Episode 204: ‘A Family-Like Territory’ (1)
“… … Our territory is the best food producing area in the kingdom, and is also a source of iron ore… … We develop the best cosmetics in the kingdom… … We have runestone resources… … Even during this drought, our territory’s citizens have not gone hungry due to our enormous production, and everyone praises us… … Our territory’s military strength is a whopping 400 knights… … .”
Each and every one of them was just nonsense.
Food, iron ore, cosmetics, and rune stones. If you had just one of these, you could be considered a wealthy territory, but if you had all of them in one territory, it would be unimaginable how much money you could make.
I heard that they are currently raking in a huge amount of money in real time.
They say there is so much food there that no one starves, and so much money that they barely collect taxes.
It was truly a paradise on earth.
The place everyone hopes and dreams of. If you get a government job there, your life will be smooth sailing.
Malone frowned even more. He knew he was a fraud, but the bluff was too much.
‘Are you asking us to believe that now? No matter how bad the situation is these days, aren’t you ignoring us too much? Even freshmen who have only studied a little bit of politics wouldn’t believe it… . . . ‘
The other students were the same. While everyone was making unpleasant expressions, one student raised his hand and shouted.
“I can’t believe it! Where in the world is there such a place?”
Malone looked back at the student. He was a fairly good student.
He was a guy who always showed off and liked to argue, so I didn’t want to get close to him.
‘But in times like this, it’s better to step in instead. That guy is good at arguing, so he’ll be embarrassed. I’ll just look at that and go back.’
The other students all felt the same way as Malone. If it weren’t for the dire situation, they wouldn’t have come to this place in the first place.
As the mood suddenly became quiet, Claude spoke with a calm expression.
“Huh, you don’t believe me? There’s no reason for me to lie, is there? I’m just a senior at this academy, I came here to help my juniors.”
Claude didn’t lie. He just exaggerated the good things a little and hid the bad things.
The student did not back down despite Claude’s shameless answer.
“I know a little about the northern part of Rutania! I’ve heard that it’s a harsh place with poor food conditions and suffering from invasions by barbarians! I can’t believe that the Fenris Territory in the north is in such good shape!”
‘That kid? Did he study hard?’
It was certainly difficult to say that the situation in Fenris was good, although for a different reason than what the student had said.
Isn’t the Fenris Estate lacking in management personnel, causing problems here and there?
But how are you going to verify that? That’s why you came here to seduce me? What are you going to do? What can you do?
Claude asked, lifting his chin arrogantly.
“Have you seen it?”
“yes?”
“Isn’t that just a rumor? Have you come and seen it?”
“No, that’s not it, but… … .”
“Tsk, tsk, tsk, a scholar blindly believes something he has only heard through hearsay without even seeing it for himself… … How can he really be called a scholar who seeks truth and reason and strives to make the world a better place!”
The student who had questioned Claude’s scolding looked aggrieved. To be honest, I haven’t even confirmed that it’s good yet, so why should I believe that?
When he tried to argue again, Claude hit the player.
“You saw the food I brought? That’s the proof. There’s still a lot left over after donating it to the Academy. It’s to be distributed to other places. Is there anyone among the great lords of the Kingdom of Seiron who would be so casual about distributing that much?”
The students who had been murmuring nodded to Claude’s words. Marlon also felt slightly shaken when he remembered the mountain of food piled up.
‘Yes, it might be okay before the famine, but it’s not easy to give out that much so casually at a time like now. Really… … Is this a rich man’s estate?’
The student who had nothing to say argued about something else.
“Okay! I can believe you have a lot of money! But 400 knights? That’s just ridiculous!”
The other students started muttering again.
They also know very well how many knights a noble usually has. No matter how powerful Lutania is, there is a limit to the number of knights a lord can have.
It is said that Lord Fenris was only the lord of a barony before he expanded his territory.
400 knights was a force that even the most powerful man in the kingdom could not easily maintain. It was not a number that a young lord could still command.
But Claude just chuckled at that rebuttal as if it was funny.
“There are 50 knights that I brought along. They are all full-fledged knights who can use mana.”
“Oh! I can’t believe it!”
A high-ranking noble of the Kingdom of Ceylon, such as a count, has at most 20 knights under his command.
Even in Rutania, where there were more knights, a count-level fief could only command an average of 50 knights, while a great lord could only command over 100.
The harsh northern territories in particular are known to have slightly fewer knights.
But, the fact that there were 50 knights guarding the governor, who was not even a high-ranking noble? This was really absurd.
Doubts began to creep back into Malone’s mind and the minds of the other students.
Claude must have sensed the impudent gaze as he snapped his fingers and spoke to Wendy.
“Tell all the knights to come in.”
Soon fifty knights entered with Gillian.
Malone swallowed nervously as he looked at the articles.
‘Is that… a real article?’
The reactions of other students were no different from Malone’s.
‘No matter how I look at them, they seem like mercenaries or bandits… … .’
‘Isn’t it just a decoration to look like a knight?’
‘I’ve never seen knights so noisy.’
Judging from the attire, it looks like a knight. But looking at the atmosphere, it wasn’t like that at all.
There were all kinds of people: some were shaking their legs while crossing their legs, some were nodding their heads, some were crouching down as soon as they came in, and some were just looking around.
‘There’s even a guy spitting on the floor! What the hell is he doing in the sacred academy!’
‘Dirty! Vulgar! What kind of article is that!’
‘They’re total scammers! They’re obviously scammers!’
The students looked at them with suspicion again, as they did not seem to have the dignity of a knight at all.
Claude also looked impressed when he saw those articles.
‘Anyway, these kids are no help, no help. You uneducated bastards, what are you going to do if you keep doing this here?’
Gillian glared at the knights, thinking similar thoughts.
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Maybe because everyone is now used to being hit, no matter how much they get beaten, they only act cool for a little while and the habit doesn’t really change.
But since he couldn’t fight here, Gillian had no choice but to glare and threaten.
Fortunately, the knights straightened their postures, even though they had a shaky expression on their faces.
Claude clicked his tongue at the sight and said to Gillian.
“Gillian, show the students the knights’ mana. What are you doing? Why don’t you hurry up and do it?”
Gillian licked his lips a few times and gestured to the knights. Blue mana soon began to emanate from their swords.
The students all exclaimed in admiration at the sight.
“Yeah, it’s true. They’re all knights. But why do they do such things… … .”
“This can’t be happening… … . Not only is he the lord himself, but he has 50 knights supporting him as the general’s escort… … .”
“There must be more knights left in the territory than those who came here! It really was a territory with a formidable military force, wasn’t it?”
Claude, seeing the students’ reactions, spoke urgently to the knights.
“Okay, okay. Stop, stop! Our juniors will be surprised. You can stop now. Put it away quickly!”
It would be really surprising if you vomited blood and collapsed. You should never overdo it.
“How is it? Can you trust me now?”
If you don’t believe this incredible power, you’re an idiot. The student who was arguing also quietly kept his mouth shut.
What is the biggest dream of scholars?
The goal was to become a high-ranking official in a royal family or a great estate and realize one’s dreams and ideals.
Now, an incredible opportunity has come to them.
Malone, who saw the articles in front of his eyes, could no longer contain his excitement.
To keep that number of knights, it costs money, but they also need to be treated well.
All doubts are now thrown away. If you don’t believe when there is this much evidence, there is nothing in the world to believe.
‘Oh, it’s true! You can never cheat if the article is true! Even if everything else is a lie, the food and the article alone are amazing! This is a truly amazing territory! I want to go there! I want to go and work in that paradise-like territory! I want to use my skills! I want to spread my wings and realize my dreams!’
But as my faith grew, so did my anxiety. There’s no way they’d hire that many people at a time like this, so the competition would be fierce.
‘Oh, what should I do? If I do this, almost everyone will support me. They’re all starving to death, so they won’t even bother going to other kingdoms.’
I began to feel anxious that if I missed this opportunity, I would have to live without any dreams or hopes in the future.
As I looked around, all the students were looking at Claude with the same expression on their faces. It was obvious that they all wanted to go to the Fenris Estate.
Malone wasn’t confident that he could win the competition against the other students. So he raised his hand and asked timidly.
“By the way… how many people do you plan on picking?”
The other students’ eyes also lit up.
From now on, everyone is a competitor. In order to get picked, you have to look good to him, regardless of the means and methods.
Claude, sensing the atmosphere where people were starting to look at each other, raised his chin arrogantly and said.
“Anyone who wants it.”
“yes?!”
Everyone opened their eyes wide in disbelief. Marlon asked again, wondering if he had heard wrong.
“Excuse me? Can anyone who wants to go there?”
“Yes, as I said before, our Fenris territory is quite large and has a large population. The more officials, the better.”
“Why do you insist on picking us? We lack experience and our abilities have not yet been proven. There must be many more talented people in the Kingdom of Rutania… … .”
Claude smiled kindly at Malone’s timid voice.
“Didn’t I tell you? I’m also a graduate of the Seiron Academy. I want my juniors to succeed more than other academy graduates. When we guide each other like that, the fact that we’re graduates of the Academy itself becomes strength. You all know what I mean, right?”
“Oh… … .”
The students were amazed. This must be the school and regional ties they had only heard of. That was why everyone was talking about connections, connections.
Malone, who had never been in the top ranks, still spoke with uncertainty.
“But I still lack the ability… … .”
“Oh! Ability doesn’t matter at all! If you don’t know something, just go and get beaten up and roll around… … No, if you go and learn and practice sincerely, everything will work out. Learning on the spot is the real thing. Grades aren’t important!”
“Then what is important?”
“The only thing that matters is an unbreakable spirit and passion! That’s all I see! Without that, you’re as good as dead!”
In the Fenris domain, if you break, you die, and if you don’t have passion, you die. Claude spoke the whole truth for the first time.
And the innocent students exclaimed in admiration at those words again.
“Your Majesty, what you say is right! You have to try it yourself to prove your ability!”
“Giving everyone a chance without discriminating against talent! What a great policy!”
“As expected of the commander-in-chief of the Great Territory, he is definitely of a different caliber!”
The whole hall was instantly filled with excitement. Claude took advantage of the opportunity to quickly hand out contracts to the students.
“Okay, read this and then decide. I think you’ll like the terms.”
The students who were looking over the contract were surprised once again.
“The compensation is really huge, isn’t it?”
“You’re saying you’ll take full responsibility for the family’s living and livelihood?”
“As expected, Daeyoungji is different.”
The salary was high and the welfare benefits were excellent, incomparable to any other territory in the Kingdom of Seiron.
Everyone blinked their eyes, unable to believe whether it was a dream or reality. Marlon muttered while looking at Claude without realizing it.
“Why… … for the new managers… … . I have never heard of a territory that treats them this well… … .”
All the other students nodded quietly.
It was nothing short of a miracle that I could work in Daeyoungji at a time like this.
But the treatment was also great. Just looking at the salary alone, it was much better than that of a mid-level official in the Seiron royal family.
Claude looked at the dumbfounded Malone and answered in a soft voice.
“Our territory’s motto is ‘A territory like family.’”
The students’ faces were filled with emotion.
