The Market (1)
The village head immediately convened a village meeting.
"Since this is something the Lord is doing, shouldn't we participate diligently?"
"Of course, we must!"
"But are we really allowed to bring out things we've already used?"
"That's what it clearly says in the official document."
"Ohhh..."
People who can read are rare in the village.
In even smaller towns, the village head himself is often illiterate, forcing the soldier who brings the official document to explain everything verbally.
Fortunately, this village (which, in truth, doesn't even have a name) had a village head who had studied a bit in his youth to become a low-ranking official, so he could read and even handle basic arithmetic quite well.
"But we don't have much to bring out."
"If I'd known this, I wouldn't have sold all the leather and furs; I should have kept some back."
A particularly large man scratched the back of his head.
At least within this village, Aiden's popularity was on par with that of a god.
This is the North, where there are children whose lifelong dream is merely to "eat bread made of flour to their heart's content."
For the heads of households who have watched their children sleep soundly with full bellies countless times recently, the new Lord was far better than any god who remained silent despite their desperate prayers.
"Let's think about it slowly."
"Yes, Village Head."
"We'll look around too!"
And so, the villagers all firmly united in their resolve.
They would throw themselves into the Lord's endeavor with everything they had.
It was a display of unnecessary solemnity for the opening of a mere flea market.
Even if Aiden had seen it, he would have waved his hands, saying, "Ah, it's not really that kind of event..."
However, similar scenes were repeated in every village where the soldiers carrying the official documents arrived.
The issue of survival is just that important.
"..."
Meanwhile, Aiden, who had come out to the vacant lot where the flea market would be held, was left speechless.
"Explain."
"Ah, didn't you say we needed tables?"
"I did."
It wouldn't have mattered if they just laid a cloth on the bare ground and set up a makeshift stall.
But there was no telling when it would actually get warm.
Of course, the people of the Lord's castle, who were native to the North, were saying the wind had become much milder and were starting to dress more lightly, but Aiden was not.
- It's still cold! Don't turn off the fireplace!
How many battles had he fought with Jamie, who tried to turn off the fireplace every chance he got, claiming it wasn't hot?
That was why he had said it.
He couldn't force people to do business on the freezing ground with just a cloth, so he suggested they bring in some tables.
But,
"Jamie."
"Yes."
"Does that look like a table to you?"
Aiden stared at the logs piled high in the lot with a look of utter bewilderment.
Long, straight trees native to the North.
He didn't know the name, but they certainly looked solid and good for making furniture.
But the problem was,
"You're going to build the tables from scratch? Are you serious?"
There were only a few days left until the event; what kind of nonsense was this?
"Ah, how long could that possibly take? Just leave it to me!"
"?"
But Jamie was confident.
Smiling good-naturedly, Jamie spat into his palms once, then picked up the axe lying nearby.
'Was that actually for use?'
It was so large and thick that an ordinary person like him wouldn't even dare to lift it, so he had assumed it was some kind of decoration, but it seemed it was an actual tool.
His adjutant was certainly better suited to physical labor than intellectual work.
"Hup!"
Jamie lifted the massive axe high, let out a snort, and in response, his already thick arm muscles bulged to twice their size.
CRASH!
A sound that shouldn't have been possible from mere axe-swinging echoed out.
CRACK!
At the same time, a massive tree that would barely be held by two grown men stretching their arms out split apart with a loud noise.
"See that? If we do it like this, we'll have tables in no time! Hahaha!"
"..."
Aiden seriously reconsidered.
Maybe he shouldn't be thinking about grand things like "Northern Development," but just round up the strong men and build a simple lumber mill.
'No, no. I'm a 21st-century civilized man in charge of administration; what's this about 8th-century Vikings?'
Fearing that the entire North might turn into a plunder-based economy if he wasn't careful, Aiden tried to shake the thought from his head.
CRASH!
CRUNCH-.
CRASH!
CRACK-.
His resolve wavered as the sound of Jamie's axe continued, but since they weren't bordering any other countries, any plundering would ultimately be against other territories of the Empire.
'If I did that, it would be a punitive expedition.'
And what about himself, the ringleader of the looters?
'It's a guillotine ending, that's what.'
Can't do that, absolutely not.
CRASH!
CRUNCH!
"...Damn it."
Aiden found his adjutant's behavior particularly distressing today.
"Hahahaha!"
Whether he knew Aiden's heart or not, Jamie, who was relieving his stress for the first time in a while, just burst into loud laughter.
"...Northerners need to release their strength like that once in a while. Otherwise, they get sick inside."
Brikal, the chef, approached and spoke as if to comfort the distressed Aiden.
"...Liar."
"...The Adjutant is on the extreme side, I admit."
"But what brings you here?"
It was almost lunchtime.
In other words, it was Brikal's busiest time.
Although the only people eating in the Lord's castle dining hall were himself and his adjutant Jamie, Brikal was the head in charge of all the meals for the servants within the castle.
"Well, the castle workers asked me to inquire about something on their behalf."
"What is it?"
"They were wondering if they, too, could open a stall at this flea market."
"The castle servants?"
At Aiden's tilted head, Brikal quickly added.
"It's not that we're trying to smuggle out the castle's supplies. It's just that we thought it might help the castle's finances if we sold things that were no longer used or were broken and left abandoned."
"Oh, I see."
Basically, items inside the Lord's castle cannot be removed without the permission of the Lord's deputy.
However, the administrators who had served until now were all good-for-nothings who thought of the North as a place of exile and had no interest in the castle's finances.
"There's quite a lot piled up. To the high-ranking officials, it might look like junk, but to those without much, there might be items worth wanting."
"That's good. I was worried about what to do if there were no goods, since it's a market in name, but this is a relief."
"Then I will let the workers know."
The North's first market was slowly beginning to take shape.
CRASH-!
CRUNCH!
"...Jamie, Jamie!"
"Hahahahahat! ...Yes? Did you call, Administrator?"
"It's distressing, so stop that and help me. Leave that to the soldiers."
"But I'm the best at axe-work."
"Axe-work can be replaced by soldiers, but an adjutant cannot."
"...!"
At Aiden's words, Jamie's expression turned to one of instant emotion, his lips pouting and tears welling up in his eyes.
Of course, Aiden immediately turned his head away.
He was afraid that seeing a Viking-like brute acting like an emotional teenager would haunt his dreams.
"Don't get moved by strange things. I was just stating a fact."
"That makes it even more moving!"
"Ugh, damn it... Tsk! Come, come. Let's focus on work. You see that area over there?"
"Ah, yes! You told us not to set up stalls there. That you had a separate use for it."
"Right. I'm going to make that the food zone."
"A food zone?"
"Can a market exist without food? Don't you think?"
"...Is that so?"
"That's how it is. If you don't understand, just memorize it."
"Yes, sir."
"Now, you're going to list the menus that could go in there. Include the person in charge, too. About ten places? You know we can't have overlapping items, right? And the prices must absolutely not be expensive."
"We'll need a benchmark, right? And we'll need to check the quantities."
"Correct."
"Since it should be things people like, we should prioritize a preference survey first. Since it's a street stall, we should give bonus points to food that is easy to make and easy to carry around or eat outdoors."
"Exactly."
"We'll also need to address profit distribution and safety issues."
"You know safety is especially important, right? It would be a disaster if a fire broke out."
"I'll start by checking if we can build makeshift stoves."
At Jamie's words, Aiden finally looked satisfied.
'If he can do this, why was he acting like that with the axe earlier?'
He really couldn't understand.
Anyway, it seemed he could rest easy regarding the food zone.
'A market shouldn't be without food.'
Nothing breaks down the barriers in people's hearts as easily as food.
It is an immutable truth that people become gentler when they are full.
There's a reason why all sorts of events and gatherings have separate food zones.
'Jamie seems like he'll manage this well, so I'll leave it to him.'
The lot where the event would be held was still a barren field, but in Aiden's eyes, he could already see the crowds on the day of the event.
It is human nature to look for entertainment once the belly is full.
Until now, the primary need of filling their stomachs had taken priority, pushing all other desires aside, but Aiden was determined to make this place livable for humans one way or another.
It wasn't because he had some grand sense of mission.
'It's fun.'
Aiden was an otaku for management simulations, which was why he chose to be a civil servant in the first place.
The fact that something changes and develops in a positive direction through his own hands is, in itself, the goal and the thrill.
"Hehehehe..."
As the Administrator walked around the land where the general situation tent would be pitched, drooling and giggling, the workers instinctively stepped back.
'He's such a good person, but...'"
'Why does he laugh like that whenever there's a lot of work?'
'Let's just avoid him. We shouldn't make eye contact!'
It was quite a spectacle to see workers with builds like descendants of Vikings sweating in fear of a single bookworm who didn't have a single muscle to be found.