The Three-Year Development Plan (2)

Before officially launching the New Territory Movement, Jeron summoned Sir Cain and Sir Leila, the two individuals who could be considered his resident economic experts.

Their faces were slightly flushed with excitement.

Earlier that day, they had heard about Jeron's massive project: the Three-Year Development Plan for the Farrow Territory.

Jeron had been pleasantly surprised to find someone with Sir Leila's level of insight among his knights.

He considered it a stroke of immense good fortune to have discovered such talent in this world, and even more so that she was a knight sworn to him.

The desk in the lord's office was not a piece of crude medieval furniture, but a sleek, modern product brought over from Earth.

Resting on top of it was a tea set.

It was this very tea set that had first shown Jeron the boundless commercial potential of Earth's goods.

It was highly refined and elegant. If packaged properly, it could command an astronomical price.

Possessing sharp minds for commerce, both Cain and Leila immediately recognized that the tea set was no ordinary item.

"How does it taste?" Jeron asked.

"It... it is truly a marvelous aroma, My Lord. The flowers painted on the porcelain look so vivid they seem ready to leap from the cup, enhancing the flavor of the tea itself," Sir Cain replied, barely containing his excitement.

Cain was notorious as the territory's resident miser.

No one in the land was stingier than him; he was the very definition of a penny-pincher. Yet even he could see that this tea set would fetch a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠fortune.

"Even the cups presented to the royal family cannot compare to this. And this tea..."

The rich aroma of green tea filled the room.

The concept of the 'tea bag' also promised to be a massive cash cow.

However, Jeron did not possess an unlimited supply of these tea sets or tea bags.

To acquire them in bulk, he would have to venture deeper into the ruins of Earth's cities.

If he could sweep through the supermarkets in downtown Seosan, he would have enough inventory to establish a major merchant guild on that alone.

And what about coffee?

If he could introduce coffee alongside green tea, the profits would undoubtedly be astronomical.

Coffee was a natural performance enhancer.

For people who had never experienced caffeine, the sudden introduction of the stimulant would provide a massive boost to alertness, drastically increasing labor efficiency while reducing physical fatigue.

The effect on the people of this world was projected to be several times stronger than on modern Earthlings.

Of course, all of this depended on his ability to scavenge the city.

If only I could find an easy way to clear out the mutants, raiding the supermarkets would be a walk in the park.

Until then, the simple glassware and kitchen utensils he had gathered during his routine farming runs would serve as luxury goods.

Jeron placed his latest haul onto the table.

Clack.

"These are glass plates and cups."

"Heavens, such flawless craftsmanship exists?"

"These will fetch a high price," Sir Leila murmured, taking a sip of her tea in quiet admiration.

Jeron also laid out hairpins studded with cubic zirconia and various accessories commonly carried by women on Earth.

He had deliberately selected items that were lightweight yet looked expensive.

Sir Leila quietly examined the ornaments.

"The noblewomen will lose their minds over these."

"Do you think so?"

"I may have partially abandoned my womanhood when I became a knight, but I still have an eye for these things. This will undoubtedly succeed."

Leila spoke with absolute confidence.

A female knight was still a woman. More importantly, having been born into a merchant family, she possessed a keen eye for merchandise.

Cain asked cautiously, "My Lord, may I ask why you are showing us these goods?"

"We are going to establish our own territorial merchant guild."

"I knew it!" Cain gasped, his excitement bubbling over.

Until now, the Farrow Territory had been desperately poor.

Although it still held a relatively large territory and population due to its history as a county, it had shrunk to a fraction of its former glory.

Ever since they were pushed back to the barren northern frontier, they had found no way to escape their poverty. The dark gray, acidic soil yielded next to no crops.

Beyond the wall, barbarians and monsters roamed free, and the mountains were teeming with wild beasts, making it incredibly difficult to harvest any local specialties.

To sustain a population of thirty thousand under such conditions, they had been forced to live in a state of perpetual austerity.

"While maintaining our current military strength of one thousand soldiers, we must raise a separate force to escort the merchant guild. At the very least, they must be capable of fending off bandits and monsters."

"We will need at least a hundred men for that."

"Indeed."

"Furthermore, we need someone with extensive trading experience who is also completely trustworthy..." Sir Cain trailed off, furrowing his brow.

This was, in fact, the most difficult problem.

No matter how exceptional the goods were, if the guild master lacked competence or loyalty, they could easily run off with the inventory.

If they decided to vanish after selling the goods in the southern cities, it would be a devastating blow.

Jeron and Sir Cain slowly turned their gazes toward Sir Leila.

Her family was composed of merchants.

Even now, they operated a small merchant ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠guild.

Although they were struggling due to double taxation from both the Farrow Territory and Hanes County over trade rights, they were somehow managing to keep their business afloat.

In fact, the Earth goods Jeron had previously sold to the Count's estate had been distributed through the merchant guild belonging to Leila's family.

"Would it be possible for your family's guild to become the official merchant guild of our territory?" Jeron asked.

"An excellent proposal," Sir Cain agreed, nodding vigorously.

Leila's face brightened.

"My family's guild has been facing difficult times lately. I am certain they will accept the offer."

"Good. That resolves the issue of the merchant guild."

Jeron then sat down with them to hammer out the core details of the territory's modernization campaign.

The most critical elements of the Three-Year Development Plan were the potatoes and various export goods.

I need more seeds and glassware.

The image of a modern dollar store flickered in his mind.

A large supermarket would also be an ideal source for luxury goods.

While the canned foods had likely been looted long ago, items like green tea, barley tea, and Solomon's seal tea would still be abundant.

A map of Seosan naturally formed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in Jeron's mind.

He needed a place where a vast array of trade goods was concentrated.

There was one location on the outskirts of the city that was both a massive supermarket and a hub for various retail brands—a place that could satisfy their need for perfumes, cosmetics, and clothing all at once.

It was the S-Mart outlet.

It belonged to the S-Group, one of Korea's largest conglomerates, which had operated numerous branches worldwide.

While not quite a luxury department store, it would easily fulfill all his needs if he could gain access to it.

He wouldn't even need to worry about finding a dollar store; S-Mart would have everything.

However, large supermarkets were traditionally hotspots for survivors, and there was no guarantee that the place wasn't crawling with mutants.

In times like this, reconnaissance was the only answer.

Once I finish clearing my target areas, I'll have to expand my scouting range.

The next morning, official notices were posted throughout the territory.

A grand transformation was underway.

A massive crowd of citizens began to gather in the central plaza.

It was the height of the spring famine.

With the harvests failing consecutive years, people were starving to death in both the city center and the outlying villages.

If Jeron had been an ordinary lord, he would never have distributed the wheat obtained through trade to commoners for public works.

However, Jeron knew that a dwindling population would ultimately hurt his own bottom line. Since he had planned to carry out these public works anyway, he executed the plan without hesitation.

Tents had been pitched in the plaza, and a sea of applicants rushed in, leaving barely any room to stand.

Administrative officials immediately organized the laborers and sent them to the construction sites.

"It's complete chaos," Jeron remarked.

"It is because we have not yet established a proper system, My Lord," Cain replied.

It was a total mess.

It was nothing like a modern day-labor agency. There was no order, and everyone was screaming and shoving to get to the front of the line.

Soldiers had to be deployed just to keep the peace.

The chaos was likely worsened by the fact that the workers were fed a meal before they even started their shifts.

Nearby, the military recruitment booth ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was also active.

A large number of scruffy vagrants had gathered, though most failed the physical examinations and were redirected to the manual labor force.

Even so, the sheer scale of the change left everyone in a state of bewildered shock.

Having grown up in a country known for its lightning-fast administrative processing, Jeron had naturally pushed for maximum speed. The Korean mentality of doing everything 'hurry, hurry' had been deeply ingrained in him.

But transplanting this mindset into a medieval territory was causing quite a bit of friction.

"They will adapt. From now on, the people of our territory will learn the meaning of efficiency. Speed is just as important as quality."

"Those are... incredibly profound words, My Lord," Cain and Leila murmured, breaking out in a cold sweat.

Order was barely being maintained amidst the shouting and shoving.

Still, it was fine.

Today was the very first day these policies were being implemented. It would have been stranger if there wasn't any confusion.

I'd rather have them moving too fast than too slow.

Jeron believed that simply bringing Earth's technology to the territory wasn't enough. He wanted to transplant the very culture of rapid growth that had allowed South Korea to modernize in record time.

The mindset of the people in this world had to change.

How could they expect to improve their lives if they continued to live in such a slow, lethargic manner?

He expected some growing pains, but it was far better than letting them rot in their rigid, outdated ways.

Jeron then led the staff of the Territory Development Office to the agricultural fields. Today, Sir Leila acted as his adjutant in place of Sir Garcia, who was busy managing the military recruitment.

"Make way for the Lord! Show your respect!" Leila's clear, commanding voice rang out.

Though she was a female knight, she was notorious within the territory for her cold and ruthless demeanor.

She was only gentle in front of Jeron because he was her liege. Rumor had it that even her fellow knights hesitated to approach her due to her icy personality.

The commoners were well aware of this. Anyone foolish enough to hit on her because of her beauty had quickly found themselves short of a hand.

The serfs immediately stopped their work and fell to their knees.

"Billion, step forward."

"Oh, it is an honor that you remember my humble name, My Lord!" the village chief cried, crawling forward on his hands and knees.

Covered in dirt, the chief bowed his head low before Jeron.

Thud.

Jeron set down a mesh onion bag he had scavenged from Earth. Inside were seed potatoes.

"Th-this is..."

"This crop will be the future of our territory. Plant them with the eyes facing upward. If a potato has multiple eyes, you may cut it into pieces before planting."

The arable land had recently been expanded significantly.

Once the serfs were organized and provided with two solid meals a day, their morale had skyrocketed, and they had begun working with newfound vigor.

Managing serfs wasn't difficult if one followed basic principles of human decency. Unfortunately, the lords of this era preferred to squeeze their subjects dry, leading to constant rebellion and ruin.

Jeron had no intention of following their example.

After all, serfs were human too. While he couldn't completely overturn the social hierarchy overnight, he could at least ensure he was perceived as a benevolent ruler.

This was the historic moment when the potato—the crop that would become the territory's primary food source and future export—first set root in this world.

And as he watched them plant, a sudden thought crossed Jeron's mind.

Does this mean I'll finally get to eat salty, crispy potato chips again?

The seeds of Earth's greatest culinary hits—potato chips and french fries—were officially being sown on the Karen Continent.