a little, but it's also a massive relief."
"Heh."
Letting out a smirk, Yohan stretched his arms wide. He then sank back into his chair, watching the residents scurry back and forth.
"Make sure you pack everything!"
"The lord said they're going to raze the whole place once we vacate!"
Truth be told, Yohan had secretly worried that the residents of Junk Town would fiercely resist this forced relocation. Surprisingly, however, most of them welcomed the chance for a fresh start. Only a handful of stubborn souls refused to become subjects of the lord and vanished into the wilderness.
"Hey! They're here!"
"The carriages sent by the lord!"
By the time everyone had finished packing and the sun hung high in the sky, the convoy of carriages sent from Balifield finally arrived. The sheer scale of the procession—boasting over ten multi-passenger carriages and a full military escort—was enough to strike an imposing figure as it rolled into town.
The Balifield administrator leading the convoy hopped lightly down from his carriage. At his signal, soldiers began unloading wooden tables, stacks of parchment, and quills, setting up a makeshift registration desk right in the middle of the dirt road.
"Everyone, form a single-file line! We are beginning the official registration process for Baron Berriman's territory. Please maintain order!"
The administrator bellowed with a voice so booming it sounded as if he had swallowed a steam engine whole, clearly showing he was no stranger to handling rowdy crowds.
"Alright!"
"I'm first!"
As if they had been waiting for this exact moment, the residents of Junk Town scrambled to line up.
"First, everyone must take one of these documents and fill out your personal details, starting with your name!"
"Hey, Mr. Administrator, I don't know how to write!"
"If you cannot write, seek assistance from someone who can!"
Naturally, a few minor scuffles threatened to break out, but with Wilhelm watching them like a hawk, none of the bickering escalated beyond mere words.
In this manner, nearly two hundred new subjects underwent a basic census, choosing whether to settle in Balifield or head to the Nameless Village.
"Name: Hans. Occupation... petty thief. Right. Well, where do you wish to go?"
"Neutral... No, wait, Balifield."
The administrator's expression as he processed these former outlaws—now supposedly law-abiding citizens—was sour, to say the least. It wasn't just the sheer exhaustion of handling two hundred registrations by himself; he clearly wasn't thrilled about letting such unsavory characters become residents of Balifield.
But seriously, what are you going to do about it? Yohan thought, snorting inwardly.
After several grueling hours, the registration finally drew to a close. Having verified the personal details and preferred destination of the very last resident, the administrator let out a heavy sigh and collapsed flat onto the ground. Yohan walked over and peered down at the handwritten report.
"Huh..."
The final tally showed that out of the roughly two hundred residents of Junk Town, about a hundred and fifty had chosen to settle in Balifield. Only fifty or so had opted to make their home in the Nameless Village.
"Fewer people are heading to your village than I expected."
Wilhelm, who had followed him over, offered his brief assessment after reading the numbers.
"Well, of course. Balifield is an established city with a long history and great infrastructure."
"Indeed."
Unlike Balifield, the largest city in the region, the Nameless Village was a rural settlement that had only just begun to develop. Honestly, it was almost strange that fifty people were willing to pass up the chance to live in a major city just to move to a mountain village, and Yohan didn't deny this reality.
"And... let's be honest. At least a few dozen of them probably fled to Balifield because they were terrified of the fact that you're coming to our village, old man."
"That is a rather mischievous joke."
"I'm not joking, though."
If Junk Town ceased to exist, where would Wilhelm go? Yohan had been wondering about this for a while now.
"So, where are you heading now?"
The answer turned out to be far simpler than expected.
"I am thinking of going to your village. If I settle in Balifield, the lord will find my very presence uncomfortable. Moving to another territory altogether sounds like too much hassle."
Wilhelm, the sheriff of Junk Town, had decided to become a resident of the Nameless Village.
"Seriously?"
Yohan asked just to be absolutely sure, but Wilhelm merely nodded with a stoic expression.
"No, I mean, are you really okay with that? Honestly, I thought this would be your perfect chance to go back home."
"Yes, it is fine. From your village's perspective, having a resident like me should be a net positive, not a loss."
"Well, I mean, that's true, but..."
Yohan had no idea what kind of circumstances had driven the scion of an Imperial marquis family to come all the way to Westania and suffer in a place like this. Regardless, now seemed like the perfect time for Wilhelm to end his long exile and return to his homeland.
Yet, he showed absolutely no intention of returning to the Empire. Well, if the man himself wanted to stay in Westania, who was Yohan to stop him? Yohan gave a light shrug.
"Whew... Well, now that the work is done, I must return and report to the lord."
"Sure, thanks for your hard work."
Having finished his brief rest, the administrator dusted himself off and stood up. Then, he paused. "However... there is one thing I am curious about."
"What is it?"
"To settle in the Nameless Village, is it mandatory to convert to the faith of the Unnamed Goddess?"
In an instant, the eyes of the nearby Junk Town residents snapped toward the two of them. It seemed they had been eavesdropping on the conversation from the start, and this was a topic they absolutely could not ignore.
"Uh... Well, as of right now, every single villager does believe in the Goddess, but we don't actually force anyone."
This was, surprisingly, the absolute truth. Yohan had certainly encouraged people to believe in the Goddess, but he had never threatened anyone with his fists or a fireplace poker to make them convert. Fists and pokers were strictly reserved for punishing bad guys.
"I see. Understood."
In this world, countless gods undeniably existed, and their power grew in direct proportion to their number of believers. Even so, Yohan firmly believed that freedom of religion should be respected first and foremost.
"Hey, since we're on the subject, let me ask a few things too."
As soon as their conversation ended, the residents who had chosen the Nameless Village crowded around to ask questions. Among them were a few familiar faces.
"Oh, you're coming to our village too?"
It was the junk shop owner who had previously sold carriages to Yohan on two separate occasions.
"Haha! No matter how much I think about it, a cramped city life just isn't for me. I like my freedom."
"Just don't go openly selling stolen goods like you did around here, alright?"
Yohan and the junk shop owner chuckled in unison.
"Yeah, yeah. Anyway, what I wanted to ask was... wait, what was it again?"
"If you forgot, get out of the way! It's my turn to ask!"
Just because they had resolved to live honest, decent lives didn't mean their rough personalities had vanished overnight. Another resident shoved the junk shop owner aside and thrust his face close to Yohan's.
"The village we're moving to has sturdy houses, right? Ever since that demon bastard attacked and trashed my place, I've been living in a cramped shack."
"Sturdy houses, you say..."
Instead of answering directly, Yohan let his voice trail off on purpose.
"We have plenty of building materials. But you'll have to build your own house."
"W-What?!"
At Yohan's response, the face of the man who asked—and everyone else standing around him—turned completely pale.
"Did you think I'd be crazy enough to make you build a house from scratch all by yourself? Once the villagers hear we have new neighbors, they'll happily swarm over to help you build it, so don't worry."
This, too, was by no means a lie.
"Hmm... Well, yeah. I heard those heading to Balifield have to live in communal dorms unless they have enough saved up to buy a house outright."
"Exactly. There's no space to build a house in Balifield anyway."
The once-anxious residents immediately began to chatter cheerfully, and Yohan smirked behind their backs.
"Ah, you must be the newcomers! Good morning!"
"Here, we'll lend you our warehouse until your house is finished, so please make yourselves at home!"
The Nameless Village was, at its core, a sanctuary for those who believed in the Unnamed Goddess. The original dozens of villagers, along with the two thousand refugees from Easthold in the Holy Kingdom, had all witnessed the Goddess's miracles with their own eyes.
From the tyranny of the man-eating trolls that had enslaved the locals for generations...
...to the demonic madness that had swept through the Holy Kingdom, turning devout believers against one another in bloodshed.
"Here, have some jerky! Even the Goddess herself praised its delicious flavor!"
"Chewing on tough, salty meat will only dry out your mouth. Why don't you wash it down with some of this homemade sugar apple wine?"
Consequently, every single resident of the Nameless Village—excluding the fifty newcomers who had just arrived—was a deeply devout believer.
"I-I'm grateful for all of this, but..."
"Sharing with one's neighbors is a virtue highly encouraged by the Goddess!"
"So, won't you join us in worshipping the Goddess?"
Up until now, because everyone in the village already shared the same faith, the residents had never really thought about actively proselytizing. However, the fifty people Yohan brought from Junk Town were not believers of the Unnamed Goddess.
"Let's believe together. No, you must believe!"
"Excuse me, I am trying to share the Goddess's teachings with you. Why do you keep looking away?"
On the first day the new residents arrived, things were still relatively peaceful. But once introductions were out of the way, a full-blown missionary war erupted.
"Well, whatever. I didn't force them to do anything, so I'm innocent."
Yohan conversed with the Goddess as he watched the ongoing proselytization war. The relentless cycle of offering food while simultaneously attempting to convert the newcomers had already entered its third day. Or rather, it was mind-boggling that things had escalated to this level in a mere three days.
"W-Wait a second. I don't really have any interest in religion..."
"No i-i-i-interest?!"
"No, wait! Dammit, I do! I have interest!"
"If you have interest, then why aren't you believing in the Goddess?!"
Just as one poor newcomer was having his soul practically sucked dry by a crowd of overzealous believers...
"What is everyone gathered here doing?"
Annie, who happened to be passing by, witnessed the commotion and stepped in.
"Ah, Captain! This is one of the new residents the Apostle brought in the other day. Since he doesn't have a religion, we were just sharing some good words with him."
Yohan had been planning to step in himself if things got any rougher, but now that Annie was here, there was no need. He let out a small sigh of relief and continued to watch.
"Ho. Come to think of it..."
However, Annie's demeanor was somewhat unusual. She suddenly reached into her coat and pulled out a copy of Martin's Fables.
"I believe everyone is being a bit too aggressive with our new neighbor. Why don't we start by having him read this book to get a general grasp of the Goddess's doctrines first?"
Now that I think about it, she's the kind of person who pretends to go to work, only to make a U-turn straight to the tavern to chug beer.
The Goddess's boisterous laughter echoed loudly inside his head. Yohan silently buried his face in his hands.