Chapter 409: Britz Rises

Nothing beats a gunner corps for stopping a massive cavalry breakthrough head-on. Of course, raising pikemen and light infantry to protect the gunners was essential. Coordination with the duchy army mattered greatly too.

"You and Leonardo put your heads together and design it as a complete industrial city, with efficient traffic flow and storage. Or hire more designers if you need them."

"It is a colossal, staggering plan. May a mere saltpeter specialist like me truly lead such a glorious construction? I-if I were to fail..."

Markus hesitated at length, saying the plan was beyond him.

Fair enough. It was a massive venture that might swallow thousands of gold coins.

"Then bring in experts from every field so you don’t fail. You made contacts even in Breisburg. Surely a man like you has all sorts of connections back home?"

"...I do know a few friends worth calling on."

"Make full use of the experts, then. And in return, I will give you honor."

At the word honor, the look in Markus’s eyes changed. Compensation goes without saying, but honor is another matter entirely. Markus’s disposition is ambitious (good), so all I need to do is feed his desire to rise in the world.

"I’ll name this district Britz, after your family name. You and your descendants will put down roots here and enjoy wealth and honor for generations."

"Britz..."

He murmured it as if savoring the word, and his expression was nothing like the one he’d worn while hesitating.

Every person values different things. For some, money comes first; for others, honor.

Or both.

A burning ambition rose in his eyes.

"Brandenburg has a district devoted to concentrated weapons production as well. I’ll study it and build something finer still. My friends who’ve run out of work will come running the moment I call!"

"Good. I’ll spare no support, so give it everything you have."

Markus sent letters to Brandenburg on the spot. From here on, we would be very busy. Specialized work belongs in the hands of specialists, so I turned my own attention to public order and the people’s daily lives.

A large-scale development like this naturally creates an enormous number of jobs. If we draw in the surplus labor of Breisburg, which is straining under its swollen population, the Administrative Department will be delighted too.

I have always preferred investing and building things up this way over indulging in luxury. It’s also why, among the nobles, I pass for a truly boring aristocrat who almost never throws a banquet.

This is my hobby, and my luxury.

A few days later, Beort returned from Breisach. He brought a letter from the Administrative Minister, and its contents were simple: a mild protest over my abrupt withdrawal of my troops.

"He ought to be grateful I kept the peace there for free. The Capital Sentinel Command dispatched troops, so what does it matter if I take my men back?"

"I believe the Administrative Minister found the duchy troops burdensome."

"True enough. The Military Department’s influence has come to outstrip his these days."

I could sympathize with the Administrative Minister’s position.

The pecking order had flipped, running Military, Judicial, Administrative, then Finance. They say that once the Viscount Neunil family collapsed under the massive losses of the Breisach affair, court politics descended into chaos.

I still haven’t sent the viscount’s family my bill.

If I slap them with it later, once I’ve caught my breath, there’ll be another uproar for sure.

"By the way, you used to take subcontracts from the bureaucrats. How does it feel to have worked alongside the very top of that bureaucracy?"

"All this glory is thanks to you, Baron. No, my liege."

His respect for me seems to have grown even deeper. He said that standing shoulder to shoulder with the Administrative Minister, a man he’d never dared even look at before, and solving Breisach’s security problems was an incredible experience.

"You must have learned a great deal under the Administrative Minister."

"Not directly, but it’s true that I picked up something of his methods."

Beort radiated confidence. And that confidence vanished without a trace the moment he heard the grand design I’d drawn up around Vintenheim. His eyes trembled.

"I-it’s far too heavy a charge for me."

"Didn’t you just say you’d picked up the Administrative Minister’s methods?"

I clapped Beort on the shoulders, which had slumped even further.

I reassured him, telling him not to worry, that the estate manager and administrator would be there to help.

"...Where are Sir Ferke and Sir Drek?"

"I sent Sir Ferke to Moltheim, and Drek is hard at work training under Viktor. For your reference, Moltheim is a border village that’s going to become the center of the Baschurten dispute."

"Please entrust Vintenheim to me!"

Better Vintenheim than Moltheim the powder keg, I suppose. As for Hissen, that other powder keg, I sent August to inspect it, and I decided to keep the estate managers of Denmach and Neudenburg in their posts.

Perhaps deciding that working under me beat returning to the Administrative Department, they took the initiative to compile and send me their records as estate managers, along with the opinions of the people.

They had managed their lands without major trouble, so I decided to retain them. Even so, I intend to organize a separate inspector unit to police corruption and crime throughout the domain and to keep continuous watch on whether the managers are doing their jobs properly.

And Ferke and Beort are no exceptions either.

Hmm, entrusting the inspector unit to Drek might not be a bad idea.

That way they can all keep each other in check.

"We have issued the proclamation as you instructed."

"Well done. How did the people react?"

"They seem to place their full faith in it, Master."

"Do they? That’s a relief. Now Ralph can finally come home."

Ralph, who had been working as our gunpowder manager, had been unable to return to his hometown of Vintenheim after the Lydia affair branded him a family murderer. So I nullified that unjust sentence.

Fortunately, the people of Vintenheim had come to trust the lord who so swiftly restored their town’s safety, so no one doubted or disputed the proclamation.

The Vintenheim church, too, quietly reversed its position and struck down the ruling that had condemned him. Digging in their heels against the most powerful man in Rosenheim must have been too heavy a burden to bear.

With the arrival of the reinforcements sent by Viktor and Barosi, public order around Vintenheim returned to normal. As expected, bandits targeting the merchants had been running rampant, but the Gale Knights suppressed them swiftly and kept the merchants safe.

Through these efforts, we managed to win the merchants’ trust.

And favorable rumors began to spread among them.

"The lord of Rosenheim favors merchants and pours real effort into keeping the peace."

"He’s investing an enormous sum in Vintenheim to build a harbor."

"He’s negotiating with Breisburg to lower the tariffs."

That last rumor I spread myself, deliberately. It’s true that I discussed tariffs with the Administrative Minister, after all. Rumors like these alone will make merchants favor Vintenheim over routes through other territories.

"Ohh, I never imagined that little fishing village would be bustling with this many ships."

"I heard you’d gone back to Strasbourg. It’s been a while."

Wenzenberg, the merchant of Strasbourg, had come to visit Vintenheim. This merchant, who sold us gunpowder and made a tidy fortune as the exclusive dealer of our spoils of war, was still chasing his next profit.

Wenzenberg made a serious proposal.

"My lord, I would like to establish myself in Vintenheim."

"Spotted Vintenheim’s potential and want to stake your claim early?"

"That too, but the situation in Strasbourg is looking ominous."

Essenbach holds sway over Strasbourg, but ever since civil war broke out in the Palatinate Wittelsbach family, Offenburg’s soldiers have been massing at the fortress across from the city.

And around that same time, an ambassador from the Duchy of Roden made contact with the various families.

Most notably, the queen’s family, the Gwendirentes.

"It seems war is going to break out very soon."