Chapter 95 – Preparations for Departure Part 3

“……Alan-sama, that’s all for our plans going forward.”

“Alright. Does anybody have any questions?”

I scanned the venue but no one spoke out. Six hours have already passed since this meeting began. As expected, everyone already looked pretty worn out.

“……Yosh, if there are no more questions, this general meeting is adjourned.”

The meeting that was attended by more than 250 people consisting of representatives from Shining Star, suppliers such as companies and workshops, hired adventurers, craftsmen who will be coming with us to the new territory, orphans, and church officials, has finally ended.

It was our first and probably last general meeting, so I rented out a large conference hall from the Commerce Guild in order to conduct it. Reports regarding the current progress of our plans and the availability of supplies accounted for a majority of the meeting’s contents, but it was necessary for everyone involved to be briefed on them.

This was the first time for most of the attendees to hear about the progress of the expedition preparations, and those who were leaving the conference hall seem to be generally satisfied with what they’ve heard. It was well worth holding this meeting.

Of course, the preparations were going smoothly with the supervision of Iris.

As expected, questions regarding the current state of the new territory and whether or not it was really okay to move so many people to such a place were raised during the meeting, but we assured them that there would be no problems. Everyone quietened down when I promised on my honor as a noble.

Man, being a noble really was quite a convenient status because most people will believe you even if you say things with such baseless confidence.

Also, when we revealed that a priest of the church was also going to be dispatched to the territory, everyone’s uneasiness seemed to have greatly been eased. You really can’t underestimate the influence of the church among most of the populace.

“Good work out there, Alan-sama. I’m glad that it all ended smoothly.”

“Yeah. Well, this is also thanks to you and your men’s efforts, Katolle.”

“Not at all. It’s all because your plans were truly wonderful, Alan-sama. The merchants were greatly impressed by your presentation.”

The plans made by Iris were certainly very well thought out. It listed stuff like the daily projected itinerary, who rides in which carriage, which supplies to load, where to load them, and the order of the carriages in question in great detail.

However, I’m also aware that Katolle and his team have been constantly negotiating with different merchants and traders from morning till night with almost no breaks ever since we arrived at the royal capital.

“No matter how many detailed plans one makes, it wouldn’t mean anything if we can’t carry it out. You and your men did very well, Katolle. I’m truly grateful for all your efforts.”

The other Clan members around me were also praising Katolle. All the undisguised praise made Katolle and his merchant team smile proudly from ear to ear.

“It truly was difficult, but we’ve ended up learning a lot from this experience. And thanks to this, I was finally able to raise my merchant rank to A.”

“Hee, well isn’t that amazing? That’s great, Katolle. Good for you.”

It seems Katolle’s guild rank went up because of his work in acting as a window to procure supplies for the expedition. I’m glad he got rewarded for all his hard work.

But then, Walter suddenly rushed inside the conference hall.

“Ria-sama, Alan-sama! I’ve received word that Roberto-dono just arrived in front of the inn along with a single carriage!”

Cleria and Dalshim were surprised by the sudden news.

I thought it would take two days more for Roberto and the 1000 people he brought with him to arrive here, but it looks like they made it earlier than expected. Well, I suppose that’s no surprise. I’m sure they made sure to rush as much as possible.

Cleria wanted to meet with Roberto as soon as she can, so she decided to leave the Commerce Guild building and return to the inn.

Upon arriving back at the inn, we found Roberto and his companions in the dining hall surrounded by the rest of the Clan members. It looks like everyone was asking about the situation in their homeland.

When we headed over, Roberto and his companions hurriedly stood up and then knelt before us. The other people with Roberto were unfamiliar, but judging from their behavior, they should be his attendants.

“It has been so long, Princess. As you can see, we have come over to aid you.”

“Roberto! You must have had a hard journey. Please be seated and let us talk.”

“Princess, forgive me for arbitrarily mobilizing personnel without your permission. I have done something inexcusable. You may deal with me as you wish.”

“I accept your apology. Let us just be thankful that there were no losses this time. However, please make sure to properly get permission next time, alright?”

“Yes, understood. Thank you very much, Your Highness. ……It has been so long, Alan-sama.”

“Yes, truly. Come. Let’s chat while having tea.”

When we took our seats, everyone else surrounded our table, and the dining hall was instantly filled to the brim. It looks like everyone was anxious for news from their homeland.

We proceeded to listen to Roberto’s report. A total of 1052 people were heading to the royal capital. Nearly half of them were part of the late earl’s private army, and the rest were mostly craftsmen who worked under him, plus a number of civilians and ladies-in-waiting.

Cleria then read the report on personnel composition compiled by Roberto.

“What is the meaning of this, Roberto!? There seem to be people who are associated with Count David and Baron Arsenny included in this list?”

“Yes. It seems information about us has somehow leaked out, perhaps due to my inadequate management. People who faced defeat in the hands of the rebels and whose noble houses were crushed underfoot have gathered in the lands of the late earl.

We can probably conclude that news of your survival has reached the ears of the damnable rebels as well.”

“……I see.”

“I have met with the representatives of those fallen houses, and they pledged to send as many men as they can afford if Your Highness decides to raise the call to assemble an army. Of course, I didn’t give them any details about our true situation, but I believe we must relay your will to those people as soon as possible.

And, well…… the relatives of Count David and Baron Arsenny professed their loyalty to the late earl and Your Highness so passionately that I just had no choice but to bring them along with me as well.”

“I see. Then it can’t be helped. However, for those people to appear at this point in time…… What do you think, Alan?”

“Isn’t it fine? It just means that you’re very loved, Ria.

And so, Roberto, how many people are likely to join us in coming to our new territory?”

“A rough estimate would be at least ten thousand people from the earl’s territory. At most, it would be roughly 15,000. We should expect at least 3000 refugees from the other territories among that number. Their numbers will probably not fall below that estimate.”

“Ooh! That many!? That’s great! Then contact them as soon as possible and tell them to start heading to our new territory with all haste.”

“But Alan, Isn’t the housing your men prepared for us only enough for 5,000 to 6,000 people?”

“Nn? Ah, I did say that last time, didn’t I? Don’t worry. By the time we arrive, we should have more than enough room for over 15,000 people.”

“Truly!? Your men can really build dwellings that quickly?”

“We’re nearing the completion of the residential areas, and right now, we’re focusing all our effort on building houses for the citizens. There’s no problem whatsoever.”

“Um…… Alan-sama. It sounds like you have already prepared houses for more than 15,000 people though?”

“Yes, exactly. Taking account the citizen’s family structure, we can easily house more than 15,000 people with room to spare. If we ignored the matter of keeping families in separate houses, we can probably pack in 35,000 to 40,000 people if we tried.”

“Y-You have already managed to build so much…… How wonderful! If so, then I shall contact them through the guild tomorrow and order them to start preparations and depart as soon as they can.”

“Please do so. Oh, right. I almost forgot to tell you something important. Those living in our territory are obliged to attend school until the age of 18. That is something I will not compromise on. Only the ones who can accept that condition may move to the territory. Please be sure to tell them that.”

If possible, I would have liked to extend the age requirement for compulsory education to 25 years old and under, but it seems the general age of adulthood on this planet is 15 years old. As expected, making them go to school until they were 25 years old was unreasonable, so after discussing with Iris, we finalized the age requirement to 18.

Everyone turned speechless. Did they still found 18 to be a bit much? Mm. It looks like the road to compulsory education until 25 years old was still long.

“Um…… Alan-sama. Just what exactly is this ‘school’ you speak of?”

“Oh, sorry. A school is like a private learning institution. It’s a place where you can learn knowledge about a wide range of topics.

I will have those 18 years old and under come to school and learn there basically from morning until evening.”

“………If that’s the case, then would I, Selena, and the others also be obliged to attend?”

“Ah, you, Selena, and Sharon would be exempted, Ria. ……Hm, but maybe that’s not such a bad idea. Alright. You’re free to go if you have time then.”

“I’m sorry, but I think I’ll pass on that, Alan.”

“Me too.”

Selena and Sharon don’t seem to be too thrilled about the prospect of going to school. I dunno. Going to school might surprisingly be fun, guys.

“The citizen’s education is certainly important, but…… It would place too big a burden for those with large families and few among them who can earn money to send their children to school.”

“Ah, it looks like I didn’t explain properly again. All costs incurred that are related to education will be shouldered by the territory’s coffers. You can consider that the basic necessities of those coming to school will be provided for free.”

“Such a thing! If you proceed with such plans, wouldn’t we end up bankrupt before long!?”

“Well, I’m sure it will all work out. If we do somehow end up in the red, I’ll do something about it. That’s fine with you, right, Ria?”

“Of course. I will leave all matters regarding the education of the citizens to you, Alan. That was the promise between Alan and me after all.”

“……I understand. I shall make the proper arrangements.”

“I’ll leave it to you. So, is it safe to say that the rest of the people you brought will be arriving here in the royal capital in two days?”

“……That’s right, Alan-sama. I have instructed them to gather on the clearing right before the capital’s main gate when they arrive in two days.”

“Mm. The clearing in front of the main gate of the royal capital should be large enough to accommodate them. That was a good decision on your part. We better inform the city garrison in advance about their arrival then. Well then, I’m thinking of departing from the capital three days from now. What do you think, everyone?”

I scanned the place and found that no one disagreed.

“Alright then. At dawn three days later, we will all gather at the clearing in front of the royal capital’s main gate and depart for our new territory as soon as preparations are completed. Katolle, notify all involved parties.”

“Yes.”

Katolle and his team immediately left the inn.

Because it was already dinnertime, I decided to continue our discussions as we had our meal. Well, it practically turned into a welcome party for Roberto and the others though.

Let’s have them open a barrel of the special wine I brought with me to the royal capital to liven things up.