“Um, even if there are people who wish to move, wouldn’t it be impossible to move them straight away?” asked Renge.
“Yes, they are, after all, Yanga’s citizens. But that does not mean that we can allow them to stay here permanently until a new Viscount is selected,” Ash responded. That’s why we had been treating them as guests up until then. They were still Yanga’s citizens, so we couldn’t ask them to go work for other lords.
“That is why I ask you to treat this as them working in order to earn their keep while they take refuge. If they cultivate the fields, that means that there will be more for them to eat,” Ash continued.
“I guess if it has to be that way then...will the surrounding territories accept that?”
“Good question. If Sacula is the only territory accepting immigrants, there will be a lot of complaints.”
I had asked around to find out if the refugees would want to help out with farm work, but they all said that they would rather help in their own way. They seemed wary of central region nobles and cautious of the remote regional nobles as well. Ash, who wanted to put a stop to that, gave a wicked smile as he changed the subject.
“I wish to continue exchanging technologies within the Frontier Alliance. We’ve certainly got useful farming techniques to offer. It seems the exchange students had a lot of good things to say about it, right, Lady Suiren?”
“Oh? Ah, right, yeah, all of the exchange students were saying that they wanted to try it out in their home territory...”
As I was the Territory Reform Promotion Office’s Advanced Agricultural Technology Officer, I had been drowning in questions regarding our farming tech. Viscount Sukuna had asked for ways to cultivate produce in order to help promote tourism, and Baron Nepton had asked for farming techniques that would be fit for a coastal region. While I did have answers for them, it was hard to explain, and we also couldn’t know for sure whether they worked. Even if they asked me to teach them or go to their territory and show them how to do it, we couldn’t just stay there teaching for years. Suddenly, I realized something.
“Wait, I get it now. If the immigrants were taught Sacula’s new and inventive farming techniques, then Frontier Alliance territories would welcome them with open arms.”
I wonder how that would go... The residents of Ajole village, for instance, were now regarded highly in Sacula, sometimes even being scouted for other territories.
“We have gone a little off-topic,” Ash said, interrupting my chain of thought. “Lady Renge, it should be noted that Sacula does not plan to have a full monopoly over those who wish to migrate.”
“Y-Yes. As expected of you, As— Ah, uh, Chief Ash. I don’t think there’ll be any complaints.”
It seemed there was a lot to consider if we were to distribute refugees elsewhere, but if it were skilled workers we were sending, it seemed there would be some merit to being careful about it. Food is incredibly important, after all.
“It is not just me, after all. It’s a result of everything you two, as well as Lord Hermes and Lady Reina, have achieved as a team in the Territory Reform Promotion Office.”
I felt myself grin hearing that. I gotta go tell everyone from Ajole. Not only will this help us restore the village, but we’ll also be able to help everyone else too.
“The skilled workers do not need to just be limited to agricultural work. There are bound to be wood and metal workers among the refugees,” Ash continued. “There should also be a good amount of youngsters with no specific trade but are still able to carry out manual labor.” As far as I knew, there were a lot of people like that. I had already asked the craftsmen for help before, and it was often the case that those with more strength were always at the center of disturbances. I remembered that Ailos seemed quite strong, and he had enough energy to cause a ruckus last time. Glen is stronger, though.
“I do have plans to improve trade routes throughout the Frontier Alliance, so if we teach the refugees how to pave roads, they will become even more popular than the agricultural workers. Incidentally, we’ll also be able to develop our trade routes even further while we research how to make paved roads. We can also use them to help rebuild the Yanga region.”
Ash chuckled to himself, seeming pleased. “Since road paving comes under trade, then would it be okay to leave the agricultural side of things to you, Lady Suiren?”
“Yes, of course! I worked hard for this very moment! Please leave it to me!” I wouldn’t allow him to pass this over to anyone else. This was my work as an agricultural instructor. I wonder how many refugees will take part? I should make sure a lot of people join. My first objective is to teach them how to grow their own food.
“We could expand the experimental farms in the suburbs. But if that isn’t enough, we would need an area where it’s easy for the refugees to gather—like the cultivable land near Fort Phoenix,” I continued. “Then lastly, we have areas of land within the territory suitable for agricultural work. I guess that kind of order would be all right? As for candidates...”
There wasn’t a lot of land that was readily available—the parts that already had people working on them. But although there weren’t many options...there was one piece of land within Sacula that would work just fine. I wonder if I should say it. It might cause a commotion. I had a little glance at Ash’s expression. Ash nodded back to me, implying that he already knew about it.
“Ajole village would make for a perfect candidate. Please put that on the list for consideration.”
“All right!”
This can’t be real. I thought I wouldn’t be able to go back to my hometown for a few more years. I had already accepted that it was something I’d have to leave until later—I never thought I’d go back due to the refugee crisis. Feeling there was nothing I could do, I just kept running, accepting I would have to leave it for now and not think about restoring my village. But once I’d finished running, Ajole village was there waiting for me. I’ve gotta let the others know. They’re gonna be so happy. There were probably people who would stay here, especially those who had gotten married or worked as mentors. Not everyone could return home—that much was expected. Even then, everyone is going to be overjoyed. We don’t have to abandon Ajole—we can bring it back to life. They can wear it as a badge of pride, evidence of us getting stronger. I wonder what the fields are like back in Ajole? They were probably all destroyed. They were probably even worse than they were before Ash came.
We worked so hard when Ash was dragging us around. We worked hard to cultivate the fields with our own hands. The refugees who will receive agricultural mentorship will probably go through the same experience. But if I was able to withstand it, they’ll be fine. The main issue was whether we had enough food to last until the fields were functional. Back in Ajole, Ash oversaw the fields, but now it was up to me. We don’t really have any extra food, clothes, or...
While I pondered over what to do, Lady Maika came up to us. She had a letter from the royal capital with a stamp I was very used to seeing.
“Ash, Mr. Quid gave me this letter. It’s from Alici— Her Highness the Princess.” She was our royal benefactor who always provided us with supplies. I hoped one day to meet her so that I could thank her directly. Ash’s smile deepened when he looked at the letter.
“We have just received some fantastic news, everyone.”
Ash informed us, quite proudly, that the princess had been working within the capital to ensure we’d receive relief supplies. For some reason, even Maika looked like she was full of pride. She looked as if he were talking about her personally. I found it odd, but I was more focused on the contents of the letter.
“That’d be a big help! Now that I’m thinking about it, we are going to need a lot of different items for the agricultural tutors!” I said.
“Yes. Although I cannot say how much we will receive, with the Church helping us, I think it is safe to assume it’ll be adequate,” said Ash. “As expected of the princess, she was able to navigate the capital and deliver such fast results.” Maika nodded enthusiastically alongside him.
“Not to mention, if we can get a new Yanga leader elected, we could begin negotiations to rebuild the damaged villages and towns. We might even be able to get some refugees back home,” Maika added.
It seemed Ash had his eyes on the goal. Although I couldn’t yet see it, I wanted to do all I could to keep up with Ash so that I could someday see it too. Actually, I’ll just keep going anyway. I knew it was going to be hard. But I also knew that an abundant future was waiting for me at the end.