NOVEL WEB Ch. 46
Chapter 46
After the short but content-rich meeting concluded.
Leonardo roughly organized the documents and asked Heinshtangl and Jereuth.
“Do you have any other matters to discuss?”
To the absolute ruler’s question, Jereuth answered firmly, and Heinshtangl, slightly surprised.
“I do not.”
“Uh, I do not.”
“Then you may return now. You must have much to do.”
“Yes, Your Highness. Then I shall take my leave.”
“I shall also take my leave.”
At Leonardo’s words, Jereuth and Heinshtangl immediately bowed politely and left the room.
Jereuth’s steps were light, but Heinshtangl’s were somehow heavy.
Jereuth lightly tapped Heinshtangl’s shoulder and laughed.
Tap—.
“Heinshtangl, what are you so worried about? You were trembling so much that I could feel it standing next to you.”
“Ah… I, I apologize.”
“No need to apologize. So, why were you trembling so much?”
Heinshtangl didn't know how to answer Jereuth’s question. He was contemplating whether to honestly say he was worried about the tyrant Leonardo becoming king, or whether he should hold his tongue.
‘What should I say…’
After a moment of contemplation, Heinshtangl decided to honestly state his concerns. He thought that no matter how much Jereuth was now called the ‘Tyrant’s Sword,’ as the knight commander who had protected the kingdom his whole life, he would understand his concerns.
Heinshtangl carefully opened his mouth.
“…I trembled because I was afraid of His Highness.”
“Afraid of His Highness? Of what?”
“I was afraid of his stratagem. The idea of rebuilding the kingdom using the army and thereby making the foundation of all the kingdom’s industries his own—His Highness said it so nonchalantly, but honestly, who would think of such a thing?”
“So you’re saying you’re afraid because His Highness is too outstanding?”
“That’s part of it, but……. More than anything, I was worried about His Highness trying to hold all the power of the kingdom by himself. There has never been such a king in our kingdom’s history.”
At Heinshtangl’s cautious words, Jereuth let out a hollow laugh.
“Well, I don’t think what you should be afraid of is His Highness’s ability or the fact that he holds all the power. What you should be afraid of is your own future.”
“My future? D-don’t tell me, because I have these thoughts, His Highness will execute me—.”
“That’s not it. Why do you keep thinking His Highness will kill you?”
The words 「“Because he killed dozens, hundreds of people in a single day.”」
—remained only in Heinshtangl’s throat. Heinshtangl didn't have the guts to say such a thing, even as a joke.
Jereuth continued to speak.
“I don’t know if you’re aware, but there’s a saying among soldiers on the battlefield. ‘If the commander is incompetent, the soldiers die. If the commander is competent, the soldiers cannot die.’”
“I understand what it means for soldiers to die if the commander is incompetent, but what does it mean that they cannot die if the commander is competent? Not being able to die means living, isn’t that a good thing?”
“On the battlefield, living isn’t always a good thing. Sometimes it’s so hard and painful that dying is better.”
“…”
“But if the commander is competent, the soldiers cannot die for that much longer and must roam the battlefield with that commander. In other words, they have to keep suffering with a competent commander.”
“So… are you saying, Commander, that I am in that exact situation?”
“That’s right. You are in that exact predicament right now. A soldier named ‘Heinshtangl’ who has caught the eye of the competent commander, Prince Leonardo.”
“…”
“Perhaps, from now on, you might not even be able to sleep properly because of the work His Highness entrusts to you. You might see His Highness’s face more than your wife’s. Hahaha!”
Jereuth’s words, to put it simply, meant 「“Heinshtangl, you’re going to suffer like a dog from now on.”」 At those words, Heinshtangl, while relieved that his life was safe, felt his mind go blank at the thought of his arduous future.
“Ah…”
A dazed feeling flowed out of Heinshtangl’s mouth.
It was an ‘ah’ filled with various meanings.
***
After Jereuth and Heinshtangl left the room.
I finished eating the simple meal of sandwiches and other things that Elly had brought me.
Elly had said she would bring fresh food since it had gotten cold, but I wasn’t one to care about such things, so I said it was fine and ate it all. It was delicious.
“Then I will clear the dishes.”
“Yes, thank you.”
Elly left the room with the empty plates.
I remained seated at the desk and took out the
‘The policy of rebuilding the kingdom using the army. I decided to proceed with it as it seems to be the wisest method for now, but I need to check if it will be properly applied in the future.’
No matter how excellent a policy is, problems are bound to arise. A perfect policy absolutely cannot exist.
So, a small problem wouldn’t matter. But if a big problem were to arise, I might have to reconsider the ‘policy of rebuilding the kingdom using the army’ from scratch.
‘Well… since this policy itself is based on the thoughts of my future self, there probably won’t be any major problems.’
As I thought, I opened the
The future closest to the present.
….
A week after I issued my policy to Jereuth and Heinshtangl.
Heinshtangl brought the budget proposal for recruiting new soldiers and for agricultural and commercial reconstruction.
Fortunately, the budget plan Heinshtangl brought was not very complicated. Thanks to my studies in general and government accounting in college, I could understand it without much difficulty.
According to the budget plan Heinshtangl brought, the maximum number of troops I could newly conscript was 4,000. However, Heinshtangl proposed conscripting only 1,500 new soldiers for now. This was because there were currently not enough knights and experienced soldiers to train such a large force of 4,000.
Heinshtangl glanced at me as he mentioned conscripting only 1,500. He seemed worried that I might be displeased with conscripting a number smaller than the maximum possible.
But contrary to Heinshtangl’s concerns, I felt that even 1,500 was a lot.
‘The current population of the royal capital is approximately 23,000. Considering that the limit for a standing army in a typical medieval civilization was 0.5% to 1%... 1,500 is a very large number. 1,500 out of roughly 20,000 is a whopping 7.5%.’
Of course, in a normal situation, conscripting so many soldiers would surely cause problems in agriculture or commerce. But since all those soldiers would be put into agriculture and commerce, I didn't think I needed to worry about such problems.
After reviewing various things, I told Heinshtangl to proceed with the plan as prepared.
That was all that was written on this page.
‘Out of a maximum of 4,000 that can be conscripted, only 1,500 were conscripted. It should be fine, right? The reason is valid, and it’s better to save the budget as much as possible.’
I continued to read the next page.
….
As soon as my permission was granted, Jereuth began preparing for the new soldier conscription according to Heinshtangl’s budget plan. Even while preparing, Jereuth and Heinshtangl continued to worry that the people of the royal capital might not volunteer for the army.
No matter how good the conditions I proposed for recruitment were, they thought that not many people would volunteer for the ‘army’ so soon after the war had ended.
Time passed, and the day of recruitment arrived.
And contrary to Jereuth and Heinshtangl’s concerns, the people of the royal capital appeared like a cloud at the news of the conscription.
The conditions I proposed for recruitment—‘not being dragged into war for the time being,’ receiving ‘appropriate training and corresponding rewards,’ and being ‘mainly deployed to farms, markets, and other constructions, not dangerous battlefields’—felt extremely groundbreaking to the people of the royal capital.
But looking at the atmosphere, it seemed that many people would have applied for the army even without such groundbreaking conditions. Because most of the people of the royal capital were ready to do anything to make a living.
From the heads of households who had to feed their families to orphans not yet ten years old who had lost their parents in the war.
All the poor and unemployed of the royal capital had gathered. To become soldiers.
That was all of the newly written content for now.
‘Hmm, so far, so good.’
The
Of course, the reason was not out of loyalty to me, but ‘to make a living,’ but still, the fact that they came voluntarily was something.
‘Hmm, the fact that children not yet ten years old also volunteered is a bit of a problem.’
I would not put such young children in the army. There was the reason that they were not suited for the army due to their young age, but realistically, in a situation where even strong adults were competing to become soldiers, I could not give those spots to weak children.
The problem was that if I turned away all the orphans, they would inevitably go back to living by pickpocketing and committing various crimes. I was sure of it, as I had heard from Yoanna before about how orphans lived.
‘Hmm… let’s think about this problem later. I can’t solve everything at once.’
As I was having that thought.
Scribble, scribble, scribble—.
New content began to be written in the diary. As I decided to think about the ‘children’s’ problem later, it seemed to be showing the results of the choice that excluded it.
….
After the recruitment of 1,500 new soldiers was completed.
I decided to use the food stored by the nobles in the royal palace and their mansions for the immediate military provisions needed by the new soldiers.
For weapons and equipment, I decided to use what was left over from the war with the demons. The weapons and equipment left over from the war were not in great condition, but it was Jereuth’s opinion that they were sufficient for training purposes.
Although the immediate provisions and weapons were secured, we would continue to need food and weapons in the future. So, Heinshtangl reported to me that he would purchase the necessary items for the army, such as military provisions and supplies, from the merchants he knew. Having an official from a merchant noble family was convenient in many ways.
Until then, everything seemed to be going according to Heinshtangl’s plan.
But… the merchants did not move as Heinshtangl had hoped. When the royal family suddenly tried to buy a huge amount of military provisions and weapons with a massive budget, the merchants saw it as ‘an opportunity to make money’ and colluded to raise the prices.
Heinshtangl couldn't dare to complain to me about his troubles, and in the end, after agonizing over it alone, he eventually gave in to the merchants’ excessive demands. This meant he gave the merchants more money than was planned.
If Heinshtangl had been a ‘scary noble,’ this would not have happened. But because Heinshtangl was a kind-hearted, gentle, and capable but ‘pushover noble,’ this disaster occurred.
If I had known in advance that the merchants had colluded, I would have put harsh pressure on them on behalf of Heinshtangl. The future of this kingdom was at stake with the army-building policy, and I had no intention of letting those who interfered with it go unpunished.
Jereuth was furious that the merchants had dared to rip me off on the prices.
But it was all in the past. The contract between the royal family and the merchants had been signed.
I could overturn the contract by force if I wanted to… but I didn’t want to take the risk of causing problems for the ‘army-building’ policy, which was proceeding well.
Right now, the success of the policy was more important than money.
That was the newly written content. Not bad, but it left a bitter taste.
‘Everything was going according to plan. But because the merchants colluded, I ended up spending more money than expected… is that it?’
To be honest, it was a bit surprising to me that the merchants dared to collude against the royal family. They must have seen what happened to the thugs and wicked merchants who got on my bad side, yet they still tried to rip off the royal family.
‘Hmm… no. The merchants might not have been trying to rip off the royal family, but they might have looked down on Heinshtangl.’
It was written in the diary. To the merchants, Heinshtangl was a capable but kind-hearted and gentle ‘pushover noble.’
With such a person as their trading partner, the merchants would have taken the lead and done as they pleased.
‘And for Heinshtangl, the pressure to make my policy succeed would have forced him to give in to the merchants’ demands as much as possible. He would have worried that if the provisions and equipment were delayed, it would disrupt my policy, and the blame would fall on him.’
It seems that the future Heinshtangl suffered a lot, caught between me and the merchants.
Looking up at me, and down, placating the merchants. I wonder if he didn't lose his hair.
Anyway.
‘Securing military provisions and supplies from the merchants is a very important element of my policy. So I need to empower Heinshtangl so that he can be in an advantageous position when negotiating with the merchants.’
Simply put, I had to put pressure on the merchants so they wouldn't look down on Heinshtangl. To make the merchants listen to Heinshtangl’s words well.
Although I thought of ‘pressuring’ the merchants, I had no intention of threatening or intimidating them. I was a person who respected the free market economy and a crown prince, not a thug.
‘There’s no good in persecuting merchants, or corporations, for the development of the nation.’
I would just have a moderately peaceful ‘conversation’ with the merchants. Like an intellectual. For real.
‘Well… even if I try to have a peaceful conversation, if the merchants keep acting out of line, then I’ll have to act like a thug too.’
Clack—.
With these thoughts, I closed the
‘First, I’ll have to invite the merchants to the royal castle. And to the knights—.’
I wrote down my plan on a piece of paper.
To persecute… no, to threaten… no, to have a ‘healthy and productive conversation for the future’ with the merchants.
***
About an hour passed. In that time, I had formulated a complete plan for the ‘healthy and productive conversation for the future’ with the merchants.
I reviewed the plan one last time. Then, I spoke to Elly, who was standing quietly in a corner of the room, watching me.
“Lady Elly, please tell Sir Heinshtangl to summon all the remaining merchants in the royal capital to the royal castle. Tell them I have something special to say to them.”
Technically, the merchants had not yet colluded to interfere with my policy and Heinshtangl’s plan.
However, since the
So that they wouldn't dare to look down on Heinshtangl, who followed my commands.
‘I hope the merchants don’t get too scared. I am a rational person, after all.’