Ch.123123. Qualifications

The day after I assigned Bingo a title and work to handle.

I decided to leave the Imperial Capital and return to my territory.

It feels awkward to use the expression “return” when my total stay there hasn’t even been a week, but I had no choice.

At least the people I could trust were there, and the territory residents who called me Count Hero (now it would be Marquis) while showing their respect were there too.

Above all, Ember was guarding the Count’s residence.

Half the reason I was making time to go back to my territory was because of the Hyde father and daughter, or honestly, because of Ember.

Ember, who shared in governing the county with just a brief experience as a low-level administrator.

I always felt sorry for her, but I had never pitied her.

In the beginning, I even thought I was doing her a favor. After all, what Ember had consistently wished for before she matured was the life of a “real noble.”

But lately, Ember seemed a bit pitiful to me.

“Erick. I’m also managing the slave workshop… I mean, the scroll workshop. Since they’re from a Count’s family, they tend to be difficult. It’s not quite rebellion, but they’re filing various complaints. They still can’t let go of their noble tendencies.”

“Oh, and today too, nearly 100 refugees came in. Of course, we could just send them to the second territory, but quite a few of them are injured. I was thinking of offering some tributes to the church and asking them for treatment. Would that be okay?”

“They’re important labor force too, after all.”

That was the recent update Ember had given me.

She said that besides managing the scroll workshop, which had no precedent in the Empire’s history, she was now also handling the initial response to refugees.

How did Ember’s life get so twisted when before our engagement was broken off, she used to spend her days in salons and open-air cafes?

Honestly, I didn’t expect Ember’s role to grow this large.

Just as I didn’t expect to become the Hero due to the Goddess’s mischief.

‘I should comfort her properly.’

I purchased a gift for Ember and prepared to leave.

However, I didn’t forget to gather my party members and give them instructions before departing.

“Everyone. The next time we meet, there’s a possibility we’ll be infiltrating the Demonic Land.”

“We’re prepared for that.”

“I won’t tell you to stay in combat mode all the time. But when I issue a summons, you must come running anytime. It could be next month, or perhaps even next week.”

“……”

Everyone nodded with serious expressions.

I gave them two instructions.

Except for those who had territories to govern, I asked them to stay in the Imperial Capital as much as possible. And I asked them to put their personal affairs in order so they could enter the Demonic Land at any time. There were quite a few uncles with wives and children, so it was right to ask in advance.

And I didn’t forget to sweeten the deal for motivation.

For Lord Ordellon, who had bought a lot of white rabbits for his territory residents, I promised to provide byproducts from sugar production as rabbit feed.

For Kairos from the Kingdom of Lessotona, who frequently had to deal with elves, I said, “If the elves start whining, tell me and I’ll handle it personally.”

To the clergy, I proposed close cooperation in building residential areas for refugees. I offered to respond with substantial donations if the Papal State would dispatch priests to cast healing on carpenters and laborers.

I took care of others as well.

“Huh. You’re already busy enough without having to take care of us.”

“Not at all. We’re all trying to make a living, so we should get something out of it. And… Saintess?”

“Yes. I’ll train hard.”

“Good. That’s all I need.”

Only after taking care of my party members in this way did I leave the Imperial Capital.

I didn’t know when the Hero’s party would gather again.

The Beast King might secure a means (wyverns) to travel quickly to the Demon Lord’s castle and contact us, or the Demon Lord’s army might launch a preemptive attack if they felt impatient. They might even try to cause trouble by imitating Iclit.

‘They’ll do something before getting their heads cracked, I suppose.’

However, I decided to put aside my worries about the Demon Lord’s army for now.

I needed rest and healing too.

***

How exhausting.

Ember silently muttered to herself as she closed her eyes tightly.

She was now down at the scroll workshop. It was a spacious workspace converted from a wine cellar.

“Lady Hyde. Ah, please listen to me!”

“I am listening.”

She almost frowned but managed to hold back.

Frowning could leave wrinkles between her eyebrows. To maintain her beauty, her most important asset, for a long time, she needed to remain composed.

But despite her unwrinkled expression, Ember was seething inside.

“Lady Hyde. I think I’m better suited for supervising the entire process rather than producing scrolls.”

It was because of John Burko who was spouting such infuriating nonsense.

The head of a once-prestigious family that had been ruined in a short time. A gambling addict who had opened Hero betting and made 400,000 imperial citizens calculate odds. Someone who had even lost his title after betting against the Hero at the end.

He seemed to have lost his strength and hadn’t been rebellious since coming to the territory. But.

‘Instead, he acts like this.’

Ember half-listened to John Burko’s words and then spoke calmly.

“You want to supervise?”

“Yes. I can’t sit alongside young children, nephews, and siblings, writing formulas on scrolls and sweating while infusing magic. Making one scroll is harder than casting twenty spells…!”

“I’m sorry, but we don’t need a separate supervisor. Rather, if a skilled magician leaves, wouldn’t productivity decrease?”

“No, Lady Hyde. Please listen… I’m not saying I want to slack off. I just want to take on a role befitting a family head. Encouraging children who are feeling down, scolding those who are lazy, that sort of thing.”

“Scolding?”

“Yes. Do you understand what I mean? …Although I’ve fallen this far, I’m still the head of the family.”

That face of John Burko, desperately pleading with an expression that seemed to say, “You really don’t get it.”

The thought crossed her mind that he was making quite a long-winded excuse for not wanting to work, but she seemed to understand his intention.

Even though he had fallen this far, he probably wanted to maintain at least some authority among his family members.

‘Come to think of it, his nephews do seem to look at him like trash.’

The Burko clan, especially the collateral branches who had been demoted to commoners because of their family head, were openly disrespecting John Burko. As a result, John Burko’s pride seemed hurt.

How should she manage this tactless person?

Ember stared at John Burko, whose face seemed to have “Please help me save face” written all over it, and then decided on a course of action.

First, Ember nodded calmly.

“Fine. If you want to supervise, do so.”

“Oh.”

“If one person slacks off, repayment will be slower, but if that’s what you want, there’s nothing I can do.”

Despite her obvious sarcasm, John Burko seemed pleased.

“Haha. There’s no need to worry about that. I’ll exercise my leadership, so productivity will actually improve. It’s something I’ve always done.”

“That’s good then. But I think we need to change the workshop’s operating policy.”

“What…?”

Ember ignored the puzzled John Burko and looked at the other family members.

They were debtors paying off their debts day by day by producing scrolls in high demand among adventurers, such as illumination, signal, and buff scrolls.

They all seemed stressed from being worked like slaves.

Ember decided to both motivate them and crush John Burko’s vain hopes.

“Starting tomorrow, I’ll assign production quotas based on individual skills. If you don’t meet them, you’ll have to give up your evening rest. However, those who meet their quotas for a consecutive month will receive three packs of cigarettes as a bonus. …Oh, if you don’t like cigarettes, you can substitute them with beer.”

“What’s this all of a sudden? …And just three packs?”

“Yes. Three packs of cigarettes.”

A few debtors chuckled in disbelief.

Whether direct or collateral, they were all members of a Count’s family. It seemed reasonable that their pride would be hurt at being trained with cigarettes, as if they were in some penal unit.

But Ember judged that they wouldn’t refuse.

‘Considering the wages they receive, they can’t possibly ignore three packs of cigarettes.’

The Burko clan was receiving just enough wages to barely buy groceries, so they couldn’t even dream of products like tea, cigarettes, or alcohol. Even those groceries were purchased through the Count’s servants rather than directly.

Would three packs of cigarettes really be a modest reward for them?

Luxury items held more significance than one might think. Ember, who used to enjoy sipping tea in salons, knew this better than anyone.

Indeed, her prediction was correct.

“…Um, please make sure to keep your promise.”

“Of course.”

“Could I possibly receive tea instead? I don’t drink or smoke.”

“That’s possible.”

The family members, except for John Burko, nodded obediently. They didn’t seem to have any particular complaints about the quota assignment either. After all, they needed to clear their debts as quickly as possible to complete the rehabilitation process and return as free people.

In the midst of this, only one person’s expression was souring. John Burko.

“Um, Lady Hyde. Then what about me?”

“There are no exceptions. I believe that someone as capable as you can handle both supervision and production. If you don’t meet your quota, you’ll have to work until midnight every day.”

“……”

Ember looked at the crestfallen John Burko for a moment before leaving the workshop. She didn’t forget to instruct the guards to be more vigilant.

‘Sigh. This isn’t something I enjoy doing.’

Ember let out a low sigh.

It wasn’t particularly pleasant to treat a clan with whom she had no special grudge like toys. Even if it benefited the territory.

‘But what choice do I have? I have to work hard.’

Ember steeled herself again and raised her head.

And there, standing in front of her, was an unexpected presence.

“I heard you were here, so I came to see for myself. Ember.”

It was none other than Erick.

Ember froze in place for a moment. It didn’t matter that he had returned without prior notice. After all, Erick was the owner of this territory. But what worried her was…

‘My goodness. He must have heard everything I said.’

For a moment, her face felt hot.

The fortunate thing was that Erick was looking at her with an expression dripping with approval. As if he appreciated Ember’s skill.

That man still likes this kind of thing. It seemed a bit strange, but from Ember’s perspective, it wasn’t a bad thing.

Ember stepped forward with a bright smile, something she hadn’t done in almost a month.

“Welcome back, Erick.”