Mama Doggy?
After the siege ended, Nakamura couldn't shake the feeling that the battle he had just fought was barely a war at all.
"Almost no casualties, aside from the night raid?"
"That's right, my lord."
A proper war was supposed to leave at least as many dead and wounded as the enemy fielded — by any reasonable measure, this was next to nothing.
The enemy breaking and fleeing the castle walls in a panic had helped matters along considerably.
"Look at that plain... and still, so many died."
"They will rise again, my lord."
Both men had privately hoped the enemy daimyo would surrender early, or that a rebellion would break out within his ranks — but whether it was old loyalty, or everyone was holding some hostage or another, his men had fought to the last breath.
"If we did things the way Daehan does, this land could become a good place to live, couldn't it?"
"If you simply spread fertilizer and lower taxes, my lord, not a soul here would go hungry — everyone would eat at least two meals a day."
In today's Japan, plenty of people still ate only once a day. Two meals meant you were doing moderately well. Rice paddies had spread, transplanting methods were in use, and farmers even managed two harvests a year — and yet this was the state of things.
Meanwhile, in Naniwa, where Daehan had set foot, people ate three meals a day. Wasn't that remarkable?
"Once this war is over, perhaps we should set aside some time to study Daehan properly."
"I'll return home and find out what Daehan's people think, and how they live."
The two of them wanted to learn everything — Daehan's way of life, its culture, all of it.
Still deep in conversation, the pair walked into the half-collapsed grounds of the castle.
"Ughh..."
"P-please... spare me..."
"..."
Buried under rubble, struck by flying shrapnel — men with no visible chance of survival were still clinging, stubbornly, to their miserable lives.
It was so brutal a sight that samurai were walking the ruins, cutting throats to spare the wounded their pain.
"The lord of the castle's family won't be among them, I imagine."
"Probably under that pile of stone, or that heap of timber."
The daimyo's residence had been built on high ground — making it a perfect target for the cannons — and since it was constructed of wood, it had come apart far too easily.
In the end it had collapsed entirely, all at once. It seemed unlikely anyone had survived.
"This place won't be of use for long. We should build a castle the way Daehan does."
"That will be difficult for now, my lord. I understand Daehan poured an enormous sum of money into theirs."
The reason Daehan could undertake massive construction projects at will was, in the end, simply that they had so much money.
And above all, the greatest reason was this: whatever they spent, they recovered in full through the goods they sold.
"Haah... Daehan again, is it?"
"We'll take it slowly, my lord."
"The fertilizer can spare us a few farmers. Once the castle is up, let's go looking for gold and silver."
To buy anything from Daehan, one had to pay a price — and Japan had nothing to offer. Not food, not goods, not a single work of art. All the country possessed was gold, silver, and mineral resources.
And as Nakamura's armies advanced, the number of war's victims only continued to grow.
It was not long after the autumn harvest, and I was strolling through the shopping district as I always did.
THUD!
"Get out of here right now!"
"I really didn't steal anything!"
"I took in a starving wretch, and this is how you repay my kindness!?"
A child of maybe ten came tumbling out of a shop — most likely an orphan working there just to scrape by.
"I'm telling you, I didn't do it! Then at least pay me what I've earned all this time!"
"Hand over what you stole, and I'll pay you!"
"Then just pay me for everything except the part I supposedly stole!"
"Not a chance, you little thief!"
From the look of it, the owner didn't want to pay the child's wages, so he was pinning a false charge on the kid and throwing them out.
Haah... honestly, life wasn't so bad that people needed to act like this, right? And yet these scumbags never seem to run out.
"It wasn't me! Please, believe me!"
"Get lost!"
WHAM!
"Agh!"
Huh? A kick, though? Isn't that going a bit far for a kid?
"Sniff... I have to feed the master's younger siblings too..."
No parents, and siblings to feed on top of that. Lovely.
"Now that you'll be getting meals too, please don't throw me out. Waah—"
"Is that really true? Fine then — from now on I'll give you nothing but food. So you'll work for free?"
Yeah right, he's just planning to feed the kid scraps and get labor out of them for nothing. What a piece of trash.
"Yes..."
The kid's probably saving leftovers to bring home. That's just too sad.
"What, 'yes'? Got no other place to work but here?"
"..."
"...Sob, sob..."
Both of you, have you never seen a person before? Ah — am I too pretty? I'd love to walk around with 'Goddess Descends' written on my forehead, you know.
"Um... who might you be...?"
There you go. One look and you can tell — expensive clothes, and a naturally noble air about her. Me.
"Me? The owner of this street."
"Gah...!"
Don't forget — it's thanks to me that you lot pay hardly any taxes and get to live here so comfortably.
"Is that... really true...?"
"..."
The shop owner rolled his eyes this way and that. Have you never seen my Daehan bodyguards, you idiot? Private guards like mine — your own Emperor or Shogun couldn't afford them, got it?
"Anyway — what was this stolen item, exactly?"
"Well, you see..."
"Hurry it up. I'm a busy person."
Just say it, why are you hemming and hawing like that?
"He stole a whole sack of potato flour, sir!"
"You? A whole sack? How?"
A single sack of potatoes can feed a grown adult for a year, you know.
It's got to weigh two or three kan, at least. Without my telekinesis, even I couldn't carry it.
"Can you lift half a sack of potatoes? No — a quarter of one?"
"No..."
"Hey! Shopkeeper, why don't you explain to me how exactly this kid hauled off a full sack?"
If you're going to lie, at least make it convincing enough that someone might believe you. What is this garbage?
"Well... it was last night, and it was dark, so maybe I just didn't see clearly..."
"Here? In this spot?"
Of all places, this shop gets perfect light from the streetlamps. What an absolute fool.
"Ha. I make sure you can scrape by, and your appetite grows, does it?"
"Gah! Forgive me, my lord! Spare me!"
Why are you like this? I don't kill people willy-nilly. I keep them around and work them for years — what use is killing them?
Still, this old man has to go.
"Give the kid his wages."
"Yes! Of course. I'll pay by the day after tomorrow!"
"What do you mean 'day after tomorrow'? Pay him now. It's money you already owe."
"Gah..."
What? How much have you stiffed him that your face's gone white?
"You don't have it?"
"No..."
Running a shop at this spot, he should be raking in plenty, shouldn't he? Unbelievable.
"Haah... What a strange country this is. People finally have enough to get by, and yet I've never met a single one who thinks, 'let's all eat well and prosper together.'"
If it were up to me I'd say let them all starve — but whether the seed itself is rotten, that I ought to check at least.
"Hey, kid. What's your name?"
"Um... me?"
"Yeah."
"Himiko!"
Hm? A girl, huh? Ahem. Kids are hard to tell apart. Ahem.
"Are there many kids like you?"
"You mean, kids earning money like me?"
"Yeah. Mainly the ones who get cheated out of it."
If I take them in and raise them, I'll be able to tell whether it's the adults who are the problem or the whole species.
"Yes. A great many."
"What crime did the children commit? From today on, gather up kids like you and send them to the castle. I'm giving you a job."
Maybe I'll build an orphanage?
"Wh-what kind of work...?"
"Don't be scared. Just do what I tell you and do it well."
"Will there be painful, hard labor too?"
"Depends on the person?"
Our kids absolutely hate studying, after all? They treat it like outright torture?
"Sob..."
"Only take kids who say they'll come check it out first."
"Yes..."
What's with the funeral-procession face?
"Geez, you'd just be running errands. Sorting papers, sweeping floors, that sort of thing."
"Gah! Really?"
"I don't lie."
Did they think I was sending them down a mine somewhere?
"Bring your siblings too. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner — eat and then work."
"Gah..."
Truly amazing, isn't it...? In a great many countries, three meals a day is a dream the common folk can only wish for...
"Thank you so much! Mistress!"
"None of that 'mistress' stuff. Call me big sister."
"How could I dare—"
"That's what they call it in Daehan."
"Sob..."
She's crying, but she's smiling a little now too, so that's good. See you tomorrow.
"I don't care how many, bring as many as you want. All of them."
"Yes!"
"See you tomorrow, then."
"Yes! Big sister!"
Is it really that wonderful? I wonder if there's even anything at home to eat tonight.
"Oh my? Our lady makes that kind of face too, does she?"
"What face?"
"Mm. How do I put it... the face of a mama doggy watching over her pups?"
Of all the comparisons, a dog? Ahem. I suppose it is a little embarrassing.
"Never mind that. Look into how many shops like that one are around here."
"Yes~"
"What? Why are you being so smug?"
"The lady who went so red in the face she blushed? Truly, a shame for me to keep this all to myself. Adorable!"
Huh? You dare? Have you never heard of the mighty name of Kurokin?
Can't exactly pinch her, so I guess I'll have to let it slide...
Chitter-chatter!
What on earth is this? A whole flock of chicks?
"Big sister! I'm here!"
"Wow! Is that her? The big sister?"
"You're supposed to call her big sister too!"
"Aha!"
"Wow, she's pretty!"
"Could she be Lady Konohanasakuya-hime?"
Ah. What a madhouse...
"Did you all eat breakfast?"
"Yes! We ate a ton!"
"Will we get to eat like this every day?"
Everyone shouting answers from every direction — I can't make out a word of it.
"If you all answer at once, I can't understand a thing. Only Himiko talks."
"Yes!"
Hm. But with this many of them, what exactly do I have them do?
"Big sister, what do we do?"
"Well, first — call it a dormitory? The place you'll all live. It's still being built, so until then, come to work each day and clean the streets."
Cleaning can't count as exploiting child labor, right?
"Huh? Cleaning?"
"Picking up the trash and dust that's fallen in the streets."
"That's all we have to do?"
"Just until the dormitory's finished."
"Yes! Thank you!"
Himiko explained to the children what they'd be doing from now on and about the dormitory, and the sparkle in the kids' eyes was a lovely thing to see.
A few of them looked a year or two older, but they all seemed so gentle and well-behaved that they'd probably listen well enough.
Now there's a born leader, isn't there? I'll have to raise her right.
"Let's go!"
The children streamed out in a noisy throng. Well, half of it will probably be playing anyway.
"You really do love children, Haneul-nim?"
"It's Ha-eun when we're outside."
"Regardless."
"I like kids who behave, that's all."
Kids who've suffered and grown up early usually do. I was the same, back in my hospital days...
Still, bratty little hellions? Absolutely not. Hard pass.
"How's the background check I asked for?"
"Mm. There's hardly anyone worth keeping?"
"Then kick them all out and put up a building there. Make it a beautiful dormitory for the kids — spare no effort."
"Yes~"
They're rotten to the core, so I'm entitled to take a little off the top, aren't I?
With the money they've got stashed away, they'll be eating and living well somewhere else in no time.
And so, on a patch of ground not far from the Daehan Company's offices, work began on a great park.
The merchants' protests came flying like a hailstorm, but between the crimes on their records and a little hush money slipped their way, they all scurried off elsewhere.
"It really does go up fast, doesn't it?"
"Most of the buildings are wooden, so we can recycle the materials."
They really do have a talent for this. I thought it would take ages, but they've been dismantling the empty shops and fitting the lumber together like a jigsaw puzzle, raising buildings one after another.
"It won't take long, then?"
"You're worried about where the children will stay come winter, aren't you? The dormitory is going up first, so please don't worry."
At the center of the park, a dormitory and a school were being built. Best to have them study at least — that way there's something to keep them busy.
"Those kids are so lucky~"
"Why's that?"
"Having such a pretty big sister looking after them. Nobody looks after me~"
"Go home and have your husband look after you."
You've got kids and a husband waiting at home, don't you?
"How can you say something so cruel?"
"How is that cruel?"
"Haah... I don't know. Lately, watching him snore away every morning, I just keep wanting to smack the back of his head."
Whoa... married about eleven years? Twelve, was it? And she wants to smack him while he's lying there asleep...
"But at night it's good again, right?"
"What is?"
"You know. That."
"'That'? How am I supposed to know what 'that' means?"
I've got telekinesis, but I can't read minds, you know?
"Ahh~ Of course, you wouldn't know — you're a maiden, my lady!"
"What did you say?"
Something about this feels like teasing? And what's with that round finger gesture — why are you wiggling it back and forth like that?
"Hey!"
"Oh my? Are you blushing right now? Wow~ your face is redder than a strawberry!"
"What is wrong with you, you old bat! Get out there and get to work, now!"
"Yeees~ yeees~"