Chapter 152 – Feeling a Bit Uneasy About the Situation (1)


    Everyone silently gazed at the wheat field for a while.


    They had already confirmed the sprouts were growing before heading to the capital.


    But seeing the vast field fully grown like this made them realize just how incredible Ghiin’s achievement was.


    Moreover, despite it not being harvest season, the golden hue shimmering so brightly was astonishing. The growth rate was exceptionally fast, different from that of regr wheat.


    Ghiin carefully inspected the condition of the wheat and nodded.


    “It looks like we can harvest soon.”


    Some of the wheat ears still had a slight green tint, indicating they weren’t fully ripe yet, but overall, they were at a level where they could be harvested immediately without any issues.


    Lowell responded with a smile.


    “Yes, we should be able to start the first harvest soon. Preparations have already beenpleted.”


    “Good, make sure to distribute it generously to the residents. There’s a lot of work to be done, so they need to eat well.”


    “At this rate, we’ll have plenty left even after sharing it with the residents. You won’t need to worry until next year. Plus, we’ll be able to harvest again in a few months, so there shouldn’t be any problems for a few years.”


    Hearing Lowell’s confident words, Ghiin let out a smallugh.


    “Don’t think about storing it up. Just focus on feeding everyone well. We’ll have to increase the farnd by several timespared to now.”


    “Huh? Why?”


    “There’s a reason. I’ll exin once we get back to the castle.”


    Changing the subject, Ghiin then addressed ude.


    “ude, summon the retainers immediately. We need to exin the overall situation, address any shorings, and discuss what needs to be done moving forward.”


    “Understood.”


    Though Lowell was acting as the chief overseer, there were bound to be some areas that werecking.


    He didn’t yetmand the same authority as the lord and the chief overseer.


    On the way back to the castle, ude discreetly asked Lowell.


    “Hey, bro. Did you set aside what I told you to?”


    While Ghiin and ude were in the capital, Lowell had been handling the business dealings with the merchant guild.


    ude had urged him, insisting he should try to haggle a bit and put aside a few extra gold coins.


    However, Lowell responded to ude’s question with an awkward expression.


    “Ah, how could I do something so underhanded?”


    “What do you mean, you’re a bad guy! You used to exploit the estate like crazy, so why are you acting all righteous now? Did you suddenly decide to live an honest life?”


    “I’m telling you, I don’t do those things anymore. Back then, I only did it because the previous lord ordered me to.”


    “Wow, I must be the viin then. I’m the bad guy! I didn’t know trying to snag a little pocket money after twenty years of unpaidbor was such a terrible crime!”


    “……”


    Lowell ignored the remark and didn’t bother to respond. There was no point in getting into a verbal argument with this guy; it would only be a loss.


    ude sighed deeply and then spoke calmly.


    “Well… still, it seems you’ve been working hard and doing your best, so I should at least give you a reward.”


    Hearing the word “reward,” Lowell, who had been enduring in silence, was tempted and turned around.


    “What kind of reward?”


    ude grinned and raised his fist.


    “A fatal one.”


    Thud!


    “Ouch! Why’d you hit me?!”


    ude hit him on the shoulder, causing Lowell to jump in surprise and assume a defensive stance. It was textbook form.


    The problem was that in doing so, Lowell identally struck ude’s chin with his arm.


    “Ow! Did you hit me? That’s insubordination!”


    “Huh? I’m sorry. Can’t we just consider it a kind of reward from me to you?”


    “Absolutely not! Come here. You’re dead.”


    The two of them, puffing and panting, swung their fists through the air.


    Watching them il around like paper dolls fluttering in the wind, Belinda looked on with an expression of utter disbelief.


    “I mean, neither of them can even fight properly. What on earth are they doing?”


    Hearing the bickering from behind, Ghiin couldn’t help butugh.


    He enjoyed this lively, rxed atmosphere, something he could only experience here in the estate.


    * * *


    The retainers had all gathered to report the progress of the tasks they’d been handling to the lord who had returned after a long time.


    Lowell, who had been acting as the deputy Chief Overseer, was the first to speak.


    “The wheat has fully grown, so the supply of food should proceed without any issues. The anticipated yield is tremendous, and we n to gradually reduce the amount of grain we’re buying from the merchant guild.”


    As Lowell finished speaking, the retainers’ faces were visibly filled with pride.


    It was an estate that had struggled to properly feed even its few residents.


    Yet, this once impoverished estate had now secured enough food to rival that of more prosperousnds.


    Belinda, who had been quietly listening, tilted her head and asked.


    “So how much are we talking about?”


    “This harvest alone isparable to thebined yield of several other estates in the North.”


    “Oh,e on. All the other northern estates are poor, aren’t they? Most of them don’t even have much farnd, so they all have to import food. Even if you add those estates together, it’s not much.”


    Not just Fenris, but the other northern estates weren’t in great shape either. The Raypold Estate was an exception, known for being rtively well-off.


    The northern estates mainly got by using the resources from their mountains, forests, and rivers rather than relying on agriculture.


    Lowell nodded in agreement, acknowledging the point Belinda made, and borated further to give a clearer picture.


    “If we expand our farnd just a bit more, we’ll be on par with therge estate of Raypold. Though our total harvest is still slightlycking… the poption we can sustain per unit area is probably the highest in the kingdom.”


    “Oh…”


    Belinda’s eyes widened in amazement at his words.


    The Raypold Estate, governed by Amelia’s father, had thergest in in the North.


    Thanks to the massive amount of food produced there, Raypold was able to be a major estate.


    But for the Fenris Estate, with a poption less than a tenth of Raypold estate, to have a harvestparable to Raypold’s food production?


    Although it still fell short of Raypold’s output, that was only because of the smaller size of its territory—a limitation that couldn’t be helped.


    Belinda finally rxed her shoulders, feeling relieved.


    ‘Ah, our young master has really aplished something remarkable. How did he even know to do all this?’


    She had spent her days anxiously watching over Ghiin.


    While everything he had attempted so far had been sessful, to be honest, none of it had been normal.


    But now, with the food issue resolved and a steady ie flowing from the cosmetics business, there would be no need for him to dive into any more strange ventures. Her worries were finally over.


    ‘As long as Fenris continues to develop steadily like this, and if he inherits Ferdium as well, our young master could be a great lord. Oh, how happy ourtedy would be to see this. I’ve raised him so well. Hohoho.’


    Not just Belinda, but the other retainers were starting to rx as well.


    Right now, they were still busy managing things since the businesses hadn’t fully stabilized, but they felt that, with time, they would be able to live without major concerns.


    However, the retainers who had just begun to feel at ease were soon thrown off by Ghiin’s next words.


    “What are you talking about? Why are you reducing the food imports? I told you to keep buying it until I say it’s enough.”


    Ghiin, looking exasperated, scolded Lowell, who was startled and tried to argue back.


    “Huh? But we have more than enough right now. Even with the aid we received, there’s no way we could be short. Once we harvest, we’ll have a massive surplus.”


    “No, it’s not enough for me. So don’t stop; keep buying it until I tell you to stop.”


    “Oh, understood.”


    At the firmmand, Lowell nodded, looking a bit troubled.


    He couldn’t understand the reason for stockpiling so much food, but having a solid reserve wasn’t a bad thing, so he decided to let it go for now.


    If they started umting so much that it began to spoil, they could deal with it then.


    The other retainers exchanged nces, seemingly sharing simr thoughts.


    Ghiin continued with a nonchnt expression.


    “How’s the construction of the additional residential areas going?”


    Lowell nced at Alfoi and the mages before responding.


    “There’s been a slight dy, but it should bepleted within a month. We prioritized the maintenance of the roads and waterways connecting to the existing vige.”


    “No idents, right?”


    “Yes, the mercenaries are patrolling in shifts, so there haven’t been any issues maintaining order.”


    There weren’t many residents in the estate, and none of them wanted to return to the hardships of the past, so they were careful, keeping an eye on their surroundings. If anyone showed signs of causing trouble, their neighbors would manage it on their own. In other words, even if someone wanted to cause a problem, they couldn’t.


    “Any other issues?”


    “Well, there’s still a lot to be done to improve the standard of living for the residents. We’re currently coordinating with the merchant guilds to purchase essential goods for the time being. We also n to gradually increase the number of welfare facilities, such as hospitals and libraries, by bringing in more specialized personnel.”


    Providing food and housing wasn’t the end of it. Now, they needed to introduce goods and facilities that could enhance the quality of life.


    Lowell smiled, as if to say there were no major problems.


    “The lord brought back a lot of supplies this time, so there shouldn’t be any major issues for a while. It’s just one of those things that will inevitably take time.”


    With the general report on the estate’s situation concluded, the retainers began to eagerly give detailed updates on their respective tasks.


    “The Runestones were a bit costly, but… there were no problems maintaining the pasture. Soon, we’ll be able to start breeding horses.”


    “The workshops, granaries, and bakeries are nearlyplete.”


    “We’ve also set up administrative offices in each vige, just as you instructed, to handle official affairs.”


    The retainers spoke with enthusiasm.


    The estate, once considered beyond recovery, was graduallying back to life.


    Although it had only just reached a levelparable to other estates, the retainers were satisfied with even that.


    When all the reports were finished, Ghiin merely nodded a few times, as if it were only natural.


    “Alright, it seems we’ve at least achieved the basics.”


    For others, the changes so far felt like a miracle, but Ghiin wasn’t satisfied at all.


    Though they made it sound impressive, in reality, they had only managed to improve the city where the lord’s castle was and a few nearby viges.


    As for infrastructure, they had only established the bare minimum needed for people to live.


    It had finally started to look like a ce where people could live decently.


    ‘It’s not enough. It’s still far from enough. This won’tst for long.’


    Objectively speaking, the Fenris Estate was still small, poor, and modest.


    Their only advantage, if any, was that they had used magic to improve the food supply rate.


    The others might be content,paring it to how things were before, but that was uneptable.


    From now on, everyone had to move forward with a shared goal that Ghiin himself would set.


    “Everyone, you’ve done well. Before I talk about our future ns, I’ll share the achievements we’ve gained from the capital.”


    Everyone had already seen Ghiin return with an enormous fortune.


    The people looked at him with eyes full of anticipation, hoping for some praise and rewards for their efforts.


    “…So, the Marquis of Branford has agreed to be our patron. My father and I have also joined the Royal Faction, so keep that in mind.”


    “Ooooh!”


    The unexpected good news left the vassals unable to contain their astonishment.


    The Marquis of Branford was a noble with power so formidable that even people in such a rural area had heard of his influence.


    If someone like that was willing to act as the lord’s patron, then no one in the North would dare to recklessly provoke the Fenris Estate anymore.


    For the vassals, who had been increasingly worried as the estate grew more prosperous, fearing attacks from neighboring territories like Ferdium, this was truly joyous news.


    “…Furthermore, the Marquis of Branford’s daughter has invested 300,000 gold in the cosmetics business. Cosmetics are already very popr in the capital, so it won’t be long before they spread throughout the entire kingdom.”


    “Ooooh!”


    As if that wasn’t all, Ghiin continued.


    “Very soon, arge number of people will be migrating to the Fenris Estate. They are supporters provided by the Royal Faction to help our estate.”


    “Ooooh!”


    The vassals could barely keep up with the string of good news, their admiration unending.


    Since poption formed the basis of both taxes and military strength, it was no exaggeration to say that people were the most critical resource for any estate.


    However, given its importance, it was not easy to increase the poption significantly in a short period.


    ‘To think that such a vital resource would be supplied on arge scale!’


    One of the vassals, sounding excited, asked:


    “How many people will be migrating here?”


    “At least 50,000.”


    “Hahaha, that would be wonderful.”


    The vassalsughed, thinking Ghiin was joking as usual. It was toorge a number to take seriously.


    But neither Ghiin, ude, nor Belinda showed any signs of humor. They remained expressionless, and it didn’t look like they were joking at all.


    Feeling a growing sense of unease, one of the vassals nervously asked Ghiin, wiping the sweat off his brow.


    “Th-That… Are you really saying 50,000? That’s impossible.”


    “What about it is impossible?”


    “Our estate cannot amodate that many people right now.”


    “They won’t all arrive at once. They’lle in batches of a few thousand.”


    “E-Even so, we won’t be able to handle it. We don’t have enough houses for them to live in, nor enough food to feed them.”


    Ghiin nodded as if that were obvious and said,


    “You’re absolutely right. So now you know what we need to do.”


    The vassals turned to ude, as if hoping he would dissuade their lord.


    With all eyes on him, ude awkwardly cleared his throat and stepped forward.


    “I can see you’re all surprised by this sudden news. I understand how you feel. But what’s done is done. There’s nothing I can do to change it.”


    As ude spoke as if it were none of his concern, the same thought crossed everyone’s minds.


    ‘Why is the Chief Overseer of the estate acting so nonchnt about this?’


    Regardless of the disapproving looks cast his way, ude shrugged his shoulders and continued.


    “Well, things won’t be much different from now. The scale will just be… a bit… muchrger. We’ll keep building new houses, expanding farnd… building more welfare facilities… What else is there, really? Isn’t that right?”


    ude turned to Ghiin, as if seeking confirmation.


    Ghiin nodded and replied,


    “That’s a given. But there’s something else we need to do alongside that.”


    “Huh? What is that? Is there something else we need to do?”


    “Yes, we need to prepare for war.”


    At those words, the expressions on everyone’s faces twisted into something bizarre.