Chapter 383: Chapter 380: In Whose Eyes, People Are a Resource
When Rorschach saw His Majesty Albert, the King was wearing a military uniform that bordered on formal attire, adorned with so many symbols of honor they looked as if they were free.
’Trying to become the King of Medals, are we?’ Rorschach wasn’t quite used to the King’s military dress. In the past, this patron of the arts—and of opera in particular—would never have dressed like this. It served, however, to illustrate the tense atmosphere within the Bayern Kingdom.
"Rorschach Mage, the growth rate of your trading company and factories is truly impressive. Do you have some kind of magic you use in your business?" the King began, joking with the young man who had come for an audience.
’What, you think the sheep I’ve raised is fat and ready for the slaughter?’ Rorschach grew wary. He had to remain humble and cautious, so he quickly replied, "You flatter me, Your Majesty."
Albert then jumped to the next topic. "The Sky Knights’ training is showing initial results, and I am very pleased. So, could you possibly..."
Rorschach bowed slightly again. "You’re too kind, Your Majesty."
"..." The King coughed, gathering his thoughts. "To think the preparations for the new army’s equipment could be completed within two months. That’s incredibly fast..."
"You flatter me, Your Majesty."
’Can we even have a proper conversation?!’ Faced with this young rogue, the old King could only cut to the chase. "Rorschach Mage, the Sky Knights have been patrolling the border recently and have discovered an increasing number of refugees crossing into our country from Valois. The southern towns are overwhelmed. Could you mobilize your workshops and trading companies to settle some of them?"
In the beginning of the turmoil in the Holy Kingdom, the refugees were mainly exiled Nobility. Now, as the kingdom faced food shortages and internal wars, more and more capable commoners were starting to flee. In other cases, the Empire Army had swept through like a plague of locusts, stripping the land of its grain and forcing the local residents to abandon their homes and escape the famine.
For the refugees from the northern Holy Kingdom, there were three places they wouldn’t flee to:
Istani, across the sea, was out. The southern part of their own kingdom was also short on food, so that was out. The Southern Countries were simply too far.
So, droves of people made the arduous journey over mountains and through rivers, choosing the seemingly peaceful and prosperous Bayern Kingdom.
At first, it was just a few scattered beggars with foreign accents appearing in border towns and villages. Later, they came in groups. Some even had horse-drawn carriages. Others were literate and would immediately plead for protection from the City Hall, offering gold, silver, and jewels to purchase a small plot of land and citizenship in Bayern.
By now, Sky Knight patrols were discovering large bands of refugees moving through the southern forests and plains toward Bayern’s territory. According to reports from various City Halls, the total number of refugees, including those who had already arrived and those still on their way, likely exceeded ten thousand.
The border army was only containing these refugees, not expelling all of them. The reason was simple: two of Bayern’s legions had been incorporated into the Empire Army, and a new legion was being formed. With the weather warming and the spring planting season approaching, a labor shortage was foreseeable.
So, after the King and his ministers determined that the country was not facing a food shortage, they decided they wanted to absorb this population that had delivered itself to their doorstep.
These refugees were, in theory, a high-quality labor force. Their long-distance travel under starvation conditions had culled many of the old and weak, making their demographic structure "healthier," in a sense. And since they had no citizenship rights upon entering Bayern, they were cheap.
Unfortunately, that was only in theory. The main difficulty was how to manage and organize these people, to transform them from a liability into a controllable human resource. The biggest problem with refugees is that they cannot quickly integrate into Bayern’s civil society. Differences in culture and faith lead to conflict, and clashes between locals and outsiders would pose a great threat to the kingdom’s stability and cause security costs to skyrocket.
The court had now taken notice of Rorschach’s experiment at his Steel Factory. He had turned a large number of farmers into workers. This landless population didn’t immediately become town citizens. Instead, they were densely packed—or rather, housed—in prefabricated buildings, forming a collective population whose food, clothing, and expenses were all managed and semi-controlled by his company, allowing them to efficiently produce industrial goods.
These people existed in an intermediate, unattached state between rural and urban populations. Having lost their land, they could not return to a life of farming, herding, or weaving. Yet they lacked a trade or the small amount of capital needed to establish themselves in a city. The new labor skills these new residents learned were intrinsically tied to the factory; they had to obey commands, cooperate with fellow workers, and work with machinery to be productive.
The various masters in the court and City Halls didn’t know what to call such a group, but as veteran rulers, they keenly sensed that a labor force organized in this manner was... very appealing.
They were more centralized and easier to manage than peasants scattered across the fields, and they had a higher output. They were also more docile than the literate townspeople, who were prone to squawking at the court and the City Hall.
In the eyes of the King and his ministers, Rorschach was a magician with the Midas touch, able to simplify unruly commoners and old farmers into numbers, into walking currency. If he could transform those refugees in the same way, what a wonderful thing that would be! Throw them into the factories, and they could even be isolated from the local citizens, saving a lot of trouble.
After consulting with the Prince and his Courtiers, Albert threw out a momentous offer. "If you can settle the refugees without causing conflict or unrest, then I, in my name as Monarch of Bayern, am willing to ennoble you as a Border Count, with all the glory and privileges of the Nobility."
Bayern had once had a Border Count’s Domain (a Border Count being legally equivalent to a Marquis), but it was now part of Valois. Albert was certainly not making this proposal rashly; the other nobles and City Halls must have already approved the plan.
He would carve out a territory for Rorschach with Kempson as its capital, extending to the border where Bayern, Valois, and the Empire meet. This unconventional and tradition-breaking enfeoffment was akin to a high-stakes wager from his past life—
Rorschach would have to accept and settle refugees in this new domain. The most demanding part was this: while developing new territories usually came with a tax exemption for the first few years, the King’s conditions were the exact opposite. The Kempson Border Count’s Domain would be required to deliver double its usual annual grain tax by this summer’s harvest, and also supply the armaments for one of Bayern’s legions for the duration of the war.
If he failed to meet these conditions, his fief and title would be revoked.
’What a standard opening for a novel about a Wizard Lord... no, wait, it’s a "never-before-seen wonderful start." If this were a novel, I’d have to start as a lowly Knight, but now I have a chance to become a Marquis in a single step. If Mr. and Mrs. Mercer back home heard about this, they’d probably faint from happiness. A city plus a large swathe of border territory—this is far better than the manors granted to the Empire’s military nobility.’
Rorschach’s gaze sharpened. He was confident he could meet the King’s exorbitant demands after taking in the refugees, but he knew the real conditions didn’t stop there.
For instance, there was the proposed location of the Count’s Domain. It sat at a three-way border, meaning a Border Count’s Domain would face immense defensive pressure. Today it was refugees, but tomorrow it could be a full-fledged army. Furthermore, the kingdom was currently purchasing armaments from Rorschach’s Steel Factory. If supplying an entire legion’s equipment became an obligation, his profits would instantly turn into losses.
To put it bluntly, military expenses were too high. Neither the court nor the City Halls could bear the cost, so they wanted to carve off a "liability" and use a title and a piece of worthless land to get something for nothing from their biggest supplier.
"So, what are your thoughts, Rorschach Mage?" Albert’s question was tinged with urgency. In these extraordinary times, if Rorschach agreed, the King would have found his patsy—someone onto whom he could dump several of his most pressing problems all at once.
However, Rorschach slowly shook his head. He had actually resisted the temptation of becoming a "Marquis"!
Rorschach gave a calm smile. "Your Majesty, I was not born in Bayern, nor do I have any great merits to my name. I am honored by your high regard, but if I were to rashly accept this enfeoffment, I fear it would be difficult to win the people’s approval."
’No, no, no, we all think it’s a great deal!’ Albert quickly said, "Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. In ancient times, the Ludwig Clan was also tasked with defending the frontiers against the Barbarian Race, which is how the Bayern Kingdom came to be. The situation now is complex and ever-changing, making it the perfect time for young people like you to achieve great things." ’Come on, young Rorschach, where’s your youthful drive? Why are you being so calculating?’
’Your Majesty, the way you say that... it almost sounds like you’re egging me on to rebel.’ Rorschach felt the King was so eager to see him jump into the trap that he was starting to speak recklessly.
’It can’t be helped...’ Rorschach could only pull out another idea for the Bayern Royal Family. "Your Majesty, have you ever heard of... something called a ’Special Zone’?"
