Negotiation Complete
The wind howled fiercely through the slums of District 3 and 4.
“Your Highness! This way, this way!”
“Alright, coming.”
Chloe dashed ahead, skipping and waving her hands wildly.
Thanks to her knowledge of the local geography, we reached our destination without getting lost in the snowy, labyrinthine alleys.
“Ugh, it’s so cold. This is the real deal of cold.”
I tugged at my thick fur coat and shivered.
“You’re not cold?”
“I’m used to it, so I’m fine.”
Next to me, Chloe walked while sucking on a candy and clutching my sleeve tightly.
The reality of the slums hit me hard.
Between houses that looked ready to collapse any second, shivering territory residents huddled under thin rags shivered.
Merchants who had come north only to get trapped there, and wandering mercenaries, warmed themselves by burning trash in the streets to escape the cold.
“Your Highness, the area is vast, but what exactly are you planning to build here?”
The construction foreman opened his mouth, waving the blueprints.
His hands were rough with scars, and his face looked kind.
He radiated the aura of a veteran artisan through and through.
He seemed like the type who could knock out a building in a flash if you just gave him materials.
I was glad I had left the project to Viola after all.
“Building a casino or a brothel out here on the outskirts of the territory? That location isn’t ideal. Rich nobles won’t come all the way here.”
“Hmm, let me think for a moment.”
There were plenty of buildings we could build, of course.
But we had to consider the characteristics of the north and the future productivity.
Then…
“Alright, it’s decided. We’ll build it as a bathhouse.”
“……What? A bathhouse?”
“What? You’re building a bathhouse?”
The two foremen and Chloe all turned to look at me at once.
“That’s right. A huge public bathhouse.”
I pointed at the slums area with my fingers and began explaining.
“First, we tear down all the shacks and dig deep below to create an ultra-large mana stone boiler room. We’ll heat the water with cheap low-grade mana stones and pipe the hot heat through underfloor heating to warm the entire building floor.”
“Underfloor heating… piping?”
“Exactly. The first floor will be wide open to create a public bathhouse and warm steaming rest area.”
With that, the poor territory residents and street mercenaries could enter for cheap, warm up their bodies, and sleep well.
In this cold north, a huge steam room where hot water gushed and the floor was scalding hot.
Just thinking about it was a jackpot. Plus, it would solve both the hygiene problem and the cold issue at once.
“As for the second and third floors, they’ll be VIP rooms for wealthy travelers and high-class mercenaries passing through the north.”
We’d charge outrageous fees there to make a profit.
The foremen’s mouths fell wide open after hearing my detailed, innovative business plan.
“Whoa… the entire floor will be heated? That’s an amazing idea! In that case, the low-grade mana stones are abundant in the north, so the maintenance cost will be dirt cheap!”
The foreman continued.
“I’d love to draw the blueprints right now, but Your Highness, there’s one thing that bothers me.”
He pointed with his finger past the slums.
“Do you see that? It’s the outer city wall right next to Districts 3 and 4. It was damaged in the last beast wave and is already on the verge of collapse.”
“Ah.”
“The Grand Ducal Castle is still short on funds, and they haven’t done anything about it yet. If that area gets broken down and beasts come in, Your Highness’s building could be turned to ashes overnight.”
The foreman’s observation was spot on. No matter how great the building, if the shield is weak, it’s useless.
“Then what, we’ll fix the wall too.”
“What? The wall? That’s something the lord should handle… If we rebuild the wall as a fortress, it’ll cost a fortune.”
“I’ll handle it. Don’t worry about that part.”
“I understand. Since we’re getting paid, we’re fine.”
“Great, first have you and the others look around and discuss what to do.”
I flicked my coat and turned around.
“Hey, Chloe. Let’s go to Giselle. To snatch some authority.”
So we headed to the Grand Ducal Castle on horseback, Chloe and I.
Clutching my sleeve tightly, Chloe asked in an anxious voice.
“……Your Highness.”
“What?”
“Is… the plan to demolish the slums really true? Then what happens to our orphanage? Are we getting demolished too?”
She seemed worried that the orphanage she had grown up in since childhood would be torn down.
I smiled and reassured Chloe.
“Don’t worry. We won’t touch it. We’re even going to fix up the old buildings and make them look beautiful.”
“Really? That’s a relief…”
Chloe let out a small sigh, then looked up at me with a curious expression.
“But if we demolish the shack area… what happens to the people living there? They have nowhere to go, and they’re poor. In this freezing winter, if their houses get demolished, they’ll be kicked out onto the streets.”
A shadow crossed her face.
Since she came from the slums herself, she understood their tough lives better than anyone else.
I ruffled her hair and grinned.
“Hey. I’m the eighth prince of the empire, right? Would I really treat things so insensitively and without any conscience? I don’t want to get hit by rocks just walking by.”
“……Then?”
“We’ll give ample compensation to those who are shivering because they have nothing to eat, hire them as construction workers and pay them well. That should take care of their complaints. And when the building is completed, we’ll tell the workers who finish their work to stay warm there.”
“Ah…!”
“That way, we’ll create jobs, and no one will freeze to death. How’s that?”
Her firm expression brightened at my answer, but then she looked at me with confusion.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Your Highness. You’re really… the worst trash in the empire, just like they say?”
“Whoa, you little brat has no respect for your lord.”
“No, what I mean is…”
Chloe tilted her head and muttered.
“People say Your Highness is always wasting money without any conscience. You only like women and alcohol. But looking at what you’re doing now… you seem like an incredibly kind and smart adult. You understand and take care of the situation of people like us in the slums better than most nobles.”
Her words struck straight to the heart, and I cleared my throat in surprise.
Had I revealed my true self too much in front of this kid? I was supposed to be the villain, after all.
“Heh! Kind? It’s all because it’s my building, so I make it strong to use you guys. I’m investing in you beforehand so I can take something out of your backs later. Don’t get the wrong idea.”
I warned her like a villain, but Chloe laughed while listening to my half-hearted excuse.
“What? That’s not scary at all?”
“This is real.”
“Okay, got it! I won’t fool you!”
The gap between the trash prince in rumors and the caring adult in front of them.
Chloe seemed to have fully sided with me inside that gap, and she leaned comfortably into my arms.
Now all that was left was to push this plan onto Giselle and get her approval.
—
At the same time, in the Grand Ducal Castle’s office.
“Sigh…”
Giselle stared at the empty ledger Godwin had left behind and clutched her throbbing head.
The money given by the four nobles had paid off the debts, but the relief funds for the territory residents who were barely holding on had run out.
‘Especially the outer city wall in Districts 3 and 4 is badly damaged. If we leave it alone, there’s a risk that beasts will flood in during the next beast wave.’
We had to hire workers and buy stone immediately, but the safe was full of dust.
Should we squeeze the budget from another territory? Or sell my sword and armor?
‘Really… do I have to bow my head and borrow money from that person?’
Giselle was about to break her pride.
Bang!!
“Hey!!”
The door was kicked open without warning, and Kael barged in.
Behind him, Chloe sucking on candy followed like a bodyguard.
Giselle pressed her temple and glared at Kael.
“……What now? I clearly told you to learn how to knock first.”
“Shut up.”
Kael walked over boldly, slammed his hand on the desk, and made a fuss.
“The jurisdiction of Districts 3 and 4, it’s all yours!”
“……What?”
Giselle thought she had misheard for a moment.
When she frowned, puzzled by what he meant, Kael raised his chin triumphantly and said.
“It looks like there are hardly any people there and it’s huge, so it looks perfect. We’ll tear everything down and build a luxurious private hot-spring bathhouse with underfloor heating!”
“A bathhouse?”
“Yes! I’ll go in hot water every day and party!”
Giselle’s red eyes blazed with anger.
Was he seriously trying to kick out the shivering citizens into the streets and build his personal luxury bathhouse in their place?
“You bastard…!”
Giselle pushed back from the desk and stood up.
“No matter how crazy you are, you’re going to destroy the living space of the citizens in front of your lord? Get out right now!”
“Oh? Is that how you’re going to act?”
Kael smirked without blinking.
“Then I’ll just have to get permission directly from the people living there, won’t I?”
“……What?”
“No, that’s right. If they voluntarily leave on their own, your lord has nothing to say, right? It’s ridiculous that I have to ask you for permission when I’m building my own building with my own money.”
Bang!
Giselle slammed her fist on the table.
“You think I don’t know your scheme to oppress and force out the territory residents using your royal status!”
“Ah, I’m so sick of this. You really can’t hear what I’m saying.”
Kael rubbed his ears irritably and shot back.
“Who’s oppressing? It’s just a proper eviction. Give them compensation, hire the workers they need to build my building, give them jobs, and if they have nowhere to live, let them stay there. Won’t that be fine? Right?”
“……”
Giselle opened her mouth to argue, then froze.
Let me think it over.
Compensation.
Hiring the evicted residents as workers and paying them daily.
Providing a warm place to live after completion.
‘This…’
It seemed almost too perfect for a relief plan.
A large-scale reconstruction project that could solve the unemployment and cold issue of the northern slums at the same time, which the lord himself had never dared to attempt due to budget shortages.
And it was Kael’s personal capital, not the Grand Ducal Castle’s budget.
Giselle’s eyes began to waver, losing focus.
‘She’s thinking really hard.’
I chuckled inwardly and watched Giselle thinking hard.
There was no way Giselle, who was rational and cherished her citizens deeply, would reject this deal.
Poke.
At that moment, someone poked my side.
It was Chloe, sitting quietly and sucking on candy.
“Why?”
When I lowered my head, Chloe tugged my sleeve and whispered.
“Your Highness. Are you really the same person? You were acting super nice to me earlier, but why are you so rude to the lord?”
A kid’s eyes found my double life truly ridiculous.
I put a finger to Chloe’s lips and whispered softly.
“Shh, stay quiet. I’ll tell you later, so just eat your candy obediently.”
“Tch. Okay.”
Chloe pulled back with a pout.
She was a smart kid who knew when to behave.
Eventually, Giselle’s rigid expression softened a little as she cautiously opened her mouth.
“……Then…”
Giselle’s voice sounded strangely hesitant.
“What about the collapsed wall behind that?”
Giselle avoided my gaze oddly.
‘Oh ho, looking at this?’
That wall the foreman had pointed out earlier.
Was our stiff and conscientious Grand Duchess going to quietly fix the outer city wall while doing the slums construction using my free money?
How conscience-stricken she was, the usual iron-blooded Grand Duchess had disappeared, and she was only watching my every move.
She didn’t realize it herself.
‘What am I going to do. My favorite character is already this desperate because she has no money, so I have to go along with it.’
“Ah, that? No way, I just built a bathhouse, so if beasts come in and cause trouble, I’ll get annoyed, so I have to fix that wall too. What can I do?”
“……Then…”
Giselle nodded with her gaze lowered, perhaps because of the guilt of her scheme.
Her expression was so conscience-stricken that her insides were completely exposed.
Chloe poked my side again and whispered.
“Hey, Your Highness. The lord’s expression is like a thief cat right now… oof!”
I quickly covered Chloe’s mouth with my hand.
“Mmm! Mmm!”
Chloe struggled, but I kept her mouth shut and smiled kindly at Giselle.
“What’s the matter? So are you giving up the jurisdiction or not?”
Giselle cleared her throat and composed her expression.
“Ahem. Yes, if that’s how you feel… under the condition that I completely obtain the consent of the residents of the slums, I’ll hand over the construction rights for Districts 3 and 4.”
Giselle added.
“However, since you might mobilize thugs from the back alleys to oppress them, I’ll send my knights as construction site supervisors. Make sure you understand.”
I wasn’t some evil redevelopment tycoon.
Or rather, right?
Anyway.
It wasn’t a bad thing, and attaching a few knights to supervise wasn’t a big deal either.
I shrugged and nodded cheerfully.
“Do as you like. Feel free to get covered in dust on my construction site.”
The negotiation had been concluded.