chapter_0008

8 – Kingmaker

8 – Kingmaker

I returned to the castle and received a medical examination and treatment from the doctor.

It was the first time I felt my body and stamina recovering thanks to the doctor’s healing magic, and it was quite a fascinating experience.

Having recovered, I…

scolded Hart like crazy.

“What would you have done if something terrible had happened!!!!!”

Hart was so angry that it was unlike anything Calix had ever seen before.

He shouted at me as if he were scolding a grandchild who had caused an accident, and I, along with the other vassals, could only watch in fear.

“Milord, you are the last remaining heir of the Crones Family. Please, think of your health. For the sake of this old man, please…”

“I’m sorry for causing you worry, Grandpa Hart…”

Hart shouted as if he were about to cry, truly on the verge of tears.

Feeling sorry, I naturally called Hart “Grandpa,” just like in Calix’s childhood memories.

Well, even I think I was being reckless.

Swimming with a child on my back in the middle of a typhoon… Looking back, it was a miracle that I survived.

How did I even make it back alive?

Anyway, because of that incident, I underwent a thorough health check and was confined to the castle for a week.

Every day, I received healing magic, and I could only do simple reports from Hart and the other vassals.

And Noah began to visit frequently.

“I’m here, Milord. Are you feeling better now?”

“I’m fine. I’ve rested so much that my back hurts. But Noah… you’ve been coming often lately.”

“Of course, I should come often. I’m your ‘Treasurer,’ after all.”

Noah had recently become the official treasurer of our family.

To be precise, she had become one of the treasurers with Hart’s strong recommendation.

Hart said with wide eyes,

“For the future and succession of the Crones Family, let’s officially appoint Noah as the treasurer, Milord.”

With such a strong recommendation from Hart, I could only nod like a grandson being scolded by his grandfather.

Having become the official treasurer, Noah started coming to the castle every day as if it were her home and began to work very hard.

I don’t know if it was just my feeling, but it seemed to me that she was working even harder than the upper management.

And there was one unresolved question.

…What exactly does ‘heir’ mean?

Noah thought she had a good eye for people.

However, this time, she honestly admitted that she had misjudged.

She believed that Calix, the lord, would be the one to create a new storm in the empire.

She thought he was a “somewhat different lord” whose goal was to expand his influence through policies targeting the common people, something no one else had considered.

‘(I completely misjudged. To think I thought of Lord Calix as just that kind of lord…)’

While working in the upper management, Noah had seen numerous lords and royalty.

Everyone spoke of the common people and the nobility, but none of them acted genuinely for the sake of the people.

They all thought only of exploiting the common people and merchants; I swear, there was not a single one who truly enacted benevolent governance for the people.

So Noah had given up.

She thought that an ideal ruler was just a story from a fairy tale and had resigned herself to that belief.

But on the day the storm came, she saw it.

She witnessed the young lord jumping into the water for the sake of his people.

That sight was the very image of the ‘ideal ruler’ she had dreamed of.

It was the appearance of a ‘true emperor’ who could show that he would sacrifice his life for the people through actions, not words.

It was a very blasphemous thought, but…

If she were asked who among the people she had seen was most suited to be an emperor…

Noah thought without hesitation that it could only be “Lord Calix.”

Once she thought that far, Noah’s decision was swift.

If Calix was suited to be an emperor, then all she had to do was make him one.

The election of the emperor in the empire was done through a voting system.

Not only the emperor’s descendants but also noble lords with territories had the right to run for election and vote. After the emperor passed away, the royal family and lords with voting rights gathered to elect the next emperor.

In other words, Lord Calix, as a lord, could theoretically become an emperor.

Of course, it wouldn’t be easy as it stood.

The influence of the Crones Family was still minimal, and the already prominent candidates, princes, princesses, and other great lords were building their massive forces.

However… if she helped the Crones Family with all her might…

Noah was confident that in about five years, the Crones Family could become a formidable force capable of fighting against them.

Thus, Noah decided to become Calix’s ‘Kingmaker’ without anyone knowing.

“From now on, I will serve you with all my heart, Lord Calix.”

“Hmm… Yes, I look forward to working with you, Treasurer Noah.”

A week later, when I returned to my duties as lord, Noah smiled and spoke to me.

I didn’t know what had happened, but since the smiling girl was speaking to me with a smile, I accepted it as it was.

But what was it… it was such a beautiful smile that I felt chills.

It felt like something annoying was happening somewhere that I didn’t know about.

Was it just my feeling?

“More importantly, was there nothing unusual in the territory while I was gone?”

“There was nothing special. The storm recovery has been completed, and all the farms have returned to their original state, thanks to the hardworking nobility who didn’t rest.”

“Hmm… I see.”

I felt both happy and sad at Hart’s words.

It was good that the nobility had stepped up, but the fact that money was piling up again was a headache.

Sigh… What should I spend that money on again?

While I was pondering, Hart continued speaking.

“And one more problem has arisen.”

“A problem?”

Hart said it flatly.

I thought it wasn’t a big deal and asked. Then…

“The number of applicants for migration among the free people in our territory has increased more than threefold.”

“More than threefold!?”

What do you mean there’s nothing special? There’s a hell of a lot going on!!

I had a lot to say, but I couldn’t bring myself to say it to my grandfather, Hart, and instead assessed the situation.

The story I heard from Hart was more complicated than I had anticipated.

“Amidst the waves of pitch-black, the lord threw himself into the sea♪ Cutting through the black sea, he swam, cradling a small life, breaking through the rough waves♪ He returned the small life to the land!! Ah! Great Silver Dragon of Crone♪!”

I went outside the castle with Hart and Noah to see the situation for myself after a long time.

Bards were singing all over outside the castle, and people were singing along to their songs.

It wasn’t unusual for bards to sing in this era.

The problem was that the songs they were singing were praises of me and were spreading to the surrounding territories at a crazy speed.

“Since a little while ago, songs praising you and our territory have been spreading through the bards to the surrounding territories.”

“Spreading to the surrounding territories!?”

“Yes, there are already reports that it has reached the Blackrose Family in the west.”

No matter how good a deed I did, did the songs spread this quickly?

At that moment, I locked eyes with Noah, who just smiled brightly.

As I always felt, the smile of a beautiful girl was not good for my heart.

“And are the free people flocking in because they heard that song?”

“Yes, they are really flocking in like crazy.”

Hart looked toward the castle gate.

There were more people gathered there than when the merchants had flocked in last time, and it was bursting at the seams.

“Please line up!!!! Please, just line up!!!!!”

The gatekeeper was having a tough time today as well.

I should give him a bonus later.

“But if so many free people migrate, can we handle it?”

“That is…”

If so many free people were to migrate, there were many things to worry about.

Housing was needed, food was needed, and jobs were needed.

At my words, Hart seemed to have some issues and couldn’t answer easily, and Noah, who was beside him, replied.

“If the lord invests all the profits gained from the recent tax reform, it will be possible.”

Noah answered with a bright smile, as if she knew something good.

I understood why Hart had such a dark expression.

It must have been difficult for him as a steward to tell his lord that they would have to dip into the family’s private funds due to a lack of money.

Of course, it was a very good thing for me.

I could waste money on the people! Let’s do it right now!!

“Is that really enough?”

“Yes! It’s the result of calculations made with the other treasurers. There’s no doubt about it.”

I tried to pretend I didn’t want to accept Noah’s proposal.

But when I really tried to dip into the private funds, Hart shouted in panic.

“But if we support the free people with the lord’s private funds, we will quickly reach our limit!”

“It’s fine. Since they have come here, they are my subjects. If I can support them with my private funds, then I will do so as much as I can.”

“Milord…”

At my words, Hart turned into a kind grandfather mode, trying to hold back tears.

At that moment, Noah, with a bright smile, interjected between Hart and me.

“I think I have a solution to that problem. May I share it?”

“What kind of solution do you have, Treasurer Noah?”

At my words, Noah pointed to the abandoned land by the sea and said.

“We will employ the migrants in the reclamation project.”

“Employ them in the reclamation project?”

Before I knew it, Noah had put on glasses and began to explain to me.

Where did those glasses come from?

“The Crones territory is vast, but due to the salinity, there isn’t much usable land.”

As Noah said, our territory, located by the coast, didn’t have much land suitable for farming.

It was like the Jiangdong region of Wu in the Three Kingdoms before it was developed, and because of that, food was largely dependent on imports, such as exchanging salt for grain.

“But what if we let the migrants live there while they reclaim the land?”

Noah mixed in some incredibly difficult words while discussing the policy, and the key points I heard were as follows.

First, by reclaiming the land that had not been cultivated until now due to a lack of people, we would lease it to the migrants.

Second, once they reclaimed it, we would recognize their ownership for a certain period and give them all the harvests except for taxes.

Third, once the migrants’ lives stabilized, we would recover the private funds invested by the Crones Family at a low interest rate.

“If we do this, the Crones Family can save on expensive construction costs, the free people will gain their own land, and the lord’s private funds will also be preserved.”

After hearing Noah’s words, Hart nodded in satisfaction and looked at me.

“It seems like a good plan, Milord.”

“Y-Yeah! It sounds good even to me.”

To be honest, I wasn’t an economics major, so I didn’t fully understand what Noah was saying.

But it seemed similar to the good policies I had seen in the news or on YouTube in my previous life.

Thus, I pretended to know enough and approved Noah’s proposal.

This was the moment when Noah’s ‘Migrant Reclamation Policy’ began, which would become one of my greatest achievements in the not-so-distant future and transform the Crones territory into the largest granary in the south.

“Then let’s head back now.”

“Yes, Milord.”

“Let’s go!”

I told Hart, Noah, and Rikaaan, who had come with me for protection, that it was time to return.

As everyone turned their heads back toward the castle to leave…

“AAAH!!!”

“P-Please save me!!!!”

From the end of the line of migrants, a scream was heard.

A word from the author (Author’s Note)

Noah’s inspiration is based on Lady Wei, who made Ying Zheng, the father of Qin Shi Huang, king.

She started as a merchant and rose to the pinnacle of power, making her a rare kingmaker in world history!

Thank you for reading today!!!