The Returned Baron (2)
It was a space one might call the castle's 'hall', but its size was roughly that of a motel counter or a small company office. A staircase led up to the second floor in the left corner, and the simple structure featured doors to various rooms in three directions, excluding the main gate to the outside. They'd hung the Harriet family's VR flag as interior decoration and displayed a single still-life painting that looked like a copy from somewhere, suggesting they knew a new lord was coming and had made some preparations—but the place still felt emptily cavernous.
The man who greeted Jeong-jae and Jenis in the middle of the hall was the village chief of Harriet territory, who had been handling the lord's duties in his absence.
"On behalf of all the people of Harriet territory, I welcome the return of the baron after more than a century. I am Huck, the village chief who has also been serving as regent of this domain."
Huck was an affable old man with a shiny bald head, a slightly plump build, and a fluffy white beard.
Jeong-jae stepped forward boldly and clasped Huck's hand in a firm shake. Huck, looking deeply honored, gripped it tightly with both hands and bowed his head.
"I offer my profound gratitude for managing the territory all this time. If possible, I'd like an introduction to the place from someone who worked here in the castle."
"Ah, I can handle that perfectly. But please, feel free to speak casually. After all, you and the young lady are the highest authorities here."
Jeong-jae had dropped formalities with the guards right away, but he had no intention of barking casual speech at a white-bearded elder.
The new baron shook his head, offering the warmest smile he could muster. "Respect for elders comes first. Even before I became a noble, my aide by my side always used honorifics with me."
"In that case... I understand."
Realizing there was no malice in Jeong-jae's words, the chief released the baron's hand and began explaining the first floor.
"The room on the left will be for the lord from now on, and the one on the right for the young lady. I've had the villagers clean them thoroughly in advance, so you can use them as they are."
"Having the villagers do it means there were no permanent hires?"
"Unfortunately, yes. There wasn't much to do here while I stayed in the castle, so cleaning all day was just a way to pass the time. Honestly, I think I was more like a castle caretaker than a village chief."
Huck chuckled heartily at his own words. Jeong-jae didn't find it particularly funny, but he forced a laugh anyway, not wanting to seem stiff and put the man on edge.
"Is there a reason no servants were kept?"
"Truth be told, we don't have many people. These days, any able-bodied women or elders head out to sea to cast nets. It's not that we couldn't afford to staff the castle."
Jeong-jae nodded, resolving to hear a detailed report on the budget and population later. In any case, if there were assets sitting idle in the castle, the best way to put them to use was hiring locals—whether for business or servants. With so few young men for large-scale projects like a New Deal, employing servants seemed the safest bet. What Jeong-jae planned for this territory wasn't grand anyway. Modest progress, modest goals. The young baron, who didn't rate himself too highly as a ruler, found meaning in each small action he could take.
The only room Huck hadn't explained was the large door directly opposite the entrance.
Jenis scampered over to it on quick feet and asked, "So what's this door, Chief?"
"Ah, that's the armory. Unused weapons are stored there."
"Unused weapons? Like spears or armor?"
Jeong-jae perked up at that. Huck rummaged in his pocket for a key, unlocked the armory door, and handed the entire keyring to Jeong-jae before showing them inside.
"Take a look. These are weapons abandoned after the conscription order went out."
The armory did indeed look abandoned. Jeong-jae glanced around and noted that the structure itself effectively blocked sea winds and prevented rust, but beyond sorting by type, the helmets, armor, and weapons inside had received no real maintenance. By eye, there were hundreds of armor sets—enough, by Audrich Empire standards, to form a full battalion capable of independent operations.
"That's no small number of weapons."
"They didn't match the empire's standard issue, so they couldn't be used. I hear our conscripted youths, dragged to the border... are fighting in special armor made by the Magic Tower."
"'Dragged off' is fine. We all know that's how it feels."
Jeong-jae meant it sincerely. Huck, thinking the baron was mocking his rudeness, bowed hastily, nearly prostrating himself.
"My mouth ran away with me, my lord! To speak such words before a war hero like yourself—please forgive me, and I swear there won't be a next time—"
"Jenis, stop him."
Growing weary of people treating him like some lofty figure, Jeong-jae spoke up. Jenis approached Huck at his command, holding him back and soothing him.
"Don't worry. The baron was born a commoner in another world, so he dislikes excessive formality and prefers straightforward talk. It wasn't a mistake, so just stay as you are."
Huck peeked up at Jeong-jae, saw no anger in his face, and sighed in relief with a nod.
"You are truly merciful, my lord."
"Getting mad over something like that would mean they have issues. If anyone like that shows up, bring them to me. Rank or no, I can smash a few arrogant nobles."
Jeong-jae joked boastfully to lighten the mood. Huck didn't take it as a joke—his face paled in fear. Jeong-jae waved it off with a wry expression.
"Hey, forget it. Anyway, Jenis—what's the condition of the gear like?"
Having calmed Huck and stepped inside to inspect the equipment, Jenis looked up at the question and tilted her head.
"Better than I expected. They haven't been maintained in a while, but a quick polish and they'd be battle-ready. How does a tiny village end up with this many weapons?"
"Because the village forge never rested. Apparently, these arms were amassed over decades by the first Harriet baron, and even after he vanished, the blacksmiths kept repairing and maintaining them for storage like this."
"And then the war made them useless, so they sat..."
It was paradoxical that war left weapons unused, but that was the empire's reality now. Walter believed you couldn't fight the Demon King with mere well-forged steel, and Jeong-jae agreed. Weapons without even basic magical processing couldn't slay spirits, let alone neutralize vampires. Of course, handing magic-treated gear to ordinary soldiers didn't guarantee high win rates against demons. But there was a world of difference between having a counter and not. Even if infantry had slim odds against tanks, giving them anti-tank missiles wasn't pointless.劣勢 or not, the key was whether you had any chance to destroy the enemy. Conversely, weapons offering even a thread of hope against the foe had value.
"But these weapons might struggle against demons, though for bandits—"
Jenis's suggestion to maintain them for bandit hunts was cut short by Jeong-jae's gesture: finger to lips, staring her down. The baron's stern 'Don't say another word' made her tuck tail and scratch her head.
"Haha, yeah, if they can't be used in war, even centuries-old weapons like these have no more stages left."
"Exactly. And the village's only blacksmith was called up to the Caprice workshops, leaving no one to maintain them."
Huck sighed wistfully. Blacksmiths were vital resources—some even equated them to mages, given how steel didn't pour out from just piling ore into a crude furnace. Conscripting them was thus deemed illegal by imperial decree in crises. Yet the Imperial Council had made it mandatory, funneling smiths nationwide into the Caprice workshops for tight coordination with the Magic Tower.
Jeong-jae thought it rational—except for villages like this, losing their sole blacksmith.
"Villages with just one shouldn't have been exempt? Was it a mistake?"
"I'm not sure. Noble envoys kept coming, saying they had to take people. Sending our youths to who-knows-where, not knowing if they'd return... my heart each time... S-sorry, I got lost in sentiment again."
"No, we all understand. Truly."
Jeong-jae said gravely. Jenis mirrored his somber expression, gauging the mood. Huck, realizing the baron wasn't the high-handed type he'd feared, visibly relaxed.
Still, dragging off the one blacksmith in a 3,000-person territory was excessive. Jeong-jae guessed they'd deemed the fishing village, reliant on imported grain with minimal farm tool repairs, low-priority. Reckless administration, but what could you do? Even in a world with the internet, conscription orders bred contradictions. If systems ran flawlessly, humans wouldn't be involved.
Jenis sidled away from the armory and whispered in Jeong-jae's ear on tiptoe.
"Why, Professor?"
Her voice was tiny, but she cast a soundproof spell for good measure. Grateful for her caution—since he couldn't whisper reliably—Jeong-jae replied.
"Don't mention bandits. Timing's off."
"You think the bandit talk is a lie?"
"Maybe. No—definitely. I have plans. Just wait for my lead."
Pondering his words, Jenis suddenly grinned like she'd caught on.
"I get it. Leave the investigation to me."
"You know what to do?"
"Check food supply routes. Outbound from here."
"Spot on. But focus on the chief's explanations for now."
As they finished whispering, Huck closed the armory door and pointed to the stairs.
"Then let's head to the second floor. I'll explain the rest."
Jeong-jae and Jenis followed him up. The stairs weren't long—the castle itself was humbly low compared to grand fortresses. Despite his age, Huck climbed effortlessly and guided them through the dining hall, office, and bathroom.
Once done, Jeong-jae realized lunch was nearing.
"If it's not too much trouble, how about we continue over a meal?"
the baron suggested. As the three settled for a relaxed lunch, the hero's party faced a situation where a proper meal was a luxury they could scarcely hope for.