Skirmish - 1
I let out a small groan. “Ugh. So what were you saying?”
“Yes! It’s the livestock industry!”
Livestock industry. That was probably the thing where you raise farm animals, right?
My gaze shifted from the bespectacled young man who had spoken to the person standing beside him. It was Zeke.
“He says the ley lines have turned out even better than expected thanks to the Blessing of the Earth.”
“Hmm. I figured as much.”
The power of the sun I’d created was apparently more effective than anticipated. The results showed that the energy infused into the land through the Blessing of the Earth had exceeded expectations. While we’d still need to maintain our existing trade deals with the merchant guilds, at this rate the harvest would nearly double—close to one and a half times the original yield. That meant we’d have to open up additional trade routes.
“Since we also have the favor of His Grace Duke Earthrain, I was planning to use his connections, but…”
“The scale is still small for now! Our calculations show that the surplus after fulfilling existing contracts will be more than enough.”
I didn’t entirely trust those calculations. Raising livestock was a year-round grind. It was seriously demanding work.
“Do you have any experience with it?”
“…Not exactly, but Muller has an abundance of records and data on agriculture and related fields.”
“That’s farming. And it’s not like livestock farming didn’t exist here at all, right?”
Zeke answered my question.
“One of the priests of the Earth said that feed grown on blessed land will be far more efficient than ordinary fodder. He believes this is the perfect opportunity to expand the existing livestock operations and establish a brand called Muller Livestock, raised on land blessed by the power of the sun.”
A brand. A brand, huh… Like Iberico pork?
Hmm. It wasn’t a bad idea. If the feed became special, the animals raised on it would become special too. The question was how far we could realistically take it.
“Then go ahead and try it. But don’t limit the livestock to just cows and pigs. If you’re short on workers, hire more people and expand anyway.”
“Understood!”
The bespectacled man bowed deeply with a bright smile, clearly pleased that his suggestion had been accepted. He was definitely a local from Muller, wasn’t he?
I watched him stride energetically toward the door before turning back to Zeke.
“There’s been a lot of this kind of thing lately, hasn’t there?”
It wasn’t just reports anymore. Suggestions for new businesses and all sorts of proposals were pouring in.
Zeke gave a crooked grin at my words. Seeing a man smile like that somehow put me in a bad mood. His mask was decent enough, but the fact that it suited him annoyed me even more.
“Everyone has acknowledged it. That the true master of Muller is now Lord Leoric Franz.”
“Huh.”
Was the power of the sun really that terrifying?
He glanced at my expression for a moment, then let out a sigh. What? Why?
“It’s been quite some time since you arrived here, so everyone knows by now. They know that Lord Leoric… that our lord is a capable ruler. They’ve already witnessed your power twice, so there’s no doubt about that, but even setting that aside, you are someone worthy of their loyalty.”
“Really?”
“Yes. We prefer a master who uses us appropriately and rationally, exactly where we are needed.”
With those words, Zeke smiled and left the room.
Hmm. A master who uses his people appropriately, huh.
I mulled over that phrase for a moment. The one who best fit that description was Chloe.
“The fact that magic power is determined at birth ultimately means there is a limit to how far one can rise.”
“Hmm.”
“Of course, it’s not entirely impossible. The more one trains, the better their control becomes, and their magic capacity can increase to some degree. However…”
“There’s still a ceiling.”
Manipulation ability might be different if one reached the absolute peak, but even that required a certain level of innate talent. Birth and natural talent—both were things one could never choose for themselves.
“That is why we, your vassals, offer you our loyalty.”
“Chloe?”
Chloe knelt before me.
“Our master, our sun. O noble and eternal sun who shall forever reign above the heavens.”
I wondered how I appeared in her eyes. And it wasn’t just Chloe. The others…
“May you shine forever.”
“Aaaaaah! Romi! My love! I am paying the price for swearing to the sun with my false tongue! Then I shall repay that sin with this very life! O Sun, I beg you! My declaration that I would love Romi forever was the truth! Please accept this death as proof and offer it to the sun! Please honor my vow!”
Even though the stage was still under construction, a fairly large audience had gathered to watch the play on the somewhat tidied platform. The play was a version of Romeo and Juliet—slightly twisted. Actually, I didn’t know the original story of Romeo and Juliet. I only knew the rough outline. If I casually dropped the plot, some writer in this world would probably shout “Eureka!” and fill in the rest themselves.
The final death scene was also a bit different from the original. In the source material, Romeo mistakes the sleeping Juliet for dead, drinks real poison, and dies. Here, it had been altered slightly. But damn, there was a ridiculous amount of sun worship mixed in.
“Did you not know?”
“Know what?”
Isabel gave me a mischievous smile.
“The rumor has spread far and wide. They say the new lord who came to Muller is the incarnation of the sun.”
“Haha. The incarnation, huh.”
“The very sun that floats majestically in the sky, the one who bestowed a blessing alongside the Earthrain family—who are revered as the earthly gods—and is called the apostle of the Sun God. Or perhaps the Sun God himself. They say that even the nearby shrines now have statues carved in the image of the sun. And they’re placed right in the center.”
I don’t suppress folk religions. But there’s also no centralized church organizing the believers. For the commoners, each territory has a building called a shrine where they can pray. Usually, the center of such places is occupied by whatever local folk faith has taken root…
So what Isabel was saying… was that this had spread to other lands as well?
“There are so many merchants who travel from festival to festival. When you factor in the floating population of adventurers and travelers, the rumor has probably reached every corner of the southern region by now.”
“Hmm.”
“And that’s not all. They’re calling the miracle that happened that day the Miracle of the Sun, and so many sick people are flocking here that even I’m swamped with work. Triana is probably stuck in her room right now, unable to sleep while she works.”
Triana, who was in charge of the city’s security, was practically living in her office. I felt a little sorry, but I had a lot on my plate too.
“From medicine to literature, theater, and music… Just from the rumors, you sound almost inhuman. Are you truly the incarnation of the Sun God?”
“Of course not.”
Still, I finally understood why this was happening. The rumor that I was coming to observe must have spread, because by the time we arrived, the opera house—which was still under heavy construction—had been cleaned spotless. This was getting ridiculous. It wasn’t like the division commander was coming for an inspection. But since I’d said I was coming, they couldn’t exactly tell me not to.
Even now, the actors currently performing kept stealing glances in our direction. One person tucked away in the corner had even fallen to his knees in prayer.
“If I stay too long, I’ll just be a nuisance, won’t I?”
“You already know the answer.”
Her blunt reply stung a little. When I looked at her, Isabel chuckled softly. Ever since that day, she had become much less formal with me in private. Still, she seemed to be careful in front of others. Chloe must have taught her quite a bit.
“Oh. It’s still under construction.”
Starting with the opera house, which was in the middle of major renovations, the entire city was noisy with activity. I walked slowly from the opera house, taking in the city. I was disguised, of course.
“That’s amazing,” Isabel said in admiration as she looked at the road while we walked. Tall poles had been erected, and lights shone from fixtures at the top.
Yep. Streetlights. They weren’t modern in design, but styled to fit this era’s aesthetic.
“Are they all powered by Magic Stones?”
“No, Magic Stones. Regular ones have their limits, so I added a few modifications.”
“Even so, installing them across the entire road…”
“It’s a necessary expense. Light is important.”
Light really was important. Wasn’t there an effect called “broken windows”? It was better for the whole street to look clean. In my heart, I wanted to install them in every alley like in Korea, but that would cost way too much. For now, we were only installing them along the main central avenue. I’d have to expand the construction later.
“Will theft be an issue?”
“If they can get away without being caught… I’ve already put countermeasures in place.”
“That’s a relief, but… there are a lot more people stopping to stare in wonder. All of this is thanks to Your Lordship’s glory.”
“It’s just me throwing money around.”
The construction wasn’t limited to that. Not everything at once, but the entire city, centered around the inner castle, was gradually being renovated. We were reorganizing the existing administration and redrawing the city districts. New roads were being built, and old buildings were being demolished. The back alleys were included in that plan, and I’d already warned the organizations operating there. If they refused? Then they’d have to be wiped out.
Obviously this all cost money and took time, so we weren’t doing everything at once. We were starting with the central road connected to the inner castle and the surrounding area. The opera house was my personal hobby. I planned to build a cultural district centered around this building, and I was also designating a separate entertainment district. Later, when I had the time, I’d expand the city walls and grow the whole city even larger.
Yeah. If you’re the protagonist of a territory-management story, this much is the bare minimum. It’s basically a city-building simulation.